My Will and My Helmet

"But in war, the desire to move in the direction of fact as we want it to be and to move quickly is overwhelming.  Nothing will ever appease this desire except a consciousness of fact as everyone is at least satisfied to have it be." -Wallace Stevens

After reading Locke Carter's argument for writing hypertext in a non-sequential world, I have decided to build my website as a hypertext archive of Captain W.F. Overhulser's war correspondence and photography for the Veteran's History Project based on my technical literacy autobiography.  My Grandfather's historical archive of hundreds of letters and pictures from WWII taken as part of the 2rd Armored Division's push through Europe presents a non-glorified portrait of war.

Beyond his dedication to service at a time of need, his fascination with communication technology is a part of his story.  I have deep affection for my grandparents and their profound impact on both my traditional and technical literacies. The Veteran's History Project is a project of the American Folklife Center of the Library of Congress where written and oral histories of  American War Veterans are preserved to better understand the realities of war.

This is a project I have wanted to attend to for some time.  In addition to letters and photographs, I have a number of artifacts from the period such as war ration books, Stars and Stripes Newspapers, and postcards.

I also volunteered out at the Livermore Veteran's Hospital before returning to school, and I understand the need to archive stories before they are gone. My family will appreciate that William means "Will" and "Helmet," both literally and figuratively, and also understand the irony of Grandpa Bill serving the "Hell on Wheels Division" as a peaceful "Man of Cloth."

The Futility of Stopping Time

Research writing is a futile endeavor to stop time long enough to capture a moment.  Yet time never stops.  New events or ideas continue.  When an event impacts your line of inquiry and research, you have to take note.  It is both fortuitous and unfortunate at the same time.  It can be a breakthrough moment that pulls together strands of thought in a new way with added insight.  Yet, it also creates a troubling loop when a deadline approaches.

I experienced that double sensation while I was drafting my research paper.  A breaking news event seemed to "fall into my lap" that made me think about my topic with renewed vigor.  What I believed was a  well constructed argument took on additional meaning and gathered new shape.  I thoroughly enjoyed this fact.  It made the task of researching and drafting considerably more pleasurable.  It also meant that I  increased my workload and did not get to the main point of my paper yet.  I'll take it though.  I am really energized as I approach my final draft.  I wish all writing was this delightful.

Another Timely Event

A sincere tip of the hat to Dr. Gabor.  Thanks to her librarian contact, Bernd Becker, I have expanded my research paper.  The process of writing to Bernd helped me clarify my argument and address open questions that were bothering me.  I asked Bernd about the open-access part of the issue between open-access vs verifiable content.  I will be meeting with him on Friday.  The King Library is also hosting an open-access forum on Monday that I will attend.  You fellow students in class have all heard my open-access spiel, so I'm really enthused.  Thank you Dr. Gabor.  Although I sense a serious lack of  sleep; my body still operates on the clock.