About Me

 Kids and Their Damn Phones     For this inquiry project, I wanted to explore the correlation between digital technology and its affect on linguistics: syntax, slang, verbal and nonverbal communication, and so on. I was inspired while observing several high school English classes recently. High school has changed so much since I graduated in 2018 and after the COVID-19 pandemic when schools went online, I had to see for myself what those changes were to prepare myself for teaching. The biggest difference I noticed was every student had a MacBook. This was the school I attended and, economically, we were on the lower rung of the totem pole. So, this blew my mind.     What I observed from this was disturbing. Students responded to daily writing prompts and submitted their responses through the platform the school used. Their responses were displayed and discussed in class. I was horrified to see responses that were single-words, grammatically incorrect, void of an...

 Why Minsc & Boo, Timeless Heroes Are The Best Gruul Commander     Gruul (the color combination of red and green) has always been notorious for making creatures really big, really fast, and punching your opponents in the face with them. A combat heavy strategy can work in the commander format of Magic: the Gathering, but Minsc & Boo, Timeless Heroes takes it to the next level.          Minsc & Boo not only care about making big creatures to throw at your opponents, but they do the best thing in Magic: The Gathering: they let you draw cards. A BUNCH OF CARDS. If you choose to sacrifice a hamster creature to Minsc & Boo's second loyalty ability, the damage dealt will also give you that many cards. These two make a hamster on every one of your turns, meaning you'll always have a hamster.      Not only will you always have a token of Boo to fling, but Minsc & Boo's first loyalty ability will let you make that hamster...

  Cherry (Film and Novel)     Cherry is a pseudo-biographical novel written by Nico Walker that depicts the effects of substance and drug abuse, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and a real look into the U.S. military through the experiences of an un-named, young medic. Walker wrote the novel while incarcerated for robbing banks to fund his addiction. After publishing the book, the Russo brothers acquired the rights for the film starring Tom Holland and Ciara Bravo. The Book       The novel and movie are very similar with some slight differences, but they are both works of art. In Walker's novel, he focuses on having multiple stories in small chapters that follow a linear plot line from start to finish. Some of these stories are extra and feel unnecessary to drive the plot, but they give readers insight into his life. The voice and tone in the book make it impossible to argue that these events couldn't have happened. Only a person who has experien...

 My Top 3 Favorite Comic Books     Sometimes comic books don't have to be about super-powered beings fighting other super-powered beings in a context to see who is the most powerful. I enjoy reading comics where the heroes are just regular people with superpowers, the heroes are actually the villains, or the villains have good reasons to be be villains. As someone who finds it challenging to finish a full-length novel but still wants a well-developed story, I find comic books just as invigorating, emotional, and dramatic. This is a list of my top three favorite comic books that I recommend everyone read. #3 Kick-Ass     Kick-Ass is like Batman, except it's about a high school kid named Dave Lizewski, his family is middle class, he ordered his costume on EBay, he's not an orphan, and he doesn't fit into any group or clique at school, making him a forgettable nobody who simply exists. This series has tons of gratuitous violence and nudity, but is the most grounded...

  Tips For Making EDM/Dubstep Music     To any of my aspiring musical artists out there who love Electronic Dance Music and Dubstep but don't know how or where to start, here are some tips for you. I've been making EDM/Dubstep for about 6 years now under the name TheNewBonnie. I'm not a professional, but I have learned a lot of things that would have helped me when I started and I want to share that information with you. These tips are not ranked in any order. They are simply the best pieces of advice I feel qualified to give. #1: Music is an Art; Not a Science     There is no formula for what makes a song. You can listen to a song and understand how sounds work together and which ones will enhance the experience, but it's not a straightforward process shared among DJs and composers. There are rules for this genre just like any other, but rules in music are meant to be broken. Don't try to follow a specific formula if you think it doesn't sound right. #2: Make...

  Payton Brodie (About Me) "Hello World,"     I am an English Education student attending Western Illinois University (WIU) on the path to becoming a high school English teacher. I want to provide a comfortable environment for young adults to explore themselves and reflect through reading and writing. My goal in teaching is to give students more opportunities to learn for themselves rather than anyone else. While I do enjoy reading, I myself am an extremely slow reader and find most full-length novels challenging to get through. I prefer comic books and other written literature that is dark, gritty, and showcases real problems with humanity. Taking inspiration from shows like "The Walking Dead" and my own experiences with the worst home lives, my (and others') miserable experience in the military, I would love to eventually finish and publish my book Black Blood. I really enjoy the idea of writing a zombie book where the people making the hardest decisions makes...