Snow

With January closing to an end, February is right around the corner.  Usually, this time is marked with an absurd amount of snow piling everywhere and making New England look like a winter wonderland.  However, Mother Nature seems to be very confused because my friends and I are able to play ultimate frisbee with shirts vs skins and still break a sweat.  Normally I would not have much of a problem with this, as sometimes the winter can be a little too extreme, but as a senior I would really appreciate a few feet of snow.  For as long as I can remember, we have had at least a couple snowdays every year, and it would be a shame if we end up getting none this year.  It would be naive to assume that we are getting minimal snow this year, since we still have all of February and March, but the forecast for the next week does not appear as though it belongs in February.  Although we do not have much snow, much of the east coast was hit hard by a historic blizzard this year, so maybe that could spread hope for the arrival of snow in Massachusetts.  This winter, would you prefer to have a lot of snow days, or a lot of days that are warm enough for you to wear shorts?

Midterms

This week, the school wrapped up its second quarter.  This part of the year is often dreaded because it is plagued by last minute tests in just about every class and then followed by the midterm.  This 1-2 punch is too overwhelming for many kids, who spend every moment of daylight preparing for their tests.  However, as a senior, I look forward to midterm week because it is another step towards graduation.  After the midterm, we will not have to take any similar tests (except the AP tests) for the rest of our high school careers.  Also, the midterm usually reminds us that we are only halfway through the school year, so it is a pleasant surprise for us to feel like we are only halfway done when in reality we only have one full quarter left of highschool.  While all of the freshmen and sophomores are dreading their midterms, I will happily take them, as they will remind me of how close I am to finishing up high school and starting off the summer.  Although my high school carreer is rounding its last corner, therer is still a lot of work to be done and I will need to make sure to keep on top of it.

James Joyce Scares Me

In English this week, we were introduced to one of the best known the Irish authors, James Joyce.  Considered to be one of the most influential writers of the early 20th century, James Joyce produced books in which just about every single word was carefully placed within the text to convey a special meaning.  Joyce's works are so impressive that semester-long college classes are based off of just one of his short stories.  At the moment, we are reading Joyce's book, Dubliners, and we have spent one class fondling the short story, Araby, but we have only read the first two paragraphs because there is so much detail to be fondled.  We have only read two paragraphs of Joyce's book, but it is already apparent that he is an exceptionally gifted author that will be remember through many years for his work.  However, before reading his works, our class looked over his love letters, which contained shockingly strange messages for one of the most renowned authors of all time.  

At no point during this blog will I quote one of Joyce's love letters, but those who have not seen them are free to look them up.  The structure of most of his lettters are of high caliber, but if you break it down and look at certain excerpts, it would be hard to believe that an author such as James Joyce had written those excerpts, as many are very sharp, vulgar or just gross.  The things that Joyce wrote about in these letters are very taboo, and it goes to show that even the greatest minds can be a bit quirky.