A lot of times, English majors get shit because we don't really have tests in our classes. What people don't realize is that instead of tests, we have papers and books we have to read.  I know that I've personally been more overwhelmed by the amount of reading I've had to do this semester than ever before.  No matter what I do or how late I stay up, I literally just can't catch up on my reading.  There isn't enough time in the day.  I understand the importance of reading a lot of different material as writing major, as reading and writing do go hand in hand; however, this has just gotten to the point of overwhelming.  Next time someone tries to tell me I don't have a real major because I don't have tests, I might consider slapping them in the face with one of my 50 million books. Too harsh?

I enjoyed this list quite a bit. You can go to the source by clicking the title.

How to not suck at being an English Major:

1. LOVE POETRY
It’s a vital part of literature, stop hating on it because you think that’s the cool thing to do. Sure, poetry can be hard to understand, but you shouldn’t shut your brain off just because the writer isn’t explicitly telling what he/she is feeling. You should NEVER shut your brain off.
2. DO THE READING
Yes, you have to read a lot, what the fuck did you think it meant when you signed up to be an English Major? Read, interpret, write, and love literature. That’s what you’re supposed to do.
3. THINK THINK THINK
Come to class with actual thoughts, and don’t be afraid to talk. Discussion classes can either be stimulating or boring as fuck, and a lot of it depends on YOU, Mr. or Mrs. English Major.
4. DON’T BE A DICK
Life advice. See also: Be humble, be smart, be cool.

We have one of these in West Chester where I go to school and I think it's simply the most wonderful thing ever. I picked up, "A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man," by James Joyce from it the other day. Looks like I'll have to drop one off soon.  I think college campuses would benefit greatly from having these around campus.

This has been my favorite short story since I read it my freshman year in a short story workshop. Hope you enjoy it as much as I do.


"No One's a Mystery," by Elizabeth Tallent

Hey guys! Here's a link to a piece of flash fiction that I always found interesting:


http://www.galactanet.com/oneoff/theegg_mod.html

Tonight I can write the saddest lines

Tonight I can write the saddest lines.

Write, for example,'The night is shattered
and the blue stars shiver in the distance.'

The night wind revolves in the sky and sings.

Tonight I can write the saddest lines.
I loved her, and sometimes she loved me too.

Through nights like this one I held her in my arms
I kissed her again and again under the endless sky.

She loved me sometimes, and I loved her too.
How could one not have loved her great still eyes.

Tonight I can write the saddest lines.
To think that I do not have her. To feel that I have lost her.

To hear the immense night, still more immense without her.
And the verse falls to the soul like dew to the pasture.

What does it matter that my love could not keep her.
The night is shattered and she is not with me.

This is all. In the distance someone is singing. In the distance.
My soul is not satisfied that it has lost her.

My sight searches for her as though to go to her.
My heart looks for her, and she is not with me.

The same night whitening the same trees.
We, of that time, are no longer the same.

I no longer love her, that's certain, but how I loved her.
My voice tried to find the wind to touch her hearing.

Another's. She will be another's. Like my kisses before.
Her voide. Her bright body. Her inifinite eyes.

I no longer love her, that's certain, but maybe I love her.
Love is so short, forgetting is so long.

Because through nights like this one I held her in my arms
my sould is not satisfied that it has lost her.

Though this be the last pain that she makes me suffer
and these the last verses that I write for her.

Pablo Neruda

Literary Tattoos

As of late on both the Web and amongst people I know, I've noticed the growing popularity of literary tattoos.  Of my friends, I've noticed that a lot of these tattoos are appearing on people studying English or similar fields of study, although occasionally one peaks out of the grain that is some random science major or what have you. On Tumblr, there's even a whole blog dedicated to these tattoos (http://tattoolit.com/ in case you wanted to check it out. I follow it!).  I myself am even guilty of having a literary tattoo. Above is the typewriter on my ribcage (If you can't tell from these last two posts and the many to come, I have a bit of a typewriter obsession). Underneath it is a line from Ted Kooser's, "Tattoo." That line along with the rest of the poem hit a personal place in my heart when I first read it and the feeling has stayed with me since.

So what is it about these book quotes, images and whatnot that many of us find inspiring enough to permanently etch into our skin? I have to admit that I personally find it beautiful that these tattoos are appearing everywhere. Don't you get it? This means people are reading! It's a wonderful thing to realize your generation is actually appreciating writing and incorporating it into a daily part of their lives. Every time somebody asks me about my tattoo, I'm happy to explain the quote (Well, most of the time. Sometimes I'm tired and don't want to explain it and have to resist telling them to fuck off). I hope that maybe they'll consider looking up the poem later, which will lead them to reading more and more poems as they aimlessly wander the Internet.

I guess I wonder what people's thoughts are on this new tattoo trend and what some of the favorites they've seen are. Here are some that I enjoyed:

Welcome!

Oh hey there everyone! So for one of my classes, we were asked to create a blog that we'll use to learn about composing cyberspace with. I had a lot of trouble trying to come up with something to make a blog about. I was trying to think of topics that I actually have enough knowledge to write a blog about and that I would be able to keep interesting. Then I figured, hell, what do I know more about than being an English major. So I made this blog to just talk and laugh about the amusing, draining, and dramatic aspects of studying English, and share in the passion we feel for the hold English has on us.