hey guys-for those who don't know,i am taking an at home writing class called writing for children and teens. this course is through the university of connecticut's institute of children's literature. it teaches you how to write better and market your work to publishers. each student is paired with an individual teacher who is a published author. the following is my introductory letter to my teacher, pegi shea. i would appreciate feedback. i also have to write a short story which i'll post later. this will probably be the only letter to her i will post. i'm just a little nervous because she actually is a published author. Fallon Kunz 56090 Currant Road Mishawaka, IN 46545 AJS3371 Oct, 28, 2009 Dear Mrs. Shea, Hi! My name is Fallon. I am a college student, musician, and poet from Mishawaka, Indiana. I am the oldest of three children. My brother, Bryan, is sixteen. He wants to either be a lawyer or a prosecutor, and is already taking his first college class to get ahead. My sister, Kayla, is twelve. She’s got her heart set on acting, and has recently landed her first role in the school play. My parents, Kip and Karen, are divorced. Despite my best efforts to get an apartment, I still live at home with Dad. We have three pets. Dalilah has been with us the longest. She is a yellow lab, chow, and beagle mix. She is supposed to be the family pet, but we all know she’s Bryan’s girl. Lola is Kayla’s rat terrier puppy. She’s a bundle of energy 24/7. We should have named her Lightning. Maria is my baby. I’m not sure if she’s a Persian or a British Blue cat. She’s an affectionate, stubborn, little fuzz ball who likes to “type” on my computer, delete my homework, and turn on my radio. I was born on March 16, 1988-three months before Mom’s due date. During her pregnancy, Mom lost fluid several times. At her 5-month ultrasound, the doctors told Mom that the umbilical cord was wrapped around my neck. They said if they delivered me then, I would die. So my parents anxiously and prayerfully waited. At birth, I weighed one pound, eleven ounces. Doctors doubted I’d make it through the night. A year and a half later, I was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy. I use a power chair for most of my mobility, and can use a walker for short distances. If you have any further questions or concerns about my disability, feel free to ask. I’m very comfortable talking about it. I was very loved as a kid, but I also felt very isolated. I was the first disabled student at my elementary school. Nobody wanted to play with the “crippled girl”. I found refuge in music. I sang all day long. When people ask me how long I’ve been singing, I often answer by asking how long they’ve been breathing. I literally have no memory of life prior to music being a part of it. Somewhere on this planet, there is an incredibly embarrassing video tape of me singing in my preschool’s Barney musical when I was four. My love of music only grew from there. By nine, I had done my school talent show. By ten, I could read sheet music. As for my writing, that began when I was nine. My parents took me to the store, and told me to pick out anything I wanted for my birthday. I chose a pink and white personal cassette player and a diary. At first, I just wrote about fluff-boys I liked, my cat, my hatred of math, etc. Over the years, my writing matured. It stopped being about how I hated being different, and was more about how I hated other people thinking I was less capable simply because I was on wheels. My creativity wouldn’t allow me to stick to prose. In part because of my musical background, I have always been interested in poetry and theatre. While my friends dreaded Shakespeare, I was in love with him. In addition to Shakespeare, I also love Maya Angelou, Joyce Meyer, Jane Austen, and Nicholas Sparks. After seeing the musical on YouTube last year, I am also thoroughly obsessed with all things “Wicked”. I love how Gregory Maguire can take a story I think I know, and turn it on its head. He creates his own unique piece of art with stories like “Wicked”, while not ruining a beloved original. When I was thirteen, I was looking for a unique way to tell my two best friends how much I loved them. I decided to write them a letter. That letter became my very first poem. ` To date, I have seventy-one original poems. My friends would often pass my journal around at lunch and read them. They would tell me what they liked, and what they thought needed to be tweaked. It was these “pass the poetry” sessions that caught the attention of my choir director. She saw my poem “Music”, and insisted it be printed on the back of the program for our final concert that year. In high school, I took a creative writing class. When I transferred schools, I worked on the school paper. My teacher was impressed by my poetry and allowed me to publish an original poem in nearly every issue that was released my senior year. I also contributed an editorial on accessibility for disabled students in high schools. I didn’t take the writing test for this class. Enrollment was offered to me because I had previously taken-and later dropped for academic reasons-the adult class through Longridge Writers Group. My ultimate goal is to teach high school choir and give voice lessons in the summers. However, writing has always been my second love. I would someday love to do a book of poetry for teenage girls. There is also a possibility that my disability could keep me from teaching. In that event, I plan to give voice lessons in my home, and maybe supplement my income with writing. Even if I never make any money at it, it is worth it to me to take the time and money to hone my skills. Is it O.K. with you if I send you a poem once in a while on top of my assignments and letters? I run them by my friends and family all the time. They all say they love them, but it would help me immensely to have a fresh pair of eyes look at them. I would also like the input of a professional. I look forward to hearing from you. Sincerely, Fallon Kunz

hey guys-remember my last poem "all i want to do"? if not, here it is:

#68 All I Want To Do
Current mood: annoyed
Category: School, College, Greek
All I want to do is teach
All I want to do is go to school
So I can get a degree
To teach children to sing

All I want to do
Is have an apartment I can afford
With a kitten
And a place for my Disney collection
And my keyboard

All I want to do
Is to have a life someday
One that doesn't include waiting on the government

Someday
I want to show the world
That disability doesn't mean inability
I'm not asking for a hand out.
All I want is a fair shot.
Is that too much to ask?
                 Fallon Marie

i wrote that out of pure frustration and anger after registering for school at ivy tech, and being told a day before my first class started, that i couldn't go to school. i couldn't go to school there this semester because in fall of 2008, i lost my financial aid. i was told to reinstate aid, i'd have to pay for a class myself and pass it. so my dad paid for my theatre appreciation class. i aced the class. so when i came back this semester, i though everything would be fine. i was wrong.

the system still had my financial aid listed as "terminated". when i talked to the head of financial aid he asked me, "did you file an appeal?" i said no, and explained that i didn't know about the financial aid appeal process. so i couldn't go to school.

now to the real reason for my blog.

about a year and a half ago, i got a large envelope in the mail out of the blue. inside was a package of paperwork inviting me to enroll in a home study college writing class. after thinking about it and researching the college, i took the test, and enrolled myself in the class. this course wasn't eligible for financial aid because it was being taught through the mail. but they had a reasonable payment plan, so i went for it.

i took this class on top of my 12 credit hours at ivy tech. i didn't realize it at the time, but the home study class was SEVEN credit hours, because the school was forced to cram what was supposed to be a 2-year class into a home study program vs. teaching it on campus at thier school in connecticut. i couldn't handle all the extra work. i ended up dropping it.

sometime in mid-july, i got another letter from longridge writer's group-the group that sponsers the home study program for the university of connecticut. the letter said that the school had reviewed my file and thought that my writing was more suited for their "writing for children and teens" home study class.

i kept the paperwork in my desk just in case something happened with school. when my plans fell apart, i filled out the enrollment form, and got my first set of books the other day.

these classes are based on individual instruction. they are taught by professional authors who take the time to get to know their students. by the time i'm done with this class, i will have mailed at least 2 manuscripts off to publishers. i will also have a diploma from the university of connecticut stating that i have completed the professional children's writing class, and an official transcript that will be able to get my credits transferred to bethel. i'm doing this because 1) I LOVE WRITING (can't you tell that from my blogs?!) 2) i have nothing else to do this semester 3) if i can't teach in a classroom, i'll always have writing to fall back on.

for more information on longridge writer's group, the classes, or how to enroll, go to www.longridgewritersgroup.com (longridge writer's group-adult writing class) www.instituteofchildrenslit.com (institute of children's lit-"writing for children and teenagers" class). i will post all assignments for the class on myspace and facebook, and i welcome your critiques, questions, and comments about my writing.-fallon

hey guys-as you might expect, cerebral palsy is no picnic. most of my days are good. but then there are those days when frankly my disability kicks my ass. today was one of those days. my muscle spasms were constant. for those of you who aren't familiar with all the lovely brands of hell that are cp, let me explain my muscle spasms.

they look like mini seizures, except they're not. unlike a seizure, i am completely concious and can feel every painful, involuntary jolt in my body. these occur in my muscles, not in my brain. and unlike a seizure these last only a few seconds, and i can have several a day. they wear me out. i get tired. my blood sugar drops. and i get-for lack of a better word-loopy. my speech starts to slur. i can't focus. i just can't function. these are all the reasons why i can't drive.

anyway, so i had a TON of spasms today, and didn't realize my chair was dying. dad and kk were running errands. i was home alone. i was trying to go to the bathroom. i backed up and heard a blood curdling "MEOW!" maria had fallen asleep under my chair!

had i been more lucid,i would have called her to make sure she wasn't under me. but i wasn't thinking. instantly, i started to cry. i screamed for her, and THANK GOD she hopped up on the back of the recliner. i was still hysterical, because i was still spasming off and on pretty bad. and i was convinced i had hurt her, so i grabbed the recliner and pulled it closer, and snatched her up. she was fine...not a scratch. thank you jesus for protecting her. it is a miracle i didn't kill my baby kittty. even in writing this now i am crying-in part because had i killed her, i would have never forgiven myself. and in part, because i realize now that god loves me so much that he cared enough to protect maria when i was too weak to do it myself. miracles do happen. god does care-even about mischievious kittens who fall asleep under wheelchairs.-fallon

hey guys-cassie sent me a link to this video from cnn about a pastor who says he hates our president. this man does not just disagree with president obama's decisions and policies. he says-in the video-that he "hates the man". i believe this "pastor's" quote was "break his teeth, o god!" he said such disparaging things FROM HIS PULPIT TO HIS CONGREGATION! what kind of a person says such things?! certainly not a CHRISTIAN. now i admit we are all human and we all make mistakes and say and do stupid things-even those of us who call ourselves followers of christ. however, what angers me about this is that THIS MAN IS A PASTOR. he, more than anyone else, should understand that christians are the light of the world. jesus called all of us to go and preach the gospel everywhere. there are probably impressionable children going to his church. what are they going to think?! how are christians supposed to do what jesus commanded us to do when there are PASTORS-TEACHERS OF THE WORD OF GOD-out there saying they hate people? no wonder so many people are so turned off by christianity! WE ARE JESUS' REPRESENTITIVES! NO ONE IS GOING TO WANT TO COME TO JESUS IF THEY THINK THAT WE-HIS CHILDREN-ARE FULL OF HATE, UNFORGIVENESS, AND BITTERNESS!

what's so dangerous about this is that non-believers are going to see this and think that that's how all christians are. and that, my friends, is the real tragedy. people may not come to jesus because of this sad man.

what REALLY gets under my skin about this is that-at some point in the video-he says he wishes obama would die. what if his little girls see this? what if his wife sees this? what are they goiing to think? this poor man. i hope god gets a hold of him soon because he is certainly NOT a christian.-fallon

hey all-i'm beginning to realize that raising a kitten is similar-in a lot of little ways-to raising a baby. both are cute, small, and get into EVERYTHING. both are stubborn. and both take a lot of patience and love. i'm good with the love part. patience...not so much. maria keeps getting on the table. i'd let her be except i'm afraid she'll jump up there when we're eating. besides, my books for that writing class should be here soon, and i don't want her getting up there while i'm working.

i've told her no. i've tried putting her in my room and leaving her for a few minutes. i've taken her off the table, and given her toys to play with instead. but she always finds her way back to the table. kayla said i should spank her. but when i get older, i'm not going to spank my children, so why should i spank her? we have no spray bottles i can fill with water. and i don't have a pet carrier i can put her in yet. i don't want to use a pet carrier as punishment because when i move, i'll have to take her on the bus to go to the vet. i don't want her to think she's being punished every time i take her somewhere. so what do i do?!!!!-fallon

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids....

this is michael jackson's trailer for his final concert series. the home movies made of mj's rehersals and backstage goings on will be released by the jackson family later this year.

hey guys-maria's been with us less than a week, and she's already learned how to climb everything-including every possible route from the floor to the table. the other day we wer eating taco bell, and the littlle fluff ball climbed up the back of my chair, perched on my shoulder, and jumped down to the table and started chomping on my steak chalupa. i was like "oh my gosh! maria no!" and i set her on the floor. i swear less than 30 secons later she was up on the table again. finally, dad put her in my room by herself. maria is very people dependant. if i leave her in a room by herself for more than five minutes, she starts meowing like crazy. the other day when dad put in the bedroom, she was crying constantly. it broke my heart. i wanted to go get her and make her feel better. i gotta get over that before i have kids.-fallon

hi-svu will always hold a special place in my heart. olivia benson is the single greatest t.v. cop EVER. mariska hargitay is now one of my favorite actresses because of that show. and the intense relationships between all the svu cops-especially that of eliot and olivia-keep me hooked.

but glee is my dream t.v. show. it's a musical comedy in a series. matthew morrison-one of broadway's best leading men in my opinion-plays will shuester. will is a teacher who returns to his old high school to coach the glee club. the club-which in shuester's high school days was a trophy-winning force to be wreckoned with-is now a shadow of it's former self. it only has five members, and has become a laughing stock and a magnet for school outcasts. although they may be misfits, the glee clubbers have big voices and dance moves to boot. shuester is determined to return his beloved club to its former glory, and show the school what his kids can really do. while will and his kids are working hard on dancing and making the club better, not everybody is happy about it.

sue sylvester is the school's uptight cheerleading less-than-pleasant cheerleading coach. sue is determined to tear the club down. she and her "cheerios" cheerleaders set out to infiltrate the club, and get all the dirt on the club and its members.

it's a really funny, inventive, show full of phenomanal talent, a great story, and AMAZING music. check it out!

www.fox.com/glee

hey guys-so heather calls yesterday and says "do you still want a cat? because i'm over at my parents'house, and the neighbor has free kittens. i could pick one up for you!" so today she brought the little kitten over. she's a small little grey fluff ball. when she meows, she sounds less like a kitten and more like a little squeak toy. but she is affectionate, sweet, and a little lap kitty. dad and i discussed names for about an hour. i didn't want my new baby cat to be labeled as "smokey" or ""misty". those names are too easy. i knocked around calling her minnie because she's so little. dutchess after the mom in the aristocats. belle-it means beautiful. kayla suggested celine. finally, we settled on maria-after maria von trapp in "the sound of music". i named my kitten maria because she is brave around lola (kayla's rat terrier puppy), but dalilah scared her to death. she is very independant, spunky, and climbs EVERYTHING...just like maria in the movie. i will post pictures later.-fallon

hey guys-just thought i'd let you all know i found this GREAT new artist named jessie james. i heard about her when i logged in the other day. she's a young singer/songwriter from georgia with a powerful voice and a lot to say to the world. she's definitely southern, but her music isn't entirely country. she brings different elements into her music that make it stand out from all the other pop-country out there. "blue jeans" is a sort of southern hip-hop song. "my cowboy" reminds me of shania twain's "any man of mine" because jessie tells potential boyfriends exactly what it will take to be her man. it made me laugh because she was blunt about it, but still respectful...just like a real southern belle. it reminded me of my grandma. her vocals are up there with christina agulera and mariah carey. she wrote or co-wrote every song on the cd-which takes guts. this girl definitely says what she thinks and writes and sings from her gut-which i love. her songs are catchy, stuck-in-your-head stuff. it's a little bit country, a little bit rock, a little bit pop and a lot of attitude. i love it! check her out! you can listen to her whole cd "jessie james" on her myspace: www.myspace.com/jessiejamesmusic . for more information about her, go to http://www.islanddefjam.com/artist/bio.aspx?artistID=7325. her cd comes out on the 11th. -fallon

hey guys-recently, i have blogged pretty candidly about some personal issues i'm having. i have made said blogs semi-private-making them viewable by only my close-knit circle of friends and a few family members. within this tight-knit circle, are several very exceptional friends i met online on teamceline-celine dion's official fan club.
have you ever had friends online who you felt were more than just caual? my relationships with these people are so much more and so much deeper than instant messeges, forum posts, and e-mails. we get pretty personal on those forums. what made me want to blog about this is that i tagged aa bunch of my friends in a recent facebook note. one of my tc friends, teresa, and she was touched by my tagging her in such a personal note when i don't even know her. i wanted to blog, and tell all my teamceline friends that even though we've never met in person, i DO know you. i know your hearts, your strong, loving, beautiful spirits. i know that you are loving faitful friends who offered prayers, love, and heartfelt e-mails to a young friend in need. i love you, my fellow TC'ers. i feel that we are so much more than just celine dion fans...so much more than just friends...we are a global family. i pray that we will all be able to take that all important trip to vegas to see celine's show together. i am so blessed to call you my friends. i can't wait to meet you all!!!!!! GOD BLESS!-fallon