Week 4: If Only…

If only I didn’t have friends, family, a cell phone, a computer, or dance. If I didn’t have my friends I would always be bored, home alone on the weekends, and I would have no one to talk to. My friends truly mean about to me and I am very thankful for having them. I didn’t have my family I would be lost. My family means so much to me, and I probably don’t tell them enough how much I love them, and how thankful I am for having them. My family is always there for me I know, just like my friends are. No matter how crazy they are or even if they tend to embarrass me, you can’t choose your family, but if I could I would have definitely chose them. If I didn’t have a cell phone I would probably get my homework done right when I get home from school, I would probably pass all of my test and quizzes at school, because I would always study because I would have nothing better to do when I get home or when I’m lying in bed at night. If I didn’t have a computer I would no doubt do better in school, I’d probably spend more time with my family, or maybe even reading a book. I probably wouldn’t get as many headaches, because they light from the screen hurts my eyes. If I didn’t have dance I’d probably go crazy. Dance is what helps me stay together, it allows me to release stress from school, and home life. Dance also helps me from getting fat, because if you’re fat it’d be a little hard to dance. I’m very thankful to have dance in my life, along with everything else. 

Week 5: You Can Quote Me!

Quotes often help explain how you feel or how you've felt in just a few words. The quote “Sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together.” explains in my life a few things. I've lost a few best friends over the year, I guess because we were too different, but since I've lost their friendship I've became friends with other girls. Losing my friendship with them gave me the opportunity to become friends with other people and that made me realize that I've become a lot happier.

 The quote “It’s better to be alone than to be in bad company.” explains that it’s better to surround yourself with people that respect you, their selves, and others. I've hung around people that aren’t good influences, I’m sure everyone has. But I realized that they weren't good for me to hang around and that they could possibly get me in trouble. I hope everyone that hangs around people that aren’t good influences realized that they could do better than the people they are with; also I would hope they wouldn't fall into peer pressure.

“The most painful thing is losing yourself in the process of loving someone too much, and forgetting that you are special too.” This quote explains one thing in my life. I had a boyfriend that I was on and off with for about a year. I’m not going to say I loved him, because I believe I am too young to love, but I did have really strong feelings for him. He knew how much I liked him and he continued to play with my feelings. I do admit that how much pain I went through was just as much my fault and it was his, because I allowed him to treat my so horribly. I just think that no matter how much you like somebody it is not worth going through so much trouble and pain to be with them when they are showing no effort. 

Two original quotes from me:

"Sometimes it's better to focus on your own happiness than others."

"You must be patient and wait for good things to come in life."

Week 1: What's On Your Mind?

Thanksgiving is probably my favorite holiday. Thanksgiving makes me realize what I’m most thankful for, and how many things I am thankful for. When I think about how much I’m thankful for I think of all the children and adults that aren’t thankful for as much, because they aren’t able to have as much as I do. Just thinking about that is heartbreaking, which makes me more thankful for everything I have. The person I am most thankful for is God, without Him I would not have anything I have, I wouldn’t have the people I have in my life, I wouldn’t have to accessories, I wouldn’t have freedom, I wouldn’t live the good life I live. I’m very thankful for my parents; they do so much for me. My parents give me a nice place to live, food, clothes, love, support, and they treat great, I wouldn’t trade them for anything. I’m also very thankful for my family; my family is always there for me when I need them, and I know they aren’t going anywhere! I’m so thankful for my friends, I have so many friends and without them I wouldn't know what to do. They’re there for me no matter what; we always make it through arguments and remember why we’re such good friends. I’m also thankful for the little things. I’m thankful for always having food in my house, because I know there are people in this world that even have food or a house. I’m thankful for the house I live in, because not everybody has a home to come to everyday. I’m thankful for my bed and my room, not everybody has their own room, some don’t even have a bed to sleep on. I’m thankful for all my cute clothes and shoes, because some people don’t have clothes or even shoes. I’m thankful for having a cell phone, computer, and TV because some people don’t have those in their lives. I’m thankful for all the people that are in my life, even if we aren’t friends, I’m just thankful to have met them, because I’m sure they serve some kind of purpose in my life. I’m also very thankful for RCS (my school) because some children aren't able to attend a school, or get any kind of an education, and I’m thankful I am provided with a school that gives me a good education. I’m thankful for the teachers at RCS too, because without them the school wouldn't be what it is today, and I wouldn’t have the education I have if it wasn’t for them. Needless to say I am very thankful for so many things, which everybody should be because most of us live a great life! 

Week 4: Music Response

I think Tim McGraw wrote “Red Rag Top” to show that love is real no matter what age you are. He was twenty and she was eighteen. That’s a two year difference and they had real love. I think Tim McGraw succeeds at trying show love is real at all ages. In the songs he talks about getting her pregnant, and that they were not ready to have children. That shows that they were responsible enough to make their own decisions. Even though they do end up breaking up and he never sees her anymore doesn't mean that he doesn't still have strong feelings for her. I’m sure feelings like that will never go away. He talks about her pretty green eyes and how it brings back memories when he sees a girl with green eyes at a stop light, it makes him think about his old girlfriend. Like I said before about him getting his girlfriend pregnant, I think he talked about that because a lot of teenage girls get pregnant now days by their boyfriends, and not always do the boys love the girls. I think he wanted to show that even though he did get her pregnant at a young age he still did love and care for her, but they just realized that they were not ready to take on that kind of commitment. In this song I feel that Tim McGraw was also trying to show sadness, because he lost the girl he loved. So he was probably trying to show that you need to hold on to something good once you have it, because it can be taken away in no time. 

Week 3: Social Media Response; Illustration 2

The drawing I chose by Pawel Kuczynski was in illustration two, I believe this picture in illustration two represents many things. The first thing that caught my eye was the army helmet the little baby was wearing. The helmet clearly represents the army, and the baby represents children, which makes me think of army children. The army children have to go through a lot, because their mother or father is away at war and they are worried about their parent’s safety, and they know there is nothing they can do to keep them safe. Also the little baby is sitting alone with a bird, which in my opinion represents loneliness the child has without his/her mother or father, because army children have to go a long time without seeing their parents, and they probably get lonely and miss them after a while. You can see the little army toys in the corner of the picture which shows that he has been playing with the toys, also that could mean he plays with the toys because he/she looks up to his/her mother or father, and could possibly pretend that it’s the mother or father at war. I think the artist was trying to show sadness in this picture, because most kids are sad when their parents have to go to war, because it is a very dangerous job, and they worry that they might get injured or killed. It would be a horrible feeling knowing that you might not see them again. I think the artist did a really good job at showing all the different feelings and different points in this drawing.

Week 2: Poetry Response

I am analyzing the poem “I Cry” By Tupac Shakur. I think the poet wrote this poem to try to explain why he was sad, and to show that he is sad. The author is trying to show that he is sad, depressed, lonely, and heartbroken by saying “Sometimes when I’m alone I Cry,” and also by saying “I Cry because my heart is torn”. I think the poet does succeed. The way he wrote his poem showed that he felt sad, and alone just by the things he said, and by naming the poem “I Cry” that showed that the poem was going to have a sad/heartbroken story to it. The poet knew if he put those certain things in the poem then it would show that he was sad, alone, heartbroken, and depressed. Also some things he said in the poem made it sound like he didn't want to bother anyone by telling people his problems, because he thinks they wouldn’t want to listen to his problems or his feelings, which also makes him feel alone, and makes him feel like he has no friends. The title of the poem sounds like it would be sad, and everything in the poem would make you cry if that was actually happening to you, and if you had the same feelings as the person in the poem. The poet might use the devices to show he is sad, that way it would make the name of the poem make more sense to the readers. 

Week 1: What's on your mind?

I am going to touch on the topic of bullying. Children, teenagers, and even adults have to deal with being bullied every day. You can be bullied mentally and physically, either way you’re still harming others. When people bully others I don’t think they understand how that makes them feel. People who are bullied usually become depressed, suicidal, form eating disorders, exclude themselves from activities or friends, start using substances, such as alcohol or drugs, they may also become very violent. An example of bullied kids becoming violent is, in 12 of 15 school shooting cases in the 1990's, the shooter had been bullied in the past. Usually in bullying situations the person bullying has problems, such as… Alcohol and drug abuse, violence, drop out of school, home issues, which some of those things may follow them as they get older. There are lots of cases where teenagers have been bullied and committed suicide or have attempted suicide. There was a case that has happened recently where a girl was bullied about something she did. She moved schools and it followed her where she moved. Her peers said some very nasty things to her. She had many attempted suicides, and then she had one successful attempt. This should show people that no matter what somebody does there is no reason to make someone feel like they should end their life. If you ever feel the need to bully someone, stop and think about how you would feel if that were you in that particular situation. “Treat others the way you would want to be treated.” 

Top 10 List

For my top 10 list I will be doing my top ten favorite types of dances.
The first dance I have chose is Tap. I choose tap as my number one because I am better at tap than I am at the other types of dances. Also I like tap better because all the dances have great rhythm. My second favorite would be Jazz. I choose Jazz over the others because I like how all your moves need to be big and on point. My third favorite would be Ballet. I like Ballet because it is very calm, and you have to be graceful while dancing. My fourth favorite would be Modern. Modern is a lot like Ballet, your moves have to be graceful and pretty. What I like about Modern is that it focuses more on the expression of inner feelings, than outer feelings. Hip-hop would be my fifth favorite. I've never been a big fan of Hip-hop dances, because I feel like they don't look as good as Tap, Jazz, and Ballet. My sixth favorite would be Country Western dancing, at my dance studio we don't do many dances like that, unless we do a tap dance that has Country Western music to it. Swing dancing would be my seventh choice. I don't really like Swing dancing, and we don't do much of it in the studio. Usually the only thing we do like it is dance with partners. I don't like dancing with partners that much because it makes the dancing more difficult. Latin dance would be my eighth choice, it's very fast paced, and quick hip movement. Usually we do it in Jazz. Flamenco dancing would be my ninth choice, it usually just deals with hand and foot movement. We usually only use that in Modern or Ballet sometimes. Belly dancing would be my tenth choice. I don't like belly dancing, and I don't really consider it a type of dance, because you only move your stomach. Those are my reasons for choosing different dances over each other.  

Tap Dance 

Jazz 

Ballet 

Hip Hop

Modern 

Country Western 

Swing 

Latin 

Flamenco 

Belly Dance 

How-to Guide

Step one 

Step two

Step three 

Step four 

Step six  

Step five 

Step seven 

Step eight 

Step nine 

Step one: Make sure you have out all the ingredients that you'll need to make macaroni 

Step two: Put 6 cups of water in your bowl, and boil the water

Step three: Once the water is boiled put the macaroni noodles in the water and let them cook up to 8 minutes

Step four: After you let the noodles cook use a drain to let all the water off the noodles

Step five: Put noodles in a bowl and add 4 tablespoons of butter/margarine 

Step six: Add 1/4 cup of milk 

Step seven: Add the cheese sauce mix

Step eight: Make sure you stir up all the ingredients very well

Step nine: Once you've stirred everything up your macaroni is done 

Note: You may add salt or pepper to the macaroni to give it more flavor 

I think my guide on how to make macaroni would be good to use because my pictures and steps are very detailed on what you would need to do/use while making your macaroni and cheese.  

Prompt 2: Review a movie

The Vow is a movie that was inspired by a true story. The Vow contains two people deeply in love and recently married. They were both involved in a car accident that leaves Paige (Rachel McAdams) in a coma. She struggles with horrible brain trauma, and when she wakes up she suffers with severe loss of her memory. She does not remember being married to her husband Leo (Channing Tatum). Paige’s husband Leo is determined to make Paige fall in love with him again, and regain to memory of the great love they have for each other. The Vow shows lots of ups and downs of Paige and Leo’s relationship, as Leo tries to help Paige regain her memory. At the end of the movie Paige does regain her love for Leo back, but she still never did regain her memory.

 The image above is of them about to get in the car accident. I think this picture represents this movie very well because Paige getting in the accident is what caused her to lose her memory. In the image you can see the head lights of the truck that is about to hit them. 

In my opinion I thought this was a great movie. It shows that people will go to great lengths to show someone how much they love you. Also it’s very inspiring to me, it shows that no matter how bad things are you can make good out of the bad. For my rating I would give this movie an 8, I like the way it was based on a true story, that way you know everything really happened, it makes the movie more inspiring to me.

Ways they could have improved The Vow, is they could have had Paige regain her memory. I feel like it would have made the story and ending better. But since it was based on a true story they could not have Paige regain her memory if the women in real life did not. But besides that, I don’t really see anything they could have improved, it was just a great movie/story overall. 

 

Prompt 3:Technology

http://www.technologyreview.com/article/425905/world-without-walls/

The article I read about technology talked about how people thought that technology would mess up privacy for people. Such as Facebook, if you're friends with someone on Facebook you can see everything they put on their account. The article also talked about the Fourth Amendment which states a legal right to privacy correspondence. It also said that there was a certain age you had to be to join a networking site, but people could easily lie about the year they were born. In 2006 a new information sharing site was made called "Fusion Center" it is a site made for the federal state and local government so they can pick up and share "fuse" knowledge with one another and the representatives of private companies and foreign governments.  I do believe in privacy, but in my opinion you should not put anything on the internet that you would not want others seeing. Also you can make your page to any social networking site private, so that any out side people are not able to view your things. But you still have to keep in mind anything you put on the internet is there forever. In the future, I see more and more people adding to the social networking sites, because some people don't think about privacy on the internet, they just make their accounts thinking that they will have privacy on it. Another reason is it's a good way to keep in touch with family that lives in different countries, and current/old friends.

The Children s Story

I did like "The Children's Story", but the new teacher was a little strange. The way she acted towards the students was weird. She tried to change the kids views, change the way they dress, and make them like her views. She asked a lot of questions about how they thought of things. Also they never gave a reason for why the class got a new teacher, that was also very strange.