“I’m A True Master, You Can Check My Credentials, Cause I Choose To Use My Infinite Potential”

"... Looking over my left, shoulder, the mic still feel colder than before/quit your jazz or I hit your jaw..." - Shorty Black - 'The Lesson Pt. 1' hands down, THE best, most underrated, most talented MC the past 20 years... #blackthought #therootscrew #doyouwantmore #sunisshinning

Entry #9 - "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson

Question #1

            Were you surprised by the ending of the story? If not, at what point did you know what was going to happen? How does Jackson foreshadow the ending? Conversely, how does Jackson lure us into thinking that this is just an ordinary story with an ordinary town?

            I was very surprised by the ending, since after the first paragraph when the children gathered their stones, until about half way through the story when Mrs. Hutchison complains about her husband having picked the marked paper, as a cause of Mr. Summers not having given him enough time to make a good choice, is that any negative connotation is given to the ceremony. Author Shirley Jackson does an excellent job at luring the reader to believe this story is just an ordinary one. She draws attention to the excitement and interactions between some of the principal characters, instead of foreshadowing the ending. For instance, this is visible when Mr. Summers and Mr. Adams greeted each other with a “humorous and nervous” grin. It may also be seen during Mr. Adams and old man Warner’s conversation regarding other villages having stopped their lottery traditions, and Mr. Warner’s negative comments about it. Mr. Summers’ cool demeanor is another aspect of the story which served as a decoy for the surprising ending. Same with little Dave, who once sent to pick his paper, placed a hand on the box and laughed, and though young, his reaction told me he did associate the box with any negative activity or action he might have witnessed before. 

    Question #4

            What is the ritual of the scapegoat? In what way might Tessie be considered a scapegoat?

            By definition, a scapegoat is in the biblical sense “a goat upon whose head are symbolically placed the sins of the people.” “One who bears the blame for others; one who is the object of irrational hostility.” These definitions were found in the Merriam-Webster online dictionary.

            Following these definitions, it may be said that Tessie may be considered a scapegoat. From her introduction, it was foreshadowed that she would be subject to some sort of judgment, as she arrives late to the ceremony, those around her laugh with her, though in my opinion in a disapproving way, and finally Mr. Summers, though in a friendly manner, does scold her for having done so. After her complaining and before the ending was made obvious to me, I felt she was looking to take her husband’s place, and once I read about her reaction when she was left with the marked paper slip, I could not help but to feel that out of all members of her family, should someone be targeted and/or even punished it was Mrs. Hutchison.

  Question #7

            Are there other symbols? Why is the “black box” battered, for example?

            The black box which I believe represented the many members of families which had been used as instruments of sacrifice since the village was settled, with its worn out colors, served as a symbol of permanence and resiliency for a ritual which would perhaps never be changed, at least in that particular village. In addition to the box, there is the lottery itself, which serves in my opinion as a new beginning for the people, marking the year by it as virtual calendar, as mentioned by old man Warner who remembers that soon after the lottery, the corn would be ready to harvest.

Won this piece #canyoubelieve at a #bid for a #salvagesale @ my job; one of three is not bad. No signature though, likely local artist form somewhere outside the U.S., no problem though, still happy about the #acquisition. #PhotoToaster #localart #supportlocalartists

Too numerous to mention: #planB #reymuertoreypuesto #afaltadepan #2018 #explore #enjoylife (at La Patisserie Chouquette)

Too sad and serious to ignore. This must be stopped! #myanmar

“It’s been happening since our grandparents’ time. We haven’t had a day of peace. Every night the military would knock on our door and demand that we give them sheep or goats. The police would stop us on the way to market and arrest us for no reason. Just for being Muslim. They’d take us to the police station and make us clean the toilets. If you asked ‘why,’ you’d be beaten. On the night they came to burn our village, we barely survived. The bullets came through our walls all night. My brother was shot in the stomach. I thought any moment would be the end. At first light I put my daughter on my shoulder and started to run. There were pieces of people all over the road. Every time I passed a dead body, I would switch her to the other shoulder.” ————————————— This week I’m sharing a series of first hand accounts from Rohingya refugees. The Rohingya are a persecuted ethnic minority who have been violently evicted from Myanmar by Buddhist extremists. Over the past year, nearly 700,000 Rohingya have been driven from their homes and are now residing in refugee camps in Bangladesh. Their living conditions are already dire, and monsoon season is approaching. As we share their stories, we are raising money to help build inexpensive bamboo houses for them. (Almost all the refugees are currently living in plastic tents.) Bamboo houses can be built for $600 a piece, and we’ve raised enough for almost 300 so far. Please consider donating: http://bit.ly/2H0w5lm

Y como mañana no se trabaja... #quenoserompalanoche #raulinrosendo #salsa #dominicana #mañanaporlamañana #thanksgiving #2016

Te y un tubano de estos para cerrar. #hoyodemonterrey #lehoyodesanjuan #cubancigars #cigarros #cubanos #enjoylife #2017

Entry #3 - "A Rose for Emily" by William Faulkner

QUESTION #4

Find the paragraphs in which the narrator mainly mentions about Miss Emily’s father, and Miss Emily’s reaction towards her father’s death. Then examine the relationship between the daughter and the father?

  The relationship between Miss Emily and her father is one that probably began with much love, but certainly continued with excessive protection on the father’s part, as Miss Emily grew older, ending in solitude and insanity for both. Nothing is mentioned about Mrs. Grierson, I assume she was not present in their lives, probably passed away when the Griersons were a young family, which make sense since there aren’t any siblings in the picture either.

In addition to the sense of horror many fathers feel when thinking about giving their daughters away in marriage to another man, and the fact that they only had each other, and the “Negro” manservant in life, is enough reason for me to justify the father’s reaction to any possible interest in her daughter, as protecting and holding on to loved ones is an innate quality many share.

What to some people around town might have seemed as a pompous act, arrogance or self-importance on Mr. Grierson’s part, I believe just as others in town did, was no more than a reflection of his fears after having lost whatever thing of financial value they owned, except the house; his desire to hold on to a family name which meant less and less as years passed, living in a town where most of the big, respected families were disappearing.

I attribute Miss Emily’s reaction to her father’s death to the very facts I have stated about her father’s reasons to push all her suitors away… the realization that NOW she was on her own, and her family name was not much to count on.

My newly found #love Dulce, three month old grey Tabby. #tabby #adoptacat #adoption #petmart #PhotoToaster #cat #kitten #kitty

To good moments in the park. #saturdaynight #beer #appreciate #goodcompany #sittinginthepark #tresuredmoments #2017