Charlie's Class Blog

2007-05-23T09:15:00.000-04:00

Charlie Mackinnon

Day of Gracious Living:

It’s a beautiful day at the beach. The sun is shining onto the perfect sand of South Haven’s north beach. The beach is alive with people, doing everything from football to frisbee. Groups of friends cluster near the water, taking in the sun or relaxing and having a drink. In the past, day of gracious living was almost a huge campus wide party at the beach. More recently however it seems that day of gracious living has been loosing some of its flare, with many students spending their day in the library, or even in a mandatory class rather than at the beach enjoying the weather—the true spirit behind Kalamazoo College’s day of rest.

The idea of K’s entire campus out at the beach, enjoying all it has to offer can be pretty hard for many students to imagine today, but not that long ago Day of Gracious living was an institution that was encouraged by the school as a true day without work. Today many students simply remember the conflicts and problems and even a threat or two that DOGL may disappear.

The tradition began May 13^th 1974 the day of gracious living was instituted to help students alleviate the pressures that begin to mount during 8^th and 9^th week. Initially the Student Commission rejected the proposal for such a day, but the faculty pushed it through anyways. It is meant to be a surprise day without class, but due to restrictions and changes it is becoming less and less of a surprise. Some restrictions have been put in place so that the faculty can be more prepared at having to cancel a day of class, and to protect the science labs that would be almost impossible to make up.

Although the day had been created as a mandatory day to abstain from doing any sort of school work, the tradition changed a little in 1980. Spring is the season of storms in Michigan and Kalamazoo was struck by a powerful storm as well as a tornado. The tornado did over $50 million in damage to the city, and the school was not left unscathed as the tennis courts suffered the damage. This year many students spent the day of gracious living out in the community trying to help clean up or repair some of the damage caused by the storm.

It seems that although the faculty had to push for the creation of the day against the initial will of the students, these sentiments seem to be changing. The faculty has always been somewhat resistant to DOGL.

“Some complained about having to rework entire curriculum schedules.”

Students don’t seem to mind the imposition caused by missing a day of class,

“I’m just glad we get to miss class, most of my professors have already scheduled a day of nothing in anticipation of DOGL.” Said Jeff Leone ‘08

With classes only having ten weeks to begin with missing one day can prove to be difficult for some people, but as we found out this winter, unexpected things like snow days happen, and classes are able to deal with it. It seems that a thirty year old tradition would allow most professors time to allow for changes.

In some extreme cases there is even required attendance on day of gracious living. Usually this is only reserved for a speaker who is only in for the day and is not able to change their schedule simply because Kalamazoo College cancelled classes for the day. As an extreme case, it seems that when this situation arises the teacher is able to make it up to the class at another time.

Another criticism of day of gracious living is that

“a day of doing little or no work contributed to little more than sloth amongst the student body.”

Included in this argument is the idea that day of gracious living encourages drinking amongst the student population. Traditionally the school encourages the day to fall on a Wednesday because classes or labs on Thursday can prevent students from going overboard in their gracious living. With the mass migration towards South Haven as well as the opportunity to drink, there is a lot of possibility for trouble. The South Haven police are usually out patrolling the beaches to make sure no student is living a little too “graciously”. Another problem that occurs if DOGL falls on a Monday or a Friday is that it extends the weekend, and rather than spending the day living graciously in Kalamazoo it can encourage students to go home.

With many students complaining that there are not enough social activities on campus that encourage the participation of a large percentage of the campus, DOGL is basically required participation for the entire campus. Even if students don’t take the day off and stay on campus to do work, DOGL is intended to fall on a day that has good weather, so those who remain on campus are able to socialize and study out on the quad.

The day of gracious living has become one of the most storied traditions at Kalamazoo College. The day offers students a chance to take a break from their heavy work load and spend the day doing whatever they wish. Whether it is heading down to spend the day in South Haven enjoying the sun and the beach, or lending a hand and reaching out to the neighboring community. This day allows students a chance to relax a little and to take part in more social and campus activities while enjoying the weather of a Michigan spring.

Feature Article

2007-05-07T01:39:00.000-04:00

http://men.style.com/gq/features/landing?id=content_5598

I found this article in GQ, and it talks about the importance of the American Coal mine. I had been like the author and been pretty ignorant about just how important these mines are to the economy as well as the people who work them. Laskas attempts to investigate coal mines and do it in a positive light. She makes note of how usually theo nly reason people are examining mines is because something bad happens.
The article is complicated in that it shows the economic implications, in the U.S. and around the world, of the coal mining industry but it is also able to put a human face to it, and some of the stereotypes that go along with coal mining. It was pretty interesting to see the men and women involved with the industry and just everything that goes on with mining coal. The people all had very interesting stories and make the piece a lot more dynamic.
Laskas does well to throw different emotions at the reader in her investigation of different people and situations of the mine, mixing humor in to keep the reader interested. I thought the article proved fairly interesting on what could otherwise be seen as a very boring topic.

And if you're bored I found another cool article about a 13 year old who is a General Manager for a minor league baseball team.

http://men.style.com/gq/features/landing?id=content_5633

Profile Reaction

2007-05-02T00:12:00.000-04:00

I didn't really like how my profile turned out. I am definitly not a good enough writer to get across the character using the show don't tell. I felt I wasn't able to adequately build the character of my subject without coming right out and saying. I attempted to use as many descriptions and situations to illustrate the points I was trying to make, but they never seemed to pan out exactly how I wanted.
The interview process was definitly a little harder than I expected, especially when I wasn't exactly sure which direction I wanted to take the piece. I wish I had spent even more time brainstorming questions to ask Yoshii. Once we were sitting there going over everything it was easy, but getting prepared was what was difficult. Also, once I started writing the piece it was really tough for me to figure out how it was all going to come together but also have a good flow to it.
I did think it was a little easier writing about someone else as opposed to the personal essay.

Profile: Yoshii

2007-05-01T09:49:00.000-04:00

“LEONE!” He screams; followed by a rapid fire succession of Japanese swear words, at least that’s what his teammates think. His yell is easily heard over the ping of metal bats, and the chatter during baseball practice. The Kalamazoo College baseball team is only one thing on a list of accolades for visiting international student Yoshiaki Kurosawa.

His initial appearance is that of any other college student, dressed comfortably and smiling, he actually looks slightly reserved as he sits at a table studying; a large pair of headphones sits next to his mp3 player (filled with both American and Japanese music). Underneath his hat sits a wealth of black hair, shoulder length now, it had been twice as long and at one point filled with cornrows. It’s hard to believe that this modest looking fellow could also have been seen streaking the quad.

Born in Saitama, Japan, a suburb of Tokyo, Yoshii began his English studies at the age of twelve, about the same time he started playing baseball. Yoshii is a student of the prestigious Tokyo University, but is currently on a year abroad in the United States and seems to be attempting to experience everything Kalamazoo and the U.S. have to offer.

Yoshii exemplifies someone who is out for experiences, even choosing Kalamazoo despite his dislike for the cold and for snow. One of the draws that Kalamazoo College offered was its size, cozy compared to the roughly 48,000 enrolled at Tokyo University, another advantage was the ability to form closer relationships with the students. Tokyo University has no dorms so students are forced to live off campus in apartments and have more trouble forming close bonds with one another, Yoshii now lives with four other roommates on campus. Yoshii was also attracted to Kalamazoo College because of his interest in religion, “we are not very religious, so it is interesting to study,” he said.

Yoshii has taken part in many activities on campus, getting involved in several clubs and groups through the school. He choreographed and performed a dance for the student dance festival Frelon, modeled in AsiaFest and even claimed to be the Japanese National Chugging Champion prior to competing at the Athletic Leadership Council Pep Rally where he attempted to drink a half gallon of apple juice as fast as humanly possible.

At a school that only requires five physical education classes to graduate, Yoshii has taken 6 in his one year; everything from ball room dancing to horseback riding. Horseback riding was a personal favorite according to Yoshii, each one of these activities have allowed him to examine the culture of the United States as well as bringing some of his home culture here, and each one offers a new experience. This quarter Yoshii is enrolled in Great Lakes Sailing, which will offer him a perspective of Michigan that not many other people have.

Away from Kalamazoo, Yoshii has taken several interesting trips across the country. He has spent time in Washington D.C., as well as New York, Philadelphia and Los Angeles. Yoshii enjoyed his time in California considerably and one day wishes to live out west. He has also traveled extensively throughout the state of Michigan, hitting places such as Muskegon and Traverse City.

Back home, Yoshii enjoys Korean food as his favorite place to dine out; here he says he eats mostly in the cafeteria. This isn’t bad according to Yoshii because after watching the film Super Size Me, he decided that his favorite food since coming to America was the vegan burger served at the cafeteria, “Wonderful” he says. Although he is twenty-one Yoshii says he has not made it out to many of the bars around campus, citing a problem felt by most college students, “it’s hard to find a driver to the bars.”

As a member of the college baseball team Yoshii has noted some dramatic differences between how the game is played back home as opposed to the United States. In Japan he notes, “Baseball is taught very traditional and the coaches are very strict” but over here the coaches are friendlier and try to have more fun. Baseball has been one of Yoshii’s favorite activities in the U.S. as it allows him to play the same game as he did back home, but it also allows him a chance to get to know the other players as well as be part of a team. Many of these teammates will never forget his titanic swings and unbelievable speed.

Yoshii is a student of Business and hopes that one day his skills in economics as well as his language abilities will land him a job with a major corporation. His business background may be traced back to his father who sells insurance back in Japan, and who is successful enough that his wife does not need to work. Yoshii hopes to intern with a Chinese corporation this summer and gain some experience so that when he graduates he can start a successful career.

Yoshii still contacts his parents every so often but argues that he doesn’t “miss them at all.” It seems that he is simply too busy from everything that is going on to spend a lot of time on the phone, but he and his mother do share a monthly email. He also notes that neither of his parents speaks any English, but for his generation it is considered almost a pre-requisite.

Even as Yoshii sits studying quietly at a table, he prefers Beaners because, “its not too quiet but I can still get my work done” he seems eager to go and try something new. A sly grin crosses his lips as he discusses the possibility of some other trips, around the state or out to the local bars. Most of these things are new or different to him, so he is attempting to cram as many things as he can into the short time he is here and make the most of it.

Reading Response

2007-04-26T11:55:00.000-04:00

I'm late...

The readings on Virginia Tech are pretty scary. It's insane to think that someone could just walk into a classroom and start shooting. This is particularly creepy since an incident of much smaller proportion happened on our campus a few years ago, and on top of it all the guy at KVCC really went and stirred things up. The profile on Cho is especially haunting because it seems that people did almost everything in their power to prevent this, other than having Cho committed against his will. It was also an interesting technique because it required more of a profile on Cho's family and basically anyone that came in contact with him rather than Cho himself. The reader is forced to take the word of the author and those who are describing Cho and his life.

One of the most disturbing aspects of the story is the challenges faced by Cho's professors. Cho was involved in a major that required creativity and imagination and often allows for delving into disturbing and violent areas, but according to the profile, even his teachers thought he was going too far. It was interesting to look at the problems faced even when the professors saw the warning signs, and their struggle to recognize the difference between art and psychosis. It seems that everything was done to help Cho, who was clearly portrayed as unstable throughout the profile but nothing could be done.

I thought that despite the questions raised by the articles that those involved had responded by doing everything reasonably possible. It is easy to question now, but at the time it seemed that locking down the entire campus would have been extreme and unnecessary, and committing a 23 year old man in the prime of his college career over his writings also seemed a bit extreme at the time as well.

Writing Process

2007-04-10T23:23:00.000-04:00

Despite my best efforts and intentions I ended up writing a story about baseball. It has been a more than small obsession of mine since I was very young and tends to interfere with almost anything I do. There was one other story that I contemplated using for my personal essay but it would have been a little too sentamental and perhaps a bit sappy.
Marin was one of the main causes for me deciding to write about this since she said it would be best to write about something that had been on our minds. This was something that had been troubling me for awhile and was weighing heavily on my concious. For me it will be a life changing event to not do what I've always done. It's also a big decision whether or not to actually get surgery.
My writing process has never been that complicated, I tend to just find an idea and run with it. I think that being a history major has helped me in some aspects. A lot of history is using the personal experiences of someone who came before you, so many of the same elements are in play. It was a little strange writing about myself, and I felt like a lot of it was corny and things that other people wouldn't understand. I know it's part of the assignment to convey this message so others can understand what another person is experiencing but I don't think I'm that good of a writer yet.
As usual I probably waited a little too long before getting everything down on "paper," but that's the way I've always been through college, I tend to work a lot better with a deadline quickly approaching. I like the pressure, I think it forces creativity. Most of my best work happens when I'm working under pressure.

Another Year in the Sun?

2007-04-10T01:54:00.000-04:00

I have always been number one. Not to be arrogant, but since I was 13 years old I’ve always been the number one pitcher on my team, and that’s the way I always thought it would be. I spent 15 of my 21 years of life learning the game of baseball and the skills associated with it. From very early on baseball was something that I was good at, and quickly got better. I knew right away I wanted to be a pitcher.

Countless hours were spent doing drills that may have looked ridiculous but were meant to teach balance or the right way to bend my knee or countless other small movements designed to perfect my mechanics so that I could be successful. Baseball quickly became more than a game but a way of life. Even my family was caught up in the countless tournaments and games that soon consumed most of my summers.

Once I got to high school things weren’t much different. Baseball dictated much of the rest of the year, training through the winter and games in the spring and summer. Spring break was always spent somewhere playing baseball rather than heading south to beaches and usual high school shenanigans. By this point baseball had become my life, the one thing I was better at than almost anyone else I knew. School almost always played second fiddle to baseball; there was more than one instance of a sick day from school that saw me still able to make it to practice. My senior year ended like a storybook, hitting a game winning grand slam that sent our team to the state championships on graduation day. Pitching in the state championship capped off a great senior year and seemed to indicate that my college career would see similar success.

Baseball had done a lot for me in life; I made lifelong friends, had great coaches and it even helped me get into college. Once I got to college not much was different, it was very easy to neglect my work for baseball—although not as easy to skate by. Even as a Freshman I quickly moved towards the top of the rotation. Over the course of three years I managed to set some school records and see a team that had won only 3 games my freshman year set a school record for wins 2 years later.

The year that was supposed to be farewell to my baseball career ended a little sooner than I had thought. The season started off as normal as any other, practicing inside until the team’s spring trip to Florida. Expectations of the team were high coming into my senior year, a crop of good freshmen were going to finally push the team from a contender to the top of the league. Our team was returning more players than any other in the league and everyone was excited.

The excitement built over the winter and everything seemed to be going to plan for a year to remember. The freshman looked as if they could quickly make a difference and the team looked better than ever. The warm weather of the Florida trip and the prospect of a new season had everyone hoping for the best.

New England College was first on our schedule. The day seemed like any other game day. I was a little tired, too excited to sleep the night before but still on edge and the adrenaline would keep me going for the game. Warm ups proceeded just as they had for years before, the same stretches and running as always. We were the home team, I would have to pitch first, so like I had a million times I headed out to the bullpen to get ready. I was ready. The first inning was flawless. Everything was going according to plan.

The second inning was when my life changed. The second batter of the inning something happened, something went wrong. I felt a sharp pain tear through my back and my arm. Nothing I thought, just keep going. Easier said than done; I quickly realized that it was increasingly painful to even lift my arm. Our coach quickly pulled me from the game; he didn’t want to loose me for the whole season he said.

After several trainers, and two orthopedic visits it appears that my college pitching career was over, a torn labrum they think, an injury that took years to develop but the first game of my senior season to happen. This wasn’t how it was supposed to be.

I now find myself in a very unfamiliar place. No longer am I the guy that the team turns to when they need to win a game, I can barely throw a ball. The thing that I love most has been taken away and I find myself struggling to help the team in other ways. I knew one day I would have to give up playing, but I hoped it would be my choice. Now I must help the team any way I can, whether it’s a word of advice for the younger guys, or trying to score the team a few runs, a precious commodity this year.

This year has changed my thinking, mostly from, where do I put the trophy to--do I have surgery and face a year of rehab? Baseball has given me too much to give up on it so easily. I have given so much of my time to the game and to my teammates that what’s one more year? My baseball career wasn’t supposed to end with me on the bench, so I decided I won’t let it.

First Reading Post

2007-04-04T22:23:00.000-04:00

Well this is the first post, hopefully I do it right--

After reading the first three assigned stories I felt that I had a pretty good impression of what narrative journalism entails. The first two stories were more of what I would consider personal interest stories, and from them I got the impression that the key to keeping these stories interesting and compelling was the fact that they could take a simple every day thing or event, and make it seem completely unique and individual. The first story took a relatively mundane event such as moving and turned it into almost an epic story of new beginnings and endings. By using some emotional tools it kept things interesting and forced the reader to become somewhat attached to those they were reading about.
The story of the cancer survivor I thought was a very well written piece of work. Without trying to earn sympathy the writer told a story of survival through a simple piece of artwork in the tattoo of a bridge. The journey to get this tattoo began with surviving cancer but went through several other journeys before a final decision of the bridge was made. The story really seemed to be telling the significance of the symbol of a bridge but required the assistance of many people and much research.
The third article from the NYTimes I felt was not as well done. Despite its presence in a more formidable publication it seemed to be lacking. The story was incredibly long and seemingly without a purpose. I couldn't tell if it was supposed to be about the hardships of a high school girl, or a girl trying to get into college or both. It didn't seem to support one side or the other and was really long. Even though I am not a cancer survivor, nor have I had to move very much in my life I felt I could relate, or at least feel for the people in the first two articles but the last one just kept me distant.