Reminiscing the Past: Part XII

1929

by Kaylyn Evans

1929, the father is the last to pass on. And rest he shall among the family. The grounds are shaded by cedar and they face a land of opportunity and openness. A new foreign land is where the Malўs called home and most likely prospered. The size of the headstone and its detail must have cost much of what they had saved, but it is worth this cost to keep their name out there for a lonely and infrequent passerby to see.

Josef and Frantska now lie with their children by their sides. The Malўs are protected by the cedar trees and the dew soaked grass. The calm, warm winds clean them on this beautiful September morning. Their bodies are blanketed by the moist, deep Earth. They are minded by their God they chose to believe in and are guarded by the noble Saints Peter and Paul. Where they lie is separated only by a gravel road from the house of their God.

They rest in the pristine cemetery with a solid, lightly decorated and polished gray monument that stands above their heads where Josef, Frantska and their three children's names are now carved into time. Their native language of Czech adorns the lovely headstones. Frantska, a beloved daughter and mother, is memorialized with a sentence that only a few may translate and understand. I wonder what is said of her. I wonder who decided to leave words just for her. A massive agave has grown next to her headstone, making her blessed by the earth Herself.

However, happiness has not always befallen the Malўs. Two were lost far too young. Only days old and they were to be buried within the family plot. They now are among the parents and brother, Lancelot, they never knew. Miloslav and Josef Jr., twins, will always be remembered and loved, even after such a short life. Josef and Frantska had to watch Miloslav be taken after three days of life, and then they had to endure the pain again as Josef Jr. was also taken only a few days after his second half. A passerby, like myself, could not imagine what pain and heartache that would cause; how could two parents survive that? Yet again Josef had to watch as his young son, Lancelot, be taken away too, not long after Frantska, but quite some time after his brothers. Poor, poor Josef! My heart aches for the Malўs; how traumatic their life had to have been with so many young graces lost. And poor Josef had to live multiple years with only the headstones that must have cost much of his hard-earned money; these seemingly being the only tangible pieces of them left for him. How did he make it through? Did he throw himself into whatever work that made him most likely prosper in the eyes of business men? But he did not prosper in his life because his Lord took his family away far too soon.

Yet now death does not walk along these rows of heroes, patrons, fathers, mothers, sons, and daughters. New forms of life spring from the earth and prevail in the place of the loved ones who were lost, in the place of the tragedies that many, most likely, felt. Families watch over the quiet and lovely graves. Their family tombstones enlighten us all of those who once lived before us. Sadness does not fall here, but happiness for the lives of those who once brought joy shines through.

Photo of the Week: So Many Books

It seems appropriate that we put a picture of books up on the blog since we are writing this post while in the Writing Center library. There are so many books scattered throughout the WC. In the library there is one shelf that is color coordinated to create a rainbow shelf. Whatever you're looking for, you might be able to find a book about it at the WC.

Reminiscing the Past: Part XI

A String
by Ariana Uding

Carved A dot P dot
Son of Anton and Anna
Surname, no first name

Spots of mud and moss
In the tree’s shade you’ve rested
And will for all days

Close enough to smell
Bright enough to call the sun
Too far for a touch

Lonesome in your rest
Next to you lays mystery
Bones lay next to bones

Surname Pavelka
Aging over tombstone but
Letters left untouched

Photo of the Week

Photo taken by Haley Welby.

Reminiscing the Past: Part X

Graveyard Writing

by Caroline Burris

How do people choose what goes on their tombstones? Do they sit down with a pen and paper one day and say, “I want an etching of something significant and a list of the relationships I’ve had and the family I’m no longer going to see.” How do people make that choice?

Julia A. Schaeffer. Julia has a rather lively display marking her resting place. Well, as lively as tombstones can get. A short, stout cross bearing her name standing on a pedestal, rosary beads etched into the stone. On the opposite side there are no beads, there is only a train. The surviving relatives: brothers, sisters, parents, one can only assume, have placed some of their own memorials around the grave. Roses, an angel with a faded painting of a garden adorning its robe: all objects with personal significance which mere visitors will never fully understand.

1964-2004. Julia was only 40 when she died. Did she have warning of it? Could she sit down and plan the designs, quotes, and etchings out? Or was it sudden? Was her family left to struggle with the phrases and pictures that would be seen by any and all visitors? Was her family charged with the task of deciding how she would be remembered?

How do people choose what goes on their tombstones? No matter how we choose, the etchings will become weathered and fade away. All we can tell is that someone is here. Name, age, likes, dislikes, none of that will register. We probably won’t even register that there were likes and dislikes or care about the name. All we’ll know is that the symbols someone chose to adorn their resting place with are gone. The choice of what they would be, ultimately, did not matter.

Photo of the Week

This quote can be found on the right hand side of the wall as you walk out of the WC. Just a little flair to the place.

Reminiscing the Past: Part IX

47 Years
by John Thornburg

Only the good die young,
John Woods. You were okay

Saints keep the resting place
a green topography of slopes
and crosses leaned, the cold of graves
lie in rows like trees.

Maybe you were glad
when Emma rejoined you
47 years is a drive, John
I know she told you all about 1969
and Neil Armstrong, World War II
If it was 1900 and I was 20 years old
maybe I wouldn't have this feeling
like there are plastic flowers
on my grave.

Lively Weekend on Campus

This weekend, a variety of performers will light up Coe's campus. In addition to Sean Kingston (7:00 PM, Friday, Eby Gymnasium), Coe's department of theatre arts presents Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992 (8:00 PM Friday and Saturday, Dows Theatre and 2:00 PM Sunday), The Coe Marquis series presents Sharon Isbin (8:00 PM Saturday, Sinclair Auditorium). On a different note, visiting students can view a guest presentation titled “Reading T.S. Eliot: An Introduction to Religion and Literature," featuring Edward Upton of Valparaiso University. (3:00 PM Friday, Hickok Hall Room 205). These are just some of the awesome events available to students and visitors this weekend.

How fitting, considering that it is Admitted Student Weekend, as well as the weekend of the Writing Center Fellowship competition. It can be hoped that all visiting students are served well by these events.

- Ben B '13

Photo of the Week: Seashells

Spring is here...sort of. The weather is warming up and we can only hope for the summer. Maybe some seashells will bring us some summer luck.

Reminiscing the Past: Part VIII

Mother Is All It Said
by Amber Caylor

I pull my sweater tight around me to prevent the cool morning from sneaking inside. The chill nips at my cheeks and nose, but it’s still early. The sun promises to warm the air around me. At the entrance to the cemetery, the tombstones are large and beautifully crafted, but I pass by them, trekking down the hill to the older part of the cemetery.

The older sections of cemeteries are always my favorite. They are full of lost stories of the people resting in the earth, joined by all those who knew and loved them. Sometimes even the engravings on the stones have been worn away, leaving those resting there nameless to this world.

I try my best to avoid walking on the graves. Many people don’t bother, but I was always taught that it was disrespectful to stand above where someone has permanently been laid to rest. The newer section is easy to get through, with tombstones in clear rows. Once I get to the older part of the cemetery, avoiding them becomes more difficult. They don’t line up to make paths, so I nearly trip weaving through them. Many of these older graves are from the early 1900s, with the names still easily read. I decide to plop down in a stretch of grass.

The cemetery is so peaceful and, strangely, alive. Golden flowers are in bloom, the grass vibrantly green, and I hear cows mooing in the distance. I usually picture cemeteries as dark, creepy, full of shadows and straight out of a horror film. This is not that place. This isn’t a place of death. It’s a place to celebrate life.

I look at the tombstones near me and see a small, flat one that simply says, “MOTHER.” The woman’s name, date of birth and date of death are a mystery. The weather hasn’t worn away the engravings; her loved ones simply chose to memorialize her as Mother, leaving off everything else.

Initially, this lack of name saddens me. Names are so connected with our identities that without them, we don’t know ourselves. This woman lies nameless in the ground, lacking an identity. Perhaps her tombstone is simple because the family didn’t have enough money for something more detailed.

Yet, I probably understand this woman better than if her name had been emblazoned on the stone. I know she was a mother. Every day she loved and cared for her children. I can imagine her tucking them into bed under a warm, heavy quilt and making them pancakes and bacon in the morning. Her family thought of her as such a wonderful mother that they chose to remember her for eternity as mother and nothing else. For her, mother is her identity, not her name.

Today, I attempt to capture a piece of someone’s story. It’s only a minuscule piece of a mother I never knew, but I remembered her. I thought of her. She was not forgotten.

Writing Center Suddenly Abloom with Poetry

On Sunday, March 27th, I opened my email inbox to find an email from Dr. Bob. Much of the subject line was filled with procedural detail headings, but then came the last word, which was followed by an exclamation point. "Poetry!" Speeding through the first two paragraphs of the email, my eyes dived into the third point in Dr. Bob's prose. We were to spend parts of our shifts over the next four days, Monday-Thursday, March 28-31st, writing poetry. We have closed on the poetry collections; the submissions are in, and I hope to give a brief highlight to a pair that caught my eyes. The first is by Alison Polivka, speaking out to us from 9:00 on Monday morning; speaking the true spirit of the morning. It is called Settle.

The perfect cup of coffee eludes me.

There is no coffee at the pump,
nor is there any in the carafe,
and it is too early to even think of the word
decaf.

It takes me five minutes and twenty-three seconds
to make the coffee,
but I need to fill the sugar in the meantime.
There's no milk in the fridge,
so thick, syrupy cream must do.
Someone jacked my mug a week ago,
so one of the twenty-five cent
Goodwill mugs must service.

My sub-par cup of coffee,
cradled between anatomically incorrect sea turtles
and a whale with a lazy eye
will have to do.

Another fun Poem is just titled Poem, by Grant Stevens. It speaks to us from 9pm on Monday.

P is for the Pie I eat.
O is for the Orchid Forms
E is for the Energy I feel.
M is for the moment when
the orchid forms are done
and I eat pie
and am energized.

These and more can be found on the pillar just inside the Writing Center, and there are even more on Moodle that will probably find their way here in the future. This has been an interesting sort of project for consultants, and in my experience, we would enjoy similar projects in the future.

- Ben B. '13

Photo of the Week: Hands of Truth

Maybe they're not hands of truth but then we're not exactly sure what they are. One of the random things found in the Writing Center.

Reminiscing the Past: Part VII

Otillie's End

by Emily Moss

For Otillie,
for the others
I sat thinking.

The late August breeze
whisking by the engraved names
I felt the tingle of fall arriving
and the shivering contrast of silenced life

Maybe for Otillie,
death was a sickening fascination,
morbid thoughts interfering with
learning in school
playing with classmates
daily happiness.

Maturation into adulthood
withered the face into icy coloring
and eery bags hung beneath grey eyes.

The mind consumed with the Ultimatum.

Endlessly
thrashing in possessed sleep
searching for something;
when nothing could be found.

Only when the body lay
nearing its end
and the helpless eyes rolled into darkness
did the mind feel reluctant
to leave what had never really been seen.

So for Otillie,
for the others
I sat thinking.

Poem of the Week [3/21/11 - 3/25/11]

This week's poem is:

"Though methinks he was only
a dream
Perchance thine villain wilt ne'er strike
thee fair maiden."

Got a poem of your own? Put it up on the blue pipe above the front desk and it may appear as next week's Poem of the Week!

- Anna H., '13

Getting Those Publications Ready for Print

It's the end of March and Coe's literary publications are hard at work preparing their spring issues. Coe Review is heading into the final stretch of laying out their fiction issue and after a great review, they are hoping for another stellar issue. The Pearl selected their pieces and are putting the issue together. Coetry is still reading poems and will work on picking the best poems soon for their quarto. Finally Colere is also hard at work and after selecting a cover they also nearing the finish line.

Can't wait to see all the issues in print in the next month!

- The Blogsters

Photo of the Week: Board Games

Our first week back from Spring Break has been a long one, if only we had the time to play these board games. Instead they sit collecting dust as the semester continues full speed ahead.

Reminiscing the Past: Part VI

Rose

By Hailley Fargo

By the time I got to the cemetery the rain had stopped. The road, washed out, slick and

slippery, battled with my beat up car, seeing who could overtake the other. My car won. I was

here, finally.

The air was damp and the blades of grass stuck to my shoes as I made the trek to the

grave. The wind whistled and I heard was the squish, squish of my shoes. The grave was on the

far side, tucked away in a sloping corner; by the time I got there, the bottom third of my jeans

were wet.

“Rose,” I said, sitting down next to the grave. The cross and flowers I had put there a

few months ago were still standing and I played with the flowers absentmindedly while taking a

real look at the grave.

Dirt covered the site, there was no grass to be found. The ground was as dead as Rose

was. The tombstone was a small, only taking three of my hands to span its length. Made of a

red and gray granite, red and rough around the edges and a smooth, gray surface on top, tucked

away in the corner surrounded by a few other graves.

Sway, sway, rustle, rustle. Silence.

Closing my eyes I traced my fingers over the letters. My motions were slow, but

confident. A clear, vivid picture of Rose formed in front of my eyelids. Her bright, emerald

eyes, full of curiosity; her long nose and full, pink lips; her unruly blonde hair and her dimples. I

heard her laugh, I heard her talking to me. I envisioned Rose when I first met her, when she was

twenty; it was the first image that came to my mind. The ninety-three old Rose was someone I

remembered but couldn’t clearly see. Even though I couldn’t see that Rose, memories from the

seventy-three years I knew her invaded my mind and the twenty year old Rose floated in and out of these memories, laughing and smiling the entire time.

Once I got to the end of her surname, my fingers suddenly had no where to go, nothing

to trace and so Rose and the memories that had surfaced, faded slowly.

I looked up and saw the other tombstones, larger and grander than Rose’s. I saw other

members of her family, their tombstones standing proudly above Rose’s. A feeling of shame

rushed over me. She deserved so much more. The tombstone sitting in front of me wasn’t

worthy of Rose. Is was nothing like Rose; she was loud and wild and funny and beautiful. How

could this tombstone represent the ninety-three years Rose lived on this earth? And what would

she think of her tiny, insignificant tombstone, hidden among everyone else's? A tombstone

practically forgotten. I don’t know if she would be ashamed or if she would just laugh at the

irony.

A tear slid down my cheek and I brushed it away as I stood up. By now, my jeans were

soaked and there was a patch of matted grass where I had been sitting. Giving the tombstone one final look, I walked away. When I got to the wrought iron fence, I turned back. The larger and grander tombstones were blocking my view of Rose’s grave but that didn’t matter, I knew where she was.

“I’m sorry, Rose.”

Sunday Night Dinners

Upon returning from Winter Break, the Writing Center decided to spice things up and host a weekly Sunday night dinner in the WC. So far we've been treated to the delectable dishes such as spaghetti, chili, and Chinese. They're a bit hit with the consultants and other students who smelled the non-caf food and come running. This Sunday Dr. Bob and Harlo, a science professor and head of the Wilderness Field Station, are facing off in a chili showdown for the ages. Dr. Bob is sticking close to his roots and whipping up some Kansas Flint Hills Chili while Harlo is going down south for some Costa Rica Chili Picoso. Who will be winner? You'll have to wait until the next blog post to find out!

- Blogsters

Poem of the Week [3/14/11 - 3/18/11]

This week's poem is:

"A tale of

Love Monkeys

with idle grace and

mercy to deceive."

Got a poem of your own? Put it up on the blue pipe above the front desk and it may appear as next week's poem of the week!

- Anna H, '13

Photo of the Week: Coffee

We love our coffee, probably too much sometimes. You can always find a steaming pot of coffee ready for Coe students and staff. And of course, all consultants are whizzes at making a good old pot of joe.

Reminiscing the Past: Part V

Martha

by Heidi Heaton

August 17, 1907.

A life began that day.

Now three simple facts are left of her...her birth, her death, her name.

The sun’s fingers crawl over my skin, while the breeze tousles my hair,

I ponder at this sleek, cold stone and the significance it bares.

White flowers with tips dipped in pink sit delicately by this grave,

Fabric petals of permanence beside old bones of decay.

Does family often come to visit or are there any left?

What legacy did Martha leave to separate her from the rest?

A tombstone, average height, sits stoically in moist, shaven grass,

No distinctive qualities, just tangibly marking the past.

Visitors can only muse at the lives of those beneath the dirt.

But how, in truth, can a stone convey all of the human life’s worth?

The sun’s warmth has seeped into my skin; the soft breeze has left the air,

While peaceful quiet absorbs my thoughts of a life still unclear.

Country roads wind gracefully over hills rolling out towards the sun,

And though her body lies here, her journey has just only begun.

Photo of the Week: Baseball

Since Spring Break is here, we hope the snow will be gone soon so we can pull out our baseball mitts and play catch. This fun game can be found in the WC but I don't think anyone has played it in a while; it's more for show.

Reminiscing the Past: Part IV

Frank J. Lorence

by Kevin (Ben) Schiroo

Born in 1889,

Died in 1979.

That's quite a run.

Ninety years is something a man can't complain about.

Ninety years through disease, war, and social upheaval,

maybe the man has more to bemoan.

At the prime of life was the Spanish flu.

There is little doubt he knew a victim.

He was the age to fight during both world wars.

Perhaps the country's call to service was answered.

He must have made it through,

to be put to rest so many years later.

The impression he left must have been a strong one.

Thirty years dead and he still gets flowers.

Many others with more recent dates,

they have already been forgotten.

The grave stone is unimposing,

protruding from the ground just a couple inches.

It's overshadowed by most of the stones around it,

but flowers make it distinct,

make it leave an impression.

A dabble in Etymology

Once upon a time, I was sitting in the writing center on a calm Thursday night, nominally working, when my coworker for the hour, Katie, asked if I knew the etymology of a certain word. A few seconds of thinking and the at-handedness of a computer led me to jump to the internet, where I found the Online Etymology Dictionary, a resource that lets me search for word etymologies.

Knowing I should be keeping an eye out for interesting tidbits of information about writing generally and writing centers in particular, I decided to take a look at the etymology of write and center. (Etymologically, writing comes out of writings, specifically scriptures, which is less interesting than the etymological mash-up that write has.)

According to the OED (not to be confused with the other dictionary by that abbreviation)The word write comes into modern English from a variety of sources, the old English writan "to score, outline, draw the figure of," the old high German rizan "to write, scratch, tear," and the Sanskrit rikh featuring notably among them.

Center also has a bit of variety to its etymology. Similar old terms are the old French centre--still a common spelling for the term in Britain--the Latin centrum, and the Greek kentron. The latter actually refers to a bee stinger, producing an interesting chain of Etymologies that produce an important modern word.

The closest thing Etymologically to the phrase Writing Center, at least by this method, is the word eccentric. This is a beautiful irony.

- Ben B '13

Photo of the Week: Where is Dr. Bob?

That is the question because Dr. Bob can rarely be found. He does have three offices after all so take your pick.

Poem of the Week [2/28/11 - 3/4/11]

As the Writing Center's official magnet poet for the semester, I've decided to start recording a poem of the week. All our WC poems are from various magnet poet kits, be they Shakespearean, Haiku, JUMBO, or all GRE words. All the poems posted can be found on the blue pipe right above the front desk in the WC.

This week's poem is:

"I curse thy codpiece,

thou villain,

and envy it much."

- Anna H, '13

Reminiscing the Past : Part III

Graveyard

by Millie Osburn

The area surrounding the stone is familiar to me—relaxed farm land. The rolling hills, quiet cows, and the soft breeze remind me of home and where I want to be. A car passes and I hear the crunch of the gravel—I think of my brother returning home from school. Dust remains in the air long after the car has left. The flowers that line the fence remind me of our little garden. The grass is soft and I am tempted to lie down and read. The trees sway in the breeze and my breathing becomes slow—I am at peace.

Looking at the stone, I wonder. I wonder what memories the area has for him. Did the flowers remind him of his garden? Did the grass invite him to lie down and read? I feel at home in this place that isn’t my home, but is the home of the stone and the man the stone represents.

Coe Welcomes Visiting Musicians for Jazz Summit!

I don't know if you've noticed the extra bus loads of people buzzing around Marquis today, but 78 middle school and high school jazz bands are here on campus for workshops and festivities. All of this will culminate in the 2011 Jazz Summit Finale Concert on Saturday, Feb. 26. For more information, check out the news release off the main Coe website here.

- Ben B '13

Photo of the Week: Beethoven

Need some inspiration? Well look no further at the WC then at our bust of Beethoven. His attractive mustache will make you smile and hopefully get the creative writing juices flowing!

Reminiscing the Past : Part III

Elizabeth's Impact

By Ashley Collom '14

Elizabeth’s family misses her. That’s why her grave is decorated with pin wheels and colorful streamers. That is why her still living husband has the plot next to hers with a tombstone with his name and no Death date. That is why more than a decade after her passing she still has flowers decorating her grave. That is why when I sat on her grave, I felt the urge to apologize for invading her space, even though she was four feet below me. I would like to think that her kids and husband still think of her when they eat her favorite desert or hear her favorite song on the radio. And that when they come to this grassy patch, and hear the cows in the background, they can feel comfort knowing that it is these nuances that make us human, not our BMI and hair color. So even if she didn’t have a foundation named after her and she didn’t save someone from a burning building, she was significant. She made an impact on her family, who carry on her legacy. She is made immortal through those who loved her subtleties and shortcomings while she was here. Elizabeth shows us that you don’t have to be spectacular to be remembered. That whatever happens when we’re gone, we didn’t waste space while we were here.

Welcome Prospective Students!

Well February has rolled around and Scholarship Weekend has arrived. As many prospective students come to campus we hope some will take a stroll into the Writing Center. Our bakers have been preparing goodies and we hope we can talk to some of these students tonight starting at 7:30 PM. Campus has lots to offer the prospective students this weekend such Blindspot, bowling, and a magician. We hope they have a great time here and we wish them the best of luck in choosing their college (we hope they pick Coe!).

- The Blogsters

Photo of the Week

Coffee, a beverage you can ALWAYS find in the Writing Center.
Photo taken by Haley Welby

Transamerica Life Insurance Company requested the help of the Coe Writing Center last year to help with the revision and editing process of their book Finding Your Voice, produced by the company to promote awareness for the acceptance and encouragement of diversity among their employees. It contained a variety of personal accounts from employees describing a wide range of experiences dealing with diversity, both within the company and elsewhere. These accounts were then presented to the writing center through shared Google documents, and the staff was able to provide feedback by posting numerous comments on each piece.
The book was recently finished, and last month Transamerica sent a letter to Dr. Bob and the CWC, along with a copy of the newly published work. Included was a generous gift of $1,500 toward the endowed gift account which will help toward providing financial support for future staff trips. "Your time, commitment, and dedication to this project, went above and beyond our expectations," the letter states. "The book is so much better because of your efforts."
The combined work marked a unique collaboration between the Cedar Rapids community and the CWC, and will hopefully pave the way for similar endeavors in the future.
- Matt Barnd, '09

Reminiscing the Fall 2010 Retreat : Part II

This poem is written by Emily Hipps '11.

Runes

The tombstone inscription only discernible

to the limbs of daddy long legs

and illiterate moss.

Josof Bulicek, my best guess

what your name might have been.

I know you lived to seventy-eight.

Was your death slow, creeping,

like the hundred years that stole

the last four letters in your name?

Did those around you sense it coming,

tucking away the intangible parts of you

for safe keeping?

The skeletal facts—name, birthday,

date of death— don’t hold much of you.

You died on 26 January 1916,

but I wonder about the other date,

when the world lost the last person

carrying the fractions of you.

When did the world lose the record

of your favorite shirt, the slant

of your mouth when you were angry,

your opinions of snowy mornings?

Have those bits of you outlasted

the letters in your name?

Who can remember when even stone forgets.

An Encounter with a real live WC Baker

One of the spectacular things about working in the writing center this semester is the prevalence of baking activity under our slightly revamped organizational structure. Simply, there are people whose only responsibility for an hour is to bake something delicious for all of us (who get there in time) to enjoy. As I walked into the writing center one blustery winter afternoon, I heard the telltale sounds of the baker's craft from the back of the Writing Center. I proceeded to investigate, finding WC baker Krista Majcen making some special pumpkin cookies with butter cream frosting.

Krista told me about her weekly baking hour on Sundays, when she and fellow WC baker Caroline Burris recently arrived for their hour and produced delicious no-bake, no-edge cookies in an extemporaneous fashion. I have been told to expect variable, surprising culinary concoctions and the occasional confection. In addition to Krista's weekly staple of variable banana bread, we can expect some experimentation with candies and truffles from the pair. In as near the future as this upcoming Sunday, Krista expects to delve into a carnival theme, producing deep fried Oreos, deep fried Twinkies, and possibly even adventuring into the land of the funnel cake.

I know I will be showing up for some delicious food on Sunday. Will you?

- Ben B '13

Alpha Nu Adventure to Iowa City

Today, Alpha Nu went to a poetry reading celebrating the birthday of Elizabeth Bishop in Iowa City.

I've been to Iowa City a few other times and I've always love the city. It reminds me of a smaller version of Madison. I feel that the University of Iowa is very similar to UW Madison, although on a smaller scale, as the city kind of becomes the campus. That's a really neat feeling but not quite the right fit for me. So I like going to cities like that and enjoying what it has to offer. I still want to get down to Iowa City on a nicer day, it was freezing cold today, and just stroll downtown checking out all the unique shops.

There were a total of four of us who went: me (Hailley), Alison, Sally, and Emily. Our first stop was Oasis, an awesome restaurant serving falafel. What is falafel you might ask? Well it's basically chickpeas that are soaked overnight and then ground with garlic, onion, and other spices. Put that on pita bread and you've got something fantastic. After filling ourselves up we walked a few blocks to Prairie Lights, the bookstore where the reading was being held. Prairie Lights is a quaint little bookstore where I know I could spend a lot of time and potentially money. There was a full house as other area authors read poetry and a smidgen of prose by Elizabeth Bishop. After the reading, the four of us wandered around the store until it closed, showing each other funny books or writing down titles of books we wanted to read in the future. Then it was back to Coe. All in all a very successful trip.

- Hailley '14

Weekly Feature : Reminiscing the 2010 Fall Retreat

So every Monday we'll be posting a picture and reflection paper from our 2010 Fall Retreat to Sts. Peter and Paul Chapel. We went to the chapel during Labor Day weekend for staff bonding, training, and overall fun.

Enjoy!

- The Blogsters

This piece is by one of the current Blogsters, Katie Selinger.

The events that take place in this work are fictional, not a real account.

There once was a gardener by the name of Albert Pitlik who lived in the town of Vernon. His favorite specimens were the petunias that grew near in the village green. He was content doing what he loved best: being greeted by the morning sun and studying flora that surrounded him. He was particularly fascinated a purple bush that grew inches away from his favorite reading spot on the hill. He studied and observed this uniquely colored shrub, but nothing seemed to click; he had never before heard of a shrub with such an unusual color. The leaves appeared to be black, but if one approached close enough, there were definitely hues of purple basking in the sun. The leaves were grouped together in a think block, connecting by little brown branches with bark turning green. They held the plant ever so tightly, much like a weaved blanket on a loom. One day as he decided to get away from the teasing mystery of the bush he lost his favorite bookmark.

“Why don’t I use a pressed leaf from the bush?” He optimistically reached around the bush and found beside it a fair young lady in a light blue dress.

“I’m Barbara,” she said as she noticed Albert, who looked quite red. “I study the insects that live beside this bush.” She paused as she saw a hawk slicing through the blue sky with its proud dark wings. “And who might you be?”

“Uh,”Albert swallowed hard for his voice somehow became very stuck. “I-I’m Albert. I read on this hill, but I’m a gardener you see, so I wanted to find out what this fascinating bush is and also find my favorite bookmark. I-I-I don’t know if you’ve seen it, but it’s white with a painting of a wild rose,”

“I see,” said Barbara with an interested brow. “I haven’t found your bookmark, good sir, but I have a question for you.” Albert swallowed in anxiety as if he had to take a foul-tasting medicine.

“W-What’s that?”

“Have you found out what the meaning of the bush is yet?”

“I believe its,” Albert stammered as his fingers trembled like melting icicles and his legs became pillars of jelly. “This bush has told me that I have found my first love.”

And that is how it all began: the love and marriage of Albert and Barbara Pitlik. When Albert was recruited for the war, Barbara sent him letters and occasionally enclosed leaves and flowers that she had discovered. When Albert returned home, they were still right as rain despite having very little. But then came the dark time when the flu epidemic swept through the town, snatching Barbara right under Albert’s feet. That summer was very dismal for Albert, who felt so alone without his beloved friend and wife.

Years later on an August morn, he quietly wrote his will and tucked it in an envelope with the research that he and Barbara had compiled together over the years and left it all in the names of their children, Anna and Joseph. Among the dying streets, he quietly and silently took his life for he couldn’t bear the burden of the things that he had witnessed over the years: the stuff of war, grief and sadness. But the truth of the matter was that he longed for nothing more than to be embraced in Barbara’s gentle arms once again.

Barbara and Albert loved many of the things they discovered together, one of which was a rather unique, lemon-green moss. You may find this moss alongside the majestic grey stone where both Albert and Barbara’s name hide themselves in the shade and only emerge when the sun hits the tombstone just right. The stone itself stands proudly against the whispering trees and the bright sun upon the very same hill where Albert occasionally read his favorite books. For every day the sun still shines its warmth down upon the grass that always stays green and moist with the morning dew. But if you look closely, you will find that they are above a purple bush, the very same one when they first met.

The Blog is Back!

After a little hiatus, the WC Blog is up and running. Expect three wonderful posts WITH PHOTOS a week from the Blog team (also known as the Blogsters). Here's some of the ideas we have brainstormed (can this count as a conference?)

- WC Photo of the Week

- Recipes from the Bakers

- Birthday celebrations

- Traditions (such as Tuesday tea and Sunday night dinner)

- Staff Profiles

- Other team project updates

- And MORE! :)

- Blogsters

The Beauty of the "I."

Thinking back on my first three semesters of working here in the writing center, a number of conferences stand out in my memory. I had a number of series of conferences with fascinating individuals last year, many of whom became friends of mine because of the experiences. But among the conferences that weren't series with the same few people, I remember with the most interest the conferences with other writing center consultants.

The most recent of these has just finished, as a matter of fact, in which I had the opportunity to conference over a term paper for an independent study with a fellow writing centaur. It wasn't the most exciting conference ever, and it probably won't be the one that I remember for the proverbial movie montage of me working here during my time at Coe, but something about this conference, something about the relaxed, calm demeanor as we talked through her paper, strikes me as a little bit profound.

Upon a little bit of quiet reflection as I finish out my two hour block shift, it comes to me. It isn't anything that I did, it isn't anything she did, per se. The striking, profound happenstance of this conference is that we both go into this one knowing more or less what we should expect. She mentioned to me afterward about how she had wanted to work with me on this because she thought I could be blunt enough for her to hear what she needed to hear and get down to business on the paper.

That, friends, is the beauty of the incestuous writing center conference.

-Ben B. '13

WC Staff Meeting Minutes Location

Okay so the location of the Staff Minutes have changed : they are now located on their own separate page which can be accessed near the top of the blog under "Staff Minutes" and next to the tab entitled "Home." Enjoy!

- Hailley '14

2011

Hey folks! It's 2011 here in the Coe Writing Center (and everywhere else, too).

Here's some good news for you:

The WC was recently awarded a monetary gift from the Diversity Discussion and Study Group of the Transamerica Life Insurance Company for our dedication and input on articles in a book they've created. This money will help us finance future off-campus staff trips.

CONGRATULATION CONSULTANTS! I knew you could do it.

In other news, the bakers are baking what smells to be delicious chocolate-chip-oatmeal-and-honey cookies. (There are also WCmade rice krispies too.) So feel free to stop by for warmth, a good chat about academics and writing, coffee/cocoa/tea and treats. (Side note: what do you think about having a bake sale?)

And don't forget about taking a peek into the Speaking Center to see what they're up to.

- Taylor

The Writing Center: A Profile

The Coe Writing Center has a different mood at different times of the day: and you can see that when you visit. I’ve worked the 8 am shift, where everyone is sleepy and the people coming in mostly just want some coffee, except for the rare time someone has a paper due the next hour. The WC is almost dead quiet, and not much goes on. And then there’s the noon shift, where we have fresh bread and people are in here studying or talking and the WC feels more awake, but it’s not as active as it gets in the afternoon. Then there are always people working on the computers, reading out funny jokes or interesting quotes, and unwinding from their last classes of the day. This is when the WC is the liveliest, but don’t come expecting to get homework done unless you’re really determined or very good at not being distracted. Things quiet down for dinner, because almost everyone (except for our dutiful consultants, of course) is in the caf eating. The energy picks up again in the evening, around 8 or so, as people start settling down to do some serious work on homework—or take a break from serious stuff and chill, have some coffee, and wait until they get inspired again. Sometimes we have baking adventures late at night: brownies and cookies, maybe even bread or cinnamon rolls. Sometimes they’re absolutely delicious, and sometimes the mishap is simply worth the story. The moral is there’s no “best” time to come to the WC in general: it depends on your mood and how much you need to get done. There are always interesting people, who are always willing to talk or help with a paper, but the real fun is coming down here, spending some time, and seeing the different people come into the WC as the atmosphere changes.

-Justina Cline, '13

2010 Retreat Photos

Hey all your WCers!

I just wanted to post a link to some AWESOME photos from our 2010 Writing Center Retreat to Saint Peter's and Paul's Church near Solon, Iowa. The photos were taken by the lovely Ms. Haley Welby, a first year here at Coe. The link is to her blog and she's captured some great moments from the day. Thanks Haley!

http://haley-throughmylens.blogspot.com/2010/11/writing-center-retreat.html

- The other Hailley '14

ESL Professor Speaks to CWC Staff

At last Monday's staff meeting Joanna Shaver, an English as Second Language (ESL) Professor came to give an informational talk about the types of aids that she expects the writing center to provide to her students, and strategies for us as consultants to use in order to most effectively serve them. In a hand out, she constructed a pyramid that listed priorities that she wanted to see in her students' papers. She deemed expression of ideas as the most important element, and grammar, spelling etc as the least. In this way, she viewed the writing center as a place more for her students to come and discuss the ideas in the paper first, rather than simply dealing with just the conventions of paper writing.
A large portion of the "walk in" students seeking conferences are ESL students, who are primarily Japanese, so this talk will be very useful to us as a staff moving forward.

- Matt Barnd, '13

Coe Football Team makes Playoffs

For the second consecutive year the Kohawk football team has made the Division III national playoffs. O why do you care? Well maybe you don't...But that's okay! For those of you who do it's really quite the feat. You see, there are over 420 teams in NCAA division III athletics, and just 32 of these teams qualify for the playoffs. That's 7.6% for all you math majors out there (over half of Division teams go to a bowl game by comparison). But the really incredible thing is that out of those 32, 26 of them qualify by winning their conference and earning automatic bids, leaving just 6 at large bids for the remaining teams. Coe has earned an at-large bid each of the last two years, marking the first time in school history that this has occurred. The team travels to Wheaton, Illinois to square off against the Thunder this upcoming weekend.
O yeah I also play football for the Kohawks (I am just one example of essentially all writing center staffers involved in numerous activities)...I actually had to miss the staff meeting tonight due to practice...whoopsies...But in any case that's the update for now! GO KOHAWKS!

-Matt Barnd, '13

Friday Fun Times...Writing Center Scavenger Hunt

Hey all your WCers!

An important consultant skill is the ability to find literally anything to keep a conference on a happy note. We need to satisfy the needs of our student writers and if they ask for a hot dog bun, well gosh darn it, we should know where they are. So, the two o'clock Friday consultants put together a scavenger hunt, can anyone find them all? If you can, come to Hailley to pick up your "semi-valuable" prize.

1. Bob Dole
2. Red tape dispenser
3. Inquiry : Questioning Reading and Writing
4. Dr. Bob
5. Writing Center Scrapbooks
6. Hot dog buns
7. Half a cup of bottle caps
8. Bob the Builder and friends
9. Wigs
10. Fire extinguisher (because Courtney M. says that everyone must know where that is)
11. Yellow sign that says "Workshop Corner"
12. Coffee beans
13. Find the Macaroni and Cheeseaspargus crayon

Baltimore Highlights!

Hey gang!

The crew from Baltimore is back and we are now in the process of catching up on all the homework we missed since our train didn't have Wi-Fi. It was a blast and here are some highlights from the people who went:

- Amber running out to the train platform with the tickets high in her hand saying, "I've got the tickets from Dr. Bob!!" - Amber and Holly

- Wandering around the harbor in Baltimore and the seafood on Friday night. - Katie Selinger

- The free food. - Emily Hipps

- Mango Laisses. - Krista

- When I (Alex) texted Amanda asking, "Are we boarding the train yet?" Amanda texts back, "Yeah we're already on the train and we saved you seat." (This was problematic for Alex because she was still in the station) - Alex

- Interpretive reading of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets on the night train complete with Gryffindor scarves and hat. - Hailley Fargo

More highlights to come! If you did come and have highlights, comment on this post! :)

Hailley


P.S. Here's a group photo, compliments of Anna Barton!

BALTIMORE INFORMATION

Hey kids! I'm reposting Dr. Bob's email here for point of reference. Information on Baltimore!!

"What follows is travel schedule, housing information, and some basic guidelines on our participation in the conference. For those of you flying to Baltimore, I will send you a separate e-mail tomorrow morning; I'll also send some suggestions/guidelines for the final steps in preparation of the posters.

Travel schedule for folks driving to Chicago on Tuesday, Nov. 2. We load the two 15-passenger vans and the two automobiles (my Honda Odyssey and Jacquie’s vehicle) at 12:00 noon. Meet at the Writing Center, and we’ll load in the loading dock driveway. Our goal is to be on the road by 12:10. Be sure all Baltimore support materials for poster presentations are packed and ready to go by 11:00 a.m. Each team will be responsible for getting their poster materials to the conference. We will not stop to eat after we depart, so be sure you have either eaten before hand or bring food with you.

Luggage and clothes: everyone can bring one small travel bag and one book bag or school bag. If you need a pillow or sleeping blanket or Teddy Bear to help you sleep at night, be sure those items are packed in your travel bag. There may be instances when you will have to walk some distance with your bags, so travel light. There’s also a chance we can be walking in rainy or inclement weather so plan accordingly. And we could enter some fairly chilly weather so bring clothes that are appropriate for early November. With regard to your choice of clothing at the conference, we do want to give a good impression so nice, casual professional clothing. If possible avoid clothing with insignia or advertising (exception: items with Coe College; it would be okay to wear Coe Writing Center shirts/sweaters at some points at the conference).

Travel Schedule on Train
When we arrive in the Chicago area we will park our vans & autos (at a place not yet determined) and then take the train (or some other public transportation) to Union Station. We are all traveling by train on one group ticket (Reservation # 10BFF7). Our travel schedule is as follows:
Depart on Train #30 out of Chicago at 6:40 p.m.
Arrive in Washington D.C. on November 3 at 1:10 p.m.
Department on Train #198 from Washington, D.C. at 8:45 p.m.
Arrive in Baltimore at 9:26 p.m.

Between our departure at noon on Tuesday and our evening meal in Washington on Wednesday, you will be responsible for your own meals. You will each receive $10 to help cover your food costs; food will be available on the train, but you might also want to plan on traveling with some food to prevent starvation.

We have dinner reservations in Washington, D.C. at 6:00 p.m. at the White Tiger restaurant, an Indian cuisine restaurant about two blocks walking distance from the train station. At the dinner we will be joined by some Writing Center alums and perhaps my son and his wife. I think there should be lockers at the station where we can check our bags so we don’t have to carry them while walking around D.C. It’s not likely the train will arrive exactly at 1:10, but I trust we will arrive early enough that folks will have several hours for seeing the sites. You will be on your own schedule while in Washington, D.C.: we will make no effort to travel as one large group so you will be free to visit what you want to visit. I would recommend that you travel in small groups and you might want to do some planning ahead of time. It will be your responsibility to at the White Tiger at 6:00 p.m. That meal will be paid for by Coe.

When we arrive in Baltimore, we will go to the Mount Vernon Hotel, located in the historic Mount Vernon District at 24 West Franklin Street. Their web address is www.mountvernonbaltimore.com. For a web tour, you can visit www.easyviewmedia.com//Mount-Vernon-Hotel/index.html. This is a 2 ½ star hotel so it should be okay but not luxurious. It does come with complimentary hot breakfast, and it’s about half of the cost of staying at the conference hotel. We have 10 rooms reserved: one room for Singleton and Marrs, one room for the other three men on the trip, and 8 rooms for 32 women (I’ll let you ladies decide how you want to divide yourselves up).

The conference is at the Sheraton Baltimore City Center Hotel, just a few blocks from the Inner Harbor. Here’s the web site with full information, including the schedule of presentations for the conference: http://www.mawcaonline.org/iwca/index.html. The conference begins Thursday morning at 9:00 a.m. On Thursday you will be on your own for the noon meal; the Friday schedule includes a luncheon at the conference. Conference events are over by 6:30 on Thursday and 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both evenings you will be free to do whatever you wish in the evening; on both evenings we will arrange for a group meal in the area for folks who want to eat a meal paid for by Coe.

Our poster session is scheduled for Friday afternoon, 2:10-3:10. There are no other sessions scheduled at that time so we should meet a lot of people.

With regard to participating in the conference, here are the basic ground rules:
• Everyone is expected to participate fully in the conference and attend a broad sampling of sessions. In addition to keynote addresses and our poster session, you need to attend a minimum of six sessions–which will ensure that you have time for escaping the conference and doing some sightseeing in the daylight hours.
• Everyone is required to keep a detailed journal during the conference and submit a report on your conference experiences. That report should be submitted no later than midnight on Sunday, 7 November to a forum on the Writing Center Moodle site (same site where we keep the database). For those of you in Topics, this trip and report can take care of your “publication” assignment.
• During the conference, please divide into small groups; except for meeting for evening meals or preparing for our poster session, there should be no big mass of Coe consultants traveling around together. This includes spreading yourselves out during the Friday luncheon. A major reason for going to this conference is to meet as many people as possible from as many different Writing Centers as possible. It’s okay to talk about Coe if people ask, but my advice is to ask people about their Writing Centers and about their programs. Ask questions during presentations. When presentations are concluded, go up and talk to presenters. Pick up handouts. Be active participants, looking for ideas and practices that might be applicable to our Writing Center. Prior to the beginning of each day, we will distribute groups to different sessions so we ensure a broad sampling of presentations.

Our train (#195) departs Baltimore at 1:40 p.m. on Saturday, so we will be leaving the conference at approximately 12:00 noon on Saturday. Our return trip will go through Washington, D.C., but we only have about 90 minutes before our train departs for Chicago. We are scheduled to arrive in Chicago at 8:45 a.m. on Sunday morning, November 7. Depending on the time of our arrival (and how people feel), we will have a final group meal in Chicago–and then drive back to C.R.–or drive part of the way and have a noon meal (paid for by Coe) somewhere between Chicago and C.R. Assuming the train is not too late and we don’t have any other unforeseen problems, we should be back in C.R. before 5:00 p.m. If everything went perfectly, we might be back as early as 3:00–but I wouldn’t count on it.

Tomorrow morning I will send out a travel information e-mail for the folks flying to Baltimore and send another e-mail with updated information concerning final preparations for the four presentations." - Dr. Bob

Baltimore Preparation

Hey gang!

As November 2nd draws nearer, I can't contain my excitement for the Baltimore conference. I'm psyched for the night train, time in Washington DC and then the conference in Baltimore. Right now my group, Do We Practice What We Preach, is working hard to get our project done. Big meeting on Sunday to finish the presentation up. I have never been to either Washington DC or Baltimore so I'm excited to explore both cities and see all they have to offer. Well, off to work on Baltimore preparation, I'll will write more later, maybe an update from Baltimore!

Hailley

PARKA

Beth, another consultant in the parka! I think is catching on!

PARKA

Karin C. Writing Center Consultant in the parka!!

the winter cometh

Folks, maybe you haven't noticed, but it's getting cold outside! I even see snow in our near future! What does this have to do with the Coe Writing Center, you ask?

The answer: THE WRITING CENTER PARKA.


(Me. In the parka...)

Getting cold just means getting warm in the Writing Center. Come drink coffee, tea or cocoa. Cuddle up with your papers and a consultant AND get work done! And, if you have the guts, try on the parka! (If you try on the parka, take a picture and send it to me. It may appear here!)

- Taylor E.

"Take a Loaf Off!"

Hey everyone!

It's Hailley, a newbie consultant, writing my first blog post of this school year! Today was priceless and showed me why I love the Writing Center so. I came into the WC around 12:15 to wait for my roommate, Heidi, to finish her shift before heading to the caf for lunch. Ashley C. and Jon A. were also working with Heidi. We were all just relaxing and catching up on some homework when Heidi informed me that someone had put some bread it and it would be done soon. After confirming with the Speaking Center it was our bread, Heidi and I waited, somewhat impatiently, for the bread to be done. The buzzer rang and Heidi took the bread out of the bread maker. Then came the challenge and the fun part. I tried to pry the bread out but couldn't since the bottom was attached to the spinner. After a few unsuccessful tries, Heidi and I switched places and she too couldn't get the bread out of the bucket. By this time, bread crumbs were everywhere and Ashley came onto the scene. She tried to pry it out but she also failed. The three of us were now laughing at how hard it was get the bread out. Finally Heidi used her big muscles to pull the bread out. Success (finally). We put the bread on a plate and gathered around the table near the coffee. Jon joined us and we chowed down, devouring the bread like there was no tomorrow. The bread was delicious and the four of us thank whoever made it because it was WONDERFUL. In my slightly crazy mood I imagined a scene where a student would come in, looking for a conference. We would tell them to "Take a loaf off and have some bread!" When I told Heidi, Ashley, and Jon this I truly believe they thought I was crazy because that was definitely a horrible pun. But horribly funny as well.

Well there's your random story of the day! :)

- Hailley

writing center minutes

September 27th WC Meeting

The meeting was only required for those going to Baltimore on the conference, where we are responsible for four different poster presentations. A two-page handout that summarizes the information on the poster will also need to be made for each poster.

The four different posters that will be presented at the conference include:
1. Tybee Island Staff Development Course (a.k.a. The writing center beach orgy)
2. Moodle as a Writing Center Management System
3. A Writing Center Assessing a WAC Program
4. A Writing Center Staff: Do They Practice What They Preach?

We broke into semi-equal groups to discuss plans for the poster presentations. One group member was selected to communicate the group plans to Dr. Bob, and he would like to hear sometime this week about any plans that have already developed.

If you were not at the meeting and you are planning on going to Baltimore, you need to talk to Dr. Bob about being placed in a group. Work has already started on the plans so doing this sooner rather than later would be appreciated by the rest of the group.

Dr. Bob will be sending out an email to staff and faculty, excusing those going on the conference from class November 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th. If you encounter any problems with staff or faculty just let Dr. Bob know and it will be taken care of.