Introducing Kimberly

By -
My name is Kimberly Wilson. Most of the people in my life call me Kim except for my family members. I prefer to be called Kimberly but, everyone feels the need to shorten my name. I am beginning to accept that people will call you what is convenient for them. I am from Greenwood, South Carolina. Specifically Hodges, South Carolina. Greenwood is a typical small town that has been growing rapidly in the past couple of years. I do not know if people believe it will become the next Greenville but, there is still way too many restaurants and not enough activities for anyone under 60 years old. The very small town that my house is located in is the most country and peaceful place to grow up in. Sunny days in Hodges are a blessing.
Currently, I am a senior English major with a history minor. I just turned 21 a few weeks ago and it was one of the most heartfelt birthdays I have had thus far. My full time job is being a Resident Advisor in Magnolia House. The hours are random and scattered. Freshman are unpredictable young adults and that make my job extremely spontaneous. My only hobbies are watching college football and trying to learn how to perfect my makeup and hair skills. I am passionate about many things but, the main one that comes to mind is justice and fair treatment of black people in the United States. The unjust killings and discrimination is ridiculous.
As a learner I like to see things visually before I attempt them myself when it comes to technology. Other than that I can read pretty much anything and remember it. Throughout my childhood I read all of the Junie B. Jones books. She is the weird kid who is relatable. As I began middle school I stopped reading as much. Books have sometimes been my way of having an interesting life because it became boring often with no siblings living in the house. Lastly, books are currently my way of learning new perspectives and receiving encouragement when needed, even from fictional characters.

Comments

  1. TashaTOnlineSeptember 4, 2018 at 6:45 PM

    It's great to have you in this class, Kimberly. It sounds like you have a close connection to the place you grew up. I love visiting Lake Greenwood, and would love to have a home there someday. It is fascinating that you serve as an RA. I bet you have some stories to tell! I admire your willingness to be a mentor to our freshmen students. I'm glad to learn that you are an activist for social justice and how we can discuss more about how that connects to YA Lit. And, of course, Junie B is one of the best ever!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Growing Pains - The Symbolism of the Tree in Speak

By -
I have felt the paralyzing pain of internal disease. The kind of trauma that causes your mouth to curl in and swallow you whole. I, like so many other women, are walking the halls in Melinda’s shoes in “Speak.” I thought Laurie Anderson did a phenomenal job of twisting all of the tribulations a high school girl goes through, into the tree that Melinda is. Whether we’re as strong as an oak or weak as a bush, we have all gone through the disease that strikes Melinda from the inside out. Melinda is like a half-dead tree. Some parts of her strive to blossom and create beauty. Other parts are broken and diseased. Like a dead tree, Melinda needs to save herself and “cut off the damage, [so it] is possible for the tree to grow again” (187). The symbolism of a tree is significant in “Speak.” Trees reflect her growing process. In the beginning, Melinda is a sick and lifeless tree. Her view is negative and dark. She’s so far past repair, bursts of sunlight do her no good. Sunlight would be pe...
Read more

How Starr Goes from Acting to Embracing in The Hate U Give

By -
In The Hate U Give, Starr Carter is caught between two worlds. She lives in a predominantly black neighborhood, but her father sends her and her brothers to a private school where she is surrounded by white people. She talks about acting differently depending on what group she is around, which can create some identity problems. She says on page 11, "Funny how it works with white kids though. It's dope to be black until it's hard to be black." When at Williamson, she sees white kids that think it's cool to engage in black culture, but she knows they don't understand what she goes through in her Garden Heights community. She witnessed her friend Natasha's death when she was 10 years old, and she sees gang activity in her community all the time. When she is among her black friends, like at the party, they tease her for hanging out with the white kids. This reminds me of a Drake song where he says, "I used to get teased for being black, and now I'm...
Read more

Postmodernism in Curious Incident

By -
Before I start writing, I first want to acknowledge that I just really loved this book! It seemed like a lot of the class had trouble enjoying or appreciating the novel because it's so different stylistically, which is understandable, but all of those unique elements helped make the novel more authentic. The main topic I want to focus on (also what I'm writing my paper on) is how a lot of postmodernist elements were used in the novel to make Christopher come to life. While obviously not every postmodern novel is about an autistic kid, I think Haddon really used a lot of these elements to his advantage and they ended up working out really well to characterize Christopher. One of the major postmodern elements which helps this book really craft an authentic portrayal of autism is the fact that it's metafictive. Basically, this means it's a "story within a story." Readers would be extremely limited just reading the parts of the novel which are meant to be C...
Read more