Wednesdays

I have two classes that are reserved strictly on Wednesdays; Career Perspectives and Film as Literature.

I had high expectations of Film for obvious reasons, and equally high expectations of Perspectives because Minnick is teaching it. First impressions?

Well, Film was kind of a letdown really. I know it's the first day and all, but I was getting the impression that the professor wasn't too psyched to be back in classes. We're starting with Dracula and vampire films; my understanding is we'll be reading the book and watching at least three movies based upon it. I've never been a fan of vampires, so I'm kinda iffy. Our other two books are The Great Gatsby and Heart of Darkness, both of which I've read and neither of which I liked, so take that as you will.

Career Perspectives meanwhile, was at least interesting. Our first day was spent talking to a lawyer and how it can relate to the field we're in. I have no intention of going to law school given my poor people skills, but it was neat to simply listen. We have a schedule of speakers coming in over the semester, including people in education, web design, advertising, different places we can take an English degree. The bulk of our work though, is going to be concentrated on building a portfolio.

My case is a bit odd as a transfer student who is behind on credits, so I'm not entirely sure what I'll be submitting even though the guidelines are clearly spelled out on the syllabus. I can't submit anything from Composition for example, because I didn't take that at UALR. I'll need at least four papers though, and some creative writing stuff. I don't think it will be terribly difficult, but the evaluation portion has the potential to be problematic, again because I didn't do all of these things at UALR. I'm not sure how I'm going to work around all of that yet.

I actually do enjoy self-evaluation and reflective assignments, I've just never had one this intensive. And I've never had to cite my own papers to write a paper o_O

Postcard Fiction

I wrote it a thousand times on my 1940’s typewriter, practiced the words mentally a million times, mouthed the sentence into my pillow every night for years – but only said it once, aloud, to your casket.

I enjoy one-sentence flash fic. This one was prompted by the photo one one of these cute little postcards I ordered that came in yesterday. Part of that project I mentioned last entry, that I've decided to name Postcard Fiction. I'm really enjoying the idea a lot now that I've had time to mull it over more. I have so many cards now, and I bought a few stamps to play with and I think I can have a bit of fun to pass around throughout the year.

First Day Back

You know how you get good ideas at weird times? That happened to me last night.

I went to bed early like a good student is supposed to; 2 AM, I'm still awake, and I think to myself I should have written some postcards to stuff in the professor's mailboxes. Instead of rolling over and ignoring the impulse, I realized it actually was a good idea, got up, fished out a card, and wrote a welcome back message for Dr. Minnick. But only one since it was so late.

I've since written one to the new linguistics professor, welcoming him to campus, and I've had time to refine the idea after some stuff in Adolescent Lit. But I'll get there momentarily.

My day began with History of the English Language (the one the new professor is teaching). My first impressions are that it's going to be a rigorous course, but an interesting one. After the usual syllabus stuff, we got to do some decoding with runic script, which was pretty neat. It's hard to say from one class if I'm going to like it or not - if it is going to be a lot of decoding like that, it might get old quickly. Then again, I do like puzzles. We'll see.

Next up is Algebra. The first day was not promising - we couldn't get into the classroom. On the bright side, we left quickly.

Approaches to Literature seems pretty fun so far. My initial impression was of an easy A. I think it will be a mostly reading and discussion sort of class, which tend to be my favorites. And we're reading Calvino in there later this year and I believe I've made my love of Calvino clear in the past <3

And thus we come to Adolescent Literature and I don't need to tell anyone how much I love this class. I enjoy the books, I enjoy the discussions, I love the professor - I'm here for the fun of it.

I've mentioned Minnick and I were swapping writing projects back and forth, and today he made a point of starting class with a close reading of a piece of flash fiction because he knew I would be there. Which is where I got a second idea for my postcard thing - he loves flash fic and one-sentence stories and all those really brief forms of writing. In short, fragments. So I've like to write a new one on a postcard say, every week, and stuff it in his mailbox. One of the names for flash fiction is "postcard fiction," so it's rather satisfying that way. And I do have an abundance of postcards now that I've started to make my own.

I dunno, *I* thought it was a neat idea. And it'll keep me in a bit of practice.

WordPress?

I know a few people over there, and I did go ahead and make an account in case I ever need to use it, but are there any opinions out there? I like Blogger okay, but I'd hate to miss out on something better. And I know a few of my watchers have accounts here because of my encouragement XD

It seems like they're equally easy to get used to, though from what I can tell WordPress does have more features. I'd hate to switch after using this one so much though - there's an entire semester and summer of posts here after all. Thoughts?

Making Postcards

(Mostly for some of the deviantART people XD)

Since postcards have been difficult to find around here, I've decided to invest in making my own. I went to a craft store on Tuesday to browse for some ideas and walked out with a stack of scrapbook paper. I was interested in the stamp section, but stamps are apparently ridiculously expensive. I kinda knew that, but not really. Luckily, I have a birthday coming up in September.

Some of the cards I've made so far:

 

 

   

 

 

See one you like? Note me (on dA) with an address =D I love sending mail <3

Painting

Made these in today's church/ art class thing. Mine is the green one - the purple is my Mom's. I hear next time we're painting a coffee cup.

I'm not particularly proud of it or anything, but it is growing on me. I've nowhere to put it, but I do kinda like how the tree turned out. We were supposed to paint a flower in the middle, but I wasn't feeling the flower.

Daily Deviation

Or, Why I Nearly Fell Out of Bed This Morning.

I can't explain how ridiculously pleased I am to have landed a DD on Superimpose. I am so grateful for this. Not that I was any less grateful for the honor on Recycled Dreams but this - this is personal. This was lifted right from the past six months or so. It means more to me than Recycled Dreams did, and more than most of the things in my gallery come to that.

I've had the pleasure of being good friends with an absolutely wonderful, amazing teacher these past few months. I love the guy and look up to him a lot and he's just been so encouraging to me in regards to writing and trying to point me in the right direction. I'm glad I grew enough spine to give him the piece - usually, I keep my work more or less to myself (outside of online of course, where I'm always under the guise of a certain amount of anonymity). I can't recall anyone else who's ever asked to read more things from me just because, not as part of a class. He's always been so kind to me and taken the time to chat even when he's busy. That guidance means a lot to me.

I was in the English lounge on Thursday, which was when he told me he would be the new Associate Dean and wouldn't be doing much teaching before long. I really am happy for him and he seemed excited about the prospect, even though I really would have loved to keep taking classes under him. It won't effect Fall semester though, so I still have one more round of Adolescent Lit. and I'm taking his Career Perspectives class as well. Maybe I'll have something to add on to Superimpose before Christmas break.

Even if I don't see him as much in the course of his new role, I'm really happy to have known him as a professor. A dean or someone in that kind of position seems kinda unapproachable, and I wouldn't have had a reason to meet them anyway.

I'm getting kinda rambly because I'm not entirely sure how to say all the things I want to say. I feel like I've learned a lot, though most of it was outside of the classroom and I guess he kinda became something of a mentor figure to me without me ever really noticing it. I know he'll be busier than ever as the Associate Dean, but if he ever has a few minutes to spare, I hope he'll continue being that person. And that I can still help out with his writing project =)

Item Get

Usually when I'm on the hunt for a particular item, I have a hard time finding exactly what it is I want. One thing is the right size, but the wrong color, good material, but too expensive, and so on. Today was a moment of serendipity.

My postcard collection has been growing, and I needed a place to begin keeping them. This was perfect. I loved the postal theme when I saw it and sprang the six bucks. I feel very accomplished.

Eventually I need to catalog my postcards here as well XD

Journey

I've been after this game, Journey, for quite a while, and I finally got my PS3 back from my brother last night. I used the opportunity to cash in the PSN card I had stashed away and downloaded this sucker.

This game you guys. This. Game.

I'd heard nothing but good things about it from day one, so my expectations were high. Not nearly high enough as it turns out, because it is stunning. I've already played it though twice. I can't think of a single criticism against the game, and I consider myself fairly nitpicky.

I've been following the Art and Indie game scene for a while as they tend to produce some of my favorite games (Braid, anything from Team Ico), and Journey is another one for the list. The minimalistic approach is fantastic - I felt like I was watching storytelling in its purest form. The lack of words, names, dialogue sounds like it should produce a dulled experience but it doesn't; the game simply doesn't need any of it. Centuries of stories have conditioned us to understand exactly what the game wants us to do without having to be told "Do this." I never questioned how I was going to get to the mountain or why I was going there or what that shining beacon at the top was or what all those ruins were - I only knew I had a goal to be reached. It taps into something on an almost ancient level.

Which isn't to say all the usual game mechanics are lacking - not at all. The lack of elements only means that what you do have will stand out all the more if it's flawed. Luckily, someone must have spent long hours polishing every facet of this game. The visuals, the music, the mechanics - everything works together beautifully. The graphics alone are enough to evoke emotional responses, from an empty desert to the sun shining on the sand. I could stand around and look at it all day. I especially love the dusty lighting of the pseudo-water levels. But there honestly aren't enough words to describe the environment; you just have to play it and watch it move and shift and interact with everything. Videos and screenshots just won't cut it.

But seriously, every screenshot is this gorgeous.

The movement on the sand and of the cloth is a (seemingly) small thing perhaps, but if you know anything about animation, you should know how difficult it is to animate things with that kind of fluidity. Here, it all feels right - sand is supposed to shift and move when you take a step. Cloth ripples. Flight is supposed to be fun, uplifting. Nothing has been overlooked, no detail is too small to skim on the polish.

What I think really gets to people though it the immersion and the emotional response. There is no menu, no items to carry, no gamertags. It sucks you right into the world and doesn't let go until the journey is over (about two hours or so). I went into the game cold, so I didn't know about the multiplayer function. I wasn't sure if the fellow robed figures I met were part of the game or actual players - then, at the end, the screen  reveals who you have been playing with the entire time. The revelation was surprisingly touching for me; I don't usually play online, so it kinda took the rug out from under my feet as it were. I'm not used to players acting like decent human beings within a game XD

I mentioned earlier about the lack of dialogue; while there is no talking, there is a story of sorts. I won't go into it much, but it is a very interesting one, told entirely through images. Again, it does not cheapen the effect - you simply get it. If anything, speaking would dilute the effect. Even something simple as a name would have the potential to assign a gender, an age, race, species to your character. Ignoring all of those things makes for a universally accessible experience. The story is exactly what you interpret it as. Me, I read a lot about the rise and fall of civilization and quite a lot more about how people are bonded together. I've made my Internet rounds and there are plenty of reactions out there to read.

But there is one aspect I'm not entirely sure how to put into words, though I'll try my darnedest anyway. The game is about a lot of things, but if the title is anything to go by, it's about the journey most of all. The Hero's Journey stripped down to it's barest minimum. The game is full of moments that have this joy to them - like they exist for no other reason than to create something beautiful. It's just pure and simple fun to fly around and play with the scarf-banner-magic-carpet-dragon things (I have no idea what the things you encounter are, but they're damn cute). It's one of those things where the experience is what matters, not the game or the story or any of its parts. I don't know what else to call it except awesome.

Tinkering

Today I signed the graduation paperwork - once I pass Algebra with a "D" or higher, I'll have an Associate's Degree in General Studies.

It was very anti-climactic.

Right now I've almost got my schedule where I want it, but I'd like to work in at least one more class. I'm currently signed up for a math class close to home in the evenings, but two of the classes I was really wanting to take are also in that time slot. I can move the math, but to a less convenient time :/

I have to have the math. I can't not pass it this semester. It's the one thing I absolutely need. I'm hoping to consult with someone about the scheduling issues later next week to see what I can fit into mine.