Monday, March 29, 2010

Casey Property Trip

Fifteen Observations:

1. Beaver Chew
2. Barbed wire completely surrounding property
3. Freshwater clam shells
4. Two dead raccoons, both turned upside down.
5. Fish head at the top of the bluff.
6. Deer carcass in ditch.
7. Two tree stands in trees.
8. Large thorns on bark of tree (name unknown).
9. Large creek.
10. Dam letting water into creek.
11. Beaver dam.
12. Large ISU vans.
13. Field that could potentially be turned into prairie.
14. Undergrowth
15. Tree trunk without bark.

Memorable Moment:

I particularly enjoyed watching people strive to cross the creek via tree trunk without falling in. It was very amusing to watch. I also enjoyed walking around and looking at small details such as finding fish heads far from the creek, beaver chew, clam shells. Also, seeing a bald eagle was cool. Very enjoyable trip. Would do again.

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Spring Break Snapshot

Day 7: Winchester, Kentucky

After the show we parked ourselves outside of the house in which we would be staying. We walked inside with noodles,bread, and sauce at hand. Ready for a cheap, fulfilling dinner. We placed our sleeping bags, bags, and pillows in Reid's room. Who is Reid? I don't know either. All I know is that he had an xbox and a list of alcohol he wanted to buy on his desk which was cleverly titled "Reid's alcohol list." We ate our dinner while more and more people we didn't know filled the house. Around 3 AM, finally fed up with the drunks taking over the house, Shawn, Christian, and I decided to retreat for the van in order to get some much needed sleep. We all hated cigarette smoke anyways. The loft, the bench, and guitar cabs were used as three beds. Our safe place. The next morning we were awoken by the bright lights of a police car. The officer was very kind, just concerned since we had somehow managed to park our sketchy 12 passenger van right across from a pedophile's house. The social worker living across the street was concerned that he had friends, but we told the officer the truth and were on our way, headed towards Nashville. All we wanted to do was play music.

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Wendell Berry - Manifesto: The Mad Farmer Liberation Front

In the poem Manifesto: The Mad Farmer Liberation Front, Wendell Berry talks about a return to nature and loving it more than anything. Denouncing society and everything you are supposed to love and embracing what nature has given us. Every line he talks about a different element such as nature, the government, women, a family, and he uses that as a guide for how to love the world and how to do it simply by embracing nature or the farm. He wants us to love the world like he does, and this poem is fairly convincing. After reading it, I think it is one of my favorite poems that I have read this semester.

Monday, March 8, 2010

Sandra Steingraber - Having Faith

In Having Faith, Sandra Steingraber mainly focuses on substance to involve the reader and persuade them to listen to what she has to say. A large part of the short story involves Sandra talking about the research that has been done on chemicals and their effects on children who have been breast fed. In order to appeal to the audience, there is a substantial amount of writing about her own daughter. She shares her child's different landmarks such as learning to crawl and learning to talk to further push the issue and to try and get the reader to actually think through the evidence. This is an effective way of getting a point across because it helps the reader relate to their own experiences instead of just giving out facts that you are not emotionally attached to.