Green House Effect

I chose to take this picture because of the individuality of the red/purple plant. Sitting in the middle of the room designed to look like a jungle being the only plant that showed and true diversity from the others it stuck out to me. Not to mention it was truly in the midst of everything. It wasn't near the beaten path and looked relatively untouched for an area where many people probably came through. It showed me that sticking out can be a good thing. Individuality is what you make and you can make it bright and meaningful.

Favorite Reading

My favorite reading that we've done is actually the reading that I had to present to class "A First American Views His Land". My overall impression of it was good from the start. The author was able to draw you in with the extreme imagery that he was using and keep you drawn in with the points that he was making that coincided with the stories he told. The accompaniment of the poems was a nice touch too because I was like showing a day in the life of an American Indian which the author has in his blood. Overall the piece was just very powerful because he made you feel the emotions to make you want to change something then he subtly, then less subtly, brought in his cause that he was trying to help. It was a nice strategy for the author to use and it made the piece very powerful.

The Iowa Floods

What connected with me from Blood Dazzler was a similar event that occurred in Iowa. The floods of '93. I know I wasn't very old when this happen but every so often you still hear about them. Lots of people were without food and water and some were without homes. Even through this difficult time people came together. Yes there was bad, as there is with every tragedy, but there was also good. The good in people always comes out when a tragedy strikes an area they are emotionally invested in. After Katrina you heard all about the people who were helping rebuild. Every time I hear about the floods in Iowa I hear about the people who helped. You rarely hear someone say they were awful and nothing about the way a community came together when it was needed. That's what reading Blood Dazzler reminded me of, the people who help.

My Hut

A Hut of One’s Own

“Hut”--from Okakura’s The Book of Tea –“an ephermeral structure built to house a poetic impulse…devoid of ornamentation except what may be place in it to satisfy some aesthetic need of the moment…purposely leaving some thing unfinished for the play of the imagination to complete."

-Where is your hut located? Be specific.
My hut would be located in Florida, probably near the Miami area because my favorite football team is the Miami Dolphins and I would love to live in Florida.

-To what is it oriented?
If its possible I would orient it towards the ocean so I could see it every day. The ocean is one of my favorite places and if I could see it every day I would be a very happy man.

-Briefly describe the exterior and interior of the hut:
The outside and inside would be very clean cut because I'm a very organized person. Everything would be in its place and it would maybe look dull on the outside because of the very organized feel but on the inside there would be a vitality that filled the place.

-What is it made of?
I would use white brick to make my hut because white brick looks beautiful and it can stand up against the weather. The roof would probably be thatch so that it still had a feel of nature.

-Describe a ritual you could enact that would be appropriate in your hut and express things fundamental to you.
I would sing along and act out "The Confrontation" from Les Miserables doing both parts. This is significant to me because music is a huge part of my life and so is theater. Both things make me feel good no matter what's got me down so doing this for a ritual would not only be fun but also a morale booster as well.

-Create a tribute to someone important to you.
My tribute wouldn't be to one person but to the armed forces. I would get a symbol that represents all of them to hang on the wall so that I can always remember them. My reasoning behind this is that I've had a lot of family and friends, including a lot of friends I graduated with, go into the military and I think they deserve a respect that they no longer get.

-Choose a particular music that would be played in your hut. Under what circumstances?
I would have to go with the music from musicals because they always make me feel better because they make you want to sing along if you know the words. Any time I was upset I would be able to play the music and have almost immediately uplifted spirits.

-What smell would be prominent in your hut?
Probably the smell off cinnamon. There's really no particular reason for this one, I just really like the smell of cinnamon.
-What living person would you like to bring to your hut?
I would bring my best friend from back home, Wes. When ever I go back home and before I came to college we were inseparable. He would be the first person I would want to bring and he would be the first person who would want to come.

-If possible to raise the dead, which famous dead person you would like to bring to your hut?
I'd have to go with Chris Farley. He was very funny and he died too young, in my opinion. I would bring him back and talk to him about what he did to get famous and why he chose the type of humor, that he did, to endeavor as a career.

-List three personally important objects you would display inside:
My movie collection because I watch a lot of movies and examine them as more than just entertainment. My most valuable player(actor) award because acting is very important to me. My computer because its part of the career I've chosen and its where I spend most of my time.

-What would someone close to you discover about you by visiting your hut?
That the things I care about aren't just categorized as one thing. My interests are sporadic and sometimes odd but that makes me who I am.

-What about you would most interest after a visit to your hut?
The appearance of everything being a hodgepodge of different people but actually being the culmination of one person.

-What one food would you serve there?
My mom's beef and noodle stew. It's one of those meals that I always loved being able to have and still have never tired of. Not to mention it's comfort food which is always a plus.

-What one memory would you commemorate? How?
The memory of getting my Eagle Scout award. I have a throw rug that has the emblem and says, "Once an Eagle, always an Eagle." I'd hang this up because not only does it remind me of what I've done but it also reminds me everyday to be a better person.

-What one photograph of yourself would you include?
The picture of me and my best buddy dressed up as gangsters because it, in a nut shell show's how close we are.






-What one photograph of another?
The image of my brother dressed up as a very regal man because my brother means a lot to me. He's really talented and really funny and I still talk to him every day.






-What one thing you’ve made?
The end table I made with my dad when I was little for Father's Day. It meant a lot to him at the time and only recently did I realize why all the stuff that matters to him actually does matter. This would keep me close to him even though I'd be far away.

Relationship With the Earth

My childhood contained a lot of time outdoors. I was a Boy Scout you see. I was out camping at least once a month, if not more just for the pure pleasure of it. I've been to very urbanized campsites where people bring out their TV and their dish so they can watch the big game. But at the same time I've been to places like the Boundary Waters where very few things have been touched by man. Its given me a more in touch sense with nature then I figured I would end up having.

When you go to these places you're taught to "leave no trail". Make sure where you've been is unharmed or better off then when you got there. For years I did this with my peers. At the time I just thought it was something you were taught so the next person to roam through didn't have to deal with your belongings. But the older I got, and still am getting, the more I realized that its more than just that. Its leaving the place intact for other people years down the road.

Every month I went out and we'd have our fun. Spend a weekend away from everything. Worry about nothing but the very essential things. There's a lot less to care about and there's a freedom that you don't get in the city. But that feeling can only be intact by the way we shape this environment.

Every time I go out into the country, or more wild an area that the city, I can't help but think about the things I learned when I was younger. Leave no trail. This sense of helping the area gives me a more honed in sense of the logistics of the land. The birds, the animals, the overall surrounding. When you keep the land in pristine condition these things are more noticeable in the area around you.

I guess the environment has shaped me in the same way I hope I'm shaping it. For every time I get to go out into the woods I get to experience another day in what nature intended. A beautiful landscape that makes one think of a time much simpler and less harmed by the people have most shaped it.

Hometown

I live in a small town where everybody somehow has a connection to other people in the town. So a big part of what goes on is sports. Every Friday night in the fall you could see the lights of the stadium from the edge of town. When you close in on the field you can hear the screaming crowd and the band. The whole town gets involved because so many people have a stake in the game. Its the kind of environment that makes me love small town life. Because there's always that support group for you when you do something. Its what Indianola reminds me of.