Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Outside Reading #6

"Why didn't he say goodbye? I gave myself a bruise. Why didn't he say "I love you"?" (Foer 207)
This quote is after Oskar listened to a message that his dad had left when the twin towers were hit. Oskar wonders why his dad didn't say goodbye and why he doesn't say I love you. He also wonders why his dad left be hind this strange key. This is something that happens to many of us; we lose a loved one and we begin to wonder why they did certain things or why they ended up where they did. We will never be able to understand why people do the things they do. We can't explain someone else's life because we don't know what was going on inside their head at all times. I think that many of us read to much into things. For example, Oskar keeps reading into his dad's messages and trying to find hidden meanings. This isn't going to help us get over the lose of a loved one, it is just going to drag us down. I think that people try to figure out the life and actions of a loved one because they don't want to let them go. I think that people are afraid that if they aren't constantly thinking about them, that they will forget all of the memories that they shared together. But, I think that if people just remembered the good times that were without mystery or question, then they will remember the person in a better light. I do not think that it is good to question yourself about why a person does this because you will never know of you are right, so you might as well leave it alone and remember the good times.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Outside Reading #5

“I didn’t understand why I needed help, because it seemed to me that you should wear heavy boots when your dad dies, and if you aren’t wearing heavy boots, then you need help” (Foer 200).
This quote really made me think. I mean what is a healthy way to grieve? Is it disrespectful to move on or is it healthy to grieve for a long time? This is a hard question to answer, and I think that it all depends upon the person and their situation. Grieving is a natural thing and we use it to deal with our feelings and emotions. If we don’t grieve or even just sort through our emotions, those feelings are going to come around and affect us later on in life. But, on the other hand, if we spend too much time grieving and our life just stops, that isn’t healthy either because we could fall into depression or just fall behind on life. It is healthy to grieve, but not for a long period of time. I know that when a loved one dies, you feel like you are never going to get over their death. It is hard to know how to move on with your life. But, you must move on. Just sitting in the same place in your life and not moving forward is not going to help anything because all you will be thinking about are your feelings. When you are going on with daily activities, you begin to think about other things. This is not to say that you don’t have those feeling on your mind, but the daily tasks just distract you. And, eventually you will be back to a normal life.

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Outside Reading #4

"Dad was just someone who ran a family jewelry business. Just an ordinary dad. But I wished so much, then, that he had been Great. I wished he'd been famous, famous like a movie star, which is what he deserved. I wished Mr. Black had written about him, and risked his life to tell the world about him, and had reminders of him around his apartment" (Foer 159-160).
For many people, their goal in life is to be remembered or to be famous. But, their are very few of us that reach that high glory of becoming so famous that we will be written about in history books or have movies made about our lives. But, reaching that high glory of being famous around the world, does not mean that we are not important. We will always be remembered by the people that love and care for us. I think that this is more important than being liked by a large number of the present population and the people to come. We should realize that we are famous. We may not be famous across a country or the world, but within or lives, we are famous. Our families will always remember us, and that is what being famous is; being remembered by people. It may not be a large number of people, but the number of people that will remember you is not important. The important thing is that we stand out and achieve for ourselves and the people around us. We want to be remembered for doing good things. Would you rather be famous to many people, like Hitler, for killing millions, or be famous, to a few people, for treating people with respect?

Sunday, May 10, 2009

Blog Post #4

The twins sang a duet on bicycles, while showing off their biceps. One was bi-polar, while the other slipped in ethanol, after smelling Carbon Dioxide

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Outside Reading #3

“I like to see people reunited, maybe that’s a silly thing, but what can I say, I like to see people run to each other, I like the kissing and the crying, I like the impatience, the stories that the mouth can’t tell fast enough, the ears that aren’t big enough, the eyes that can’t take in all of the change, I like the hugging, the bringing together, the end of missing someone, I sit on the side with a coffee and write in my daybook, I examine the flight schedules that I’ve already memorized, I observe, I write, I try not to remember the life that I didn’t want to lose but lost and have to remember, being here fills my heart with so much joy, even if that joy isn’t mine” (Foer 109).
This quote talks about how the joy and happiness from others can make you happy. Sometimes, it is like a chain reaction. If one person is in a good mood, they might put another person in a good mood, and then that person might put someone else in a good mood, and the cycle goes on and on. Many people think that they only get joy out of something good that happens to them, but they also feed off of the joy of others. When you see a team win a championship or a student get an “A” on a test, you are happy not only for them, but their happiness brings joy to you. I am not saying that this happens to everyone, but I think that people feed off of each other’s emotions. This can be a good or bad thing, but I think that the emotions of the people around you, affect your mood and feelings.

Saturday, May 2, 2009

Blog #3

The trio of triplets were triathletes, who rode tricycles. They won third place, which received a tripod with a tricolored triceratops. The triplets also played baseball. The trio hit tree triples and got three triple plays. In the end, the triplet trio won a triangular tripod for third place.

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Outside Reading #2

“Even if it was relatively insignificant, it was something and I needed to do something, like sharks who die if they don’t swim, which I know” (Foer 87). This quote is in a section of the book when the characters are talking about how anything you do changes history, no matter how small the change may be. I think this quote is important because many people feel that if they aren’t changing the world, then they aren’t doing anything important, but that is not true. Everything that we do makes a difference. For example, if your family recycles, you are helping the planet. You aren’t completely changing the earth because not everyone recycles, but you are still doing something to help. I think that this quote really makes people think about their life and their goals. I feel that if everyone knew that everything that they did had an impact on history that more people would strive to do bigger and better things. Another quote that supports this is, “If you hadn’t don’t it, human history would have been one way…””Uh-huh?” ”But you did do t, so…” I stood one my bed, pointed my fingers at the fake stars, and screamed: “I changes the course of human history” (Foer 86). The example in the book was about how if you moved one grain of sand in the Sahara Desert, would it really make a difference? Well, how will we ever know? We don’t know what would have happened if you hadn’t moved that grain of sand. Foer does a good job of getting into the deeper questions that people have about life, throughout this book.

Sunday, April 26, 2009

Blog #2

The car flies through the mountain
the fresh smell of the trees dances through the window
the sun slides from beneath a cloud
while seven little birds run through the sky
the laughter of the kids fills peoples' ears for miles
hikers are walking through the forest smiling
a rabbit jumps and hops like a stone skipped across a lake
the sweet taste of nature sung in a book.

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Outside Reading #1

“It wasn’t a mistake! It was a message to me” (Foer 10).
This quote represents the things in life that happen for a reason. Throughout life things happen, but we just assume that they are mistakes and don’t have any meaning. I feel like this book Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close does an excellent job of showing hoe everything in life has a meaning and a purpose. When we look at ordinary things in life, like a bird or leaf, we just pass on by because they are so typical. But, maybe those ordinary things have a hidden meaning. Maybe that song that you have been struggling to write is hidden beneath a bench in Central Park, or the speech you have been trying to write is tucked away in the newspaper. We get ideas from so many places, but when we are looking for something specific, we look in the more unusual places, when that something that we have been looking for is right out in front of us.
This quote also shows that people help in mysterious ways. The ways that people help may be so hidden and strange that we may not realize the help until we really look at the situation. Some people help in mysterious ways because they do not want to be recognized personally for their contribution. Which is understandable because help isn’t about you it is about the person receiving the help and the impact it is going to have on their life. Other people help in mysterious ways because they want people to work for what they want. They want to help people, but not just by telling them easy to understand advice, but by making them look deeper into life and what surrounds them. This way, the person being helped gets more out of the advice or guidance because they have to think about it and ponder the meaning of what is being given to them.

Sunday, April 19, 2009

blog post #1

Candy poem:

So much depends
upon

a lightly covered
delicacy

with the aroma
of tempting sugar

the shimmering aluminium
crinkling as it is unfolded

one whiff of the chocolate delight
sends my brain into a mode of tranquility


Spring Poem:

So much of spring depends
upon

the chatter of birds
in the air

the blanket of the
peaceful blue sky

a forest of bare trees
waiting to bloom

Sunday, March 22, 2009

Overcoming The Odds

I read an article about a kid that overcame a tumor.

The story is about Mathew. He was diagnosed with having a tumor in his abdomen just before starting kindergarten. At first his parents thought it was just the flu, but when he started craving foods even though he felt sick and his stomach was swelled they decided to take him into the emergency room. He took medicine to make the tumor smaller, but some of it was still there, so he had to have surgery to remove the rest. After the surgery he had to have a stem cell transplant, which was done by University of Minnesota Children's Hospital Fairview. it worked. The tumor was gone and Mathew is now an eleven year old boy who takes part in acting and sports. He is also thinking about a future in medicine. I think that this story is amazing and not just because he survived. It was really great to hear that he was always optimistic. He never let anyone tell him that he wouldn't survive. As it said in the article "he did not even consider death as a possibility when he was going through his treatment." I think that when someone is in a hard situation like this, their reaction and outlook on it, really show who that person is.

"Mathew O. An inquisitive mind." KS95 for Kids (2009)

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Thinking Map

Here are the causes and effects we need on our final thinking map...

Causes:
-corrupt Sudanese government
-people of Darfur are being discriminated against and neglected
-People of Darfur are not getting their fair share of resources
-Khartoum has a militia that is attacking Darfur

Effects:
-hundreds of thousands of people have died
-The population is getting so low, that there are very few people left in Darfur
-Aid workers from other countries who go to help are getting kidnapped and killed (eventually they weren't allowed into Darfur at all)
-The President of Sudan has criminal charges being filed against him and he will most likely have to resign (corrupt government)
-women and children are raped
-lot of malnutrition, which also kills many people

Research post #3

I found a very interesting article that talks about how the war is not onyl affecting the people in Darfur, but also the people that try to help.

In the article it tells the story of how aid workers were kidnapped. The people werre not kidnapped by the governemnt, but by angry citizens. Sudan't government says that they have talked with the kidnappers and that they are discussing ransoms for the release of the aid workers.
-this show sthat not only is the governemnt dangerous to the people, but so are the people. This war has driven people to act to the extreme. War has a very negative affect on people and this situation shows that.


Otterman, Sharon. "Contqact Made With Aid Workers Kidnapped In Darfur." New York Times (2009):

Research Post #2

I read another article about the conflict in Darfur.

The article talks about how the President of Darfur, has commited serious crimes. For example he expelled ten humanitariam groups from Darfur and called for their arrest. I think that this show how the corrupt govenment causecd this conlict to begin and to last for this long.

The government in Darfur isn't helping the situation at all. The President, Omar al-Bashir, is denying all accusations against him and isn't doing anything to stop the genocide grom happening.

The war in Darfur started in 2003, when African tribes rebelled against the government becasue they were being discriminataed and neglected.
-the government in Khartoum, the capital of Sudan, is mostly Arab.
-"janjaweed Arab militia they support of murdering civilians and preying on them in refugee camps"
-The Arab malitia is adding to the killing. The people in Darfur are in a bad place because they have the military and the governemnt against them, which makes it difficult to defend themselves and to try and stop the war.

The International Crime Court was ordered to investigate Darfur in 2005. They did and that is how the charges against the President came about, but Sudan doesn't accept the court's juristiction.

Corder, Mike. "Wanted For War Crimes: Sudan's President." Reno Gazette-Journal (2009):

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Love

I saw this story on the news that was very touching.

The story is about how two men, Ace Bourke and John Rendall, decide to by a baby lion. They got the lion at a department store. They raised Christian, the lion, in the apartment in England. They raised him like he was another pet or child. When Christian got to be too big to live in their apartment, the two men decided to release him into the wild. But, first they had him trained so that he could survive in the wild. After one year of Christian being in the wild, Ace and John, wanted to be reunited with him. As the two men stand waiting for Christian, he arrives and at first is slow to respond. As soon as he knew who the two men were, he immediately went up and hugged them. Imagine having a 500 pound lion come running at you and them hug you. I would be terrified. It was like Christina hadn't been apart from Ace and John. He acted as if he was still living with them. I thought that this story was very touching. It is amazing to see that some bonds, although they might be strange, can last for so long. Most people who don't see someone for a year or so, never speak to the person again, so it was interesting to see that a wild beast and two men could keep that bond. Some bonds can never be broken and this story shows exactly that. I think that it would have been hard to release Christian into the wild because he was like a family member. It was obviously for the best and it worked out, but I could never imagine doing that. Christian hasn't been seen since the reunion, but many think that he migrated to where the game was easier to come by and Christian was he biggest lion that many had ever seen, so if a poacher had killed him, we would have heard him bragging. This is a heart warming story and it is nice to know that some relationships never end.

Celizic, Mike. "Christian the lion's owners recall final farewell." Today Show (2009)

Sunday, March 15, 2009

Research Post #1

I read an article on the conflict in Darfur.

While I was reading the article I figured out some of the causes and effects of the conflict.
Causes:
- Sudan government pushing the African tribes to the side
-Khartoum denying the tribes resources
-Khartoum armed Arab tribes, which caused the African tribes to become more aware of them being pushed aside
-2003: three African tribes began an insurgency against the government, demanding a more equal distribution of resources
-Khartoum thought that the best way to deal with this issue was to wipe out the African tribes from rural Darfur

Effects:
-countryside was attacked more than the cities (adult men killed and women and girls raped-small kids and elderly people sometimes killed, but usually were allowed to flee)
-The estimation of the death toll is in the hundreds of thousands, but it is not exact
-the worst of the killing is over, because there aren't that many people left in the rural parts of Darfur

This is just some of the information that I got from the article. It is very helpful.

-Here is the citations for the article:

Kristof, Nicholas. "Answering Your Darfur Questions." New York Times. (2009)

War

I read an article about the war in Iraq.

The article talks about how American intelligence agencies think that the war is increasing the threat of terrorist attacks on the United States. The article states that the war is causing a new generation of Islamic radicalism. I guess I can see how people would come to this conclusion because it isn't like we are a well liked country in many parts of the world right now. This is mostly because of our current status in war activity, but I think that there is another side to this argument. Threats of terrorist attacks may be getting more frequent, but who says that this wouldn't have happened if we didn't go to war. If we didn't go to war, many more attacks like 9/11 could have happened. Just because we went to war, doesn't mean that it caused more terrorist groups to form. No one knows what would have happened if we wouldn't have gone to war, but I think that we would be having the same problems that we are having now. Sometimes when someone tries to fix a problem; things only get worse, but if you don't do anything to solve the problem; more problems are going to build of of that original issue.

Mazzetti, Mark. "Spy Agencies Say Iraq War Worsens Terrorism Threats." New York Times. (2006

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Imperialism

I read an article about cultural imperialism.
The article talked about how much the American culture has on the rest of the world. The article gives examples of Coca-Cola, Pizza Hut, and American rock music in other parts of the world. The United States has a big influence on the rest of the world because of the power that it holds. The U.S. has been a very successful country, even though it may not seem that way right now, but it has gained credibility from that success. This country has broken free from Britain, lived through the Civil War(along with other wars), and survived the Great Depression. Because this country has so many stories of success, many other countries listen to us. Our culture is always changing and those aspects of our culture that are extraordinary or are popular, make their way to other parts of the world. I think that it is interesting how the American culture has influenced other cultures. Other countries have many different rituals and aspects to their culture, but they still make room for the ideas and inventions of the United States. I hope that our culture doesn't influence other countries too much because then everyone might start to blend together. We have different countries because people have different cultures and if everyone has the same culture, the world would not function correctly.

To the Editor, "Smiling Through the Cultural Imperialism." New York Times. (1989

Sunday, March 8, 2009

Global Issue

Today I read an article about global warming.

In the article it talked about how recently there has been a rise in global emissions and a decline in energy efficiency. It also talks about how the caps on the pollution of greenhouse gases are not going to help. well they are, but many say that the positive effects will come too late. The economist, Jeffrey D. Sachs, thinks that if we try to restrain emissions without a new set of technologies, we will hurt our economy. With as bad as the economy is right now, I don't think our country can take that risk. If the stock market takes another big hit, who knows what could happen. With the car companies already on edge, I don't think that we need to add this on to our plate. Sachs says that what we need to to develop a radically advanced low-carbon technology. This may work, but the funding would have to come from the government. That only means one thing. Higher taxes and our president promised no tax raises for anyone making less than $250,000 per year. That would mean raising taxes even more for that 5% of people that do earn more then $250,000 per year. Global warming is a big issue, even though it might seem that in Minnesota with our 40 below days that global warming isn't happening. This is going to take a long time to figure out a solution, but we don't have that much time until it is too late.

Revkin, Andrew D.. "A Shift in the Debate Over Global Warming." New York Times. (2008)

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Holiday

I read an article about Halloween today.
The article was about how recently kids have not been trick-or-treating. Instead they have been trunk-or-treating. The kids go around to peoples cars instead of going around to houses. Suburban communities are starting to do this. The parents are really happy about this because it takes way the risk factor of trick-or-treating. The kids are getting candy in a safe place like a church parking lot or somewhere their parents ca watch them. This way the kids don't have to deal with older kids playing tricks or people that could want to hurt them. I think that this is an interesting idea. It is definitely safer for younger children and it is helpful because little kids get tires from walking around. If they are just walking around a parking lot, they won get as tired and of they do t get tired the can just get in their car and go home. This way of trick-or-treating is very beneficial to little kids and their parents because it is much safer and more convenient for everyone.

Santos, Fernanda. "Trunk or Treat! Halloween Tailgating Grows." New York Times. (2006

Sunday, March 1, 2009

Bollywood

I read an article about Bollywood.
"Why do I love Bollywood movies? To an Indian, that's like asking why we love our mothers; we don't have a choice. We were born of them." This quote really stuck out at me. It really shows how Bollywood movies are such a big part of the culture in India. Bollywood movies have been so successful that they have out shined Hollywood. People all over the world watch Bollywood movies and they love them. In the article it tells the story about a man who was getting mugged and instead of screaming for help, he started singing a line from a Bollywood movie "Ichak dana bichak dana, . . . " People often enjoy Bollywood movies because they are musicals. It appeals to many people. With five to fourteen songs in each movie, each movie is different and enjoyable. In the article it also talks about how when people go to movies in India, especially in Mumbai, people talk back to the screen. Here in America and many other places in the world, when people talk in movies it is just irritating. It was interesting to learn that talking back to the movie is normal. In India, the songs from the movies stick with people. They use the lyrics as part of their vocabulary. I thought that this article was very interesting. It was interesting to here about how important Bollywood movies are to the Indian culture.

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Culture

I read an article today about India.
The article talked about the food of the Indian culture. It talked about how professors in the United States are studying the restaurants of Indian and other backgrounds. Foods like Tandoori chicken and makhani were mentioned in the article. I think it would be very interesting o try these foods. A person can learn a lot about a culture from their food. You can learn what type of animals and plants they have to how they farm. Food is a big part of culture that many people use as a form of communication. It can be used to tell someone thank you or just to celebrate something. Culture is made up of many things, but food is a universal thing. All cultures are going to have different foods, but the food serves the same purpose in all cultures. It brings people together. Food is a way of communication for many cultures, but it is also a way to express the beliefs and views of that culture or religion. I feel that food is one part of every culture that people should experience. It is easy to experience and is quite enjoyable. You can learn so much from the food and then you are able to share your food with other cultures.

Fishbane, Matthew. "A Passage to India." New York Times. 1/13/08:

Sunday, February 22, 2009

Change

I read an article in the newspaper this morning about the Twins and their upcoming season.

The article talks about the recently signed Joe Crede, from the Chicago White Sox. He is a golden glove third basemen and he is really going to change the Twins' infield. The Twins haven't had a solid third baseman since Corey Koskie. Last year they tried Buscher and Harris at the position. The two of them weren't horrible, but the Twins needed someone that was consistent. The Twins are a very good ball club that always puts up a fight. Most years the team is a playoff bound team and that is why they needed a strong third baseman. Ron Gardinhire, the Twins manager, was thinking of putting Michael Cuddyer at third base, but he changed his mind. Cuddyer has a very powerful arm, one of he strongest in all of baseball, so Gardenhire wants to keep him in the outfield where he has been outstanding. I think that Joe Crede will change the Twins for the better. He is going to make the pitchers more confident because they now that they have a very strong defense behind them. He is going to bring a lot to the table, but in the past years he has had some back problems. The Twins are paying him $7 million if he doesn't get injured at all, but they will pay him $2.5 million no matter what. This ball club went through a lot of changes last season with a pretty much whole new team, and this addition of Crede is going to change the Twins even more.

Velle, La. "Sunday with Joe Crede." Star Tribune 2/22/09:

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Hope

Today I read an article about one of the kids that spoke for KS95 for kids, which raises money for kids with cancer and other health issues.
"I haven’t been able to move forward just yet, as I am still in the middle of my treatment. But I am looking forward to school and doing things normally again."
This quote is from eleven year old Megan. She was diagnosed with leukemia and has had to go through many painful things like spinal taps and chemo. It amazes me that this little girl can go through something like leukemia and still be so optimistic and brave. She had the spinal tap without any anesthesia. Very few adults even go though with this, so it amazed me that an eleven year old could do something so brave. Megan has always had hope that she would get better and I think that is why she was so brave throughout her treatment. Hope can take people a long way. If you have something to look forward to or something to be hopeful for, you are more likely to go through pain to get where or what you want. I feel like people with hope are more likely to survive traumatic events in their life. Hope is kind of like a medicine on its own. This may sound stupid, but when you have high spirits, your body knows that and it is stronger and more willing to fight off disease. Hope should be involved with every aspect of peoples lives.

Megan, N. "Cancer In Her Own Words." KS95 Feb. 2009:

Sunday, February 15, 2009

Religion

I read an article about how diverse religion is becoming in the United States.
The article mostly focuses on how the number of Muslim people in the US is rising. "Georgetown University in Washington, the nation's oldest Roman Catholic university, that it has appointed its first Muslim chaplain, to serve a staff and student body in which Muslims are a growing minority" (Niebuhr). This quote really stuck out in the article. It talks about how more Muslims people are attending college and are growing out of the title of minority. It is good to see that minorities are diminishing, in the fact that there are too many people for the group to be considered a minority. It is good to have a diverse country because people can learn more about different cultures and religions. The article also talks about how Georgetown is trying to accommodate for Islamic holidays. They are trying to give Muslims those days off of school or work in order to celebrate or honor their religion and it's beliefs. Other religions are really making their stamp here in the United States and I think that it is a great step towards this country becoming more diverse and welcoming to others.

NIEBUHR, GUSTAV. "Religion Journal; Georgetown U. Names First Muslim Chaplain." New York Times. August 28, 1999:

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Gender Roles

Today I read an article about how the Army Chief opposes the idea of women serving in combat. “My personal view is the exclusion of women from some specialties, based on the way we operate with those specialties, is right.” The Chief of Staff, Gen. Carl E. Vuono, stated this.
It is hard to believe that some one could seriously think that women can’t do the same things as men. There is no logic behind this statement at all. This statement has had some conflicting arguments by Michael P. W. Stone, the Secretary of the Army. He said “the Army could open combat aviator jobs to hundreds of women if Congress approved a repeal of the statutory restriction applying to pilots in the other armed services.” These services’ barriers against women in combat are written into Federal Law, but the Army is governed by its own regulation. Because of this, the change will be left up to each service, and there would be no quick change. Our country has come a long way since women had no rights at all and I think that as time goes on, women will hope fully be treated the same as men. People today think that women are treated the same as me, but I have heard of statistics that say that men get payed more then women for the same job. Some people don’t believe this, but I think that a lot of people treat men and women differently without even knowing it.

AP, "Army's Chief Opposes Women's Combat Role." New York Times. (1991)

Sunday, February 8, 2009

Culture

I found an article about the Somalian culture in the New York Times.

“MARINE Cpl. Charles Cox landed here expecting to see starving children in a grim tableau of misery and death. In his first week, though, Corporal Cox drove by lush farms and grazing land for cattle and other livestock that rivaled the richest countryside near his hometown, Mobile, Ala.”
This quote from the beginning of the article really stuck with me. Many people have already painted a picture in their mind about what certain cultures look like. This story goes to show that unless you have lived in a culture or have experienced it, you don’t know what it looks like or is about. Throughout the article, the author talks about how Somalia is perceived to be mostly one thing, like Muslim. But as the author found out, other religions, like Christianity, are beginning to show up. In the article it talks about how soldiers, stationed in Somalia, do not see the large number of hunger people that the news shows. Instead, they see curious people, who want to learn of a new culture and way of life. I think that it is important to learn and experience a culture before you paint a picture in your head because the media and news dwell on the negative and cultures are built of so much more than problems.

Schmitt, Eric. "THE WORLD; Somali Culture Holds Surprises, Some Pleasant, For American G.I.'s." New York Times. (1992)

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Struggle/Difficulty

I decided to reread a little of Eclipse to refresh my memory a little bit and I came across a struggle that has been going on for a while.
"..."That should have been our first kiss. Better late than never." Against his chest, where he couldn't see, the tears welled up and spilled over" (Meyer 530).
This quote is right after Jacob kisses Bella for the second time. Bella has been struggling with her feelings for Jacob and her love for Edward. She knows that she is in love with Edward and always will be, but she also knows she loves Jacob. Bella has a hard time with her feelings. She struggles with how to handle her emotions. She knows that she can't live without Edward, but she has also come to realize that surviving without Jacob would be nearly impossible too. Her struggle is even more difficult because both Edward and Jacob say that Bella is their "soul mate" and both of them have proof. Bella knows that her struggle with her feelings will most likely never end, but she is trying to find a way to make the best out of the situation, which is hard when the two men she loves are enemies. It will be interesting to see how Bella handles this difficulty. Everyone handles their struggles in different ways. Some people take the difficulties head on, but others try to run away. It looks like Bella is stuck in between.

Meyer, Stephenie. Eclipse. New York: Little, Brown and Company, 2007.

Monday, February 2, 2009

Natural Disaster

Here is the MLA citation:
Guillot, Craig. "Katrina Aftermath: Personal stories from ground zero." Bankrate. 16 September 2005. (It wont indent the second line).

Sunday, February 1, 2009

Natural Disaster

I read an article about Hurricane Katrina

The article included stories form individuals who were effected by the disaster.
One of the stories was from Vanessa Hammons. Vanessa had to evacuate from her city, so she grabbed what she could and left. After being away from home for a while, she started to run low on money, so she tried to go use an ATM.
"I couldn't access my account until the day after Labor Day. I had two dollars to my name. I couldn't do anything. All the ATM machines were out. All the credit cards weren't working."
Vanessa was one of many who had no money after Katrina. It devastated many people and brought a halt to their lives. It is hard to imagine what it would be like to have to evacuate your home and to have no money because of something that i out of your hands. Their are so many people that struggled to stay off of the streets because of this hurricane, but sadly that is where many of the survivors ended up. It is hard not to be thankful that these people survived, but it is devastating to think that they have suffered so much. Natural disasters are inevitable and no one ever forgets ones like Katrina, but the effects of them last for a long time and people can't forget about the survivors that struggle with the effects a long time after the storm is gone.

Sunday, January 11, 2009

outside reading #29

I was reading the newspaper this morning and I came across an article about Edina. The article was about housing in Edina. it was saying that housing is just too expensive and that the median price of a house is $450,000. Plus with renovations, since many of the homes in Edina are older homes, it adds up quickly. Because of these high costs young families are not able to live in the city. People that grew up here and have families now aren't able to move back to their hometown because they can't afford it. many young families get more for their money in places like Maple Grove and newly developed neighborhoods. Edina has been known for being a tightly knitted community and that is part of the reason that people want to live here, but the cost of living is just too high for the average family. This article was very interesting to read because I didn't know that there were so many people want to live here. I know that we have good schools and neighborhoods, but I didn't realize it was so difficult for so many people to afford living here, for there to be an article about it in the Star Tribune.

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

outside reading #28

Today I read an article about all of the living past President, our current President, and our President elect, where all together today at the White House. George H.W. Bush, Barack Obama, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter were all at the White House today. Obama said that it was nice to be with people who really know what his job will be like. He will be in office extremely soon, so I am personally glad he had a chance to site down and talk with our leaders. He can learn so much. He can learn that he will not be able to do everything that he wants and that some of the things that he does do, wont work. It is just part of life, that everything you do doesn’t work, so I am glad he will have a chance to learn that. I was glad to see that the true side of President Bush was shown in this article. He told Obama that he wasn’t him to succeed and that it didn’t matter what political party be belonged to, he knew he would do his best for our country. The media always shows Bush as a man that made all of the mistakes and that he hated Obama, so I am glad to see that finally the media shows just a glimpse of what kind of person he really is.

Sunday, January 4, 2009

outside reading #27

I have continued reading Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer.
It is the morning after the conversation of Jacob and Edward. Bella finally wakes up, but she is sweating because Jacob is still in the sleeping bag. She tries to get him off of her, but fails. Finally Edward steps in a rolls him out of the sleep bag. Jacob gets mad and he gets back in on top of Bella. Now Edward gets mad and he throws Jacob, who then hits the pole holding up the tent. The two then stand growling at each other ready to fight, but Bella calms them down. Jacob leaves then to get reading for the soon approaching fight. When he is gone Bella and Edward talk. Edward tells Bella that she was talking in her sleep, but she was just saying his name, but towards the end she said Jacob's. Then they talk about there top ten nights and of course the night when Edward proposed was in both of their top tens. After they say something about the wedding, they hear a horrible sound. It was Jacob, he was listening to their conversation and was letting out his pain. Bella gets very upset that she hurts him, so Edward brings Jacob back. Edward and Seth leave so that the two of them can talk. Bella says that she hurts him too much and so that she wont bother him anymore. Jacob of course doesn't want this to happen, so he says that if she wont see him anymore he will just die. He says that he will fight in the fight with the newborn vampires, but he die in it too. Bella doesn't want this to happen of course, so she says she will do anything for him to stay alive. Bella knows right away what she has gotten her self into and so they kiss. This isn't like the other kiss, Bella feels in sync with Jacob now, like they are suppose to be together. As she thinks more, she knows she is in love with Jacob, but not enough to change anything else. She knows all that she is doing is hurting Jacob.

Thursday, January 1, 2009

outside reading #26

I have continued to read Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer. In the chapter that I read Bella and Edward are in the tent. There are bone chilling winds blowing outside and Bella is freezing to death. Edward knows what he has to do, but really wishes he could do something else. And so he tells Jacob to come in the tent so that he can warm Bella up. Bella doesn't like this idea either, but allows Jacob to get into her sleeping bag with her. Bella is soon warm, but Jacob stays there as she "sleeps". When Jacob and Edward think that Bella is asleep they decide to talk. Since Edward is always in Jacob's head and can always know what he is thinking, Jake wants to know what Edward is thinking for a little bit. Jake asks Edward questions that make him furious, but he answers anyways. Jake asks him what he would do if Bella chose him and that he loves Bella. Edward gets very irritated with his questions and with the fact that he can give Bella somethings that he can't, like heat. Jake is surprised when Edward says that he wouldn't kill him if Bella chose him, but Edward wouldn't want to make Bella unhappy. After the two talk about what it was like to be away from Bella, the two actually get along, except for the fact that they are natural enemies and are both in love with the same girl. When Bella is listening to their conversation, she reluctantly falls asleep.