MEC10/9

Hi everyone, I forgot to give you the reading assignment for next week, which consists of the Mary Oliver poems in your course packet. After next week, we will start Ecology of a Cracker Childhood by Janisse Ray, so if you have not already purchased that book, please go ahead and do so.

Further thoughts on our discussion about Annie Dillard's cat: perhaps, if we need to alter something about reality for the purposes of poetic license, or in order to make the essay flow, we should ask ourselves the question, "Would it change how the reader feels about the piece if she knew this was not exactly transpired? For example, if you knew there had been several people present in a room when the conversation was going on, but for purposes of clarity, you reduced the number to two, would the reader care? Or would she care if she found out if you "borrowed" a cat and made it your own?

What do you think?

Prompt for next week: Thinkest thou I made this in jest? Is all just one big joke? Yes? No? Do you have examples of the absurdity?

MEC 10/6

Reading for this week: Annie Dillard's "The Writing Life," and "Heaven and Earth in Jest."

There was no writing prompt last week.

BBB 10/6

Don't forget to meet in Holden Hall 73 today!

Bring the photos of the plant you have chosen to illustrate--I'll look these over and see if they will be suitable for your efforts. I will give an introduction to botanical illustration, after which we will go outside in search of plants to draw.

MEC 9/24

A further thought about the film, "Heartland": Perhaps Annick Smith believes that real drama is found in an ordinary life. What do you think?

Writing prompt: Go to the National Ranching Heritage Center and mosey around until you find a structure that "speaks" to you. What is it saying? You may respond in any you want, roughly two pages in length.

Reading for next week's discussion: Solnit's "The Blue of Distance," in your course packet.

BBB 9/20 class canceled this week

Class will be canceled for BBB this week owing to illness. We will meet a week from this Tuesday at Tech Gardens (weather permitting) and I will talk to you then about how we will make up the missed class time.

MEC 9/20 Tutorials canceled this week

Tutorials will be canceled for this week, owing to illness. We will meet on Thursday for the full three hours to watch a film related to our readings. The regular tutorial/writing schedule will resume the following week.

9/17 MEC

Homework prompt: Find a place of open space and solitude. Explore your response to it. Do you like it? Dislike it? Why? Ground your description of the place in the landscape (that is, what makes it "here" and not someplace else?)

No mp3s, no cell phones--just your notebook and a pen to write your thoughts while you are there. Then write it up as an essay response to give to your tutorial groups.

For next week's discussion, read "The Blue of Distance," by Rebecca Solnit, in your course packet.

9/15 BBB

Homework: two pages of tree doodles and one good tree.

Meet next week at the Tech garden.

9/10 MEC

Prompt: what is your view of nature?
Reading: The Solace of Open Spaces ( in your course packet)

Sent from my iPhone

Wednesday night tutorial group, basking in the glow of fun times and good food on a rainy night.

9/8 BBB homework for next week

Draw five trees. Pay attention to overall shapes, proportion, and how
the branches actually grow.

Meet at the English Philosophy courtyard next week.

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9/6 MEC Optional Assignment

Greetings, all! It has come to my attention that some of you are still unable to find a copy of Cowboys Are My Weakness, which of course makes it difficult for you to do the assignment that is due in the upcoming tutorial. So I'm going to offer you the option of responding to the original prompt or another one that is based on the discussion we had in class but doesn't require the text.

The original prompt was to choose a character in one of the short stories (of the three we've read so far) that you liked the best, analyze why they work (how does she draw the characters, why do they behave the way they do, etc.), and explain why they appeal to you personally. (EDITED to correct the prompt.)

The optional prompt (meaning that you may do this one instead) is to consider our discussion on Thursday about our responses to gender in the stories. What expectations do we have about how the different genders respond to/approach nature? How do you personally respond to it, and does your response fit the expectations? That is, we talked about the fact that many of us were surprised at both the bluntness of Pam Houston's writing and of some of her female characters' boldness in natural settings. Is this the normal expectation for women in the outdoors? How do you feel about it? Where do your assumptions come from?

Personally, I think the optional prompt is more interesting...

If you have any questions, feel free to email me or to stop by during office hours.

Cheers!

9/3 Bones, Botanicals, Birds (BBB)

Bones Botanicals Birds (BBB) will meet in Holden Hall (HH) 73 as a permanent room from now on. However, I'd like to meet next week (9/8) at Urbanovsky Park. Please have your art kits with you.

9/3 MEC

Greetings all. Remember to meet next week (9/10) in ENGL/PHIL 152.

Our reading assignment for next week is "Dall," Cowboys are my Weakness," Jackson Is Only One of My Dogs," and "A Blizzard Under Blue Sky."

For those of you who are having trouble finding the book, please let me know if you are unable to get a copy in the bookstore by Tuesday.

9/1 Wednesday night tutorial

I've sent the Wednesday night tutorial group and email noting the place we're meeting for our tutorial. If you do not receive it, please email me and I'll reply with the info.

MAJOR ALERT FOR ALL DR T CLASSES

We are being kicked out of the Admin building so that they can do some abestos abatement. This week is the last week we meet in our current classroom.

Next week, HONS 1301 (MEC) will meet in English/philosophy 152.

HONS 3304 (Bones) is scheduled to meet in MCOM 258, but there are no tables in that room, so I am going to see if we can find another. Stay tuned for updates.

HONS 1301 H03"The Mother Earth Chronicles" (MEC) (Week of 8/24-8/28))

Greetings, all! The books and course packets are in. Course packets are available at copytech.

We will be reading the following this semester:

Books:
Janisse Ray (Ecology of a Cracker Childhood)
Sue Hubble (A Country Year)
Sue Monk Kidd (The Secret Life of Bees)
Pam Houston (Cowboys Are My Weakness)

Essays and Poems (in your course packet):

Pattiann Rogers (‘Suppose Your Father Was a Redbird;” “Geocentric”)
Gretel Ehrlich (“The Solace of Open Spaces”)
Mary Oliver (Wild Geese;” In Blackwater Woods”)
Annie Dillard (“Heaven and Earth in Jest;” “Chapter Three” from The Writing Life)
Rebecca Solnit (“The Blue of Distance”)

For our first class meeting, we will be covering the syllabus, course expectations, course mechanics, and arranging tutorial groups and schedules.

ASSIGNMENT UPDATE:
Read "Suppose Your Father Was a Redbird" for next week's tutorial. Read the short stories "How to Talk to a Hunter," Selway," and "Highwater" from Cowboys are My Weakness for next Thursday's class.

Welcome back!

Congratulations to our August NHH grads, Mark Pennington and Matt McEwen:

Sorry that photo is so fuzzy. Matt took off right after the ceremony, but I managed to chase down Mark for a better shot:


And to everyone else: welcome back, people! Let's get going!