Creative Genius...okay maybe not so much

When I was a kid I would find myself often daydreaming about what it would be like if I was someone else looking at me.  What would that person see and how that person’s life relates to mine.  Obviously when I was little I wasn’t thinking about it in quite that much detail, but I remember asking myself how do I know who I am and what is keeping me from knowing who other people are around me?  How did I get to be in the place where I am now, what would be different if I had been born a year later?  Again this wasn’t as coherent as it is now and it doesn’t even make any sense, but you can’t tell that to an eight year old.  Oh and I also had some pretty special ways of moving our house around so that when we moved to Tennessee we could keep our same house (we moved back to that house I was so attached to by the way).  I told my parents that we should just attach a hook to the top of the house and have a helicopter fly the house down to Tennessee! 

I don’t do this so much anymore, but before I knew the teachers here I would sit through the first day of class and I would observe how the teacher interacts with the class and how the students would interact with that teacher and I would take my queue on what was appropriate in that class from them.  This way I wouldn’t draw negative attention to myself. 

One of my favorite scenes of recent super hero movies is when Iron Man built his first Iron Suit.  He did it under the guise of building a weapon of mass destruction.  In the end he used the suit to get free and he was able to obtain all of the materials by saying that it was for this mega-weapon…pretty creative.   

Driving Mr. Superman

The scene starts with a ordinary taxi driver named Emily.    All of the sudden Clark Kent hops into her taxi and strikes up a conversation with the (more than a little weirded out) taxi driver.

Clark Kent:  Emily I have to tell you something.
Emily:  I'm sorry, but do I know you??  Wait...how do you know my name?
Clark Kent:  There's no time.  I have some extremely important information to give you and what you do with that information could determine the fate of the world!
Emily:  Fantastic!  I'm just going to pull over and talk to this police officer real quick...you just sit tight.
Clark Kent:  This is no time for games!  (he rips his shirt off to revel his Superman uniform).
Emily:  Holy SHIT!
Superman:  Well that got your attention.
Emily:  ...you're....you're...
Superman:  Yep
Emily:  This may sound weird, but I always thought of you as being a hermit.
Superman:  A hermit??
Emily:  ...yea, a hermit that only came out of his hovel in order to save the world from utter destruction.
Superman:  Okay enough small talk we've got to get down to business.
Emily:  You do know that you're sitting in Emily Frazer's cab right?  I'm not a rocket scientist and I don't have super powers...you realize that right??
Superman:  You're special Emily. 
Emily:  That's what people keep telling me, but I'm starting to think that they meant it in a different way than you do.
Superman:  Stop distracting me this is an important message and if I don't tell you then I'm not going to be alive in the next couple minutes.
Emily:  Well JESUS!  You could have told me five minutes ago and then you wouldn't be pushed for time!
Superman:  It doesn't work that way you have to accept the message.
Emily:  Done.
Superman:  No you have to really accept it.
Emily:  Okay ya lost me!
Superman:  This is a message from your home planet and you have to accept it with your other sense in order for the krypitnite bomb implanted in my ear goes off and scatters gray matter all over your cab!
Emily:  I have no idea what you're talking about!  I grew up in Jerseyville, Illinois!  I didn't even live in the town!  I lived 15 minutes outside of the town limits!  I'm no one.
Superman:  Everyone has some part of themselves that they don't want to accept, but you've got to do it now or there will be dire consequences!
....MANAF!
Emily:  Wha... (Emily's eyes turn white and her skin glows green) Thank you Ka-el.  You have proved to be most useful in helping my planet.  The understanding that will be gleaned from this place will serve well as we rebuild our homeland.  Take care of Emily...she will need you for what lies ahead.  This is only the first step in her trial of fire.  We are an old race set in our ways that is why we sent Manaf here.  She is to be the savior of our people.

The End

Obsession's A Good Thing

When reading Morrison’s book one is able to understand why he is so obsessed with superheroes.  Well, who wouldn’t be with the way he describes the way reading these comic books helped him to find his passion, pass the time, or escape his everyday life and immerse himself in the love triangles, struggles, and triumphs of the godlike creatures created by Marvel and DC Comics.  Seeing his reason for adoring superheroes made me think about why I love superheroes so much.  Now I didn’t read any comics (except for Archie), but I remember watching movies about Batman and thinking “Wow!  This is someone who fights for what he believes in and never backs down, even if the odds are stacked against him.”  This began my superhero obsession.

                When I was little my grandma gave me a book of fairy tales and I used to love reading about the brave leading women and the men who saved them or were saved by them (i.e. Bell in Beauty and the Beast, Mulan, etc.).  I tried to model myself after these brave women.  These women who, regardless of their plight, would take the time to help anyone who asked them and were genially kind and caring people.  The morals taught in these children’s books helped to shape into the person I am today.  And when I discovered superheroes it was like my favorite fairy tales on crack!  Batman was so concerned with riding the streets of evildoers that he committed his life to that single purpose; sacrificing himself for others.  How much more moral can you get??  So some of my education in moral ethics I learned from fairy tales and then I graduated to superheroes!  I  am completely fascinated with the entire concept of extraordinary individuals that seek justice even in the face of danger.

How Super are Superheroes??

When I began this class I believed that superheroes are extremely courageous individuals and I still do, but what about all of the regular people out there that do not have the huge advantage that superheroes do…meaning super powers?  Where are the comic books made about the one fine upstanding and socially conscious citizen that sees a problem and decides that they will fix it.  Don’t these people have more courage than superheroes?  The firefighters and police officers and other people who stand up for what they believe in even if it isn’t their job.  That’s an extremely brave thing to do.  Superheroes know that they have super strength or speed, or any number of things to protect them if they are outnumbered or threatened, but average people don’t.  So who is the stronger character?  Who is braver, the person without superpowers who stands up for herself and others or the superhero who does the same thing, but with the advantage of special powers? 

And while it is true that superheroes (at least the ones in comics) always end up behind masks to protect the ones they love, but regular people don’t normally have time to put on a cape and mask before helping someone out.  They are easily recognizable and they are putting not only their selves in danger, but also their loved ones.  So really who has more to lose by being a hero?  Superman keeps stalkers, villains, and evil-doers under control with his secret identity, but Meg who saw a mobster kill two of her friends has to stand face to face with the one who murdered her friends and send him to jail knowing that by doing so puts herself and her family at risk for retaliation from a mob…who is braver?