5-5:25pm: Extended narration of day. One story from the past however-many hours…
5:25-5:50pm: Irby, how it ended. SPECIFIC EXAMPLES!!!! Please.
5:50-6pm: Close….
ASSIGNMENT: Start planning an Irby essay. Could be on your relationship with her, her writing, how she communicates with you. OR…. An opinion on her. Come to class next week with as many notes and ideas for an essay as you can. DO NOT OVERTHINK IT.
ASSIGNMENT: Starting thinking about your life as literature. Find either humor, happiness, or something else in your days…. And put it to page.
My day was great. I had another day off so I woke up a little later than usual. I took a shower got ready and headed out. Cruise the backroads to go to Petaluma playing my corridos. Went to Jamba Juice got my drink, stayed in Petaluma driving around. I finally decided to go home and here I am in class hope everyones having a nice day.
What did you get at Jamba? I love that place
orange dream machines are the best! Or the white gummy I think it’s called
Hi everybody! Holding the baby again. I’ll be watching you guys, and contributing when I can. Thank you so much for being here tonight! Enjoy!!
Hello everyone, how is everything?
hi debora! almost friday so i’m feeling pretty good ! how are you ?
today I went to my 12 o’clock math class and made my lunch during. I made tater tots since that’s all i had in the fridge and some pizza pockets. During class i worked on the homework for the class and after class drove to the gas station to get some gas for my car during that i saw a homeless person peeing into the windshield wiper fluid tray and i decided not to wash my windows. When i got home from that I finished the Assignment for this class and turned that in and besides that relaxing and enjoying my day.
ok but can we talk about how cheap the gas is right now? I’m loving it, minus the peeing hobos
Awe man. I think i would’ve waited to wash my windsheild too.
Today was like any other day; went to work and came home to do school. Although work was how it regularly is, there was one thing great about it. I didn’t have the chance to pack lunch because … well I was just too lazy. But all day I was like damn, what am I gonna eat? Everything is too far to go and get and I never have great experiences with door dash. Thankfully, the nicest guy came in with Panera catering and offered some to me and my coworker because we ‘work so hard each and everyday’. It was really a blessing in disguise and I didn’t starve at work.
Welcome Jake! Thanks for posting.
To more specific I’m trying to new a technique that is pretty difficult and falls into the category of fingerpicking. The bassline is pretty easy but adding the higher notes at the same time is extremely difficult. Once it all falls together it sounds great and hopefully I can achieve that sound one day.
My day was decent. I dropped off my ballot today and went for a run with my dog. I practiced some guitar and tried to learn a new song. I was reading up on my philosophy homework for tonight before class.
What else? Add onto this. There’s a lot of Material here.
Hello everyone. My day started off waking up with the most annoying headache in the world. Not to complain but honestly I would love to just be able to wake up without my eyes hurting. Anyways after getting up I went downstairs and started to pet my dog. She always is the most affectionate in the morning so I try to give her some of it before I start making my breakfast. Today I made three eggs with some bacon, with avacado on top and a cheese bagel. You know nothing too big. “oh shit that’s right I have the last two chapters of the book before I go to work” I said to myself as I was shoving my food down my throat. The ending of the book was amazing and It was so nice to read it before work. Finally I got into my car and with a hat and a water bottle set down to occidental where I do landscaping for this large landowner up in the hills. I really enjoy it but honestly it’s dirty work. Having to thrust yourself into bushes and dispersing yards worth of mulch doesn’t sound like fun, though I think I’ve just gotten used to it at this point. I finished my day around 4:00 and headed back to my house. Where I end my story off, showered and munching on a nature valley bar. So i guess that’s my day
What is your dog’s name? Man I tried to do some landscaping and it was SOO hard. It was a f hot day too and that didn’t help at all. So respect for you
My dad has been pretty eventful. Went to class this morning and cleaned my room between my classes. Finished my homework and the book. Then got around to pick up my friend. My friend and I went to Party City to get some things for our costumes (saw a girl that hates me! Always fun lol) Went to Spirit because Party City didn’t have everything we needed. Then went to walmart and dollar tree twice each because we kept forgetting what we needed. Then came home to get on class, now we’re here!
Day********
Oh, and I did a henna on my hand. It’s a temporary tattoo. I drew my skeleton on top of my hand
That is cool, the only time I got a henna it barely stayed on for 24 hours
Omg really? That’s weird. Usually they last for a week or so.
I love henna I have a bunch of tubes and a couple different colors
Hey there,
I have been trying to stay positive today. I am looking forward to class today.
Hey shantel!
how are you?
hi shantel and finn!
I’m doing good hanging in there, how are you?
Hey Shantel! Stay positive, the day is almost over yay
I had my math test this morning which I did pretty good. After that I had breakfast at the patio at my house. I have been trying to enjoy my house as much as I can because I am moving in one month. I’ve been having a mix of feeling about that. Then I decided to go to the SSU campus so I could study for my BAD1 class. They have such a beautiful campus and now without classes it is completely empty. I came back home around 2pm, workout out and went to the grocery store. But here is the thing about today I am really looking forward to:
The biggest figure and inspiration, the most important person in my life is my grandmother who passed away in 2012. So me and my best friend who is from Mexico are gonna do a altar for our loved one who passed away for dia del los muertos. I went to the store and bought almost everything my grandma used to love like chocolate, mango, banana bread and there is a specific way she used to make coffee. I am really excited for that once it is going to be my first time doing this celebration as it is some culturally different
My day started at 10:40 when I hurriedly got dressed for my chiropractor appointment. A few weeks ago I strained my shoulder while tubing on the lake. When I arrived I was a few minutes early so I listened to music in the parking lot for a bit. Flagpole sitta by harvey danger if I remember correctly. When it ended I went inside. It was such a painful adjustment. My collarbone has been aching all day long. After the appointment I went to the bank to deposit a check. Then I met up with a friend for a little bit to catch up. When I got home I made a hot pocket and sat down for class. ASL was frustrating today because we learned that we are yet again switching teachers meaning this will be our fourth. After class I ate salmon and rice that my brother made for us. When I finished eating I took a test for one of my psych classes. Unexpectedly my cousin stopped by my house to say hello. We talked for almost an hour and I am going to her house after class.
what kind of hot pocket was it?
asking the important questions I see. it was a philly cheese steak one
I had no idea that was even a flavor Nianna that sounds good
its pretty good. bbq beef will always have a place in my heart
Oh gosh, your FOURTH teacher?! Covid has made everything so challenging for students and faculty alike, I bet its tough to have to adjust to another new teaching style.
yes its extremely hard because each teacher has had a different signing style and teaching style
Hey everyone! My day was pretty good. The morning was nothing different with a good workout, shower, and a bomb breakfast sandwich I made. After I had math class which was the same. After that, I had been running around stores to put together a captain costume to match my girlfriend who is a mermaid. Then just right now I sold my brother’s tires to some guy and now I’m here at class. 🙂
best three things to start your morning off with !
Please respond to each other’s stories. That’s where the ideas come from.
It’s more than workshopping, it’s building.
Hi all! I hope everyone is well! I had a rather nice day! Not too much of a challenge with my toddler which is always nice, and I also received an email letting me know that the application process for the apprenticeship program I want to go in to is FINALLY moving forward. It was originally postponed from May of this year until April of 2021 due to Covid, but they have found a way to move forward while maintaining social distancing guidelines!
congrats ! that’s great news
awesome! good job for progressing yourself , especially with a toddler. im kid less and still find balencing work and school a struggle sometimes , so good for you ! you should be very proud
balancing **** not the best class to misspell in 🤣
Hi sarah my brother was suppost to get into an apprenticeship too and his was delayed until 2021 so that is awesome that yours got moving foward
What kind of apprenticeship? That’s very cool!
I’m at my laptop, finally…. you guys have an amazing beat established here. Please keep it up!!!
Seriously, I’m down to give everyone in the class an ‘A’…. BUT YOU NEED TO GIVE ME A REASON!!!!
For tonight’s page….. Love your writing. That’s one way to get “better”.
would anyone like to share thoughts and/or examples of the end of the book ? if not , i can start it off 🙂
great question gwen, “My mind is a never-ending series of shame spirals.” (pg. 501) This quote spoke to me a lot about how negative thinking she is and why she has so much anxiety and stress when it comes to almost anything in her life. Honestly I find it a little sad
Good job Finn!
Yes! Sad. And when you look back into her life, which we just know 001%, the way her daddy treated her it all makes sense. But look at her now. Honestly, I am proud of her
YES!
My day today consisted of research.,. more research, getting in a 4-mile run, and being a dad. Then writing, blogging, business. You want to get the grades you want, learn to be TIRELESS.
I loved how the book closed. Much more understanding of the author…
“And I don’t wanna talk face-to-face, either—that might even be worse.” (pg. 493) I think this quote is just one of many that show so much of who she really is as a person and I would say I loved it too
I completely agree with you Mike! The way of how she finishes the book shows even more her personality and how she feels insecure or what her anxiety makes her feels. At the same time she appears so fearless and careless about people opinion, on the last chapter she kinda showed the ”dark side of the moon” by saying how she makes up situations that would cause peoples reaction.
One thing on this chapter that I highlighted was “Never again will I be with someone who is unwilling to accept me as I am, or who has any desire to mold me into something that makes me uncomfortable”. (p264)
The ending of the book was honestly kind of abrupt and felt forced. for example the final words in the novel is the title of the book which honestly felt shoe horned in and forced at that. but it fits in with Irbys narrative of being a blogger and not a writer but the finishing a book with the title doesn’t work. and especially if you title the same chapter the title and the last lines the title it feels even more forced. besides that i feel that overall the book was solid despite its flaws. I wouldn’t recommend it to people myself however i definitely see the appeal of it.
Did you at least get anything out of it?
now that you say that and i reread a little bit of the last chapter, you could be right….but at the same time majority of it felt pretty similar to the irby we’ve been reading. so i don’t know. half and half maybe
Irby ended keeping it real, telling us she is far from perfect by telling how she need overdraft protection or how she look like a trash panda. The way she ended with we are never meeting in real life was amazing to come and tie it up. Beautiful ending
Explain…
Hi had a good day today, my gf and I are staying at her dads he’s doing better now thankfully. We just have been doing homework all day and playing overwatch.
sounds like fun Adrian
I feel like the end of the book wasn’t really an ending if that makes sense. I felt as if we were just reading another chapter of her many stories and then it was like okay … book is over. Don’t get me wrong I still liked it and felt like all the stories complimented one another in how they were organized. We also kept digging deeper and deeper to see what kind of person and author Irby is.
I totally agree. The ending felt like just an ending of an essay rather than an ending to a story.
Maybe that was the intention
What do you think it was?
I think the last chapter summed up who she is and was a good closer for HER book. It kind of explains why she is the way she is and justifies why she’s alway so “negative”
I would agree. it feels like her experiences in the end wrap up the emotion throughout
yeah I agree, I was refreshed to see her thanking people who helped her
yeah i also think it was great how she said that she finally has people that are helping her get out of that mindset I think for her she thought that way for so long that it almost became normal, to me I think she is trying to say; go out and enjoy your life and try not to make the mistakes she made… let me know if someone else got that too?
yes, it was refreshing to see her thought process sort of shift from the rest of the book. her being thankful and thoughtful as opposed to sad or angry
Yes!!! Much more of a rounded perception toward the end. She definitely spoke to her readers…
Agreed, and I personally have taken that advice because I see her before she had those people and I see myself doing the same habits that are holding me back and held her back as well. I don’t always want to be scared to ask for help or no go out just to avoid people and I think ready her experiences, I’ve learned that more.
Yes Finn I got the same thing
Holding Henry again. I’m in the stands. Have fun… I’ll be watching, but not watching to judge…. watching to learn!
I liked how Irby ended the book instead of putting people down or stereotyping them she thanked her inner circle of supporters and I found this refreshing. It wrapped up the book nicely with some postivity and a joke about being lazy, which couldn’t be more her.
refreshing is a word i was looking for 🙂 you put that really well
Agreed… well put.
yes, you said it wonderfuly I totally agree It’s ironic that Irby now has all this support and she doesn’t know what to do with it a little.
My internet isn’t working today , please don’t rush me ….
Who’s rushing you?
I couldn’t help, but feel a little bit sad with the ending of the book. It was very fitting for her and I like how she made a direct reference to the title and tied it in to how she felt she was able to be so candid and real in her essays, because we are all strangers and how can the essays come back to haunt her if she never meets anyone who has read them. However, I was sad that it was over. It really hit me that I had enjoyed hearing so much about her and her life and that with the ending of the “book” it felt like a door was being shut in my face and I was being closed out of her life.
Examples?
She lists a series of questions in her closing paragraph questioning how people will see her because her “mind is a never-ending series of shame spirals”. I interpreted this section of very vulnerable situations like “Are the chairs sturdy at the restaurant? I better look the place up on google images. If they don’t look sturdy, how do I tactfully suggest someplace else? OMG, remember that time I broke a chair?…” as her baring her soul. Talking about things that most of us, even her, find uncomfortable, but she’s okay with doing it because “We are never meeting in real life.”
I think she kind of wanted it that way because she wanted you to know all the past of her life but like you said these are stories that she shared that she doesn’t want to meet us in real life because of how haunting it might make her if you try to bring it up. Do you think you needed to hear more to know everything about her?
I have the pages she offered in this book, which at least gave me a pretty appreciative pour of her life.
I think that is the point. The feeling of having a door shut in your face. I don’t want to say that is a marketing thing but indirectly it is. So you can look for more of her work. I felt the same way and after I finished the book I started following on her instagram which she reads some essays
http://FTP….. The ending is always the most challenging part to write. An essay, story, book. ANYTHING.
True. I hate writing concluding paragraphs. Like everything I needed to say was in the paragraphs above. It’s hard to not be repetitive in a concluding peace.
Yes. It can be done, of course, but requires a bit more measure.
piece *
i think starting an essay is the hardest part for me
but once you get a good idea and it starts to flow it’s kind of cakework
True that. For some, yes. Everyone’s different Gwen!!! 🙂 Especially with writing.
http://FTP….. For the essay coming up on Irby… be free. Have an opinion, and SUPPORT IT.
The ending is what gave me the reassurance she is the same person throughout the book despite having wishes to be someone else most of the time. One line that got me was “I don’t really feel alive unless I’m actively wishing I was dead.” I think this line sums up how she used to feel embarrassed often to the point it would be how she got attention until the blog came along. Irby within a bar setting always getting asked about who she’s with adds the realism of constant failure and turning that into material instead of sulking about it. Another part of the last chapter I liked is when she talked about never disrespecting waiters or making small talk with children’s. To put in medium effort in life is how she comes off to me as to not overdo it but don’t just lay around all day.
EXAMPLES!!!!!!
For me, it’s all about “Feelings Are A Mistake”… On so many levels.
Oh yes I loved that quote too, “Forget figuring out how many dates until it’s appropriate to have sex—I want to know how many we have to get through before it’s acceptable to stop.” (pg. 491) I think this summed up almost every single relationship she had other than mavis… feelings do really seem like a mistake after hearing all of Irby’s love stories.
Finn… you’re killing it tonight. Yes, I agree. Feelings, and a lens into her thoughts.
Do you think that she is trying to say that she has messed up all her feelings with people who didn’t deserve them and for us to be very weary of who we let into our inner cirlce, or is that just me?
I think she’s urging us to have attention on self before the “circle”.
I think she wants us to know ourselves and be clear with that before we let people into our inner circle. Even though she describes a good relationship with Mavis I kept asking myself how two so different people got along like that? How and why their relationship finish?
You?
I get strength and fear from her….
I get uncomfortable, Independence, and fear as well
I agree. Although with all her strength comes insecurity
I get self awareness, independence and insecurity
http://FTP…. Just honestly react to Irby. Mirror her energy. And, that of any author you read.
She’s recommending we know our own self and what we want before considering those around us…
I think thats important for everyone. You cant help others until you help yourself
so true, I feel guilty doing it sometimes though
Thank you, tonight page will just be things that make me happy. Again thank you
Cheers Abie… Enjoy your night, and your writing.
http://FTP…. Form an idea on Irby that YOU want to build. forget MY prompts and instruction. Have an impassioned and professional opinion and develop it! Pretend it’s a paper you’re going to read to an audience.
I think I am going to write about the happiness and sadness in consistency or routine…
I like that. It’s all perception though, no?
maybe. positive perception takes practice though, worth it though ! will change your life
Very true. Well put, Gwen!!
Yeah it really is because some come to resent the same acitivity, and others get obssessed with it and are able to flourish when almost everything in their life is consistent. For example Irby is completely obesessed with consistency, she loves to go to work for 12 hours almost every day, coming home to her small “one room” apartment, and is able to watch her T.V. and feed her cat before passing out at 9 and doing the same thing all over again. I think that constant purpose is what has given Irby the most enjoyable life and we can at least take something from that even if you don’t agree
I think Irby is someone who hates the future and hates life. on my hand I love life and am always looking in the future and I think this difference between us made me have a lot more of a complex understanding of her stories and her as a person.
I think I’ll try something similar. Even through consistency and routine help maintain balance it get get monotonous and stale taking some joys out of life.
http://FTP….. Complaining is NOT Composition. So what is? YOU…. realizing and bringing to page-life your thoughts and reactions.
On my page is, Have an opinion and support it well but not blindly leave room for growth
http://FTP….. Stay in the chair. Telling yourself over and over how much work it is will NOT get you to your There.
With my journal I’m going to work on being less vague with more specific details. I think that putting in more detail will be better to read back later and maybe make it easier to remember things more clearly. I’ve learned that the fundamental things you change in you writing can change you how you view the world as a whole.
For tonight’s page: the similarities and differences between me and mrs Irby and how it reflects our relationship. Being understanding and respectful
Thank you everyone! Hope you guys have a lovely evening and a great weekend 🙂
thank debora! you as well 🙂 and the rest of the class !