I do love "dw" words immensely, though, at the moment, I can only think of two, "dwelling" and "dwindling", both of which I use quite a bit. The word "dwelling" seems to conjure in mind an image of a a moss-covered cottage, hidden by the thorns of long-long ago, and "dwindling"--well, dwindling food supplies, perhaps, and a warehouse riddled by a trillionaire's greed. Speaking of conjured images, today we did a project in class focusing on writing about a time in which we imagined ourseves as something else when we looked at something. I looked at a map and immediately imagined myself as a cartographer shut up in a tower drawing with a feather pen on a sheet of vellum. (As a cartographer, this is rather heavy on animal products. Adrianna would cringe.) I copied and pasted mine into here (by the way, it's third person. "She" is myself):
She looked at the map inquisitively and an image came into her mind, a sage of sorts bent over a sheet of fine vellum like that of the days of the lore of gods, a sheet like that from the days when maps were drawn by hand by sages in sepulchers. She was the sage, in a robe crinkled with the use of an eon, layered in a film of dust like sand on a mussel’s shell. She wielded a pen of ink from a river of thought, thoughts so sharp that a sword of Hephaestus’s make could not compare. Slowly the Mongols crept across the wrinkled vellum border; slowly the ink filtered through so Luxembourg, Andorra, lived; the blue Danube waltzed its way across in ink of blue jay-blue; the pilgrims inched across to Plymouth Rock, and slowly, Lewis and Clark made their way past the prairie dogs. New Lands of centuries; deserts of millenniums; names upon the sepia vellum in a spidery script. The map was spread across the table, the table’s wood fine but insignificant to the wise, with jaded minds; all the lands and all the men that maps had turned to mimes. The map progressed like a sage’s action, not so quick as thought, and, quick as a sage’s action, the sage turned to face a weather-beaten table marked by a day of scratches, faces she knew to be of no recent renown, and the map upon the wall that had conjured the magic.

We forced our teacher to write one as well. Hers was quite funny; the image sprouted from a flawless flower planter, exploring a world of TV microwaved popcorn dinners and stark banality. In class, I won the Review Quiz for the third time in the row. At the moment we are studying the Civil War and its many characters. My favorite, so far, is General Winfield Scott, otherwise known (my preferred title for the man) as Fuss n' Feathers. His name is of much debate in our classroom. We are unsure of whether it is spelled Winifred or Winfield, having seen it spelled both ways. We went on a walk today after dinner, with our mom, dad, and Adrianna, and played a merry game of Tag in the "safer" boundaries of Nike Park (namely, the playground). Adrianna, disobedient soul she is, brought her bike despite protests, and was forced to lug it back down (mostly rocky terrain, and too dark for pleasant riding). It was sunset, beautiful in its piercing red (though as we trudged back, grinning soldiers from a warfield looking forward to rewards, it was much later, dusk), red like the strawberry popsicles we licked triumphantly back home. Sadly, the Spirit of Washington Dinner Train, a slow journey through picteresque landscape on train, will soon be closed down ("why doesn't King County buy it and make it a commuter train?" our dad says, pounding his fist upon the table in a fit of intellectual rage), to make way for a highway. In any case, it's ten thirty seven PM.

"Happy News" Questionnaire

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"Happy News" Questionnaire

ADORA SVITAK

-When did you get involved in writing and reading?

I started my writing journey at the age of four, writing longhand with help from my mom. My mom bought me a black Dell laptop when I was six. The secondhand, somewhat weather-battered computer allowed me to organize my thoughts effectively in stories and poems, compared to time-consuming longhand writing, as I was able to learn how to type very quickly. My dad read to me and my older (eleven-year-old) sister, Adrianna, at bedtime when we were little, and we loved reading from an early age. When I began reading, I often read "advanced" books that were in "higher" grade levels.

-Why do you enjoy reading and writing so much?

I believe writing is a great way to express your thoughts to other people. Writing also gives us the chance to communicate and understand each other, making a better, less conflict-ravaged world possible. I also like writing because it gives me the chance to organize my thoughts and "empty my mind", making it easy to remember things of the past (for instance, a memorable vacation) while still having enough "brain space" to observe the present carefully. Writing also gives me the chance to have fun while utilizing learning skills. Writing is really an enjoyable, interesting experience because I actually live with my characters; it's a break from everyday life. I love reading because this gives me the chance to understand other people and get different perspectives on issues, different views. This gives me the chance to learn more about the world and other people. Reading also gives me the ability to learn while enjoying myself, and reading allows me to "live with the characters" while still being surprised at unexpected twists and turns. Reading brings me to different places while I'm still comfortably propped up against an infinite number of fluffy pillows. I'm able to meet thousands of new people, make millions of friends, live a countless number of lives. Reading can give me experience, knowledge, and personal enjoyment.

-What do you like about each one?

Note: Included in previous question's answer.

-Why do you feel it is important for people, specifically younger people to read and write?

I believe it's extremely important to bring reading and writing into the household, and introduce reading and writing to children at an early age. It's never "too early" for learning. Babies in the womb, according to studies, are observing sounds, etc., even before delivery. Children continue to observe and learn through childhood--even some 'older' children, after all! Reading and writing helps enhance this learning experience and opens eyes to thousands of perspectives on countless issues, while, through writing, providing effective ways to share one's own perspectives with a wider audience. Reading and writing are useful tools in the learning journey, and provide enjoyable ways to learn new information (reading), while providing ways to express opinions and use skills learned (writing).

-What would you say to someone who is young that says he or she doesn’t like to read?

I would list my own reasons for liking reasons to the particular individual. Reading gives me the chance to explore faraway and fantasy places and meet people we would be very likely unable to meet in real life--after all, we hear about people like Queen Elizabeth I, George Washington, and JK Rowling all the time; reading gives us the chance to actually see these people in front of us with our own eyes, not on the TV screen. Reading adds to my store of knowledge; I learn new words effortlessly through reading; instead of toiling away at blunt, continuous lists of words and words, I'm able to quickly look words up on my computer/in a dictionary. I'm also able to learn new facts and see matters from different perspectives, helping me learn more about people. For the normal public school student "struggling in social circles", reading provides an easy way to advance on the school popularity ladder, impressing friends to the envy of enemies with interesting knowledge. Last, but certainly not least, and a great way to sum up all these reasons-- reading is FUN!

-How would you go about inspiring them to read?

Note: Included in previous question's answer.

-What types of writing do you do? How many books have you written?

I have written over four hundred stories, but I've only published one book, Flying Fingers. Three more books are currently in the works (already written but being fine-tuned) and I write poems avidly (one hundred to two hundred poems so far). I occasionally write historical fiction (an example might be "Agymah and the Amulet", a short story, located in Flying Fingers), but fantasy tends to be my most widely-explored genre, as I'm able to use my imagination for creative names while still using my knowledge of history and human nature to create my own worlds.

-What other interests do you have outside of reading and writing?

I really love cooking with my eleven-year-old sister, Adrianna. My mom and dad are both very supportive of our culinary pursuits (despite stunning evidence of gross negligence regarding the urge to clean up after oneself, supposed to be morally inserted in our conscience), and, while I must admit our products (healthy snacks like strawberry-yogurt-with-apple-chunk muffins, extravagantly unhealthy "decadent chocolate" butter-filled brownies, and more "typical dinner fare" like cheese-with-don't-know-what-the-heck-that-healthy-veggie-is pizza) do taste good, I'm still--gratefully--amazed our parents continue to consent to let us enter the kitchen. Other than cooking I love drawing. I hope this does not sound like a bragging attempt, but I have advanced somewhat in what I call "imaginative portraiture" (portraits of stiff-faced, regal people from my imagination). While I call this stuff imaginative I do sometimes use real models--I placed a no doubt disgruntled but younger George Washington, very respectfully, in Bank of America headquarters (whatever Bank of America looks like) accompanied by a gold box of snuff and those ever-present "Bank Lollipops" (free for the picking). Another samples of these types of drawings of mine would be a Queen-Elizabeth-the-First-like-character, disapproving expression on face, in front of our own living room window. The window looks out onto our neighbor's house, and the towering trees beside it, which looks unintentionally like some sort of ski resort lodge. As I am an innocent, perfect little nine-year-old doll, I shall maliciously bog you down with technical descriptions of my sadly unprofessional equipment--a "Dark Wash", thick, very, very black pencil, which I use for outlines and roughs, and a somewhat-sharpened normal pencil with a flat eraser, for facial details and delicate parts. I use what I can to erase, most often a blackened, worn-down eraser, sometimes a mutilated eraser from a broken pencil, and, while many "erasing skids" are clearly displayed, this system gets along pretty well. Drawing makes up perhaps fifty percent of my time? maybe less, maybe more, on different days. A lot of my audience ask about me regarding sports. I love ice skating (although I don't get the chance to do it much, the nearest ice skating rink is thirty minutes to an hour away from here, and we've been too lazy to make the drive). I also love swimming, although, again, between my mom's vicious health concerns and Seattle's vicious weather, I don't get the chance to do it that much. Last summer I (finally!) learned to jump off the diving board (I can't really dive well, with the arm over head thing, but I can do a cannonball and a twist in the air and all that), and I swim in the deep end, etc. I don't swim particularly fast, but I don't tire very quickly, and I go underwater easily, and I don't mind opening my eyes underwater, either, although I know I probably shouldn't. More sports--I love biking. I have a shiny-new dark purple Magna bike, bedecked in an infinite number of glittering "Stardust" stickers. Perhaps it's not classified as new anymore--when I first got it, it had training wheels, but now I'm comfortably out of that training sphere. Unfortunately I have a tendency to veer too sharply, knocking me off my bike, and sometimes when I ride I do zigzags and I have difficulty keeping to the path, sometimes riding into soaked grass, mud, stones, and City Hall shrubbery. And while "playing outside" can't really be considered a valid hobby, perhaps mud-making is? Adrianna and I produced a large vat of mud for future use in the summer (we made it in the winter with rain accumulation and slug-infested dirt). We have a club in the backyard which was formerly called the D.A.M. club (most of us are so thickened with age we can't remember what it stands for), and Adrianna and I formally changed the name of the club to the "Ontario Club", a name I proudly picked myself. It sounds like it's by the Great Lakes or something. Also, I like photography and blogging. For Christmas my mom bought me a digital camera (in return for my promise to continue writing poems and blogs faithfully.)

-Why is it important for girls to not be portrayed in negative light?

Women are an essential force in today's society, and have been essential forces in the world throughout history. Women today serve in many prestigious roles with great skill and capability, like politics, the media, business, science, etc., while many women continue to provide a gigantic helping hand at home. Women have for centuries shouldered duties men were incapable--or too lazy--to do, and continue to shoulder many of these duties. In some countries women continue to manage family finances. Women have influenced the course of history and gained power through their own merits; this is why it is important for the modern-day individual to respect this rich history and realize women are capable in many fields, not cut out just for housekeeping and childbearing, and deserve to be treated like any other citizen of this world. Unfortunately companies like Disney treat women as helpless damsels in distress. While some despicable women in history have been specimens like these, overall women are strong, intelligent, and resourceful. The kind of "damsel in distress" Disney puts forward as models for another generation of women are anything but beacons of light in darkness--do we want to be raising wailing Cinderellas waiting for the fairy godmother without a thought of her own? Is this generation of parents going to be comforted by their fairytale princesses being swept off golden unicorns into reality and Sadly Ever After endings? This is why women should be portrayed in a more realistic light than at present, as determined, clever human beings instead of shallow damsels in distress.

-What is your goal with having the Web site, writing books and giving presentations? Are you sending a specific message? What would that be?

My goal is to spread a message of worldwide literacy. I believe it's never to early to learn, and this is another one of the messages I wholeheartedly believe which many of my presentations spread. I also show viewers how technology like Microsoft Word and the World Wide Web can be used positively to enhance students' educational experiences. I believe technology is a great help in education, a tool which should be made available to every student. In my presentations, I inspire my audience (mainly public school children) to read and write; I help children express their ideas with clarity and fine tune existing writing skills. In some of my presentations I also teach vocabulary. I wrote and published the book Flying Fingers because, 1) I just wanted to get my thoughts out and express my feelings clearly so other people (namely my family and friends) could understand me better, and 2) I published the book because I wanted my writing to reach a wider audience, to both help other people understand me and my life, and to spread a message I realized was relevant and neccessary in today's world. My website, www.adorasvitak.com, is a way for people to understand me and my message better; it has some of my early drawings (I don't draw nearly so bad now!), poetry, etc.

-How many places have you given presentations too? What states, countries have you been to?

My presentations have taken me across the U.S., from Redmond, Washington (where I live), to Orlando, Florida, from NY, NY, to London, England. I've given presentations to mainly often low-income public schools, but I've also participated in events like the Verizon Family Literacy Conference, the Keller Williams Inspirational Breakfast, etc. I also presented at Stony Brook University's Charles B. Wang Center in Long Island. Every time I learn new and interesting techniques which allow me to improve my future speeches.

-What are some famous people you have met, and what talk shows have you been on?

The most prestigious talk shows I've been on include Montel Williams, Good Morning America, and Oprah (video clip). I was also featured on NBC's Making a Difference, a major TV network in the U.K., "Sky"; I was on the BBC (radio) in the U.K., and Voices of America as well. I've been on a number of major newspapers and other publications, including U.K.'s popular "Daily Mirror". As for famous people I've met--Montel Williams, Bill Cosby, James Earl Jones, and Tom Vilsack.

-How did you like the TLC series on the Discovery Channel on kids that you were on?

I really thought BBC America's "My Life as a Child" series was very excellently designed and organized. This show gave Discovery/TLC viewers a chance to see the lives of twenty very different children, with footage from the points of view of the children themselves. Videocameras in the children's power followed their families' every action, giving an accurate view of life to eager viewers. You could feel the anxiety of going to that first major performance, whoop along with delighted--and excited--children, etc. While some scenes were stormy, it was all family-friendly, and definitely an educational experience for the TV audience. Personally I had a great time filming for "My Life as a Child". The videocamera was small and easy to transport to destinations like Europe and New York, and while there were some blows (mistaking a tape cleaner for a tape and losing an hour's worth of footage to a useless piece of plastic), etc., it was an overall great experience for the entire family.

Letter to a Taiwanese Friend

Dear P,

Life is getting on very well, but my days of lazing about at room temperature eating potstickers are over. I am now concentrating on editing Yang in Disguise while the heat in our house seems to drop. I have a cold, although it's getting better. Weekends are hardly breaks, and--well, probably enough complaining. After all you are busy in school with homework and tests. What do you do on weekends? Adrianna has her violin, I do last-minute Chinese homework, we both do Chinese class, and sometimes go biking. (Saturday). Sundays are sleep-in days of boredom. The most exciting thing on Sunday is Sixty Minutes, the TV program. Speaking of TV we watched the Oscars just now. Did you watch the Oscars? The "pre-Oscar" time is extremely boring. They claim the Oscars begin at four, but that's just when everybody's getting seated and obnoxious reporters interview rushing nominees. They drone on and on about spectacular gowns. A typical conversation between the reporters would be--"And the new trend with jewels on so-and-so and bare shoulders, so-and-so's dress is Calvin Klein, so-and-so is taking a note from so-and-so and wearing diamonds, so-and-so's dress is Versace with some great beads, so-and-so is wearing..." And it goes on in that vein for some time. My mom wanted me to watch it anyways. Watching the actual awards was alright, though. Some of the commercials were quite good. Weather has taken a rather nasty turn. It is quite rainy, foggy, and windy. What are you doing in Taiwan? What is your everyday life like? Is school harder, easier, or about the same? What are you studying right now? How did you like the Taiwanese book? Also, forgot to ask you. What did you do for Christmas? Did you celebrate it? What did you do for New Year's? (Chinese or otherwise.) I attatched a photo of our aunts and uncles on Christmas Day. I hope you'll be able to see it. I took the picture with the mini Lumix digital camera I recieved from my mom as a present. I also recieved a Santa hat, a lot of candy canes, a fifty dollar Barnes and Noble gift card, and a porcelain kind of vase shaped-thing for holding pencils, pens, and erasers. It was a pretty great Christmas. We ate a buffet breakfast in Todai, Redmond Town Center. By the way, we made bedding for "The Ontario Club" (also known as the "DAM Club"). My room is covered in soft bedding. So is Adrianna's. I said hi to K for you. Oh, by the way--guess what? We didn't get any homework for the weekend!!!

Please reply soon!

Love,
Dory