hello ms. fletcher!! ;] i haven't seen you in it seems like forever. but you'll be happy to know that i enrolled in a summer writing course & everything being covered, i already know because the materials they are "teaching" have already been taught in your erwc class :] thanks so much fletcher for being a great teacher.
btw, is it too late to pick up my portfolio????
-Melanie Morris '09
Monday, June 29, 2009
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
I miss you kids
Hey Graduates, I like reading what you write, and Lourella watching Into the Wild with her folks! I went to a big ERWC thing today in LA, and got new binders with updated units and GRAMMAR!
Here I am with my table mates in Daytona Beach -- this was the last day so we were completely bonded and also sort of insane. The guy sitting down was my table leader and he was a hilarious guy...he taught high school in Texas for umpty ump years and just retired. He got his sick leave from all those years in a check, so while we were at the reading, he had a $55,000 payday. No wonder he's smiling!
Anyway, kids...I'll keep this blog up for another year or so...if you ever want to post or stay in touch, I'll pop out here from time to time to see if anyone has written anything new. Be good, study hard, and be a true blue friend to all of the people who love you.
Graduation was one week ago today. I still feel a little discombobulated. Hard to believe that the year is over. I am working on putting your porfolios away -- sorry I didn't get them back to you before the year was out. Come back anytime next year and I'll give it to you. I'm really going to work on getting those back to kids by the end of the year next year. I see so many ways I could have done a better job -- especially today at the ERWC symposium -- but what I like about teaching is that you always get another chance to do better next year.
Love,
Alexandra Faye Fletcher -- most people call me Alex, and if you want to, you certainly can.
Here I am with my table mates in Daytona Beach -- this was the last day so we were completely bonded and also sort of insane. The guy sitting down was my table leader and he was a hilarious guy...he taught high school in Texas for umpty ump years and just retired. He got his sick leave from all those years in a check, so while we were at the reading, he had a $55,000 payday. No wonder he's smiling!
Anyway, kids...I'll keep this blog up for another year or so...if you ever want to post or stay in touch, I'll pop out here from time to time to see if anyone has written anything new. Be good, study hard, and be a true blue friend to all of the people who love you.
Graduation was one week ago today. I still feel a little discombobulated. Hard to believe that the year is over. I am working on putting your porfolios away -- sorry I didn't get them back to you before the year was out. Come back anytime next year and I'll give it to you. I'm really going to work on getting those back to kids by the end of the year next year. I see so many ways I could have done a better job -- especially today at the ERWC symposium -- but what I like about teaching is that you always get another chance to do better next year.
Love,
Alexandra Faye Fletcher -- most people call me Alex, and if you want to, you certainly can.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Just now
I was flipping through channels and guess what i saw? Into the Wild playing on showtime! Now I'm watching the movie with my parents and having this whole discussion about Chris McCandless. Even though we're not in school and our "Into the Wild discussion" is over, I still wanted to share this with everyone. Have a great summer class of 2009! Ms. Fletcher expect to see me sometime soon! :D
Friday, June 19, 2009
In Love with Edward Cullen
This quarter I read New Moon, the second book of the Twilight Series. It is a 563-page novel filled with both heartbreak, love, and adventure. I think this book works well enough as a stand alone; but like every other sequel readers will get a totally better understanding of the story and more entertainment from reading it if they read Twilight first.
The novel begins with Bella’s 18th birthday. She and Edward have been going out for six months now, and he tries to make this birthday memorable. In the midst of Bella’s birthday party at the Cullen’s, a stupid accident happens that leaves Bella covered in blood. This causes the party to fall somewhat flat, as the accident triggers a feeding frenzy in Jasper. Edward suddenly becomes distant towards Bella. He tells her that he and his family are leaving Forks for good, and that he never wants to see her again. This leaves Bella heartbroken, for her world revolves around Edward Cullen. Through the lapse of heartbreak, Bella’s world begins to fall apart as she loses most of her friends and becomes even more isolated and lonely.
As Bella loses friends, she grows closer to an old one. Jacob Black becomes Bella’s new partner in crime; she begins to explore her curiosities and go on adventures with him at her side. Although, the pain of Edward’s abandonment never subsides, Jacob becomes her best friend and he helps to fill some of the voids in her life. After spending a great amount of time with Jacob, Bella discovers he is not an ordinary boy, for part of his Quileute heritage is to be cursed to be a werewolf. And of course, it is not a coincidence that werewolves and vampires are each other’s worse enemies.
Alice returns to Forks and her extraordinary gift of being able to see the future tells her Edward is heading on a path of self-destruction –one that only Bella can advert. Bella and Alice leave Forks on a mission to save Edward, and after a series of unfortunate events and timing, they succeed. The lovers reunite, and their relationship is stronger than ever, but the big elephant in the room remains: what will happen to the camaraderie between Bella and Jacob?
This book was heartbreaking; I honestly fell in love with Edward after reading Twilight, but I hated him so much when he abandoned Bella. Regardless, I think Meyer did an excellent job in portraying Bella’s pain throughout the novel. It’s what this whole book is about. Most of the things Bella experiences in this book is a result of the overwhelming loss she is trying to bear. In addition, I believe her friendship with Jacob has a doomed quality to it not only because he loves her while she is in love with Edward but also because he is a werewolf and he naturally hates all vampires.
After reading the book, I fell in love with Edward all over again. His love for Bella runs deep, and it’s breathtaking to read about it. New Moon is bittersweet, and I totally recommend this book, as well as the whole Twilight series, to all! =)
The novel begins with Bella’s 18th birthday. She and Edward have been going out for six months now, and he tries to make this birthday memorable. In the midst of Bella’s birthday party at the Cullen’s, a stupid accident happens that leaves Bella covered in blood. This causes the party to fall somewhat flat, as the accident triggers a feeding frenzy in Jasper. Edward suddenly becomes distant towards Bella. He tells her that he and his family are leaving Forks for good, and that he never wants to see her again. This leaves Bella heartbroken, for her world revolves around Edward Cullen. Through the lapse of heartbreak, Bella’s world begins to fall apart as she loses most of her friends and becomes even more isolated and lonely.
As Bella loses friends, she grows closer to an old one. Jacob Black becomes Bella’s new partner in crime; she begins to explore her curiosities and go on adventures with him at her side. Although, the pain of Edward’s abandonment never subsides, Jacob becomes her best friend and he helps to fill some of the voids in her life. After spending a great amount of time with Jacob, Bella discovers he is not an ordinary boy, for part of his Quileute heritage is to be cursed to be a werewolf. And of course, it is not a coincidence that werewolves and vampires are each other’s worse enemies.
Alice returns to Forks and her extraordinary gift of being able to see the future tells her Edward is heading on a path of self-destruction –one that only Bella can advert. Bella and Alice leave Forks on a mission to save Edward, and after a series of unfortunate events and timing, they succeed. The lovers reunite, and their relationship is stronger than ever, but the big elephant in the room remains: what will happen to the camaraderie between Bella and Jacob?
This book was heartbreaking; I honestly fell in love with Edward after reading Twilight, but I hated him so much when he abandoned Bella. Regardless, I think Meyer did an excellent job in portraying Bella’s pain throughout the novel. It’s what this whole book is about. Most of the things Bella experiences in this book is a result of the overwhelming loss she is trying to bear. In addition, I believe her friendship with Jacob has a doomed quality to it not only because he loves her while she is in love with Edward but also because he is a werewolf and he naturally hates all vampires.
After reading the book, I fell in love with Edward all over again. His love for Bella runs deep, and it’s breathtaking to read about it. New Moon is bittersweet, and I totally recommend this book, as well as the whole Twilight series, to all! =)
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
SSR 4th Quarter
If any of you have never heard about Anthony Bourdain before, let me explain real quickly. Anthony Bourdain gained notoriety when he wrote Kitchen Confidential, an intimate look at the restaurant business and his experiences in it. His stories are very colorful; he uses sarcasm and describes his experiences with Mafioso’s, Restaurateurs, Chefs, and bartenders.
His novel, Gone Bamboo, is written in much the same way. Gone Bamboo concerns an ex-mafia hetman named Henry, who goes to an island in the Caribbean to get away from his past, a man that he tried unsuccessfully to assassinate. Unfortunately for Henry, the US Government has other plans. The man that Henry tried to assassinate, Charlie Wagons is under the Federal Witness Protection program, until he can testify against his old cohorts, and he is being held under armed guard, right up the road from where Henry and his wife Frances live.
Henry and Frances befriend another younger couple, Tommy and Cheryl, who coincidentally live with Charlie, in an attempt to get closer to Charlie so that Henry can make his apologies for the past. Henry and Frances are almost assassinated themselves by a Mafia hitman name Little Petey, after the Mafia finds out that Henry is on the island near Charlie. They foil the assassin and kill him. That is only the least of their worries though, as a group of hired guns start a massive gun battle at the compound Charlie is staying at.
I’ll stop there as that is where the book starts getting good. I like this novel because it makes you laugh at some points, yet somehow manages to be serious when it needs to be. The characters are pretty developed, and when some die you feel for them to some extent.
His novel, Gone Bamboo, is written in much the same way. Gone Bamboo concerns an ex-mafia hetman named Henry, who goes to an island in the Caribbean to get away from his past, a man that he tried unsuccessfully to assassinate. Unfortunately for Henry, the US Government has other plans. The man that Henry tried to assassinate, Charlie Wagons is under the Federal Witness Protection program, until he can testify against his old cohorts, and he is being held under armed guard, right up the road from where Henry and his wife Frances live.
Henry and Frances befriend another younger couple, Tommy and Cheryl, who coincidentally live with Charlie, in an attempt to get closer to Charlie so that Henry can make his apologies for the past. Henry and Frances are almost assassinated themselves by a Mafia hitman name Little Petey, after the Mafia finds out that Henry is on the island near Charlie. They foil the assassin and kill him. That is only the least of their worries though, as a group of hired guns start a massive gun battle at the compound Charlie is staying at.
I’ll stop there as that is where the book starts getting good. I like this novel because it makes you laugh at some points, yet somehow manages to be serious when it needs to be. The characters are pretty developed, and when some die you feel for them to some extent.
my book review
Its 3:45 in the morning. Knock. Knock. Knock. Kathryn Lyons wakes out of her deep slumber confused and unaware of her surroundings. She remembers that her husband, jack, should be returning from his flight but not this early. She staggers down the stairs in her pajamas and opens her front door. A towering figure stands in her doorway. This isn’t her husband. “Mrs. Lyons?”, and then she knows.
Her feet give out on her and she falls to the ground.
This event happens in the first pages of “The Pilot’s Wife” by Anita Shreve, where Kathryn is told the news of her husband’s plane crashing off the coast of Ireland. The author goes on to illustrate the pain and grief Kathryn and her daughter Maddie endure from losing such a vital person in their lives. They are also accompanied by the union rep, Robert Hart, who helps keep the hungry press away from the grieving family and who updates them on all the rumors and information about the crash.
As the story unfolds we follow Kathryn through her grieving process and watch her strength grow as she tries to hold what’s left of her family together. It seems like the typical sad story with the typical grieving family until Kathryn begins to uncover things she never knew about her husband. We watch as she starts questioning her entire marriage and wondering if she really knew the man that she has loved for over 16 years.
The author does a great job of pulling all the pieces of the story together and depicting Kathryn’s growing doubt about her husband and their marriage. She does this by flashing back and forth from present to past and showing contrast between how Kathryn thought her husband was and the stranger she is finding him to be.
I would recommend this book but with some caution. It is not a happy romance or love story, it is sad and only becomes more depressing. It is a very captivating book and you will not want to put it down. I will not give away the ending but the author throws twists that you wouldn’t expect.
I really enjoyed reading “The Pilot’s Wife” and I found that during SSR it really held my attention despite all the side conversations and snickering that we had in class. I find that as the year went on I was able to block out all the background commotion more and more. I became a more effective reader due to SSR and I think that it was very beneficial.
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