Hello, and welcome to my sixth blog post! For this assignment we were asked to write a counterfactual to our blog five post, which was the memoir. We were told to read a few texts that shared stories and explained what counterfactual means and how to write it. A counterfactual is imagining how an event could’ve come to a different outcome, or picturing an alternate ending. We were asked to read a few passages that I have listed below, to get a better understanding of what counterfactual means. In my story I put a twist on it and pictured how things could’ve been different if certain aspects of the situation were changed.
It was a beautiful Saturday morning, and my high school football team was getting ready for practice. I thought to myself this day couldn’t get any better. We had our weekly workouts on Saturdays in the Spring to get us ready for the regular season. After an hour into our workout one of our hardest working linebackers went down to the ground. He stayed down for a little while, and coaches were trying to assist him and get him some water during that time. Eventually, the ambulance showed up and the rest of the team went back to our high school to wait and hear how our teammate was doing. I was sitting at a table with one of the assistant coaches and I asked, “Coach is he gonna be okay?” “We haven’t heard anything yet, but just pray that our brother will be alright”, he said. That really started to hit me. Time slowly went by and we still haven’t received an answer. Anxiety started to build up and I thought to myself, what if he never came to practice today? These off-season workouts were optional and I was just thinking, if he didn’t come today, then this wouldn’t have happened. He was such a hardworking kid, that it wouldn’t be realistic if he didn’t show up, but I could only think that. After a couple hours of waiting we heard the devastating news that our teammate passed away. We were all so shocked and heartbroken because he had so many goals that he wasn’t going to be able to meet now, and he was such a special kid. But something that came out later on was that he had a pre-existing heart condition that nobody ever knew about. Now my thinking has gone to, “What if he was actually aware of having a heart condition?” “What if he knew that he has limits and can’t go full force in practice, to the point of passing out?” This all could’ve played out way differently if that was the case. After days of grieving, the viewing was held at our school's church, which every member of the team attended. As we were walking out we heard a scream that said, “My baby! Noo, my baby’s gone!” This came from his mom and after that we all broke down crying. My brother, who was also on the team and was a year older than me, came up to me and gave me the biggest hug. I thought thank god I have my brother here with me because this was a really shitty time. I couldn’t imagine how that could’ve been different, if my brother wasn’t on the team. I needed that hug from my brother and have him tell me, “I got you dude, we gotta be there for each other, I love you.” This was the hardest time, especially since I was fifteen years old, it was difficult to process all of this. I knew that having my brother there helped me a lot, and if he wasn’t there, I’m not sure if I would’ve had the courage to be strong in that situation.
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Hello and welcome to my fifth blog post. For this assignment we had to read a couple short stories called My Name is Margaret by Maya Angelou, and Hills Like White Elephants by Ernest Hemingway. Two very respected authors, they bring some great themes to these short stories. I notice a theme of frustration in the two stories and they both do an excellent job of showing the events that happened, rather than telling. In my story, I connected a theme from the two short stories to an event that happened in my life. This story is an interaction I shared with my brother when we experienced a terrible moment on our high school football team.
My Name is Margaret (Maya Angelou) Hills Like White Elephants It was a beautiful, warm, Saturday morning in the Spring and my teammates and I started getting prepared for practice. Offseason workouts were always very tough, if you weren’t dripping sweat and completely out of breath, then you didn’t work hard enough. Everyone was in the best mood for practice, it was almost like this Saturday morning was too perfect to be ruined by anything. Then, towards the end of our workout, one of our solid linebackers went down to the ground. After minutes went by of trying to get him back up and awake, they rushed him to the hospital. “He’s in the hospital still getting looked at now, we will update you guys as soon as we hear of anything”, my coach said. Everyone panicking, “Is he gonna be alright coach??” “Just everyone, please say prayers that he’ll get through this.” After a couple hours went by and we still weren’t updated, we started feeling very uneasy. Then a post comes out saying “RIP Ryan, I love you brother”, and that is when my heart dropped. I just got out of the shower to read that and I immediately bursted out into tears. I talked to my parents for awhile and they were able to cheer me up, but the thought of one of my first friends at my high school passing away just didn’t sit with me. I questioned it a lot and I kept thinking, why him? He was such a hardworking, determined young kid who was striving for success on the field and in the classroom, and then he randomly gets taken away from us one day. After a couple days of grieving and sadness we had his viewing held at our high school church. With his whole family there too, it made everything so much worse. As were exiting the church behind the casket a loud scream cried out from Ryan's mom, “My baby! My baby boy is gone! Why God! Why!” That immediately brought everyone to tears and then my brother, who is one year older than me, walked up and gave me the biggest hug. His voice, shaky, “Come here, Brandon. We gotta be there for each other. This shit hurts bad right now, but we have to be there for each other, I love you man.” “His mom screaming just tore me apart and made it feel so much more real.” “This goes to show it can happen to anyone at anytime”, he said “He was such an awesome kid. He had so much going for him, this isn’t what’s supposed to happen to a fifteen year old kid. It’s fucked up.” “Everything we do will be for Ryan. If it was anyone else and he was still here with us, you know damn well he would be working hard and grinding. So let’s do that for him, it’s what he would’ve wanted.” “You’re right. We can’t take anything for granted.” “That’s right. I love you dude, I got you forever.” “Love you too man, always gonna be here for you.” After this conversation with my brother during that very hard time, it really picked me up. It was hard to stay positive in a situation like that, but knowing that my brother was there with me and knowing how strong we are together, made the situation much better. I forgot how to be positive at that time and even though my brother was soaked in tears, he managed to help me feel better and feel happier. Through a hard time like this, it truly opened my eyes to see just how important your family can be.
Hi everyone! And welcome back to my fourth blog post. In this post we’re doing something a little differently. We are setting a scene for a writers’ roundtable discussion and are told to read three pieces of writing, all from different authors. The first story is called “Teach Writing as a Process Not a Product”, by Don Murray. The second story is called “Against Vanity: In Praise of Revision, by Mary Karr. The final story we had to read is called “Bird by Bird: Some instructions on Writing and Life”, by Anne Lamott. We then played out a discussion that they might’ve had at a roundtable with quotes used from their writing. It was officially the weekend and I heard about my three favorite writers Don Murray, Mary Karr, and Anne Lamott, being in town to have discussions about their writings and to give advice to avid readers and writers. Without hesitation I decided to go and it was only ten minutes away so I figured it was the perfect opportunity. When I first got there I noticed somebody was finishing up talking to Don Murray, so I jumped up there next. I first asked him about this idea of language in writing and how it’s used and what it’s used for. He responded to me “It is the process of discovery through language. It is the process of exploration of what we should know and what we feel about what we know through language. It is the process of using language to learn about our world, to evaluate what we learn about our world, to communicate what we learn about our world. I found this really eye catching and it made me understand language much more after he explained it. I then went on to ask him how I can come up with a topic to write about and he said “The writer, as he writes, is making ethical decisions. He doesn’t test his words by a rule book, but by life.” This made a lot more sense because it is true that you are making different decisions while in the process of writing. Since I am in this English Composition I class I went on to ask him if this writing course will truly help me and what it is that I can get out of it in the end. He said “The suspense in the beginning of a writing course is agonizing for the teacher, but if we break first, if we do the prewriting for our students they will not learn the largest part of the writing process.” Which I understand because it is us that have to do the work and be the ones trying to learn, if we wanna succeed then it starts with us. I wanted to get some ideas on how to properly right about something that might not have been from this time so I moved on to talk to Mary Karr. After asking her about the time periods with my writing she responded “Getting a sense of the person’s time in history often helped me to understand their styles in that context—what literary pressures and fashions and values of the day were forging their pages.” This makes sense because if you act like you’re present in the time period, it helps you to live in the moment and be more precise with your writing. I then wanted to ask her what I can do to better my writing and she responded “Reading through history cultivates in a writer a standard of quality higher than the marketplace.” I like her saying this because all it takes is a little bit of reading and curiosity and you can find success with writing. I finally asked her what is so important about writing and what it means to be a writer and she said to me “Just picking up a pen makes you part of a tradition of writers that dates thousands of years back and includes Homer and Toni Morrison and cave artists sketching buffalo.” Which makes a lot of sense because writing and reading goes back so long ago and we aren’t new to any of it. After I talked to Mary I went on to talk with Anne Lamott, who was very intelligent. I started talking to her and asking her a few questions and the first thing I asked was how to get yourself to sit down and start working on your writing and she said “Say to yourself in the kindest possible way, Look, honey, all we’re going to do for now is to write a description of the river at sunrise, or the young child swimming in the pool at the club, or the first time the man sees the woman he will marry.” Which made it seem so much easier for me to grasp. I told her I was nervous about exploring different topics and paths in writing and she said “Very few writers really know what they are doing until they’ve done it.” So, I really won’t know if I’m good at something until I try it out. I wanted to get into talking about how I find it difficult finding a starting spot in my writing and she had a very good response for me that helped a lot, “For me and most of the other writers I know, writing is not rapturous. In fact, the only way I can get anything written at all is to write really, really shitty first drafts.” Which I can say makes perfect sense. It makes most sense to me to just start writing and to clean everything up later. Having these conversations with these great authors was truly amazing and inspiring. I learned so much information and I feel like I’m already a better writer as soon as I left there. I have a few takeaways and quotes that I like for myself and that’s “You never know how it will go unless you try it out”, “Take big risks and wait to clean anything up at the end”, and my last quote is “Don’t be afraid to explore and search different paths in your writing because that’s the only way you can grow.
Hello and welcome to my third blog post. For this assignment we were asked to read A Fable for the Living (Kevin Brockmeier) in order to get ideas on how we can write a letter to our author-selves. The metaphor in the short story is the connection and presence that is felt with someone who isn’t actually there. With writing a letter to our author-self we are making a connection with something that isn’t physically present, instead we are feeling a presence through the metaphors in the letter. Dear Charles, I get confused when the thought of you comes to my head. It’s like you walk into the woods to the peaceful sound of trees swaying in the wind and the warm sunlight beaming down on you, and then there’s me who is left behind. You go on these adventures alone, and excited for new experiences and I feel like I’m on the outside looking in. But something I did want to say to you is I’m sorry. I’m sorry if I attempted to come at your weaknesses emotionally or physically, it’s just a lot of thoughts that run through my head and I like to get them down on paper. So, moving forward I would like to be open to your new and creative ideas and I trust that you will succeed in the near future. In order to succeed you’ll have to step out of your comfort zone at times and you always want to attack your weaknesses head on in order to improve. I would like to accomplish great pieces of writing and be able to make meaning with my writing, so I will need your help along the way. For the rest of this semester, I think it would be a great idea if we keep in touch. If I have any creative ideas that pop in my head I will write to you and let you know of anything. After formal assignments are handed in I will write to you for feedback and different approaches I may want to take in the future. And then, if I ever have any tough times, happy times, or exciting times in my life, I will let you know of it and you can put it down on paper in order to keep those thoughts and feelings forever in my writing. I just want to say thank you for sticking by my side and being so encouraging for the near future because I know I have to attempt to change my attitude towards writing and start to put all of my emotions into it. I know you will continue to guide me along and assist me when I need it, and I hope you will accept my apology and welcome me back in because I have many ideas that I think will lead me to success. Sincerely, Brandon Hello, and welcome to my second blog post in my English Composition I class. In this post we are asked to dive into the fundamentals of writing and see different strategies on how to succeed in writing. We look at a couple different methods, C.R.A.P., and the Sample Formative Assessment Criteria. They gave us insight on how we should approach writing and the things we need to focus on in order to create a nice piece of writing.
Hello everyone. This is my first blog post that I have been working on in my English Composition I class. The first assignment we had to do was a questionnaire called the Proust Questionnaire. Popularized by Marcel Proust, this questionnaire is said to be answered by an individual and will eventually reveal his or her true nature. This was a fun assignment because it made me think of things that I wouldn't usually think of and I hope you enjoy reading my responses.
Brandon Foy- Proust Questionnaire __1.__What is your idea of perfect happiness? My idea of perfect happiness would be building strong relationships and doing things you love to do. __2.__What is your greatest fear? My greatest fear would definitely be bugs and spiders, but to be more specific I would say tarantulas. __3.__What is the trait you most deplore in yourself? I have multiple different traits that people recognize me for, but I think kindness is the trait I most deplore in myself. __4.__What is the trait you most deplore in others? I like to surround myself with people that I get along with and being around people that are humorous is entertaining. __5.__Which living person do you most admire? I admire a lot of people, but Carson Wentz would have to be my biggest role model. The way he talks about himself and how confident he is on and off the field is unbelievable. He is also a very faithful guy which we have in common. __6.__What is your greatest extravagance? My greatest extravagance is buying my senior house with my friends. With all of the money we put into searching for a house and making multiple trips down the shore to meet with different people, this is my greatest extravagance. __7.__What is your current state of mind? My current state of mind is pretty calm and focused. __8.__What do you consider the most overrated virtue? --- __9.__On what occasion do you lie? I only lie if I really have to in a certain situation, but I will sometimes lie to either protect myself, or protect my friends/family. __10.__What do you most dislike about your appearance? Overall, I'm pretty happy with my appearance and there isn't much I would change, but if I could it would definitely be to add a few inches to my height. __11.__Which living person do you most despise? I don't despise many people, but if I had to pick it would either be Megan Rapinoe or Cardi B. __12.__What is the quality you most like in a man? --- __13.__What is the quality you most like in a woman? It depends on what this question is referring to, but if it means what the quality I want my girlfriend/wife to have I'd say just an easy going personality. __14.__Which words or phrases do you most overuse? I've been told many times that I like to use the phrases "I don't know" and "like" very often. __15.__What or who is the greatest love of your life? Well it wouldn't be right if I didn't put my girlfriend so I'll stick to that and say my girlfriend. __16.__When and where were you happiest? I'm honestly a pretty happy kid most days, but I was happiest when it was the end of senior year of high school and the last couple months of school were the best going to graduation parties and being down the shore at my senior summer house with my friends. __17.__Which talent would you most like to have? I regret not picking up an instrument at a young age and being able to play it to perfection. More specifically, a guitar. __18.__If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? There isn't much I would change about myself, but if I had to I would want to be jacked. __19.__What do you consider your greatest achievement? Graduating high school is probably my greatest achievement. __20.__If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be? A dog, because they have the best life. __21.__Where would you most like to live? If not Delaware County, then probably Florida. __22.__What is your most treasured possession? My phone is probably my most treasured possession because it's on me at all times. __23.__What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery? When one of your loved ones or someone you're close to passes away. __24.__What is your favorite occupation? I'm not exactly sure what my favorite occupation would be, but I've always thought about eventually owning my own restaurant. __25.__What is your most marked characteristic? My humor and kindness are probably my most marked characteristic. __26.__What do you most value in your friends? Loyalty is definitely what I value most in my friends. __27.__Who are your favorite writers? Although I don't know many writer's I remember reading some of Robert Frost's short stories and I like the metaphors he puts in his stories. __28.__Who is your hero of fiction? My hero of fiction is Iron man. He's a beast and he's a very smart guy. __29.__Which historical figure do you most identify with? --- __30.__Who are your heroes in real life? Leonardo DiCaprio __31.__What are your favorite names? Edgar, Tom __32.__What is it that you most dislike? I have never been a fan of people who always feel the need to lie. __33.__What is your greatest regret? My greatest regret is not putting in 100% effort while I was in high school. I wish I could've worked a lot harder and had better grades throughout my four years. __34.__How would you like to die? I wouldn't want my death to be painful so I would prefer if it was over quickly and without a lot of pain. __35.__What is your motto? My motto is to live your life, form new relationships and to take risks that might seem uncomfortable at first. |
Brandon Foy
I will use this blog to explore the messy processes of writing and to make meaning. ArchivesCategories
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