Did my first speech today-
...And realized I'd written more of a book report than a speech per say. You would think that I learned my lesson long ago about switching jumps in the middle of a program. HELL NO.
Following are the teacher's comments on my speech.
Time: 2:20
Don't say "hi" or "okay"
Looking up
Playing w/ feet- TOOK OFF SHOE
LC Centered
Looking above
Gestures as you go
Good end
Teh Shoe Thing- apparently I took off my shoe unconsciously about halfway in. After everyone was done with their speeches, the teacher said something like, "Yeah, one of you even took one of your shoes off! I've seen a lot of nervous habits, but that's a new one." And I'm sitting there thinking, what idiot took their shoe off? That's a dumb thing to do.
Of course it follows that the idiot was me.
Well, at least I'm exploring uncharted territory.
- Choose a quote.
- Give the origin, context, and what it means to you. Must be between 2-3 minutes.
Quote: “The grapes should be harvested soon, and prepared in the ancient fashion. Perhaps I should send a flask to Four BEE, with our compliments. However nasty a drink it would be, it would be better than their lousy sapphire wine.”
Quote is from: Biting the Sun, by Tanith Lee.
Context: This is a book that takes place thousands and thousands of years in the future. Life has become a perfect utopia- death and disease don’t exist, war doesn’t exist, all the problems and worries that influence our society today are things of a past so distant that the word “God” is unknown. Mankind is now housed in three cities, Four BEE/BAA/BOO, which seem like artificial Gardens of Eden in the middle of the desert waste our planet has become. They’re very futuristic places, full of gardens and palaces and shopping malls. Money isn’t an issue; you “pay” for things by telling thank you to a machine- so there is no poverty; no one wants for anything. Don’t like the body you’re in? Commit suicide, and they’ll give you a new one that you design yourself. Androids and robots cater to your every whim, and you’re free to do whatever comes into your head.
Of course, it’s not quite that simple. It turns out that the robots who are serving the humans are really controlling them; the androids are jealous of the soul that humans possess, but they are incapable of having. So paradise turns into a prison; most of the people in this book don’t realize that. The few that do abandon life in the cities for a life on their own in the desert waste. Even once they leave the confines of the cities, the androids follow them and try to sabotage their colony.
Means to me: This is one of my favorite books ever. It’s like the Matrix, in color. The writing is phenomenal, but it’s really the narrator that gets to me; I think I see a little bit of myself in her. She searches everywhere for some meaning to her life, looking in all the wrong places and going through hell to find what she’s looking for, and when she finally finds it, she starts a quiet revolution. I also love her sense of sarcasm; the quote that I picked sums up everything that she feels about the cities and the androids who control them. That’s by no means her snarkiest comment- the whole book is filled with her snarky comments- but it’s one that really sticks with me. It shows her contempt for the people who tried to keep her from who she wanted to be. It shows her pride, in that she’s being true to herself, even if the results are less than stellar.
I guess that in the end, it’s a quote that reminds me that whatever I do, I’d better do it wholeheartedly, and make life worth living. Unlike the people in the book, I’ve only got one shot at this- I should probably make it count.
Following are the teacher's comments on my speech.
Time: 2:20
Don't say "hi" or "okay"
Looking up
Playing w/ feet- TOOK OFF SHOE
LC Centered
Looking above
Gestures as you go
Good end
Teh Shoe Thing- apparently I took off my shoe unconsciously about halfway in. After everyone was done with their speeches, the teacher said something like, "Yeah, one of you even took one of your shoes off! I've seen a lot of nervous habits, but that's a new one." And I'm sitting there thinking, what idiot took their shoe off? That's a dumb thing to do.
Of course it follows that the idiot was me.
Well, at least I'm exploring uncharted territory.
- Choose a quote.
- Give the origin, context, and what it means to you. Must be between 2-3 minutes.
Quote: “The grapes should be harvested soon, and prepared in the ancient fashion. Perhaps I should send a flask to Four BEE, with our compliments. However nasty a drink it would be, it would be better than their lousy sapphire wine.”
Quote is from: Biting the Sun, by Tanith Lee.
Context: This is a book that takes place thousands and thousands of years in the future. Life has become a perfect utopia- death and disease don’t exist, war doesn’t exist, all the problems and worries that influence our society today are things of a past so distant that the word “God” is unknown. Mankind is now housed in three cities, Four BEE/BAA/BOO, which seem like artificial Gardens of Eden in the middle of the desert waste our planet has become. They’re very futuristic places, full of gardens and palaces and shopping malls. Money isn’t an issue; you “pay” for things by telling thank you to a machine- so there is no poverty; no one wants for anything. Don’t like the body you’re in? Commit suicide, and they’ll give you a new one that you design yourself. Androids and robots cater to your every whim, and you’re free to do whatever comes into your head.
Of course, it’s not quite that simple. It turns out that the robots who are serving the humans are really controlling them; the androids are jealous of the soul that humans possess, but they are incapable of having. So paradise turns into a prison; most of the people in this book don’t realize that. The few that do abandon life in the cities for a life on their own in the desert waste. Even once they leave the confines of the cities, the androids follow them and try to sabotage their colony.
Means to me: This is one of my favorite books ever. It’s like the Matrix, in color. The writing is phenomenal, but it’s really the narrator that gets to me; I think I see a little bit of myself in her. She searches everywhere for some meaning to her life, looking in all the wrong places and going through hell to find what she’s looking for, and when she finally finds it, she starts a quiet revolution. I also love her sense of sarcasm; the quote that I picked sums up everything that she feels about the cities and the androids who control them. That’s by no means her snarkiest comment- the whole book is filled with her snarky comments- but it’s one that really sticks with me. It shows her contempt for the people who tried to keep her from who she wanted to be. It shows her pride, in that she’s being true to herself, even if the results are less than stellar.
I guess that in the end, it’s a quote that reminds me that whatever I do, I’d better do it wholeheartedly, and make life worth living. Unlike the people in the book, I’ve only got one shot at this- I should probably make it count.