extra credit- 500 days of summer

Story questions...
-Where is the story set?
 The story is set in Los Angeles, California, mainly in the greeting card company where the characters work, but also in their homes and in parks. 

-What even starts the story?
The event that starts the story is when Tom is introduced to his boss' new assistant, Summer Finn. 

-Who are the main characters?
 The main characters are:
 *Tom Hansen:  NJ-born greeting card employee and aspiring architect
 *Summer Finn:  Tom's boss' new assistant from Michigan, who is Tom's love interest

-What conflicts do they face/what is at steak?
 Tom is in love with Summer, but Summer refuses to put a label on their relationship.  This causes Tom confusion and disappointment throughout the movie.  

-What happens the characters as they face the conflict?
 Tom and Summer have many disagreements and misunderstandings throughout the story.  Their first main fight is when Tom punches a guy at a bar for trying to hit on Summer.  Summer feels pressure from Tom about labeling the relationship, and Tom gets his heart broken many times while trying to figure out where he stands with her. 

-What is the outcome of the conflict?
 In the end, Summer finally falls in love... with someone else.  After seeing Summer's ring, Tom slowly but surely moves on. 

-What is the ultimate impact on the characters?
 The ultimate impact on the Tom is that he is able to get over Summer, and meets a new girl (Autumn) at the end of the movie.  Summer is able to realize that Tom was right all along about love and destiny, she just hadn't found the right person. 


Plot questions...
-How and when is the major conflict in the story set up?
 The major conflict comes up when Summer bluntly tells Tom that she's not looking for a relationship/ boyfriend the first time they are hanging out alone. 

-How and when are the main characters introduced?
 The main characters are introduced by an omniscient narrator that reveals their lives before they meet in the greeting card office, including tidbits about their experiences with love. 

-How is the story moved along the characters must face the central conflict?
 The story moves along by showing events of Tom and Summer's 500 day relationship in random order (nonlinear).  There are many hints that Tom is not the one Summer will end up with as she mentions throughout the film that she doesn't want a boyfriend.  Tom talks to his friends about Summer's mixed signals every time a new incident occurs. 

-When is the major conflict set up to propel the film conclusion?
 The major conflict is set up when Tom sees Summer's engagement ring at her rooftop garden party.  He had expected them to get back together, but Summer had found somebody else and committed to them. 

-How and when does the film resolve most of the major conflicts set up?
 The film resolves when Tom moves on with his life after realizing he can never have Summer.  After quitting the greeting card company Tom begins looking for work as an architect, the job he had always aspired for but never went after.  One day he runs into Summer in the park that they used to go to, and gets the closure he needed when Summer says he was never the one for her.  Soon after, Tom interviews at an architecture firm and meets a new girl in the waiting room ironically named Autumn.  

The Patriot

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Susan speaks her first words before her father goes off to war. ;

graphic relations

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compositional similarities between shots

cleaning

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3 clips of cleaning in the form of washing, vacuuming, and putting laundry away. ; Accompanying sounds: lake water, wind in a cave, and money by pink floyd.

Flint 3A documentation

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Interviews of Flint 3A Hall residents about their thoughts on Flint 3A.  Interviewees (in order of appearance): Mike Escalante, Alec Vigliatura, Alison Adams, Brad Jones, and Shane De Vresse.  

narrative in footwear

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When I was little I only wore pink dresses, with frilly white shoes to match.  This lasted until i was five and i tried on my first pair of roller blades.  My mom tried putting me in soccer cleats, tap shoes, and basketball sneakers, but nothing felt right the way roller blades did... until figure skating came along.  Monday through Saturday I laced up my figure skates to practice.  In 2003 and 2004 my skates took me to Lincoln, Nebraska where i competed at nationals.  Outside of practice, doing flips on my trampoline in my socks was my favorite thing to do.  On May 15th, 2005, I had a freak accident on my trampoline and shattered the orbit of my eye.  nine days later i had 3 plates, 9 screws, 1 fake bone, and double vision.  Because I couldn’t see straight, I couldn’t skate anymore.  My dad bought me a pair of running sneakers and that summer I ran 150 miles.  In middle school I brought my sneakers to school everyday for cross country, and in high school I traded in my sneakers for track spikes.  The summer before my senior year, I worked on the boardwalk at the Jersey shore and wore flip flops everyday.  This summer, I packed up my figure skates, my socks, my sneakers, and my flip flops and headed off to ‘cuse.

Cherry rad high brittle jam

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10/14/2010

assignment 3- private to public

performance of a private act done in public

For my private-gone-public act, I talked to myself for 15 minutes in the hallway.  I mostly stood facing the wall across from the other end of my hallway, although I did walk back and forth a bit.

At first, the performance was pretty uncomfortable for me, especially because I don't talk to myself when I'm alone in the first place.  However, after a few minutes I felt more relaxed and rambled on about the weather, my classes, all the homework I have, my plans for the weekend, etc.

Only a few people walked by, but I had never met any of them before so they just gave me a weird look and kept moving.  One girl thought I was on the phone and then asked if I was ok.  When I was done I went into my friends room nearby, and her roommate asked me who I was talking to.  The walls aren't that soundproof so I'm sure a few others eavesdropped as well. 

learning projects
http://www.instructables.com/id/Build-A-Net-Gun/
http://www.instructables.com/id/Marshmallow-gun/

assignment 2- PARK(ing) day

This past Friday, September 17th, our class finally put all of our planning into action to celebrate PARK(ing) Day!  Three classes of planning went into brainstorming and preparing our parking space.  Everything from ground covering, to boundaries, to theme, and even activities were considered in making our space count.  After some debate, we decided that chalk ground covering, balloon walls, and a relaxation theme would be best.  Our class agreed to play twister and do henna for PARK(ing) Day activities, as well as leave the chalk out for fun.  The last class before the big day, we broke into smaller groups to create signs for the event, and execute the final specific plans. 

I arrived at our space in front of 135 Marshall Street at 1 o'clock, eager to see the final product of our efforts.  The parking space we had was huge!  There was a lot going on; balloons everywhere, a cardboard sculpture with signatures all over, a table for henna, several chairs, and activities like twister in the corner.  Although I was an advocate for the balloon boundaries, the balloons were actually quite annoying when I sat in the space.  The wind blew them all over so that they became tangled with each other and everything around them.  Despite how annoying they were, they did attract attention.

Most people who walked by approached me and Bridget asking what exactly is was that we were doing.  We explained PARK(ing) Day as a day to reclaim public space outside and transform the area into a miniature park.  For the most part, they still looked confused and didn't understand after the explanation as to why we were there.  A few times, cars on the street looking for a parking space would stop, and one guy flipped me off after I explained I wasn't moving.  No one was interested in the henna or twister (besides me!), but several people signed the sculpture.  My shift went fairly quickly, and overall I considered it a very successful day!

assignment 1- altered states

Altered States [Simultaneity]


To alter my senses in two simultaneous ways, I chose to watch TV while sitting upside-down and wearing sunglasses.   The sunglasses solely changed my vision by darkening what I saw.  I couldn't read faint words on the program I was watching, and the whole room was a deep shade of tan, a hue that was quite flattering on my friends in the room.

However, sitting upside-down not only flipped my vision,  but also changed my sense of smell, touch and taste due to all the blood rushing to my head.  I discovered these changes by eating a cookie while watching the show on TV.  Had I been sitting normally for the 10 minutes prior, I would have been able to smell the sweetness of the cookie, but in my state I was unable to smell anything.  Also, although I could taste a difference between the chocolate chips and the rest of the cookie, the taste was not distinctly chocolate.  Even putting the cookie up to my mouth felt different because my lips felt almost tingly, signifying a change in touch.

I was surprised by how much of a difference such minor transformations could make when doing something as common as enjoying a snack while watching TV.  The position I was sitting in definitely had a greater impact than the tint of my sunglasses, but still both changes had an effect on my experience.  I tried to use the television show as a distracting to my discomfort, but was unsuccessful.  After about 15 minutes, I was so uncomfortable (most notably my head) that I needed to take a quick break by sitting normally for a minute.  Enduring the remaining time after that was pretty rough, but experiencing everyday occurrences from such a unique perspective was worth the displeasure because the experiment really made me think about how I take advantage of my ability to use my senses the way I normally do.