Emma Watson HeForShe Speech at the United Nations
Emma Watson HeForShe Speech at the United Nations | UN Women 2014
We wouldn’t presume to add anything. Beautiful, powerful, human speech!
GalleryMay I Have More Plot, Please, Sir?
May I have more Plot, please, sir?
“…penny for my thoughts!” drawled Brain, scoffing, “I don’t know whether to tell you what I think of how little you value my thoughts or ask what good any amount of money would do me on Faraway.”
Robbie just glared at him while Chad and Amelia shared a bored smirk. Then she softened.
“You drifted off…”
“I was just thinking about a book I’m reading – one of those old mystery books from the nineteen-twenties or thirties that Chad lends me – a carefully constructed plot that accumulates clues and weaves them into a theory that points to the one and only possible culprit: the butler.”
He went on with more wind in his sails after that. He’d gotten them to laugh.
“I thought, if someone tried to put everything that happened to us in the last month or so – during that trouble with the pirates over Pacifica – tried to fashion it into some kind of story, it couldn’t possibly seem like a carefully crafted plot. More like an episodic series of harrowing events – to borrow Lemony Snicket’s phraseology. I’m not sure what the plot was, other than: pirates obviously had it out for us.”
“It’s a kind of McGuffin!” offered Amelia, “A McGuffin once removed. Some unknown objective the bad guys have, and we’re just caught in their path. In their way. That’s all. And then, we have to survive the oncoming semi-truck full of bad guys that’s taken a bead on us, however we can. That’s the story. Just like the trouble with the golden caterpillar! The plot is unknown, flowing all around us. We’re just stuck in the middle! Clueless, minding our own business, yet in dire peril! Still, […]
Cold Fusion
Cold Fusion
Chad said, “I think, if the Americans developed cold fusion tomorrow, the first thing they’d say would be: ‘Wow! How soon can we make this a weapon?’. And then, the second thing they’d say would be: ‘We need to keep the rest of the world from getting this technology. They’d just want to turn it into a weapon!’”
“I don’t… I don’t… think you can jump to that conclusion,” stammered Brain, confused by Chad’s unexpected vehemence.
“That’s my point exactly!”
*Chronicled in Book Two of the Rocket McGee Series for tweens, younger teens, and kids of all ages by Roan Reedling, Rocket McGee: Back in Trouble!
GalleryDid you read that thing about J.K. Rowling saying Hermione would have been better off with Harry?
Did you read that thing about J.K. Rowling saying Hermione would have been better off with Harry?
Brain turned from his study of Robbie’s profile.
“Did you read that thing about J.K. Rowling saying Hermione would have been better off with Harry?”
“That was a while back…” answered Amelia, a little snidely.
Chad said, “I think what she said was that the series’ storyline really demanded pairing Hermione Granger with Harry; that she’d originally conceived of pairing Hermione and Ron out of some kind of personal wish-fulfilment thing that had nothing to do with its credibility in the storyline and that, even though she soon recognized it as being nonsensical, she proceeded to doggedly adhere to the original outline. We can all identify with that!” he chuckled.
“So what do you think?” Brain pressed.
“I think it may be true that Hermione would have been better off with Harry – but there’s no way Harry would have been better off without Ginny. I can’t see how anyone could love him more or better than Ginny did. That was an amazing combination of motherly love and… passion? – a double whammy’s-worth of fiercely protective love.
“I must say: Bonnie Wright‘s portrayal of that love? – AMAZING! I mean, I’m sure there was some cleverly insightful coaching from the director, masterful mood-setting by the cinematographer, and crackerjack storybook framing by the editor, but – Bonnie Wright’s portrayal of that love? … … …AMAZING! Sorry, I was trying to find a different word, but… AMAZING!
“And, you know, sorry to say, I have to agree that the storyline sometimes seemed predisposed to a Harry/Hermione hookup. Even destined for one. But other possible hookups were thrown out there too and I distinctly remember thinking, as I read: […]
GalleryThe View from Faraway: The Kids’ Own Blog Is Coming Soon!
Robbie, Amelia, Chad, and Brain will soon post to the pages of RocketMcGee.com, under the Rocket Likes category; transcripts of conversations they had in person, or in the omninet. The kids really like to refine their understanding of things by sharing and talking them through. And, when they share the things that they really like and are meaningful to them, they want to share them as clearly as they can – and with a view from Faraway.
Chad once shared with them the beauty of the brainstorming process he’d observed at the University on Faraway, where he’d witnessed diverse frames of reference and points of view tangle into tapestries that none of the participants would likely have envisioned on his own. The kids wanted to try to capture that energy; that creative power.
The audio of their first conversation was quickly transcribed by a Scribblebot, and they could have just shoved that out into cyberspace, but they’ve continued to work on it with the help of a publishing AI, to include a description of their non-verbal interaction – like their facial expressions and gestures, grunts and groans, giggles and guffaws. Those were all very important parts of the conversation that wouldn’t be relayed in transcripts of audio alone. And now they find themselves in further discussions – now that they have to agree on what those non-verbal overtones actually were, or were meant to be, too…
“No… I did not ‘grin wryly and softly chuckle in quiet, knowing agreement’ – I grimaced and pointedly scoffed at that notion!”
See what I mean? It takes time. But, the kids have all agreed to let the publishing AI be the final arbiter for how best to characterize their non-words, […]
