#128, Stream
One day, you will have to go through an interview (many of you likely have already). An interview allows a potential school or business to evaluate a candidate and get to know them personally. A typical interview might include questions like, "What is an accomplishment that you are proud of?" or "Where do you see yourself in 10 years?", or the dreaded, "What is your greatest weakness?"
A modern interview, however, is likely to seek more than just prototypical answers. And, there are peculiar, seemingly illogical questions that can reveal the complexity and nuance of a person's character. These inquiries showcase an individual's ability to think critically and creatively.
We will practice a new literary style of writing for this response called stream of consciousness. Stream of consciousness is a literary style in which a character's thoughts, feelings, and reactions are depicted in a continuous flow uninterrupted by objective description or conventional dialogue. Essentially, you are writing every single one of your thoughts as you create an answer. An example is below,
Q: How many pennies can you fit in your mouth?
A: Well, let's see. A stack of pennies is about the size of my index finger down to my knuckle. After putting my finger in my mouth I can see that it's a bit long to fit in. I can maybe fit maybe twenty-five index fingers in there if I really tried. Oh, and if the pennies are loose and not wrapped in paper, that would free up a lot of space. It would also nearly guarantee I would choke on the pennies too. Anyway, if the pennies were loose then I could probably fit more in. I would need to rub my cheeks and blow them out to make more room to get the pennies as close together as possible. Actually, now that I'm feeling my blown out cheeks I think my estimate of twenty-five index fingers was too high. I think fifteen is more accurate. There are fifty pennies in a wrapper and my index finger is a little bit longer than my mouth, so let's say forty pennies per wrapper. If I take my estimate of fifteen index fingers and forty pennies per index finger, I could fit about six hundred pennies in my mouth. That seems way too high though. Gosh, how large are pennies? I have to cut my estimate down, I don't think I could possibly fit that many pennies in my mouth. After re-measuring, perhaps six or so index fingers is more accurate. I sure wish I had a penny. Okay, my final answer is two hundred twelve pennies. With a 100% chance I would choke on them.
To complete this week's Journal response,
- Use stream of consciousness style of writing to answer one of the questions below. Put the question at the top of your response.
- A penguin walks through the door wearing a helmet. What does he say and why is he here? (Imagine here is PEAI).
- How would the world be different if it rained doughnuts instead of water?
- Which kitchen utensil would be most effective in ending the war between North and South Korea?
- How many cats could fit in Brenden Teacher's classroom (Room 4) at PEAI?
- Comment on one of your peers' responses.
-Brenden Lee Teacher
squeeze