[1] Mark Edmundson writes in Why Read? " Reading woke me up. It took me from the world of harsh limits into expanded possibility" (1). What about you? Have you ever experienced a similar expansion of possibilities based on something you've read?

     I have a younger brother Scott, who will announce to you, proudly no less, that he's never read a book in his life. And I think it's probably true. He graduated from high school, an average student. I'm sure he must have at least read a few stories along the way in his education, but the idea of reading, for it's own sake- it never took root in him. We probably all know people like that. And there's nothing wrong with them- it's their right to live life as they wish. Some people are finished with learning when school is over.

     Scott works as an engineer for Amtrak, and has done so for over twenty years. He makes a hell of a lot more money than I do, and unlike me, has never been married or had children. His bank account therefore is huge. And I love my brother. But for all his monetary wealth, I wouldn't trade what reading has given me in a different type of riches.

     The things I've read over the decades have continually expanded and enlightened me, and this has been literally hundreds of times. I would have to write a book to give full credit  (and please- I'm not bragging here or trying to sound like some literary genius- I am most definitely not). I just love books. And magazines, newspapers, blogs, cereal boxes...

     An English teacher in high school actually recommended a "banned" book to me. It was Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut Jr., and it changed my life. I've read him over and over (multiple times), all his works, because he resonated so much with that 17 year-old me. I was, and still am a "secular humanist cynic", and Vonnegut with his dirty words and drawings of assholes and all sorts of other irreverent concepts let me know it was just fine to feel that way. (I have one of his signed self-portraits- a prized possession).

     As a musician, I've read every guitar magazine, artist interview, and musical biography I could get my hands on. These have contributed immeasurably to my development. Why not learn the secrets from the masters? Some of them are very generous with their knowledge.

     I discovered Zen Buddhism many years ago in a library book- a philosophy I aspire to in my daily existence. I have a Peterson's Field Guide to Wild Edible Plants and a US Army Survival Manual that have taught me that I could make it in the wilderness if I had to. Carl Sagan and Stephen Hawking have given me a layman's grasp of extraordinary scientific realms. You get the idea...

     Here's just a small assortment more, and I'll stop: J.R.R. Tolkien. Ray Bradbury. Arthur Clarke. Carlos Castaneda. Richard Brautigan. Omar Khayyam. e.e cummings. H.P. Lovecraft. John Milton. Homer. Cervantes. Herman Hesse (Siddhartha)... all of these and many more have given me some great moments in my life.

     It's been a very eclectic, DIY approach, but I have my own unique body of knowledge that spans many centuries and genres and disciplines and cultures- all because humans that have lived before me put their thoughts on paper. Quite a gift.

     And so, the short answer to question 1-  What about you? Have you ever experienced a similar expansion of possibilities based on something you've read?

     That would be a big YES.

[2] Are you a devotee of "spectatorship and consumer-cool" as Edmundson describes it in "Total Entertainment All The Time" and " Cool School " (7-21)? How does your experience in the BLS program compare with Edmundson's critique of the current state of higher education?   

     At age 54, I fall somewhere at the very end of the baby-boomer era, too young to have been a "hippie" (although I would like to have been), but more importantly- decidedly too old to be a member of Edmundson's "spectatorship and consumer-cool" demographic. When I was in my late teens/early twenties, the traditional college age, cable TV and VCRs were pretty much as far as consumer entertainment had progressed, and music could only be purchased on vinyl records or cassette tape. There were no computers for consumer use, much less an internet. Although it sounds prehistoric, you had to call on a land-line telephone, write an actual letter on paper and mail it, or visit someone in person in order to communicate.

     That's not to say that I haven't appreciated the technological advances as they became available to me. The first computer I ever owned was when I was in my mid-thirties, and I've become fairly literate at computing by trial and error since- navigating online courses such as this, for example, over the past three years. I have Facebook and YouTube accounts, e-mail and photo-editors, music software for recording my guitars or playing virtual keyboards... in other words I've adapted fairly well. But I'll never be as proficient as someone like my 25 year-old son who grew up immersed in them. (His job right now is evaluating websites for Google).

     I notice the differences between myself and the younger classmates in this course and others- people my age aren't so concerned anymore about what their peers think. Or as Edmundson puts it, "[Young] Students apparently feel that even the slightest departure from the reigning code can get you genially ostracized" (13). I come onto these posts, sometimes a little over eager- too much enthusiasm; too "wordy" as someone inferred... Some of you twenty-somethings out there are loathe to do that. I understand- I went through all that too at your age. But I'm not here for anyone's stamp of being "cool", nor very concerned with what is thought about me. I mean it does matter to a point (I still have a pulse, after all), but I'm going to write what I feel, and care about... not censoring myself out of fear of being a "nerd" or whatever. I'm here to learn and make the best grade I can. That's the top priority, hopefully with productive interaction with the rest of you being a close second.

     The BLS program and UNCG have some parallels with the college trends and agendas that Edmundson describes. I did indeed receive colorful brochures showing "students working joyously, off by themselves" (17) when I first showed interest. The UNCG Bookstore inundated me with spam to the point that I had to unsubscribe. There's even pop-up ads now in Canvas. I guess a college has to get its revenues anyway it can.

     I've had a couple courses here that I considered very relaxed in their grading and that therefore were not very challenging, but that's been the exception. This current half of the semester is kicking my ass harder than anything so far- but I like it. Bring it on.

[3] What is your understanding of Edmundson's term "final narrative" (25-28). Do you have a final narrative? 

     The final narrative is a person's core of beliefs and values. Their ideas about how life should be lived, and what is important for them to acquire or accomplish. I think "final" might be a little misleading, especially for younger subjects, because these principles can change drastically when some major event comes along. I know that my priorities took a serious shift when I became a father, for example. Deaths of loved ones, changes in relationships, relocations to new geographical areas, career moves- all of these and more could alter one's beliefs considerably. Or not. People react in many different ways.

     Some people devote their lives to a cause, or an occupation. Some live for love and affection above all else; some for money and material things. I suppose any of these could be final narratives. Even the pursuit of pleasure beyond all else- hedonism can be a core value. I like Edmundson's phrase "the ultimate set of terms that we use to confer value on experience" (25) as his definition of a final narrative.

     My own final narrative will probably continue to evolve slightly, but I can say that the majority of it is set at this point in life.  I believe that people should have the right to pursue whatever they desire, as long as it doesn't harm others. That religions, of all faiths, should have the freedom to worship, but have zero influence on government and not judge those who are agnostic/atheist.  Skin color, gender, and sexual orientation should not be criteria to judge others by. I believe that people should learn for their entire lives, and expose themselves to as much art and history as they can. And maybe most of all, that we should all have true compassion for all life on the planet, and to protect our environment for future humans and animals.

 @Courtney Putnam:

     You and I have quite a bit in common in our reading backgrounds, as I too was a precocious example who got some teachers' attentions in the early grades. There wasn't any required kindergarten back in my day (mid to later 1960s) but I entered the first grade already reading quite well, and by the time I was in sixth grade they rated me at about 2nd-year college level. I was tested for how many words-per-minute I could do (with some crazy machine that looked like it belonged to a mad eye-doctor).  It was all a bit much, when I look back on it...

     I do believe that they swelled my head somewhat and that I wasn't mature enough to handle it (are we ever?) I'd go to my city library and check out several thick tomes and have the librarians thinking I was some kind of freak. And about time adolescence hit me, and it became important to be a "cool" kid- I was already hopelessly labeled as a bookworm and class "brain". Those were some tough years, and I went into a shell. But kept reading like a fiend.

     My chance to downplay my "nerd" image came when I got a guitar at age 12, and I dove into it with everything I had, becoming a prodigy at music too. But it was different- the popular kids accepted me in that role. So "guitarist" I became, for the next four decades (and counting!)

     Isn't it crazy how the early school years shape us? Did you (or anyone else in this class) ever have negative experiences from being considered smarter than average?