Vocabulary Expansion

Battersea- is an area of London lying on the south bank of the River Thames.

Archipelago- a chain or group of islands.

Termerity- Foolhardy disregaurd of danger, recklessness

Plutarch - Greek biographer and Neo-Platonist/ He wrote Parallel Lives

Fillip- 1. A snap or light blow made by pressing a fingertip against the thumb and suddenly releasing it.
2. An embellishment that excites or stimulates: "Spritely tabasco onions, just a little crunch for the top, were an added fillip" Alison Arnett.
3. One that is trivial or of little importance

Undulating- 1. To cause to move in a smooth wavelike motion.
2. To give a wavelike appearance or form to.

Belie- 1. To picture falsely; misrepresent: "He spoke roughly in order to belie his air of gentility" James Joyce.
2. To show to be false: Their laughter belied their outward grief.
3. To be counter to; contradict: At first glance, life at the boarding school seemed to belie all the bad things I had heard about it.

1st paragraphs I liked

1. Meatless Days 459
2. Of a Monstrous Child 57
3. Such, Such Were the Joys 269
4. Walking 480
5. Alas, Poor Richard 604

Five opening lines I would like to write

1. I knew from the moment I saw those tiny little curls stuck to the side of his head that I discovered the truth of forever love.
2. When I was about thirteen, my grandmother told me a story about a woman whose beauty and grace changed the fate of a nation.
3. My pool, an open book and a few bottles of bud are essential products of my happiness.
4. Growing up with the sisters is like being invited to watch an exclusive group from a distance but, never really being invited to join.
5. My mama always said, I have a song in my heart.

Slick will make you sick, Fury there is no worry. As long as I have had a memory, I have known this sentence and tried to stay within its guide lines. I know which ones will just hurt me and I know the ones that could kill me, but my biggest fear stems from the big fury ones. I had rather face one hundred slick spiders than to come within a foot of the dreaded fury tarantula.
It all started in 1977, I was six and my mom in all her infinite wisdom allowed me to watch KINGDOM OF THE SPIDERS starring William Shatner and thousands of Tarantula spiders. The movie had horrendous scenes where thousands of these furry creatures would take over entire rooms engulfing anyone in sight. This was scary, but the most frightening scene came at the beginning, before anyone was aware of the impending doom that was lurking in every dark shadow waiting for attack. It was a scene out of everyday life; a gas station attendant came into a dark garage looking for a tire. As he grabbed the one he was looking for a huge spider dropped down from the tire he was holding and bit him on the hand. This one scene changed the way I search for anything. I am very careful to check every possible hiding place before touching anything that has been stored away. I probably needed therapy but it wasn’t quite as popular as it is today for children to seek counseling for their fears and phobias.
So, I have just learned in order for me to lead a normal life I should just avoid doing anything that may lead to an encounter with these fury monsters. This was easier before I had children (three boys) fear factor was one of their favorite shows. It was not just for the gross and gore, they knew at least once an episode someone would have to crawl in a hole with hundreds of fury spiders and to their delight mom would come unglued and the laughter and ridicule would ensue. You might imagine how relieved I was when I found out the show had been cancelled. But my sons’ perseverance to find these furry creatures is amazing. I’m almost afraid we may live on some evil spider infested hill. The way they find them is frightening, if they could sell them we would be loaded and I could afford the desperately needed therapy.

Assignment for Tuesday 1/20/08

Five original titles of essays that you would like to write some day.

1. Growing Up With Nell
2. The Sisters
3. The Music in My Life
4. Helen
5. March 22, 1996

Five best First lines:

1. Meatless Days-I had strongly hoped that they would say sweetbreads instead of testicles, but I was wrong.
2.On Some Verses of Virgil- To the extent that useful thoughts are fuller and more solid, they are also more absorbing and more burdensome.
3. The Lantern-Bearers- These boys congregated every autumn about a certain easterly fisher village, where they tasted in high degree the glory of existence.
4. My Face- Merely as an observer of natural phenomena, I am fascinated by my own personal appearance.
5. Once a Tramp, Always...-There is a mistaken idea, ancient but still with us, that an overdose of anything from fornication to hot chocolate will teach restraint by the very results of its abuse.

IV. The Role of Contrariety (30-31). How comfortable do you feel expressing an opinion that you know others will disagree with?
It depends on the subject, if it pushes one of my buttons then I have no problem speaking my opinion otherwise I tend to just let it slide.
V. The Problem of Egotism (31-32). Do you worry that writing about your personal life in detail is a sign of egotism or vanity?
No, I worry about others judging me.
VI. Cheek and Irony (32-33). How comfortable do you feel making fun of yourself? How do you feel about mocking other people?
It depends on the person and how well I know them. I grew up in a family where if you didn't make fun of yourself then there would be someone ready to step up and make you the butt of their joke, it was all in fun but I don't really feel comfortable doing that to someone else. Some people get really offended and that would never be my intention.

I. The Conversational Element (xxiv-xxv). Would you describe yourself as someone who often feels ambivalent about issues? Are you the kind of person who has lots of doubts? Do you make a habit of examining your doubts?
I am usually a very easy going person, it takes alot to get me upset but there are a few issues I am a complete lioness when it comes to defending my point of view and I am undetourable on those decisions.
II. Honesty, Confession, and Privacy (xxv-xxvii). Would you describe yourself as a private person or do you tend to be more of an "open book"?
Of course there are issues I refuse to discuss with anyone. For the most part I am fairly open I just stay away from very personal issues. I will jprobally be more reserved on these blogs than my usual writting.
III. The Contractions and Expansions of the Self (xxvii-xxix). How comfortable do you feel about talking about your flaws or things you've done in the past that embarrass you now? Are proud of your knowledge of a particular subject?
Some might say I am obsessed with my flaws, I am constantly pointing them out to myself as well as others. As far as being pround of my knowledge on a particular subject, I consider myself more of a fox, I really haven't found something to focus on more than the rest.