Temporary Liberation and Another Eulogy

As of Tuesday morning, I am free! Well, until late August that is. School should be starting again then. But until that day, I am free to read, write, draw, and many other things. Among these other things I might hopefully return to Dead Broke Farm to ride their beautiful horses. Life seems good about now.

It came to my attention that recently Ray Bradbury, the author of Fahrenheit 451 and many other brilliant books, passed away at the age of ninety-one. As saddened as I am, I think he had a very long and productive life. I'm sure he enjoyed his run. Rest in peace, sir; I love you and your work. The weird thing is, I am currently reading his novel Something Wicked This Way Comes, and was when he died. Well, he was a great writer, and I look forward to reading more of his life's work.

To Be or Not to Be...a Playwright

Ah, yes - another theatrical post! This pertains to one of my favorite things (apart from general theatre and acting): writing! I am as of yet experienced, seeing as my play readings consist of two Wildes and three Shakespeares, plus some other partial things. I have a long way to go. But as of a couple of Saturdays ago, I am taking playwriting lessons at Applause!. (Remember them?)

I realized the great usefulness that comes from selecting random magazine pictures and using them as inspiration. I need to write out the one with Queen Sadoree.... Anyhow, I'm looking forward to X number of years from now, when I hope to travel the world, fueled by my inner artician: writer, actor, artist, musician, and possibly even dancer. But primarily a writer. According to Thoreau (or was it Emerson?), life is best lived simply. That's one reason I am OK with eReaders such as my Kindle. While paper pages are preferable (ha), I think it is a necessary sacrifice as opposed to lugging around a library. I think I'd take the aforementioned Kindle, a laptop or whatever I'm writing on at the moment, a sketchpad, perhaps a bound journal, The Good Hat (my fedora), and essentials such as clothing and whatnot. Otherwise I'll travel light.

Speaking of dreams to come, it is almost eleven PM., and I have school tomorrow. But not for the rest of the week! This will be my first meat-free Thanksgiving, I think. Not that I ever cared much for poultry. I would have ham. But I look forward to cheesy potato casserole. And the dogs' expressions when they see all the people-food. And I shall write plays all the while!

Much love to you all,

Lewis M. Winter

Give More, Get Less

"Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country." - John F. Kennedy

Surprisingly, this is not a post about selfless generosity; I just like that quote. It's a post about public schools in my county and what ensues. Not the whole hell-storm - that will come sooner or later in a separate post, I should think - but the levels of education. It is said that home-schoolers learn more, which I have no reason to doubt. While I may like my school, I do not like the county a bit: it is as a solid branch in a rotten tree. The curriculum is rushed and sloppy and has more the intention of passing us than actually teaching us. What use is it to learn a bit of something and then forget it? They don't take the time to engrave things into us, only to imprint them long enough to score a test. My point is this, plain and simple:

Learning should not be for the purpose of passing, but for learning in itself.

In a way, it's like having a sign reading that it has sharp edges. Might as well not be there. I loved my World History teacher last year, Chaney (no "Mr." required, as he was pretty laid-back) - but the course itself was the entire history of the world crunched into nine weeks, so there was a week on Greek myth, a week on Chinese dynasties, one on World War II, etc. Not enough for elaboration. In English we don't fully read many books - we read excerpts and then watch the movie most of the time. Don't even get me started on science! Ugh.

I am the rare case of someone who wishes to relearn what was previously presented in forgettable ways. The Modern Scholar audio series is good for that. I wish I could have at some point experienced the benefits of a home-schooled life. Not only do I learn more and learn it in more effective ways, but I have much more free time and less necessity to encounter lower types of people (not judging by race or class, but by mental and moral values). I ride the bus with many boisterous and uneducated persons, which I blame on lack of independent reading. It drives me bonkers to see people confuse the possessive "your" with the you-are contraction. Some do it for convenience, but many are honestly that ignorant. Most kids go along with the grow-up-and-get-out philosophy. They tend to hate school. I like school in theory, but Wake County is just ridiculous. I always say, If you race through life, you'll find the finish line fast enough (death). I'm a rose-smeller and proud of it.

I continue to educate myself on the things which interest me and do me well, even though we can only take so many classes. Most are core, as they don't seem to give a damn about arts or anything that sticks.

I've been a captive of the system and I have nearly broken my bonds (that will come to a head in college, I hope), and I am learning other things.

For further reading on unschooling, I recommend my friend Kate's post: http://amateurishramblings.blogspot.com/2011/09/definition-of-unschooling.html

Bonsoir!

- Lewis

Fifty-fifty

[insert quote here]

People often ask now if I'm excited for the new school year. Sure. But eager? Well, not as eager as last time, but I suppose it will be fun. Mostly. I still have not received a list of supplies to get, which is frightening, and I despise the way they teach science in my county. I love science, just not in school. But I'll be taking English III - and I love English, in case you hadn't realized - and French I and II. French should be interesting; they probably won't actually teach us the language, more just a few snippets plus some culture and maybe history, but it ought to be fun anyhow. I'm taking the actual language on LiveMocha.

I'll get to see friends. Also unfriends - what I just now decided to call people who would be enemies but are simply not worth it. I find it better not to waste my time with scummy folk. But overall I'm going to welcome another year at Hogw--er, Cary High. It'll probably be over before I know it, seeing how fast these things go.

I need some tea, and the Chihuahua needs an oatmeal bath.

Au revoir,

Lewis

After the Crack of Dawn

I'm up rather early this morning, and have to leave for school in less than an hour. Thought I'd get an article in. But what should I say? This is what I refer to as "blogging for the sake of blogging." Nothing wrong with it, I suppose. Recently I began two new blogs, and I plan on a fourth. In Number Four, I'll blog about music. I still need to get guitar lessons, but I've been playing piano for many years (and still must improve, ha). I'm thinking to call myself Winter...is that one taken? My styles seem to be rock, epic, and relaxing. I think I can manage, no?

Here it is. The sun seems to be rising, so I'm going to post there now, but I shall hopefully return soon.

Love,

Lewis

I'm Not Applauding!

There's this acting program (I believe it is called Applause! Cary Youth Theatre), and while they put on good shows, they seem not to want anyone to see it. Sure, they probably let people come to it, if those people can actually find where the deuce it is. But once it's over, it's over: no recordings, no encores, no nothing. I did enjoy Dracula, but I would have liked to be in it another time. The problem is, they do not bring back old plays. EVER. Not only is it unjust; it is also illogical. If they only perform old, classic-novel adaptations, then they will run out eventually. And I - or someone similar - will overtake them.

Don't point at me for trying to join - I still am - for it might be fun. It has upsides. And I would not have made this post if Pam (an old friend) had not told me that Kendra (her granddaughter) tried to get in, but could not. Apparently they use the same exact actors over and over. I like Johnny Depp, but if he was in every dag-blasted movie on the planet, I'd be sickened. And I'm not harping on them for giving actors multiple opportunities. No, I'm saying that I hear they rarely use any new actors.

I have a friend at the moment who was in Dracula and, more recently, The Little Prince. I wanted to see it! This friend claimed to have told me the information, and later admitted that he put it on his Facebook and expected me to find it there. I asked if they made recordings (for they did with a non-Applause! play, Alice in Wonderland), and he said the writers don't like people watching the recordings. So.... If they call themselves writers, and writing is an art, making them "artists," then why not let anyone see their masterpiece? Not a good way to gain favor.

I am going by trustworthy sources. I have not directly spoken to these people, but that's part of the problem. It's like trying to catch smoke. I have some inside friends, who try to defend this and other groups (Honours Society, other acting places, et cetera) and do a crappy job, meaning that they say it's good, but describe it differently. I would leave them to rot if it weren't for my greatest allies being in them. Another thing is the whole "You must be homeschooled to join, 'cause they're better than everyone else" joke, which I understand parts of. But the thing is this: Honours Society is said to be full of religious nuts who don't want to be marauded by kids who have been taught about evolution. Whether I support Darwin's theory or not (I do), I'm not the one teaching it.

Sorry to blow off so much steam, but I think I need to. I love my friends to death, but I feel separated from them. That's my point: separation. If people didn't shut ourselves off from each other, then they'd be happier. I think humanity is bound for warfare until its demise. I'm not generally a downer, but it's true.

Anyhow, I need to read.

Farewell,

Lewis

Of Pirates and Ninjas

Today, my school had us dress as either pirates or ninjas. Unfortunately, I was able to do neither: I had a tricorner hat (Jack Sparrow's, to be exact), but left it at my mother's house. I saw several of each, however, and felt envy for much. I could tell the ninjas I saw were really only costumes. Figure it out.
They are both interesting subjects, yet neither have I written of. Why? I really do not know. Perhaps I have not submerged myself properly. I dearly love the Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy, and await the prequel. I don't know much about ninjas. I ought to read up on both and then create tales; I think they would do well.
I told a friend that I might try to make up by being a pirate some other time, to which he replied: "You'd get beaten up." I questioned this, and he said: "This is high school." True, this is high school. But that's the thing! We should be over our childish squabbles by now. People seem to be very ignorant that different does not equal bad--not necessarily. Sure, I acted up in elementary and middle: the former because I was a kid and the latter because I did not agree to school rules (they were baloney). But now, I'm making a mark--one that shall last into my adulthood. These years matter. All years do, but these are crucial to success from what I hear. Yet, I see kids acting like toddlers left and right. Am I just more mature than most people my age? I do like to have fun, but psychologically I like to analyze things from various angles. That is why I do not think we should have God for a Judge; He would be inclined to His own perceptions of good and evil, and those are just points of view.
The whole religion thing fascinates (and infuriates) me, but I'll save it for another post.