History Day

     When I was in high school I participated in a program called National History Day. It's a pretty cool idea to get kids involved in history and thinking about the events that changed the world--though they definitely don't realize they're doing it. At least, I didn't realize that I was learning about world-changing events and their consequences.
     This year the theme was Rights and Responsibilities and the projects were all good choices. Where I became more and more frustrated over the course of the day was in their inability to string words into complete sentences. Now, I understand that twelve to fifteen-year-olds won't have the same confidence with language that I do after sixteen years of education, but they can at least build a sentence that makes its point without throwing me into a maelstrom of confusion at the mere sight of it.
     I was actually proud to see the projects and see how everything has changed because of the technology available. When we completed our exhibit (I was in a group with two other young ladies) we had to go to the library for primary sources or ask the librarian for help finding and having them sent to us. Now there are so many archives online students can find and access without too much stress that they have more informed presentations and they are more connected to not only their history but also current events.
     The competition is good for the students if they 're hoping to move forward to college and, in my experience, gives them something to strive for academically. The experience is similar to what I experienced working on projects in college--not only do you need to understand research methods, but you must know how to convey your argument clearly and concisely.
     I enjoy working with the program and my greatest frustrations rise when students don't give their best efforts then hope to convince me, as a judge, that it is their top work. Sorry kiddos, been there, done that, I still have the paper somewhere. It's a good program and deserves recognition for introducing young teens to the process and rigor of academic research.

New Year 2014!

     It's a whole new year!

     As exciting as that sounds, it is also completely terrifying! While a year is only a measure of time and there isn't really anything different between Tuesday December 31 and Wednesday January 1 we place so much more on the differentiation between that specific Tuesday and Wednesday.
     This is the time of year when people make promises for the future, when we look at the past and make plans. This is the time when we have hope and expectations are running high. It is also the time when we make resolutions.
     Resolutions aren't just goals, they're promises we make to ourselves. For some, resolutions are plans we don't believe we'll achieve. For others, resolutions are our deepest darkest hopes that we want fulfilled. Making it a "New Year's Resolution" makes it possible, caught up in the hype of a new year, the hope of a new beginning we have the drive to make those goals become reality.
     I've never been good at keeping to my resolutions, but this year I'm making it my resolution to work every single day to keep my resolutions. And, unlike many years in the past, this year I only have two resolutions:

      1. Be happy with me--this one doesn't sound like much, but I'm going to work on finding the things that I've enjoyed, the things that make me feel one hundred percent me, and incorporating them into my every day. 

      2. Keep up with my writing--I love to write, but when life gets going it's difficult to get online to update my blogs or work on my fiction. But I'm not limiting myself to just blogging or working on my stories, I'm also talking about keeping a journal or exploring ideas by writing them out. Playing with language and working with it is something I enjoy and something I'd love to continue working with. 

     This year my goals aren't earth-shattering, but they are things I haven't had time for in the past few years. I'm excited to be getting back to the things that bring me joy, and to have time to devote to them. 

Just a thought...
Stephie

Books to Movies and Back Again: Harry Potter

     I've always been a book kind of person reading the story and imagining what characters look like and what their settings are supposed to be before I go and watch the movie and have that image destroyed by someone else's picture. I never thought it was a huge deal, until the Harry Potter franchise. Now, I'm from that generation that grew up while all the Hogwarts kids were growing up, when I was eleven I read the first book, when I was twelve I read the second, etc. until the final book came out when I was seventeen.
     The movies didn't start coming out until I was about thirteen (a couple years after they were filmed) and by then I'd formed my own image of what Harry should look like. Daniel Radcliffe, as much as he is what J.K. Rowling and the producers might have imagined and wanted him to look like, was not my choice for Harry. I don't know of any actor of this generation that would have made a good Harry for what I first imagined him to be. But that's because I don't remember what I imagined him to look like.
     When the movie posters and trailers came out they were everywhere; Harry Potter was one of the biggest series and stood to make a lot of money. But what that did for my imagination was take the kid I'd created and replaced him with this real person that didn't exactly fit how I interpreted the book. Looking back at it, I'm annoyed. But I enjoyed the movies and I enjoyed the books, for different reasons.
     The books were heavier on the relationships and what it means to grow up in a world you never knew existed. They dealt with Peeves and his antics, yet he was an accepted part of Hogwarts--everyone has a place where they can belong and feel at home--in fact the story wouldn't be the same without the prankster ghost. The books dealt with Harry's insecurities and he had more alone time to delve into his own thoughts.
     The films were more action-oriented and focused more on the savior aspect. Harry was no longer just a kid growing up and dealing with his demons; he became the boy who would save the wizarding world from Voldemort. Harry wasn't allowed to have as many weaknesses, or to work through them. Yet the movies are still great stories (I'm still a little peeved that the origin of the Marauder's Map didn't make it into the third movie).

     In general I become frustrated when movies are made out of books, yet I understand the mentality behind it. I have always enjoyed Jane Austen, and the movies of her stories have both made the books more accessible and visible. But, to me, her stories seem less dependent on the details than the interactions--Elizabeth Bennett doesn't have to wear Regency attire to be judgemental of Darcy when she first meets him, the Lizzie Bennet Diaries proved that. But when movies leave out important details, like why the Potters chose Peter Pettigrew to be their secret keeper rather than Sirius and the connection between the four friends, they leave out important parts that make the story so remarkable. The Potters weren't betrayed because the information was beaten out of someone, it was given over freely and Sirius was betrayed as much as anyone else after suggesting it. These details color the entire story and take some of the magic when they're glossed over.
     Some movies based on books are great, others not so much. And while I enjoy both the movies and books in the Harry Potter franchise, I will always hold the books more dear for the magic they were in my life.

Just a thought...
Stephie

A Dumping Ground for Whims?

     I'm in a reflective mood today, and there's something intriguing about being on the internet and knowing that there is so much information out there about me. Part of that is the basic terror of "someone could find me and use this information to harm me" and another part is a "what if..."

     For those of us who grew up as the internet became popular there were the usual internet stranger-danger lessons: don't talk to anyone you don't know in real life, don't give anyone your information including your real name and age, don't do this, don't do that. But now that we're all adults the world wants us to give out all that information and live our lives in the virtual realm. There are even sites devoted to sharing everything from your name to what you ate for breakfast to a picture of that breakfast. 

     Personally, I don't understand the desire to share what I ate for breakfast, or a picture of it, with the world (for those of you asking: cinnamon toast and apple juice). But there are times when sharing something is appropriate, like friends posting about their engagements and asking for help with wedding ideas. But where do we draw that line?

     Should  we be posting on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest all the details of our every moment, or should they be reserved for thoughtful or intentional shares? Is the internet, the archive of our present, a place to record the development of our thoughts and ideas or a dumping ground for our every whim?

Just a thought...

Stephie

"Are You Mad?"

     I went bowling with some friends tonight. It was a great time and I spent time with some people that I haven't seen in a long time, plus some people that I see on a regular basis. It was a great night, but I'm getting over a cold and the late night started taking its toll. We all walked from our apartments to the bowling alley and bowled several games, then about 1:00 am we walked back home. The entire way home I was coughing and wheezing, I just put it down to the massive change in temperature: mid-80s Farenheit to low-30s is a huge drop for my already overworked lungs.
     We got back to our complex and I noticed that my car was parked in a manner that would make leaving tomorrow difficult, so I took five minutes to clear it out and move it. During that five minutes I spent moving my car and preparing for tomorrow one of my friends--Peter--was bothering Lucy, another of our friends, about whether or not I was mad. My question is "what would I be mad about?" We all had a great night, made some good memories, and no one got hurt. When I got into the building it was my turn for the inquisition and he insisted on examining every part of the evening until I told him; I'm not mad, I'm sick, tired, and in pain from moving in and out of the cold. He then wanted to go into whether or not I was mad because Calvin came, I was excited Calvin decided to join our group and that I got to spend more time with him, why would that make me angry? In the end Lucy and I just sent Peter to bed and resolved to talk to him later.
     It gets me thinking though, why does Peter think I'm so angry? I might be disappointed something didn't turn out as I wanted, but when I retreat into my own world it doesn't mean I'm angry, rather I probably need a few minutes to myself and to react to large groups of people. As outgoing as I am with my friends, I really am an introvert and I do need those moments of relaxed alone time.

Just a thought....
Stephie

Music

    So my friends all think my taste in music is crazy. My brother can't stand it. And my sister changes the radio to the one preset in my car that holds her radio station. But what makes my music any different than anyone else's? Yeah, I listen to country, but I also listen to classic rock, modern pop, 80s pop, and anything but rap (I still don't understand the appeal of rap). My gra'ma only likes to listen to classical or big band, so I keep a nice selection of it in my iTunes. Mom prefers holiday music after Thanksgiving (if you don't like Christmas music, good luck near my mother after December 1st) but otherwise likes the eclectic mix of Pink, Kelly Clarkson, Electric Light Orchestra, and George Strait. Dad enjoys mostly the stuff that was popular before I was born--classic rock and oldies. What makes my preference of everything so different.
     Every day we're exposed to so many different sounds that mix together and combine to create music. It could be considered the music of our lives and its all those little sounds, like the sound of pages turning in the library, friends laughing, computer keys clicking, a family member's voice in the other room, they're all sounds that speak to each person differently. It's the reason STOMP has gained popularity even though they don't use traditional instruments.
     What makes one person like a particular type of music more than another kind?

Just a thought...
Stephie