James McBride

Response to James McBride

Rachel Catena

Nov. 19 2014

After attending the James McBride presentation I started to think about all the things he said.  Although I have not read his book “The Good Lord Bird,” I really appreciated his talk and the things he discussed with us. To start off, I love the way he connected with the audience with his humor and personal stories. Instead of it being a presentation where someone stands in front of a crowd speaking the entire time he engaged his audience by allowing them to ask questions and talked about his personal life. McBride was very humorous and a really good presenter. He grabbed my attention from the start to the end because everything he said I wanted to listen to. He talked about life and one thing that really stood out to me was when he was talking about history. McBride told us, “talk to your grandparents, some of the best stories come from within your own home.” He inspired me to call my grandma because I know both her and my grandpa have amazing stories about how they fell in love and my grandpa had a very interesting life in Poland. I also told my dad that I would like to visit my grandfather because he has a beautiful story of my great-grandma and how she grew her own tomatoes in Italy. McBride really opened my eyes about the people around me and made me excited about the life I have ahead of me. He touched on studying abroad and how it is a truly wonderful experience that we all here at FDU have at our fingertips. Lastly, McBride said he doesn’t own a television set he just likes to read. My roommate, a really avid reader, and I have already agreed to pack up our t.v. and she is going to share some of her favorite books with me. I truly enjoyed his presentation and I am really happy he came to present to us.

Can Beauty Be Constructed?

10/29

The word beauty is one that as a society we often associate with having a thin waist, flawless skin, perfect teeth, and long beautiful legs. However, not everyone is blessed with having all of these qualities that are considered to make someone beautiful. My personal belief is that you do not have to have these qualities to be beautiful they can come from other qualities that you hold. Beauty isn’t supposed to be “perfect” it is supposed to be real, and natural. Victoria Secrets model, Cameron Russell believes and states that from her experience in the modeling industry that beauty can not be constructed in the way that photographers and editors create it. She thinks that beauty can not be man-made or fake. On the other hand, for someone like Aimee, Mullins, who has had both of her lower legs amputated, she would argue that beauty can be constructed. Aimee Mullins has used the invention of prosthetic legs to construct her own beauty. She now owns twelve pair of legs including a hand carved wooden pair that was designed by Alexander McQueen and a pair that make her much taller than she actually is. For Aimee Mullins, her disability doesn’t stop her from doing the things that a woman with “beauty” could do such as being a model. Having perfect long thin legs is something Aimee did not have before her prosthetics. Now, her constructed beauty is what helps her on the runway and at photo shoots. Although she is still very much beautiful without her prosthetics, they help her achieve things she couldn’t without them. Aimee Mullins is inspired and guided by her constructed beauty everyday.

http://www.ted.com/talks/aimee_mullins_prosthetic_aesthetics?language=en

Problem and Solution

Rachel Catena

October 1 2014

Writing Skills Workshop

Essay 2

Think back to eighth grade, what did you do on your friday and saturday nights? For me, it was the usual friday night at Aspen Ice, an ice skating rink and game room where they had a dj play music and a concession stand with the cheesiest of cheese fries and the greasiest of pizza. Saturday nights, however, consisted of my parents dropping me off at Applebees with three of my best girlfriends to spend my parents’ money on spinach and artichoke dip and the infamous Triple Chocolate Meltdown. After leaving a ridiculous tip consisting of wrinkled ones, nickels, and pennies we would walk across the street to the Flemington Movie Theater where almost everyone experienced their first kiss. We would never tell our parents but here is where we would meet boys, sit in the back of the theatre, laugh obnoxiously, and exchange numbers on our flip phones as a movie we weren’t even interested in seeing was projecting on the screen. These places where I spent my weekends are what kept me out of trouble at a young age. In recent years, Flemington, my home town, has knocked down the movie theater and Aspen Ice no longer runs fun-skate friday nights. Without places to hangout on the weekends, teenagers will resort to basements where they can only play so many video games before breaking into the liquor cabinets or potentially worse, the medicine cabinet. Curious teenagers can get into a lot of trouble if they are stuck at home with nothing to do. My hometown needs to step up their game and stop replacing the kid friendly establishments with banks and CVSes.

Unless you were around to experience the good times and memories made at the Flemington Movie Theater and at Aspen Ice, you will never fully understand why they meant so much to people like myself. In Valerie Kinloch’s essay, “Harlem, Art, and Literacy and Documenting ‘Harlem is Art, Harlem as Art,’” the author tells us about Harlem and how people from that town feel. Kinloch quotes a member from the Harlem community by the name of Phillip, he states, “They don’t know ‘bout the rhythm that’s our madness” (Kinloch 148). This reminds me of my town, Flemington, in the middle of the third richest county in America. From the outside, it looks like we have it all and many would say that we have nothing to complain about but being born and raised in this town for eighteen years, I know our madness. I have grown to love our madness that is Flemington but when the town begins to take away all that makes up our madness is what drives me crazy.

The old run down movie theater, Aspen Ice, these places made up Flemington’s madness. My weekends were consumed by these places. My memories were held tight by these places and the children of the community have grown and learned from these places. Now, flemington is consistently talked about how there is nothing to do there. Teens are constantly walking around late at night, going to parties, and hanging out at Wawa. Wawa is the only place in the whole town that is open 24/7. At any hour of the night you can find people hanging out in the bed of their parked trucks in the parking lot of Wawa. Teens are also drinking at a younger age and doing harder drugs. In the recent years, heroin has been a problem in my town. Counselors have informed families in the area that the fatal drug has been introduced to the middle school. At that age the only thing I was addicted to was cheese fries. At that age I also had options of places to hangout with my friends on the weekends.

Flemington may not have a lot going on anymore but it is the place that I will always hold to my heart. I love my town and I wish teens in my area could experience weekends like I had when I was younger instead of getting involved with illegal substances. Khaleeq, a member from the Harlem community, mentioned in Kinloch’s essay, believes that “people shouldn’t be talking ‘bout places like Harlem like it’s some bad dangerous area or something” (Kinloch 149). Khaleeq is defending his area where he grew up because he feels as though people don’t know Harlem the way he does. As for my town, I believe people shouldn't be talking ‘bout places like Flemington like there is nothing to do there. They don’t know my town the same way I once knew it.  

Flemington consists of farms, a Wawa, and a million banks and convenience stores. The people in my town look forward to our once a year events such as the famous annual Balloon Festival and the Hunterdon County 4H Fair. The Balloon Festival is this huge festival in July where they set off hundreds of hot air balloons. The 4H fair is a county fair in August with games, farm animals, rides, and fair food. Both of these events happen in the summertime and only happen once every year. As for the other months, there isn’ t much going on around Flemington. Recently, the idea was proposed to the town that they hold more events weekly. We already have antique classic car shows in town but those tend to draw an older crowd. The idea that was proposed was to have a weekly music and arts night. On these nights, Flemington Main Street will be littered with local musicians and artists to showcase their talents. The restaurants also located on Main Street will participate in these nights as well by offering outside concession stands. This idea is perfect for the reason that kids can still roam around the streets of the town if they want or they can participate and show their own special talents to their peers. This is draw in a crowd because the performers friends will come to support their friends and hangout. It will also help local business because the kids will spend their money at the stores while they enjoy music and art.

All in all, Flemington is not this drab place with nothing to do. Just as Khaleeq and Phillip feel as though Harlem shouldn’t be judged, I feel as though Flemington has great potential to be the way it was a few years back. It is the place that I call home and the place where I grew up. My experiences in this town have shaped me to become who I am today. I am beyond excited to see where this proposal of Flemington music and arts nights is going. I’m sure the teenagers in my town will take advantage of these fun nights in Flemington so they don’t have to spend their time sitting around in each other's basements with nothing to do. The teenagers of my town may not have the fun-skate nights and movie nights like I had but now it’s up to them to make the music and art nights a memorable experience to look back on.

My Favorite Place

Rachel Catena
September 21 2014

    With the turn of the doorknob a little fluffy creature will always approach you with ears back and tail wagging. The thump of her paws on the hard tile is enough to brighten your day. Her little yellow body stumbles over the shoes scattered in the hallway and slides into your legs almost knocking you over before you can even put your bag down. The little yellow lab will follow you into the kitchen, bathroom, up the stairs, down the stairs until she gets the attention she craves. At any given moment you can walk into the kitchen and smell pasta cooking. There is never someone not in the kitchen. The television is constantly streaming Family Guy full blast yet people are still screaming and talking over it but refuse to turn it down. The little lab Sandy is always in the way and always grubbin’ for scraps of anything edible. My mom is running behind us trying to organize everything we make a mess of. My dad is standing in the middle of the kitchen stirring pasta, and pouring wine while talking to my sister who is all the way upstairs in her room. As she skips down the stairs and sits in her usual spot at the kitchen table she picks up the remote control and we all know what is going to happen next. She’ll put on the Food Network or the Game Show Channel and my dad will yell at her because Jeopardy comes on at seven. By this time, my mom is still standing, my older sister Allie is sitting next to my other older sister Victoria but is occupied with the little furry creature under the table. My dad is still cooking odd amounts of food that way more for a family of five and I’m sitting here soaking it all in.

    The kitchen table is a long wooden oval with six green chairs around it. There is always the one empty chair that we pile all of the miscellaneous items that were on the table that week so we don't have to sort through mail and figure out whose keys are whose and what those little sticky notes mean before we get started on dinner. My kitchen table is what holds all my childhood memories. We still try to meet there every Sunday night, all five of us, well six including my little dog. I’ve done my homework there for twelve years and learned how to write my name on that very table. I dyed my first Easter egg there and played endless games of Rummy, a card game that my mom always seems to win. Every birthday cake of mine has been served at that table and funny stories of the day or weekend have been shared over that table. My kitchen is the family meeting area, and eating area. When anything happens that needs to be talked about, or advice needs to be given or taken, through all the times I’ve been yelled at and praised, we have met in that very kitchen. I love the people that live in my household and wouldn’t want to spend my time in a chaotic kitchen with anyone else.

Response to Hip Hop

Rachel Catena
September 21

    In the reading, “Hip Hop Planet” by James McBride, the character talks about avoiding Hip Hop music for many reasons. Even though Hip Hop was becoming the biggest thing at the time, and history was being made, the character stepped away from that type of music because it held everything he wanted to leave behind. The character then says, “In doing so, I missed the most important cultural event in my lifetime.” After making this statement, he begins to talk about  Hip Hop in a different way. The character describes the atmosphere of Hip Hop by explaining how the MC’s and DJ’s work and mentions that “graffiti artists spread the word of the “I” because the music was all about identity: I am the best.” The character mentions identity because he feels as though the music itself was helping guide those individuals in becoming who they truly are. Hip Hop shapes his identity because that type of music isn’t just music. It tells a story along with an interesting beat and often has a dance that goes with it. Hip Hop music was made for parties and entertainment but also told life stories of those who wrote them. The history behind Hip Hop is what makes it so strong. It told stories of slavery and the way things used to be.

Finding out what signifies who you are is something that is different for everyone. In the passage “How To Tame a Wild Tongue” by Gloria Anzaldua, she tells her story of how her language is what defines her. For Anzaldua, she identifies through her language and that is what made her the person she is today. For me, however, my language doesn’t define me as much as a certain place does. Luna Pizza is a place that has truly shaped me into the person I am today and with that it is what I consider to define me.

I spend hours on end driving seven minutes from home to this old, beaten up, white building with no shutters. The parking lot can fit maybe four cars (including mine). The letters ‘L’, ‘U’, ’N’, ‘A’ are spray painted and bolted to a hand cut wooden sign my dad made and placed on the front porch. The door is this red color that can only be described as the same color as our sauce. I answer phones, and waitress, and prepare food, but I’m also the cashier. Luna Pizza Restaurant is set in between two train tracks in the heart of a small town by the name of Three Bridges, NJ. It was opened up six years ago by my family, The Catena Family. With three girls by the ages of eleven, thirteen, and sixteen, we now had a full working staff. This place is a second home, the thing I’m most proud to own, and one of my favorite places to be.  For a year, my parents, older sisters, and I tiled floors, painted ceilings, and tested out a million delicious recipes; we had no idea what we were doing. On May 6th 2008, we opened the doors and started the craziest chapter of our lives. That year took off and we won a number of awards including “Best Pizza in Hunterdon County” and “Cutest Restaurant,” which without a doubt we were. Friday nights turned chaotic with a line out of the door and the phone ringing off the hook. Six years later, we still have our regular customers who come in and sit at “their” table and not say a word because they know their order is memorized by heart. My parents will take time to sit with the customers and not only ask how the food is but tell them our story of how we came to be. My family has come a long way and has learned things that are only to be learned through an experience like the one we’ve had. At only twelve years old I had the responsibilities of someone twice my age. I developed skills that will stay with me for a lifetime. Now at the age of seventeen I run an instagram page for the restaurant, do the food shopping, and often times even open up the place by myself when my parents are running late. Without Luna Restaurant, my Friday and Saturday nights would be like a normal teenagers’. However, I also would not be the person I am today. I have gained so much confidence in talking to people I do not know and having conversations with adults. I learned how important it is to make connections and have been introduced into the business world without even knowing. My parents have given me an incredible taste of the business world which is how I have chosen my major. Most importantly, I have spent the past six years and will spend the rest of my life traveling and criticizing pizza without even meaning to. Luna has shaped me into a new person and has tied me closer to my family than ever. I could not be more proud to be defined by such an amazing place that was created solely by the most important people to me.  

Black Power

In the Color of Water by James McBride, he talks about the concept of black power and how it defines him as a young child. McBride talks about black power in a way that has changed him. The fact that he uses the saying “black power” many times throughout the entire piece makes the concept even stronger and emphasizes just how impactful it is. McBride reminisces on watching cars, with names painted on the side, race through the streets. One that stood out to him in particular was a GTO with the words “Black Power” painted across the side. McBride’s reaction to this scene with the car is a main supporter of the fact that he is trying to make of black power being a strong concept. He says, “we thought he was God, But there was a part of me that feared black power very deeply for the obvious reason.” By McBride saying he thought that the man in the car was a god shows that McBride highly respected him. The juxtaposition of God and terrified is an interesting way to describe the man seen in the car. Usually people associate God with feeling comforted and safe but in this case, McBride describes himself to feel both terrified and amazed with the man in the car labeled “Black Power.” The scene creates a good understanding of what “black power” means. It shows how the phrase is something within itself. Power is the main focus of the concept along with respect.