Quarter 2, Post 8: Facts are the enemy of the truth

For my blog post today I have decided to talk about a quote that I have come across while reading the book The Lace Reader, by Brunonia Barry. I like this quote a lot and I also think it fits perfectly with what is going on in the book right now.

“ ‘Facts are the enemy of the truth,’  Eva quoted Don Quixote." (page 167)

As soon as I read this line, I immediately thought how stupid it sounded to say that facts are basically not true, because they are. However, as I continued to think about it, I realized that this is not what the line is saying at all. Rather, it is saying that facts sometimes get in the way of the truth or keep one from really seeing the truth. This is very true, because I can think of many times that people just stuck with what they see instead of what they feel to make a decision. This is, however, a very naive way to look at something because it is often the things that are hidden that matter the most. For example, right now in he book Rafferty is looking at all the facts of Emma’s case and trying to connect these facts to Angela. The problem is, there is nothing that is connecting them in any way that he can see in the files. The problem is, their relationship might not be something so concrete, but have to do with the lace readings, which is certainly not factual, but more fantasy. Even though they are not reliable, I fully believe that the lace reading will be the key to finding Angela, and that fact is holding Rafferty back from thinking of this himself. I am hoping that soon he will stop holding back and search deeper in to the case to discover this.

Quarter 2, Post 7: Rafferty's Flashback

I have been continuing to read over the break and my book, The Lace Reader, is continuing to get more interesting. I am on page 155 right now and I am really enjoying the way that the plot it forming. Right now, Rafferty is continuing to try to find out more information about Angela’s past. While looking through files and records, he comes across records of the Whitney family. Suddenly he has a flashback:

Emma Boyton and Cal Boyton were married at the time Cal started to beat her. Finally one day he hit her so hard that he broke her jaw. That night he disappeared. While Emma fought for her life Cal tried to escape on a stolen boat. When he was found several days later almost dead, Eva filed for a restraining order. Through the divorce Emma received all of Yellow Dog Island. Cal became very religious after claiming to have seen “ the face of God” and lead a group of Calvinists.

… His flashback went on and on, going into detail the lives of the Whitney’s during this difficult time in their life. I am curious as to why Rafferty knows so much about their lives and how he know so much about Emma, someone he had never even met before. I am beginning to think he has some type of connections or relationship with someone or had one in the past that we don’t know about yet. I was also very shocked about the things that he remembered and wonder if it all is true. Hopefully Rafferty will clarify some of there things later in the novel.

 

Quarter 2, Post 6: Angela

This week I have read four more chapters in The Lace Reader, by Brunonia Barry, and it is starting to get a lot more interesting. I don’t have any answers to my previously asked questions yet, but I am positive that they are soon to come. Towner and Rafferty have just gone looking for a missing girl named Angela. Angela is a teenager from town that has been known to go missing every once in a while. Eva usually finds her without a problem because the two were very close, but since Eva has recently died everyone sadly goes out to find her themselves. Little do they know it wont be as easy as they think…

Everyone has just begun their search for Angela, checking all the normal spots for her to hide. They even break into her house but it is dark and empty. This is where the plot starts to get interesting. I don’t know what will happen next but Rafferty seems to be getting very discouraged. He even broke a few windows out of pure frustration. When Towner and Rafferty first went out on this trip to look for Angela, I though it might be a chance for them to “redo” their date that had been cut short and get to know each other a little better. Now I think that they both will be too occupied with the search to pay any attention to each other. I don’t know where they plan to look for Angela next or what challenges they will encounter in the next few days, but I do know that I have reached the exciting part of the book!

Quarter 2, Post 5: Towner and Rafferty

I am continuing to read The Lace Reader, by Brunonia Barry. The plot has advanced more in the past few pages than it has in the entire first part of the novel, so I thought for my blog post today I would break down everything that is happening in section two (up to page 139).

Towner is still in Salem, but plans to leave shortly until a realtor approaches her and asks her if she is planning on selling Eva’s house. Towner hadn’t really considered it until then, but decides that selling the house might be what’s best for everyone, even though she personally doesn’t want to. She immediately goes home and starts to clear Eva’s things out. This so when she realizes just how much stuff Eva kept. There were boxes and boxes of this that looked like trash to Towner, but she knew that if it was packed it must have been important to Eva, so she treated it all with care. Towner even stumbled upon some pictures of herself when she was young. Seeing herself so happy and innocent just makes her resent the accident even more, and all she can think about is Lyndley, her late sister. It is hard for her to keep remembering the past, especially since she can't “find” all of her memories because of the accident. This frustrates her so she decides to take a walk, where she runs into Rafferty again. They begin talking, and suddenly he invites her to dinner. She agrees and they leave that night on the boat to eat on a “floating restaurant”. The date is awkward and they both are feeling weird being with each other. However, what makes it even weirder for Towner is that she can feel people staring at her and hear them think about her. Suddenly, a fight breaks out and Rafferty goes to help break it up. Towner is mortified when she realizes that the fight is about her. The couple immediately leaves the restaurant. Towner thinks the date could not have gone worse, but to her surprise Rafferty asks her to do it again sometime.

I do not know what Towner and Rafferty’s relationship is going to turn into, but I do know that it has changed for good. I am also interested to see what Towner decided to do about Eva’s house. I can imagine that the decision will be a very hard one to make, and I can't wait to see what happens!

cites to use

http://www.religioustolerance.org/statbelief.htm

http://www.childwelfare.gov/systemwide/laws_policies/statutes/safehaven.cfm

Research Paper Blog #1- Annotated Bibliography

Is it ethical to abandon your child under the Safe Haven Law?

Myers, Alicia. “Alternatives to the Safe Haven Law”. 8 October 2008. KOLN/KGIN. http://www.kolnkgin.com/home/headlines/30664609.html

 

Alicia Myers is a reporter for KOLN/KGIN, a major broadcasting station in Nebraska and Northern Kansas. In this article, Myers examines the alternatives to abandoning a child because of the Safe Haven Law. Some of these substitutes are turning to family and neighbors, seeking help from community outreach programs, and even getting counseling and guidance from the state itself. She uses the expertise of Todd Landry, Director of the Division of Children and family Services Department for the State of Nebraska, to help her in this piece as well. Landry, “gives the legislature credit for trying to put a law into effect to try and protect kids from danger or being harmed.” However, he does believe that the alternatives listed above are what is best for everyone involved in most cases and encourages parents to the Safe Haven Laws as a last resort. I think that this article was intended for aggravated parents that need to make decisions about their child’s future and want to do it in a positive way. This article can help me a lot in learning other ways that frustrated parents can help their children instead of abandoning them, as well as how necessary the Safe Haven Laws really are.

 

 

 

Koch, Wendy. “Nebraska ‘Safe Haven’ Law for Kids Has Unintended Results”. 26 September 2008. USA Today. http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2008-09-25-Left-kids_N.htm

 

Wendy Koch, a writer and reporter for USA Today, discusses in this article the outcomes of Nebraska’s new Safe Haven Law. She shares the stories of the 14 children that have been abandoned since the law came into effect. Learning the reasons for some of the abandonments and the outcomes of these tragedies really has showed me the messy side of these laws. Todd Landry, Director of the Division of Children and family Services Department for the State of Nebraska, is quoted in this article as well. He says, “We really opened a can of worms,” and that now, “We have a mess.” I believe that the Safe Haven Law in Nebraska was meant to have a positive outcome, but has taken a turn for the worst. The facts in this article really show some of the negative sides to such laws and reasons that maybe these types of laws should not exist.

Quarter 2, Post 4: Towner's Past

This week I have read 7 more chapters into The Lace Reader, by Brunonia Barry. So far I like it a lot, but there hasn’t been much action yet which was something I was hoping for in this book. However, the continuous character development and further descriptions of the setting of Yellow Dog Island are keeping me interested. One thing I have been especially enjoying is the memories that Towner keeps flashing back to. We learned recently in the book that Towner was in an accident of some sort just after her sister died, and lost her long-term memory. In fact, her and her brother refer to past events as BTH (before the hospital) and ATH (after the hospital) while talking to help Towner recall things easier.

Towner’s great aunt Eva passed away at the beginning of the book, and her funeral has taken place in these past few chapters. Since all of Towner’s family attended the ceremony, we have discovered a lot about the family’s past that explains a lot about Towner and Beezer’s lives now. For example, their mother sent them to live with Eva when they were young because there wasn’t a good school where they lived, and that is why they were closer to Eva than to their own mother. We have also learned a little bit more about Lyndley, Towner’s sister that has passed away, but not enough to piece anything together into the real story of her death. I am beginning to think that this is what the book will be about. Even if its not, I am really hoping I find out more about Lyndley soon.

 

Quarter 2, Post 3: Yellow Dog Island

I have read to page 81 this week in The Lace Reader, and so much more has already happened! Towner and her brother have just taken a boat to a remote island off the coast of Salem to visit their family. Towner describes the islanders as “people who like to be left alone”. This does not surprise me because Towner’s mother lives on this island and she certainly isn’t a social person. After waiting a while for someone to notice them on the boat and pull up the dock, they climb on to the land. There are only a few buildings on the island, and Towner’s aunt comes running out of one of them. She grabs Towner and starts to cry, “I knew you’d come,” and “I told her so.” This confuses Towner and knowing that her aunt isn’t very stable, she begins to think that her aunt thinks that she is her sister, Lyndley. This is concerning because Lyndley died a few years ago. Towner begins to worry that her aunt is in worse shape then she thought, but when she calls her Towner she is relieved. Her aunt takes her to her mom and they speak to each other for the first time in years. They don’t have a huge emotional meeting like I would imagine they would, and there is a lot of tension between Towner and everyone on the island.

This section of the novel was all very strange and awkward. Even the way it was written was different and choppier than the rest of the book. I really like this part, though, because I could really feel how Towner was feeling as she met her family again and I demonstrated the day’s emotions well. I am beginning to really enjoy the way that the author, Brunonia Barry, writes, and I am starting to really get into the plot as well.                  

Quarter 2, Post 2: The Mystery of Eva

So far I have read to page 38 in The Lace Reader, and it is already very exciting. At the beginning of the novel the characters of Towner, and young woman, and Eva, her grandmother, are introduced. Beezer, Towner’s brother, is also introduced. One of the first things that happens in the novel is that Eva is reported missing from her home. Towner, in shock of this news, goes to Eva’s house to help with the investigation. As soon as she arrives, she finds Eva sitting in her house perfectly fine. Towner is confused by this, but is relieved to see her grandmother again and falls asleep for the night. However, in the morning she wakes up to a knock at the door. Her brother Beezer and two police come in and report to her that Eva’s body has been found and identified. Towner instantly goes into shock again. She runs through the house searching for her grandmother but finds nothing.

I am really enjoying this book so far, because I love mysteries and surprises in books, and I have already come across two in the first few chapters. I also love when books touch on very real and present day issues. I can already tell that this book will be about loosing someone you love and family, as well as the mystery of Eva, but there has to be more to it. Maybe Towner never saw Eva at all and Towner is the insane one. Or, maybe it will be one of those stories where she is right all along but nobody will listen to her. There is also a possibility that Towner saw Eva’s ghost! I do not even have a clue as to which one of these will happen, or if it will be something completely different that I never suspected, but I am very excited and anxious to find out!

 

Towner Whitney

For my second quarter blogging I have decided to read a novel titled “The Lace Reader” by Brunonia Barry. My mom had just finished reading it and loved it so much I decided I had to give it a try. I wasn’t completely sure if I would enjoy it when I started, but as soon as I read the first word I was hooked. So far I have read to Chapter 3, but the quote I would like to discuss for today comes from the first page. In fact, it was the very first line.

“My name is Towner Whitney. No, that’s not exactly true. My real first name is Sophya. Never believe me. I lie all the time.” Then this person (Towner? Sophya?) goes on to say, “I am a crazy woman… That last part is true.” (page 1)

As soon as I read this short passage I stopped, paused, and re-read it again. I was confused as to why the author would begin the book by confusing the reader as to what the main characters real first name is. It seemed odd to me, but as I continued to read I found that her given name is Sophya and that she legally changed it to Towner after her mother was arrested. I also learned a little bit about why she calls herself a crazy woman. Towner (as they mostly refer to her in the book, although they do go back and forth) believes that all the women in the past generations of her family have been crazy, and that she follows that “tradition” more than anyone before her had. Now that I comprehend what the first passage was conveying, I understand why Barry would start off his novel in such a way. I believe that he was introducing the main character in a way that would make you think deeper about her right away, rather than just listing off her physical appearance. Although it confused me at first, I like this opening line and I firmly believe it is what got me so intrigued in the novel in the first place. I am already enjoying the plot and cant wait to read more!

Delia vs. Myself

Delia is a very complicated character right now, and I am cringing as I read about some of the decisions she makes. However, as I start to think, I find that I probably would make some of the same decisions as Delia does if I were put in her position. However, i have also found sometimes that i completely disagree with her. This is why I thought it would be interesting to compare myself to Delia. First of all, I know that I will probably never be faced with quite as much as Delia is being faced with right now (single mom, father being tried for kidnapping, a lawyer fiancé who is trying to control her, and more), but I do know that there will come a time that I have giant problems to deal with, and I think watching Delia go through it is helping me scope out in my mind what I think I might to in a dire situation. For example, Delia’s father is put in jail and she decides not to go talk to him. Delia is fine with this, and even happy because she is so angry with him. Reading this part, I realized that I could never go with out talking to a loved one that was in trouble, not matter what they had done, because I wouldn’t be able to live with myself. Another trait that Delia has is that she always blames other people for her mistakes. When I read through those parts I thought to myself, “why are you doing this? You are just getting yourself into more trouble than you had to begin with!” Then I though about it and realized that sometimes I blame other people for thing that I have done just to get out of things, and how stupid it really is to not take responsibility for your actions, especially when it something so small. I do know that trauma can affect people in different ways, and everyone grieves differently, but watching Delia mourn the lost of the father she thought she know, I have come to find that Delia and I deal with a loss in a similar way. Having similarities and differences between myself and the main character of the book I am reading if fun, because I have learned to compare myself to the character and have learned a lot about myself from it.

A letter from "Dad"

For my blog post today, I am going to explore what I think the relationship between Delia and her father, Andrew, is like at this point in the novel. Remember, Delia has just found out that her father kidnapped her when she was young, and has been living a lie for as long as she can remember. Andrew has just been put in jail until the trial and he has not spoken with Delia since the arrest because he is not allowed to. I am not far enough into the book for me to know what Delia’s father would really want to say to his “daughter” if he ever got the chance, but this is my guess as to how a letter from him would go.

Dearest Delia,

I do not even know where to begin, but before I start, I want to beg you to read this. I know you are very angry with me but I need to know that you have heard what I have to say.

I am so sorry Delia. Pretty much all I can say at this point is that I’m sorry, and I know that you might not accept my apology but it’s all I have. I can’t take back my mistakes, but I was so young at the time and I wasn’t thinking about the consequences of my actions. I know now that I should have been. I don’t really have an explanation for what I did, I do know that I love you now and I think that now is all that matters anymore.

The police let me talk to Eric, but only Eric. I wish I could talk to you too, but I can send messages to you through him and hope that he gives them to you. If he doesn’t, I know that it is just because he loves you and is trying to protect you. If you hate me now, I understand. But I want you to know that I never meant to hurt you. I don’t know what the upcoming trial will bring, but it will probably be very hard on you, especially since your mom will not be there to help you through it. However, I do know that you are an extremely strong woman and if anyone can make it through, its you not me.

I know you may not want to, but it would mean the world to me if you wrote back.

Love, Dad

I know that some of the things said in this letter would persuade Delia to begin to forgive her father, and I’m hoping that Andrew gets a chance to say something like this to her.

Vanishing Acts

I decided to read another book called Vanishing Acts, by Jodi Picoult. In the beginning of the novel, Picoult describes the life of Delia, a single mother. Juggling her job as a police, young daughter, fiancé, and aging father keeps her busy, but her life is relatively average. That is, until police friend comes knocking on her door, asking for her father. The police handcuff Delia’s father and arrest him for kidnapping a young girl several years ago. With her father standing there being taken away for a crime, Delia manages to ask him whom he had kidnapped, but his answer is far from what she had expected. Delia’s father tells her that it was her that he had kidnapped. Just then he is dragged away, and Delia is left with nothing but questions and fear. As I read this section in the book, I couldn’t help but think about how I would react to a situation like this. Knowing that my father, the person I trust the most, had betrayed me my entire life would end me over the edge. It would basically feel like a bomb was set off in my life, and I wouldn’t even know where to begin to pick up the pieces. I would inevitably begin to question everything else I thought I trusted in my life, which is what I predict Delia will do in the upcoming chapters. She will probably have a hard time relying on anyone she loves, especially her fiancé, because she will be afraid that he will betray her. I am anxious and excited to see what happens as I continue to read!

 

The Five People You Meet in Heaven

This week I started reading The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom. It started out with a very interesting comment: All endings are also beginnings, we just don’t know it at the time. Once I read this it got me thinking about what it meant. One could take this comment in so many different ways, because it could mean so many different things. I know that in this particular instance the author was referring to death being the ending and the afterlife being the new beginning, but I know that’s not the only thing that I could apply it to. There are little “endings” that happen all the time, like your favorite restaurant closing down, just to find that the one taking its place is even better. Things like this probably go by unnoticed, but I think that if we start to realize that not every ending is bad, and that you never know what beginning it will bring, it will keep us more optimistic and make our lives a little sweeter. There are also many big endings in people’s lives that are usually seen as a disaster. For example, a serious couple breaking up would probably be seen by both sides as a bad thing. However, once they meet someone else that they like even more, they will see that the break-up was a good thing because it gave them the opportunity to meet this better person. Thinking about this, I could come up with a few “endings” that had happened to me recently. Although these were all small things, I was able to look at them and think about the opportunities they could be creating. Once I considered this my feelings about these “endings” suddenly turned from upset to hopeful, and my overall mood was lifted. I am happy I have begun to read this book because with such an intriguing introduction sentence, I know that it will be interesting. I hope I find more of these thought-provoking ideas in the upcoming chapters of the book!

The Debt Clock

For my second blog post, I read an article from the Star Tribune titled Sharpening Their Economic Plans, by Peter Nicholas and Bob Drogin. This article was about how Obama and McCain would deal with the economic struggles that are facing the nation right now, and what their plan for the future is. However, this is not what intrigued me about the piece. The reason I started to read this particular article was the picture at the top, which was of the National Debt Clock. The National Debt Clock is an ongoing clock that keeps track of the nations debt. In the picture it says that we are at $9,536,317,678,235.00, but by now it is inevitably much higher. I have looked at this clock before online for school projects, and I am always very fascinated as to why we would be spending so much money on things we don’t need to survive, like the war, then not having enough for the things we do need, like healthcare. I was also curious as to why at the bottom of the clock they have a smaller number that says “your families share”, which at the time of the picture was $80,913.00. This number is also constantly growing. I was confused about this because I know that not every family has debt, and some families, like celebrities, are far from it. However, when I thought about it, this number might represent more than just debt that someone owes. It might represent what we will eventually loose in healthcare, or even something small like work on our roads. This upsets me because I know that when I am older the debt will be even larger and I will be loosing less, unless someone does something about it. I know that I know very little about the economy, and politics in general for that matter, but I do understand that the debt clock is not to be taken lightly.

Finding Life's Meaning In Death

For my third blog response, I read an article from the Los Angeles Times titled “Finding Life’s Meaning In Death”. My mom found this article and since she liked it so much, she gave it to me to read. Once I started reading it I was intrigued. This article by Erika Hayasaki was written about a college class where students visit the dead, the dying, and convicted criminals, including murders, all to appreciate their life a little more. The author started out by telling us of a fieldtrip the class took to see an autopsy performed. Some students were okay with watching this procedure being done, but many were not and had to leave the room. The teacher of this class followed up the fieldtrip by having her students write a “goodbye letter” to someone they had lost. Having to look at a dead body would have been too much for me alone, but having to write such an emotional latter would have put me over the edge. The truth is, it did for most of the students as well, but even when some of them were in tears while reading their letters, their teacher urged them to finish to the end. Throughout the semester, the students visited terminally sick people and studied their deaths, as well as talked to people that had actually killed their own loved ones. I had never heard of a class like this before, but I was certainly interested. I think a class like this would be very beneficial because appreciating your life is a big step in growing up and accepting responsibility. Too many young people are careless with their lives and end up being hurt or hurting a loved one, and I think that if these types of people took this course, they would think more about the decisions they make. I really liked reading this article and hope that I get an opportunity to experience a class like this one day.

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