Only Six Words, Millions of Meanings

In the 1920s, Ernest Hemingway’s colleagues bet him that he couldn’t write a complete story in just six words. He wrote: For sale: baby shoes, never used. He won his bet and considered it one of his best works. There are plenty of people who've attempted to do it, but by far my favorite is a collection of teen's stories compiled by Smith Magazine: Six Word Memiors by Teens Famous and Obscure. I decided to give it a try:

I'd rather read, come back later.
He called you, never called back.
Her smile gave his life meaning.

Give it a try.

Stereotypical Tennage Things

My friends and I have recently decided that we need to do more stereotypical teenage things, like go to the mall or hang out downtown. We went into the city yesterday and took loads of pictures. Here are some of the better ones.

Month of Travel

For me, July is the month of rest. August is the month of travel. I returned from California, went to Maryland, and leave soon for a trip to Maine. When I return from that, I go the shore for a week. However, all this travel is almost as inspirational as rest.

Gone

What a day we've been having.
A hike and meal
There is but a chance
We hurry on

What a day we've been having
We lost them 'round noon
Gone far ahead
Swallowed by the woods

What a day we've been having
A broken mountain path
Scattered traces
Blown about by the wind

What a day we've been having
Night closing in
Still no sign
Two more lost boys

What a day we've been having
The storm blows in
Wipes away all traces
Gone

Or You Can Smile

“You can shed tears that she is gone,
or you can smile because she has lived.
You can close your eyes and pray that she'll come back,
or you can open your eyes and see all she's left.
Your heart can be empty because you can't see her,
or you can be full of the love you shared.
You can turn your back on tomorrow and live yesterday,
or you can be happy for tomorrow because of yesterday.
You can remember her only that she is gone,
or you can cherish her memory and let it live on.
You can cry and close your mind,
be empty and turn your back.
Or you can do what she'd want:
smile, open your eyes, love and go on.”

-David Harkins

New Beginings

I bring tidings of great joy! There's a new blog in town: If Only We Look... It will hopefully be a place for a few people to post writings, reflections, and other things of that nature.

Also, Kaitlin will be leaving us. She now writes more than enough to have her own blog, Wish You Were Here. She will be much missed.

Saying what we think gives us a wider conversational range than saying what we know.
- Cullen Hightower

Summer Reading

For the lack of something better to do today, I figured I'd get some of my summer reading out of the way.

Summer Reading List

The Devil in the White City - Erik Larson
Agincourt - Bernard Cornwell
The Floating Islands - Rachel Neumeier
The Crucible - Arthur Miller
The Color Purple - Alice Walker
Rot and Ruin - Jonathan Maberry
The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglas - Frederick Douglass
City of Bones - Cassandra Clare
Knight - Michael Prestwich
City of Ashes - Cassandra Clare

Liar, liar, pants on fire.

Last night a friend of mine hinted very very strongly at liking me. My first instinct was "Oh poop oh poop dodge this at all costs!" I ended up dodging it, but not without stepping on a few toes.

First he was talking about how he'd never had so much trouble talking to a girl before I came around, and he asked if I was getting the hint. Of course I was, but what was I supposed to do? Have a repeat of the Trub situation? I don't think so. When in doubt, lie till your pants catch fire. Play dumb, whatever you have to do to avoid conflict.

I told him that I was a difficult person to talk to. Then I tried to change the subject to cupcakes. He, being Mr. One Track Mind, wasn't deterred. He said things like, "Why are you so you?" and "I'm an idiot because you're so you."

Ohhhhh poop. Please please don't tell me you like me, then it will be out in the open that I know, and I will have to switch to awkward-as-hell mode. Don't make me do that.

So what do I do next? Lie some more. I asked him if what he had to say was important, because if it was I couldn't handle it right now, because "my friend 'Robert' told me he liked me earlier and I was tired of people falling for me and tired of hurting people." It sounds callous, but it had to be done.

At first I thought he got the hint, but of course, he was whiny about it. "I'll just take a backseat." Whatever, man. Does it seem like an even slightly good time to tell me you like me? Am I coming off as interested? I don't think I'm coming off that way.

And THEN he asked if I liked anybody at the moment... You can probably guess what I did. Lied. I said "To be honest, I'm kind of into Leo again, but mostly I'm just burnt off men. They aren't my thing right now."

"Oh. I'm such an idiot."

I tried arguing with him about that, but everybody knows that's a Herculean feat. So in the end, I just decided to stop answering his texts.

If he asks, I fell asleep. I don't have the time or energy to deal with more hurt feelings.

Oh the Humanities...

Anyone else have a lot of artistic friends? Cause I certainly do. There's painters and sketchers. Writers and poets. And a few people who make their computer a work of art in its own right. And then there is me. I can't draw or paint to save my life. Really, just don't even ask. But I can write, though I much prefer research papers to poems. That is actually why this blog got started. I had written something I really liked my freshman year and wanted to keep challenging myself to write more things like it. So you have the 'blog'. But what I've found that I have a real passion for is photography. I enjoy it immensely, and I'm not bad. But a few months ago, at one of the famed Weekend Lunches, we were discussing this very issue; Art. And almost everyone there said that hand-painted works are more beautiful and moving than pictures because of the human touch they contain. Now, this is all opinion of course, but I believe that photography has the capability to be more powerful and moving because they show places the exact way that were when the picture was taken. A picture is showing you what the photographer saw when they took it. For me, that is an incredibly powerful thought. You are seeing what they saw.

Well, what do you think?

Well, have you met any Albigensians lately?

Yesterday was the feast of St. Ignatius of Loyola, patron of students. He's one of my favorite saints, mainly because he founded the Jesuits, my favorite religious order. Yes, I do have a favorite religious order! I'm a little weird that way. I like the Jesuits because of their ideals, zeal, and their jokes. One particularly funny one (at least for me) goes like this:

What is similar about the Jesuit and Dominican Orders?
Well, they were both founded by Spaniards, St. Dominic for the Dominicans, and St. Ignatius of Loyola for the Jesuits.
They were also both founded to combat heresy: the Dominicans to fight the Albigensians, and the Jesuits to fight the Protestants.

What is different about the Jesuit and Dominican Orders?
Well, have you met any Albigensians lately?