Chicago

I just read the poem Chicago by Carl Sandburg, and I must say I really liked it. I enjoyed the description that seemed so fitting for many large cities. I love that after agreeing to all it's downfalls, he showed why Chicago is a great city, and referred to it as his, showing his pride. I don’t know that I have ever witnessed a city as proud as Chicago. I attended a Chicago Bears game last fall, which was awesome in itself, but what really amazed me was how proud and true the fans were. They were Chicago, loud and proud, through and through.

My Road Not Taken...

I read the poem The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost last night. As I lie awake at 4 A.M., for some reason unable to fall back asleep after waking up to feed and change my baby girl, I couldn’t help but think of my own un-traveled path. Right out of high school I spent only one year at Ball State studying Psychology. I think often about how things might have turned out for me if I had conquered my pathetic homesickness and stuck it out there and finished my degree. Although there is so much that could have been better for me that way, I have no regrets. That would have been my easy path. Get a degree, get a good job, and then eventually settle down and start a family. I did EVERYTHING completely backward, yet I somehow managed to end up exactly where I want to be. I’m glad that my path is littered with mistakes and some hardships. I have a wonderful high spirited son, a fantastic step-son, a beautiful daughter, and a good man you loves us all and would do anything for us. I am finally back at the school thing, and will one day have that degree and great job I’ve always dreamed of. All in all, I am delighted I took that off beat path…No regrets, just lessons learned…

A Pleasant Suprise

I must say, I was not at all excited to read “The Red Badge of Courage.” I dreaded it actually. Much to my father’s dismay, I am terribly uninterested in History. I find it dry and boring. I almost yawn at the mere mention of wars, kings, presidents, or pretty much anything History related. I despise movies about history, shows about history, and most of all, books about history. I figured that this book would be another one of those things that I force myself through, bored beyond belief, learning and gaining nothing. I was pleasantly surprised with the “Red Badge of Courage.” I liked that it was not filled with too much boring, factual information. I loved that instead it gave a look into someone’s mind, telling all Henry’s thoughts and emotions; I guess that’s just the Psychology major in me coming through again! It was interesting to see the things that a soldier thinks and goes through. The running, the despair, the guilt, and finally the triumph all through the eyes of a soldier was amazing. Now that I have read this book, I am glad I did!

Authors...

It's official. After this pod I now have another author to add to my list of favorites! Kate Chopin has amazed me with the stories in our class book. I am very drawn into her stories and they actually stir emotions in me. In reading Desiree’s baby I was furious! What kind of a man would do such a thing to both the woman he supposedly loves and his own son!? After this I am anxious to find and read more of her stories. Last pod I was shocked and amazed to realize that I am a big fan of Mark Twain! I haven’t read any of his works since high school, at which time I was annoyed to be forced to do it, and frankly bored to death! I am glad that I have the opportunity in this class to be exposed to authors that I either didn’t use to appreciate, or never knew existed. Wonder what next week will bring…

Introduction

Well, after much confusion I finally got my blog going! I am not very technology smart, and have no experience with blogs, so this will be a whole new thing for me! I am 27 years old and have one 4 year old son, one 4 month old daughter, and one 4 year old step-son. I am currently a stay at home mom, but between housework, school work, and keeping up with my very high energy children, there's not a chance to be bored!

I would like to say that I started this class not knowing fully what to expect and I dreaded it a little. Now that we are three weeks in, I love it! I really enjoy getting to pick and choose what I read and what work I do. In this blog I will discuss some of my favorite things from this class; from stories, to authors, to characters. I look forward to also hearing about some of my classmates favorites!