End of Semester Reflections

What insights have you gained about poetry?

One thing that I have learned about poetry from this course is that there are many different forms and ways to present poetry. When I started this course I had only seen the traditional written poetry but from this course I learned that there are many different types of poetry. For example spoken poetry, sign language poetry, and digital poetry.

Do you think the essay writing workshops were helpful?

Yes I found the essay writing workshops helpful. They helped be have a better understanding of the piece of writing that we were looking at. I gained a better understanding of the main message of the piece of writing and different techniques the writer used to help get across that message. I found the workshops really helped me when it came time to write my essay. After the workshop I had a general idea of what I was going to write about and what examples from the piece of writing that I was going to use in my essay.

How to Long Jump

In track and field there are many different events you can participate in. There are the track events where you run and the field events where you jump and throw. I'm going to explain how to long jump. There are many different techniques for long jump. I'm going to explain the most simple technique.

A few important points to know first. All long jump is, is basically just running down the run way and jumping into the sand pit. The only important rule is that you can not touch the fault board. There is a white take off board and a fault board just after the take off board. The ideal place to take off would be on the white take off board. If you touch the fault board the jump is no good and will not count. In the picture below on the left is an official showing the athlete where he took off and how much he was over onto the fault board. The picture on the right is of a take off board and fault board. The take off board is white and the fault board is black. Fault boards vary in colour.

• The run up and take off placement- One of the most important things for long jump is your run up. It is the base of your jump. Having a good run up is crucial for a good jump. The length of a run up will vary between people. It depends on how long it takes someone to get up to their top speed. The main point of a run up is to get up to your top speed and be able to take off the white take off board. To get your run up you would face your back to the sand pit and put the heel of your take off foot in the middle of the take off board. You would then have to run as fast as you can while having someone watch where your foot lands on the number of steps your want for your run up. For example if you wanted your run up to be 8 rights (16 strides in total) you would have someone watch you as you run and show you the place on the run way where your 8th right stride was and that is the place where you would start from every time when you are to take a jump. But this spot can move depending on where you are taking off. For example if you are taking off on or over the fault board you would have too move your starting spot back. If you are taking off way behind the take off board you would need to move your run up ahead closer to the sand pit. Say if you were taking off one shoe length behind the take off board you would move the starting spot of your run up ahead one shoe length. Taking off of the take off board ensures you are getting the most distance on your jump because when they measure your jump the measure it at the edge of the take off board just before the fault board. They do not measure from where you took off. It is also important to keep your run up speed consistent so every time you are hitting the take off board at the same spot. The picture below on the left is an example of a jump that would be considered a fault. The jumpers foot is over on the fault board so it would not count. The picture below on the right shows the ideal place where you would want to take off. This jump would count.
  
  
  
  
• Take off- As your take off foot strikes the take off board you want to drive the other knee into the air around a 45-90 degree angle.  This helps to drive your body forward and up. You should also drive your arm forward. For example if you are taking off your right foot you would drive your left knee through and and punch through with your right arm.  

• Air position- After you take off and are in the air you want to hold the position you took off in until you are at the peak of your jump. As you reach the peak of your jump you want to transfer into the pike position. Bringing your other leg forward and stretching out as far as you can and keeping your body close to your legs and having your arms in the front then pushing them to the back to try and drive yourself forward as much as you can. Hold this position until you reach the sand. 

 

• Landing- As you approach the sand you want to hold the pike position with your arms pushed back to ensure you get as far as you can and are still moving in a forward motion. When they measure your jump they measure from the mark in the sand you make thats closest to the take off board. So it is very important that you fall forward and not backwards because then you would be giving away a lot of distance. Another way to land would be to kick your feet out as they touch the sand so then you end up landing on your butt but are not giving away any distance because since you kick your feet out your but lands in the place where your feet first contacted the sand. 
  

Below is a picture of a jump from the take off to the landing. 

Week 11- Meme

Quotes

1) "Family isn't always blood. It's the people in your life who want you in theirs; the ones who accept you for who you are. The ones who would do anything to see you smile and who love you no matter what." - Unknown

I choose to share this quote because I agree 100% about what it says and means. Throughout my life I have met many wonderful people that mean a lot to me and have had a impact on my life. I have been figure skating since I was 4 and have grown up with the people at the rink. They are like my second family. Everyone is so close and we would do anything for each other. A group of 20 of us went to Florida 2 years ago for a week of training and it was defiantly the best trip of my life. Mostly because we all grew so much closer and created life lasting memories.

2) "The moment when you're ready to quit is usually the moment right before a miracle happens."- Unknown

I believe in this quote because i've had an experience like that described in the quote. A few years ago I had the worst competition of my life and had never done so bad before. I was defiantly frustrated and ready to quit. I couldn't understand why it had happened and what I was doing wrong. Practices were going well but when it came time to compete nothing worked. It felt as if all my training was going to waste. Although I wanted to quit there was something that told me to keep going and to not give up. I went back to practice and trained even harder and the next competition I ended up achieving a seasons best and personal best. I couldn't ask for anything more. I went from the worst competition of my life to the best.

3) You miss 100% of the shots you don't take."- Wayne Gretzky

Being involved in sports my whole life I can defiantly relate to this quote. Every opportunity you are given you need to take. You have to always go for it and don't hold back. Give it your everything and if you try and do not succeed at least you can say you tried. You are never going to succeed if you don't try. Take risks and live with no regret.

Flash Fiction analysis

Analysis of "The Flame" by Adam Drake

I feel that the theme of the story is that love is blind and fragile. The female speaker in the story talks about how she wishes she had someone that truly loved her and appreciates every little detail of her. She broke up with her boyfriend Mike the day after Valentines day to be with the male speaker in the story because she saw the card that he had wrote for his girlfriend Jenny and immediately knew then that she wanted to be with someone like him. She was touched by the card and the feelings that he expressed for Jenny. When the male speaker and his girlfriend Jenny broke up she stepped in and got with him. When the female speaker in the story tells the male speaker why she fell in love with him he tells her that he wasn't the one who wrote that card and that it was actually Mike. In the story it says "A single tear crawled down her cheek". The female speaker realized that she broke up with the person that she truly wanted to be with. She wanted to be with the person who wrote the card which she thought was the male speaker in the story but it was actually Mike who she broke up with. The theme that love is blind is evident here.

The diminishing candle flame in the story is a symbol for the relationship of the speaker's in the story. The candle flame is burning out and so is their relationship. In the quote "A single tear crawled down her cheek as the flame died leaving only a trail of smoke and the smell soot." she is realizing that the relationship is over just as the candle flame burns out. When the flame goes out so does the relationship.

http://www.shortbreadstories.co.uk/story/view/the_flame/ 

Open Letter

Dear Government of Newfoundland and Labrador,

I would like to bring to attention the lack of indoor training facilities for track and field in Newfoundland and Labrador. Newfoundland does not have a indoor facility where track and field athletes can train year round. There's the field house but we often get yelled at for "running too fast" and we are also not allowed to wear our spikes because it will "tear up the track". Although training for running is hard in the winter it is also the smallest of our problems. Long jumpers and triple jumpers have no where to train in the winter. There is no indoor jumping pits in this province. There used to be one in the field house but it is no longer there. It got replaced by a weight room and even when it was there we were not allowed to use it. It is extremely hard to compete and keep up with others across the country when they have access to training facilities year round and we don't. There is defiantly potential for athletes in Newfoundland to do well at National meets. One of Newfoundlands two medals at the past Canada Summer Games came from track and field. There was also a few athletes who made A finals and were competing for medals. Newfoundland had a excellent showing at this past Canada Games so imagine how much better be could do if we had a facility where we could train year round.

After reading this I hope you take into consideration of building a facility in this province for track and field athletes to train year round. This would help us reach our full potential and achieve our goals.

Nicole

In The News

Food of Champions

What's the secret to achieving a Olympic gold medal? What makes some athletes stand above others? One would think it is some sort of super food thats only available to the very best athletes but you are strongly mistaken. It's not some sort of super protein shake or anything like that. It's actually probably not too far away from you right now. Just look out you window and walk towards the golden arches. You are now on your way to achieving success. Yes thats right McDonalds. More specifically McNuggets. A six pack of McNuggets is all you need. Want to run faster? Jump higher? Hit harder? Just eat some McNuggets. Loaded with lots of special ingredients they will defiantly do the trick. No wonder why McDonalds is a major Olympic sponsor. Some of the best athletes have achieved their goals with the help of McNuggets. Jamaican sprinter Usain Bold set his 100m world record after eating some McNuggets. This is solid proof that they will help enhance your athletic performance. 

Creative -- Spatial Poetry

The Sun

Review

The movie i've chosen to review is called "The Impossible".  This movie is written by Sergio G. Sánchez and María Belón. It's directed by J. A. Bayona and stars Naomi Watts (Maria), Ewan McGregor (Henry), Tom Holland (Lucas), Samuel Joslin (Thomas), and Oaklee Pendergast (Simon). This movie is based on the true story of a Family's experiences when they encountered the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. It seemed like a perfect trip to Thailand for the Christmas holiday's until the tsunami hit.  Maria (Naomi Watts) and her eldest son Henry (Tom Holland) are swept away alone as Henry (Ewan McGregor) and the other two boys are swept away together. It becomes a story of survival and hope. This is a very powerful and emotional movie. Aside from telling the story of the family it also opens up your eyes to how great of a impact these disasters can cause. It makes you realize how lucky you are to be living in a safe place and that you shouldn't take anything for granted. This movie was nominated for numerous awards and also won a few. I really enjoyed this movie and would defiantly recommend it to others.

Image Expressive

Photo 1: Canada Games

This is a photo from the closing ceremonies at Canada Games this past summer. It was an amazing experience that i will never forget. It was like a huge celebration with lots of fireworks and entertainment. I'm actually sitting on someones shoulders when I took this picture. I'm fairly short so it would have been hard to take a picture just standing on the ground. The whole week I spent at Canada Games was very enjoyable and this was a great way to end it. 

Photo 2: Boots

This is my dog boots. He's a dachshund that loves the sun as you can tell in this picture. Whenever it's sunny he always wants to go lay outside. He is 6 years old and will turn 7 later this year. I decided to share this photo because he means a lot to me. He is my first dog and is almost always by my side. Whenever I try to take pictures of him he always seems to pose to me so it's not hard to get a good picture of him. I have many pictures of him but this is one of my favourites. 

Song Analysis

I Dreamed a Dream

There was a time when men were kind
When their voices were soft
And their words inviting
There was a time when love was blind
And the world was a song
And the song was exciting
There was a time
Then it all went wrong

I dreamed a dream in time gone by
When hope was high
And life worth living
I dreamed that love would never die
I dreamed that God would be forgiving
Then I was young and unafraid
And dreams were made and used and wasted
There was no ransom to be paid
No song unsung, no wine untasted

But the tigers come at night
With their voices soft as thunder
As they tear your hope apart
As they turn your dream to shame

He slept a summer by my side
He filled my days with endless wonder
He took my childhood in his stride
But he was gone when autumn came

And still I dream he'll come to me
That we will live the years together
But there are dreams that cannot be
And there are storms we cannot weather

I had a dream my life would be
So different from this hell I'm living
So different now from what it seemed
Now life has killed the dream I dreamed.

This song starts off with two longer stanzas and all the other ones are 4 lines long. None of the stanzas repeat. They are all different although the phrase " I dreamed " and the word " dream " are used quite often. There doesn't seem to be a set rhyme scheme although a few of the words at the end of some lines rhyme. There also doesn't seem to be a set meter. 

The speaker of this song is a woman who is reflecting on a time in the past when she was happy and hopeful. She speaks about how she had dreams for the future but quickly realizes the reality of things and nothing turns out as she hoped. The tone of this song is sad. She had her dreams crushed. Throughout this song there are many different examples of poetic language. In the first verse/ stanza it says "There was a time when love was blind". This is an example of personification. Also in the first verse/ stanza there is an example of a metaphor. It says "And the world was a song".
The last stanza creates imagery. You can picture the terrible state that she is living in now from lines such as "from this hell i'm living".  The tigers that are mentioned in the third verse/stanza symbolize preying older men who seduce young women and get them pregnant and then abandon them. This symbolizes what happened in the past to the woman who's speaking. 

This song is from the movie Les Miserables and it is sung by the character Fantine. Fantine is singing about the heartbreak she suffers when all her dreams come crashing down. She has a child with a guy that seems perfect but it all changes when he leaves her and their child. The contents of this song is all about how Fantine thought the future would be wonderful but how nothing turns out as she had hoped. It is a very powerful song that expresses Fantines emotions. Everytime this song is sung the message is the same. Its very emotional and brings tears to peoples eyes quite often. I like this song because it is so strong and powerful but there is also something that i don't like. I don't like how she has completely given up on everything. The dream of a great future is only one dream. But when that doesn't turn out as she hoped she gives up on everything and this eventually leads to her death. 

Introductions

My name is Nicole Chan and i'm from St. John's Newfoundland. This is my first year attending university and i'm excited but also nervous at the same time. I'm a very active person and i'm always on the go. I have been a figure skater since I was 4 and since last year I have also started coaching. So I spend quite some time at the rink. Aside from figure skating I also do track and field. My main events are the 100m and Long Jump. I recently represented NL at the Canada Summer Games. Since i'm so active I'm always hungry. My favourite foods are potatoes, chocolate milk and bananas. I hate sunflower seeds and even the thought of them makes me sick. I'm still not quite sure what program i'm interested in pursuing in the future. I'm kinda leaning towards something sports related but i'm still not sure. I'm hoping that after I complete a few courses at MUN i'll have a better idea as to what I like. Although I don't like English I have an open mind to learn and hope to learn lots. I hope to improve my writing skills and gain a better knowledge of poetry. I'm looking forward to a great semester!