I started this blog at the request of a MOOC course but don't know how it connects?   Watch this space: "Crafting an effective writer: Tools of the trade".  Must be a group thing.
It seems strange to look out a window & see, five feet away, Begonia's in full bloom partly obscured by mist.   The weather forecast says it will be a sunny day; par for the course.

Exercises  Week 2:

Choose one of the sentences listed below to expand by adding logical additional parts of speech (nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositional phrases). Your sentence should be a minimum of twelve unique words.

• The children play.
• The woman walks.
• The sharks swim.
• The flowers bloom.
• The wind blows.
• The computer hums.  

The sharks swim effortlessly around their prey, an injured fellow shark, whose life expectancy can now be measured in a matter of moments.

Exercise Week 3:

Drawing from your observation notes and sentences from Journal Writing Assignments 1 and 2, write a description of the scene you have observed. Use action verbs and active voice in your sentences. Also, keep your verbs in the same tense and maintain correct subject-verb agreement. Your description should consist of 8 or more sentences.

He casts his fly with a practiced flick of the wrist.  His young female companion, sits on a groundsheet content to look on.   Deep in concentration, he is barely aware of the girl, the frost, or the mists rising from both river banks; because the trout are rising.  For the umpteenth time his rod tip dips, just as the sun broaches the false horizon of the forest canopy. He strikes, and the fish runs for the reeds on the far bank.  He carefully eases it away, and starts to reel in slowly; gently, so as not to break the two pound line.  The girl looks on smiling.  She is anxious because they are to breakfast at a delightful local restaurant within the hour.
 "This will be the last one Vera, so would you help me pack away the gear?" He asks.
"Of course Charlie," she smiles again her anxiety gone, "how many did you bag?"
"Three were underweight and had to be thrown back, but these two weigh close to three pounds each, that' a pretty good haul."
She gazes up into the bright cerulean sky, "Oh Charlie it's going to be a gloriously wonderful day!"  

Exercise Week 4:

Discuss in one paragraph the advantages and disadvantages of the place where you live. Use at least one each of the clauses and phrases you studied in the unit. Also, be sure that you include one each of the four sentence types in your paragraph.  Using your knowledge from Unit 3, use action verbs and active voice, keep your verbs in the same tense, and maintain correct subject-verb agreement. Your description should consist of 9 or more sentences.

I live in a village called Hullbridge whose population is around 6,500, it was built in 1614, but there was a bridge over the river Crouch as early as 1240.  We still enjoy open countryside, when work permits,  it's really pleasing to see wild and domesticated animals living side by side in apparent harmony.   I like to rise early most mornings so I can watch as many as a dozen species of birds feeding off my bird table.   However, sometimes invaders from North America, the grey squirrels, make forays into my garden to steal peanuts from my feeders.   In larger communities, towns and cities, the local taxes are higher than they are in villages where the smaller population results in lower expenditure.   Villages seem quieter too, even though people tend to gossip more, they are genuinely friendly and helpful.  Even if farmyard smells are part of country life they are not really too unpleasant; most people tend to get used to them, or move away.   The nearest school is in the next village so the children have to rise early to catch a bus.   The library has a limited choice of books and video's, but there is a much larger selection in the nearby town of Rayleigh.   However to travel you do need a car because the public transport is unreliable.   To eat out you could visit the local public house the Anchor, and we also have an Indian and a Chinese takeaway.   There is no bank, cinema or nightlife in Hullbridge, for those you will need to visit towns nearby such as Chelmsford, Basildon, Colchester or Southend. 

Exercise Week 5:

Choose one of the following four topics to write your final paragraph about:
Topic #1
Discuss at least four (4) short term and/or long term effects that finishing Crafting an Effective Writer: Tools of the Trade will have upon you personally, academically, and/or professionally.
Topic #2
Identify and describe a favorite activity or interest and provide at least four reasons why this activity or interest holds your attention and/or is enjoyable to you.
Topic #3
Identify and describe at least three (3) ways a person, male and/or female, is recognized as an adult in your culture.
Topic #4
Identify and describe a traditional ethnic food from your culture. Provide at least four reasons why this food has remained an essential, primary food in your culture. While you may include the recipe, this topic asks you to discuss the importance of the food in your culture.
First Draft:

For my favorite activity I will choose painting.

Because it's a universal pastime that transcends sex, race, nationality and religious beliefs. 

We have been painting since cavemen first inhabited caves, some would say painting predates language.

Paintings create emotional responses, deep feelings of joy, happiness, and evokes memories in the viewer.

Anybody can paint, even a talentless dauber like me.   What is better than to sit down with pencils and paper to make representational marks that actually resemble something.  Adding color, adds a whole new dimension to the drawing.  Good or bad, it is a deeply satisfying pastime, and if your unhappy with the results you can simply throw them in the bin, knowing that you have still gained something from the experience.

You can progress from colored pencils to soft pastels, oil pastels, watercolor, acrylics, and oils.   All are engrossing and satisfying.  

There are people who have a phobia against art "I couldn't draw to save my life!".  Yet they are happy to draw a map to show a stranger how to get from 'A' to 'B'.

What you can visualize you can paint.  Take a bottle, narrow at the top and wide at the bottom; picture it in your mind, (visualize it), and put it on to paper.   Next think of something a little more complex, a chair.   Visualize it, Draw it, then draw a bottle resting on it, and you have a complex drawing, add color and you have a still life painting.

I find that I become engrossed in a piece of work, the planning, rough drawing, putting it onto paper, board, or canvas.   Then the real work begins.  

In watercolor I do a rudimentary outline in pencil, then color lightly.  Watercolor is transparent, so you have to lay down color light first then progressively darker, finishing with the darkest colors.

Acrylic and oil paint are both opaque mediums, colors can then be laid down in any order.  Acrylic is fast drying, in five minutes it will be capable of being over painted.  Oil paint dries slowly over a matter of days, sometimes longer.  The advantage is that you can scrape off layers and repaint while it is still wet.   Pastel is dry pigment, a delight to work with, you can spread it onto any color paper and spread it with a finger or rolled up paper.   you can overlay or use a putty rubber to remove pigment.  It's the ultimate finger-painting experience, a joy to be involved with.  Especially in collaboration with young children who have no inhibitions; they get it on their hands, face, and in their hair, but it washes off without tears.

Painting is also a form of therapy, it calms nerves, lowers blood pressure and relaxes you.

If I were in a position to choose one occupation to fill the remaining days of my life it would be painting, and all who have experienced the inner peace it brings would heartily agree.

Exercise Week 6:

Revision/Final Submission of your paragraph deadline (your work): Friday Nov. 1 by 10:00 p.m. PST 

An Activity of universal interest.

For my favourite activity I have chosen painting, because it's a universal pastime that transcends sex, race, nationality, and religious beliefs; painting predates language, and people have been painting since men first inhabited caves, and now I will attempt to share my passion with you:

·        Good paintings stir memories in the mind of the viewer, evoking emotional responses, deep feelings of joy, and sadness.
·        Anybody can paint, even a talentless dauber like me.   What is better than sitting down with pencils, and paper to make representational marks that actually resemble something.  Adding color, gives a whole new dimension to a drawing.  Good or bad, it is a deeply satisfying adventure, and if your unhappy with the results you can simply throw them in the bin, and know that you are the richer for the experience.
·        You can progress from colored pencils to soft pastels, oil pastels, watercolor, acrylics, and oils.   All are engrossing, satisfying, and unique.  
·        There are people who say, "I couldn't draw to save my life!"  Yet they are happy to draw a map to show a stranger how to get from 'A' to 'B'; because they already have the journey visualized in their minds.
·        What you can visualize you can paint.  Take a bottle, narrow at the top, and wide at the base.   Picture it in your mind, visualize it, and draw it on to your paper.   Next think of something a little more complex, a chair.   Visualize it, Draw it, then draw a bottle resting on it, and you have a complex drawing; add color, and you have a still life painting.
·        I find that I become absorbed in a piece of work, the planning, rough drafting onto paper, board, or canvas.   Then the real work begins:

      a.    In watercolor I do a rudimentary outline in pencil, then color lightly.  Watercolor is transparent, so you have to lay down your light colors first then get progressively darker, finishing with the umbers and blacks.
      b.    Acrylic and oil paint are both opaque mediums, so colors can be laid down in any order.  Acrylic is fast drying, after five minutes I am able to add another layer of color to my painting. 
     c.   Oil paint dries slowly over days, sometimes weeks.  The advantage is that you can mingle new paint with old or scrape off layers, and repaint them whilst the surrounding pigment is still wet.
     d.   By contrast pastel is a dry pigment, a delight to work with, you can apply it to any colored paper, and spread it with a finger or with rolled up strips of paper known as torchons.   you can overlay color, or use a putty rubber to remove it.  It is the ultimate finger-painting experience.   It's a joy to be involved with, especially when collaborating with young children, they have no inhibitions; they get it on the paper, their hands, faces, and in their hair, but the good thing is, it's easily washed off.

·        Painting is also a form of therapy, it calms my nerves, lowers my blood pressure and helps me to relax after a stressful day.

If I were able to choose one occupation to fill the remainder of my days, I would without a doubt choose to be a painter, and I know that all who have experienced that inner peace would wish to join me, as one. 

I will post my grades when they arrive/...      91.6%