Fun Fun Facts!

1. Men can read smaller print than women, women can hear better.
2. 60% of all US potato products originate in Idaho.
3. Wearing headphones for an hour increases the bacteria in your ear 700 times.
4. 61000 people are airborne over the US at any given time.
5. Only humans sleep on their backs.
6. Your body odor is unique to you, unless you have an identical twin.
7. The IRS admits that one in fie people who call their help line get the wrong answer to their question.
8. A cocroach can live for several weeks without its head.


p.s. I stopped at 8 because its my lucky number! :)

Angela's Ashes Chapter 16

Frank delivers a condolence telegram to an Englishman named Mr. Harrington, who has lost his wife. Mr. Harrington, who has been drinking, insults the Irish and tries to force Frank to sit and mourn with him. He makes Frank drink sherry. When Mr. Harrington goes to get more alcohol, Frank is left with the corpse. He starts wondering if he can save her, a Protestant, from eternal damnation. He decides to baptize her with the sherry, and as he does this, Mr. Harrington comes back and finds him. Mr. Harrington stuffs a ham sandwich in Frank’s mouth, and Frank vomits out the window onto Mrs. Harrington’s rosebushes. Frank then escapes by jumping through the window into the rosebushes and vomit below. Mr. Harrington reports Frank and gets him fired, but the priest writes a letter to the post office, and Frank is rehired.

Frank delivers a telegram to an old woman creditor named Mrs. Brigid Finucane. Frank agrees to write bullying letters to her debtors in return for a few shillings. He uses difficult and obscure words in the letters, which intimidate the debtors into paying. Some of the recipients of the letters are Frank’s friends and neighbors, and Angela says that whoever is writing the letters should be boiled in oil, but Frank justifies his behavior to himself by thinking of how badly he wants to get to America.

Frank walks away from a post office exam and takes a job delivering newpapers for a man named Mr. McCaffry. When Frank's boss hears that he walked away from the post office exam he decides that Frank thinks he is too good for a post office job.

I am proud of Frank... It seems as though his heart is in the right place. I like the fact that he wants to help the soul of Mr. Harrington's wife. It is a shame that he gets punished for doing so... I feel as though bad things keep happening to Frank but because of the good which Frank does I feel as though he will be rewarded in the end!

SCHOOL!

ahhhh! i have had sooo many papers, powepoints, essays, projects, and tests recently! it is becoming so so stressful! I know it is the end of the schoolyear and that is what i should expect but I just wish that highschool was like middleschool or elementary school where the end of the year menat more class parties and more recesses! I know thats wishful thinking and that ive outgrown that age but i sure would love to just go back for one day!... well anyways i have to get back to homework!

Angela's Ashes Chapters 15

On his fourteenth birthday Frank goes to the post office to start his first day of work but learns that he does not start till the following Monday. People at the post office laugh at Frank's raggedy clothes so his aunt Aggie takes him shopping for new clothing.

A week later he starts his new job as a temporary worker but recieves less than everyone else because he is a "temporary worker". Frank recieves his first wages and takes Micheal to get fish and chips then to a movie where they get chocolate. Frank decides that instead of using his money he gets every week on food he would save up his money so that he could go to America by the time he is twenty.

Frank delivers messages to many people who are too old and sick to get out of bed. Trying to help them Frank gets their groceries and cashes their money orders even though it could jeopardize his job.

Angela begins frequently visiting Frank and then decides to move back with Frank at Ab Sheehan's house permanently. Along with Angela Frank's brother Malachy returns home from Dublin so the whole family is reuinited. Frank gives most of his paycheck to Angela and continues to enjoy work.

One day Frank met a girl, Theresa when delivering one of his telegrams. Because he fell off his bike she tends to his bloody cuts. This TLC ignites a spark between the two kids and they engage in sexual relations. Frank goes back and visits her frequently until one day he found out she was in the hospital and then eventually dies. Frank is worried that Theresa went to hell becaue they engaged in sexual relations before marriage, so he prays for Theresa's soul to be at peace.

The more the book progresses the more I begin to like Frank and the man he is becoming. He has deffinately strayed from his old ways. I adore the fact that he helps the elderly with their money orders and their groceries even though it may cost him his job! I mean sure, he did some bad stuff with a girl which i dont agree with but he has come a long way from where he was! I also find the fact that he gives most of his paycheck to Angela to be very sweet! :)

Poetry Anthology

I decided to centralize my poems around one poet; Tony Hoagland.

Poems:
America
A Color of the Sky
Personal
Beauty
Grammar
Leaving Yourself Behind

Osama Bin Laden

This article really interested me.... As I was reading through the article it seemed like I was in a mystery movie or book! or even one of the shows you see on CIA.. with the CIA following one of Bin Laden's most trusted couriers and planning the perfect attack on the building where Bin Laden resided. As I read through this article the suspense just kept building and when I read the words "Of the five dead, one was a tall, bearded man with a bloodied face and a bullet in his head" I got the chills! This must be such a rewarding feeling for all of the US defense. However, this monumental event almost seems a little bittersweet.. Yes Bin Laden is dead, however, his network still remains... Is this going to be a situation where if you cut off the head of the network it will fail?... or will it grow two more heads?... Another concern is retaliation..... Bin Laden is dead, relieving some stress from American's but the stress of possible and probable retaliation is another stress we now have to deal with.... As cheesy and unrealistic as this sounds.. I truly just wish there were no issues and everyone could just get along!

Anglea's Ashes Chapter 14

Angela sends Micheal off to Uncle Ab Sheehan's house with food for Frank. Micheal, wanting his brother to join him asks Frank to come with but Frank refuses. However, it breaks Frank's heart to see Micheal walk away with his ragged clothes and broken shoes. One day, Uncle Ab refuses to give Frank food and so Frank is forced to steal milk and bread from wealthier houses.

Frank spends his time in the library reading up on inapropriate topics and realizes that his father has lied to him about certain things. After returning home from the library and the park Frank notices Uncle Ab had hidden a loaf of bread in his pocket. Frank steals a slice with a glass of water to make him feel more full. Because his clothes are cold and wet from activites at the park he puts on his grandmothers wool dress and goes to bed.

It is sad to see all the bad influences in Frank's life... His father who is constantly drunk and just wreaking havoc in the McCourt household and now his Uncle Ab who seems to be just like Frank's father... It seems as though Frank's conscience is trying to turn him in the right direction but the fact that Frank sometimes has no food to eat he must do bad things in order to survive... Just thinking about the life which Frank has to live stresses me out!

Nominated Bloggie for the week!

Tales of a Bibliophile really caught my attention. Talking strictly about looks, the pictures above each blog post are random but i really like the simplicity of some of them... Like the two couches with faces in them.. that was kind of funny! Also I found the optical illusions entertaining... not only that but the videos of the artists seemed to be really good! I thought they did a good job of appealing to the students and the teenage mind! Good Job! :)

My Favorite thing to do.... read interesting facts... here are some more!

1. Everyone's tongue print is different.
2. Women blink nearly twice as much as men.
3. The pupil of an octopus' eye is rectangular.
4. Every 45 seconds a house cathces on fire in the United States.
5. Superman is featured on every episode of Seinfeld either by name or pictures on Jerry's refrigerator.
6. The dot that appears over the "i" is called a tittle.
7. The chicken is one of the few things that man eats before it's born and after it's dead.
8. In 10 minutes, a hurrican releases more energy than all the world's nuclear weapons combined.

WEIRDDD!

BFFFFFSSS!

Angela's Ashes Chapter 13

Frank desperately wants to go on a long cycling trip with his friend.. He borrows Laman's bike (Angela's cousin) in exchange for having to clean Laman's chamber pot everyday and running all of this errands. One day Frank is noticed by the Librarian at the library for his tremendous dedication to his studies... The librarian is so impressed that she writes Angela a letter about Frank's dedication. One of Frank's teachers also informs Angela of how intelligent Frank is and that he should continue school rather than become a messenger because otherwise Frank would be wasting his talents. In an effort to give Frank more schooling Angela takes Frank to the Christian Brothers but they slam the door in her face saying they have no room for FRank.. this infuriates Angela... understandably.

Frank, eager to finish his schooling, takes a job as a telegram messenger. His teacher, disgusted with the class system and how it forces smart boys to take jobs which undermine their intelligence, tells Frank that he should move to America.. Frank tries but his doctor tells him that he is to young to do so.

It is good to see that Frank is taking Mr. Hannan's advice and being dedicated with his schoolwork.. I feel as though Frank has really started to come around and change from the sinful boy whom he was earlier on in the book. The fact that he is so dedicated in his studies is comforting to hear... It seems as though he has direction in his life unlike his drunk father. I always felt that beneath all the bad exterior of Frank there was potential for a good smart boy.

Angela's Ashes Chapter 12

Frank's father Malachy Sr. returns home for Christmas promising that he has changed for the better... With him he brought home a half eaten box of chocolates. However, when the family tries to enjoy a sheeps head for Christmas dinner Malachy Sr. leaves immediately after dinner is finished.

Frank tries avoiding "respectable boys" whom he knows will get good jobs and succeed in life. Frank is convinced that he will spend the rest of his life in a job which caters to the upper class. Angela falls sick and is forced to spend most of her time at home... Chapter twelve details that every time Angela is asked for a donation of money she always takes the beggar home and feeds and clothes them herself.

The McCourts are in a lot of trouble with four weeks rent due and they have no money to pay it.. Also they have had to resort to tearing out one of their walls and burning it for warmth.. Angela warns the family to not touch the beam on the ceiling however, the family gets cold one day and cuts part of it down to burn. In doing this the roof collapses and once the landlord finds out he evicts the McCourt family. The McCourts then move in with Angela's cousin who doesnt treat her very well.

Frank announces that grandma has died from pnemonia and Frank's brother Malachy decides to join the Army School of Music in Dublin.

I am really starting to get frustrated with Frank's father Malachy... I understand he is gone trying to earn money for his family but it almost seems as though he has just abandoned his family because his being gone does not benefit the McCourt family in any way because the money which Malachy does earn he spends on alcohol for himself.... This puts Angela especially in a tough position with not being able to pay rent and having to tear a wall out of their house in order to stay warm...If anything Malachy seems to be a detriment to the McCourt family... It also is really good to see that Angela who has almost nothing is giving to those in need... It seems as though she must have a giant heart!

Angela's Ashes Chapter 11

Frank starts a soccer team with Malachy and his friend Billy Campbell. After finding his mom's treasured red dress in a trunk he is inspired to name his team "The Red Hearts of Limerik"... He decides to cut up the red dress and use it as part of the team's uniform... while going through the trunk Frank finds papers on his parents marriage.

Frank goes out with his friend Mike and Mike's dad for Mikes sixteenth birthday. They go to a pub.. while there Mike begins to explain to Frank how children are concieved. Also the barman says something which moves Mike's dad to stop drinking entirely and stop driving his wife mad with all his drinking.

Frank's soccer team beats a team full of rich kids with Frank scoring the winning goal.... Frank begins working with a nice man named Mr. Hannon doing a coal mining job.. Mr. Hannon urges Frank to go to school and read books and do all the right things.. A lot of Frank's friends are jealous of Frank's manly job of handling coal. However, after being around coal dust so often Frank's eyes get irriatated by the coal dust and Angela won't let Frank go to work.. even though Mr. Hannon's condition is getting worse. The day Frank wasnt able to go to work Mr. Hannon gets hospitalized and Frank goes to see him and they have an emotional meeting.

I feel as though Mr. Hannon could be a very good influence on Frank... Obviously Frank seems to really respect Mr. Hannon and wants nothing more than to please him and help him out... It seems as though Mr. Hannon is more of an appropriate father figure to Frank than his own father is... Hopefully, Frank's time with Mr. Hannon can help turn Frank's bad behavior around.. It was interesting not hearing much of anything about either Angela or Malachy Sr.

Where I Want to Be in 10 Years

Although a lot of my friends and people who ive talked to have figured out exactly what they want to do I am still undecided career wise. I do know that in ten years I want to be out of school, settled down, and married with a stable, comfortable job. As for my career choice I am a little unsure of a job that would be good for me. My dad has a job as an engineer and says that he thinks I would be good as an engineer because I am a good problem solver and I take notice of things. I am strong in math and science and not so much english and history but my dad works all the time, even on vacation, and seems to be stressed out when it comes to work. Im not sure all the stress and late nights seems like something i would want to do. Also my dad has to give presentations a lot and Im not much of a public speaker... Im sort of shy. I have also thought about something in the medical field which doesnt involve blood so for a long time I considered being a pharmacist but from what ive heard that job can get very boring and bland. Believe me, i have put lots of thought into what I want to do when i get older... I have considered things from being a lawyer to a vertrenarian and i just have come across a job which will seem to fit me.... Im going to continue to look though.... I just know that I really enjoy helping people so maybe that will be a driving force for my search for my dream job.

Love this....

Numbers
Mary Cornish

I like the generosity of numbers.
The way, for example,
they are willing to count
anything or anyone:
two pickles, one door to the room,
eight dancers dressed as swans.

I like the domesticity of addition--
add two cups of milk and stir--
the sense of plenty: six plums
on the ground, three more
falling from the tree.

And multiplication's school
of fish times fish,
whose silver bodies breed
beneath the shadow
of a boat.

Even subtraction is never loss,
just addition somewhere else:
five sparrows take away two,
the two in someone else's
garden now.

There's an amplitude to long division,
as it opens Chinese take-out
box by paper box,
inside every folded cookie
a new fortune.

And I never fail to be surprised
by the gift of an odd remainder,
footloose at the end:
forty-seven divided by eleven equals four,
with three remaining.

Three boys beyond their mothers' call,
two Italians off to the sea,
one sock that isn't anywhere you look.



I really like this poem... sorta humerous.. and it was poem number 8 on the poetry 180 website and 8 is my lucky number... must be meant to be.

"Let Kids Rule the School"

The beginning of this passage talks about how school plans out student's day down to the minute and frowns upon social interaction at times... I agree with the stance which the writer takes on how that is a detriment to our psychological development. It seems as though schools are so concerned with trying to jam as much information into our brains as possible that they forget about a large aspect of our futures... cooperation. If we cant somehow connect social interaction with learning and if social interaction is frowned upon in the learning environment then how are educators helping us learn to cooperate and work well with others? The Independent Project's methods and the results which came from the experiment have made me realize a few things. For one, it has made me realize that the reason school is so unenjoyable (I think I just made that word up) is because teachers simply throw information at us on transparencies or (my favorite) powerpoints... After presenting us with the information on the powerpoint or transparency the teacher simply reads word for word exactly what it says on the screen... How do they expect to maintain a teenagers attention? How do they expect us to be excited about learning when it is just simply looking at words on a screen all day five days a week? Giving students freedom to learn on their own, with guidance from teachers, is how students really grasp the concepts in front of them... I understand that teachers have a curriculum which they must follow but this curriculum is almost preventing students from truly learning. It is not specifically the facts which we learn that make us intelligent but rather the connections we make with those facts and the deeper thinking that comes with making those connections. Being able to look at the bigger picture and work with other students and seeing their opinions and interpretations of information will give students a variety of ways to look at things... I myself can understand this... often times when im discussing with a friend something about school and they tell me their opinion i find myself thinking "wow i never thought of it that way".... i feel as though interaction with other students engages me in even further critical thinking.

Interesting Facts!

1. Bats always turn left when exiting a cave.
2. A zebra is white with black stripes.
3. A quarter has 119 grooves in its edge; a dime has one less groove.
4. About 1 in 12 African Americans has sickle cell trait.
5. Recycling one glass jar saves enough energy to watch tv for 3 hours.
6. All polar bears are left handed.
7. The world's youngest parents were 8 and 9 and lived in China in 1910.
8. Most lipstick contains fish scales.
9. The ears of a cricket are located on the front legs, just below the knee.
10.The elephant is the only mammal that can't jump.

Angela's Ashes Chapter 10

The McCourt family has to move upstairs to get away from the cold and wet apartment they were living in... Frank steals lemonade from outside of a pub and exaggerates and decorates the story to his brothers to make himself sound cool. He proceeds to steal more food and drink from the wealthier families of the town which feeds him and his brothers. Having no fire fank tries going door to door and begging for coal but after recieving no help he just steals gasoline from his wealthier neighbors.

Angela comes down with an illness and becomes feverish. Grandma ends up calling the doctor (after guards come to their door asking why the boys havent been at school) and the doctor diagnoses Angela with pnemonia and she is rushed to the hospital. While Angela is at the hospital she sends the boys with their aunt aggie. While their uncle is nice to the boys Aggie beats and yells at the boys constantly. Fed up with this Frank sends a letter to Malachy in England telling him that Angela is in the hospital. After hearing this news Malachy returns home and the boys stay with him until Angela returns home from the hospital. Malachy then returns to England and a refusal to send his paychecks forces Angela to beg outside of churches for money and food which really upsets Frank.

It is heartbreaking to have a final image of Angela begging in front of a church for food for her family. Angela who has struggled so much to keep her family alive and fed. It is obvious how deeply she cares for her children.. It is amazing to me that she can continue to put up with Malachy's selfish ways. It is almost like he is just a nusence anymore... He is no help to the family.. rather a detriment and Angela never sees him anymore now that he is in England.. I will give Malachy credit though for coming home to take care of the boys while his mother was in the hospital but it is the least he can do.

Angela's Ashes Chapter 9

Because of the multiple deaths in her family and the struggle she has with supporting the children in her family, Angela descides to stop having children which annoys Malachy because during that time birth control was not comonly used.. The families on the street which Angela lives keep getting richer because their husbands are going off to England to find work. After Angela, herself, threatens to go to England to find work Malachy goes to England and promises to send home the money he earns.. However, Angela sees all of the families on her street recieving money and she has yet to recieve any from Malachy.

Desperate for money one of Angela's friends sujects that she goes to the dispensary to recieve aid but Angela does not like the idea because she feels it is one step above giving up her children to an orphanage and begging on the streets.

Frank gets a really bad eye infection and Angela takes him to the doctor and Frank is diagnosed with a really bad case of conjunctivitis and is sent to the hospital. After returning home from the hospital Frank comes to the realization that his father has become an uncontrollable drunk and spends all the money he makes in bars. Stressed with financial problems and recieving no help from Malachy, Angela resorts to the Dispensary for help.

It is heartbreaking to see a man's son come to the realization of how screwed up his father is... I feel so badly for Frank and the rest of his family because it seems as though they keep putting their trust and dependance on Malachy but Malachy never provides for them. It seems as though Angela should just take the initiative herself and provide for her family because it is the only way she can know for sure that her family will be provided for outside of recieving dole or aid from the dispensary.

Very Interesting Quote

"Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a
fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that
it is stupid."


I found this quote on my sister's blog and I really liked it... Ive always wondered where to find such good quotes! After reading this quote it just hit me how true it is.... it put a smile on my face to read this! Good find Lindsey!

Love this Poem.... "A Dog's Life"

A Dog's Life

by Daniel Groves

A stay of execution: one last day,
your day, old Everydog, then, as they say,
or as we say (a new trick to avoid
finalities implicit in destroyed),
you have to be put down, orput to sleep—
the very dog who, once, would fight to keep
from putting down, despite our shouts, a shoe
until he gnawed it to the sole, and who
would sit up, through our sleepless nights, to bark
away some menace looming in the dark.

Can you pick up the sense of all this talk?
Or do you still just listen for a walk,
or else, the ultimate reward, a car?—
My God, tomorrow's ride . . . Well, here we are,
right now. You stare at me and wag your tail.
I stare back, dog-like, big and dumb. Words fail.
No more commands, ignore my monologue,
go wander off. Good dog. You're a good dog.
And you could never master, anyway,
the execution, as it were, of Stay

I am very fond of animals especially dogs so I found this poem very interesting... In many ways it makes me think of my old dog Benji... :)

Angela's Ashes Chapter 8

The time now comes for Frank's confirmation into the Catholic Church. Directly following his confirmation service Frank gets sick and gets a very bad nosebleed. It was this nosebleed which prevented him from getting his collection which the kids recieve after being confirmed. A few days after his nosebleed incident the doctor visits Frank at home and diagnoses him with typhoid fever. Because of the seriousness of his condition Frank has to stay in the hospital. While in the hospital Frank drifts in and out of conciousness and is near death. During his time in the hospital Frank meets a girl named Patricia. They become friends and she introduces Shakespeare to Frank. Just as he begins reading it Frank falls in love with the melodious writing of Shakespeare. Two days later, a janitor in the hospital informs Frank that Patricia has died.

After Frank somewhat returns to health and comes home he is disappointed to hear that because he missed so much of the fifth grade he will have to retake it instead of moving onto sixth grade. Frank struggles at school because he has a hard time getting around due to his limited ability to walk.

Later in the chapter seems to be descriptions. First the descriptions are of Frank's feelings about his dad. He dislikes it when Malachy drinks his dole money, but he loves his mornings alone with his father, when they read the paper and talk; he loves the stories his father tells. The rest of the chapter talks about the horrid living conditions in which the McCourt family lives.

The last part of this chapter leaves a lasting impression in my head and both answers some lingering questions in my mind and also disturbs me at the same time.. It is now understandable all these sicknesses that occur in the McCourt family because of the unhealthy living conditions. However, it disturbs me that Angela, whom I have had great respect for, would let her house become so filthy and disgusting. On a more positive note, this typhoid fever seems to have maybe brought out the nicer sweeter side of Frank. :)

Spellbound

Spellbound is a very entertaining movie which uses a variety of different characters. Specifically Harry and Ashley could be seen as almost opposites, even though Harry is much differet than all the characters in Spellbound. Harry is a hyperactive outgoing boy who doesnt seem to get very emotional. In his individual interview he would be asked a question or in the middle of explaining something and just randomly make reference to the microphone about his head (which is probably not supposed to be pointed out) and asks if it is edible. Whenever he would go up to the microphone and begin spelling his assigned word he would make these faces or say his whole thought process out loud to the whole audience. Harry was deffinately an entertaining character used as comical relief in the film. Ashley on the other hand, is a quiet, happy, emotional, little girl. During her interview she made a few religious references and did not stop smiling the whole time. Whenever she was called up to spell her word however, she looked as though she had seen a ghost or like she was about to cry... Every time she would get a word right a huge look of relief would come across her face which is not unusal normally unless compared to Harry. When Ashley got out on the word ecclesiastical she could hardly be filmed because she was just surrounding by her family who was trying to comfort her and stop her crying.

Even More Fun Facts!

1. If you stretch a standard slinky out flat it measures 87 feet long.
2. The human eye blinks an average of 4,200,000 times a year.
3. Moisture, not air, causes super glue to dry.
4. One out of three employees who received a promotion use a coffee mug with the company logo on it.
5. 70% of dust in your home consists of shed human skin.

Angela's Ashes Chapter 7

Because Malachy Sr. continues to drink away the dole money which the family recieves his sons including Micheal refuse to talk to him on the weekends because he is always drunk.

Frank has a friend Mickey who's siblings die frequently due to consumption. Mickey asks Frank and Billy Campbell to pray that Mickey’s sick sister will not die until September, so that Mickey can get a week off from school. Mickey promises them that if they pray for his sister he will invite both Frank and Billy to the funeral where there will be lots of food. Mickey's wish comes true and his sister dies in September however he doesnt invite Frank or Billy to the funeral. Angered by this Frank is pleases to find out that Mickey soon after dies because of consumption as well.

Frank's grandma convinces Frank to help Unlce Pat with delivering newspapers. However, Uncle Pat mistreats him by making him run about in the rain and paying him poorly. The fact that Frank has gotten a job greatly pleases Angela.

Angela has a baby and names it Alphonsus which is not a name that Frank likes. The baby almost dies by choking on a dry piece of milk however, Angela's neighboor friend Bridey saves the baby. Frank's grandpa sends money for the new baby. Angela sends Malachy Sr. to cash the check but tells Frank and Malachy Jr. to be sure Malachy Sr. actually cashes the check instead of spending it at the pub. Despite their tagging along, Malachy Sr. still ends up spending his money at the pub. Because of this Frank is forced to steal fish and chips for dinner.

Malachy's continued drinking problem has imposed many uneeded obstacles for the McCourt family. To think that if he hadnt spent all that money on drinking and getting drunk then the family would have much more money to spend on food and shoes and clothing. The fact that Frank is pleased when his friend Mickey dies is very disturbing... This does not seem to be the sweet boy earlier in the book... I hope this mean mailicious surface wears off and his real self begins to show later in the book.

Fun Facts!

1. A person who is born and lives at sea level will develop a slightly smaller lung capacity than a person who spends their life at a high altitude.
2. 28% of Africa is wilderness.
3. The penguin is the only bird who can swim, but not fly.
4. More money is spent on gardening than any other hobby.
5. You can't tickle yourself.




More to come! :)

Angela's Ashes Chapter 6

Frank moves up a grade and is now in fourth grade which is taught by Mr. O'Neill. One of the kids in Frank's class who seems to be a teachers pet is Fitan. Frank describes Fitan as a dandified do-gooder. Fitan is said to go to church every day with his mother. Frank and Paddy (a classmate of Franks) do not want to be associtated with this "feminine" man however Fitan invites the two over to his house and uses food as incentive. When Paddy and Frank go to Fitan's house they are supplied with sandwiches and other treats however, Paddy and Frank become worried when Fitan goes with them to the bathroom and says he enjoys looking at them.

Fitan invites the two over again for lunch but this time when they come over Fitan just sits and eats a sandwich angrily in front of them. Because they are hungry Paddy and Frank skip class to go steal apples and milk from a nearby farm. Because they are gone for so long, the next time Frank saw Angela she was with a guard and had said she had been worried sick about him.

The whole situation with Fitan seems to be very odd and random... However it does do some character developing for Frank and Paddy.. It seems as though Frank is more concerned about status rather than being nice to everyone including the weird kid. Frank's decisions continue to disappoint me and I feel terribly for Frank's mother because she is so naiive to his poor decision making.. It is upsetting.

Angela's Ashes Chapter 5

McCourt takes note of his families lack of communitcation because his grandmother doesn’t speak to his mother, his mother doesn’t talk to her siblings, his father doesn’t talk to Angela’s family, and no one talks to his uncle’s wife. However, Angela seems to have intimate and frequent talks with her neighbor Bridey Hannon.

Angela and Malachy end up having to get false teeth due to their excessive smoking. Malachy Jr. puts the fake teeth in his mouth and ends up getting sent to the hospital. While the family is in the hospital the doctor notes Frank's breathing with his mouth open and the doctor insists that Frank get his tonsils removed.

Angela tells Frank that he should take Irish dance lessons. Frank attends his first class and feels stupid for even trying. Because of this he continues to skip his dance classes and spend the money on sweets or goes to the movie instead. Whenever he returns home he just makes up a dance and performs it to his family. However, Malachy finally confronts him when the dance teacher sends Malachy a letter asking where his sone has been.

The disfunctions and misfortunes of the family continue to heap into a large pile. The lack of communication in the family disturbs me because I can't imagine going a day without talking to a certain person in my family let a lone hardly ever speaking to them. Another misfortune plaques the McCourt family which is somewhat a humerous one... Who would have thought of all things that Malachy Jr. would have to be rushed to the hospital for getting dentures stuck in his mouth... Something disappointing to me is the fact that Frank is continuing to make bad decisions... It seems as though there is a good boy deep down inside of him.

Angela's Ashes Chapter 4

A new character is introduced as a neighbor of Frank's, his name is Mickey Malloy. He is said to be educated on dirty things and his mother goes to insane asylums because her husband spends all of the families money on drikning at the pub. Mickey's mother is constantly worried about wether or not her kids will have food. Frank has his first communion and Mickey tells him that the only good thing about first communion is the money you recieve. However, Frank seems to appreciate the meaning of communion more than just recieving money. As Frank and Mickey become closer friends he finds himself listening to many of Mickey's stories. Many of them are vulgar and Frank feels as though he has sinned because he listens to them. This thought of sin weighs on Frank so heavily that he asks multiple people, including his father, wether or not he should go to confession. Frank decides to go to confession and feels better about it.

One day after his first communion after returning home, Frank regurgitated his communion wafer in his Grandma's backyard. His Grandma insists that Frank go to confession to see what he needs to do to repent for this "sin". The priest tells Frank to just wash it away with water. Because he had to attend confession, Frank missed his collection of money for his first communion. This upsets Frank because he was looking forward to going and spending the money on movies... Instead Frank sneaks into a movie.

The reference to Nora, Mickey's mother, in the first chapter seems to be a little coincidental... maybe even implying some foreshadowing to what will happen to Angela because the two seem so familiar. I like Frank's intentions and the fact that communion has a deeper meaning to him other than just recieving money however it worries me that mickey may have a negative influence on hime which seems to be appearing at the end of the chapter.

Too many snow days!

At the beginning of every winter i get so excited just thinking of all the snowdays we are going to get in the winter... Every time we are supposed to get snow or word goes around that we are going to have a snow storm i get so excited because its like a little vacation in the middle of the week... However, this year has gone a little overboard... I never thought i would find myself saying this but snowdays can get a little old... After what is it now 9 snow days?.... I just want to get the school year over with... we started too early in August to have to get out of school around the same time we got out last year! Im hoping the snow has left for good and spring is right around the corner!

Angela's Ashes Chapter 3

Angela and her family move into a different house because their current house reminded them too much of Eugene. Angela becomes stressed about the reduced family income she recieves from public assistance because of the deaths of both Oliver and Eugene. Malachy Sr. finds himself a job, however, this proves to be no financial help because all of his earnings which he recieves he spends on alcohol.

One day upon returning home Frank and Malachy Jr. finds the house flooded forcing the McCourt family to move upstairs which they name "Italy" because it is in much better condition than their old flodded apartment. Angela purchases a pig head for Christmas and Frank is embarassed carrying it home because his classmates then see the poverty of his family.

Angela gives birth to a baby and names it Micheal. Malachy Sr. believes the baby was left behind by an angel and calls the baby "Angel on the Seventh step". Malachy Sr. develops a special fondness for this baby. When the baby stops breathing because it is sick with a cold Malachy Sr. saves the baby by sucking the mucus out of his nose.

Malachy repairs his sons boots using old tire because they he is to proud to ask the welfare men for new boots. At school, Frank and Malacy Jr. are mocked because of how poor they live. Frank describes the neighborhood in which he lives. He describes the unemployed men just sitting around smoking cigarettes and collecting "dole" while their wives are at home cleaining and tending to the children.

Malachy Sr. gets a job at the cement factory which excites the whole family. Frank and Malachy Jr. are excited about maybe being able to go to the movies, Angela gets so excited that she gets up early to clean and sing. However disappointment shocks them all when he doesnt return home from work on friday with his wages. Angela soon learns that Malachy Sr. went to the pub and ends up crying herself to sleep because of this. When Malachy Sr. returns home drunk he offers Frank and Malachy Jr. a "Friday Penny" which they both refuse and Angela makes him sleep downstairs.

It seems as though Malachy Sr. causes a lot of distress and disappointment to the McCourt family. He seems to be self-centered and only thinks of himself financially. The fact that he feels as though he can spend the money he makes at the pub and just use the "dole" to support the family is a prime example of this. It almost seems as though the only member of the Mccourt family which Malachy Sr. cares for is the newborn Micheal. The part about him sucking the babies mucus was sweet but also disgusting i must say. This book continues to disturb me because I can't even imagine the amount of stress and pressure Angela must be feeling while trying to continue to support her family. It is a very sad book because it continues to document the tragic obstacles which the Mccourt family is constantly faced with.

Glee!

I watched my first episode of glee ever and fell in love with it! Im not the type to usually watch a series and actually keep following it but Glee seems to be one of a few shows to hold my interest enough to make an effort to see it every tuesday night. I like the high school drama it has in it... Its much funner to watch high school drama than to actually experience it for some reason. Another show that i have come to like a lot is raising hope.. which comes on right after glee so its meant to be.... Every tuesday night i have a date with the tv! :)

2.23 Diction Exercise

Cruddy:

a) crudded-out
bash
no-take-backs
shut up
bash
kill
evil
cruddy

b} 1.vague or blunt level of formality having a low elevation of diction
2.the connotation used establishes a hateful malicious tone
3.the sound of the words used in the passage could be described as either coarse or harsh.
4.the concreteness of the words chosen could be described as either cold or hard.

c) Lynda Barry's harsh use of vague belligerent words in her book Cruddy emphasizes a tone of hostile maliciousness.

Gene Kelly dance number Close Reading

The dance number "Moses Supposes" displays a series of humorous movements made by two abominable men which implies the childish personalities of the dancers themselves. The song starts out slow with the two men singing "Moses Supposes" repeatedly then suddenly changes into an entertaining dance ensemble where the two men proceed to flail their arms and meander their bodies across the stage. There are even instances in which they place a window curtain over another man's head and even put absurd things such as paintings and lamp shades upon the mans lap. These acts of silliness suggest an inner three year old in each of the men who seem to be much alike. The frequent synchronized dance steps between the two men emphasize the similarities between the two personalities. A contrasting factor which has seemed to be added into the musical number is a man in which Gene Kelly and his partner use as a prop. The "prop" is dressed in a nicer suit, compared to Gene Kelly and his partner, and seems to be much more calm as things are thrown in his face. This bland "prop" highlights the adolescent actions of Gene Kelly and his partner. The obnoxious, "out there" moves of Gene Kelly and his partner implies the similarity between the two characters in the play as well as their inability to grow out of their adolescent self.

Angela's Ashes Chapter 2

The McCourt family arrives in Ireland and recieves a cold welcoming from Frank's grandparents. Malachy's hope for finding employment are crushed when grandma tells him that there is no work in Ireland but to go to the IRA and ask for money because of his previous services to the company. In an attempt to get money from the IRA Malachy and Frank go to Dublin and into the office of a man in charge of the IRA pension claims. After a pleading from Malachy he recieves no money as pension, in fact, he does not even recieve enough money for their train ride back home. Having no means of getting home the McCourts stay in police barracks over night until they recieve money for a train ticket to Limerick, where Angela's parents live. After arriving in Limerick they again receive a cold welcom from Angela's parents. However, Angela's mom does help them find a furnished room to stay in with one matress for them to share.

A few days later Angela has a miscarriage and is rushed to the hospital. After having been in the hospital Angela is forced to go to St. Vincent de Paul society for charity adn receives groceries and befriends a funny woman named Nora.

Frank's brother Oliver becomes ill and after being rushed to the hospital ends up dieing . 6 months after Oliver's death Eugene dies of pnemonia. After the deaths of both of hi twin brothers, Frank's father takes up drinking again and his mother has to start taking pills.

This chapter disturbs me so much! I feel so horrible for Frank who has to live in that type of environment. For me it would be hard to find any sort of happiness from the life he lives. It seems as though he is always losing siblings and can never really establish a real relationship with his parents. Not only his parents but also his grandparents are cold to him.... To me it seems as though this family isnt connected but rather they are a bunch of roomates who dont seem to function in an efficient manner... The life this family lives greatly distrubs me.

Angela's Ashes Chapter 1

The book begins with Frank describing to the readers his childhood and how his parents met and got married in New York. He describes his childhood as miserable because he had a drunken father and a strict demanding mother. After giving a background of his childhood Frank then tells the stories of his mother and father's lives before having kids. Malachy McCourt, Frank's father, grew up in Ireland and fought for the IRA. In his work with the IRA he committed a crime and fled to America to escape death. Angela Sheehan, Frank's mother, grew up in a Limerick slum then later emigrated to America where she met Malachy. Soon after meeting him Angela becomes pregnant with Malachy's son and the two plan to get married... Despite their plans of marriage Malachy tried to escape the marriage by fleeing to California but he spent the money for his train ticket on alcohol instead. Frank was the first born and baptized then following him was his brother, Malachy. Soon after Malachy came twin boys named Eugene and Oliver. Angela also later had a daughter named Margaret whom Frank's mother adored but Margeret ended up dieing. Margaret's death sent Angela into a deep state of depression causing her to neglect her children.

This book paints a disturbing picture in my mind. I can almost feel what Frank is going through and I cannot even begin to fathom the stress and hurt Frank must undergo on a daily basis. Having to lose a sister as well as have your mother neglect you for it is a disturbing thought for me. Also having to grow up with a drunken father and a strict demanding mother does not seem to be the ideal childhood for me. After reading this first chapter I cannot help but have pity for Frank and the hard times he must be going through.

Teenagers and the Effects of Peer Pressure

The effects of peer pressure on teenagers is much more significant than I had ever thought it was. According to studies presented in an article on teen driving posted in the New York times, peer pressure has a direct effect on the brain's activity. The article mentions that peer pressure effects brain signals dealing with risk and reward. I guess I just had never really thought about why peer pressure always took a toll on teenagers, I just knew it was on most adolescent's minds when it came to making decisions. After reading the article it makes sense why so many teenagers have a harder time saying no to negative peer pressure.. On the surface it always just seemed to me that people wanted to act or to come across a certain way to their peers and that is why teens fell into peer pressure. However, when looking at how peer pressure physically affects our brain signals intrigues me and makes it clear why it is so hard to say no to peer pressure at times. It is also interesting to see the difference between teenagers and college students or adults when it comes to the effects of peer pressure on the brain signals. Why is it only teenagers' brains who are so greatly effected by peer pressure. It seems to me as though the teenage years of a person's life are the years in which they deal with the most peer pressure. Maybe that has something to do with it? Whatever the cause, I find it very interesting to look at the actual physical effect of peer pressure on the brain's activity and I also find it very interesting that it has a greater effect on teenage brains then it does on adults and young adults.

Snow Days!

2 snow days in a row! and a delay tomorrow! Nothing like a nice weekend in the middle of the week to make the weekend come even faster! The past two days have been a nice break from school, even though we have to go later into the summer I can't help but wish for another closing! Sleeping in, watching movies, and hanging out with friends to me is much better than waking up bright and early to go to school for the whole day. Im hoping for another closing tomorrow! Fingers crossed!

Monet Painting: Observations and Inferences

http://colalexgallery.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/1284106605-20.jpg

MORE INTERESTING STUFF!

this may not interest you but I found all of these interesting....

-The little whole in the sink that lets the water drain out, instead of flowing over the side, is called a "porcelator"

-If you could drive to the sun at 55mph it would take about 193 years.

-The wingspan of a Boeing 747 jet is longer than the Wright Brothers' first flight.

-A good way to restore the sound of scratched CDs is to coat them with a thin layer of wax or silicone

-The first product to have a barcode was Wrigleys gum.

-A group of gees on the ground is a gaggle, a group of geese in the air is a skein.

-There are 293 ways to make change for a dollar.

-Tigers have striped skin, not just striped fur.

-A giraffe's neck contains the same number of vertebrae as a human

-Sea otters have two coats of fur.

Favorite Website!

I would have to say my favorite website would have to be FML.... I know that sounds kind of depressing and bad but FML's are addicitng and very entertaining! Just as I had mentioned in a previous blog about the random facts I read before bed I also read FMLs before bed as well. I feel so bad for the people having to post all of the extremely embarassing stories.. I can't even imagine being put in the same situation!

Lolita pages 282-309 (The End!!)

After talking to a priest and coming to terms with his sins which he committed with Lolita, Humbert realizes that because he was so consumed with his desires for Lolita, he never took the time to actually get to know the real person she was. After doing a lot of thinking he revisits the house in which he met Lolita and notes that there is another family with a nymphet daughter currently living there. During his visit to Ramsdale he also goes to the dentist and learns of Clare Quilty's whereabouts. Humbert immediately leaves the dentist office to go find Quilty.

Humbert arrives at Quilty's house with a loaded gun. Humbert enters his house and sees Quilty emerge fromt the bathroom. Immediately after seeing him Humbert asks Quilty of Lolita and explains to him why he must die. During this time Quilty slyly makes a move for Humbert's gun and the two wrestle for it. Humbert finally breaks free with the gun and Quilty begs for his life and even offers Humbert bribes of things including vulgar pictures. Humbert shoots Quilty but he still tries to escape. Humbert shoots Quilty a number of times again and he still has not yet died. Finally Quilty pleads for his life but Humbert shows no mercy and shoots him dead.

After an exiting series of events Humbert speeds off down the road on the wrong side. He finally gets pulled over and arrested for running a red light. During his time in jail Humbert realizes that what is truely sad is not that Humbert and Lolita cant be together, rather that he robbed Lolita of her childhood. While in jail Humbert keeps a journal and he dedicates the last half solely to Lolita. He tells her to stay faithful and honest to her husband and to forget about Quilty because he was not a good person. He also advises her to not talk to strangers.

I felt as though this was a very good ending to the book. Although I am not in favor of Humbert killing Quilty, the person Humbert becomes at the end of the book pleases me. After stepping back and actually looking at his relationship with Lolita it is good to know that he recognizes how inappropriate his strong desires and obsessions were. It is very good that he recognizes and is ashamed that he robbed her of her childhood as well. When looking at the person Humbert was at the beginning of the book he was a vulgar man who seemed to want nothing more in life other than sex and Lolita. It seems as though he had no respect for women at the beginning but now it seems as though he has acquired respect for them because he continues to stay in touch with Rita and deeply regrets having such a negative effect on Lolita's life. Despite the creepiness of the book in the beginning it proved to be a very interesting and entertaining book which left me with a smile on my face because of the good man Humbert became.

Lolita pages 252-282

After having been away from Lolita for an expanded period of time, Humbert feels as though he sees her everywhere and even fills out a missing persons ad. In his great loneliness he begins a relationship with a woman named Rita. In the progression of his relationship with Rita he returns to many of the places and hotels which he visited with Lolita. He does this in an attempt to releive the memories of Lolita but he feels as though he is going to love her forever. However, eventually Rita and Humbert's relationship begins to dwindle and they grow apart but still remain friends as Humbert visits her frequently.

During a visit with Rita, Humbert recieves two letters-- one being from Lolita addressed as Dad. The letter informed Humbert that Lolita had been married and was expecting a child. However, the purpose of the letter was to ask Humbert for money. Humbert is furious and sets out to kill Lolita's new husband. With little help from the letter Humbert finally finds Lolita's house. Humbert describes it as a humble house right off of Hunter Road. Immediately after seeing Lolita Humbert recognizes two things. The first thing being that she is pregnant... very pregnant. The second thing being that she has grown out of her nymphet stage. He also comes to the realization that despite her no longer being a nymphet, Humbert will love her until the day he dies.

After seeing Lolita's husband he realizes that he is not the man who abducted her from the hospital and realizes that he has no real reason to be mad at him. Lolita tells Humbert that the man who abducted her was the playwright of the play she planned to be in earlier... his name is Clare Quilty. She confesses that he is her true love but after her refusal to participate in unusual sexual activities he kicked her out. After this she became a waitress and later found her current husband.

Towards the end of this section Humbert seems to be maturing and coming to terms with his distance from Lolita. It seems as though maybe his relationship with Rita has brought about a change in him. At the beginning of the book his main concern was nymphets, and now they dont seem to phase him. Although he confesses his undying love for Lolita, it seems as though he has come to terms with the fact that they cant be together. I am not as frustrated with Humbert's character anymore, but rather more content with the man he is finally becoming.

Lolita pages 200-252

Lolita decides to be in the school play and begins rehearsing for it. Although at first Humbert is confident that the play is nothing more than a play for schoolchildren, he is appaled by the play's romanticism and fantasy. One day Humbert recieves a notice that Lolita has been missing her piano lessens. After confronting Lolita about it she claims that she had been sneaking off and rehearsing for the play. Not believing Lolita's story, Humbert starts a heated argument with Lolita. It is through this argument that he realizes that Lolita has changed and no longer posseses some of the nymphet qualities he loved. After a moments distraction Lolita escapes the house and when Humbert finds her in a telephone booth, she confesses that she hates Beardsly and her school and wants to move.

After beginning their travels, Humbert and Lolita stay in a succession of hotels just as they had done before. Humbert continues to keep a close eye on her and keeps her from talking to anyone she may not know. Humbert feels that for adequate protection he must keep a gun on him at all times and stand guard during the night. To no suprise as Humbert continues to spend his time obsessing over Lolita he continues to become increasingly paranoid. He often questions things such as Lolita talking to strange men, or also a red car which had seemed to have been following the two of them during their travels.

Humbert stumbled across a letter to Lolita and began reading it at the post office one day. After finishing the letter he looks up and Lolita is no where to be found. Humbert looks and chases after her and after finally finding her Lolita said that she saw a friend from Beardsly. After becoming increasingly paranoid about the man following Lolita and Humbert, Humbert decides to write down the license plate. Soon after notifying Lolita, he realizes that she had erased the license plate number. After paying close attention Trapp (the name Humbert gave to the man following Lolita and him) had merely been switching cars and after getting a flat tire Humbert had planned to confront him but Trapp had quickly driven off before Humbert had a chance to do so. During Humbert's failed confrontation, Humbert's car (with Lolita being at the wheel) starts moving away. Lolita said that she had been trying to keep the car from rolling away.

Humbert takes Lolita to the pool one day and notices a man watching Lolita, and Lolita watching him as well. After close observation Humbert realizes that the man watching Lolita is Trapp. Humbert gets up and again plans to confront him but Trapp takes off too quickly for Humbert to do anything. Later that night, Lolita claims to feel sick. After taking her temperature and realizing that she has a high fever, Humbert takes her to the hospital where he spends his first couple nights away from her in two years. When Humbert returns to the hospital to pick up Lolita the nurse told him that her uncle has already picked her up.

In an attempt to find any clues of Lolita's whereabouts, Humbert retraces every place that him and Lolita had ever been or stayed at. Humbert even hires a detective but the detective proves to be usesless.

It seems as though Humbert's obsession with Lolita is making his life ten times more complicated and depressing than what it needs to be! Humbert constantly lives with anxiety and paranoia that someone will steal Lolita away from him. His paranoia of other men is keeping him from seeing the many attempts Lolita makes to get away from him. There are numerous accounts in which she clearly tries escape his control but once he finds her she will jsut make up an excuse and he believes it! It baffles me how blind he is to her lies, and yet he is still so paranoid about everything else around him!

Lolita pages 176-200

Humbert moves into a smaller, not so nice house somewhere else in the town of Beardsly. Humbert goes into detail about the new neighboorhood they live in and the neighbors they live next to. Humbert remains distant with his neighbors because he fears they may spy on him. Humbert is also afraid of a blosoming relationship between Lolita and the cook, and he continues to make sure he can do anything to keep the relationship from getting any more serious. The school which he sent Lolita has done nothing but anger him with their teachings. Humbert would rather the school focus on teaching writing and arithmatec but rather they have been teaching Lolita social skills. Specifically the school has taught Lolita the four D's: Dramatics, Dance, Debate, and Dating. Its not suprising to think that the fourth and final D upsets Humbert more than the others.

Sadly for Humbert his relationship with Lolita is becoming more strained. She constantly demands for more money and gifts from him, and demands it before any sexual favors. Humbert fears that by him giving Lolita extra money it may give her a chance to run away, so he breaks into her room and steals the money he gives her to make sure she can never leave him. Amidst, his paranoia of Lolita leaving him, Humbert also suffers from fear of Lolita attracting or hanging out with other boys alone. Humbert continues to restrict Lolita's interaction with boys and limits it to interaction with boys in large groups only. In an attempt to ease his anxiety Humbert asks one of Lolita's friends if Lolita has any boyfriends but instead of getting an answer he recieves unwanted affection from Lolita's disappointing friend.

One day, someone informs Humbert that Lolita is not maturing sexually and has a hard time dealing with authority and exhibits many disciplinary problems. The informant tells Humbert that Lolita has an unending vocabulary of cuss words. He provides Humbert with the advice that Lolita should start dating or maybe even take part in the school's play. In an attempt to help Lolita mature properly Humbert throws Lolita a birthday party and invites a number of boys, none of which seem to impress Lolita. Despite the lack of dating to help her mature, Humbert is happy with her distaste of the boys whom he invited to the party.

Humbert is becoming obsessively dependent upon Lolita. It seems as though if she were taken out of his life, he would have no life. I feel sorry for Lolita because she has no real way out because Humbert keeps manipulating her so that she has to be with him for what seems the rest of her life even though she is unhappy. Humbert has deprived Lolita from any sort of parenting, which is what she needs right now instead of an older man who wants nothing but sexual favors from her. Lolita seems as though she has no idea how to develop socially other than the teaching she has receieved from her school. What Humbert is doing to Lolita is almost frustrating in a way but the book continues to be interesting!

Interesting.....

Here are some really interesting facts I have that I get from an app I have on my phone. Sometimes I read these to help me fall asleep... They are very addicting to read!

- Half of all Americans live within 50 miles of their birthplace
- The biggest dog on record was an Old English Mastiff that weighed 343 pounds. He was 8 feet, 3 inches from nose to tail (thats HUGE!)
- No matter its size or thickness, no piece of paper can be folded in half more than 7 times
- The province of Alberta, Canada is completely free of rats.
- People with initials that spell out GOD or ACE are likely to live longer than people whose initials spell out words like APE, PIG, or RAT.
- America once issued a 5-cent bill.
- 10 minutes of one hurricane contains enough energy to match the nuclear stockpiles of the world.
- A "jiffy" is an actual unit of time for 1/100th of a second.
- The most dangerous animal in the world is the common housefly. BEcause of their habits of visiting animal waste, they transmit more diseases than any other animal.
- 90% of Canada's 31,000,000 citizens live within 300 miles of the US border.

Ill keep posting more interesting facts later! :)

Lolita pages 145-176

Humbert and Lolita begin traveling across the United States. Being a very descriptive narrator Humbert describes very detailed images of the hotels they stay in during their travels. A lot of the reason Humbert is traveling around the US and buying Lolita so many gifts is to keep her distracted and content and to keep her from complaining. In an attempt to keep Lolita from complaining he sort of threatens her and reminds her that she has noone except for him. Humbert continues to be very controlling of Lolita and allows her to occasionaly spend time with other girl friends but adamently restricts her interactions with boys.

Throughout their journey Humbert has come to notice that Loliita enjoys meeting new people and trying to pick up hitchhikers. Despite the tremendous effort Humbert puts forth to keep Lolita from interacting with boys Humbert says that Lolita enjoys to flirt and is attracted to other boys and men. Humbert describes one account at a tennis match he saw Lolita talking to another guy and Humbert decides that he still wants to just try to make Lolita happy so he can have sex with her. Humbert feels as though despite Lolita hurts him with her indifference towards him and her interest in other men, Humbert is overall fairly happy.

Humbert and Lolita, on various occasions, try to be intimate in the outdoors but are caught by people. Once they attempted to be intimate by the mountains but got caught by a woman. Another time they were caught at the movies by another woman. After having traveled for quite some time Humbert decides he needs to settle down in one city and get a job. He decides to live in Beardsly and teach at Beardsly Women's college. He also sent Lolita off to an all girl's school.

Humbert seems to be more of a fatherly figure to Lolita than a lover. He is very controlling over her and not letting her to interact with any other boys because he is afraid of her finding someone else. It seems as though the relationship between the Humbert and Lolita is forced because he has to remind her that she has noone else to depend on so she has to stay with him. Also the fact that she cries every night instead of sleeping is further evidence of her unhappiness and unwillingness to be in the relationship. The fact that Humbert chose a Woman's college to teach at does not suprise me and neither does that fact that he chose an all girl's school for Lolita to attend. This book continues to be interesting however, the way Humbert treats Lolita is frustrating... By the way I have become used to the age difference so it does not creep me out as much any more.

Pages 109-145

After picking Lolita up from the Summer camp she had been at, Humbert ponders the idea of denying his love for her and simply just being a good father to her since she no longer has her mother. After considering the idea, Humbert decides that he loves Lolita to much to simply be her father. Humbert is to afraid to tell Lolita of her mother's death so he lies and tells Lolita that her mother is in the hospital. While driving Lolita begins to flirtatiously kiss Humbert and soon after they get pulled over by a cop looking for a different car. After traveling a long ways and Humbert's desires driving him crazy, Lolita and Humbert arrive at a hotel where they have to share a bed. That night Humbert gave Lolita a sleeping pill to make her drowsy and go to bed. Just as she starts to doze off Lolita tries telling Humbert of some bad stuff she has done but Humbert tells her to wait and tell him in the morning.

Humbert leaves Lolita to sleep in the room and wanders down in the public rooms of the hotel. As he is wandering he is filled with the anticipation of "caressing" Lolita while she sleeps . He also compares Lolita to his previous Annabel and points out the differences between the two.

After wandering through the hotel Humbert returns to the room to see Lolita fiddling and going in and out of a deep sleep. He climbs into bed with her but does nothing in fear that she might wake and notice his advances. He stays awake all night and once Lolita wakes up the two of them discuss their views of sex. Lolita then confesses that she had sex with a boy at the camp she went to and that many of her friends had experienced with sex as well.

After hearing this Humbert gives Lolita a serious of gifts and the two prepare to leave the hotel. Humbert becomes worried that Lolita is losing interest in him because of her sudden mood changes and expressions of disinterest towards Humbert. Because Lolita is so upset Humbert stops in the town of Lepingville and buys Lolita many other gifts in an effort to cheer her up. They stay at a hotel there and in the middle of the night Humbert hears Lolita crying. Humbert notes that soon after he hears her crying Lolita comes and sleeps in Humbert's bed.

This chunk of pages makes me lose respect for Lolita. She seems as though she sleeps around without thinking twice about it. The fact that she is still in her "nymphet" stage may have something to do with this experimental lifestyle. As she gets older she will grow out of this phase. It seems as though Humbert is taking advantage of Lolita and her being in this stage of her life. He continues to make advances but does it in a sort of creepy romantic way, trying to woe Lolita. Although interesting, Humberts detailed thoughts of Lolita and his continued obsession with her still distrubs me.

TANGLED!

Such such such a good movie! I went to see this with two of my friends and fell in love with it within the first five minutes. This is probably one of my favorite Disney movies. It is a comedy but also a chick flick at the same time which is right up my alley. Right before the end of the movie I was almost in tears but the movie ended with a happily ever after! It was in 3D which made it even better! Suchh a cute movie.... for girls! :)

Lolita through page 109

After coming to America Humbert plans to stay with a friend of his uncle's named Mr. McCoo. However, after learning that Mr. McCoo's house has burned down, Humbert is forced to stay in a boarding house run by a widow named Charolette Haze. Humbert enjoyed neither the house he was living in nor Mrs. Haze. He did, however, enjoy Mrs. Haze's 12 year old daughter Dolores (whom reminded him of his previous love Annabel). While Humbert is in prison he recalls passages from the diary he kept which had many accounts regarding the Haze's house as well as many detailed accounts of Lolita. Many of the entries in Humbert's diary included detailed descriptions of Lolita and her "nymphetic" qualities.

While Humbert was living in the Haze house, Charolette would always plan to go on a picnic with him and Lolita. The three of them never ended up going on a picnic, though, because it kept getting postponed. Specifically there was one day where Charolette once again postponed the picnic which aggravated Lolita and she refused to go to Church. Because Lolita refused to go to church, Humbert has Lolita all to himself and seizes that opportunity.

Over the summer Charolette decideds to send Lolita away for three weeks to a Summer camp. This greatly bothers Humbert because he knows he will miss Lolita during the time she spends away from him. Humbert even considers leaving the Haze house until Lolita returns in the Fall. Just as Lolita is leaving for camp, her final goodbye to Humbert is a kiss. Thoughts of this kiss consumed Humbert for awhile to come.

After having been greatly distracted by Lolita's kiss, Humbert was suprised to recieve a letter from Charolette Haze professing her love for Humbert. In the letter, she asks for Humbert to either leave the house or reciprocate the feeling and marry her. Humbert ponders the idea and sees it as a chance to become closer to Lolita. Because of Lolita Humbert decides to marry Charolette. Humbert finds the engagement tolerable, despite the fact that he considers killing Charolette for considering sending Lolita away to boarding school.

As Humber is away at the doctor getting sleeping pills to give to both Charolette and Lolita, Charolette finds Humbert's journal with detailed accounts of his fantasies about Lolita. In an effort to calm Charolette down, Humbert tells her that the journal was merely part of a novel he was working on.

After his tense argument with Charolette he learns that she has been hit by a car. Because the one thing separating him from being with his obsession (Lolita) is now dead, Humbert plans a trip for Lolita and him to take when she arrives home from camp. Humbert ponders how he is going to be able to steal Lolita away without looking suspicious to Charolette's dear friends John and Jean Farlow. In an effort to woe her, Humbert buys Lolita many presents including clothing.

After having so much happen the plot have become very detailed. This is not a bad thing though, because it keeps me thinking and focused on the book. If ever I am reading and confused on what happened I have to go back and reread the part to make sure that im keeping up with the rapid plot changes. Once again, Humbert's obsession with a much younger girl still disturbs me, but the many events happening in the story keep me interested and keep me reading the book very intently.

Movie Clip of Lolita (1997)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EHy72LjF2sE

This video clip I found while browsing results for the word Lolita. The relationship portrayed between Humbert and Lolita is disturbing after having read part of the book and knowing what is going through Humbert's mind in regards to Lolita.

Video about Lolita

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNyEM2DKoYc&feature=fvst

This video has some exerpts out of the book which describe the book overall pretty well. However, the pictures that go along with the exerpts and words being said are not really what I envisioned when i was reading the book. The background song is kind of odd to me to go along with the pictures.

Lolita

Consumed with his desires for "nymphets" Humbert begins to pursue these desires by having affairs with prostitutes. One of the prostitutes he meets leaves a lasting impression on him so he decides to pursue her further and takes her on a couple dates. After a few dates with Monique, Humbert realizes that Monique has matured and outgrown her "nymphet" stage. This realization makes Monique seem much less attractive to Humbert so he decides to end the affair. After his affair with Monique, Humbert goes to see another prostitute. After seeing the prostitute, in disgust, Humbert pays her and runs out of the room. After his multiple conquests with prostitutes Humbert decides to get married. Humbert says that "it occured to [him]
 that regular hours, home cooked meals, and all the conventions of marriage" would be more satisfying to him than to continue pursuing prostitutes. Humbert decided to court a daughter of a Polish doctor named Valeria. He makes it known however, that because of his exceptionally handsome looks and "seductive cast of demeanor" he could "obtain at the snap of [his] fingers any adult female he chose." Humbert even goes on to say that he could have chosen a woman much more fascinating that Valeria.

Humbert choses Valeria for her childlike nature and her flirtatiousness, however, these few traits are overshadowed as they grow older and Valeria became a "large, puffy, short-legged, big breasted and practically brainless baba." Because of this significant change Humbert becomes disgusted with her. After he gets the opportunity to get an annual income of a few thousand dollars under the condition that Humbert move to America and take interest in his uncle's business, Humbert tries convincing Valeria to move with him to America. It was at this moment, however, that Humbert began noticing something different about his wife. Humbert and Valeria were coming out of an office building when Valeria decided to blurt out that there was another man in her life. Despite his complete disgust for Valeria and their marriage, Humbert us livid after hearing the news because he feels deeply betrayed by Valeria.

The disturbing details and creepy events that take place in this story continue to get to me, however, the plot of the story keeps me interested. The conflict between Humbert and Valeria kept me from putting the book down. It was almost as if I was there feeling what Humbert was feeling as Valeria told him of her affair. The awkwardness of the situation is what made the book so hard to put down. The details in the story pull me in and help keep me interested. The interesting plot and the conflicts within the story are what is keeping me from choosing a different, less creepy, book!

Warming up the Plot

Lolita begins with a man's thoughts on his love, obsession if you will, for this girl named Lolita. This in depth description of this girl begins with the statement that she is "the light of [his] life, fire of [his] loins. Despite his undieing love for Lolita there was someone that came before her whom this man loved as well. Her name was Annabel. However before he begins the stories of Lolita and Annabel he gives a background of his youth. He was born in 1910 in Paris and his father was "a gentle, easy-going person, a salad of racial genes." The man then goes on to tell about where he lived throughout his youth and tells of his dads decisions as well. After giving the audience a background of himself the man begins to compare Lolita to his first love Annabel. The way he compares to two women in his life is by comparing two different kinds of memories. Annabel was the memory where you could "skillfully recreate an image in the laboratory of your mind" whereas Lolita was a more vivid in depth kind of memory one "you instantly evoke, with shut eyes, on the dark innerside of your eyelids".

Although the man is undeniably in love with Lolita he feels that it is necessary to describe his relationship with his "precursor" Annabel. All at once he describes they were "madly, clumsily, shamelessly, agonizingly in love with each other. However, the love between Annabel and the man seems to be based more off of physical attraction rather than emotional attachment. It seems this way because there are numerous accounts in which the man describes in detail of times they he and Annabel shared alone. Sometime towards the end of their Summer of love Annabel died of typhus in Corfu. Annabel's death haunted the man for an extended period of time until thoughts of Lolita began to consume his mind.

After somewhat recovering from Annabel's death, still consumed with thoughts of Lolita, he begins his life as a college student in Paris. He describes his studies as "meticulous and intense although not particularly fruitful." Meaning he had a hard time deciding which major he was going to stay with. He began college with a desire to study psychiatry but then was convinced to switch to English Literature. After getting out of college he taught a group of adults as well as a class of boys English Literature. While still consumed with thoughts of Lolita he tried taming those thoughts by going to orphanages or reform schools and looking at "pubescent girls with matted eyelashes." Through his observations he created the idea of "nymphets." A nymphet is a girl between the ages of 9 and 14 who "reveals [her] true nature which is not human but nymphic" to men two to three times the girl's age.

After briefly reading this book I have come to realize that this book is going to be very interesting. it seems interesting, however, in a disturbing way. There is a lot of talk of men well into their nineties trying to court 9 and 14 year olds. Although this may not have been as odd in that time period, customs have changed making these facts very disturbing. Even more disturbing, is his obsession with Lolita (a girl who seems to be much younger than him). His detailed accounts of the way she looks adds to the disturbing feel of the book. Despite the disturbing aspect of the book, it contains a lot of imagery and description. I like a lot of description because it helps me paint a picture in my mind, helping me better understand the events in the story. Also the vivid details help make the book more intersting. Overall, the book seems very interesting and seems like it will end up being a very entertaining book to read. I will keep you updated on my thoughts as I continue to read through the book!