Lost in Wonderland

Lost in Wonderland
"But I don't want to go among mad people," Alice remarked.
"Oh, you can't help that," said the Cat: "we're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad."
"How do you know I'm mad?" said Alice.
"You must be," said the Cat, "or you wouldn't have come here."
(Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, Chapter 6)

I felt like Alice lost in the woods trying to figure out “What am I doing here?” For some reason I thought that we would be getting a little information about the history of Overton Park, but I failed to realize that we would be taking a trek through the woods…something I vowed I would never do. I am allergic to every tree, grass and many plants that grow in the forest on top of that I fear just about everything that has more legs than me. So the idea of walking about in the woods with spiders, bugs, trees, more bugs, grass, and did I mention spiders, well it did not quit excite me. With my fears and allergies it was only crazy of me to put myself in the middle of an allergic reaction for the sake of knowledge.
Fortunately, for me I am a daredevil and cared more about missing a class than having an allergic reaction, and I am grateful that I did not miss that opportunity. The forest was majestically beautiful in the sense that I felt that I was the only one there even though the group was one of the largest the guide had experienced. I imagine that I was like Huckleberry Finn searching the woods for a safe place to hide, or Alice lost in a place just as foreign and mystical as wonderland. All of the greenery reminded me of something out of a great book…a place you want to run free in with the innocence and adventurism of a child looking to discover new territory in the wilderness in the middle of Overton Park.
The tour was great, with all the new information about the importance of each tree and the type of fruit that it bears for its visitors to enjoy. For some reason I did not see the connection in the beginning to anything that we were reading about in the Rushing book other than the part about the expansion of Sam Copper through the park, but the more the guide spoke of the struggle to keep the park today I realized that this was a battle that many Memphians still fight today. The park is truly one of the most interesting parts of living in the city, especially since I have a child that loves to be outside in the grass, climbing trees and needs a safe place to swing and play.
After that day I found myself drawn to my new mystical haven wondering if there was something there that had not been seen. May there is really a gnome or troll hiding in the large hole of the oak we explored. I don’t know, but as with all great experiences the second time is never as great as the first. So as I reencountered the forest with my son, the trees looked old and I realized all of the bugs that I failed to see the first time. The forest lost its magical flare or maybe I let wonderland only existed because I did not know what to expect and now only dirt lay before me.

Can Fighting for Rights be Civil?

A person can read a million books and never understand the complexity of the writer’s ideas, but to hear the voice of said writer will make you see and believe in the power of words. Throughout history the struggle for equality has leaped from race to gender and then to sexuality. The Civil Rights Museum is a glimpse into the history of a battle that lives on in the lives of many people across the world. In my small knowledge of the fight for civil rights I have found that the more enlightened and understanding we become as a society the more civil the fight can end.
The civil rights museum was a visit to the past and reminder of the struggle that many people face today. Even in our "Free" America we are still bounded by the ideas of the people that preceded us. Are we ever going to be free from the veil that blinds us to the truth or are we bound to continue searching for freedom that may only exist in our minds?
As I took the stroll down "Memory Lane" and revisited the stories of my grandparents I felt a piece of myself awaken abruptly. It felt great to walk through the museum and hear the words of Dr. Martin Luther King as he gave some of the most prolific speeches about the rights of a "free-man", and every image that I had the pleasure of viewing sparked a sense of pride to say that someone did the painful so that I can be here.
I was a little shocked about how little emotion I felt about what happened in the past, as I overheard many people voice their distain of the past. Had I become so used to my "freedom" that I take for granted the suffering many had to endure for me to receive it? I think not. I can have the same fire about my son's future without feeling a need to be angry about the past. The death of Dr. King was terrible but I wonder if we would have gotten the same results if it were not for him being a martyr?
Unfortunately I am not one of those people that can take a look at something and see it for what it is. I have to probe and dissect the very images that are in front of me to figure out the foundation of its existence. So why is the death place such a national treasure? Are we celebrating the life, mourning his death or just revisiting the past as I found myself doing today? They say you can’t know where you are going until you understand where you came from, and the Civil Rights Museum is our small reminder that until we are all treated the same based on merit and not gender, race or sexuality then the struggle continues. Sometimes we need little reminders to get us off our butts and do something, not because it will benefit us but because it will be the marker for the next generation to reach for a little more than us.

Wanda Rushings: YOU'RE AWESOME!!!!!!!

It amazes me how people from the outside can always find beauty in things that go so unappreciated. Would you believe that Wanda Rushings isn't even a Memphis native. She was born and raised in North Carolina. I couldn't belive it myself. It made me realize what big of impact that Memphis has on people. My whole life, all I ever wanted was out. I always wanted to head out to Los Angeles. California has always intrigued me. However, I've become open to the many beautiful, interesting, and historical places in Memphis.
Wanda brought out a quite a few things worth noting. She said, "Places lose their individuality due to globalization." Nevertheless, Wanda refuses to believe that Memphis has loss its individuality. She talked about Beale Street. She gave great insight as to what it was and whta it has become. I believe Wanda's first time coming to Memphis was for a job interview in 1998. Personally, as a Memphis native, I'm not all too into Memphis. I don't really visit around Beale street or midtown often unless I'm with my honors inquiry class. Before taking that class, I really had no interest in it at all. Wanda's interest and love for Memphis is so relative and foreign at the same time. I understand why she loves Memphis but I don't seem to love it for those reasons. To me, Memphis is home. It's not Beale street, it's not Sun studios, and it's not the blues.I love Memphis because it's what I know and it's where I've made memories. I feel as though Memphis is to Wanda what Los Angeles is to me.
All in all, Wanda's book makes me realize just how much there is all around me. Memphis isn't L.A. but it has just as much style, a style I'm still learning about.

Mystery Train

The movie Mystery Train is one movie that effectively told us three different stories. The first segment of the movie was titled " Far from Yokohama. " It told the tale of a Japanese couple whose love of the 50's, Elvis, and Carl Perkins led them to visit Memphis. This segment was so very entertaining and unique. It was nice to see Memphis through their eyes. The female half of the couple, Jun was such a sweetheart. She was a huge Elvis fan and she seemed to enjoy Memphis although it was clearly less splendid than her hometown of Japan. The male half of the couple was Mitsuko. He was almost Jun's polar opposite. He was extremely laid back and not easily excited. Mitsuko was obsessed with Carl Perkins, and not entirely convinced that Elvis was the king of Rock and Roll. He added something special to the story, and it was nice to see the couples mild arguments and their contrast in personalities.

The second segment was entitled "The Ghost." It was the story of an attractive and gentle Italian woman Luisa who found herself stuck in Memphis after having a flight delay. She had not intended to visit, and she did not fit in to the landscape of the city at all. She almost seemed to trusting and gullible to be a Memphian. This portion was entitled "the Ghost" because of a hilarious story that a homeless man told Luisa about the ghost of Elvis. Luisa was not quite gullible enough to believe his story, yet payed him for it all the same. Towards the end of the story, she finds herself sharing a room at the Arcade Hotel with a talkative woman named Dee Dee. Their contrast in personalities was an absolute pleasure to watch.

The last of the stories was "Lost in Space." This story dealt with Memphis from more a resident's perspective opposed to a tourists perspective. Three guys go on a sad yet humorous series of adventures that included everything from playing pool to robbing a liquor store and killing a man. They too end up at the cheap Arcade hotel. This story was a lot darker than the other two.

What I personally enjoyed most about this move is the unity in the plot. It is very difficult to construct a movie with three different segments and groups of characters, yet one setting. The way in which the movie was written was absolutely ingenious. Additionally, I thing this movie was a unique attempt to portray Memphis with all of it's splendor and glory, and all of it's many flaws. I would definitely recommend this to my friends.

Beale Street and all of its "authenticity"

I'm not one to really get out. I guess you would say,"I'm a homebody." But to be honest, I never really had a big interest in Beale Street. I'm either in Southaven, MS or Whitehaven. I frequently go to the movies. I've enjoyed films at the Malco Paradisio, Desoto Cinema, Majestic Cinema, and the Summer Drive-in. I LOVE MOVIES!!! I'm not a clubber, therefore Beale Street wouldn't be one of my typical hangouts. However, this past Tuesday came a new image of Beale Street. I window shopped at one of the oldest shops in Memphis on Beale Street, met blues playing men who said, "I had a hole in my soul," and I ate some pretty good mozzarella sticks at St.Patricks while discussing the issues of Memphis with my professor and classmates.

D0wntown brought many other experiences in my life. I've rode on a trolley before in Nashville, TN (a avery long time ago) but now I can say that I've rode on a trolley in Memphis! I also discovered that Memphis has an American Apparell! It's a very popular clothing line that excentuates the styles of the eighties. Me and Graham were impressed by some of the styles but not too crazy about there prices. I'm sure we could find some marked down American Apparell at TJMAXX or Marshalls. Oh and don't let me forget to filll in everyone who's not in on the 411 of Graham. That night I learned that Graham was fifteen years old!!! No, he didn't act fifteen years old, he is actually fifteen years old. Usually, I'm used gto being in classes were the my classmates are older than me. Graham is younger than me and it's kind of crazy how I'm always the last to know eveything. He's also an actor!!! What are the odds???? To think, I learned all of this on Beale Street.

My Beale street experience......

It was about 3:30pm on a Tuesday evening, as a class we boarded the Madison trolley. This wasnot my first trolley ride, so I just sat back and viewed the scenery. Usually when I am on the trolley the sun is about to set. This ride allowed me to see images that I could not see at night. My fare was a dollar which was very inexpensive. Thanks to Graham I was able to ride the trolley because the smallest bill I had was a twenty. I was trying to view Beale street in the eyes of Randa Rushing and the characters of Mystery Train. What a view! I felt like a tourist in my own city. I had never been on Beale street and visited stores and restaurants. Tinisia, Tiera, Monia, and I went to A. Schawb's. That store was amazing! Upon entering the store, it appeared to be small and not very appealing. Once inside my thoughts changed instantaneously! The smell reminded me of mildew or old mop water, but the items in the store were wonderful. I purchased a humorous sign as well as a very dark skinned Aunt Jemima. There were a number of antiques in the store. I saw swords, mugs, plates, ceramic elephants, etc. I am definitely going back there.
Next we went to Silky Sullivan's. There was a live musician playing and the atmosphere was very subtle. You could have a drink and eat barbecue nachos. The people were friendly and hospitable. I ordered a fried chicken salad and cheesecake. The food was surprisingly good. Overall I had a wonderful night and I made it home in time to study for my biology exam. I can say i knocked two birds out with one stone!

The Unsolved Mysteries of Memphis, Elvis, and the train

In the film, Mystery Train, people of different nationalities find themselves in the City of Memphis and a cheap hotel. The movie lets us follow a young teenage Asian couple, an Italian woman, a talkative woman from New Jersey, a barber, a man who looks like Elvis Presley, and a man named after a character in the television series "Lost in Space". The movie is better than what it appears to be. It seems as if maybe the camera used to shoot it wasn't top notch but that is made up for with great dialog, amazing cinematography, and good acting.
In the movie a character who isn't apart of the cast but still has a presence is Elvis Presley. To Mitsuko he is what it means to be an American. She idolizes him and sees him as a hero. Jun isn't too impressed with the city of Memphis. He dresses a bit old fashion but seems to enjoy the modern things in life. Mitsuko looks like an Asian version of Madonna. However, she appreciates the antique looks of the train station. I think they were searching for something grand and found that it wasn't all what it was cracked up to be.
In "The Ghost", Louisa, an Italian woman, isn't looking for anything. She gets conned out of her money a few times. She views Elvis as a cool, famous singer. However, I feel as though maybe Elvis's ghost lost him cool points with her. Louisa leaves Memphis having found a better sense of what people are about and a greater appreciation for where she comes from. Dee Dee is quite the character. She isn't as phased by Elvis. To her, Elvis is her boyfriend Johnny. She's searching for a fresh start without him.
"Lost in Space" is a sequence were guy loses girl, guy gets drunk, guy shoots someone in a liqour store, and guy becomes a fugitive. Johnny isn't American. Though he resembles Elvis with his hair and drunkeness, Johnny is from London, England and his girlfriend Dee Dee just walked out on him. To Johnny and the rest of the cast in part three, Elvis Presley doesn't really matter. He's just a person who was apart of the music culture. The guys seem to look for the answers to their problems but only look for it inside alcoholic bottles and what they find is trouble. For me the movie was great and inspirational. I feel it will have a lot of influence on my upcoming project.

Mystery Train

In the movie Mystery Train there were three stories told simultaneously. One story included a Japanese couple that came to Memphis, Tn to see Elvis Presley's estate and Sun Studios. Another story entailed a woman from Rome that came to Memphis and was told a false tale about Elvis by a beggar. Also she was "ripped off" by a clerk who continuously suggested that she buy magazines. She ended up paying a hotel fee for herself and another lady from New Jersey that broke up with her boyfriend. The last story was about three men that got caught up in a horrendous act. A drunken man shot a liquor store clerk. One of the gentlemen realized that his sister broke up with her boyfriend and left town without telling him.
All of these stories had a common theme which was Elvis Presley, Memphis, and a hotel that everyone stayed the night in. I believed this story focused more on brotherhood because each character had someone to lean on when they were going through a major "crisis." I believe this movie was structured in three parts so we could figure out the similarities in each story.
Elvis was so important in this film because when people think of Memphis they automatically think of Elvis! He defines what Memphis is in their eyes. He is the king. "Thank you very much". It seems to me that all of these people are trying to see Elvis or find out more about Memphis's history and its inhabitants.