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I felt a bit tempted to write another stream-of-consciousness style semester self-evaluation... but that isn't the most efficient writing for this kind of assignment. So, in order for me to resist that and actually answer questions, I'm going to approach this systematically.

How and what I've been learning:

I wasn't sure at first if I was the type of learner or writer who would learn much in this course. I think I am times too critical about enjoying 'play' or having pride about 'from where I come.' Perhaps even now I still am. But I've learned to become more articulate about that.

Edges of my learning:

Like I wrote in my first posting, my artist/stage name is Fenceless. I don't like fences, edges, boundaries, limits, barriers. Sometimes (actually, quite often) that can be problematic. Maybe my edge in learning is that I don't know what it's like to have an edge. Sooner or later things need do take a definitive shape in order to exist. So if I continue being fenceless and all that jazz, I won't give myself opportunity to exercise shape and form. I need space to take away space. I think I could use some limits now and then.

Degree of being playful in the course:

Of all the aspects in the course, I think I've been most playful in my writing. Well, at times it seems like it's playful. Most of the time I just write what I feel compelled or drawn to write and see where I take myself. Sometimes I think I'm a passive and reactive writer, rather than one who is proactive and intentional. I wonder if play occurs when you 'do'? Or when you let things happen?

Participation and contribution in class and group discussions:

I know my participation in class discussions has been a bit lacking. Oftentimes what happens is that I sit in class actively listening and internally responding to everyone's remarks, but it's only much later that I realise I haven't actually said anything outloud. However, when I do say things and contribute, I do think I raise points and questions that others haven't considered, thus taking the discussion into a new direction. That's also the reason I don't always feel comfortable sayings things in class, because I don't know how prepared I have to be to carry on the discussion if I do take it a whole new direction. I'm okay with taking these risks in writing, because I don't have an audience that is immediately responding or needing to interact directly in same setting as me.

In small writing group discussions, on the other hand, I think I've been helpful to people if they were struggling to develop their ideas by offering new perspectives, new approaches to their topic. I enjoyed responding to others' writing because it's refreshing to see how others have approached the same assignment in different ways. I wish I had gotten more interesting or stimulating feedback on my work, though.

Growth as player in the city:

I don't think I could have asked for a better introduction to Philadelphia than through this course. Of course we didn't visit the entire city; just a mere fraction, but you have to start somewhere and getting to know how a city is laid out is a good place to start. I've visited and lived in a lot of cities in my life so far, and so I haven't gotten used to one place enough that I learn to ignore certain things, or take others for granted. On the contrary, I feel even more aware of everything going on around me, and want to pay attention to it all. I don't know how comfortable I feel about the concept of 'playing in the city,' as if the city where a playground. It's not easy for me to ignore all the hardships and political issues and absurd human drama that is played out in a city...

Reading experience:

It didn't seem like reading was central to the course, in terms of it being grounded in a single author or single text. Which was refreshing, in my opinion. Because if you're stuck with a text or author with whom you don't get along from the start, then things get... cramped. So I really enjoyed being exposed to a variety of styles, texts, authors, writers, thinkers, thoughts, and words and seeing in which direction they push me. I spent the most time with Zadie Smith, of all the readings, which I definitely enjoyed. But I do like that she wasn't central, despite NW being our longest text, to what we discussed and studied. Of course, because we had trips into the city and the city itself was a text for us, we discussed galleries and drama performances. So the readings came from a medley of media and if you laid them all together side-by-side, it'd be a quite a colourful mosaic.

Review of written work:

There were many difficult written assignments for me this semester. I remember the first one, where we had to pick a photo, being especially difficult to start. There was simply no way I could chose one photo from one home. Fortunately the following assignments were less about having to make decisions about personal identity, and more about personal opinion and statement. Looking back to see a trend in my writing, I think it would go: storytelling, observation, musical mosaics, frustration/fear/anger, relaxed&tame, poetic playing around, experimenting with economic literary analysis, incomplete essay thoughts, and then finally some more fun poetic essays. The essays I enjoy the most are when I can bring in my past poetry and thoughts and see how they connect. I guess that is where I played most deeply in that it was very spiritual for me to incorporate my lyrics and poetry.

As for the Wednesday night postings, I used those as a platform for more of 'speaking my mind,' which I suppose I could have done more in class if I wanted to make a discussion out of it... I wish those posting were more incorporated into class because I did put a lot into them. Perhaps that goes back to the reactionary writing, since I was generally driven in reaction to the reading that was the prompt of topic of the posting.

Overall, I can't really say if I've improved in my writing... all writing is practise for future writing. And I think the nature of our writing assignments helped lead up to that, acknowledging that all writing is practise.

Into the future:

In terms of concrete skills I'll be taking to the future, the easiest to point out would be navigating Philadelphia.

As for writing, if I am looking at all writing to be practise, I think I've found more ways to write poetry and lyrics for myself, because I've discovered ways in which my mind responds to certain activities, and then seen what I am prompted to write. I guess this would all go under the name of deep play, and I definitely will continue to be making use of the mindsets I've found and applying them to my personal writing.

Portfolio Banner:

The photo I've chosen to be the banner of my portfolio is one I took in a town in the West Pokot Region of Kenya. I think the town might be Kitale. I can't remember exactly, but I know it was on the way from Marich to the Kitale airport, so it's very likely that it is Kitale. It's a really colourful photo, with all the shop signs. The man in the front left of the photo is grinning to himself. I don't know the man's story, I don't even know the town's story. I don't know any story involved in the photo other than the part I took in capturing the photo. "Dreams Collection." That's one of the signs; at the bottom right. I have no idea what business the name belongs to, but that doesn't matter because I don't know the story anyway. I just know that it's a snapshot of a point in my story.

I was indecisive. I couldn't start this course with a photo, but I feel absolutely comfortable ending it with this one.