English III 3/25: Conor Oberst "Entry Way Song"

Last Saturday I stood in your entry way

That place where we used to wait

For cars to carry us away

Like once in this storm, they drove me and justin home

The music was just being born

It was all I was longing for

Now im on a plane

Off singin my songs again, oh please dont think ill of it

Cause its the reason I exists

But you, youre the crutch of a cripple

You're the calm of a conscience

You're the peace that I have found

When all these voices talk too loud you are quietly reassuring me

With the hands of a healer

And the tongue of a teacher

Its your voice that I have known

To be the first one on the phone

Yeah, you ran all the lights to the hospital

So don't you say to me

That life's a trap

The future is nothing but a tragedy

'Cos I'll be out of that window

Yeah, I'll start wishing to die again

Just say we're not walking backwards, kid

And show me to the door

And I'll walk behind

Out into the hot sunlight

Where the world's very much alive

Even when I close my eyes

Well, should I admit

That my promise is counterfeit

That I'm careless and childish

And that's all I can hope to be

And would you concede

That I think only of myself

I refuse everybody's help

Who has been reaching out for me

Well, you reach with the soul of a sailor

And the swing of a miner

You have cleared the rock away

Leaving gold there in its place

And it is more than anyone could claim

Oh, with the sense of a banker

And with the touch of a tailor

You saved this life for me

And you have sown it to beauty

And I am grateful now and I will always be

So would you sing with me

The song is all I know

Some truths are told now only in a melody

So I've been writing a new one

Yeah, I've been taking my time with it

It's gonna be so perfect

It's gonna hold all of us inside of it

You will see

If you just add your harmony

I think it would be complete

And be worthy of singing

Becomes a symphony

Yeah, you're the cool of the water

You're the start of the summer

Keep me still like a anchor

In a storm you're the cellar

When I'm heavy with worry make me light as a feather

When I'm deafened by anger you're the song I remember

With the grace of a dancer and the strength of a pillar

When I'm starving to suffer you just fill me with laughter

You're a poet

And a saint

You are the only one I choose to imitate

Oh, like the love of a father through the eye of a camera

It's this picture I have seen

We're on a sloping hill of green

And you are walking there beside me

English IV 3/25: Creative Prompts

 

CLICK HERE AND MAKE A CHOICE OF PROMPT WITHIN 3 MINUTES. THEN... RESPOND AS THAT PROMPT INSTRUCTS YOU, IN YOUR BLOG. REMEMBER TO BE THOROUGH!

WORDS OF THE DAY

17. necropolis n. A city of the dead.

18. neophyte adj. Having the character of a beginner.

19. nimble adj. Light and quick in motion or action.

20. nominal adj. Trivial.

English IV 3/22: "Chimes of Freedom" by Bob Dylan

Chimes Of Freedom

Far between sundown's finish an' midnight's broken toll

We ducked inside the doorway, thunder crashing

As majestic bells of bolts struck shadows in the sounds

Seeming to be the chimes of freedom flashing

Flashing for the warriors whose strength is not to fight

Flashing for the refugees on the unarmed road of flight

An' for each an' ev'ry underdog soldier in the night

An' we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing.

In the city's melted furnace, unexpectedly we watched

With faces hidden while the walls were tightening

As the echo of the wedding bells before the blowin' rain

Dissolved into the bells of the lightning

Tolling for the rebel, tolling for the rake

Tolling for the luckless, the abandoned an' forsaked

Tolling for the outcast, burnin' constantly at stake

An' we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing.

Through the mad mystic hammering of the wild ripping hail

The sky cracked its poems in naked wonder

That the clinging of the church bells blew far into the breeze

Leaving only bells of lightning and its thunder

Striking for the gentle, striking for the kind

Striking for the guardians and protectors of the mind

An' the unpawned painter behind beyond his rightful time

An' we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing.

Through the wild cathedral evening the rain unraveled tales

For the disrobed faceless forms of no position

Tolling for the tongues with no place to bring their thoughts

All down in taken-for-granted situations

Tolling for the deaf an' blind, tolling for the mute

Tolling for the mistreated, mateless mother, the mistitled prostitute

For the misdemeanor outlaw, chased an' cheated by pursuit

An' we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing.

Even though a cloud's white curtain in a far-off corner flashed

An' the hypnotic splattered mist was slowly lifting

Electric light still struck like arrows, fired but for the ones

Condemned to drift or else be kept from drifting

Tolling for the searching ones, on their speechless, seeking trail

For the lonesome-hearted lovers with too personal a tale

An' for each unharmful, gentle soul misplaced inside a jail

An' we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing.

Starry-eyed an' laughing as I recall when we were caught

Trapped by no track of hours for they hanged suspended

As we listened one last time an' we watched with one last look

Spellbound an' swallowed 'til the tolling ended

Tolling for the aching ones whose wounds cannot be nursed

For the countless confused, accused, misused, strung-out ones an' worse

An' for every hung-up person in the whole wide universe

An' we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing.

WORDS OF THE DAY

13. mendacious adj. Untrue.

14. metonymy n. A figure of speech that consists in the naming of a thing by one of its attributes.

15. multiform adj. Having many shapes, or appearances.

16. mystic n. One who professes direct divine illumination, or relies upon meditation to acquire truth.

Professional COMM 3/22: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

"Treat people as if they were what they ought to be and you help them become what they are capable of being." - Goethe

Hmmmm... what does he mean here? This guy is one of the most famous and prolific writers in history. What does it mean to treat someone as if they are what they should be?

English IV 3/21: Kahlil Gibran "Joy and Sorrow"

For today's blog, I would like you to read this short piece by Lebanese-American mystic and poet Khalil Gibran. Let the words flow over you in the special way that his words have. Read the piece twice and then write a commentary on it or a short piece of your own inspired by it. Enjoy!
______________________________________________________________________
On Joy and Sorrow
By Kahlil Gibran

Your joy is your sorrow unmasked.
And the selfsame well from which your laughter rises was oftentimes filled with your tears.
And how else can it be?
The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain.
Is not the cup that holds your wine the very cup that was burned in the potter's oven?
And is not the lute that soothes your spirit, the very wood that was hollowed with knives?
When you are joyous, look deep into your heart and you shall find it is only that which has given you sorrow that is giving you joy.
When you are sorrowful look again in your heart, and you shall see that in truth you are weeping for that which has been your delight.

Some of you say, "Joy is greater thar sorrow," and others say, "Nay, sorrow is the greater."
But I say unto you, they are inseparable.
Together they come, and when one sits, alone with you at your board, remember that the other is asleep upon your bed.

Verily you are suspended like scales between your sorrow and your joy.
Only when you are empty are you at standstill and balanced.
When the treasure-keeper lifts you to weigh his gold and his silver, needs must your joy or your sorrow rise or fall.

WORDS OF THE DAY

9. loquacious adj. Talkative.

10. maudlin adj. Foolishly and tearfully affectionate.

11. languid adj. Relaxed.

12. mellifluous adj. Sweetly or smoothly flowing.

Professional COMM 3/21: Camus on Happiness

"You will never be happy if you continue to search for what happiness consists of. You will never live if you are looking for the meaning of life." -Albert Camus

English III 3/21: "Sounds of Silence" by Simon and Garfunkel

This is a classic that I think many of have probably heard at least some time in your life. Like Bob Dylan, these guys were more than musicians; they were (still are) poets. Look at these lyrics and try to find meanings that aren't directly stated, but that you feel are there.

I think this song is about the apocalypse. The gray time when silence comes to the race of humankind. It could also be about a time of mourning or of losing something essential (loved one, hearing, sight, a treasured ability...). They seems to be singing about an emptiness which can either be interpreted as internal or external.

--

"Hello darkness, my old friend,
Ive come to talk with you again,
Because a vision softly creeping,
Left its seeds while I was sleeping,
And the vision that was planted in my brain
Still remains
Within the sounds of silence.
In restless dreams I walked alone
Narrow streets of cobblestone,
neath the halo of a street lamp,
I turned my collar to the cold and damp
When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of a neon light
That split the night
And touched the sounds of silence.

And in the naked light I saw
Ten thousand people, maybe more.
People talking without speaking,
People hearing without listening,
People writing songs that voices never share
And no one dare
Disturb the sounds of silence.

Fools said i, you do not know
Silence like a cancer grows.
Hear my words that I might teach you,
Take my arms that I might reach you.
But my words like silent raindrops fell,
And echoed
In the wells of silence

And the people bowed and prayed
To the neon God they made.
And the sign flashed out its warning,
In the words that it was forming.
And the sign said, the words of the prophets

Are written on the subway walls
And tenement halls.
And whispered in the sounds of silence." Simon and Garfunkel

English IV 3/20: Creative Prompts

 

CLICK HERE AND MAKE A CHOICE OF PROMPT WITHIN 3 MINUTES. THEN... RESPOND AS THAT PROMPT INSTRUCTS YOU, IN YOUR BLOG. REMEMBER TO BE THOROUGH!

WORDS OF THE DAY

5. insurrection n. The state of being in active resistance to authority.

6. iridescence n. A many-colored appearance.

7. itinerary n. A detailed account or diary of a journey.

8. jargon n. Confused, unintelligible speech or highly technical speech.

Professional COMM 3/20: Hafiz

“I wish I could show you when you are lonely or in darkness the astonishing light of your own being.” -Hafiz

English III 3/20: "For What it's Worth" by Buffalo Springfield

"There's something happening here

What it is ain't exactly clear

There's a man with a gun over there

Telling me I got to beware

I think it's time we stop, children, what's that sound

Everybody look what's going down

There's battle lines being drawn

Nobody's right if everybody's wrong

Young people speaking their minds

Getting so much resistance from behind

I think it's time we stop, hey, what's that sound

Everybody look what's going down

What a field-day for the heat

A thousand people in the street

Singing songs and carrying signs

Mostly say, hooray for our side

It's time we stop, hey, what's that sound

Everybody look what's going down

Paranoia strikes deep

Into your life it will creep

It starts when you're always afraid

You step out of line, the man come and take you away

We better stop, hey, what's that sound

Everybody look what's going down

Stop, hey, what's that sound

Everybody look what's going down

Stop, now, what's that sound

Everybody look what's going down

Stop, children, what's that sound

Everybody look what's going down"

========================================================

This song always makes me remember the sixities, which is pretty strange considering I wasn't even alive in the sixties. Somehow though, I feel like I genetically absorbed the energy of the sixties through my parents. I am not one of those people who does nothing but glorify the sixties in an unhealthy and nostalgic manner, but I do think that we could learn a lot from the era which, despite many problems and shortcomings, managed to produce a massive positive movement.

As far as this song is concerned... it is a sweet sounding song that calls the people to stop and make sure that they are aware of what is "really" happening in their country: a message that we really need in times like these. The song, familiar to almost everyone (thanks to movies mostly), is a frightening message to the public: 'watch out for yourself because the ones who are paid to watch out for you are mostly worried about themselves"... as true today as it has been for a long time. Still the song manages to bring some measure of peace to the heart.

English IV 3/18: Beirut "La Llorona"

This song was recorded by a 21 year-old guy from New Mexico (Zach Condon) and an 18 piece Oaxacan funeral band. He went down to Mexico to find inspiration in their culture and wound up writing a song about one of their most treasured legends,La Llorona. Below is a nice painting of La Llorona. Think about the painting and the song together. What kind of feelings do you get from these? Write your interpretation of the mood of this song and this painting. Do you feel the sadness and the suffering? There is a sense of deep wilderness, of a great unknown darkness beyond the imagination. Does the song accurately capture the essence of La Llorona as you know her?

"Ever away from seeing more than life

The morning lies miles away from the night

No man ever could steal her heart

But With bright gold coins I’ll take my shot

And all it takes to fall

If you don’t walk, might as well crawl

All it takes to fall

What a quiet world after all

Of the things that you guessed will come

What a moment it was after all"

WORDS OF THE DAY

1. imbroglio n. A misunderstanding attended by ill feeling, perplexity, or strife.

2. impetuous adj. Impulsive.

3. innocuous adj. Harmless.

4. insipid adj. Tasteless.

Professional COMM 3/18: Buddha on the Self

"He who experiences the unity of life sees his own Self in all beings, and all beings in his own Self, and looks on everything with an impartial eye."

Interpret this quote into your own words. What is meant by "the unity of life"? What is the benefit of looking at things with an impartial eye?

English III 3/18: "Uncloudy Day" by Willie Nelson

They tell me of a home far beyond the skies

And they tell me of a home far away

They tell me of a home where no storm clouds rise

They tell me of an unclouded day

Chorus:

The land of cloudless days

The land of an unclouded sky

They tell me of a home where no storm clouds rise

They tell me of an unclouded day

They tell me of a home where my friends have gone

And they tell me of that land far away

Where the tree of life in eternal bloom

Sheds its fragrance through the unclouded day

[chorus]

They tell me of the King in His beauty there

And they tell me that mine eyes shall behold

Where He sits on a throne that is whiter than snow

In the city that is made of gold

[chorus]

They tell me that He smiles on His children there

And His smile drives their sorrows away

And they tell me that no tears ever come again

In that lovely land of unclouded day

WORDS OF THE DAY

17. garb – clothing

18. discord – disagreement, strife

19. embellish – to add details

20. miserly – hoarding money, penny-pinching

English IV 3/5: MC Escher

If I told you this painting had a message, made an argument of sorts, what would you say that message is?

WORDS OF THE DAY

17. flippant adj. Having a light, pert, trifling disposition.

18. freemason n. A member of an ancient secret fraternity originally confined to skilled artisans.

19. futile adj. Of no avail or effect.

20. galvanize v. To imbue with life or animation.

Professional COMM 3/5: Marcus Aurelius

"Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth." -Marcus Aurelius

English III 3/5: "10 Mile Stereo" by Beach House

The heart is a stone and this is a stone that we throw

Put your hand on this stone, it's the stone of a home you know

They say we will go far, but they don't know how far we'll go

With our legs on the edge and our feet on the horizon

They say we can throw far but they don't know how far we throw

With our legs on the edge, and our feet on the horizon

The heart is a stone, and this is a stone that we throw

They say we will go far, but they don't know how far we'll go

It can't be gone, we're still right here

It took so long, can't say we heard it all

Limbs parallel, we stood so long we fell

Tear a moment from the days that carry us on forever

This push and pull is the force of a wave of time

In the heat of the night, we would cry, you are not mine

They said we would go far, but they don't know how far we'd go

'cause this heart is a stone, and this is a stone that we throw

It can't be gone, we're still right here

It took so long, can't say we saw it all

Limbs parallel, we stood so long we fell

Tear a moment from the days that carry us on forever

It can't be gone, we're still right here

It took so long, can't say we felt it all

Limbs parallel, we stood so long we fell

Love's like a pantheon, it carries on forever

WORDS OF THE DAY

13. fortuitous – happening by chance or luck; accidental in a positive way 

14. supercilious – haughty, arrogant 

15. jocular – joking ,good-natured 

16. profligate – extremely wasteful

Professional COMM 3/1: Nina Duran on Scars

"Never be ashamed of the scars that life has left you with. People have scars in all sorts of unexpected places. Like little secret road maps to their lives. A scar means the hurt is over, the wound is closed and that God has healed you. And even though the pain may come and go, be proud of your scars, for each one holds a lifetime of lessons.” - Nina Duran

English III 3/1: "Peacebone" by Animal Collective

This song is very abstract, I know. But what phrases or lines stick out at you? Are you shocked by this? In which parts? What might he be trying to say? Do you think he is trying to draw clear diagrams or paint emotional/intellectual pictures with his words?

PEACEBONE:

Bonefish.

Bonefish.

A Peacebone got found in the dinosaur wing

Well I've been jumpin' in all over, but my views are slowly shrinking

I was a jugular vein in a juggler's girl

I was supposedly leaking the most interesting colors

While half of my fingers

Are dipped in the sand

You progress in letters but you're used to cooking broccoli

The other side of takeout is mildew on rice

And an obsession with the past is like a dead fly

And just a few things are related to the old times

Then we did believe in magic and we didn't die

It's not my words that you should follow it's your insides

You're just an inside

Adjust your insides

You're just an inside

Bonefish.

I bet the monster was happy when we made him amazed

Cause he don't understand intentions he just looks at your face

I'll bet the bubbles exploded to tickle the bath

All the birds are very curious all the fish are at the surface

With half of me waiting for myself to get calm

I'm like a pelican at red tide

I'm a corpse I'm not a fisherman

A blow out does not mean I will have a good night

Chorus

Bonefish.

Chanting/screaming

Bonefish.

I start in a hose and I end in a yard

When I feel like I'm stealing I can keep myself from hearing God

Only the taste of your cooking can make me bow on the ground

It was the clouds that carved the mountains

It was the mountains that made the kids scream

Oh well she bore all her parts but she never was found.

You think I'll carve a path through New York

And be an artist but are you anything

Then you find out you can't ask a baby to cry

Chorus

Inside

Inside

Inside

Inside

Inside

Inside

Inside

Peacebone

Bonefish.

--From the album Strawberry Jam by Animal Collective

WORDS OF THE DAY

9. predilection – a preconceived liking, preference

10. culpability – liability to blame

11. candid – honest, frank, outspoken

12. provincial – narrow-minded