The Transformer

In the comic "Show and Tell" Tommy shows his class a robot that can transform into an airplane. His lack of description and his use of interchanging words tells the reader that he is a small child, still in elementary school. When I was in elementary school we also had show and tell about once a month. I can remember bringing in my favorite Pocahontas doll. She had long brown hair that my brother had accidental vacuumed up which made it a large knotted mess in her hair. I was very shy so my presentation of my doll would have been similar to Tommy's. I remember showing my classmates my doll and when I showed them her hair they all laughed. At a young age it was easier to show my classmates my doll and what had happened to her hair than then to tell them about it. The show and tell object is similar to a prop and can offer a child support in forming their ideas instead of memorizing which is why show and tell is beneficial for small children. The last two panels of the comic talk about children's use of words and images interchangeably and how they eventually grow out of it. In the second to last panel of the comic, the man in the right hand corner could be Tommy years later reflecting back on his childhood and realizing how much he has changed. The show and tell object of the transformer is ironic because Tommy himself has transformed from a small boy to a man. From elementary school to college, we have gone from mixing up words to writing multiple page paper detailing all of our thoughts. For me, the "Show and Tell" comic is about how children grow and transform just like the robot transforming into the spaceship.

A Winter-y Death

In The Death of the Grave-digger, a man with a thick grey beard is standing outside in a grave and a dark angel, holding a green light is hovering over him. The man is wearing a burlap looking dress which shows that this painting took place a long time ago. They are surrounded by tombstones, snow and a willow tree which is falling behind the angel of death. Clouds are covering the sun and the cemetery is coveyed in a dark gloomy setting. The frail old man is looking up at the angel and her black wings surround him. He looks like he is holding his heart, the heart is symbolic because it represents life, without the heart we would die. The green light the angel is holding is symbolic for plants, flowers and life, which she is taking away. The angel has a hand pointing upward toward the sky, showing that she is sending his life and the green light upward toward heaven.The green light stands out in the white and black background and accentuates that everything is dead and cold. The painting takes place in a wintery background. Winter is a time of death when trees and leafless and flowers and dull with no life or color. The snow and ice have killed the flowers at the bottom of the grave and all that are left are short, brown buds. Another symbol of death are the surrounding tombstones showing the death of others in the cemetery. It is ironic that the grave digger is dying because he is the one that is usually burring other people, also he is still holding a shovel in his hand infering that he has "dug his own grave". The weeping willow is hovering over him and the angel which symbolizes sadness and crying. The picture of The Death of the Grave-digger is a great example for the emotions that are felt during death; sadness, feeling alone and cold.

The Mona Lisa

The Mona Lisa was painted by Leonardo Da Vinci in the 16th century. Although there is nothing fancy about this painting, the placement of her body is unique to this time period and is still used today in photographs. The first thing I noticed about the Mona Lisa was the woman. She has a rather pointy nose, a small mouth and no eye brows. Her body placement is unique and he hands are positioned in the portrait which was not common at the time. Her smile is mysterious and somewhat inviting which is similar to models today and during the 16h century this would have been a new idea. She is also a little heavier which implies that she was wealthy because she must have been eating well at the time. Another indication that she was wealthy is the clothing she is wearing in the painting. She is wearing a nice dress with elaborate detail and silky looking cloth. The Mona Lisa is important today because it shows how people looked and dressed hundreds of years ago. The painting of the Mona Lisa may also be important because her identity is not well known and it poses the question why did Da Vinci paint her portrait? Portraits in the 16th century must have been rare because they look so long to paint and only the wealthy could afford them which may be the reason this painting is so popular today. The smokey dark color is also another noticeable characteristic of the Mona Lisa. She seems to be sitting in a chair but the background of the painting is in a rocky landscape. This is unique because Da Vinci must have painted the woman and the background at different times. Many details of the Mona Lisa make it unique and special even today.

Unlike most little girls that dress up as princesses on Halloween, I unfortunately had to wear my older brothers hand-me downs so my costume usually consisted of a scary mask, spider man or some other super hero. I didn't mind dressing up like the boys as much when I was little because I fit right in trick or treating with my brother and the neighborhood boys. But once I reached junior high and started trick or treating with my girl friends, I found those boy costumes very embarrassing. After complaining to my mother one Halloween she finally gave in and bought me my own costume. It was a black cat suit with furry cat ears and a tail. I was so excited to have my own costume and all my friends were jealous of my new and somewhat stylish outfit. Because my mom refused to buy me a new costume very year, I wore the cat suit until my final years of trick or treating. I remember unloading my pillow case full of candy and sorting everything into piles after a night of trick or treating. My friends I would count how many pieces we each got and trade the candy we no longer wanted. Also, as a child I remember watching Hocus Pocus every year on television. As a college student however, I no longer watch Hocus Pocus instead Scream and Halloween are the movies to watch in preparation for the scary holiday. I no longer wear my brothers embarrassing hand me downs to go out trick or treating because the activities on Halloween night now consist of wearing slutty costumes and drinking. Instead of going house to house in hopes for the best candy, this year my friends and I went house in house in search of free alcohol. As I walked into my very first Halloween party as a college student I was greeted by a cowboy, banana and a guy with a red bandanna on his head claiming to be the "Hide yo kids, hide yo wife and hide yo husband too" guy. As we walked through the crowded house I passed by 3 tables of kids playing beerpong before I reached the room where the keg was. Located in the corner of the room, the keg was surrounded by a swarm of people so we pushed our was to the front and filled a red cup with foamy beer. I enjoyed the Halloween season as a child but drinking and nearly getting hypothermia because of our lack of clothing with my friends was defiantly a Halloween memory I will not forget.

Fantasy World

Urthus is located two solar systems away from the Milky Way galaxy and is surrounded by two other planets. Moofas is similar the the earths sun and is the closest planet to Urthus. Being so close to the bright star of Moofas keeps the temperature at Urthus at a comfortable 80 degrees throughout the year. The warm temperature allows tropical plants to grow abundantly. Palm trees cover the planet and crystal clear water surrounds the land. In the oceans, beautiful wildlife fills the water including ocean plants and colorful fish. The oceans on Urthus allow humans to breath underwater also so swimming is one of the favorite past times on the planet. Half of the land on Urthus is white sand beaches and the rest is luscious green grass. The grass is perfect for playing soccer and many of the people play the sport during their free time. The only animal that lives on the land of Urthus are colorful birds. Urthus is half the size of the Earth which allows for easier traveling. There is no rain so people travel on high powered bicycles or walk throughout the planet. Food grows on the palm trees and it is easy to find just the food you are looking for. Cheese burgers are the popular food tree on Urthus and they are also served with crispy french fries. No one works, their only job is to build their own home. Each person has equal amounts of land and they use the wood from the palm trees to design their homes. Everyone on Urthus wears the same outfit: shorts, a T-shirt and sandals. English is the only language used and everyone is highly educated. Schooling starts at the age of 5 and continues throughout their life. As a child school lasts most of the day but as people get older school lasts only a few hours.There is no need for government on Urthus because everyone is kind to one another and treats each other like family. The daily life of a person on Urthus consists of finding food on the palm trees, going to school, traveling, socializing and enjoying the beautiful landscape.

Beersgiving

"Hillary, would you mind checking on the pumpkin pie cooking in the oven?" My mom asked as she frantically ran around the dining room table. It was the first time our family was having Thanksgiving at our house and my mom wanted everything to go perfectly. I checked on the pie and went into the family room to watch football with the boys. Although I love eating Thanksgiving dinner, I definitely don’t like cooking it so I was glad to get out of the kitchen. As I approached the family room I could hear chaos. “TOUCHDOWN!" my dad and uncles shouted as they clanked their beer bottles together and simultaneously took a drink. "After this want to play beer pong?" my cousin Craig asked. Craig was 19 years old and just started college. He is one of four boys but he is definitely the craziest. "What’s beer pong?" my dad and uncle asked. The younger boys laughed and shook their heads in disbelief. "It’s a drinking game I learned at the frat house” my cousin Craig replied. “Yeah sounds like fun” my dad said. After the football game the boys moved the party into the basement and my cousin Dana and I, followed.  They set up a table with 6 cups in a diamond formation at each end. The younger boys found some ping pong balls and showed my dad and uncles how to play. After a few rounds everyone was getting really into it. I enjoyed watching the boys that used to tease me as a child chase a ping pong ball rolling around on the floor. They all looked extremely dumb and Dana and I couldn’t stop laughing at the boys. Good thing my Grandma Bishop is extremely hard of hearing because she might die if she heard what was going on downstairs. “Dinners ready!” my mom yelled down the steps, into the basement. The boys froze and Dana and I ran upstairs to start eating. When we got into the kitchen my mom asked “What’s going on down there?” We both looked at each other. “Nothing.” We replied as we both started laughing.  Just then the boys came stumbling up the stairs and into the kitchen. My mom gave me the eye and I stuffed my face with mashed potatoes to avoid the conversation. I would definitely say the first Thanksgiving at the Bishop Household was a success.

Chocolate

"Thanks Aunt Pam!" I said as I ripped off the pink wrapping paper and uncovered a teddy bear. "I love it!" I forced out, hiding the look of disgust from my face. Honestly, I was in the eighth grade and she was still buying me birthday gifts from Baby's R Us. What would a 14 year old do with a teddy bear? I was hoping I would get money or maybe a new cell phone for my birthday but it looked like Aunt Pam had missed that memo. I held out the bear as she snapped my picture. "I knew you would love it, Isn't it cute?" she replied. "HA. cute?" I thought to myself. I cant believe she had gotten me a teddy bear. As I set it down my mom handed me a few more presents from my grandma which consisted of clothes, a new cell phone and a DVD player. Finally, something I can use. After unwrapping my gifts I carried them upstairs. I connected the DVD player up to my TV, hung my new clothes in my closet and threw my new teddy bear on my bed. It's brown fur stuck out on my bright pink comforter like a sore thumb. It was a little smaller than my pillow and had a navy sweater that said 'AE' on it. Its eyes were glossy and it had a cute little nose and a small smile. Later that night I was laying in bed watching The Ring on my new DVD player when the face of a dead girl popped up on the screen. I yelled and grabbed the teddy bear I had just gotten. Its fur was smooth and soft which was perfect for hugging. I held it up close to my face to cover my eyes from the terrifying movie. It smelled like my aunts house and reminded me of my family. The bear fit perfectly in my arms and I was surprised to find that it actually made me feel safe. Later that week I had slept with that teddy bear so I wouldn't have night mares from the movie. I also found is useful as an extra pillow since it was so soft and I began sleeping with it every night. I started to refer to the teddy bear as Chocolate and I brought him everywhere with me, on family vacations, sleepovers and even to summer camp. I was surprised to find that I actually enjoyed the teddy bear I had received from my Aunt on my 14th Birthday. Chocolate is still sitting on my bed today and every time I look at him I am reminded of my loving family.