CHARACTER STUDY (III)

They were all standing there waiting in front of the airport. I guess my nerves had slowed me down more than I had thought. Their anxious smiles comforted me as we lugged all of our bags through lines after line. Bailey and Annette were off analyzing brochures, while Hannah and Meghan discussed every daydream-like scenario that could take place on our journey. Half of my mind was in the conversation and the other half was remembering our parents' compromise to allow us to go on the trip. They hired us bodyguards to accompany us on our trip to soothe their paranoid minds. It was just like them to be so concerned with our wellbeing, as if we were kindergarteners walking alone to school for the first time. But parents will be parents, and we decided having a few strong guys around wouldn't be too bad. As we made our way through the maze, that is the airport, we kept an eye out for our three protectors. We knew them when we saw them. The three hulking men that stood like towers over the rest of us. We timidly motioned them over and introduced ourselves to the giants. There we had it our group, together at last. We definitely were a strange mix, but when you're headed on a foreign adventure isn't every thing a little strange. I reassured myself with this notion and boarded the plane.

CHARACTER STUDY (II)

With her familiar life fading fast in the rear view mirror, she took the closest onramp and headed south to the international airport. The drive was long and she drowned her thoughts with the blaring radio, but had to keep changing stations because country was too sad and pop was too shallow. She had taken the first leap of faith and left home, but a new wave of anxiety hit. Would this once in a life time trip be all it was anticipated to be or another let down? She stayed positive by reminding herself that she wasn't in this alone. Four other eager girls were also making their way to the airport. The companionship was a comfort to her, but didn't thwart the power of her nerves. Anxiety always won. But, like always, she fought it off and pushed on with high hopes.

CANTERBURY TALES (I)

At first I didn't understand that this was only a prologue, so I thought that these mini introductions were the actual stories. Yes, this was a big mistake and the overall poem makes much more sense now that that is cleared up. I noticed irony in each of the characters descriptions, which purpose was revealed to me in class today. I also, wondered if Chaucer chose any specific or meaningful order to list these characters in? By social status or importance or just at random? I like the way Chaucer writes, the short lines and rhymes make it easier to ready at a steady pace. Overall, I enjoyed Chaucer's text so far and am most excited to read about the knight, because they are held to such high standards it will be interesting to see their hidden flaws.

CHARACTER STUDY (I)

The day had finally come and her departure time was approaching quickly. She finished packing as her anxiety grew rapidly. She wasn't accustomed to change and the thought of leaving her comfortable room was terrifying. Although the nerves weighed her down, that little spark of excitement and adventure kept her moving. Taylor realized change was necessary and that endless possibilities awaited her. She went through the motions of packing, walking, carrying, while all of these thoughts rushed through her head. Before she knew it she was standing on the porch, car packed, everything ready. Here came the tears, happy or sad, know one could quite tell. Maybe a mixture, like her anxious excitement. Or maybe just tears of nostalgia, for the closing of one chapter and the opening of another. Nonetheless, the tears came. The hugs, the "goodbye"s, the "good luck"s were exchanged and the time had come. As she drove away, she kept her eyes and mind looking forward to the road of exciting possibilities ahead.

Netvibes

I was a little confused at first at what exactly I was going to display on my dashboard, but Netvibes offers a bunch of widgets that I would have never thought of. I put up my Twitter feed, email, To-Do Lists, and news feeds from just about anywhere. I usually like having my reminders written out on paper, but having Netvibes as my default browser would be an easy way to access what I need immediately. I will probably stick to my handwritten way for most things, however having all of this info pop up every time I go online will be very useful.

VOCABULARY #6

obsequious: obedient or attentive to an excessive or servile degree
beatitude: supreme blessedness
bete noire: a person or thing that one particularly dislikes or dreads
bode: to announce beforehand, or predict
dank: disagreeably damp, musty, and typically cold
ecumenical: representing a number of different Christian churches; nondenominational 
fervid: intensely enthusiastic or passionate, to an excessive degree
fetid: smelling extremely unpleasant
gargantuan: enormous
heyday: the period of a person's or thing's greatest success, popularity, or vigor

incubus: something that weighs upon or oppresses someone like a nightmare

infrastructure:  the basic structures needed for the operation of a society or enterprise
inveigle: persuade to do something by means of flattery or deception 

kudos: praise and honor received for an achievement 
lagniappe: something given as a bonus or extra gift
prolix: using or containing too many words, tediously lengthy
protege: a person who is guided by an older and more experienced person
prototype: a first model of something
sycophant: a person who acts obsequiously toward someone important in order to gain an advantage
tautology: the saying of the same thing twice in different words
truckle: to submit or behave obediently

accolade: an award or privilege granted as a special honor or as an acknowledgement of merit
acerbity: sharp and forthright, especially about a style of speaking
attrition: the action of gradually reducing the strength something or someone through sustained attack or pressure
bromide: an unoriginal idea or remark, usually intended to soothe or make less angry
chauvinist: a person displaying aggressive or exaggerated patriotism
chronic: persisting for a long time or constantly recurring
expound: to present and explain (a theory or idea) systematically and in detail
factionalism: being self-interested; belonging to a faction (a group of people forming a minority in a larger body)
immaculate: perfectly clean, neat, or tidy
imprecation: a spoken curse
ineluctable: unable to be resisted or avoided
mercurial: subject to sudden or unpredictable changes of mood or mind
palliate: make less severe or unpleasant without removing the cause (usually about disease)
protocol: the official procedure or system of rules, usually governing affair of state
resplendent: attractive and impressive through being richly colorful
stigmatize: describe or regard as worthy of disgrace or disapproval
sub rosa: happening or done in secret
vainglory: excessive vanity
vestige: a trace of something that is disappearing or doesn't exist
volition: a choice or decision made by the will 

• The obsequious guy always offered to buy her lunch and carry her books, even when she didn't ask.
• His bete noire was spinach, he had always hated the vegetable.
• The psychic boded that she would have bad luck, and as she walked out of the building she tripped and broke her arm.
• The campers couldn't find dry firewood, everything they found was dank.
• The Christian family went to multiple ecumenical churches.
• Although it was their job, the cheerleaders got so fervid that it began to annoy the crowd.
• The gargantuan tree took up the entire backyard.
• He finally reached his heyday, after graduating from medical school and getting a job at a prestigious hospital.
• Her extreme incubus of heights, prevented her from ever getting on an airplane.
• The city budget included money for the renewal of infastructure, such as bridges and streets.
• The girl inveigled the worker to give her a discount by telling him he was cute.
• I gave kudos to my friend who had just graduated college.
• In addition to his salary, the manager gave the worker a lagniappe.
• The teacher critiqued her run-on sentences and said her paper was prolix.
• The pianist's protege practiced everyday so he would someday be as skilled as his mentor.
• The inventor's prototype was so basic compared to the final product.
• The sycophant of a soccer mom talked to the coach a lot, so her son would get the starting position.
• An example of tautology is something, such as, this sentence.
• The boyfriend truckled to the demands of his crazy girlfriend.
• She got the prestigious accolade as a result of her two hundred hours of volunteer work.
• The book was acerbically written, the author just focused on the main points and avoided pointless detail.
• The soldiers used attrition and slowly but surely won over the fort.
• As the child whined about not getting the popular new toy, his dad used the bromide remark "life isn't fair". 
• The chauvinist was known for his giant American flag in his front yard and his numerous patriotic bumper stickers.
• The woman's chronic illness persisted for years and years, and never went away despite how much doctors tried to palliate it.
• The economics professor expound the idea of supply and demand in a simple, straightforward powerpoint presentation.
• The Amish people practice factionalism, in that they are separate from the majority of society.
• The old lady's house was immaculate, everything was in place and there wasn't a speck of dirt to be seen.
• In Harry Potter saying Voldemort's name was an imprecation.
• Although he was on a diet, the chocolate cake was ineluctable so he had to eat a piece.
• The mercurial bride couldn't commit to one type of flower for her bouquet.
• The man was fired for not following protocol and giving his friends a discount on the product.
• She chose the most colorful flowers because she liked resplendent things.
• Mental illnesses are stigmatized, even though they are common.
• The surprise party was sub rosa, and the birthday girl was shocked when all of her close friends jumped out at her. 

The self-absorbed prom queen was known for her vainglory.

 As the fireworks faded from the sky, there was just a vestige of light left behind.

When her great-grandfather passed away, she got her inheritance due to volition. 

WHAT A CHARACTER

Leah from "The Poisonwood Bible" is a character that has stood out to me from the literature I have recently read. She is definitely a dynamic character, as the readers watch her grow she matures and loses faith in her father. So essentially does a complete 180 from her original obedient self. Leah is memorable because of her metamorphosis. A character is always more interesting and relatable when readers get an insight to why they have the personality or values they do. Through indirect characterization, the author did just that. Besides her character being believable, she also was inspirational. Out of the four sisters, Leah is the only one who stayed in Africa and took on its problems as her own.