It’s A House Thing!! =0)

by adelena1

For my improv. game, “A Party With Trees,” I had already done it with the class, now it was time to do it outside the classroom, and what better place to do it then at the House I live in!

Now, to start out, every Wednesday, we have House Meeting, where staff member and residents convene together to discuss House-related events, upcoming affairs and other community announcements. So, on Wednesday, I thought it would be a perfect fit seeing that majority of the House would be there, and it would also be great thing to do.

The way I approached it was way different than that of how it was performed in class. So, the rules were explained and instead of implementing the changes of the improvements that I thought would help the game, I thought that maybe I should stick with originality. As it soon turned out that it was way better than the first time! (No Joke)

Approaching it from the same stand point as before, with a host and two party attendees. But since there were more people, I thought that instead of having two, three was a perfect match! Prior to House Meeting, the cards were distributed out to the residents; via emails, residents were somewhat informed of what the activity (game) was going to be about. Nearing the end of House Meeting, the game started with my RA as the host. Two people went up at first and then someone else jumped up next. And then from then forward, it was a huge success!! In truth, it legitimately went as much as I had imagined it would, maybe even better! As there was the host and the three improvisers as party guest; one thing that I thought was different was the fact that if the host was stuck, he/she would focus on one of the party improvisers and start giving details and guesses about the persons portrayal. For example, I was the host, along with Jacob, Jasmine, and Carly. For me, I thought I was going crazy, with all three of them moving around and doing their improvising. But once I cleared everything up and really focused on one of the party people, for instance, Jacob. Jacob (“the-phobia” [a person who is afraid of hearing “the” he would scream/yell and say “don’t say that”]) was a hard one to guess, because he kept on telling “Don’t say that dude!” and “AHHH!!”… but then I noticed that if I said “the”… a second later, he would freak. So, I thought he was afraid of the word “the”. Correct! And now, he was the host!! =0)

I think this game worked a lot better with the House than it did with the class. I think it was due to some changes between the two groups. For one, with the House, there are thirty other residents; there were more people than there were in the class. The idea that this game would be best for more people I think made the host and party improvisers a lot better oriented. For another, we all know each other and we have lived together in the house past the halfway mark; we are like a family, and I think that was what made the game really fun and exciting and successful!! =0)

It’s a Learning Experience!!

by adelena1

Last week, I did my game, for all intensive purposes, it is now called “Party with Trees”

Now, as I think about it, hmmm.. It could have definitely been done in a better fashion than how it was played out. When I think back, I am actually disappointed with myself. In all honesty, I felt like I was rushing since I had to be at an event right at six and I felt that that event was on my mind more predominantly than the exercise. That event and some other stuff that has been going on throughout this quarter that has made me feel less like myself.  But nevertheless, that is not an excuse.

From the start, I had hoped it would be an awesome game. Hmm… As I was giving out the instructions on what to see and what to do, I should have started handing out the cards or even while I was talking, that could have been improved. The next thing that proved to be the most disastrous was the party itself. The host greeting the two guests and then guessing what either one was doing, instead of having the audience guess for the host. This was a big problem that I did not think about or was not anticipating.

Going in, I had a mindset that the host was going to greet two party goers with cards, and then guess what one of the guests was doing. After the host guessed what one person was doing, then the doer turns into the host and it follows in that order. However, I was not expecting the audience to take a gander at the scene. But it is what it is.

Instead of that: I could have tried it to a point where there is a host and all the guest enter the party, each doing their acting, while the host has to meet and greet each one. Then the host has to guess what everyone is doing. In the mean time, the guests interact with one another while the host is guessing what the party goers are all doing.

Hmm: this reminds me of something that I once did, so, I apologize if this is going off another tangent, but there’s this activity that I now am thinking about. In it, there is a room, one person is the “killer” and another person is the “detective”. For the killer, this person, when he/she shakes hands, they tap the other persons hand two times, and afterwards, that person falls to the ground. While this is going on, every person moving around, has to shake hands with the people around him/her. The detective has to find out who the “killer” is before he/she gets everyone. More elaboration on this in class if this is interesting.

But going back to the activity, that one way of doing it, or another way would have been through a numerical fashion or code. The host will have everyone at the party and according to a number written on the top of the card that is the order that everyone will go in. The order of cards will be given out in numerical order so that if Saif is the first to receive a card, he is the first one, and if Sarah gets the second card, she will be second in line for the host to guess at what she is doing.

Another aspect was that I felt like I didn’t have enough control over what was going on. Once an audience member correctly guessed what one of the party goers was, started to fall apart because it was not how I had planned it. But it was something new for me, and now I can learn from it and have a better initiated game than before.

Last thing, thanks to everyone for participating in this, even though it was poorly constructed, I thank you for participating in it! Elahkwa!!

-Alfred Delena-

Sid the Sneaky Serpent Meets Eugene the Enthusiastic Eagle

by adelena1

Before I begin, I would like to apologize for having missed last week’s class, there was a conflict with my class schedule and I was jumping from one place to the next. My apologizes.

Not Suited for Children –>Reader’s Discretion Is Advised

So, once upon a time, there lived, on a prairie, a very sneaky serpent named Sid who always wanted to steal food. On this same prairie, up in a tree, there lived this enthusiastic eagle named Eugene. He always wanted to help anyone who was in danger or in need of help.

One day, as Eugene was flying over back home to rest his eyes, he noticed a motion in the grass. He thought Gloria the Gracious Gopher was having a picnic, but then Eugene heard a shrill scream and a hysterical laugh. Next thing, as Eugene took flight, he say Sid slither away with Gloria’s picnic basket. As Sid tried to enter his hole, Eugene caught him off guard. Eugene took the picnic basket and Sid up off the ground. “You have no manner there friend Eagle” spat Sid, appearing to be very annoyed about not enjoying Gloria’s food. “You, sir, are the disrespectful one, stealing from others and not even asking for something, just Rude!” And with that Eugene threw Sid as far as he could. Eugene returned the picnic basket to Gloria and apologized for the ordeal.

The next day, Sid was in a very bad mood; after having been thrown far from his home and not having eaten anything, he was famished. Instead of stealing food, Sid wanted to eat SOMEONE! He was furious about Eugene, but he obviously could not eat him. So, Sid went to the eagle’s tree and expressed his anger. “WHAT IS YOUR PROBLEM?!! COULD YOU NOT SEE THAT I WAS HUNGRY AND THAT YOU WERE BEING RUDE BY THROWING ME AFAR!!!” Having heard this, Eugene answered, “I am only looking out for the best in this prairie and if that means you causing trouble for others, I will do something that will make you regret it very much with your entire being!”  With a facetious laugh, he doubted Eugene’s abilities and left. Eugene was not satisfied, but thought of something a lot more creative instead of what he was thinking of.

Still frustrated with Eugene and Gloria’s picnic, Sid plans to attack Gloria and eat her to show Eugene that he was not someone to be messed with. On the eve of Sid’s attack, Sid was preparing, but in the shadow of the tree, Eugene was preparing as well. As soon as the moon was under the cover of the clouds, Sid slithered for his prey. As soon as Eugene saw motion in the grass, Eugene was airborne. Gloria was asleep in bed, dreaming happy thoughts, never thinking about anything bad happening to her. With sharp fangs dripping with poisoned death, Sid was closing in, but before his fangs were able to sink in, Eugene’s talons sunk into the scales of Sid. “NO!!! WAIT!!!!” wailed Sid as he was lifted off the ground. “PLEASE DON’T EAT ME, PLEASE DON’T EAT ME!!” Eugene smiled and spoke, “Oh I’m NOT going to eat YOU!” And with that he gave Sid a wink and using his talons, Eugene sneezed and turned, draining the life out of the sneaky serpent. With that, Eugene threw the lifeless corpse of the serpent on the ground and replied, “He’s All YOURS!”

The gopher came running out and devoured the serpent!

THE END!

By the way, I had to make this less gory and frightening. In relation to this story and the article, the idea of spontaneity can be drawn out. In the article, describes how people can use certain objects like a brick to use creativity as a means of doing a wide range of things with the brick instead of using to build a house. In the story, Eugene uses this idea as a means of having the gopher devouring Sid instead of Eugene. So, that is the main entity of this post. I apologize if this does not make any sense. (Oh and I am being spontaneous with this assignment, instead of telling a regular blog about the article, I use a story to incorporate a new outlook.

Play It As It Is… (“See-saw” Battle)

by adelena1

Earlier today, I was browsing the internet, searching f or a quote for an assignment when I came across this; it is a verse from Romans in the Bible and I thought it relates to the reading:

“… Outdo one another in showing honor…”

In the reading, from the get go, I got this vibe that there was this “I’ve-got-something-better-than-that” type of subject. For the purpose of making it interesting, I think that it is interesting, but I can’t help but wonder if we try to outdo one another in life. I wonder if that is the purpose or rather it is the reason for the causes of different conflicts. In the example, it mentions the “see-saw” battles between Mrs. X, Y, & Z and Mr.’s A, B, & C. Here is shows that it starts out with a scene that goes from a slow and stead line to an angular curve in a second! With Mrs. X starting the conversation, the constant intervening of the others causes the scene to be more interesting because it has more depth and more breadth.

Although this may be the case, the different statuses of people range in real life. In the aforementioned example, it seems that these people are of the same social status (i.e.: there is no royalty or entitled people). If however, there was an arrogant football quarterback or a egotistical basketball captain, then the scenario would change. For example, if those two were thrown in together in a high school setting, the main purpose would be to outdo each other with no one getting anywhere, other than “I-am-this” and “I am that.” It’s like putting two alpha males together; it will be a bragging rights competition. Furthermore, if there was a gorgeous female involved, then it would be an even more dubious competition of “oh, look at me, I play football and I’m the man!!” to “yea, yea, I can shoot from half-court, can you do that? (Slam-dunk)…” It would be interesting to include a newbie into the scene. While these two alpha males are challenging one another to a game of “who-is-better,” lurking near-by and under the radar is another male, who is not like the two alphas. This male is more or less a gentleman who does sports, but is also academically gifted and intelligent. Whilst the alphas are outdoing each other, this male, let’s call him a beta male, comes in and takes the female from both of them. Confused, dazed, and shocked, the two alphas are at a loss of what has happened! That… Is the beauty of patience. On a more realistic level, the opportunity for all three males is presented, however, the beta male was smart and strategic about his options and when his opportunity was open, he seized it with an open heart! In the end, it worked out for the beta, and for the alphas, not so much, but it was a great “see-saw” battle of bragging rights!

Referring back to the quote that I found earlier online, it relates to this reading in that (a) it is okay to outdo each other (b) but out – do one another in a way that will make the person you are outdoing look good.  Oh and beware of betas!! =O)

Kudos & Everything In Between!

by adelena1

First of all, before I begin, I would like to give a big kudos to Savannah, Kevin, and Sarah for their great ideas and awesome improv. games!! I really enjoy them and I cannot wait for the other ones (including my own)!  =O)

There was something that I found, in the reading, to be questioningly fascinating! It’s actually in the first couple lines of the reading:

“If unacquainted with the individual, observers can glean clues from his conduct and appearance which allow them to apply their previous experience with individuals roughly similar to the one before them or, more importantly to apply untested stereotypes on him.”

If I may, I find this to be within the “norm” because of modern society and this idea of having fear of not “fitting in”. For example, a friend invites to say an office party with at least 200 or so people (I don’t know if employees are allowed to invite friends to office parties, but for the sake of time, let’s say that inviting friends is acceptable). So, the theme is “80s, not the 20s”. But instead, you thought it was “20s, not the 80s”. Once people see that you are wearing different attire on, they will most likely (a) judge what you are wearing (b) ridicule you for wearing that instead of the theme which apparently was 80s and not the 20s or (c) make you cry and make you leave in tears in your paint-covered clothing.

Wait a second, well; the last two might have been a bit too over-exaggerated and dramatic. But it also depends on the people: (a) if they are very classy and sophisticated people who want everything to be as perfect as possible, those who will abhor anything that is not within the realm of their expectancy or (b) there are people who are carefree, relaxed and chill people who would rather be around people rather than see the attire that they are wearing.

Point in case, I think that the aforementioned quote is a quote is a way of saying, “If you are normal, this is…” or “If you want to be cool, you have to…” It’s like saying everyone has five fingers and for the most part, everyone does, but there are some people who do not have all five; who knows, they might have four or maybe even six!

Well, news flash, you don’t have to be in the norm to be cool! (hahaha, kiddin’) No, but in a way, being different isn’t always a bad thing, majority of the time; it can be a good thing. In other words, don’t be afraid to be who you are because people have no right to say who you should be; you know yourself a lot better than you think you do. Hmmm… maybe I blew this thing way out of proportion:

Confusion clear-up: People should be mindful when they judge and people should also be who they really are to people who they do not know. In truth, a person (Tim) can pull a charade to be this likeable person whom everyone adores and just loves. Well, it may be true that Tim may enjoy the spotlight, but it really depends on the how happy he is and if this is really who he is. Let say that Tim loves to do math, but in order to fit in, he picks up football and basketball. Though he knows he is not athletic, he nonetheless joins the team to have friends; he also joins so that he will not be picked on for being a “nerd”. In this case, Tim can continue to both worlds, which is totally fine and acceptable, most high school athletes do. But if Tim is not happy with sports and his grades are falling, it may be a good idea to stick with what he truly enjoys, since it makes him happy. Although Tim is fearful that he will get picked on for being smart, there are alternatives to this. Living the life an athlete is challenging and if he is not suited for this, it would be best to do what he does best. In general, Tim wants to be a person who fits in but at the same time, he wants to do well in school. In the end, it comes down to happiness; are you going to be happy with the path that you choose or is it going to be miserable? If you are happy with the choice, but still want to “fit in” you could use your intelligence to tutor the athletes or the students who are in need.

All in all, work hard does pay off; who knows, maybe Tim’s hard work will land him at Stanford someday?

 

EPIC FAILURE!!! >=O)

by adelena1

I want to mention my EPIC FAILURE in class last week.. I have to admit that it was something that I was pretty much okay with.

Firstly, the sound ball game. At first, I liked the concept of it. However, when the sound and movement came to me for the second or third time, I was at a loss of both what to do and how I was supposed to do it. It was not that I was afraid to do it; it was more or less the fact that I might not be able to do both the sound and the movement. I found it difficult trying to imitate the sound, which sounded like a crazed laughing duck on steroids meets over-enthused hyena! I found the sound very hilarious difficult to produce.

Secondly, the game that Sara was leading; making the sound/music go around the room… EPIC FAIL! =O) I appreciate the game that Sara thought of, I thought it was great. For me, I found it very difficult in reality. I was confused at how the sound was supposed to go around. Perhaps it was my misunderstanding of the game that lead to my mess ups, but nonetheless, it was an interesting exercise.

For this week, I will try to get the nitch of things and hopefully it will be awesome as it always is… Hooray for Improv!!

 

When Boy Meets Girl (on steroids!!)

by adelena1

And now a presentation from the love guru <in my dreams>:

What is Love?? Hmm.. Well…. … let’s see here…

What is Love?? The Birds and the Bees… perhaps? well no, kinda, somewhat, maybe… hmm..

What is Love.. Baby Don’t Hurt Me… Don’t Hurt Me… No More…  no, no, not, well if that’s the case..

What is Love??

In all honesty, this is probably a question you should not blog about, especially since the question is a difficult question to answer. Though, I asked my friend Ian and his definition really resonated with me.:

Me: “What is your definition of love?”

Ian: <laughs> “Well I would have to say that love is caring about someone else more than you do about yourself and making sacrifices for that special someone.”

Me: Aw, that’s… that’s <nods head> outstanding

What’s more is how love is perceived by different people, and the basis of those people; within the umbrella of love, there are two people. Now, the most interesting thing is this: “when a man is not willing to share power with his partner, there is an 81 percent chance that his marriage will self-destruct.”

Interesting. The correlation between the male and female is the perky thing about it. As such, it is naturally fair to say that in a relationship, the one who is most likely to be in control of it is the male. Though, there are some situations in which the female is the more predominant mate. In relation to that, in this type of relationship, it will certainly go down the drain faster than you can yell “DRANO!!” The main reason is because, I think, is because if one person is always in control of the relationship, whether it be the male or the female, it leaves room for what that mate only wants, and does not offer room for the other mate. This can cause arguments, fighting, and can even lead up to a break up! For example, if the male, no, let’s say, the female,.. okay.. cool. if the female were to be the constant controller, she would want to be the ONE, the ONE whom people paid more attention to at special events or get togethers, the ONE who would make every decision about her lifestyle in a way that would hinder the male to think otherwise, the ONE who would be in charge of the money and what the male could do with it potentially, the ONE who would take extra steps to make sure that her mate was not seeing any other female but her, and the list goes on and on.

On the other hand, if, say the female in the previous setting were to share her power with her mate, then things would be so much better. For one thing, the both of them would actually have a good relationship going on. Switching gears, most men would take charge of their relationship. However, if the males also made available to their mates on decisions about certain things like the decision about getting a new house or a new car, especially if they are married, it makes a huge difference!

<TO BE CONTINUED…>    <HOPEFULLY>

My Point: I apologize for you all who do not like to read very long blogs, especially if  the topic is one something that might be very vague. Well sorry for the big spheel, but my main point is this:

Treat your partner like the amazing person (s)he is. Fair and simple. If you give her respect, she will give you the same, vice versa, if you give her equal power or choice over something, she would do the same… and I am also guessing that if you give her sexual intercourse, she will do the same.. but any who, treat her like she’s your best friend, in fact, your partner should be your very best friend, that’s the way I see it.

Ties: Okay, so how does this tie in with improv.? Well from our scene work(s) on Monday, we saw different dynamical relationships on stage. It was interesting to see that although the scenes were not very long, there was a switching of different “power holders”. Seeing that both the improvisers would switch with control, for instance, in the last scene, with the couple and the picnic. The female wanted to eat and she had done almost all the work while her partner just followed. When she decides to sit down and asks her mate to grab the basket, the male then becomes the controller, using prior instances of his mate’s controlling. So, it flipped back and forth.

And also in general, it’s interesting stuff!! =O)

That’s All Folks!! Until Next Time!!

The Power of Listening!

by adelena1

As I sit here thinking about what we did last night, it’s very fascinating to actually zoom out of reality and go into a new and unfamiliar zone; it was a rather interesting experience. In the story telling and listening activity, it was surprising for me, especially because it felt more or less (call me crazy if you must) like I was in two different dimensions at the same time! That is to say that physically I was in the room and listening, but then, something really strange seemed to happen. Subconsciously, it felt like I was actually in the story, like really and I do mean, really immersed in the story.

When Jason was telling me his intriguing story, I somehow and for some odd reason, saw, subconsciously the place he was describing. I saw the water, the sun, the nice crisp afternoon sky, and the nice cool breeze coming from the west. Going down it felt like a surreal dream, going to theses very round circular rocks near the bottom. Jason picks up one of these rocks, being a “baseball-er”, he throws the rock, I hear the great whooshing sound and the next sound was rather piercing. The rock smashes in half and part of the smashed rock goes back and BAM! Like an arrow colliding with skin, the shards hit bulls eye, right smack in Jas0n’s leg!

Here, I had been witnessing what was going on, again, it felt like being in both dimensions at the same time, in the background, I could hear Jason talking, but subconsciously, it felt like I was actually seeing the environment and like I was standing right behind Chase. Again, call me crazy but, I thought it was fascinating to report on!

 

Alfred Delena

 

Roommate Talk

by adelena1

In all honesty, I had never really thought about doing improvisation. I always had heard about the term but never really wondered what it was used for and why it is important. Up until now.

I found this interesting, “We all go through life everyday without a script, responding to our environment, making it up as we go along.” I agree with this statement. In fact, just yesterday, I was in the computer cluster at my house, doing an essay. My roommate comes in and starts doing work. Out of randomness, I ask him a “Stanford” question.

Me: “Hey there, can I ask you something?”

My Roommate: “Sure, what’s up?”

Me: “What would you do if you bumped into a female, on accident, at a store.” *the female sees your Stanford lanyard* “The female enthusiastically says, ‘Oh-my-Gosh, Oh-my-Gosh, Oh-my-Gosh, do you know who Andrew Luck is?’ What would you do?”

My Roommate: “I would say, ‘No but i go to the same school as him.’”

Me: “But if she was very gorgeous and pretty? Now what do you do?”

My Roommate: “I would do pretty much the same thing, though I would puff out my chest and say, ‘No, I go to Stanford and that’s the same thing.’”

Me: “What if she is incessant about Andrew Luck and she wants his autograph? What would you do now?”

My Roommate: “Well I would say, ‘I can give you my autograph and even leave some digits.’”

Me: “This angers her and she starts crying in public…”

My Roommate: “I would walk away from the situation, but if she continues to cry, I would pat her on back and offer her to take her out to coffee.”

Just out of randomness, I like to start a conversation, and even though it something that was not rehearsed, I thought it was somewhat related to improv.