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"Waffles are the Sponsor of my Woes"

OUT NOW ON AMAZON

"Waffles are the Sponsor of my Woes" OUT NOW ON AMAZON

"This cooked." –Michael Howe

Joshua Steely's heart is served up on a silver platter in his debut poetry collection, Waffles are the Sponsor of my Woes. Steely's food-metaphor-based poems explore themes of Hope, Rejection, Desperation, Rage & Regret, Resignation, and Sadness as if steps for the recipe of a hopeless romantic. With chocolatey tears and stained shirts, readers can experience the feeling of grasping at straws that so inspired many of the poems within.

While Waffles are the Sponsor of my Woes is written from the perspective and experiences of a 16-19 year old boy, the emotions evoked by emptied gourds and sweet cinnamon rolls are for everyone. Is a diet from love the answer? Gorging on it until there's nothing left? Steely offers spoonful after spoonful, but each taste leaves only a desire for more...

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"Waffles are the Sponsor of my Woes"

OUT NOW ON AMAZON

"Waffles are the Sponsor of my Woes" OUT NOW ON AMAZON

Why a blog?

I’ve always loved sharing my ideas with whoever will listen (or is unlucky enough to be within earshot). Most of them go nowhere after that, but a couple end up worthwhile! This site is a way for me to share my ideas with people beyond earshot, and doubles as writing practice!

I hope one day somebody may be inspired by what I’ve shared and go on to do things greater than I could have ever dreamed of. I couldn’t exactly take credit, but if I’m even a slight influence towards something greater, that’s a win.

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The Pilot Episode

That's a wrap on the first ever 6 Cardboard Club meetings! I'm exhausted. Drained. And yet so energized and renewed. I'm ready for Fall.

The whole experience felt similar to my workshops with NMPL in that it was preparing me for something greater. Yes, I put all that I knew into each series of workshops, but now I know so much more because of them. This post is an attempt to recap my progress and look to the near future.

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Brainstorming some Improvements

I've been thoroughly unable to write down my thoughts about the 4th, 5th, and now 6th Cardboard Club Meetings for weeks now. Whether other things came up, or I sat down to write, only to meet frozen fingers, nothing has been typed until now. I'm almost happy I waited (even though it's been driving me insane) because now I have plenty to talk about…

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Asking More Questions Than the Students…

…seems to be a fantastic way to faciliate learning.

Whenever a member of my Cardboard Club asks a question, my first goal is for them to answer it on their own. Of course, I am there to give guidance and provide my expertise… but they are the ones who ultimately do the learning, and my just giving them the answers won’t help grow their curiosity in the long run.
Through leading these workshops (meetings) I am learning more and more about constructive teaching practices; such as leaving room for creativity, constantly adapting, allowing room for a little risk, asking for constant reflections, and encouraging teamwork (to name a few). The list continues to grow as I continue to challenge the group of boys with the medium of cardboard.

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“Are you happy with that?”

yes. I am. Quite pleased, in fact.

The first meeting of the Cardboard Club at College Wesleyan Church through WonderSpace (henceforth reffered to as just “Cardboard Club”) was a massive success. It was a “skills workshop” highlighting the four major tools I use in my cardboard endeavors, and I’m happy to say I neither underprepared nor overprepared! I somehow hit it right on the spot with two double-sided documents, including a thorough agenda, and a trifold they could take home and reference…

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Blastoff in 3… 2…

Coming into my second semester of my freshman year of college, I feel like I’m on top of things. I went through the ringer of time-management realizations the first semester, almost certain half of the times I was sick were from stress. Re-entering the arena, I’ve reevaluated my degree once again, and redistributed my time accordingly. I’m no longer giving tours at IWU, but the choice to open up my schedule led to it being filled right away with a new, incredible opportunity: WonderSpace

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My mom said I should write about the ewok child.

So I’m tempted to discuss anything else out of spite.

Perhaps I could add to the growing number of posts on here discussing the role of social media as an artist, including my recent observation of “reposting” that makes so much sense, but was only noticeable when I finally looked. I could add onto that about the stigma of copying other artists, when that is among the best ways to learn. Or I could pivot and talk about the potential post title that kept me up the other night until I wrote it down: “Shameless Self-promotion and Ignoring the Celebrity Status.” Hey, wait a minute. This is the Christmas Season in America! I could have it all! (Confirming your suspicions: that’s a jab at consumerism) I’ll start with the ewok.

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A Checklist Conclusion (Part 1)

Finals are this week for my first semester of college, and my Ideation and Interpretation class is taking ours in a way I think fits perfectly with the class, and I might as well talk about it:

We were given three questions to prepare for a one-on-one 30 minute conversation between the professor and each pupil. There is no final essay or big test (the professor said he didn’t even know what he could put on a test) that wouldn’t make sense. Instead—because IWU is a small enough school it’s doable—Prof Soderstrom will conduct an official dialogue with each of us reflecting on the semester and how we have learned and grown as artists and people. We also will construct a detailed portfolio and answer a question regarding the joining of creativity and the kingdom of God throughout, but as a Human Communications Major the conversation is the portion I’m most excited about. (I will post the portfolio pdf on this website following its completion)

I’m writing this post in two parts: The first part (what you’re reading right now) is my form of preparation for the conversation…

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