Friday, March 6, 2009

"An Once of Cure"

The response to Alice Munro’s “An Ounce of Cure"
The title of the story isn't an expression in the same meaning as it is always used ( it means that it is better to try to stop potential problems before they occur, rather than trying to fix them once they are problems). It is a literally expression too. "An ounce of cure" is two glasses of whiskey that the girl stole from the Berrymans. She had a lot of problems at that moment and she was trying to solve them, and all that she actually needed is to get wasted from two glasses of whiskey, be ashamed of the consequences and settle down with her life. The "once of cure" helped the girl to realize what is really important in her life. After the incident she had with alcohol, her eyes seem to be open to a lot of things. At that point the alcohol was her only hope. To my mind teenagers who are reading about this incident are going to open their eyes and they will learn from the girl's mistake that the only way to deal with their problems is to first acknowledge that there is a problem and then openly confronting it.
The story is really smart and shows the problems of a usual teenager life.

"Happy Ending"

The story of Margaret Atwood “Happy Ending” is a very ironic and witty story. While reading it, the reader realized that the author is a very smart woman who is not scared of satirizing other authors and their story lines. She shows the readers that in general, the plots of romantic fiction are pretty much all the same, romantic and non true. She is saying that the authors are sometimes too plot-driven. They forget about the characters and their development and focus on the plot, and the ends are always the same. Atwood says that it is only how we get to the ending part that differentiates the skills of authors-the end is always the same-they both die. The authors use different ways to get to that point but in the end it is all the same. Atwood isn’t even close to be sarcastic when she says “The only authentic ending is the one provided here: John and Mary die. John and Mary die. John and Mary die”, she is just being honest and says what others won’t say. Her story and her ending make people actually think about the common topics and same stories. It makes readers change their minds about something you wouldn’t usually think.

“The Management of Grief”

The scene with roses and Dr. Ranganathan.
Dr. Ranganathan already knows that his relatives are dead and there is no hope for him. He might look a little bit of a tough guy in the scene, but he is just that kind of person that keep his problems bottled up. He is a man from another religion background, he is absolutely different from what Shaila is used to. He doesn’t really know what to say and how to make her feel better, he knows that it is worse to not know anything. The expression “No news is good news” doesn’t work when your close and beloved people are in the middle of nowhere and you have no idea what is going to happen with them. Dr. Ranganathan tries to comfort Shaila and offers her roses. In that situation, it actually means a lot. He is very careful with his answers and his questions: “Vinod is how old?”-he didn’t use the past tense, he thinks before he says something. He knows he can hurt Shaila a lot now and ruin her hope just by one little word. He can’t hold his feelings when they look at the pictures though. He can’t handle even more dead people around him, who he used to know. He apologized afterwards and ran out of the room. Situations like this are always terrible and difficult for everyone. People don’t know what to say and how to react, they try to help others too, but they are also being selfish and nobody blames them for that. Dr. Ranganathan is an amazing man, who was trying really hard to help someone else, knowing already that his relatives are dead.

Friday, January 23, 2009

Responce Homework

A New Found Sanctaury - Kaitlin Davoren
I think I have found my sanctuary
I see the ground covered in a heavenly blanket
I see animal tracks through the snow
I see the grey-blue sky reflecting on the water
I see the city far away on the other side of the water
I see the orange like sun trying to warm our weather

I smell the brisk morning air
I think I have found my sanctuary
I smell the distinct winter breeze
I smell the slight aroma of my perfume
I smell the birds’ unfortunate stench
I smell odour of pollution seeping into this beautiful place

I hear waves crashing into the shore
I hear the birds communicating with one another
I think I have found my sanctuary
I hear wind hit my jacket and any plant form still alive
I hear my teeth chattering from the cold
I hear the snow crunch beneath my boots

I taste the reminiscence of my gum
I taste my tongue, dry and craving water
I taste my lip chapI think I have found my sanctuary
I taste the fresh air as I inhale
I taste the used air as I exhale

I feel Jack Frost nipping at my extremities
I feel as though my body been refreshed
I feel my toes starting to numb
I feel alone but it comforts me
I think I have found my sanctuary
I feel overwhelmed by the sight of the seemingly endless water

This place is so new to me
It’s somewhere I can think
It’s somewhere I can understand
This place makes me feel as if nothing is wrong
My senses have all been heightened
I think I have found my sanctuary
Posted by Kaitlin

Kaitlin, I really liked your poem. The descriptions are very realistic. I really liked that you used all the five feelings in your poem, and your adjectives about those feelings are really reasonable, they help the readers feel the same way you felt outside. ” I see the city far away on the other side of the water”- I really liked this part. It shows people that you were isolated and that you felt the way of pure nature. “I think I have found my sanctuary”- I think that you found a perfect sentence to describe the feeling and the theme of the whole poem. I really liked your poem, and I loved the other ones. They are amazing, maybe you have a hidden talent at making up poems?

Thursday, January 22, 2009

For you.


I tried to write you a poem,
The words came out all wrong,
So you just tell me you fed up,
You want to be alone.

I tried to be really patient,
But I'm not the girl you seek,
I feel so lost and frustrated,
Can you please just leave?

I gave you my everything,
And you just teared me apart,
You walked away with a smile on your face,
I was the one with broken heart

We won't say our goodbyes,
We just will forget about our dreams,
You will find me one day,
And once again I will breathe.

Winter time

It's winter time,
And snow is everywhere
Wherever you look
You see the shining cover.

Little animal prints on the ground,
It's winter time,
The air is fresh and clean,
It clears my mind.

Sky is heavy and dark blue,
The winter sun is rising,
It's winter time,
I feel my cheeks numbing.

Briskness of the cold everywhere,
The trees are all alone,
I am isolated from the world,
It's winter time.

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Canadian Identity


Canadians are not as cold as the weather in Canada,
They are nice and friendly, full of hapinness.
Drinking beer and eating mapple syrup while watching lacrosse
That's pretty much how they appear in my eyes.


They love hockey and are proud of their homeland.
And they struggle a lot from United States.
They love immigrants and were always helpful to them.
But what if Canada is losing its own face?

Maybe I don't know that much about this cold country,
But from what I saw and from what I heard...
I really hope that Canadians will ruin the system
And be free from America like migratory birds.

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Ann Margetson-Treasure Trove

Treasure Trove
Cobalt and Temiskaming Shores are treasure troves of beauty
with lakes, rivers, forests and many different rocks to see,
Wild creature’s great and small wander close at hand,
a glorious place to live, part of our wonderful land.
The air is clean and refreshing no smog is ever found
and I cannot number all the wild flowers that are around.
I have humming birds and neighbors and
other birds too,
I hear loons and wolves talk part of the night through.
Little noise is heard other than nature’s sweet melody
Save for the whistle of the trains that is a delight to me.
Come and visit us and stay for awhile and so feel
The history that surrounds us and helps us to heal,
Yes, a treasure trove to capture and share that comes free,
For in this place dear poetry comes to me so frequently.
© Ann Margetson