School's Out

School starts tomorrow. But not for me. It's the first time since I was five that I am not going to school in the fall. That is not counting the two years absence I took for my mission, but that is different because in a sense I was just starting a different kind of schooling.
It's kind of weird. In High School I don't think I ever thought I would feel wistful to not be starting school again. However, after an idea I got from a fellow blogger, I am going to make up my own classes. I have done that off and on this summer as well, because I like it. Some of my former blog posts have come about because of it, including Archery and Figure Drawing. I think I like not being in school, but still learning.

On Pleasing Peas

One of my favorite fresh vegetables are peas. Walking out into the garden, lifting up the light green bushes, in and amongst the leaves are the little pods. Flat but full of potential. Fat, the skins bulging, with a hint of grey, showing age. And then the perfect ones, rounded, but not full. I pick one and squeeze the far end to make it open with a subdued pop. The pod splits perfectly down the little groove and inside are the little, round, fresh, green peas. I love opening and shutting the pod half the peas connected to each side. They interlock, and break apart like clasped fingers. And then running my thumb down the center shuffling them free into my hand. Biting each one, separately, the juice squirting pleasantly, and then viewing the uneaten half, shells upon shells. They taste of spring.
My family also often chews the pod up. It tastes like the color green, but it is almost a pity to leave that perfect round pod (that shows almost no evidence of being opened and empty) chewed, torn an
d used up.

American Symbols

When I was a sophomore in High school I wrote a paper about how four symbols of America were created/chosen, and how they helped unify different groups. The four symbols were the National Anthem, the Liberty Bell, the American Flag, and the Bald Eagle. Although reading it now, it isn't the best writing, it is interesting that I choose the topic. Essentially, how did inanimate objects affect the cultural and political climate in the nascent period of our country.
Last week some of my family and I were in the Washington DC Area (hence I'm slightly behind in posts). We went to the National History Museum where we saw the flag that flew over Ft. McHenry, and which inspired Francis Scott Key to write "The Star Spangled Banner." The day after we actually toured Ft. McHenry. While we were there we also spent a day in Philadelphia where we saw the Liberty Bell, and Betsy Ross' home. She is the supposed seamstress of the first flag. On the last day of our trip we visited the Patuxent Research Refuge, which is the only wildlife preserve who's first mission is research not preservation. They are known for the discovering the harmful effects of DDT on eagles, and were instrumental in helping save the Bald Eagle from extinction. So in one trip I was able to relive my paper.
In the exhibit for the Ft. McHenry Flag there was one thing that said the flag is important because of the memories and meanings each of us put into it. And indeed that is how symbols work. They are meaningless by themselves but with the strength of collective understanding, memory, fervor, and belief they can be powerful influences for good (or evil). In a sense I think that's what I hinted at in my original paper. Objects, can help create a feeling of unity for people by representing larger ideals.

Figure Drawing

As I said in my last post I have been experimenting with some drawing. I am not very good at drawing people so I thought I would practice. I looked up figure drawing up on wikipedia. It talked about how there are three main techniques, so I tried each of them out. They are all in charcoal, one of my preferred mediums, and they are based off of images I found using google images, (no I did not just make them up, and I was pretty diligent about drawing them accurately... except for the action poses).

Shapes: Draw the person based on the shapes they are made out of. Notice the emphasis on the outside boundaries.

Light: Draw the person based on the areas of light and dark. Notice the outside edges are only discernible  because of the shading. I liked the vividness of this style best, but sometimes it was hard to keep the boundaries accurate.

Anatomy: Draw the person's skeleton, and then add muscles, skin, etc. I failed miserably at this one because I don't know my anatomy good enough. I'm especially bad at doing people's heads this way, and I found keeping the shapes related to the skeleton difficult.

A combination: These action poses (which by the way were much more interesting to draw, and hence I put more effort into them) I did a basic outline, like in the shapes but then went back emphasized the light and dark. I think most of these turned out pretty well. By doing the outlines first it was easier to know where to do the shading.

Projects

So I have been working on some projects these last couple of weeks. And so here is some evidence.

 Here is a set of 8 by 7 feet shelves, that we made and put into the wall. And it's all filled up already.

 Here is a set of curtains that I made. The top of the window is a half circle and thus is not conducive for shades so we made curtains. I kind of wish I had made them a little longer.

I have also been doing some drawing and some writing. 

PS. I decided to do this post with lots of pictures because I haven't had any pictures for a while so yeah. There it is.

Prejudice

If someone you knew, and cared about, walked up and seriously said one of the three things below, which would be most offensive?
a) I hate your shoes, they are such an ugly shade of mahogany.
b) Your personality rubs me the wrong way, and really I just can't stand you.
c) I don't agree with your beliefs. They just don't make sense.

Think about it. Obviously these are somewhat generic insults but I tried to make them fundamentally different.
Prejudice exists. And here I am talking mostly about the US, because after all that is where I have had experience (and in other places and times I think the ideas I'm expressing are somewhat irrelevant because of the magnitude of the prejudices involved). Some people treat other races with great injustice and contempt. Others don't believe that women, or men, are capable or qualified. Anyway. There are lot's of forms of prejudice, I guess I don't need to list them all. But now back to the original question. Did you decide which is most offensive? Personally I would say answer b. The one that takes in you, you and only you. Just like the boy, Hiccup, from How to Train Your Dragon, who several times is told "You should change that." And he answers "What? You just gestured to all of me."
Which is not to say slights about personal beliefs or your favorite sport, hobby, or clothing are not taken personally at times. But the thing is I think it is easier to think that people pick on me because I'm a girl (I can't help that) or LDS (me and quite a few other people) then to know that they just don't like me as a person. Because if you accept that they really don't like you for you, then you are left with three options 1) punch them in the face 2) ignore the taunt or 3) realize that it might have some validity and take ownership of the imperfections it pointed out to you. Basically, I think it is far easier to blame other people's unpleasant behavior towards you on some prejudice that they hold, instead of realizing that you aren't perfect. For instance, "they didn't hire me because I'm a girl," instead of "they didn't hire me because I'm a slacker."
But then again I'm a privileged white girl what do I know.

Face Stealer

Flitting into the kitchen I interrupted my mom and her friend as they were talking. "Can we go play in the stream?" 

"Why don't you play on the trampoline instead," my Mom answered as she stirred the tomato sauce on the stove. 

I frowned but turned towards the door. 

"You know," my Mom's friend said as her own kids came tailing after me "You look like your sister, but you have your brother's facial expressions." 

"Uh, OK," and then I escaped out the door, my friends in tow.

* * * 

Laughter filled the little bedroom. I couldn't stop, and I wasn't the only one. We had been laughing at a story, but as I continued laughing I couldn't help notice our laughs.

I lay on the bottom bunk of a bunkbed in a little room. On the top bunk, and on the mattress set on the ground against the wall were my two companions. I was serving a mission for my church, and was living and working with two other women 24/7. Literally.

The Sister on the mattress on the floor turned to me. Despite the darkness I could tell. "Are you laughing for the same reason I am?" 

I nodded, still laughing, hearing the way our laughs had become almost indistinguishable. I had been working with her for about four months. 

"Your laugh is the same as mine."

"Yeah, I know."

* * *

This is just two examples of one of my quirks. I copy people, not on purpose, but I do. Thankfully, I am far more likely to do it with people that I like, and am around a lot. But if I don't like them I am far less likely to do it. This is very convenient because I have very little control over it. Sometimes, I make a facial expression,  and I am struck that it is not my own. Usually I can pinpoint who's it is. A roommate, a friend, a sibling. "I just stole your face." I tell them. And then I have to explain, and they always ask "Which one?" Disappointingly I can rarely tell them because my face may know how to do it, but I don't know how to explain it. It's really an odd sensation. Like the example above, I have done it with my laugh, but only that once (it makes me wonder who's laugh do I have?). But I also sometimes do it with phrases that another person uses, although I think that is fairly common, and once in a while a gesture. Because of this I think I am also more aware of other peoples facial expressions, and on occasion I have noticed other people do it, mostly when they are siblings.

One of my brothers called me Koh, the face stealer from Avatar (a monster who steals faces). I hope mine isn't quite as offensive.