blog 4

Jackie's comment on coma patients and t.v. watchers made me think of something similar. I heard you burn more calories sleeping than watching t.v. I don't know if that's very relevant, but it made me think of what a waste of time watching television is. I had some trouble getting through the Smith chapter in WW. I got a general idea of what he was saying, but couldn't grasp the everything. Did anyone else have trouble with this? I liked the chapter in 9 Rights on the right to be reflective. Something I had never thought about that the author brought to my attention was how we are constantly assaulted by information. I had to pause and think after I read this sentence. At first I couldn't figure out what she meant by this, but then I thought about it and realized it is true. I probably couldn't comprehend this at first because I grew up in the information age, so for many of us this incessant stream of information is "normal." I started to think about noise in my own life. I know that when I am home ironing or writing notes for class (among a list of many other things) I always put the television on for 'background noise.' I never actually watch any of the programs while I do this, basically blocking out the television, but for some strange reason I have to turn the t.v. on. I guess I am so used to noise that I don't feel comfortable with silence. I liked how the author reiterated the need for silence and reflective thinking. It certainly opened my eyes to the necessity of silence not only for our writing but also for our minds. I liked Nelson's article in WTL as well. It took me the entire article to finally understand the difference between I-it words and I-you words. It would have been helpful to have a more clear cut definition right from the start. I thought Nelson offerred great tips for molding reflective writers in a classroom environment. In talking about writing from the heart, I liked the quote "the heart can generate a skeleton, but a skeleton can seldom generate a heart" (Nelson 325). I thought that was a great way of stating the importance of owning one's writing and choosing personally important topics.