I never thought that a viewpoint, the Wood Center, and an area of woods would have anything in common. One overlooked a parking lot, one was located inside, and the other was behind a playground. As I observed these different places, though different, I found that in some way, they all made me feel peaceful and calm.
The first place I observed was at a viewpoint. I have been in this place numerous times, getting me from upper campus to lower campus and vice versa, but I have never actually stopped and looked around. Today, it was comfortably cold. It wasn’t hot, but it wasn’t freezing either. The big trees were covered with snow while the thin trees were covered in frost. The snow on the ground and gray clouds in the sky gave off a slight gloomy atmosphere. In the horizon, right behind the mountains, was a layer of yellow and orange light trying to overtake the gloominess of the sky. There was a serene feeling looking out towards the mountains. Though there was a snow blower running in the background, it was easy to block out and feel a sort of peace inside. It was easy to forget everything going on in my mind and just stare at the sunrise.
The second place I observed was on the carpeted stairs in the multi-level lounge in the Wood Center. When I entered the building, the place was loud. The blender was rattling, bells were ringing, and other activities were going on. There was something different with the lounge area. Once I reached the carpeted area, the noise seemed to dissipate. The carpeted floor and the lowered ceiling made me feel like I was in another room or building. The lounge had a relax and calm atmosphere. There were separate groups of students interacting and studying, yet it was still quiet. Like at the viewpoint, it was easy to block everything out and go into a new place in my head.
The third place is in a secluded, woodsy area next to a park in my hometown. I would go there with my friends when we were little and play games like hide and seek and as I grew older, it became a place for me to disappear from reality and to enter my own world. The area was full of hills, berry bushes and tall spruce trees. At the very back, there was a place to look out and stare at the lake. It was big enough for me to get lost in my mind, but small enough to not get physically lost. It was a place for me to think. It was close enough from my house that whenever I needed to get away or be by myself, this is where I would go.
Home, to me, is any place with my friends and family where I can feel comfortable and be myself.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Look at Your Fish
In Look at Your Fish, Scudder recollects his experience looking and observing a haemulon fish. For days, all he did in the lab was look at the fish. If I had to look at an object for an extensive amount of time, I would think that I had seen everything there was to be seen with that object. This was true for Scudder in the beginning, but after the first day, every time he went back to the fish, he found something different. How was he able to find something new about an object that rarely changed?
Scudder did this by seeing the fish in a new way. The fish never really changed throughout the time he had observed it but his perspective and how he looked at the fish did. He drew the fish to find distinct characteristics he may have overlooked; he observed the fish without actually looking at it. Scudder figured out a way to actually observe and see the fish in detail versus just looking at a fish.
I kind of do this when watching movies. After watching a movie several times, the next time I see it I watch it differently. I tend to look past the main characters and focus on the background and what other people are doing or other situations that are happening. This sometimes leads me to understanding the movie better. When doing this, I also find irrelevant, but entertaining, things like someone falling or an item breaking in the back. When I have seen something or know something is going to happen at a specific moment, that is what I watch or look for.
I like the end when Scudder and his colleagues were drawing strange animals on the blackboard because all of the fish he drew were haemulons. I like how anytime he tries to draw a fish, it comes out as a haemulon. This makes sense to me. I would imagine that after seeing every detail there would be on a specific fish for eight months, those would be the features I would include when drawing a fish.
When I have noticed a distinct detail in anything, I usually never forget that detail. When I see a small hole on the wall, whenever I see that wall, that is the first thing I notice. I never knew how people could tell their pets apart when they all looked alike, especially fish. All fish looked the same to me. Then for Christmas my brother received two goldfish and after that, we bought more. After actually seeing the fish, and not just looking, each fish had there own unique characteristic that defined them. I realized that when I saw other people’s fish, or pets, I was looking at them but not actually seeing them. This has taught me that when I look at something, I should not only look at the object but also pay close attention and see the object.
Scudder did this by seeing the fish in a new way. The fish never really changed throughout the time he had observed it but his perspective and how he looked at the fish did. He drew the fish to find distinct characteristics he may have overlooked; he observed the fish without actually looking at it. Scudder figured out a way to actually observe and see the fish in detail versus just looking at a fish.
I kind of do this when watching movies. After watching a movie several times, the next time I see it I watch it differently. I tend to look past the main characters and focus on the background and what other people are doing or other situations that are happening. This sometimes leads me to understanding the movie better. When doing this, I also find irrelevant, but entertaining, things like someone falling or an item breaking in the back. When I have seen something or know something is going to happen at a specific moment, that is what I watch or look for.
I like the end when Scudder and his colleagues were drawing strange animals on the blackboard because all of the fish he drew were haemulons. I like how anytime he tries to draw a fish, it comes out as a haemulon. This makes sense to me. I would imagine that after seeing every detail there would be on a specific fish for eight months, those would be the features I would include when drawing a fish.
When I have noticed a distinct detail in anything, I usually never forget that detail. When I see a small hole on the wall, whenever I see that wall, that is the first thing I notice. I never knew how people could tell their pets apart when they all looked alike, especially fish. All fish looked the same to me. Then for Christmas my brother received two goldfish and after that, we bought more. After actually seeing the fish, and not just looking, each fish had there own unique characteristic that defined them. I realized that when I saw other people’s fish, or pets, I was looking at them but not actually seeing them. This has taught me that when I look at something, I should not only look at the object but also pay close attention and see the object.
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