How I feel thus far in the semester...

Well this is kinda a toughy, mainly because I try not to pay too much attention to my feelings..Whether this is a good thing or a bad thing, I dont know, but I try not to be moved by feelings and circumstances, ya know what I mean. So really, this is going to take some detachment.
However, occasionally, I will admit that my feelings get the best of me. Thankfully, this is not one of those times; or else I would be feeling quite stressed.
This week, I had two exams and several other assignments due. This was not too much to handle, but I did feel a little pressure, and with pressure comes stress. I seem to feel pressure quite often...I think this is mainly because I expect a great amount from myself. Sometimes, I feel so much pressure that the fear of failure (failure of my own expectations that is, and occasionally to other's expectations) keeps me from doing something. I cant stand this. I really hate the fear of failure, and I cant believe that I let it hold me back so much.
So this next week....I have zero exams, but I do have several rather large assignments due. I plan on working hard on each of them, and hopefully recieve an excellent grade in return.
This is the time in the semester when half of me wants to slack off a little bit. I mean, the break is almost here, I could easily get semi good grades if I just slacked off and took it easy for the rest of the semester. Luckily(or maybe not), it's my other half that controls me. I have to get the grades that I expect from myself, and nothing less. I will continue working hard at whatever I do, and I will only rest until there is time for rest (which is rare).

Are classic pieces of literature important??

Wellllll, since almost every single text book that I have ever owned for an english class contains works from classic writings and pieces of literature from writers and authors like Twain or Tolstoy, I take it that classic pieces of literature will always be relevant and important for studying and learning. Sometimes, I do not necessarily enjoy reading or studying these old works, but I don't know...I guess if ever teacher that I have had puts so much emphasis on them, they have got to be worth somethin. Of course the Bible isn't even an issue for me; I have been studying God's word since I was very young and I will never stop studying it. The Bible is totally timeless. will add more....

what to do with my English degree

Wellllll, I suppose there are many things I could do with my English degree. Of course, I am never one to go with the most common route, or the easiest route for that matter. I like to take the road less traveled. What I am trying to say is, I don't think I will end up using my English degree for a practical Englishy-type career.

With that being said, I would also like to specify my degree. I am currently pursuing a multidisciplinary degree of English and Business. A lil English and a lil business. Therefore, I have a little bit of variety in my degree and my options are broadened. This seemed like a good fit for me, because I am contemplating law school, and although English is a great precursor for law, Business is also a great precursor for many other things. I like to to be ready for anything! Whatever the future throws at me, perhaps I can catch it with either business or English :)

SO maybe I will write a book. Thats something that my English degree would contribute to. I have always wanted to write a book, yet I think that it would be very hard for me to gather the time to actually finish a whole book! Of course, I dont read THAT much...so I would feel a little bad writing a book and expecting people to read it when I don't even read that much. I can leave writing the book to future..that sounds good.

Well then maybe I can write a movie script! Plus, I watch a ton of movies, so I wouldnt have to feel a stitch of guilt when I write a movie and expect people to watch it. Or maybe I could start writing more songs...I have a small collection of songs that I have written, but I could always add to it and try and have them produced. Thatd be cool! Obviously, I am only focusing on the writing side of the English degree...I feel like, if I dont end up writing, I will not be doing something in the English field. That doesn't mean I will not be doing something with my English degree (The things that I will learn through this degree will help me with whatever I choose to do).

In the end...it is all up to God. Lord, your will be done, not my own. I will just continue working hard at whatever I am doing....

Open

Alrighty, so what to talk about. How about some stuff going on in my life lately. Well recently, I have been very consumed with golf. Obviously the fall is our main season. Golf has been a great success this year. Our team is really good. We broke the school record not too long ago, and I have broken my personal record this season. I have really worked hard this season and in the off season, and I plan on golf to continue to be a success. With this hard work, I have sacrificed time that I could have otherwise spent on school, and other things. Therefore, I am feeling a little behind in school. Not too bad, but just a little. Of course, our golf season is almost over, and I have no doubt that I will be able to catch back up in school and continue working hard. I love hard work! Makes me feel like I have accomplished something.
Another thing that has kept me on the occupied side of things is the youth minsistry that I am very involved in. It is called Consumed Youth Ministries, and I have pretty much grown up being apart of it. Now I am a leader. I also play drums in the worship band. Dude, I love our worship! We have had some up and downs throughout the years with worship band, but we are deffinitely building right now. I just really want to see the youth group grow, and I want to be able to be a positive influnce for those kids in every way that I can.
School, golf, and worship. A good mix for a busy schedule.

What book would I like to read most, and why?

There are so many books that I would like to read. I enjoy going to bookstores or libraries just to look at all of the books haha! I am like, "I'd like to read that, and that, and that looks cool." There is just soooo much stuff out there in books!
One book in particular that I have wanted to read, but have had a lack of time to do so is Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis. I know many people who have read it, and I have heard a lot of good things about it. So many people quote it, and I think that it would be a great reference book for speeches and stuff like that. Hopefully I can get my hands on it soon, and more importantly, get my hands on the time to read it.
I am not usually one of those readers who enjoys books that are so intellectually deep that I have to read certain paragraphs ten times before I can understand, and I hope Mere Christianity does not have too much of that. But I do know that C.S. has not negelected to use a large amount of "intellectual jargon" in some of his books. Anyhow, hopefully I can read it soon.

Good Writing

I guess there are a lot of things that good writing can look like. I would like to say I practice it all of the time, but I don't think that would be absolutely accurate. :) There are just so many little rules of grammar that I have not mastered yet, and there are a TON of different techniques in rhetoric that I probably don't even know. But, when I figure all of them out, I'll let ya know.
When looking for an example of good writing, I would deffinitely not mention my accounting text book; or any of my text books for that matter. Good writing seems to be best portrayed by best selling authors, or literary genuises like C.S. Lewis. Those kinds of writers know the language so well that they can paint any picture they want with words. Just words! It is amazing how talented writers use a variety of rhetorical strategies to tell a story, or inform, or persuade. I hope I will be able to practice good writing ALL of the time some day.

My Favorite Book

Of Mice and Men...nah.
Lord of the Flies.......I dig it.
To Kill a Mockingbird. Excellent book! but not my fayv.
Lord of the Rings! Not too many people read ALL THREE when they were in seventh grade. Of course, had I understood all of it, it could have been my favorite.
The Chronicles of Narnia. The only problem is, I can't single it down to one.
Okay, I am trying to think of a single book that I absolutely love every time I read or think about it. Honestly, the only thing that I can think of that matches this caliber is the grand book of Proverbs. Yes, the one from the Bible. I know you are probably thinking, what?! Out of all of the books that you have read! But yeah, I am going to have to go with Proverbs; and also throw Psalms in there as a close second, buuut I have never read through the whole thing.
So Proverbs. What must I like so much about Proverbs? Well first off, each of the chapters were greatly influenced by the Spirit of God, and mainly written by the hand of one of the most known, most successful, and most wealthy ancient Kings. That automatically gives this book "off the chart" credibility. Seriously, when I think about that fact, there is no way that I can not greatly heed each word of the book. In addition, Proverbs is the book of wisdom. It teaches how to be successful in life; and not just successful in the world’s eyes, but in the eyes of God. One of the scriptures teaches that the man who has wisdom is wealthier than the man who has all the money in the world. An interesting concept, but after years of reading and understanding, I totally buy into it.
I began reading a little bit of Proverbs when I was in middle school. My father would always encourage me to read a chapter a night. That didn’t always happen, but over the years I have read through most of the book several times. Every time I read it again, new things are revealed to me. It’s kinda cool, because it’s like finding treasure over and over again out of the same box. I think it’s empty, and then all of a sudden I pull another piece of treasure out. What really gets me going about Proverbs is the fact that it was written thousands of years ago, yet it is still relevant today. There are so many things in Proverbs that meet me exactly where I am today, and actually help me make decisions. It’s crazy. No, it’s Proverbs.

What does an English major look like??

When I ask myself the mind boggling question of what an English major looks like, my brain automatically goes into investigative mode. Which in turn usually means it asks itself more questions. For instance, are there any specific times when I have asked someone their major and upon hearing that they are an English major said to myself "Ah, so that's what they look like." Or perhaps, what do my previous English teachers or professors look like? Aha! now there is a question that sparks some interesting answers.
As I begin thinking back over the years of my previous English teachers, my mind immediately goes to freshman year, Pre-Ap English with Mrs. Thionnet. Mrs. Thionnet could be a whole blog entry by herself if you catch my drift. She was an older woman with a sweet heart, the imagination of a pre-teen poetry writer, and the enthusiasm of an Olympic gold medalist. She absolutely loved her job. To her, it wasn't a job. She taught kids about something that she was very passionate about (and got to be crazy while doing it). I mean, this lady was overly ecstatic about totally disecting Great Expectations. Like, are you serious?? She loved English. Not only did she have a passion for English, writing, and textual analysis, she wanted each of her students to share that passion and be excited about writing prose, or doing a literary analysis. I remember one time, she had me stand up on my desk in the middle of class to show everyone that my clothes matched. She then tied this into some kind of English lesson. Another time, she had all of her students attend a "bon fire" for class in which she had a pile of books with paper flames all around them while we played popcorn and read the novel Farenheit 451. Obviously, she sparked something in me that I will not forget. I may never LOVE words as much as she does, but she sure got me motivated to learn about them.
I had another AP English teacher that was very enthused. Every day of class began with the playing of some kind of strange music, the reading of an ambiguous poem, or an interesting you tube video. Upon this, we would have about ten minutes to write. Just write. It could be related to what we watched or heard, or it could be about something totally different. She just wanted to hear our pencils against the paper. This excersize got me comfortable with starting papers without thinking too much.
I could go on talking about more fanatical English teachers that have made an impact on my learning, but this would turn into more of a paper rather than a blog entry. As you can see, my investigation is beginning to pay off. I am starting to form the image of an English major in my mind. To me, an English major is much different than any other kind of major. They are creative, imaginitive, unafraid to be looked at as different, they think outside the box, they are passionate about what they study, and they all express themselves through the words of this interesting language. Wait a second, am I turning into one?