Cathy Gildner Blog
In class conversation
I thought that the in-class conversation with Catherine Gildner was a great look into the author of the memoir we have been reading. I found her views on what she wrote, to be very intellectual, and observant of her childhood. I found her to be a very down to earth, and very interacting. I was impressed and intrigued by her ideas, and reasons for her scenes and interactions in the novel.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Writer Craft - Cathy Gildner Blog
After the Falls Blog
By Colin Stitt
After the Falls - Mom and Dad
In Cathy’s coming up in life it is clear that her parents are the most influential factor to her wrk ethic, and success in her work world. As Cathy is growing up in her child years she looks to her parents as a source of protection, and information. As Cathy is growing up in Niagara Falls she feels like she is in a perfect place in her life, working with Roy and her father in his drug company. But when they leave Niagara Falls and move to Buffalo, cathy’s relationship with her parents deteriorates, as she is in her teenage years. As Cathy is depressed with her new life, and her new home, she does not realize how the move affects her parents as well. As the family moves to their new house Cathy views her parents differently, and she starts to distance herself from them.
As Cathy figures that her parents have changed for the worse, she later understands that it was really her who had changed. As Cathy becomes a teenager she becomes angry and embarrassed by her parents. She even starts to separate from her father, who she had always been close to. Cathy soon begins to realize that her mother is suffering more than both her father and herself. As Cathy notices that her mother is dealing with her own difficulties with her new life, and environment.
When Cathy moves through her teenage years and she becomes more in tune with her own life, moving away from home, going to university, finding jobs in the political movement, she finds that she has more respect for her parents. When Cathy is informed of her father’s illness, she feels sorry that she had been so mean to her father. When Cathy was home with her father, she feels that she should punished for her actions towards him, and her attitude. Though Cathy and her father were closer than Cathy and her mother, she still realizes and thanks her mother for keeping the house and their lives as normal as possible. Cathy’s parents are obviously always close to her heart. While looking back on her life Cathy realizes that her parents have been as supportive as any parents can be.
After the Falls - Pop Culture Influence
The influence of pop culture and influence was at a peek in the middle of the 1960’s. Not only to be a person in your twenty and thirties, but a teenage girl growing up on the Eastern Sea Board, and so much revolution and change coming about. This age was one that influenced lot’s of teenage minds into fighting the power and doing the anti-government protests.
The sixties called for a decade that shaped an entire century. The new types of fashions that appeared were something that all girls had no care in the world for. Loose jeans and possibly a trippy shirt. The music proved to be one that boomed with the Beatles, r.e.s.p.e.c.t. Drive in movie theaters, a drive through but only they serve you in the car to you and your family. The movies cathy’s sees shows her to a whole new kind of concept.
The art and athletics that Cathy witnesses while she is in college shows a view into the smart educated and the jockey, and arrogant sides to the look of the university. Advertising shows how it comes up in the novel when Cathy shows how she advertises the works of her favorite writer growing up. The political events that she notices and acknowledges is when she moves to a new state and lives under slightly new rules, and when she goes to the government to talk about the problem she had when she was a young teenager.
After the Falls - Work Life
Cathy’s worked for McClure’s drugs handing out perscriptions to those who needed it with the delivery man Roy, and they create a strong relationship between each other. Which involved the experience of racial differences which prepares her for her involvement in the American Civil Rights movement. The relationship between Roy and Cathy becomes so deep that later on in her life Roy gives her advice on how to help her and her fathers relationship build back up again. And in turn help towards the end of the memoir when her father is becoming mentally unstable.
Cathy then finds a job at The Dunk where she shows the manager that she can make coffee faster than most of the other female workers could, offering her a job. While she is working she finds that she enjoys the company of the people she works with, and finds out lot’s about their stories, and experiences of the times. Even though she happens to start a fire while making doughnuts, she noticed that she noticed racial tension when she walked away from the job, and looked back on her time at The Dunk. But even though she finds it unsettling that their is racial tension, she doesn’ let that hold her back and she takes part in her colleagues dance routines every week, while the boss was out of the office.
Cathy then worked for Mary Kay Cosmetics where she learned to “Fake it till you make it”
(p.60)
She learns to carry this lesson with her whenever she would enter a new environment. Cathy uses this saying in a real life instance when she is interviewed for a job at Howard Johnson’s Hotel where she assures the boss that she is a great cook, and has history in the profession from other jobs. As she was fired for her lack of cooking skills, she was still asked around the restaurant how the food was from the customers. Telling a man who asked about the steak. and she replied saying that it wasn’t here cup of tea, but that it was ordered quite regularly. And when asked about the manager that had fired her, she had only respectful things to say about him. This man turned out to be Howard johnson, who was impressed by her honesty and values. This turned out to reflect her life aspect that her father had taught her, which was never speak negatively about anyone or anything.
When Cathy accepts a job at New York State Welfare, where she notices that their are no boundaries of race or colour. She realizes that everyone in her workplace, works half ass, and seems to leave the office everyday. While Cathy is working their for her first week, she works until the end of the day, assuming that is what her boss would want. When she finds out that her boss, in fact does not care about her hours and when she leaves, she rides the bandwagon and starts to slack on her work hours as well. When Cathy’s mother finds out that she’s working half time, and getting full pay, that she should change that and work as hard as she can for as long as she can. When Cathy returns to her full hour days, she realizes that she has many more ideas to improve the welfare system. It’s the work ethic that she develops from a young age that allows her to do this with satisfaction.
After the Falls - Friendships
Cathy made many friends throughout her childhood. Lot’s of these friendships would greatly impact her life. Cathy’s first friend was Roy, the delivery man from McClure’s Drugs. Cathy would enter the delivery truck with Roy to make deliveries, and during that time they would just talk about life. During their times together Cathy notices that their relationship has nothing to do with sex or race. Roy was able to teach Cathy about important things about people, and it had its affect later on in Cathy’s life.
While in school in Buffalo Cathy becomes friends with a girl by the name of Fran Stephens. Cathy and Fran rebound their ideas and thoughts off each other really well. cathy and Fran become known as the class comedians, acting out routines in assemblies from time to time. This status that they are given makes them both quite popular. As they are very close friends they also share a sickening act that they both watch, and notice happen. They both notice Fran’s brothers and friends rape a girl for entertainment. This situation shows Cathy that this shows how sexuality would be dealt with, and she becomes very cautious of sexual relationships.
Cathy creates a relationship with Kip Rogers and he helps Cathy distrust, and dislike for the opposite sex, with the Stephens’s boys frat meeting, and the Donnybrook incident. The relationship between Cathy and Kip, is one similar to the relationship Cathy had with Roy, except that sex is not an issue. When Cathy finds out that Kip has died in Vietnam, she become very sad, and reflects on their time together. Remembering that Kip had planned to go to university when he returned home.
Cathy’s most important, and strongest friendship was between her and her father. As Cathy is growing up in Niagara Falls, she has a very strong relationship with her father, working with him. While Cathy grew older, her family moved to Buffalo, and Cathy starts to distance herself from her father. While in her teenage years Cathy starts to become irritated, and uninterested in what her father had to say. While Cathy and her father have grown apart, her father develops a brain tumor causing him to lose parts of his brain. Cathy and her father would never be as close as they were before the diagnoses. Cathy feels terrible that she has treated her father so poorly, but also is glad that they had such a great relationship when she was younger. Roy gives Cathy a piece of advice while thinking of her father.
“ You got a lot ahead. You best be thinkin’ about tomorrow, and not yesterday.” (pg.166) This advice that she is given gives her help to move on with her own life, even though her regrets of the past, and her sadness of her fathers illness.
By Colin Stitt
After the Falls - Mom and Dad
In Cathy’s coming up in life it is clear that her parents are the most influential factor to her wrk ethic, and success in her work world. As Cathy is growing up in her child years she looks to her parents as a source of protection, and information. As Cathy is growing up in Niagara Falls she feels like she is in a perfect place in her life, working with Roy and her father in his drug company. But when they leave Niagara Falls and move to Buffalo, cathy’s relationship with her parents deteriorates, as she is in her teenage years. As Cathy is depressed with her new life, and her new home, she does not realize how the move affects her parents as well. As the family moves to their new house Cathy views her parents differently, and she starts to distance herself from them.
As Cathy figures that her parents have changed for the worse, she later understands that it was really her who had changed. As Cathy becomes a teenager she becomes angry and embarrassed by her parents. She even starts to separate from her father, who she had always been close to. Cathy soon begins to realize that her mother is suffering more than both her father and herself. As Cathy notices that her mother is dealing with her own difficulties with her new life, and environment.
When Cathy moves through her teenage years and she becomes more in tune with her own life, moving away from home, going to university, finding jobs in the political movement, she finds that she has more respect for her parents. When Cathy is informed of her father’s illness, she feels sorry that she had been so mean to her father. When Cathy was home with her father, she feels that she should punished for her actions towards him, and her attitude. Though Cathy and her father were closer than Cathy and her mother, she still realizes and thanks her mother for keeping the house and their lives as normal as possible. Cathy’s parents are obviously always close to her heart. While looking back on her life Cathy realizes that her parents have been as supportive as any parents can be.
After the Falls - Pop Culture Influence
The influence of pop culture and influence was at a peek in the middle of the 1960’s. Not only to be a person in your twenty and thirties, but a teenage girl growing up on the Eastern Sea Board, and so much revolution and change coming about. This age was one that influenced lot’s of teenage minds into fighting the power and doing the anti-government protests.
The sixties called for a decade that shaped an entire century. The new types of fashions that appeared were something that all girls had no care in the world for. Loose jeans and possibly a trippy shirt. The music proved to be one that boomed with the Beatles, r.e.s.p.e.c.t. Drive in movie theaters, a drive through but only they serve you in the car to you and your family. The movies cathy’s sees shows her to a whole new kind of concept.
The art and athletics that Cathy witnesses while she is in college shows a view into the smart educated and the jockey, and arrogant sides to the look of the university. Advertising shows how it comes up in the novel when Cathy shows how she advertises the works of her favorite writer growing up. The political events that she notices and acknowledges is when she moves to a new state and lives under slightly new rules, and when she goes to the government to talk about the problem she had when she was a young teenager.
After the Falls - Work Life
Cathy’s worked for McClure’s drugs handing out perscriptions to those who needed it with the delivery man Roy, and they create a strong relationship between each other. Which involved the experience of racial differences which prepares her for her involvement in the American Civil Rights movement. The relationship between Roy and Cathy becomes so deep that later on in her life Roy gives her advice on how to help her and her fathers relationship build back up again. And in turn help towards the end of the memoir when her father is becoming mentally unstable.
Cathy then finds a job at The Dunk where she shows the manager that she can make coffee faster than most of the other female workers could, offering her a job. While she is working she finds that she enjoys the company of the people she works with, and finds out lot’s about their stories, and experiences of the times. Even though she happens to start a fire while making doughnuts, she noticed that she noticed racial tension when she walked away from the job, and looked back on her time at The Dunk. But even though she finds it unsettling that their is racial tension, she doesn’ let that hold her back and she takes part in her colleagues dance routines every week, while the boss was out of the office.
Cathy then worked for Mary Kay Cosmetics where she learned to “Fake it till you make it”
(p.60)
She learns to carry this lesson with her whenever she would enter a new environment. Cathy uses this saying in a real life instance when she is interviewed for a job at Howard Johnson’s Hotel where she assures the boss that she is a great cook, and has history in the profession from other jobs. As she was fired for her lack of cooking skills, she was still asked around the restaurant how the food was from the customers. Telling a man who asked about the steak. and she replied saying that it wasn’t here cup of tea, but that it was ordered quite regularly. And when asked about the manager that had fired her, she had only respectful things to say about him. This man turned out to be Howard johnson, who was impressed by her honesty and values. This turned out to reflect her life aspect that her father had taught her, which was never speak negatively about anyone or anything.
When Cathy accepts a job at New York State Welfare, where she notices that their are no boundaries of race or colour. She realizes that everyone in her workplace, works half ass, and seems to leave the office everyday. While Cathy is working their for her first week, she works until the end of the day, assuming that is what her boss would want. When she finds out that her boss, in fact does not care about her hours and when she leaves, she rides the bandwagon and starts to slack on her work hours as well. When Cathy’s mother finds out that she’s working half time, and getting full pay, that she should change that and work as hard as she can for as long as she can. When Cathy returns to her full hour days, she realizes that she has many more ideas to improve the welfare system. It’s the work ethic that she develops from a young age that allows her to do this with satisfaction.
After the Falls - Friendships
Cathy made many friends throughout her childhood. Lot’s of these friendships would greatly impact her life. Cathy’s first friend was Roy, the delivery man from McClure’s Drugs. Cathy would enter the delivery truck with Roy to make deliveries, and during that time they would just talk about life. During their times together Cathy notices that their relationship has nothing to do with sex or race. Roy was able to teach Cathy about important things about people, and it had its affect later on in Cathy’s life.
While in school in Buffalo Cathy becomes friends with a girl by the name of Fran Stephens. Cathy and Fran rebound their ideas and thoughts off each other really well. cathy and Fran become known as the class comedians, acting out routines in assemblies from time to time. This status that they are given makes them both quite popular. As they are very close friends they also share a sickening act that they both watch, and notice happen. They both notice Fran’s brothers and friends rape a girl for entertainment. This situation shows Cathy that this shows how sexuality would be dealt with, and she becomes very cautious of sexual relationships.
Cathy creates a relationship with Kip Rogers and he helps Cathy distrust, and dislike for the opposite sex, with the Stephens’s boys frat meeting, and the Donnybrook incident. The relationship between Cathy and Kip, is one similar to the relationship Cathy had with Roy, except that sex is not an issue. When Cathy finds out that Kip has died in Vietnam, she become very sad, and reflects on their time together. Remembering that Kip had planned to go to university when he returned home.
Cathy’s most important, and strongest friendship was between her and her father. As Cathy is growing up in Niagara Falls, she has a very strong relationship with her father, working with him. While Cathy grew older, her family moved to Buffalo, and Cathy starts to distance herself from her father. While in her teenage years Cathy starts to become irritated, and uninterested in what her father had to say. While Cathy and her father have grown apart, her father develops a brain tumor causing him to lose parts of his brain. Cathy and her father would never be as close as they were before the diagnoses. Cathy feels terrible that she has treated her father so poorly, but also is glad that they had such a great relationship when she was younger. Roy gives Cathy a piece of advice while thinking of her father.
“ You got a lot ahead. You best be thinkin’ about tomorrow, and not yesterday.” (pg.166) This advice that she is given gives her help to move on with her own life, even though her regrets of the past, and her sadness of her fathers illness.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)