Class Contemplations

Today we presented our egg projects. It was interesting seeing the different directions we all took. But, to be honest, I think I came away with more of an impression of the diversity of creativity than the ability to actually recall many of them. I liked the concept that Beth and the new guy developed of putting the egg outside and recording the effects. I also found the buried 'alive' idea pretty odd and, like Beth, wondered what that said about the grave digger.

The video on the over-saturation of options was absolutely right on -- but something I don't like to think about because it's even more overwhelming to contemplate than it is to be overwhelmed by the options. I've been around long enough to see some major changes in technology and have an appreciation for simplier times. Four TV channels, newspapers, libraries, home phones (rotary, at that), Atari. Okay, I'm officially old. I agree, we all should have our own fish bowls. I've spent the last few years trying to get a bigger fish bowl, however. I've been swimming in one of the bags those poor county fair fish come in for a REALLY long time.

The Egg-speriment & Egg-ccentric Annie

I decided to go with whatever direction my mind originally takes me for this class (since I've tended to over-think things lately). So when Beth brought out the eggs, my first thought was of the egg/baby experiment in jr. high Home Ec. You know what I'm talking about (if you're old enough). You have to keep an egg in one piece for maybe a week, take it everywhere, treat it like a baby, blah, blah, blah. I think they later used flour sacks and probably use those simulated babies now. 

So my mind was on the whole maternity thing and I also had dogs on the brain because Beth said her dog had destroyed some of her chickens. I once had a dog that thought that all sorts of things were her babies -- socks, shoes, stuffed animals, actual babies. She also destroyed anything she DIDN'T think was her baby. This would be the reason I had to adopt her out, so I found her a home with a puppy and she was as happy as a pig in... well, you know.

I decided to do an experiment using MY baby -- my 9 yr. old yorkie, Annie. She's very particular, terrified of other animals (birds, squirrels, rabbits, flies), and I've never noticed anything maternal about her. The only thing she protects is a nasty old stuffed lobster that she hides from me and sometimes sleeps on top of because she's afraid I will throw it away (I think she reads minds.)

Disclaimer:  This is where I apologize for how crappy my cheap digital camera and picture-taking skills are.


I started by introducing Annie to the egg, telling her it was her baby and pretending to love on it. She wasn't terribly interested but finally came over to sniff and breifly lick it.

Then she gagged.

Then she ignored it, like she does other things she is afraid of.

Then she walked away.

So I tried putting it in her favorite spot to lounge -- the chair in the corner of the dining room where she keeps Lobby (the nasty lobster).

She found a new spot to lounge and wouldn't go near it. 

Then I even tried putting the egg INSIDE Lobby (while Annie was outside so she wouldn't see me do it).

She avoided it...

gave me that accusitory look...

and the kiss of death -- ignored it.

Finally, I gave up and put the egg in the fridge. And that's when she showed interest.

I suspect it was the cheese cubes in the fridge that made her come running.


In conclusion, my dog is not maternal. I doubt she'll care when I eat her baby in a breakfast sandwich tomorrow.

Day 1: Expectations

I guess this sums up my expectations for this class as well as anything can. I've been bogged down with the projects and lost the creativity with most of my classes, not to mention the other aspects of my life. I'm stuck in a spot of wondering "what does this prof expect/want" and over-thinking things. So I'm going into this class with the idea that I'm just gonna run with the first thing that comes to my mind/hits me in the gut, no matter how ludirous or stupid or fabulous or lame. From the class, it seems there are similar motivations for creativity revival and a break from the norm. Looking forward to it.