Interpreting Cover Songs

The song I selected is Dancing With Myself, one version by Billy Idol and the other is a cover from the television show Glee. The Billy Idol version is a lot more upbeat and is meant to represent confidence. The Glee version is a little slower and in the video (which I could not find on YouTube) the singer is on an empty stage. He sings this song after he realizes that he wont be able to dance with his girlfriend because he is in a wheelchair and she has to dance with someone else. It is meant to be a little more sad than the original.

A Memorable Meal

My story of Escargot: We walked into the small crowded restaurant not knowing what to expect. This was my family's second trip to Canada but our first time in Quebec. Quebec is known as one of the French areas in Canada so our entire menu of course was in French. My mom, having lived in France for a few years as a child, struggled to translate the menu. My dad however, took one look at the appetizer section and looked at me with a sinister smile. "If I order something will you try it?" he asked. As much as I love my dad I don't trust him when it comes to food because he will eat literally anything. I sat with hesitation telling him I wouldn't promise anything and of course he called a chicken. When the waiter came my mom asked for some more time buy my dad instantly asked for the escargot and in almost no time in front of me sat cheese covered snails. My mom and I winced as my dad scooped one out of the bowl and dropped it on my plate. My dad said he'd pay me if I ate one so I did. The first thing I tasted was the garlic butter sauce that the escargot were in. I love garlic so this was okay with me. Then came the assorted cheeses: mozzarella topped with parmesan crumbs, it was like a delicious dairy Christmas. Then came the snail. It was almost like the inside of a clam that you shuck out except way chewier. The taste was so bland after the cheese separated from it so I took a spoon full of the garlic sauce and drank it to give the snail some kind of flavor. It felt like I had been chewing for hours but once the snail finally went down I wanted another!

Academic to Casual Writing

I used a paragraph on Hammurabi's Law Code from my Hist 132 book for the writing.

I think that it is interesting how much insight into Mesopotamian society. We historians learn that the people of Mesopotamia lived under a hierarchical rule. I personally would hate to have my punishment be decided based on my status in society. I did appreciate the "eye for an eye" system they had. For example, if a noble man knocked out another noble man's tooth, the first noble man would have tooth knocked out. In this case it would be a tooth for a tooth!

Villanueva Rewrite

There are certain things I still remember from my childhood forty years later. It is strange how an incident so shocking and vivid to a child appears only as clips from a movie to me now. We were at a party when they both grabbed my hands and we took off running. There was a blood covered knife hanging from someones arm, it was as if it was right in my face. It was something that no three year old should be exposed to.
Why can I still recall 41 Bartlett Street in Williamsburg, Brooklyn? This house showed our success because it was an improvement from a storefront flat. I would sit behind a pegboard desk in the middle of our furniture-less  living room with Mrs. Ashell nearby until my Dad would come home. He would always walk in with something, once a roll of linoleum.
I grew at age four. I would walk by myself from my home on Bartlett street to John Lee's laundry which was near Myrtle Avenue elementary. I stood out being so small and not J walking when everyone else was. No one seemed concerned they passed by me as if I was an adult.

Reflection: I liked this exercise, and it actually helped me understand what I was reading because I had to break his words down. I did not like Villanueva's writing style. To me, it was very choppy and hard to understand.

An Image of Writing

I chose this image because writing can be freeing yet scary at times.

I love writing, especially creative writing. It is a chance for me to free my mind and let everything go onto paper. Writing is cathartic, I can always vent about any drama going on in my life and know that a pencil wont judge me.

At the same time, being a journalism major requires me to allow others to read my writing. I have a hard time with criticism so if I show someone my hard work and they rip it to shreds I will most likely get this strange sinking feeling in my gut. It makes me doubt myself and I hate that.

About Me

Hello world! My name is Arielle and I am from Owings Mills, MD. I am studying Broadcast Journalism at Ohio University. I love playing tennis and badminton and in my free time I eat a lot of food and watch a lot of TV. Some of my favorite shows are the Real Housewives series, Big Bang Theory, Pretty Little Liars, and almost any other kind of reality TV. My favorite sport is football (to watch not play) and obviously my favorite team is the Baltimore Ravens. I love writing but I'm not a huge fan of people criticizing my work, but I guess that's something I'll have to get used to.