Monthly Archives: October 2013

Ready Lucy

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Brooklyn is home to thousands of people and through out the ages, people have been coming and going. But, no one knows how people interacted. Today, we have the latest technology and we can send a message to someone on the other side of the planet, and they will receive within seconds. Back then, it was all about writing letters.  Ready Lucy, by Jennifer Egan, is an excerpt from her book “ Brooklyn was Mine”,  and in this excerpt, Egan recounts the time she was doing research for her new novel. One day, while doing her research, she meets a woman by the name of Lucy and to her luck, Lucy use to work in the Navy during WWII. She began getting to know Lucy and she continued to learn more about her romance with a her husband named Alfred through letters. Letters, because of the period in time in which they lived in, was the only means of communication they had. Within these letters, Egan learns about most the time Lucy spent in the Navy. These letter were private and it held details of the time period for example, Lucy would write “Negro” instead of African American when talking about her friend, indicating that Africans Americans were still not an equal member of society. Lucy an Egan are not related in any biological form but Egan did notice some similarities they had, for example, their to-do list looked exactly the same (22). They’re relationship develops as Egan reads through Lucy and Alfred’s corresponding letters that the Brooklyn Historical society had. As she read through this letters, Egan conveys their story in chronological order and for a vast majority, only reads Lucy’s letters to Alfred. One of the main reasons she did that is because she was working on a novel about a woman who worked in the Navy, not a man. Near the end, Egan reads one of the letters Alfred had written back to Lucy. In the midst of all of this discovery, Egan is aware of one fact: She knows that Lucy dies in the end. Egan has moment of revelation and contemplates for a moment about the life was back then and how it its today. Egan ends on a light note with her reading Alfred’s letter that were full of optimism and perpetual livelihood. Alfred had many plans that involved Lucy and he wanted to be there to enjoy every single moment of them.

Speaking class summary on 10/23

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On October 23, in the Speaking class, we first got our test scores back and then we start to talk about the visual aid. There are few important things we need to concern when we doing a visual aid or powepoint for our project. First, on PowerPoint, we should not distract the audience; and tip to keep the audiences’ attention off the screen is to show them a blank slide. The second thing is about how you choose your pictures, we should not choose a pictures that’ve is too busy, which means not too many things on the same picture, because the audiences cannot get the information from it. It is bad if you cannot send your message to the audiences. And the third thing we need to keep in mind is to show where your source come from, to make youspeech more creditable. The last thing is try not to use the completed sentences, but use short phase or word to send your message.

For morinformation and the example of effective Visalia aids, please visit:

PowerPoint Tutorial

Retention

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Retention: (noun)  the act of keeping someone or something

www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/retention

During Professor Davis Speech Lecture we have used this word while reviewing for Chapter 8.

I understand that this word means to keep whatever you like to yourself.

 

 

Prattled

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Prattled-(Verb):to talk for very long about something that is not important or interesting.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/prattled?show=0&t=1382843065

As she prattled to Alfred about bicycling in Prospect Park or rubbing bicarbonate of soda on the sunburn she’d gotten on a trip to Coney Island with her girlfriends, it would cross my mind that I knew the time and place of the death that awaited her.

I understand the author is saying that she was telling Alfred information that was not important or interesting to hear.

“Reading Lucy” by Jennifer Egan

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On Wednesday, we’ll discuss Jennifer Egan’s essay, “Reading Lucy” from the collection Brooklyn Was Mine. Everyone received a copy in class.

Write a blog post about “Reading Lucy” by the end of Tuesday. In your post, consider any of the following:

  • how does the essay represent Egan’s story of how she learned about history?
  • what is Egan’s relationship to Lucy, and how does it develop?
  • how has Egan conveyed Lucy’s story?

We will discuss these questions in class, and will look at how Egan incorporates her research into her essay.

Good luck preparing for your speeches!

Embolden

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Verb

Definition: to make someone more confident.

Source: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/emboldened

Found this word in the reading ” The Tunnel Rats of Atlantic Avenue” when Joseph asked Castillo is the there was any accidents in the tunnel and he responded that absolutely not. “thus emboldened, i scrambled down a ladder as cars and trucks whizzed by my head, walked thought a dirt trench and a doorway cut into a brick wall, and took a step back in time, into the arched tunnel.”

understanding what the word embolden means i understand that Joseph was not sure to go into the tunnel tour. That is why she asked Castillo if there was no accidents and said he responded no, she was confident and encouraged herself to go into the tunnel tour.

 

Pristine

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Adjective

Definition: not spoiled, corrupted, or polluted. In perfect condition

Source: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pristine

This word that i came across with is located in the reading “The Tunnel Rats of Atlantic
Avenue” by Yonette Joseph in the fourth paragraph. “he believes, there is a steam locomotive lying on its side like an abandon toy train in pristine condition”

Since i now know pristine means in good condition i know why it is so important and ambition for Bob Diamond to find this ancient steam locomotive especially if it is in good condition.

 

Maps At The Brooklyn Historical Society-

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1-What is the map’s call number?
The maps call number is BA-2003 FC.

2-What is the map’s title (if available)?
The title of the map is Montague Business Improvement District, 2003.

3-Which collection does the map belong to?
It belongs to Flat Map Collection.

4-When was it made?
It was made in 2003.

Physical description of the map:
5-What size is the map (approximately)?
The size of the map is 1.5 foot by 1 foot.

6-What colors does it use?
It uses grey, orange, green, purple, white and black.

7-What materials were used to make the map?
Laminater Paper was used to make this map.

8-Who made the map?
Identity Map com pay made this map.

Map content:
9-What location does the map depict?
This map depicts Brooklyn Heights, Metro Tech, Boerum Hill and Fort Greene.

10-What details does it include?
It includes street names and major building names.

11-What time period does the map depict? Is this the same as the time when it was made?
The map depicts 21st Century. It is the same.

12-What is familiar to you about the location depicted in the map?
It is located within the area of our college.

Interpretation and Reflection:
13-What is the purpose of the map?
The purpose of the map is to show the buildings in the Business Improvement District (BID).

14-Why did it survive prior to becoming part of the archives at BHS?
It survived because it is relatively new.

15-Why did BHS incorporate it into its collections?
BHS incorporated it into its collections because it has the value regarding the buildings in the Business Improvement District.

16-What is familiar or unfamiliar about the map?
Many buildings are buildings that exist and buildings we know of today.

17-What additional information would you want to better understand the map?
The names of more buildings.

18-Where is City Tech in relation to this map?
It is located on the middle of the map and near the top of the Metro Tech center.