First Impression of Me the People

Although I usually blog about fiction, I recently found Me the People: One Man's Selfless Quest to Rewrite the Constitution of the United States of America buried in the crevice of a bookshelf. This political parody was given to me for Christmas. Given the choice between an iPhone and a book... well, you can understand why Me the People ended up in The Pile. (Contents include: brotherless socks, late HW assignments, and history-books-I-got-for-Christmas)

My very first impression of it was slightly biased, to say the least. 

"The Constitution has served us well for centuries. Thanks to Kevin Bleyer those days are over. -Stephen Colbert" 

Me: OMIGAWD its Stephen Colbert! I love his show! I guess I have to give this book a try. But only in the name of Stephen. 

Aside from that, I didn't really know what to expect from this book. First of all, my knowledge of the Constitution is pretty limited. Case in point: Remember "Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness"? I thought that was part of the Constitution. Nevermind that it's actually the second sentence of The Declaration of Independence. 

Oh, stop laughing. 

In all seriousness, I realized how pathetic I was. Here stands Connie Mi, a proud US citizen... who doesn't even know the Seventh Amendment. (Turns out it has to do with civil trials.) Besides, Stephen Colbert.

And thus begins my reading journey.

The first chapter was a pleasant surprise. Heck, the first sentence was unexpectedly humorous. Kevin Bleyer's egotistical, All-American voice captivated me from the very beginning. He makes fun of typos in the Constitution. He makes fun of the George Washington's wooden teeth. And just when you think ol' Kevin's running out of jokes- he proceeds to make fun of Congress.

"Article II: Congress, the Opposite of Progress (Yeah I said it.)"
Bleyer makes a valid point. Although the US Constitution has been effective for 200+ years, there's always room for improvement. Me the People is a carefully mixed cocktail with a dash of satire, a bit of analysis, and a whole lotta funny. 

I started Me the People just as I finished Fahrenheit 451. I tried to imagine all the horrible things Beatty would do to authors today... If it weren't for the Constitution, we would all be living in a society like Montag's. (See: First Amendment “Congress shall make no law...abridging freedom of speech.”) 

We change it (27 times to be exact), misquote it, and passive-aggressively write books about it- in the end however, the Constitution has protected our most basic right: freedom of expression. The purpose of Kevin Bleyer's book was not to criticize our government. Instead, it was simply proof of the power of freedom. 

It seems that I have found a treasure in The Pile. 


And as for all my History geeks out there... here's an original transcript of the US Constitution, clear and bold in blacke and whyte : http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/constitution_transcript.html

A Letter to the Main Character

New Message

To: Bernadette Fox, foxyarchitectsanonymous@gmail.com

Subject: Hello. I'm a fan.

If you are reading this, then I am extremely honored. I know that you hate your fame, so I'm glad that my fan-mail is an exception.
After reading Maria Semple's story, I couldn't stop thinking about the book. I loved you, and at the same time, I hated you. (Only for 9 pages, though.) Nonetheless, you've gained my respect.

As a misunderstood genius myself, I can totally relate to your fear of people. Actually, who are we kidding here? Haha, I'm the queen of stupidity. Even so, I can still relate to your social anxiety. After a mental breakdown, you disappeared. To Antarctica.
Your daughter, Bee, was devastated... to say the least. You were allergic to your husband, your peers, and people in general. Also, I have to mention that you hired a virtual assistant from Delhi to buy groceries for you.
Edit: I can relate to your social anxiety... to a certain degree.

Remember that one time when you left your entire family and escaped to Antarctica without even a heads-up? Oh, that's right. Your agoraphobia was all caused by a tiny spat TWENTY YEARS prior.
It's understandable, I guess. You are a genius, no doubt. You won the McArthur Genius Grant, for pete's sake. Nothing in the world could stop your eccentric creativity. People feared you, out of admiration and out of jealousy. Fast forward 20 years later, and you've become afraid of people. No open windows, no doctor's appointments, no donut runs...
My point is this: even if parent volunteering brunches aren't your thang, community involvement is still important to life. Don't hold a grudge against all 7+ billion of us. And don't let one idiotic bloke ruin 20 years of your life. One rotten apple doesn't spoil the whole barrel. 

Was it selfish for you to leave everything behind? I don't think so. In the end, your daughter was right:

People like you must create. If you don't create... you will become a menace to society.

Maybe Bee just wanted you to have an outlet for your anger, instead of constantly running away. After all, failure is not just a Black Hole that takes but never gives. 
I guess we all have a lot to say in life. Perhaps you can contribute to the conversation just by creating what you love, forgiving those you love, and loving who you love.

If there was an award for Best Mom, it would have to go to... my Mom! Unfortunately, you came in second place.
All joking aside, your love for Bee is heartwarming.

“When "Here Comes the Sun" started, what happened? No, the sun didn't come out, but Mom opened up like the sun breaking through the clouds. 
'Oh Bee,' she said. 'This song reminds me of you.' She had tears in her eyes.”

I think this email was just my way of saying thank-you-so-much without the tacky card attached. Thank you for your incredible humor, your inspiring journey, and your healing power of love. May we all find a bit of Bernadette Fox in ourselves.
Cheers,
Connie Mi

Theme Presentation Handout

Theme Statement: People should take action, rather than watch a society falter and crumble.

At the beginning, Montag is very ignorant about the true consequences of burning books.	Montag started to examine his role as a firefighter when he met Clarisse. He also starting questioning his happiness and life.	One day, Millie overdoses on sleeping pills. However, she shows no concern about anything. Later at work, Montag witnesses a woman being burned for loving books.
Montag takes action and meets with Faber. He asks him for help in understanding books.	Beatty orders Montag's house to be burned. Montag takes action by killing Beatty and destroying the mechanical hound. He escapes the city by running to the forest.	He finds a group of intellectuals, who accept him into their group. The group continue to walk forward and into the future, despite the destruction of their old society.

https://prezi.com/xd-6bzvk61re/copy-of-copy-of-mind-mapping-template/#

Character Analysis- The Perks of Being a Wallflower

wallflower

[wawl-flou-er] 

"You see things. You keep quiet about them. And you understand.” 

        Charlie is a wallflower. 

        He's a 15 year old an aspiring writer, introspective, and caught between trying to live, well, life and trying to fly away from it. For all the right reasons, Charlie shies away from the social spotlight after the suicide of his friend and the death of his aunt... until he meets the effervescent Sam and the quirky Patrick.

        Not only is Charlie a "nobody", he is also a philosopher in training. He's like... the new teenage Plato. All those hours of skirting around the dance floor must have paid off, because Charlie has a lot to say. The honesty of his voice was like ice cold lemonade in the 90 degree summer weather- refreshing. He makes careful quips about insincere friendships:

“I am very interested and fascinated how everyone loves each other, but no one really likes each other.” 

And daydreaming:

“Sometimes people use thought to not participate in life.” 

Washing dishes:

“Try to be a filter, not a sponge.” 

            Ok, so enough of me laughing at my own lame jokes in front of the computer. 

            Charlie truly is a gem. He is genuinely concerned about the feelings of other people, even strangers. Despite all the twists and turns in his own life, as he walks down the hallway, he can't help but wonder... "It's like looking at all the students and wondering who's had their heart broken that day, and how they are able to cope with having three quizzes and a book report due on top of that. Or wondering who did the heart breaking. And wondering why.”
And the unconstrained sympathy doesn't end there. Charlie refuses to break up with Mary-Elizabeth, his girlfriend, even though he is in love with Same, and never really liked her in the first place. Tactful, no. But caring? At least he tries.

          And if you can't already tell by now, our little wallflower spends a lot of time analyzing, well, everything. Which, as you can guess, becomes a burden. Things really start going downhill when he starts to realize that Aunt Helen, the most beloved person in his life, died because of him. To the reader, its a twisted mix of emotions- we later learn that Aunt Helen molested Charlie all throughout his childhood. Because of this major flaw, Charlie is unable to stop his own spinning mind, and the flashbacks.

         And I can't lie. Flipping through the pages was a lot like standing in front of a mirror. Sure, I may not be as socially awkward as Charlie (well, I certainly hope not), aaaaand I don't do drugs or smoke or ride in a truck without a seatbelt oh goodness the thought of such an act - The point is, even though we live in such different worlds, the girl who still sits lonely on the bus and wonders if anyone understands... saw herself in the boy who danced alone at homecoming. 

        And that's what I truly find so beautiful about his character. Charlie's inspiring and poignant letters are all addressed "Dear Friend". There was something about the way the author wrote him that you’ll start to see the world through his eyes. My situation is far from Charlie's, but I do not feel pity... rather... empathy. It's as if he was writing to me, to you...to everyone. He has a story to tell, and the exhilarating scenes are just as riveting as the solemn ones. And as Charlie navigated his way through the unmapped world of first dates and family dramas, I saw things, I kept quiet. And I began to understand... 

       If I had to capture in the essence of Charlie's life with a non-human noun, it would be... tunnel.
Yes, literally. In chapter 13, Charlie drives through a tunnel, all while overanalyzing the meaning of said tunnel. Later, he passes through the same tunnel with Sam and Patrick in the epilogue. (He really likes public infrastructure). This time, the ride was a little more magical.

"It was me standing up in that tunnel with the wind over my face... Not even thinking about it. Because I was standing in the tunnel. And I was really there. And that was enough to make me feel infinite."

         It's a metaphor for life. Or a car commercial. Either way, Charlie has showed me that sometimes the Ford F150 of life will break down. Sometimes it will get a flat tire and need a repair. When he cruised through the tunnel, it symbolized the transition of personal growth. For the first time, Charlie stood in the middle of the dance floor and just lived in the moment. He proved to me that although outskirts offer great sights and sounds, sometimes you have to reach your pinky toe out, just for a taste. Again and again, Perks has empowered me to spread my wings, to take flight, and most importantly... to soar.

And here, for your enjoyment, is "The Tunnel Song".