Articles written by Emily Branwell

Advanced Search

What is Helium

About me - Emily Branwell

+ more bio information

RSS Feed

Society & Lifestyle > Asian Culture A guide to Chinese funeral rites: 1 of 8
All I can say for sure about Chinese funeral rites is that the color white is associated with death, much as black is in the west. I learned this the hard way when my fourth grade class followed my lead in decorating our English classroom for their winter parent's visit with white snowflakes. To this day I don't know why my C... More..
Creative Writing > Poetry Poetry: Ungrateful: 1 of 6
Blind sight through eyes that compute but do not comprehendDeafness so distracting one can hear nothing but itEmptiness so vacant -of even itself -Hands full of only awareness of the weight of all they carryColors gone grey, music gone silent, feeling unacknowledged, blessings misinterpreted as curseUngrateful - Wretched - Un... More..
Celebrations & Holidays > Christmas Archives Christmas 2007: Gift ideas for grandma from $10 to $25: 2 of 11
There are many gift ideas out there for grandma for $25 or under. The key is to get creative! I am a big fan of giving "kits." Below I list a few of my favorites to get your brain wheels turning.THE FLOWER KIT: Choose a pot (even better if you decorate it with waterproof paint). Fill the pot with a bag of potting soil, a few ... More..
Travel > Asia Public transport adventures in India: 1 of 4
I believe in evolution. The kind of evolution I have seen in my own short life and the lives of those I love. No one can tell me that time and circumstance and need do not change the very substance of a thing. The loud speaker of experience tells me something very different. In 2001 I went to India as one thing and came back ... More..
Celebrations & Holidays > Christmas Medieval Christmas traditions: 3 of 10
While you may not have recognized the serious festivities which were considered commonplace traditions for the time, much of what Christmas looked like in medieval times directly influenced out Christmas traditions of today."Here we come a wassailing among the leaves the leaves so green!" In the medieval period Wassailing was... More..
Celebrations & Holidays > Christmas How Christmas is celebrated in China: 2 of 6
Like every family that celebrates Christmas around the globe I am sure that those in China who celebrate Christmas each have their own special way of doing so. I spent a year living and teaching at a public elementary school in China. Christmas fell during the winter break and my students got to go home, which was a rare trea... More..
Arts & Humanities > British Literature Literary analysis: The shifting of tone and mood in "Fern Hill," by Dylan Thomas: 2 of 6
Fern Hill was the last poem Dylan Thomas wrote to include in his collection, "Death and Entrances." It is possibly one of Thomas's best known works and is a melancholic look backwards at the effects of time on place and person.Written in the vernacular of an innocent and hopeful child, free of care, the first four stanzas are... More..
Hobbies & Games > Kids Games & Toys Toy reviews: Friendchips: 1 of 3
So your daughter is extremely excited about a new communication toy who's popularity is sweeping through the adolescent mobs of girldom? Friendchips, recommended for ages 8 to 12 and requiring four AAA batteries, are a communication device which allows users to send text messages to each other without cell phones or Internet ... More..
Creative Writing > Memoirs Memoirs: Playing with Barbie dolls: 9 of 25
I have the greatest memories of turning a six layer bookshelf into a mansion beyond Barbie's wildest dreams and staging elaborate musicals to Debbie Gibson songs during sleep overs with my girlfriends. Not to mention the evenings when Barbie was magically transformed into Baby from Dirty Dancing and it was Ken, not Patrick Sw... More..
Celebrations & Holidays > Christmas Archives Christmas 2007: Gift ideas for dad from $10 to $25: 4 of 11
There are many gift ideas out there for dad for $25 or under. The key is to get creative! I am a big fan of giving "kits." Below I list a few of my favorites to get your brain wheels turning.THE CAR WASH KIT: Buy a big bucket (even better if you decorate it yourself with some water proof paint) a car wash mitt, a big sponge, ... More..