Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Friday, February 8, 2008
I Believe in Oil and Vinegar
There are some combinations that our society today makes, that at first glance, no one really understands. Almost everything in our world today has an opposite, spring and fall, math and English, as well as oil and vinegar. By some way of nature more times than not, “opposites attract”. Having these opposites attract and challenge each other brings about better end results. I believe in oil and vinegar. Now not just because it tastes good on a sub sandwich, but because without opposites our world wouldn’t be flavorful.
Last year, I had an academic class consisting of twelve people, this is a very small class for that level. In the class we only had about three boys plus the teacher. The teacher was very enthusiastic about this subject matter, however, none of the other boys really spoke much about it. The majority of the class was quiet girls; who were shy, and intimidated to speak their opinions. In stead they would always agree to what everyone said. For example, you could say the sky was green, and the grass was blue. They would know that statement was not true, but they would say instead, “Yes, their was a hint of green in the sky.”
There is nothing wrong with being shy and soft spoken although it makes it hard to have a discussion based class, when no one speaks. At the end of the school year, everyone received their final grade, and went on with their lives. Never striving to do anymore with the material we learned.
This year, I have another small class, this one of about fifteen individuals. This group of kids could not be more different. In the class you have, the math nerd, the tank, the druggie, the president, the pirate, just to name a few. None of these characters are afraid to speak their mind or challenge other’s opinions. Knowing all this you may be surprised as to how much we have accomplished. We all had to come together and work on one group project. Agree on a theme, build a robot, build the course, do documentation, program the robot. All of these tasks had to be completed by the fifteen of us, over the matter of two months or so. The ideas each of came up with, were challenged, verbally argued over, and defended. Finally after about a week of disagreeing over every possible topic, we put our ideas together decided to proceed with the project. You would think that a group of 15 stubborn teenagers who did nothing but disagree for a week, would just say forget it. However, we pushed forward, and when the competition rolled around, we placed in the top three. Who would have thought it? You may ask how can a class that is so very different and argumentative go to competitions and win. Easy, we are different, and as strong headed as each of us are, our willingness to be an individual and critique others only makes us stronger.
Who puts just oil on a sandwich? It is nothing without the vinegar. Success does not come without challenges or opportunities to prove you point. Oil floats on vinegar, and when they are together they become stronger, only after be tested. I believe that everyone needs an opposite, a challenge to become stronger. Where would we be with out them?
Last year, I had an academic class consisting of twelve people, this is a very small class for that level. In the class we only had about three boys plus the teacher. The teacher was very enthusiastic about this subject matter, however, none of the other boys really spoke much about it. The majority of the class was quiet girls; who were shy, and intimidated to speak their opinions. In stead they would always agree to what everyone said. For example, you could say the sky was green, and the grass was blue. They would know that statement was not true, but they would say instead, “Yes, their was a hint of green in the sky.”
There is nothing wrong with being shy and soft spoken although it makes it hard to have a discussion based class, when no one speaks. At the end of the school year, everyone received their final grade, and went on with their lives. Never striving to do anymore with the material we learned.
This year, I have another small class, this one of about fifteen individuals. This group of kids could not be more different. In the class you have, the math nerd, the tank, the druggie, the president, the pirate, just to name a few. None of these characters are afraid to speak their mind or challenge other’s opinions. Knowing all this you may be surprised as to how much we have accomplished. We all had to come together and work on one group project. Agree on a theme, build a robot, build the course, do documentation, program the robot. All of these tasks had to be completed by the fifteen of us, over the matter of two months or so. The ideas each of came up with, were challenged, verbally argued over, and defended. Finally after about a week of disagreeing over every possible topic, we put our ideas together decided to proceed with the project. You would think that a group of 15 stubborn teenagers who did nothing but disagree for a week, would just say forget it. However, we pushed forward, and when the competition rolled around, we placed in the top three. Who would have thought it? You may ask how can a class that is so very different and argumentative go to competitions and win. Easy, we are different, and as strong headed as each of us are, our willingness to be an individual and critique others only makes us stronger.
Who puts just oil on a sandwich? It is nothing without the vinegar. Success does not come without challenges or opportunities to prove you point. Oil floats on vinegar, and when they are together they become stronger, only after be tested. I believe that everyone needs an opposite, a challenge to become stronger. Where would we be with out them?
Sunday, January 20, 2008
How to Put Christmas Decorations Away
Christmas everyone’s favorite time of the year. All of the lights, the tree, the packages, and the colorful decorations that fill people’s homes through the season spread lots of cheer. However, it is never a cheery day when the broken lights, enormous tree, empty packages, and used decorations have to go away. Now you may be asking how a 17 year old girl knows anything about putting Christmas Decorations. Well I will tell you this, I know because of my family. From helping to put lights away to wrapping knickknacks in old dish towels to keep them safe, I know about to go about this, and exactly what to avoid.
First things first, the more organized you are the better off you are. Instead of using the cheap half falling apart cardboard boxes that you have used for the past ten years, switch it up. Go to Lowes and by some plastic bins. Always buy one more than you think you need! It is very likely that you do not know how many decorations you have. The kind of bin that works the best is the ones about two feet by a foot and a half deep. This way they are light enough for one person to carry up into the attic or wherever you may store your decorations by themselves. In my house we use the ones that look like you can fix a human in. I do not have enough fingers and toes to tell you how many times the bins have almost fallen and either broken someone’s toes or broken the decorations. Next, when you are at Lowes make sure you pick up a good sharpy marker. This is will be very helpful later. So, now you have your bins and your sharpy. When you get home find a pretty open area, either the kitchen or a living room, and call it “base camp”. This is where you bring all of the decorations you have collected around the house. (DO NOT BRING OUTSIDE DECORATIONS HERE) Can you guess what comes next? Go around the house and collect all of your decorations. Start in one room, it is best if you start and finish an entire room rather than pick and choose. Start in one corner of the room collect things and work your way out, to insure you do not forget anything. When you have finished all of the rooms, go back and do a walkthrough of each, while looking for any forgotten decorations. Next take any of the larger items that are not breakable and place them in the bin first. Go from largest to smallest. If you have any breakable decorations do not put them in the bin without being wrapped; they will break. Wrap those decorations in packing wrap. If you do not have any, the snow that is used in the kicknaccks around the house is very good packing wrap. This also saves you time because you would have to put that away anyway. Also, do not over flow the bins, the lid must go on properly! If it does not next year you may not have any Christmas decorations because they will have fallen out of the bin on the way into the attic and be broken. On the front of each bin label what is in it. For example, if the decorations mostly go downstairs in your house label the bin “Christmas Downstairs” this will help when you are decorating next year. Now the last step, you must select a place that is easy to access but out of your everyday way, so you do not have to see them. Closets usually do not work. Try the basement or the attic or even a crawl space. Very neatly with the words facing out this way you can read what you wrote stack the bins in the room of your choice. Close the door and say see you next year!
Now, as far as the outside decorations and the tree. A key with them is neatness! If you have any boxes that lawn ornaments came in try to put them back in those boxes. This makes for the easiest storage of large items. Try to avoid just throwing them in the shed. Usually a cord gets tangled in a something and next year it will not work. When you have the item back in the original box, try storing it some place outside, like a shed, under a deck, or even the garage. The lights are probably the biggest one to tackle. First, take your lights off the house and bushes. Take each strand in your hand, and wrap them up. You can either do it in a circle or in bunches. (Bunches works the best) If you do it in bunches you take one light in your left hand, and use your right hand to bring up the night light therefore keeping all the light bulbs facing up, the same direction. Then wrap the remaining cord around the lights securing it so it will not break out of the bunch or tangle with any other bunch. When that is finished will each set of lights, you want to place them in another bin, label it “Christmas Outside Lights”. This technique of taking lights off will also be used for the tree. Store the outside lights in a secure place such as a shed, under a deck, or garage.
Finally, it is time to take down the tree. Start by taking any large beads or garland off the tree. Next remove the ornaments. The best way to store ornaments is in ornament organizers. They sell them at Lowes also. Place each ornament in its own compartment to insure it does not break. When you are finished taking all of the ornaments off the tree it is time to tackle the lights. Start on the bottom, with the last strand of lights, and work your way up the tree, collecting the lights in the manner previously explained. Store these lights in their own bin, away from the outside lights, this way next year you do not have to determine which lights are indoor or outdoor lights. Since the tree is in the house, you should store its lights, and ornaments inside wherever you prefer. It is probably best to store them with the other decorations this way you know where they are the following year. To take the tree out of your house. Be prepared with a vacuum, you are going to need one to pick up all of the dead needles. Select the biggest door in your house, either a slider or the front door. Have one person lift from each end, and pray it fits. If it does not, do not use a kitchen knife or anything of that sort to try and cut the branches off. The tree will win, and you will end up with stitches.
I hope this essay was helpful. Be careful and good luck!
P.S. It is not a good idea to play Christmas music and put the decorations away, unless you want a new radio that you did not get for Christmas.
First things first, the more organized you are the better off you are. Instead of using the cheap half falling apart cardboard boxes that you have used for the past ten years, switch it up. Go to Lowes and by some plastic bins. Always buy one more than you think you need! It is very likely that you do not know how many decorations you have. The kind of bin that works the best is the ones about two feet by a foot and a half deep. This way they are light enough for one person to carry up into the attic or wherever you may store your decorations by themselves. In my house we use the ones that look like you can fix a human in. I do not have enough fingers and toes to tell you how many times the bins have almost fallen and either broken someone’s toes or broken the decorations. Next, when you are at Lowes make sure you pick up a good sharpy marker. This is will be very helpful later. So, now you have your bins and your sharpy. When you get home find a pretty open area, either the kitchen or a living room, and call it “base camp”. This is where you bring all of the decorations you have collected around the house. (DO NOT BRING OUTSIDE DECORATIONS HERE) Can you guess what comes next? Go around the house and collect all of your decorations. Start in one room, it is best if you start and finish an entire room rather than pick and choose. Start in one corner of the room collect things and work your way out, to insure you do not forget anything. When you have finished all of the rooms, go back and do a walkthrough of each, while looking for any forgotten decorations. Next take any of the larger items that are not breakable and place them in the bin first. Go from largest to smallest. If you have any breakable decorations do not put them in the bin without being wrapped; they will break. Wrap those decorations in packing wrap. If you do not have any, the snow that is used in the kicknaccks around the house is very good packing wrap. This also saves you time because you would have to put that away anyway. Also, do not over flow the bins, the lid must go on properly! If it does not next year you may not have any Christmas decorations because they will have fallen out of the bin on the way into the attic and be broken. On the front of each bin label what is in it. For example, if the decorations mostly go downstairs in your house label the bin “Christmas Downstairs” this will help when you are decorating next year. Now the last step, you must select a place that is easy to access but out of your everyday way, so you do not have to see them. Closets usually do not work. Try the basement or the attic or even a crawl space. Very neatly with the words facing out this way you can read what you wrote stack the bins in the room of your choice. Close the door and say see you next year!
Now, as far as the outside decorations and the tree. A key with them is neatness! If you have any boxes that lawn ornaments came in try to put them back in those boxes. This makes for the easiest storage of large items. Try to avoid just throwing them in the shed. Usually a cord gets tangled in a something and next year it will not work. When you have the item back in the original box, try storing it some place outside, like a shed, under a deck, or even the garage. The lights are probably the biggest one to tackle. First, take your lights off the house and bushes. Take each strand in your hand, and wrap them up. You can either do it in a circle or in bunches. (Bunches works the best) If you do it in bunches you take one light in your left hand, and use your right hand to bring up the night light therefore keeping all the light bulbs facing up, the same direction. Then wrap the remaining cord around the lights securing it so it will not break out of the bunch or tangle with any other bunch. When that is finished will each set of lights, you want to place them in another bin, label it “Christmas Outside Lights”. This technique of taking lights off will also be used for the tree. Store the outside lights in a secure place such as a shed, under a deck, or garage.
Finally, it is time to take down the tree. Start by taking any large beads or garland off the tree. Next remove the ornaments. The best way to store ornaments is in ornament organizers. They sell them at Lowes also. Place each ornament in its own compartment to insure it does not break. When you are finished taking all of the ornaments off the tree it is time to tackle the lights. Start on the bottom, with the last strand of lights, and work your way up the tree, collecting the lights in the manner previously explained. Store these lights in their own bin, away from the outside lights, this way next year you do not have to determine which lights are indoor or outdoor lights. Since the tree is in the house, you should store its lights, and ornaments inside wherever you prefer. It is probably best to store them with the other decorations this way you know where they are the following year. To take the tree out of your house. Be prepared with a vacuum, you are going to need one to pick up all of the dead needles. Select the biggest door in your house, either a slider or the front door. Have one person lift from each end, and pray it fits. If it does not, do not use a kitchen knife or anything of that sort to try and cut the branches off. The tree will win, and you will end up with stitches.
I hope this essay was helpful. Be careful and good luck!
P.S. It is not a good idea to play Christmas music and put the decorations away, unless you want a new radio that you did not get for Christmas.
Monday, December 31, 2007
The Importance of Work
In the article "The Importance of Work" it makes some very valid points. The article starts off with discussing the issue that many people think the book, The Catcher in the Rye, should be taken off the market and out of public libraries. The article argues that the book shows the “graphic realism” of the world in which we live in. Other books that challenge authority such as Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn were also threatened to be taken off shelves. This goes to show that people in power do not like the idea of authority being challenged or giving young people the idea to challenge the world in which we live in. The article makes many valid points, stating that the reason the book could possibly be banned is because of the langue that it uses however, it is appropriate to get the message and Holden’s frustration across to the reader. I agree with what this article says largely and believe it gives a good view of Holden’s frustrations with the phoniness of people.
Saturday, December 22, 2007
My Color of Yellow
Y outh has thought me the joy of happiness so I try to be that happy person everyday. From summers down the shore to winter snow storms; all of these are happy memories from my youth.
E verything I do I try to remain optimistic. From a fourth grade health class I saw a picture of a glass with water in it. I remember thinking why is that here? I always thought the glass was half full, and I realized it is better to look at situations in a positive light rather then negatively.
L ooking at different situations I always weight the hazards and rewards. Always cautious to see if the risk is worth the reward that the situation may bring.
L oving the color displayed in nature from sunrises to flowers. I love nature and all of the wonderful colors it reveals. However, I believe the shades of yellow in nature are the most beautiful. I love sunrises on the beach or the bright flowers in the gardens.
O vercoming challenges. I always strive to reach my goals that I set. I believe what is the point of setting goals if you do not achieve them. In order to reach most goals I have to overcome challenges, some challenges are larger then others. For example, it has been my goal to become a good athlete and through hard work and dedication I feel I have reached that goal, yet I know I still have much room to improve.
W ondering what the future holds. It is the time in my life when I wonder what the future holds. I have set goals and I know I will achieve them. However, I want to know how I will go about doing so. Where will I be 20 years from now?
E verything I do I try to remain optimistic. From a fourth grade health class I saw a picture of a glass with water in it. I remember thinking why is that here? I always thought the glass was half full, and I realized it is better to look at situations in a positive light rather then negatively.
L ooking at different situations I always weight the hazards and rewards. Always cautious to see if the risk is worth the reward that the situation may bring.
L oving the color displayed in nature from sunrises to flowers. I love nature and all of the wonderful colors it reveals. However, I believe the shades of yellow in nature are the most beautiful. I love sunrises on the beach or the bright flowers in the gardens.
O vercoming challenges. I always strive to reach my goals that I set. I believe what is the point of setting goals if you do not achieve them. In order to reach most goals I have to overcome challenges, some challenges are larger then others. For example, it has been my goal to become a good athlete and through hard work and dedication I feel I have reached that goal, yet I know I still have much room to improve.
W ondering what the future holds. It is the time in my life when I wonder what the future holds. I have set goals and I know I will achieve them. However, I want to know how I will go about doing so. Where will I be 20 years from now?
Thursday, December 6, 2007
The Cell Phone
An object that is important to me? Well, this may sound cliche however an object that is important to me is my cell phone. I am a person who needs attention and communication, my phone gives me that. Cell phones are the way of communicating to the people around us in this day and age. The popularity of cell phones have come to be popular through their accessibility and reliability. These factors plus many others lead me to why I like cell phones. However, one experience brought me closer to why I need a cell phone:
A few years a go my family went to the Bahamas on vacation. Now, it was was not just my immediate family; my cousins and aunt and uncle went too. The islands were very beautiful, I mean blue-great water huge hotels, it would be paradise for most. However, I did not like. To me, the airport was a warehouse, a blind person could drive better then most of the people there, and the hotel smelt funny. To top it off the trip I get off the plane excited and cannot wait to see what lies ahead. I grab my cell phone from my carry-on bag, turn it on and..... it does not work. It say "SEARCHING FOR SERVICE" for the entire rest of the week.
Now, as if that is not bad enough, it gets worse. During our week in paradise, I spent at least two day locked in the hotel room sick as a dog. If I were at home and I was sick it would not have been that bad, at least I would have been able to communicate with the outside world. In the Bahamas no such luck. I laid there in bed with nothing to do but watch episodes of the Golden Girls. My parents had brought two way walkie-talkies so this way we could keep in touch. Yay, just what I wanted to do. I amused myself by changing the channels on the walkie-talkies trying to find someone to talk to, even if it was a hotel janitor, no success.
From there I tried to use a pay phone to call my boyfriend. It was a good plan until I realized I did not know how to use a pay phone. Later I decided that i would just call from the hotel room phone and pay the charges on check out. How much could it possibly cost? Fifty dollars later, I learned never to call anywhere from a hotel room phone.
It is hard to believe that I rely so heavily on technology in my day to day life. However, this three inch piece of pink plastic helps to define who I am; my constant need for attention and to communicate with others. My cell phone is one item I am lost without.
A few years a go my family went to the Bahamas on vacation. Now, it was was not just my immediate family; my cousins and aunt and uncle went too. The islands were very beautiful, I mean blue-great water huge hotels, it would be paradise for most. However, I did not like. To me, the airport was a warehouse, a blind person could drive better then most of the people there, and the hotel smelt funny. To top it off the trip I get off the plane excited and cannot wait to see what lies ahead. I grab my cell phone from my carry-on bag, turn it on and..... it does not work. It say "SEARCHING FOR SERVICE" for the entire rest of the week.
Now, as if that is not bad enough, it gets worse. During our week in paradise, I spent at least two day locked in the hotel room sick as a dog. If I were at home and I was sick it would not have been that bad, at least I would have been able to communicate with the outside world. In the Bahamas no such luck. I laid there in bed with nothing to do but watch episodes of the Golden Girls. My parents had brought two way walkie-talkies so this way we could keep in touch. Yay, just what I wanted to do. I amused myself by changing the channels on the walkie-talkies trying to find someone to talk to, even if it was a hotel janitor, no success.
From there I tried to use a pay phone to call my boyfriend. It was a good plan until I realized I did not know how to use a pay phone. Later I decided that i would just call from the hotel room phone and pay the charges on check out. How much could it possibly cost? Fifty dollars later, I learned never to call anywhere from a hotel room phone.
It is hard to believe that I rely so heavily on technology in my day to day life. However, this three inch piece of pink plastic helps to define who I am; my constant need for attention and to communicate with others. My cell phone is one item I am lost without.
Monday, November 19, 2007
The Glass Castle - Book Review
The Glass Castle
By JEANNETTE WALLS
Published: 2005
The Glass Castle
A Memoir
By Jeannette Walls
288 pages. Scribner. $14
The Glass Castle is an amazing piece of literature written by Jeannette Walls, published in 2005 containing 288 pages. Jeannette' memoir tells the story of her childhood as she saw it when she was a child. The poverty, alcohol abuse, and many other obstacles these young children faced are expressed in this story. Through the memoir the reader is able to view all of these obstacles and experience them as Jeannette did.
The story opens with a very catchy scene of Jeannette in a taxi in New York City, watching her mother loot through a garbage can. From then on the book is told in flashback, looking at her very transit childhood, and dysfunctional family. The story is told on how she over came her family issues and made a name for herself. Jeannette was a very bright young girl, always doing well in school. She was able to attend Bernard University, the sister college to Columbia at the time, on a very large scholarship. However, getting to the point of moving to New York and going to college did not come easy for Jeannette; she faced many set backs.
Jeannette's father was an alcoholic. He would abuse his wife, could not hold down a job, and could never be trusted with money. Jeannette was one of four children. She was the one person in the family to try as hard as she could to not give up on him, always believing in his plans to build the Glass Castle, or listening to his old stories. Jeannette's mother was also very irresponsible. She did not like to work as a teacher, the career which she was certified in, and made money from. She preferred to be an artist. The four children would be the ones to help her grade papers and make sure she was up for work on time. These children took on a lot of responsibility.
This book is an amazing story on the life these children lived and how they over came their family situation. Poverty, alcoholism, and irresponsible parents did not get to them in the end.
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