Response to "Once in a Lifetime"

This story is written in and interesting way because we get most of it in first person from the narrator with second person at times to refer to Kaushik and his family. It's pretty clear that Hema's family is more conservative and less modern than Kaushiks and I think the way Lahari chooses to write the story makes their conservatism all the more noticeable. Hema's relationship and attitude towards Kaushik is distant an in the end unresolved. We never learn what really happens between the two, even though we do learn that she finds him appealing, yet nothing is ever acted upon which is a little disappointing. By having Hema's character detached and speak of everyone the way she does gives us an emotional attachment to her and the people she has feelings with, I.e. Kaushik. I think we sympathize with her because it's almost like we're in her head as well. The tension she feels or experiences, we experience it with her. I actually liked the way this story was told. The writing strategy here was different and caught my attention

Response to Shelby's "The Bleeps and Blips of Life"

   This story is about two sisters, Anna and Karen whose father is in a coma due to cancer. The sisters constantly fight and don't care for each other very much if any at all. In the end Anna gets over her stubbornness and I'm assuming calls the doctor to take her father off of life support.

    I like the angle of this story, and how it began with the comparison to the different sounds and smells found throughout a hospital and how most people think the hospital is a quiet place when it is the complete opposite. I think that's why I really like the title of this story, I think it fits well. "Bleeps and Blips" can refer to the sound of the hospital monitors and such, and also the ups and downs of normal life, like Anna recalls from her childhood. I think the title really works. I also thought it was interesting how we get all of the inside information about how Anna really feels about Karen, however Karen will never know that. Also I liked how Anna was closer with her father than her mother, automatically making Karen and her mother the ultimate enemies. I honestly have no suggestions for this story, and I really enjoyed reading it. I thought the detail was great and the explanations were just enough. 

Response to Christina's "Password Protected"

    This story is about a girl who is browsing around on Facebook while also remembering her brother who we learn at the end dies from Leukemia. While surfing around and reading different post from the people on her newsfeed she becomes disgusted with social media and the affects it has on people. 
    I really enjoyed this story and thought the angle that you took to write it was done very well. I loved how we didn't find out that Thomas dies until the end. I also loved how your character kept him alive so to speak through his facebook page. The coping mechanism there is quite powerful and it shows how different people cope with death. She says that she's keeping him "immortal" which is something the hospital couldn't do, when in reality we know that this idea may be a bit much, never-the-less, we understand that it is the way she chooses to cope with the loss of her brother. My only suggestion for the story would be maybe some more dialogue. I think I want to hear Thomas talk a bit more and I want to know more about him besides him being in the hospital with cancer. I think I want some more interaction between him and her, when he was alive, like some moments of nostalgia. Maybe she remembers something that happened or something they talked about before he got sick that would tell us a little more about him. Other than that, great story here.

Response to Cole's "Status Quo"

   This story centers around a boy named Jake who's very analytical and pretty much over thinks most things. He likes to watch the reactions of people from his actions. I liked the repetition of the word buzz used throughout in the story and then it ending with silence. The character reminded me of several people I know, and I found him to be really interesting. His luck doesn't change with his peers until hes sentenced to ISS basically with two other boys. He finds himself making friends with them and after sharing a joint finally is able to really just take things in instead of thinking about them, not to mention he's made some actual or seemingly actual friends.
    I like the character in this story and I don't think he needs to change much, if any at all. However I would like to know a little more about him. What is his fascination with people's reactions toward him? He obviously doesn't really fit in, so was he picked on a lot, and that's why he goes about school this way? I think I want a little more background about him. I also would like to see what his new found friends really think of him. Are they just using him for the moment, or is he really going to become "one of them." Other than that, I really like the story and the buzz buzz contrast with the silence.

Response to Matt's "Series of Omissions"

     First off this story is told in the style of an obituary and the like, about a man named Norman O'Connor who has died. It gives us details about the relationships he had with members of his family such as, his wife, two sons, and daughter. We learn that for the most part he was a good father and husband, but at times did exhibit moments of rage. 

    I love the way this story was written and I love the idea of the obituary-type point of view. I would've thought to write a story from that point of view and I thought it worked really well. I thought you painted Norman's relationships with his family members well, while also showing that he wasn't a perfect husband or father. I really liked the part that showed even when he became, in other words obnoxious, his wife still remained there no matter what, even though we can tell she's possibly rethinking some things about him and personality-maybe even some things she missed when she first married him or something like that. I also loved how you captured the memories he was survived by, even though they weren't the happiest of memories, but it makes one think, even when you didn't exactly like someone, when they die you do miss them.

    The only thing that I wanted to see a bit more of, was the relationship between the brothers expanded a little more. I kind of wanted to know why they were brawling after the funeral. Were they that upset about his death, or were there clearly some internal issues never cleared up? Other than that, I thought this story was awesome and I loved the length of the story as well. I don't think it needs to be any longer. Great job Matt.

Response to David Foster Wallace's Incarnations of Burned Children

     This story is about a baby who is burned by a pot of boiling water that falls off the stove while the father is busy hanging up a door and the mother is somewhere not paying attention. Both the mother and father scramble to help the baby by putting him in the sink in attempts to cool him off, but what they fail to realize is that the whole time the baby's diaper has held the remaining hot water. They rush him to the ER where the reader is left to decide whether the child dies, or if he is reincarnated or etc. 

     This is the second time that I've read this story and every time I read it, I always wish the parents had noticed the diaper quicker instead of trying to calm the situation themselves. I always think that in that situation, wouldn't that be the first thing they'd take off considering a pot fell from up high? But nevertheless this is a very well-written story. I think having characters without specific names makes the situation more horrific and builds a serious tension, especially considering the father plays a big of the blame game with the mother. The story is told more so from his perspective which also works, and makes the reader wonder what exactly the mother was doing that she wasn't paying close enough attention. However, accidents like that happen everyday and I think that Wallace did a great job taking something as horrific as that and wrote a short story about it. He captured the fears of every parent I think while also the emotions of whom to blame in the situation. 

      This story is hard to forget and I think that's another thing that makes it work so well. The details are so gruesome and not to mention so easily possible, that it makes us rethink those times we left water on the stove, or possibly those times when we were young ourselves and how we came so close to being hurt that way. The ending is also a cliffhanger leaving us with questions of, did the boy die, did he live, does it matter? I think Wallace proved his point well with this story. In situations such as these, which are common, it's easy to play the blame game as well as feel guilt, especially if the outcome is deadly.

Response to "Baking Cookies"

    This story is about a young boy named Matt who is sexually abused by his mother. We are given the story through his innocence, as he describes play time with mommy while baking cookies. We learn that she uses baking cookies as a ploy to get him to "play" with her. 

      I absolutely loved this story, and maybe I did because it was disturbing, but nevertheless I loved it. I thought the idea of the young boy seeing playtime as a special bond between him and his mother worked well and conveyed very well. I also loved the whole confectioners vs. powdered sugar thing great as well. The mother of this child is just completely screwed up and I think you capture that with Matt's subtle details of things he repeats she says are alright. 

     I felt like you were able to take a touchy subject and write about it tastefully. The scenes weren't over done or there wasn't too much unnecessary detail. We are able to feel sympathy for Matt because for one, he's just a little boy, and then two, we understand his innocence and how his mother has manipulated him into thinking the way he does. He's young enough to be innocent, yet old enough to realize him and his mother do things differently than everyone else. He even mentions that he prefers to play with mommy because there's no chance that he could get hurt, like the other kids do on the playground. I honestly have no suggestions for this story. I loved every part of it, especially the ending when the social worker lets him know that she hasn't come to "play unsafe games" with mommy. This story worked really well, and I loved the safe vs unsafe theories he'd developed in his head because of her. All in all great job.