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Feature Writing Piece

For my first feature writing piece I was thinking about doing it on Craig Kielburger. When Craig was a 12 year old boy he wanted to go to Africa to meet the children there living in extreme poverty and come back here to make everyone aware of what life is like for people in starvation. Craig is now in his early 20's and is the founder of an organization called "Free the Children." His brother Marc Kielberger is the co-founder of the program and together they have gotten many people involved to help save starving children as well as accomplish many other things.

Last New Orleans Reading

Part two was all about what was going on in New Orleans after the disaster. Piazza walks us through mental images of the physical images he witnessed. I noticed how Piazza used more dramatic comparisons than in the first section of the book. For example, right on the first page of the second part he was talking about how he was afarid to see what the city looked like, he says, "I felt dread, as if I were about to enter a morgue to view the body of my best friend." (113) I knew Tom Piazza would be someone wanting to go back to New Orleans right away but I was surprised by how many other people wanted to as well. Not only were many people willing to go back but people were so generous about giving food and water away to others who need it. Piazza makes me feel for these people and believe that such a horrific disaster happened to so many giving people, "By the time we left, our spiritual gas tank, which had been below empty, had filled just enough to carry us the next leg of the trip, at least. And if that sound and that feeling could be rekindled in the midst of all that chaos, then I knew New Orleans had a chance." (136)

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Why New Orleans Matters Post

I have just finished part one of the book and it is so far very interesting. However, I am finding that Tom Piazza is using so much detail that at times it is hard to follow what he is talking about. At one point he will be talking about the Zulu and at another he will be talking about something semi-related to the Zulu but that could almost be a different topic to discuss rather than just throwing it in there.
I do like how he uses comparisons. On page 87 he says, "Some areas that had been poor as poor gets, yet still had an intact neighborhood culture, have been turned essentially into dunkedoms and baronets controlled by drug dealers, featuring all the burnt-out houses, semi-automatic gunfire, and other elements that populate the movies and video games we all enjoy so much." I just laughed at this part because it is true, this is exactly something we can picture and relate to a video game (for those of us who have seen the violent video games out there.) I also took it as him using his sense of humor.

Talk of the Town idea

For my talk of the town peice I was thinking about writing it on the R.A.D. program they offer here. Most people may not know about it even though it is posted in the student annoncements every semester. R.A.D. stands for rape agression defense. This program is held by the bridgewater state police and they teach you tactics to get out of rape situations and how to defend yourself. I am not sure if this is my definite idea but this is the one that I have been leaning towards for my talk of the town piece.

What Happens in New Orleans posting 2

In this second reading, Piazza tells us about Jazz Fest and how people leave their jobs and lives for this event. I truly liked the section of the book where Piazza tells us how he couldnt find a screw that fell out  of his glasses and a woman gave her a screw out of her glasses to give to him. He tells us stories that makes us understand how friendly people from New Orleans are which makes the reader want to be in a place like that since people here aren't generous at all.
I was surprised by how he didnt have "PART II" as  this section where he talks about the poverty and the violence that goes on in New Orleans. However, when he did begins talking about this, I liked that he gave us the good side as well as the bad side of New Orleans because noplace is perfect.

Why New Orleans Matters

In Tom Piazza's Why New Orleans Matters, he walks us through what it is like to live in New Orleans and why moving there has made such an impact on his life. Piazza goes into great details about everyting he talks about, "I moved to New Orleans in 1994 and soon knew that it was home, for keeps, no matter what." (7) One thing I love that Piazza does in these first few chapters is making me feel like im right there with him learning people's different lifestyles. On page 18, he is telling us about a woman who works her butt off in her restaurant cooking most of the food on her own and telling us how she recieved an America's Classic Award. I really get to know this woman and how much of a hard worker she is when at the end Piazza tells us, "Six months later, during Hurricane Katrina, it flooded to the roof."
Piazza also explains how important music is down in New Orleans. Many traditions held will always have a bad attending. Piazza does a really good job of making me want to be there experiencing this way of life; a place where whether or not everyone knows each other, they treat each other with respect. There are people always on the streets with everyone and always something knew going on. It makes me wish I were able to have seen that womans reataurant before it were destroyed and experience seeing the "Wild Tchoupitoulas" in their chief like uniforms.

Profile by Dave Curtin

After reading Dave Curtin's profile on Adam and Megan, I was truely touched and wanted to hear so much more about Adam and Megan's lives at the end of the profile. Curtin wrote this profile as if he were there every step of the way with this family which is what kept me reading the story, unable to put it down. Although it took Curtin six months of interviewing the family to get the story together, I like that he doesnt make it sound like Bill or Cindy are the ones basically writing the story, Curtin was there a lot with the family so was able to write about the children based on much of his own emotion about what happened as well as the families; He writes about Adam's and Megan's feelings without needing to quote it from Bill or Cindy. I give Curtin a lot of credit for writing such a moving profile. I'm not sure I would have been able to write such on such a tragic subject even though the piece was of "one family's courage." Reading this profile has made me rethink the piece I was going to do and go for more of a personal story such as Curtin's on Adam and Megan.