Blog #15 (Black Swan Green) "Knife Grinder" Thoughts and reaction + Summary

      The story starts off with Jason returning home to find a T.V set at his room. It was a gift from his father (how "Thoughtful"), which in my opinion seems to be another one of those bribing gifts he has been giving away to Jason. Later on the doorbell rings and a gypsy appears who says that they got a lot of valuables in their homes which would mean that he can get some money off them by doing some odd jobs. He asks if his parents are home and Jason replies with a no. Jason feels that he shouldn't be talking to stangers, but he shouldn't shut the door on him as it would show bad manners. He says that they are too complicated and they make no sense during specific situations. The man says that he sharpens knives and that he had done it for his mother a year ago, he also mentions that the driveway needs some work onto it. Regardless of this, Jason tells the man he has no money and his parents aren't around to buy anything. The gypsy decides to leave, but he requested that Jason would tell his parents about the conversation and the driveway. He promised the gypsy that he would tell his parents and the old man who will be later referred to as "Knife Grinder" left. Some time is passed and Jason brings up the knife grinder who visited when his mother was cutting food up for dinner (He remembered it through what his mother was doing)  . The father was outraged that a gypsy went to their home when it is most vulnerable to their kind and the mother started defending them by telling him that the same guy came a year earlier and he did a damn fine job on them. The two got into an argument and Jason doesn't really know what to do as it is very awkward when you are just spectating the scene. After this argument settles down and some time passes Samuel Swinyard (Gilbert Swinyard's dad) knocks on their door to ask them to sign a petition to make sure that Gypsies don't permanently settle on Black Swan Green. The father agrees and tells them about the gypsy that came at home when only Jason was around. Jason was brought by his father to attend a meeting about this situation at the Town hall to which in the middle of Samuel Swinyard's speech a fire alarm came on. People weren't that alarmed by it and some were annoyed (Like Samuel Swinyard) until People yelled fire in the back ground and the gypsies were blamed. The scene ends with Jason being held by his father tightly in the midst of this chaotic mess. This whole part seems to show that the gypsies aren't very liked by the people of Black Swan Green since they are viewed as dirty scumbags who do odd jobs for people to get by. It cuts to Dean Morgan's home and Jason describes it as "two tumbly cottages knocked together"  and then describes what's inside like Dean's room. Jason and Dean then proceeded to try to make a golf course with random junk rather than play on Deans Sinclair ZX Spectrum 16k since his sister sat on the tape recorder and it couldn't load and games. They made it work, however they couldn't find a single ball to use so Dean suggested that they both took a looksy down the well. Dean explains the back story of the well and his father plays a prank on them by pretending to be the little girl and scaring them, Jason said that he "shat" himself. The two continue on with Dean's father and they just talk about unnecessary stuff except for when Dean's father mentions that he didn't go to the meeting nor sign the petition since he doesn't have a problem with it and in fact he has gypsy blood in him. I found this to be slightly important since it could bring up mixed feeling towards Jason since he is being told ( unintentionally ) that gypsies are nothing more that bums who do odd jobs to make a living for themselves,where as he knows someone who is related to those "trash" and is told that there is nothing wrong with them.

        Jason is then walking towards Mr. Rhydd's shop in the long way to decrease his chances of finding Ross Wilcox and up ahead is Ross Wilcox and others who are in some kind of war with other kids. Jason tries his best to avoid them without being seen or else they will all target him and he doesn't want to deal with it. Jason says that once he could have just joined the side with the most popular kids, but now he can't as he lost his popularity and joining isn't an option anymore. This goes to show that Jason losing his popularity has effected him outside of school since he cannot even join anyone with the fight or else their eyes will be on him and then he will be the prime target (Maybe kick him till he's blue all over). When hiding, squelch has spotted him, but he didn't say anything  so he then runs out of his hiding spots and jumps into some bushes. He knew that his only way out was to go deeper in. This is kind of saddening seeing a once popular kid having to run away Fromm a fight between people with the far of being spotted and jumped. He should have joined them and he should have enjoyed being a part of them. Jason says that picked on kids act invisible to decrease their chances of being noticed and picked on ( like that gypsy kid Jason mention earlier) and e same thing applies to kids whose parents argue a lot. He call son himself the triple invisible boy. This'll probably means that he feels invisible in three places, one is school where he gets picked on and he can't really do much except be bullied. The second one is home where it is more or less the same as school except his parents constantly arguing had lead to Jason acting invisible to try and not worsen his situations.  And lastly he might consider himself s invisible for not doing anything so by doing nothing he is like a rock who does nothing and can't do anything. Jason then describes the woods and says that he wants to be a forester to work with trees. He also says something funny, he says that there is a  Druid feeling in the woods makes him want to crap so his digs up a hole to shit. while crapping on the hole a big dog takes his stuff and takes off with it, he chases after it blindly. This is important cause the dog taking off leads him towards somewhere that develops the plot later on. WHile chasing after it, he stumbles across the little area that the gypsies live. He get's caught and walks one step backwards, he tumbled down a hill (Or so i believe) and Jason gets to know them. He meets Alan Wall who was the gypsy kid from when he was a kid and his uncle who is familiar with him. It was the Knife Grinder and the gypsies plus Jason spend some time together.He also gets his Adidas Bag back from the Gypsies since on of them had it.. He learns that the Gypsies don't want to move near Black Swan Green either and that it is just because the people have to since they couldn't meet some quota.  The gypsies say that it isn't generosity at all and it is just they are forced to do so. Jason feels that the people of Black Swan Green don't like them since they are scared and they try to repel what they don't understand. JAson feels that if the people of Black Swan Green got to Know the Gypsies for what they are, things would be a lot better between them. I think so too, but then again the People of BSG (Black Swan Green) would try to find other things about them to hate so they don't have to confront them.

 Some Questions that I have:

• Where is Alan Wall's dad and what is he doing?
• Does Jason know how to find his way back since he did follow the dog blindly.
• Why doesn't Jason just ignore his "Promise" for the Gypsy early in the chapter?