While studying for the exam, I was reading over the pages assigned and came across the parts where Edwards was giving his environmental views. Basically, he stated that we are part of the earth, and the earth does not belong to us. We should take care of it in order to be virtuous and ethical people. It was pretty good views of early environmentalism, and while I might not agree 100%, it's understandable.
If the greenies of today acted more tranquil perhaps I wouldn't consider them such laughing stocks. But instead a lot of them act like a bunch of loonies forcing us to adhere to a lot of their junk sciences. Hell, I've watched a documentary with the co-founder of Green Peace admitting to having to leave the organization, which he helped started, because a lot of the old commies started jumping to environmental causes with a reverent fever. Their disrespect for private property rights shines right through, and I hate to break it to them, but this land isn't your land, so quit hammering your hammer hippies (horrid pun to old stupid folk songs intended). When I see these greenies, all I see are a bunch of a lazy college kids with nothing else better to do but whine about some cause in a effort to "change the world". Thy go about it with hatred, and hell if something like a fact gets in there way. I could go on, but lets just say I have zero respect for the smelly white boy in dreads holding a sign that says "We belong to the Earth, the Earth doesn't belong to the evil Bush administration!!!" (insert peace symbol here).
What happened to the days of more tranquil environmentalism? Was it that people just had better things to do back then, or perhaps there brains weren't liquidized by the crappy media and overtly liberal college professors? I could get into the whole 17th century environmental movement, or at the very least understand it and even listen to it, but todays greenies, well, I think I've said enough already.
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Chap. 10-Landscapes of the Sacred, Laura Boleyn
Chapter 10 was an interesting chapter on placelessness and the function of imagination on understanding spirituality and landscape. After class discussion, reading and thought, placelessness can be described as not having a place or, not having a home or place of belonging. In Christian spirituality, placelessness can be described as what is ultimately real is not concrete, transcendent of the senses. Instead of concrete, it is abstract, which is something that cannot be touched or felt, for example a thought. As we learned in class, one example is the number two. The number two is a symbol or an abstraction. As an abstraction and a symbol, the number two cannot be found in nature.
Another are of the chapter is the place of imagination in spirituality and landscape. This area was also touched upon in Making Nature Sacred. It requires imagination, thought and care to find a place where the connection to God can be felt and where it seems that God has effected, or “stirred,” a given area. As the book says, “the call of a particular place evoking the spirit of abandonment.” The tranquility and spirit of a place can have the feeling of this spirit of abandonment to “call a life of abandonment to God.”
Another are of the chapter is the place of imagination in spirituality and landscape. This area was also touched upon in Making Nature Sacred. It requires imagination, thought and care to find a place where the connection to God can be felt and where it seems that God has effected, or “stirred,” a given area. As the book says, “the call of a particular place evoking the spirit of abandonment.” The tranquility and spirit of a place can have the feeling of this spirit of abandonment to “call a life of abandonment to God.”
Chap. 9-Landscapes of the Sacred, Laura Boleyn
Chapter 9 was a rather confusing one but after class discussion I have a better grasp of the some of its topics, especially “double intentionality.” In class, we learned it to be “the aboutness of something.” In other words, nature symbols have two meanings, the literal definition, what it actually is, and a hidden meaning or a “deeper, analogical meaning,” that is what it symbolizes. One unnatural example is a stoplight. It is about something and is indicating to you to stop but it is also just a stoplight. Another example of double intentionality, but this time a natural symbol, is used in the phrase, “Life is a river.” First, the literal, obvious meaning being that the river is a flowing body of water through a channel and the second analogical, deeper meaning that rivers can be a natural symbol for life. Like a river, life is always changing direction and paths and it is not always smooth, but instead has bends and turns that make living difficult some times. These examples we learned in class really help to understand the idea of double intentionality and chapter 9. I understand double intentionality, in terms of the chapter, to be a natural symbol that has tow meanings: a literal, obvious meaning and a deeper, analogical meaning, as described on page 231.
Making Nature Sacred, Lindsey Ceniviva
While analyzing our text, the topic of freedom arose. The fact that humans lack a lot of freedoms was discussed. I was taken aback by this discussion topic and had to let it sink it at first. How could our freedom possibly be limited considering all of our natural rights? How could I lack a sense of liberty, especially being an American? Then it was mentioned that we do not even get to choose our own name. It had never occurred to me how something so valuable to each person in this world is chosen for us by our parents. Our name represents our identity and our entire being. I was astonished to realize how something so incredibly personal could be assigned to us before we have even become ourselves. In high school there were two other Lindseys in my grade, but we all spelled it differently so I had never shared a name with anyone. Then I walked into cheerleading tryouts at CNU and heard someone yell, “Lindsey!” and it was not to me. She even spells it the same way! That is when I realized that I would have to share my identity with someone, not just anyone, but someone else on the same exact team as me. After a while I learned that it was not my identity that I had to sacrifice and share with someone, just some arrangement of letters! This discussion also made me realize how many decisions are made for us while we are young and growing up. Even though this seems restricting I am sure it is for the best. Those making the limitations just have everyone’s best interests in mind!
Making Nature Sacred, Lindsey Ceniviva
In this book, the topic of filtered experience is discussed. What does it mean to have a filtered experience? I first thought that it would mean an experience that has been restricted by an outside force, such as your school, or your parents. However, in this text it is explained as an experience that one has no prior knowledge of whatsoever. It is an even that you have never heard of anyone attempting before that is completely new. This type of experience sounds much more appealing than my initial thought. One example we discussed in class, was the journey of the man in Into the Wild. He had heard of someone traveling to
Megan Howard's student choice blog
Student Choice #3
The class discussion on December 2, 2007 about double intentionality was a very difficult concept for me to grasp. I like to interpret things as they are, not what they can be. The ambiguity of the idea was more than what I was used to discussing in a class. Once I understood that you have to see the world in symbols I began to grasp the concept more. “We make sense of the world through this symbol making” is the key idea behind double intentionality. Like a mask which reveals and conceals, double intentionality is the aboutness of 2 things. Double intentionality is perhaps one of the most creative concepts that I have learned in my first semester of college. It is not just about a philosophy in Wilderness as a Sacred Place but a lifestyle view of interpreting things in multiple ways and not just what they appear to be.
Everything has the potential to have double intentionality such as a river. A river can be seen as a symbol of anything that is long and changing and evolving or a river can be seen as just that, a river. Double intentionality allows us to branch out of the typical boundaries of how to view things.
The class discussion on December 2, 2007 about double intentionality was a very difficult concept for me to grasp. I like to interpret things as they are, not what they can be. The ambiguity of the idea was more than what I was used to discussing in a class. Once I understood that you have to see the world in symbols I began to grasp the concept more. “We make sense of the world through this symbol making” is the key idea behind double intentionality. Like a mask which reveals and conceals, double intentionality is the aboutness of 2 things. Double intentionality is perhaps one of the most creative concepts that I have learned in my first semester of college. It is not just about a philosophy in Wilderness as a Sacred Place but a lifestyle view of interpreting things in multiple ways and not just what they appear to be.
Everything has the potential to have double intentionality such as a river. A river can be seen as a symbol of anything that is long and changing and evolving or a river can be seen as just that, a river. Double intentionality allows us to branch out of the typical boundaries of how to view things.
Martin Konkel - I have too many cars
Last one of my choice (I think).
I am 21, and I have 4 cars. Why the hell do I have 4 cars I do not know, but most people find it interesting.
First is the 79' Malibu which my mom bought brand new and kept it around. I got it when I was 16, a few later I took the engine out and made it faster, and today it sits in the garage and collects dust. I hardly even drive the thing, partly because I'm lucky to get 10mpg, and second well, because, I don't have too. So my best car, my most favorite car, I do not even drive but once a week at the very best. Most people can't comprehend owning a car that doesn't even get driven, and until you've been there, I can't explain it.
The next thing I have is a little Pt Cruiser. My grandma is rich and needed to get rid of some money or the government was going to take it away, so she gave us grandkids (I'm the only one below the age of 30) money to go get a car. It was the best, most practical and nicest car I could find for the money. Actually, I got a killer deal on it, and it can't be beat for taking on trips.
Then there is the 1983 Jeep CJ7, which I bought in my first year of Community of College. I paid $1,500 for that wreck, and a few years later I've spent twice that and countless hours performing a rolling restoration on it. I've made a lot of progress on it, and recently it's been to the Outer Banks twice and central Virginia three times. It got my dad to his house when everybody else was stuck because of the flood, and it's gotten me around back ups by driving through ditches. It doesn't have A/C, it's pretty slow, it handles like crap, it's noisy, drafty, the heat barely works, but I love it. Simple as simple, old, I can hose out the interior, there is hardly any plastic on that thing, and despite getting wheels off the ground, driving it through floods, pulling a tree or two out of the ground, the thing just keeps on going!! Ok, so sometimes it breaks, but it's nothing that some time and cash can't solve.
Then I bought a truck, not just any truck, but a giant 71' Chevy C30 1-ton flat bed truck. It's huge, old, gets about 3-4mpg, and I've painted it flat black with a skull on the hood. This I actually picked up for cheap and plan to sell this spring after I get the body work squared away.
Also, my grandma has a 1975 Corvette sitting in her garage at WV thats going to be mine. When I go up there to visits I set my PT Cruiser aside and use the Vette. It's not extremely fast, and my Malibu would leave it behind, but it's a absolutely beautiful car the drives nice and nothing beats cruising those back country roads in it. It's a beautiful old Corvette, enough said already.
So I kind of have 5 cars, even though I really only have 4 technically. Why do I own 4 cars?? Because I can, or I'm a bit off in the head...... most people think the later, but every now and then I meet somebody who understands me, like the guy I worked with how had 14 cars; ok, he was on a whole new level of insaneness, but still. And alright, the old ones break now and then, and I always have something to do on at least two of them. However, nothing beats getting them out and just going for a drive, espicially after standing at the end of the driveway and pondering for ten minutes which one I want to take. Crazy?? Perhaps, but I love every minute of it, and you can damn well bet this is only the start to a long life of car craziness.
I am 21, and I have 4 cars. Why the hell do I have 4 cars I do not know, but most people find it interesting.
First is the 79' Malibu which my mom bought brand new and kept it around. I got it when I was 16, a few later I took the engine out and made it faster, and today it sits in the garage and collects dust. I hardly even drive the thing, partly because I'm lucky to get 10mpg, and second well, because, I don't have too. So my best car, my most favorite car, I do not even drive but once a week at the very best. Most people can't comprehend owning a car that doesn't even get driven, and until you've been there, I can't explain it.
The next thing I have is a little Pt Cruiser. My grandma is rich and needed to get rid of some money or the government was going to take it away, so she gave us grandkids (I'm the only one below the age of 30) money to go get a car. It was the best, most practical and nicest car I could find for the money. Actually, I got a killer deal on it, and it can't be beat for taking on trips.
Then there is the 1983 Jeep CJ7, which I bought in my first year of Community of College. I paid $1,500 for that wreck, and a few years later I've spent twice that and countless hours performing a rolling restoration on it. I've made a lot of progress on it, and recently it's been to the Outer Banks twice and central Virginia three times. It got my dad to his house when everybody else was stuck because of the flood, and it's gotten me around back ups by driving through ditches. It doesn't have A/C, it's pretty slow, it handles like crap, it's noisy, drafty, the heat barely works, but I love it. Simple as simple, old, I can hose out the interior, there is hardly any plastic on that thing, and despite getting wheels off the ground, driving it through floods, pulling a tree or two out of the ground, the thing just keeps on going!! Ok, so sometimes it breaks, but it's nothing that some time and cash can't solve.
Then I bought a truck, not just any truck, but a giant 71' Chevy C30 1-ton flat bed truck. It's huge, old, gets about 3-4mpg, and I've painted it flat black with a skull on the hood. This I actually picked up for cheap and plan to sell this spring after I get the body work squared away.
Also, my grandma has a 1975 Corvette sitting in her garage at WV thats going to be mine. When I go up there to visits I set my PT Cruiser aside and use the Vette. It's not extremely fast, and my Malibu would leave it behind, but it's a absolutely beautiful car the drives nice and nothing beats cruising those back country roads in it. It's a beautiful old Corvette, enough said already.
So I kind of have 5 cars, even though I really only have 4 technically. Why do I own 4 cars?? Because I can, or I'm a bit off in the head...... most people think the later, but every now and then I meet somebody who understands me, like the guy I worked with how had 14 cars; ok, he was on a whole new level of insaneness, but still. And alright, the old ones break now and then, and I always have something to do on at least two of them. However, nothing beats getting them out and just going for a drive, espicially after standing at the end of the driveway and pondering for ten minutes which one I want to take. Crazy?? Perhaps, but I love every minute of it, and you can damn well bet this is only the start to a long life of car craziness.
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