Monday, September 1, 2008

Ongoing Assement 9/1/08

7 comments:

mike said...
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mike said...

Read my last essay and write your next blog post with what I have said in mind. Take the time--and I mean serious time--to do whatever you do with your next post CONSCIOUSLY with the aim of pushing yourself to write or shoot something really interesting. Just this once, don't settle for what is easy or comfortable.

For just once, try to go a bit beyond your comfort zone. There are no rules here, no right and wrong....There is only the usual old stuff and something that is (1) going to make me raise my left eyebrow in interest or intrigue me [good]; (2) make me laugh or gasp out of surprise[better]; or (3) make me shocked, moved, misty-eyed, horrified or unsettled because what you have done is so damned provocative and edgy [best].

And take a few minutes to comment on what other people have written to show your support for the work of your friends and classmates.

mike said...

Just a little reminder: I’m going to be grading your next set of blog entries in about two weeks. I know that it is a pain to have to think of interesting things to write about or photograph, but that is, after all, what this course is all about. Remember, if you push yourself, try something new and interesting, and fail, you will be rewarded.

What you have to do:

1. Make sure to write at least four blog entries per week. If you want to do really well, you should write even more than this. Trying writing first thing in the morning or before bed…whatever works best for you. Try to avoid writing too many blogs any more that are simply accounts of what you have experienced during the week. At this point in the course, your blogs should be a reflection of what is going on in your inner life. They should be expression of inner emotional states, your thoughts about the point/meaning of your own life, etc. For the next week, your writing and your photos should tap into the Shadow-aspect of your personality (so fear, anxiety, insecurity, depression, hatred, lust, pain are all worthy emotion to dreg up). You don’t have to write in first person (I sure didn’t in mine); and you can be obscure, ambiguous, or allegorical in writing your posts. Just try to be a bit more daring and creative.

2. Don’t forget to do the assigned writing/photography. These include (1) a “belly of the beast” post [10/1], (2) shots that capture your shadow side, entitled “The Horror” (good work on this, Samantha!) [10/1], (3) your “Time of….” blog which captures a painful experience in your life (ideally in poetic form) [10/8].

3. Some of you were challenged to surprise me, do a second draft of poems, or turn prose into poetry. Give it a try.

Some ideas for blog posts

1. What you should keep in mind is that you can do WHATEVER THE HELL YOU WANT with your blog as long as you are being ambitious. If you don’t like the specific assigned topics I gave you, write about something else [just be sure to indicate the substitution]; don’t like photography [Aisha?]; then use some other visual medium to express yourself. Remember: there are no rules in life for bold people (e.g., Dylan, Raushenberg, Warhol, Lennon).

2. I want to see at least some poetry and interesting self-portraiture. If you feel insecure about either of these, come and see me in my office on Tues afternoon or Wed morning, and I will be glad to help you.

3. If you write a really weird, interesting, or constructive comment on someone else’s blog entry (either on our class or on an outsider’s blog), you can make a hyperlink to this comment and post the hyperlink on your blog. This will count as a blog post if it is meaty enough. This is my way of encouraging you to interact with other students and faculty in the class and beyond. See my example.

4. You should be listening to the Dylan music that I gave you. Remember, these are MP3s and may not play on older CD players. You may have to listen to this music on your computer or create two separate CDs with regular music files on them. As you listen to Dylan and read his lyrics, you can feel free to write a post about your reactions to Dylan or his music.

5. If you have a digital video camera, make a two minute video of yourself. The video can be as simple as you looking into the camera, reading one of your poem, or doing something weird or interesting. You don’t need to make a film….just capture a moment in your life. ANYTHING GOES here.

If you haven’t met with me yet about your blog, I will be in class 10 min earlier on Wed. Everyone should meet with me individually at least once during the course of the week. If you want more extensive feedback make an apt to see me on Tues or Wed.

For your own information, our blogging will formally end at the end of October (only three weeks of writing and photography left!), so you should really make an effort to do something wonderful with your blog posts during this period. After that, we will be working almost exclusively on filmmaking.

Laura said...

Dr. Russo asked me to remind you to make sure that you have carefully listened to and studied the lyrics of all of the Dylan songs on the list. Those who are presenting should be prepared for tomorrow's class. Also remember to return the CD's he lent you so that he is not in violation of US copyright laws.

October 14, 2008 11:38 AM

P.S. Travis, what happened to your music? I loooooovvvveeeeddddd! that song that would come on when your page comes up. Did you have to get rid of it? Or is it something that I am doing? It doesn't play anymore
:( what was the name of it again?
P.P.S. I think I passed you in the hall today and didn't say hello. Bad I am sorry but I am not sure I would recognize you if I saw you, its been a while since that class.

Laura said...
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mike said...

For those of you who are thinking about the book option, I just put together one using only material found in my blog. I opted for a larger size book with color photos and the price for 54 pages came out to about $25. I'll be able to show you the finished product when we get back from the creativity retreat, but for now, if you are interested, you can look at the first 15 pages at the site below:

http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/395722

Those of you who are planning to do a video (about 5 minutes in length) should start seriously thinking about what your concept will be, what scenes you need to shoot and with whom, and what music, etc. you will need to complete your film.

Remember to keep up with your blogging. We are down to the wire now, and this is not a good time to start slacking off. Try to dazzle me a bit with some of your final entries.

mike said...

If you are coming on the retreat tomorrow, be sure to check Sr. Diane's list over to make sure that you have everything you need. If you are coming with me, be at my office by 9:30 (use the front door to enter Siena); if you are leaving on your own from LI, you should also try to leave by about 9:30am

Don't forget to bring your camera with you. We will have a bit of time to do some photography while we are up in the natural beauty of the retreat house.

If you are not coming on the retreat, try to get as much of the work that we assigned to you knocked off as you possibly can.

All of you should be sure to write as many interesting blog posts as you can. Be sure to have the total number of blog posts required completed by the end of the week and to start thinking of interesting ways to wrap up your blogs.

next week you will be assigned five students in the class whose blogs you will be assessing, so it is vital that by Wednesday, you have completed everything you are supposed to have done. I will be grading all blogs on Thursday, so you have a bit more time to get your act together if needed.