Kendra is my name but many people call me Kimi or lil lady, but I perfer ordinary girl. I think of myself as an ordinary girl nothing less & nothing more. I express myself by praise dancing & singing. I dance because I feel it expresses me more as well as singing. Some of my friends from church we have our own singing group ( voices of today) it’s something we really enjoy and mostly it shows the real us .I enjoy all types of music , I mostly listen to gospel and r & b but I can’t really dance to anything . The song has to have a meaning, and since the newer generation makes music about anything its difficult. I sometimes write about many different things I go through and things I observe around me. All my life I grew up in the suburbs but at one point we live on the low end, something many people call it the ghetto. It’s not always easy to talk so I choose another mostly way by dancing & signing to let people know who I am. I love and really enjoy movies that’s all about dancing and singing , my favorite is hairspray & rent but for some reason I hate the movie grease.
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Day 2, Answer: Jorgina Kelly
Day 2, Answer: Sherrae' Lee
Well who am I? Well I’m Sherrae’ Lee. I’m 17 years old. I’m the daughter of two Pastors. Yes, I’m a “PK Kid” (Preachers’ Kid). Even though I’m a Christian I’m still a regular person. My morals and beliefs may be different from other people but, that’s just like any other person. But I do believe because I’m a Christian and because my parents are Pastors that may have a big influence who I actually am. Since I can remember it has always been a requirement for the Lee family to attend church. Let’s just say I was basically born in the church. I’ve been to every Sunday worship and bible study. My morals and expectations remain high for me. In the Lee household I was always pressured to remain abstinence, dress and act a certain way.
My parents of course are very strict. I wasn’t allowed to date until I was 16 years old. My parents felt that I wasn’t old enough or ready for a relationship physically or mentally. I attended a high school where everyone had a boyfriend or girlfriend. So I was always pressured into getting a boyfriend because that’s what all the other high school students we’re doing.
In my house my parents were very particular about what I wore outside my house. I wasn’t allowed to wear clothing that revealed my body. This meant no tight clothing, short dresses, or low cut shirts. My mother would always tell me that my body was Gods’ temple. Of course girls my age dress the total opposite from the way I do.
When I was in high school I was always pressured to use profanity, get attitudes with students, and disrespect adults. But my parents taught me to behave like a young lady. I was given specific instructions to respect all adults no matter what the situation. I attended a high school where students thoughts it was cool to disrespect adults, but in my house that behavior was totally unacceptable. Being the daughter of parents who were both pastors, everyone’s expectations for me were set so high. No one expects me to have a boyfriend or wear clothing that I think I make me look good. I don’t want to disrespect adults. I just would like to be consider a normal teenager.
So the question is who do I really believe I’am. I guess I’m just a young Christian adult that has been guided through life in a different way. I strongly believe that who I’am or who I’ve become reflects on the guidance I was given as a child.
Day 2, Answer: Jamahl Jackson
Who I am…
I am Jamahl Jackson.I consider myself to be like a raging mustang in the wild. I am a bull going against life., I am a wave of emotion that fills the loins of gods.
I believe that everything happens for a reason, Even if we don’t want it to happen. I believe that we all make mistakes that are due to mankind’s uncertainty and lost of drive for the common people.
I believe in not just America but other cultures as well.
As a Child I grew up amongst people that were considered to be different because they didn’t look or sound like everybody else. I Grew up amongst a different culture other than my own. This was especially hard for me because I had to learn about my own culture, where I came from and also the history of my adoptive parents. I had to lean a language that wasn’t consistent with mine. I had to immerse myself in the bodies of water of their culture and learn what they knew, the right or wrongs, the do and don’ts. I had to learn the meaning of a new self. In my mind I had to develop a lust for new culture and had to subside the old one. I had to find a figurative heart for a new group of peoples that loved me no matter which way I looked or the color of my skin. They loved me for me and what I believe. I am a person, I am jamahl Jackson and I was raised by Filipinos and I’m proud of it!
Day 2, Answer: Antonio Hill
When I get stressed out or partially frustrated I listen to music. Music is always a key to release for me because it expresses so much. The beat, the melody, and the rhythm of a song can change my mood very quickly. I just forget everything, tune everything out and get into my music mode. Mainly jazz or soft R&B, or even some mellow hip hop music. I write music most times so I can let my rage out on a page instead of on a human being. It sooths me; without music I don’t know where I would be or what I would be doing. I’d probably be in jail because I would have snapped a long time ago, honestly. Especially living in a place where everyone around you is doing something you don’t want to do or living in a place you want to get out of. Music comes in handy; it can take you to another place. Writing lets your imagination run free. You can be anyone, you can be anywhere, and you can do/say what you want when you write. Frustration seems to not exist in my world. I’m a big music fan so it’s easy for me to get lost. You’ll rarely see me mad thanks to the sweet sounds of a jazz guitar or a soft, mellow rap song that has a meaning instead of just rambling. That’s what I like and that’s what I do whenever I feel frustrated or stressed. Poetry is always good too, that kind of falls in line with writing music. It’s not as easy as think it is so don’t be fooled. Yes, it is easy to rhyme but it is not easy to put your thoughts on paper and make it so people know what you’re talking about. On top of that, making it into a rhythm; its difficult stuff but it’s what my heart beats for.
Day 2, Answer: Samuel Johnson
I am Samuel Johnson. I’m known to a lot of different people as Sam “BAMM” (a name that was given to me from varies of musicians). Music is my life and passion, it’s what makes me who I truly am. My mindset is not like the advantage young adult my age. I look at things in a simple but deep mind frame. I observe my surroundings and very aware of lots. I dedicated my life to God and will serve no one or nothing besides him. I use music to express my true feelings, like many other musicians. But in a way I’m probably different because I go in extra deep with my playing. Not necessarily playing harder or faster, it’s a thinking method for me. For instance, I could’ve had a bad week, well when I begin to play the drums or even just listen to music, more events (besides that particular week) begin to pop in my head, like things that I’ve been through as a little kid up to my current age whether it was good or bad. I want to consider myself as a role model for a lot of young children that starting out in music because God has blessed me to go through things and bring me out of things so I can help the kids that are coming up to not go through the same. This journey so far has been great, I have a lot to tell and if I can’t always say what’s been going on verbally, I always show it through my playing. So in all I can put myself in one word overall, which is an Example.
I’m a musician, and I believe that you can do anything you want if you set goals and believe in yourself. Throughout my years I have been through many phases in life consisting of playing sports, skateboarding, taking photos, music, and guitar. In almost every dilemma I come across I try to find an immediate solution. I believe that music is a form of art and should be appreciated for the talent no matter what genre it is. Throughout my life I have always tried to be a little different than a typical teenager because I believe that I have a different perspective in life. Throughout high school I wanted to become a professional guitarist. I knew that by practicing a couple hours a night wouldn’t cut it because there are millions of guitarists out there and the odds of me being noticed would be one in a million. After this realization I knew that I needed to do more than just practice a couple hours every day after school, so I started practicing 8 hours every day until my fingers would blister. After keeping up with this routine for almost 2 years I realized that in order to improve my chances of getting noticed I would have to be a versatile musician. I started learning jazz, blues, flamenco, classic…ect. After expanding my range in styles of playing, I started to experiment with all of them. I knew that one thing those other million guitarists didn’t have was creativity along with the positive outlook on committing your life to playing guitar. To me that sounded kind of risky but I know that becoming a professional musician you need to make some sacrifices. Unfortunately, I set school aside for a little while until I noticed that I was able to do both. My friends would frequently come over to drag me out of the house because they thought I was practicing too much. My friends are a group of kids who are also involved with music one way or another. I’m fortunate to have friends as good as the ones I do because they are awesome kids and they are also good influences who would keep me out of trouble. Personally I wouldn’t consider myself a full out rocker because that’s not all that I do. I’m really big into sports, photography, skim boarding, and all sorts of stuff that continue to do as hobbies. Back to being a musician, I still have the same positive outlook on pursuing my career in the music industry. And I have big hopes for the future.
Day 2 Answer/ Kiarah Lazo
I believe that I am a unique individual; an individual that is nowhere near perfection. Throughout my life I have been through many struggles which made it seem as so I wouldn’t make it far in life. I had both positive and negative people around me who somewhat molded me. They molded me to the person I am today. I myself was brought up in confusion, not knowing where to go most of the time. The things I’ve heard and seen have me think twice about every single thing in life. When I was younger, I didn’t know what the future held for me. Life was fine and dandy back then, no worries about anything. Why is it that as we grow older, our minds expect the unexpected? I am brown; I am a Latina. I would define myself as art; I am the brush to the paint. Anything that deals with art easies my soul, my mind, and heart; Art is my life. Art was brought in my life as a early age. Where I grew up my community was art, Pilsen is the heart of Chicago. Everyone around me encouraged me to continue what I was doing with art. I knew art was going to take me to bigger and better places but who would have known I would be where I’m at today. Art introduced me to photography which is what I want to pursue in life. And it also introduced me to other sorts of topics such as politics. If it wasn’t for art, I wouldn’t be who I am. I wouldn’t have made it this far.
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
What do I do to find inner peace and freedom to find it I listen to music , pray and hang out. When I am at home that gives me a sense of safety which adds to my peace of mind and serenity. Music that peace Alicia keys , Chris Brown, Maxwell is some artiste that music that peace. I love music it really does not matt what kind, but the nerds, Alisha keys, aburn any many more. Music give me a feeling unlike no other it bring me joy, happiness, peace.
Day 2 Answer Christopher Johnson
I’m a very complex guy with a very complex life and everything always has to be complicated with me no matter what the situation may be and at times it’s very stressful. My last two years of high was probably the worst time of my life. I guess you could say I had friends but sometimes I truly wondered if I was loved. Although my life was and still is stressful I can always find inner peace. Like I stated during the first day I’m a boy that marches to the beat of my own drum. The one time I can truly say I have inner peace is when I’m in church. I can honestly say I truly love the Lord with my whole heart and soul and no matter how bad my situation is I know I can turn to him for direction. A lot of times in my life I truly feel unaccepted and unappreciated but when I’m in church that outside world disappears. My church family is more of a family to me than my real family is a lot of the time. Some of the benefits I have received from being a part of the church is I can truly express myself without being judged and I’ve also learned how to have a strong relationship with God. When I was young I struggled with the concept of being a Christian and being gay at the same time. I always thought that being gay was an automatic pass to hell. I spent a lot of time actually trying to “fix” the problem until one day a very dear friend of mine invited me to his church. The pastor preached a sermon that touched my heart. He stated that God loved everyone no matter what it is. He also told me never to be ashamed to seek him because not only does he love me but his love in unconditional. So now every time I come to a point in my life and I just want to give up I pray and somehow some kind of way I know everything will work out.
tationa: answer to question
I love to express myself through art because art has been my true talent since the age of seven. When I draw I like to tell stories. From anime to American cartoons, I would comics of my favorite characters. At a young age it was through cartoons, now I make a different look through my drawings and that is by designs that come from the top of my head. I’m really into pop culture and being into fashion I love to learn about certain styles like the indie rock look and listening to music from the 80s and 90s. Some people may think it’s weird, but in a way I don’t care it’s what I like and it’s been this way for a long time. I draw almost half the time and when I do it comes from the top of my head and in the end it’s something that makes me feel accomplished. Anything with a weird crazy design grabs my attention. I don’t have a favorite but I would say that my most favorite would be the pop art look. I’m into looks with different colors and different scenes and looking Madonna or Marilyn Monroe makes me want to become an artist even more.
Day 2 Answer-Arianna King
As a teenager many would think I would blast music and rebel against the world. But, As Arianna I love to ice skate. Life seems so drama free. Watching me sit and be so amazed watching the ice skating Olympics my mom got an idea. My mom eventually put me in ice skating. When I ice skate I feel like everything is not as heavy as it really is. When I close my eyes and just glide across the shiny glass like ice, I drift away to another dimension. When my mom died I ran off to the local Ice Rink and Skated all day. Life as I knew it changed and I felt like skating could no longer help as an outlet. When my mom died the skating company gave me a free membership to skate for a year. They told me they felt that I still had a home there. So with that membership I stayed at the rink every day and every night. When I turned 14 I joined a skating team. The skating team went all the way to the Jr. local competition. I came in 3rd place. When I got my medal I swear to this day I saw my mom smile in the stands. My escape to life is skating. No matter what happens I find myself gliding across the ice feeling free as an eagle.
Aaron's Question response Day 2 (Sean MacKenna)
i believe im a very easy going person. i don't like to worry about little things. my motto has always been live fast skate faster. being always constricted by time schedules, due dates, and train schedules just isn't fun. i really like to skateboard because it gives me a way to express myself. a lot of people don't understand why people skateboard but it goes the same way with any sport. golf for example...why would you wanna sit outside all day and hit a ball with a club and try to get it into a hole?? when you do get the ball in the hole you feel accomplished. when you skateboard its the same thing. why would people jump down stairs and grind down rails? the feeling you get when you finally land a trick you have been trying for so long or you get a good line at a park and everyone claps when you get it is the same feeling of accomplishment. its all what you choose to do. i like skateboarding because its a on your own sport. i don't have to rely on someone else and its self motivation to do it. no one tells me that they cant skate because im not there or we have to wait on someone to go skate a park because it all comes down to you and what you want to do. it comes with its own lifestyle which has rubbed off on me hardcore. i say dude, man, lame, and gnarly. a lot of people judge skateboarders because most of us have long hair and tight pants. but its freedom of expression and that's why i like it. i could care less if someone doesn't like my pants or my hair. i think it is most influential to me because it showed me that there are a lot of different walks of life but skateboarding brings people together. i have friends that have a lot of problems at home and in life and ones that don't have a care in the world but when skateboarding none of it matters and when we all go skate you cant even tell the difference.
Day 2, (really long) Answer (to my question): Aaron
I was born in Charleston -- West Virginia's capital city. As I've met many people who can't locate us on any size map, I'll just mention it's east of Kentucky and definitely in "The South." I grew up in a region where many folks are plagued by mindsets mired in rampant and vicious bigotry. For example, my great-grandfather was in The Klan when he was younger. Though, as my mom disclaims continually, there were (and still are) so few African-Americans on Elk River, my great-grandfather wouldn't have recognized an African-American if she or he had walked up and handed him a crisp, new, shiny dollar bill. Spectrums of ignorance and hatred flourish in such impoverished places. Some of the “real” rednecks I grew up with wore KKK themed t-shirts to school and scraped horrid words into their desktops with their pocket knives. I remember one popular t-shirt that featured four or so white-hooded men surrounded top-and-bottom with the slogan "The Real Boys in the Hood.” Not unlike many of those in our texts, I had real hatred for where I grew up. I wanted out, just like they did, but I also have a strange pride, a love, for that place, just like them, too.
Through my '93 freshman and 95' junior years, I attended Herbert Hoover High School. Needless to say, my being a die hard anti-racist punk kid with pink hair, baggy clothes, and a skateboard didn't wash well with most students and staff alike. Fights were a weekly occurrence, and I was suspended and nearly expelled for myriad shit more times than are worth remembering, though now I am. Those years were rough on my family, no doubt.
Herbert Hoover High lies on the banks of the Elk River near the fringes of Clendenin, a town that according to the year 2000 census had a population of exactly 1, 116 folks. We spent the first eight or so years of my life up in Clendenin, living a little red brick house right on the Elk. My mom kept a garden in the backyard where she grew tomatoes and sunflowers. Down in our basement she kept a mason jar of sugar-coated lemon drops on a shelf above the dryer, which I loved. My folks were eager to move us to better schools, so we followed the Elk ten miles downstream, crossed over the Elkview Bridge, and on along the river for a couple more miles. There my Dad, Uncle, and Grandfathers had huge hands in building our two-stored, blue vinyl siding house. That was over twenty years ago. I grew up in that blue house near the Elk in Elkview. Follow the Elk for ten more miles downstream and you'll be dumped from its mouth into the much larger Kanawha River, right in lower-left ventricle of Charleston's barely-beating heart. So, there it is. For my entire life, I've felt as if I were the middle point on a twenty mile stretch between the country and the city. Every person in every car that passed me by snagged and caught my imagination under its tires. They wore me thinner and thinner over the years, like a hobo's boot heel.
I can explain my wish to escape through the following notion, maybe. The 2000 census shows that Charleston had a city population of 53, 421. 53, 421 divided by 1, 116 equals 47.9. That equation is maybe a ratio – 49:1 – for how I felt, then, about my potential as a worker/artist. I guess I always felt like, if I could just get the hell off Elk River, I could maybe become 49 times the worker/artist that I would be if I got stuck on Elk River. Forever.
I do have love for Elk River – my Elk River, the West Virginia of my family and friends – even with all its faults. We have some strong history. We were home to hardcore Abolitionists like John Brown (see one of the tattoos on my right hand, and throughout the 1900s West Virginia coal miners and labor organizers continually fought the United States Army and ruthless mine guards over issues of mine safety and fair hourly wages. And they won! Since around 1820-1840 I’m the only male on my dad’s side of our family who has never stepped inside of coal mine, so facts like those tend to make me feel a deep, though conflicted, sense of pride.
I left Herbert Hoover in the first month of my senior year and graduated from Hurricane High School in 1996. Down in southern WV we pronounce that "Her-uh-cuhn.” After graduating, I spent three semesters at a community college outside of Charleston, worked the counter at McDonald’s for like a month, but mostly I just skateboarded, went to punk/hardcore shows all over the east coast, worked as a janitor at a Donut Connection and as an Emergency Room Registration Clerk, got tattooed a bunch, lived in my parents' house, and spent a ton of time having no fucking clue what I wanted to do with my life other than not live on Elk River and be a janitor, forever. A few days after my nineteenth birthday, I moved to Morgantown, WV, which is on the banks of the Monongahela River, a whole 142 miles north of Elk River. From fall 1998 to the end of fall 2001, I was enrolled at West Virginia University (WVU), where I completed a double Bachelor's in Journalism and Sociology. While there, some friends and I started a non-profit, Positive-Youth Foundation, based out in Greencastle, PA. We guided and supported kids nationwide whom were organizing against the bigotry they encountered in their own communities and schools. I spent all my free time outside of school traveling two hours, about the exact same distance between the Elk and the Mon Rivers, over Interstate 68 between Morgantown and Greencastle to work in our warehouse. When I wasn’t there, I was touring to promote our cause/non-profit with bands like Green Day, Rancid, AFI, No Doubt, Hot Water Music, Blink 182, Alkaline Trio, Bad Religion, AVAIL, and many others. We also tabled and toured on numerous festivals and festival-style tours, like Lollapalooza, The Scratch Documentary Tour, and the Vans Warped Tour. I also spoke in front of meetings and gatherings as diverse as the Washington State Women Voters' Caucus and the North American Anarchist Gathering. Through our non-profit work, I traveled through every province of Canada and every state in the USA but Hawaii and North Dakota. I lived and/or spent tons of busy days and rawkus nights in big cities like LA, Seattle, Portland, DC, Baltimore, Philly, and all the boroughs of NYC. I always loved Chicago the most though. At times these memories are near suffocating, and after all this so-called "living" I found myself still a touch lost. At least I was off Elk River, I said to myself.
After disagreements with a co-owner, I left PYF in the summer of 2003 and was feeling pretty much like a waster. I’d quit my dream, a successful one at that. Broke, I took a job at Ticketmaster taking phone-in ticket orders for a couple months back in Charleston, moved back to Morgantown as quickly as I could, and re-enrolled at WVU to study English and Creative Writing. I always knew that if I ever quit PYF I would eventually return to university to study poetry. I love to write, as you maybe can see.
Three years later, summer 2006, I’d finished another Bachelor's degree and moved during another August to yet another city, Chicago. Finally. I've spent two years completing my MFA in Poetry here at Columbia. I finished up my degree almost a year ago this week. This is my third year teaching in our Bridge program.
All these ramblings, however, still leave the following unanswered though: am I forty nine times the person I would be if I'd remained on Elk River? Frankly, I hope so, but I don't know. I can tell you, though, that I've started pondering a new ratio for my possible potential – Chicago's city population of 3 million divided by Clendenin's 1, 116 equals 2,688.2. 2,688:1 = big numbers.
Well, if you made it this far, thanks for reading all of this. If you skipped down to here from somewhere even in the middle, can't say I blame you. Regardless, I'm excited to get to know all of you. Remember, remember, remember, remember x 2,688.2.
Regardless of some of the sobering messages I delivered in class yesterday, I'm here if you need anything.
Day 2, Question: Katrina
In both texts individuals find themselves in very difficult, repressive environments, and each finds some level of inner peace and freedom through creative expression. In True Notebooks the boys find release through writing and sharing their writing with others, and in Persepolis the people in the community have secret parties with lots of music and dancing. Through these acts subcultures, or societies within societies, are formed to offer each individual an escape from a turbulent world.When you get stressed out or frustrated, what do you do to find inner peace and freedom? Does this connect in any way to a subculture? If so, describe in significant concrete detail the subculture and the benefits you've received from joining this group.
Day 2, Question: Aaron
Your first blog assignment is tell us WHO YOU BELIEVE YOU ARE, as much as possible. How would you explain your sense of self, of identity, to another person. Go beyond simple likes and dislikes and phrases such as "I'm a very loving person." Think of this as a Cultural Autobiography of sorts. Columbia as an institution that will allow and support all of you as you set out "to author the culture of our times." Try to tell us how you feel like you author, how you contribute to our culture, in important ways: music, a music scene, art, activism, community work, a blog, your job, etc. Also, try to tell us how you feel like our culture authors your own identity, your sense of self, in important ways: the language you speak everyday, the slang you use, the way you dress, who you hang out with, what products you buy, what movies and TV shows you watch, etc. Remember, we're trying to reflect complexity through writing that reflects a deep level of thinking on your part. Push yourself beyond average surface level statements. Surprise us.
Like all of your responses, please type a minimum of 250 words. Thanks!
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