Blog #3: "Fiction is the truth inside the lie." ~ Stephen King

You nor I would normally turn to myths, legends, fairy tales and folklore to embody your literary archetype in a group project setting. But as I divulged deeper into finding what I represent in a group, the more I see the ancient stories that have shaped cultures for hundreds, or even thousands of years, come into my life.

Within in a group setting, I sometimes see myself as the Harmonizer, adding calm back into the chaos, neutralizing a situation that was once going to shambles. Because sometimes, it happens. The group falls of out "harmony" - disagreements, misunderstandings, or even the pure lack of chemistry between group members to work efficiently, can cause about as much hectic disorder as trying to recover your sister's head from a gang of troll girls, like in the old tale from Norway, "Mop Top." I believe it to be very valuable to have a harmonizer - not just because I claim I am one (I'm not that conceited), but because if the whole group isn't in this "harmony" where it will flourish, make sure at least one person is.

But perhaps one of the, if not THE most important aspect of group dynamics is to be able to give and to take. To offer ones' ideas or thoughts, like a gift, in exchange for something even better; the group works in a way the makes each person better. All you need to do is be a Wali Dad - offer kindness selflessly, and you will be reciprocated with kindness yourself. Never asking anything in return, but hoping through a naive faith in humanity, you make someone a better person, a form of communicating in a kind, not sour, manner. I like to think that I am a Coordinator in a group - opening up the communication channels in a group, so every individual understands each others' ideas and opinions, to then find what works best by encouraging (or tastefully discouraging) each other to create the best product. No one man should be the best or the worst in the group - however, if you find this is happening, perhaps "The Gifts of Wali Dad," a beautiful Indian/Pakistani folktale, could shed some light through the block you and your team members have formed. Communication, in the kindest of ways, is the answer to many of your group's problems.

Blog #2: "The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug." - Mark Twain

Blog Emphasis has shifted to "Pray," momentarily.

So today we took a pretest in class today, to introduce us to what the AP multiple choice test for literature and composition would look like. And I've drawn quite a few conclusions from that rather bearably unpleasant experience.

I find it so ironic that people stress out about English - English is supposed to be more free-spirited, therefore you would think (or at least I would think) it would be less stressful. And it's humorous when I see analytically-minded people over-analyze English classes. Yes, today's task required analyses of different types of literature, so you would think that particular denomination of people would excel. But when you try to dissect a passage, rather than comprehend it and truly feel what the passage is trying to evoke first, you're just mixing oil and water - have fun making that work. Since I am a more creatively-minded person rather than analytically-minded, English comes more naturally to me than others - I won't lie. Things like literary analysis, composition, rhetoric, and writing in general are actually very enjoyable to me, so critical reading passages don't make me nervous. English isn't necessarily difficult, but I'll admit, it definitely takes a certain mindset. Those would be my strengths - not being intimidated by creative freedom. I am actually good at the actual analyses of texts, such as identifying purpose and symbolism, as well as mechanics, such as identifying figurative language.

My weaknesses would definitely be the different types of texts. I'll be able to tell you what is going on in a passage, but I cannot for the life of me tell you what type of passage it is. Shakespearean sonnet vs. 3 other types of sonnets vs. a lyric vs. a ballad...that is one big blur. I couldn't even make an educated guess towards a potential answer, to be quite honest. I've also realized that I am an incredibly slow reader - which is problematic for a timed test, and also problematic since I normally suffer from test anxiety on an actual test-taking basis. I finished with a few minutes to spare today, but I still got quite a few questions wrong. I find myself rereading entire paragraphs of a passage because I read it the first time, and realize halfway-through that I wasn't paying attention at all to the passage - just breezing over words on a page. It becomes highly inefficient for me - if I could comprehend the passage the first time around, my time would be managed much more efficiently, and I would probably get fewer questions wrong, and be more confident than anxious of my answers themselves. 

My goals are to know how to identify between at least 4 different types of sonnets by mid-September. From there, I'd like to identify the difference between a lyric and ballad by the end of September. Throughout the month of October, I want to learn the types of passages that I presently do not know (which I would state some examples here, but as I said, I don't know what they are). I'd like to learn 5 new types of passages by the end of October. 

As for reading, I'd like to be able to do 10 questions every 10 minutes (plus reading the passages) with an 85% accuracy rate, by the end of September. By the end of October, I'd like to be able to do the same thing, but average 90% accuracy. By the time the trimester ends, I'd like to complete the entire test, no matter how many questions, with between 5-10 minutes to spare, to look over questions I may have been unsure of, so I can keep at least a 90% on the actual multiple choice test.

Blog #1: "There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside of you." ~ Maya Angelou

Not to get too boring, but what I have done with this blog is pretty planned out. The purpose of my blog is to write and post serious things, but with a friendly feel. This sounds contradicting, but that's a running trend in my life: I am a laid-back perfectionist. Personable, but professional. Introverted, but social. Polite, but sarcastic. Compassionate, but blunt. Cultured, but naive. Passionate, but easily distracted. Intelligent, but not smart. Purebred Indian, Westernized heart. 

So yes, the content of this blog will be more serious, but with a colloquial edge. I say "serious" lightly, however - because if you actually knew me, you'd experience quite the opposite in everyday situations. But my speaking style and my writing style are worlds apart. I like to think that I am a very approachable person, so that is what I plan to convey - not with the content, but with the design, font style, and font color. The blue waves in the background give a sense of calm and serenity. My font style I chose was Arial, to be formal, but informal (catch the trend again?). My regular font color for my blogs is orange, to give a sense of warmth and homeyness, but a bit of energy (trend sighting #2). Finally, my title and subtitle font colors are white and a watermelon-red color - white is to give a sense of purity and spaciousness, and the pinkish-red is to give a small, girly flare to my blog, as well as having a bold, but calming effect (and there's the trend one more time). 

I will also title each blog post with a quote - to not only foreshadow the post the follows, but as a "little something" that can perhaps inspire you, as it has inspired me. 

And so the journey begins...