A Healthier America

Dieting has become a large part of American life due to obesity levels and the demanding "perfect" image our culture continuously pushes on our citizens. Meredith Melnick wrote a recent article called Weight Watchers' New Point: Zero For Most Fruits and Veggies. In this article, she compares the new point system by Weight Watchers, the PointPlus system, to the old point system, Weight Watchers Points. In the old system, the more calories a food had, the more points it was, the worse it was for you. In the new system, the overall nutritional value of the food is taken into account: the amount of protein, carbs, fat, and fiber. The main reason for this is to show dieters that "a 100-calorie bag of cookies isn't as healthful as a 100-calorie apple."

Many dieting commercials advertise diets that allow you to eat good food, but still lose weight. When did the American mind change that "good" food cannot also be healthy food? I found myself in major agreement with the new point system presented by Weight Watchers' because now, Americans will learn how to not only lose weight, but also learn and make a habit out of eating a healthy diet. I think too many Americans who are dieting dread the process of it because they believe they are not allowed to eat tasteful food. This may also be the cause of the growing problem of obesity in our culture.


I believe if Americans, dieting or not dieting, will use this point system to create their regular eating habit, they will learn that healthy food can also be tasty foods. This will help cause the obesity and even unhealthy levels Americans are on now to decrease.


http://healthland.time.com/2010/11/30/weight-watchers-new-points-zero-for-most-fruits-and-veggies/

12 Sentence Story

It began at Ms. Peggy's, a house many memories would come from, a house that would become my second home, a house that will forever be a part of my childhood. The house was of no significance; the events tell it all. The regular children Ms. Peggy babysat were there, along with the newer ones, Colten and Chandler. We hid anywhere and everywhere for hide-and-seek: behind the storage building, in the house, or across the street. Me and Colten waited and waited to be found. Suddenly. I didn't know what to do or what to say or what was happening. We had been found, but we still were not it. My hand Colten was now holding. Had my heart ever beaten so fast? We screamed and ran and jumped and finally made it to the safety of the game with our hands still together. The memory that will stay with me forever, a childish happiness I will never forget--the day I held hands with my biggest childhood crush.

What has your mask become?

Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult is about a high school shooting. In the beginning, it starts with the day of the shooting--the before, the during, and the after events. As the story progresses, it goes back in time to these same students in kindergarten and elementary school. One very profound quote during this section of the book was, "If you spent your life concentrating on what everyone else thought of you, would you forget who you really were? What if the face you showed the world turned out to be a mask...with nothing beneath it?"

Peter, the future murderer, was extremely excited about his first day of kindergarten. He was fully prepared long before the bus arrived at his house. However, as soon as he stepped on the bus, his excited mindset changed to terror. He was constantly bullied for the rest of his school years. During this time, Peter's main focus became defending and avoiding his true self in order to avoid the rough contact he came into with other schoolmates. In reality, just as the quote says, his mask did not hide anything beneath it-- Peter's mask became his true identity.

In our society, I think people have become extremely obsessed with what others think of them. There are numerous types of surgeries done to change the outward appearance of people, however, the mindset, or inward appearance, must first be changed. For example, a person trying to decide whether to change a certain feature on their face first mentally decides the reason they want this feature changed. Is it to better their health or to draw more attention to themselves? If they decide it is to draw more attention, they have then already decided one of the most important things to them-- being attractive to others. What started out as an outward changed has now turned into an inside or outside change to the person.

Future Reads

Planned books to read during the 2nd nine weeks:

• Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult was suggested to me by a girl in class who encouraged everyone in the class to read it. This book seems to be about a school shooting with the shooter and other people involved points of view. I am interested to see the twist at the end that I've heard about.
• The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson was suggested to me by my English teacher. I am interested in reading it because she said it causes you to think deep and challenges you to really understand what you're reading. I am looking for a more challenging read for this nine weeks.
• The Shack by William P. Young was suggested to me by multiple people. I've heard it a very deep book about the different ways a man encounters God. I have read a few religious books in the past, so I look forward to starting another.

2nd Quarter Annotated Reading List

Picoult, Jodi. Nineteen Minutes. New York: Atria, 2007. Print.

Jodi Picoult presents a whole new outlook on a school shooting. In Sterling High, the main goal is popularity. Grades, sports, and friendships are good, but popularity is key. When a boy who has been bullied since he first stepped on the bus on his first day of Kindergarten becomes fed up with the way others act towards him, every student and family from Sterling High will be changed forever. A devestating event leads to built relationships, startling truths, and completely changed lives.


The realness Picoult accomplishes throughout the story contributes to the empact of the emotions on the reader. Although this book is fiction, the strong emotion felt throughout the book seems as if it all really happened. By doing this, Picoult helps the reader feel every ounce of emotion she felt while writing the book and the emotion of the characters involved in the story.

Young, WM. Paul. The Shack. Newbury Park, CA: Windblown Media, 2007. Print.

Young tells the story of Mackenzie Allen Philip's life after a terrifying death of a daughter. Mack is struggling with letting his daughter, Missy, go after her abduction and recieves a letter from God. This letter tells him to go to the shack where it happened. Knowing the letter couldn't possibly be from the God, Mack dreadfully goes expecting some kind of set up. When he arrives, Mack is in complete awe of his surroundings. The experiences he goes through at his weekend at the shack gives him a new outlook on the murder of his young daughter. His relationship with God will forever be changed.

Young's descriptions with the encounters and conversations Mack has with God brought up new and unthought of reasons for pain in this world. His characters that represent the three parts of the trinity also gives readers an imaginitive view of God in three persons.

Rand, Ayn. Anthem. New York: Dutton, 1995. Print.

Ayn Rand presents a future Utopian society where jobs are chosen for you, everyone dresses the same, and no individualism is to be allowed. When Equality 7-2521, a useless Street Sweeper, dares the branch out and discover something new, he is immediately shunned. Now, the rest of Equality 7-2521 is on a mission to escape and become a part of a different, possibly chaotic world. The darkness Rand uses in the story is very effective by helping portray the dark, simplistic society these people live in. With no exciting events happening outside Equality's rebellion, chaos seems to be more pleasing to the reader than a strict, completely controlled society.


Ludy, Leslie. Set-Apart Femininity. Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House, 2008. Print.

Leslie Ludy tackles many uncomfortable ideas for a present teenage girl in the current American society. She challenges young ladies to radically change their lives in ways that seem almost impossible. Ludy explains that by these changes, a stronger, healthier, and more beneficial spiritual realtionship will begin to grow and form. Ludy also explains the different in being a Set-Apart christian and being a christian. The Set-Apart life consists of taking stands against the smallest actions that may cause sin, even if they sometimes seem ridiculous. Ludy's unreasonable challenges really cause the reader to rethink what they believe it means to be a true christian and live a fruitful life.

Reading Reflection

Being introduced to the new reading guidelines this year burdened me. Although I don't necessarily hate reading, I feared getting my 150 minutes in every week. I'm sad to say I have not established a consistent reading pattern, yet. I say yet because I promise I'm still working on it. I have a habit of just reading whenever I have freetime or craming the night before if I'm suppose to have a certain number of pages, or in this case minutes, due. To improve this habit, I'm going to try reading from 8:30-9 every night. I work until 7 and my family usually eats dinner as soon as I get home, so the first amount of free time I have outside of school will be close to 8:30.

I have only read two books this nine weeks. The Hunger Games was not a very deep read, but Brave New World deepened my thinking to a new level. I am now reading The Things They Carried which I believe will be a happy-medium between the two extremes of book types. Inking my thinking seems to be more challenging when reading books like The Hunger Games because most of the story is on the surface. More complex books such as Brave New World have plenty of inking material that I think is great to be able to look back on to try to find the meaning of the story. By inking, I am forced to look deeper into the material I'm reading and pay closer attention.

Next quarter, I need to finish more books. I also need to try to establish the set reading habit of reading 30 minutes a night. I also plan on finishing The Things They Carried, and possibly reading The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, the second book to The Hunger Games series, and The Shack.

Socratic Seminar Reflections

The Socratic Seminar broadened my views and ideas on the purpose and theme of Huxley's Brave New World.

While answering a question in a group, a new idea that contradicted mine was presented. In my opinion, Brave New World was written as a warning to people who strive towards advancements in technology more than they strive for advancements in a balance of areas. Huxley was showing what such a society would turn into. However, another group member shared that they thought Huxley was writing to the people of his time as a prediction of what our booming technologically advanced society would soon turn into. It wouldn't necessarily have to be a negative prediction though.

During the discussion, ideas were also challenged. One person had agreed that Brave New World's society robbed the people of their individualism. By choosing what they will be for the rest of their life and forcing them to have the same beliefs as everyone else, allowing no room for each individual person to make even one decision about their life style. On the other hand, the statement that the people of the society never rebelled, so they must not have wanted individualism was presented. Backing it up, the people also never knew any different, so they may not even want change even if presented the opportunity. Also, if they were given freedoms, would they know how to make decisions? Since they're so accustomed to always having someone tell them how to live, they would probably continue following the "crowd."

Of the two questions I chose to discuss, only one included a subject I wasn't very familiar with. Henry Ford was chosen to be the god of Brave New World's society. They praised him and cursed him for the good and bad things that happened to them. Although I knew Henry Ford invented the assembly line for the mass production of cars, I did not know his beliefs on other aspects. While researching Henry Ford, I also found out he believed in keeping the best workers working his assembly lines just like Brave New World's society believed in only keeping people alive during their "best" years.

By preparing for the discussion, I learned how to plan and organize ideas and questions that were going to be needed for the discussion. I also learned how to verbalize my thoughts so that when I asked questions or made comments my words didn't come straight from a piece of paper.

Aside from preparing and discussing questions, I also learned how the Socratic Seminar worked. I think I did well. I took several notes and maked a couple of passages in the book. I also looked up information and notes that could be used to share.

The listening and paying attention to others' opinions part was easy for me, however, sharing was more difficult. I am usually a quiet when giving opinions, so I was challenged to speak up and share about what I thought of each subject. Another difficult part was having a limited time to be able to think and respond in a meaningful way to another's comment. I most enjoyed being able to speak my opinions instead of writing them down to be graded. When I sit down to write it takes at least ten minutes for my mind to get focused just partly on what I'm suppose to be writing about. With the Socratic Seminar, I could go directly from my mind to my mouth.

Next time, I will prepare more meaningful questions that cause myself and the group to think deeper into what we're being asked. This time, my questions weren't shallow, but I don't think they were on a deep enough level for us to engage in a very meaningful conversation. I would also prepare more notes than what I had this time.

I learned that I do a lot better by sharing my ideas verbally than when writing. I also learned that I need to organize completely what I'm going to say, and before speaking, I need to know what my finally point for the comment I'm about to make is. I found myself often starting a comment, but then forgetting what my final point I was trying to defend was.

I thought the Socratic Seminar was a great way to share ideas and interact with other students in class. Also, it was good to be able to evaluate and learn from the members of the other groups that were answering questions while I was not discussing a question. The only thing I would like changed is the time allowed to discuss a question. Although some topics are hard to keep a steady conversation going for eight minutes, others could be continued out for ten or twelve minutes, maybe even more.

1st Quarter Annotated Reading List

Aldous Huxley paints an image of our future world through dramatic and terrifying examples of life. This brave new world is a world evolved around technology and contentness. Since people are created in an assembly line instead of through the natural processes of birth, no relationships are ever made. Soma is the immediate escape from any uncomfortable feeling, and promiscuity is promoted. Bernard Marx begins feeling a sense of questionability. He wonders why he can't be with Lenina, the woman he has strong feelings for, and why he has to be with a different girl every night. He also wonders why ideas opposing what the Controller says are ban. When given to oppourtunity to view the outside world with freedom, a word in which he has never heard before, Bernard turns right back into everyone else: soaking up the care free life.

Huxley's twisted view of the future is a great read. He knows how to not only make the reader question what they truly wish the world evolved around, but also intrests the reader in the discriptions of the future world. Huxley's book might also have been written as a warning for the people in his time whose new ideas seemed to be completely revolved around technology.

Huxley, Aldous. Brave New World. New York: HarperCollins, 1932. Print. 259 pages


Katniss Everdeen lives in the nation of Panem in District 12. She lives with her depressed mother and little sister, Prim. Because of her mother's condition, Katniss has taken responsibilty of providing for her family. She hunts illegally because of the poor conditions of her family, but still manages to provide for them. The Hunger Games is a nationwide, very gruesome event. 2 people between the ages of 12-18 are chosen from each of the 13 districts to compete in a "war." This event is a broadcasted fight to the death between the 24 contestants, and greatly feared in the minds of the proposed fighters. When Prim is chosen, Katniss volunteers to take her spot. Katniss realizes her family will never be able to survive without her, so she promises Prim she'll come home. Althought Katniss is the underdog in the competition, she shows her true self when she lets her emotions get the best of her at the first competition. Now, Katniss has a sense of confidence that will hopefully carry her through the games.

I highly recommend this book. Although it is not a very deep read, I do think it's very enjoyable to read just for entertainment. The Hunger Games has a very interesting and intense storyline that allows the reader to get involved and want to read the book whenever they can.

Collins, Suzanne. The Hunger Games. New York: Scholastic, 2008. Print. 384 pages

Abundance Analysis

Pink's amazed interest reveals his view of Americans being more obsessed with material possessions currently than they were dependant on necessities in the past. Pink uses the example of people buying candles for light before light bulbs were invented, however, 2.4 billion dollars a year are still spend on candles. Although candles have no real use to Americans currently, they still purchase them for scents and beauty for the buildings they spend time at. This leads to the thought of Americans being too concerned with how products will effect their status in the world rather than how the products will be beneficial to their needs. Pink's second example is introduced when he says, "while living standards have risen steadily decade after decade, personal, family, and life satisfaction haven't budged." This statement provokes a slightly different view of the obsession with material things. Pink is saying that by purchasing many material things, and planning for these things to bring happiness, these possessions in the end have not been beneficial to happiness at all. Since Americans have access to the necessities needed to survive, they have begun looking for even more things that will bring purpose or satisfaction to their lives. I agree with Pink's view of Americans which leads me to ask the question, if it came down to a necessity or a desirable, which would the majority of us choose?

Smartwater Ad Analysis

The Tom Brady Smartwater ad was a clever choice for the Smartwater industry. In many ways, pathos, logos, and ethos are used to attract and convince the viewer to purchase Smartwater.

In some ways, Logos is one of the more convincing methods to selling water. Most buyers think of water being one of the healthiest choices of beverage, so when Smartwater added more of an in depth descripition, buyers will be convinced this isnt just any water. The facts about water presented in the ad and the bottle of water are the only colored pictures which helps them stand out the most. "Electrolyte inhanced hydration. Vapor distilled purity. For takeoffs and touchdowns," is the description given in blue. Since the background of the entire photo could be distracting for the text, this Logos information now stands out.

Ethos is the most obvious use of Aristotle's persuasive appeals in this ad. Tom Brady's appearance in this ad connects Smartwater to athleticism. Tom Brady drinks Smartwater and is a very famous and great football player, so if you drink Smartwater you will also become famous and athletic too. This ad also claims at that Smartwater is "the answer for Tom Brady." Now not only will Smartwater help you become famous and athletic, it will also help you answer your other problems.

The use of pathos is seen the most. The obvious use of pathos is also the choice of Tom Brady. Many women, and some men may admit, that Tom Brady is very attractive, a trait almost everyone in our society strives toward. Now, Smartwater helps bring about attractiveness. Although Tom Brady is most famous for his football career, this ad also attracts nonathletic people too. Tom Brady is on a football field, however, he has just been dropped off by a helicopter, is carrying a briefcase, and is dressed in a nice suit. His face shows preparation and focuse. Smartwater has not only helped with his looks, but also helped him achieve wealth, success, and a high-class status is the world.

Aristotle's persuasive appeals have helped Smartwater not only attract a certain type of person to buy their product, but a person of any type.

Live and Love

F. Scott Fitzgerald's "The Offshore Pirate" is a short story written in the 1920s. "The Offshore Pirate" is a story of a young, rich lady, Ardita, who is captured along with her uncle's boat by a group of pirates. Ardita is very stubborn, so when the pirates give her the chance to escape to shore she refuses and agrees to go with them. Curtis Carlyle, the leader of the pirate group and the only white man, begins speaking to Ardita. They find they have much in common, and maybe even are reaching for the same goal in life. Throughout this short story, two main parts stood out.

In one part Ardita says that, "all life is just a progression toward, and then a recession from, one phrase--'I love you.' " Although I believe Ardita would be a very intelligent lady, I do not agree with her bold statement. Many do fall in love and many find very much happiness in love, but not all find love. If life was just a progression towards and recession from having the sense that someone is in love with you, then some people would not be living at all.

Ardita says that she once realized, or "found something",--courage. Ardita claims that the characteristic of courage is what attracted her to her past idols so much. She then says that "my courage is my faith." These statement made by Ardita then challenged me to ask myself what attracted me to my idols and what my life was built on. Although I'm still pondering that thought, one main characteristic that I've realized is thankfulness. My dad is one of the main people that I look up to and the one character trait that he portrays in my mind over all is thankfulness.

"The Offshore Pirate" may have been meant to be a cute, short love story, but it challenged me to think about my opinions on life and what my life reflects.

Wasted Time

“Recipe for a Tasty Life” by Ellen Hopkins reminds me of my pattern of living.

She begins by pondering why people make plans to begin something brand new when they never really finished the thing they’re in the middle of doing. Hopkins shows this idea by using the imagery of a person throwing away a half baked pie and then having to start a new pie from scratch. Thinking about it this way makes it seem unreasonable as compared to a vague idea of someone starting a new project instead of finishing another one.

Another example used by Hopkins further explaining this idea is picking weevils, or beetles that usually ruin stored food items, out of flour for long amounts of time when in reality, they will never completely be gone. This idea takes it from a different point of view by saying no matter how hard you may work at something it will never be completely finished. This example could also explain the reason people never finish projects, but always seem to begin new ones.

I go through my life beginning new projects over and over, but finishing very few. Ellen Hopkins has challenged me to stop wasting my time and instead putting it to good use by showing more in depth examples of how ridiculous is to begin something and then throw it away just to begin something else that will soon be thrown away half way through.

Slavery: Evil or Good?

Many argue that slavery is an awful way to treat others and maybe even a mistake made by our ancestors. However, I recently listened to a podcast, Addicted to Bondage, an episode of Dan Carlin's Hardcore History series that challenged the evilness of slavery. Two quotes were supported by this podcast; one, "slavery retarded technology" and the other, "slavery was an advance in human morality."

"Slavery retarded technology" helps support the idea of slavery being undeserved or terrible, but also unhealthy for our world. Dan Carlin stated that slavery stops some technological developments because slaves present people with reasons to not find a way around problems. He gives the example that during the times the southern parts of the United States struggled with slavery, some slave holders did not put in water systems because they had slaves to do those types of jobs for them. This thought then also creates the question of how far our world could have come today if we had not had slaves in past times and also certain slaves, or "forced workers" today.

I began agreeing that slavery was definitely a mistake made by our ancestors until the next quote arose. "Slavery was an advance in human morality" backs up the idea of slavery being helpful and beneficial. Carlin again gives an example to suppose this statement. During the gladiator times when fighting was a popular past time, the living people from the losing side would be put to death. One person, or maybe more than one, soon realized that these people would be worth more dead than alive, therefore, turning the survivors of the losing side into slaves. Another example mentioned was the Hebrews of biblical times. Many are familiar with the story of Moses leading the Hebrews out of slavery from the Pharaohs. Some scholars believe that the reason the Hebrews were first sentenced to slavery was because they were starving and the Pharaohs made the deal that they would feed the Hebrews if the Hebrews in return would do chores or work for them. Looking at this side of slavery compares the choices of the life of slavery to death.

Although I could never decide which statement I agreed with more, it will make the think before I "bad mouth" our ancestors who were involved in slavery and question their decisions.

Annotated Photo

Analysis of "Of Mice and Men"

Analysis of Detail

From his paragraph, John Steinbeck sets the scene in Of Mice and Men through his use of imagery as he describes the natural world as a parallel to later events in the novella.

One of part of a quote, "runs deep and green," is a parallel to the characteristics of George and Lennie. "Green" symbolizes new life or through a different point of view it could symbolize sickly. Either way, Lennie is immature like a young child, and sickly because of his mental illness. "Deep" describes George. Deep provokes the thought of strength, lively, or dangerous. By having the ability to care for Lennie, George shows strength. George also is lively and dangerous by the ways he takes up for Lennie and the way he speaks.

"Slopes curve up to the strong and rocky Gabilan mountains," foreshadows the conflict in the story. "Rocky" means unstable or dangerous. The struggles that Lennie and George are currently facing cause them to be unsure of their next moves. "Mountain" in the quote is in the future; the mountains are after the slopes. Mountains symbolize challenges. Lennie and George's future is ahead of them and will be hard if they still strive to own their own land.

"Leaves lie deep and so crisp" represent George and Lennie's goal. George tells Lennie about them owning their own land and crops one day, knowing this will be a dangerous road and will take both of them being strong to achieve. "Deep" symbolizes the dream. "Crisp" can be paralleled to their own land. Owning the land will be new and fresh to George and Lennie.

"A path beaten hard by boys" and "beaten hard by tramps" means different people are coming down a familiar, well known, or a "beaten" path. The farm workers are all very different; different races, genders, and ages. However, each are struggling to reach the same goals and are going through the same things. Just like George and Lennie, Candy and Crooks dream about owning their own land or work for someone who has worked hard to be able to own the property. Candy's wife admits she had a dream, but never reached it. The failed dreams of each character could be "beaten hard" by another.

"The limb is worn smooth by men who have sat on it," parallels to the dreams of the characters. The same dream of each person, the dream of owning their own land and having freedom, has been "worn smooth", and also the failure of the dream has been "warn smooth."

Analysis of Point of View

The third-person objective point of view solidifies the solitary lives these men lead.

From the passage on page 68, "Crooks did not see him...on raising his eyes...a scowl came on his face," shows that Crooks is a little angry that someone has come into his room because it's not normal and not what he is used to. He obviously has no relationships. Since his reaction was not a smile, it can be assumed that Crooks is not looking for or wanting any friendships or relationships at this time. "Lennie smiled helplessly in an attempt to make friends," shows that Lennie knew he was intruding on Crooks space, but was just trying to create a relationship. From this quote, Lennie's actions show he does not have any relationships, but longs to have one.

The passage on page 107 also defends shows the loneliness these men faced. "Slim's voice shouted, 'George. Where you at, George?' But George sat stiffly on the bank..." From this quote, George is not only sitting alone but he is alone mentally alone. The others guys do not understand why he wouldn't answer quickly or excitedly after such a thing happened. "And Carlson said, 'Now what the heck ya suppose is eatin' them two guys?'" shows that first that Carlson isn't very considerate of others feelings and doesn't know how to understand other's pain or their emotions. Along with Carlson, the other men seem to take Lennie's death lightly where George takes it very hard.

Analysis of Tone

The hopeful and despair tones in Steinbeck's passage reflect his ability to create a story with such mixed feelings. Two of the contradictory quotes in the novel which show the opposite tones of the book, hopeful and despair, are when George and Lennie compare themselves to the other men like them." George went on, 'With us it ain't like that. We got a future. We got somebody to talk to that gives a dang about us. We don't have to sit in no bar room blowin' on our jack jus' because we got no place else to go. If them other guys gets in jail they rot for all anybody gives a dang. But not us.' Lennie broke in. 'But not us! An' why? Because...because I got you to look after me, and you got me to look after you, and that's why.'" George gives hope to Lennie by telling him they will always have each other. On the other hand, George also describes the other men like them. "...he said them many times before, 'Guys like us, that work on ranches, are the loneliest guys in the world. They got no family. They don't belong no place. They come to a ranch an' work up a stake and then they go inta town and blow their stake, and the first thing you know they're pounding in' their tail on some other ranch. They got nothing to look ahead to." The thought that each man is lonely is despairing, but the thought of Lennie and George having each other is hopeful.

George and Lennie's dream is repeated throughout the book which gives hope, but Crooks response to their dreams gives a feeling of despair. "Lennie said, 'Tell about that place, George.' ... 'Well, it's ten acres,' said George. 'Got a win'mill. Got a little shack on it, an' a chicken run. Got a kitchen, orchard, cherries, apples, peaches. 'cots, nuts, got a few berries. They's a place for alfalfa and plenty water to flood it. They's a pig pen' ... 'An' we could have a few pigs. I could build a smoke house like the one gran'pa had, an' when we kill a pig we can smoke the becon and the hams, and make sausage an' all like that. An' whent 'em salmon run up river we could catch a hundred of 'em an' salt 'em down or smoke 'em. We could have them for breakfast..." As Lennie describes this place to Crooks, Crooks gives a response that completely changes the mood of the reader. "'You're nuts.' Crooks was scornful. 'I seen hundreds of men come by on the road an' on the ranches, with their bindles on their back an' that same dang thing in their heads. Hunderds of them. They come, an' they quite an' go on; an' everydang one of 'em's got a little piece of land in his head. An' never a God dang one of 'em ever gets it. Just like heaven. Ever'body wants a little piece of lan'. I read plenty of books out here. Nobody never gets to heaven, and nobody ever gets no land. It's just in their head..."

George tells Lennie many things to keep him happy and enjoying life, but George and the other men know that the hope built up inside Lennie will not stay because after all, all poor men are the same.

Theme

The quote, "I am my brother's keeper," is the theme of the novel Of Mice and Men.

Lange's Photography

Dorothea Lange's photography shows more than just a picture from the past. Lange's photographs from the depression not only show the people and actions, but also show the memories, hurt, pain, and way of life from the depression.

The photograph of the mother looking forward and the children almost ducking behind her shows that she is the only protection they have. She does not have the look of fear on her face so she is a brave woman, but she does have a look of concern and confusion, maybe about what will be the next step in their life. The clothes also help show the situation this family was put it. They obviously had no money to put towards clothing.

The photograph of the mother, ring on finger, holding one child and another leaning their head on her shoulder shows many different feelings. The ring symbolizes the husband of the woman or maybe the memory of a husband. Either way, this ring could also symbolize the last hope for the family since it's the last thing they seem to have in good condition. The mother's face also seems strong in this picture, again, not full of fear. From the faces and actions of the two children, they seem to be not necessarily clueless, but not fully aware of how bad the situation their family is in. One child is sleeping and the other seems to be dazed off, neither of the faces seem to have worry.

The last photograph shows the family as a whole and their surroundings. They use their luggage as furniture and bed sheets and their car as shelter. The luggage, car, and bed sheets are not in good condition, but it's all they have to use. This is the first time the children seem to be aware of the situation and seem hurt and scared.

Orwell's Use of Animal Characters

Although sometimes I forgot the animals were suppose to represent an actual event involving humans, Orwell's use of animals as characters was very effective. While reading the book, the animals kept the story more interesting and easier to stay focused on. If the characters had been regular people, the book might have seemed more like reading a history lesson. This would cause the book to be harder for the readers to focus on reading.

The use of animals as characters also causes you to compare each animal character of the story to the human character of the actual event. The animals, in my mind, represented each character very well by the characteristics of the humans compared to the characteristics of the animals.

The Giver

The Giver by Lois Lowery is one of the most interesting books I have ever read.

The Giver is a story about a Utopian society where everyone lives the same lives. The only thing unique about each person is the job the government-type decides for them. Jonas, a boy living in this community, is about the turn twelve. When each child turns twelve, a job is chosen for them and their training begins. All of Jonas' friends seem excited about what job they're going to be given because each think they know about which field will be chosen for them. Jonas, on the other hand, has no idea. He is clueless. He volunteers in all the different houses, but has never been very interested in just one. When the assembly comes and Jonas receives the job as the memory keeper, his word immediately changes. All the strict rules he's followed throughout is life no longer apply to him. The new things he learns and receives from The Giver will completely change his way of thinking. He begins realizing all the things, good and bad, that are hidden from this society.

Many argue that Lois Lowery should have made a more concrete ending or should have written a sequel. I thought the ending was very appropriate because it gives each reader a new ending, good or bad, whichever satisfies them. If there was a sequel, I would read it because I enjoyed the first so much, but I would hope Lowery would still leave the reader to decide the ending.

I enjoyed reading this book because of all the details and way of living of this Utopian society. It's interesting to think about if there really was a society where people were completely convinced there was no emotions or feelings. Would they choose the life of pain, suffering, and hate but also happiness and love or the life of no emotion where no hardships occurred, but also no happiness was present?

Cross-Examination

I could be cross-examined over many different things including my closet, the random papers in my room, and my passwords.

The most likely thing someone might cross-examine me on is my choice of passwords. Before I had over 6 accounts for school use, I had a different password for every e-mail and different accounts I had. When setting a password, you cannot use your first or last name, so some creativity is required. Most might use passwords of favorite animals, sport teams, middle names, and many other reasonable names or words, but the majority of my different passwords are very random and not relevant to my life at all.

Someone might also cross-examine my choice of clothing hanging up and folded in my closet. I have too many shirts that have never been worn, never even had the tags taken off. It's not that I don't like these shirts, I just haven't had an occasion to wear them. Sometimes, I get "attached" to old clothes that I'm use to wearing and that fit good, so there's no need to wear the new outfits yet.

Red Wheelbarrow Poem

Broken glass laying in the way.

Glue and tape cannot fix.

Antique vase, aged, but strong.

Ideal dependence.

A Cause for Celebration

There are so many occasions

on which to have a celebration.

One in particular is summer,

My favorite time for me and my best friend, Kaylie, to ride in her Hummer.

Finally school has come to an end.

everyday is now the weekend.

Suntans are becoming very perceptible,

except for mine which is very, very dull.

Counting down the days is almost unbearable.

No one can wait for the last day of school!

I Wear the Mask

I Wear the Mask

Everything is veiled.
To you, I am stainless.
To you, I am without weakness.
To you, my world seems to be full of ecstasy;
full of felicity.
Inside, the delight is still present,
But added is the defect.
To me, I am bitter.
To me, I am full of fluster.
To me, I am disguised.
One day, I will be unveiled.

St. Patty's Day

St. Patrick's Day means different things to everyone. It may remind you of good or bad memories. For me, it reminds me of the start of the first day of a new age. My birthday is on March 16, so St. Patrick's Day is the day after. I remember every year waking up in the morning and my dad saying, "Do you feel one year older?" I never do.

St. Patrick's Day also reminds me of parties in elementary school. On St. Patrick's Day while all of the students would be at recess, the leprechaun would visit each classroom. I remember coming back into class very excited and seeing gold glitter scattered around the room. On the desks would be little gold coins that really had chocolate in the middle, and sometimes, the leprechaun would leave a little note.

The Call of the Wild

Jack London's The Call of the Wild touched me with it's story of a dog who had to survive harsh circumstances throughout his life.

The theme of the book would be "survival of the fittest." From the beginning to the end, Buck, the main character, continually had to fight off other dogs or even humans trying to kill him. His second owner beat him for no reason, and his third owners had so many dogs to take care of, only the ones who could survive got to keep living.

Buck is a dog who first lived with a lawyer. He had a good home and was well taken care of, but he was still just a dog to his owner, just an animal. When Buck was sold to his second owner, he was nothing but dirt. The man in the red sweater beat him constantly for every little thing he did wrong. He was then sold again to join a pack of dogs who traveled. In this pack, he was the strongest and eventually the most feared. He always had the heart of a leader, and while running with this pack, his want to be a leader became more and more obvious. When the harsh winter came, and all the food was taken, every dog and even the men had to fend for themselves. The owners would beat the dogs until they could get up and lead the sled. If they couldn't get you up, they would kill you. When Buck's fourth owner comes along, Buck is more than a dog to this man, he is a friends and Buck is finally treated the way he should have been all along. Will Buck choose to stay with this man, or following the calling of the wild?

I recommend this book to anyone who loves to read. It's not only for animal lovers; it's a good story and has a good lesson for anyone.

Persuasion

Persuasion is a part of my everyday life. I try persuading friends, family, teachers, and many others. In my mind, persuasion works a very small amount of time. That could be because I'm not very good at it.

In my life, I try persuading my parents more than anything. Anytime I want to hang out with friends I come up with a reasonable excuse to be able to go, and more times than not, I get to do what I choose. Other times, however, if I already had plans with my family, my persuasion technique does not work very well for me. I also try persuading my friends. If we're hanging out that weekend I sometimes try to persuade them to agree with what activities I'm wanting to do. Depending on what my choice is, sometimes they agree and other times not. Altough I do not try using the persuasion technique on many of my teachers, I observe it being used in different classes each day. The most famous persuasion is trying to persuade a teacher to let you turn your homework in late, and the next one might be postponing a test. Whichever way it's used, in my opinion, the more you try to use persuasion the more selfish you are being.

Persuasion is also a main part of commercial ads in media. The commercials for orphans from another country are the most emotional for some, which is a very clever type of persuasion to use. Other commercials may say they have the best product of something and you should stop using a different kind and switch to theirs.

Winning

Winning can mean many different things. For some, winning is recieving a gold medal, a trophy, or maybe even money. For others, winning means knowing that were the best at whatever type of competetion they were in. And for some, winning means knowing they did the best they could.

Although I love having a tangible award after winning, the most important kind of winning to me is the third kind, knowing you did your best. If a person has the outlook of winning as just being the best at everything all the time, they will be highly disappointed when the time comes around when they tried their hardest, but someone was still better. If someone has the outlook of winning by trying their best, even whenever that other person may do better than them, they can still be proud of themself.

Commitment

Just like the people competing in the Olympics, I would make such a commitment to marriage. Marriage is something that many people struggle to keep together today. Over half of marriages fail in the United States. Some marriages fall apart over reasonable situations, but some are ended over small fights. People everyday are beginning and ending marriages and either agreeing to the commitment it will take or giving up on that commitment they've already made.

Just like training for the Olympics, marriage takes a lot of patience. Olympians did not get to the Olympics by going out one day, failing at the sport, and then not practicing anymore because they gave up. The Olympians trained long hours and had patience with themselves to be as good as they are. Two people who are married must have patience to have a successful marriage. If they disagree on something, they can't get mad and start a fight or they would constantly be fight. Both the husband and wife have to talk it out.

If a marriage is not working out, determination to keep the marriage together is needed. Olympians must have determination also to succeed. If a couple is about to get divorced, one, or maybe neither, people are willing to try to make it work. If a couple is struggling, determination from both people could help the marriage work.

The Truth About Forever

Dessen's The Truth About Forever showed me the many things one girl can go through and how she deals with each problem.

One theme of The Truth About Forever is to never be afraid to express your opinion about something. Macy's, the main character, main goal is to satisfy her mother and Jason, her boyfriend. She must make perfect grades and keep all her focus on academics throughout her senior year, so she can get into one of the top colleges. Although Macy does not enjoy trying to fit her life around the word "perfect", she seems to do it anyway, just to keep the others satisfied. Towards the middle of the book, Macy has some chaos involved in her life, something that is the farthest thing for normal for her. While involved, she realizes she likes a little bit of disorganization in her life. This small realization begins affecting her life in big, some bad and some good, ways. If Macy would have never expressed her opinion about the way she wanted to life her life, she would still be trying to achieve perfect, which she, along with the others, understand.

The characters are very important. Macy is a high school student, a senior to be exact, who is preparing to graduate the following year. Her mother is a very organized, hard working real-estate agent who is always on-the-go and hardly ever has time for her daughters, Macy and Caroline. The reason she is so busy could be a result of her husband and Macy's father's death only months ago. Jason is Macy's boyfriend. The summer in the setting of the book, Jason is gone to what Macy calls Brain Camp. Jason is very smart and has high expectations for himself and also for Macy. Delia is the head of Wish Catering, the catering company at Macy's house when she is exposed to disorganization. Wes is Delia's nephew and soon to be Macy's new best friend. Wes is the main person that helps Macy realize she'll never be perfect and also help her find out who she is.

I highly recommend this book. I've read it twice and I'm sure if I read it a third time it wouldn't get old. It's a very good book for young girls and has a good message.

374 pages

Twisted Book Review

Anderson's Twisted entertained me with it's "twisted" story about a high school student and the trouble he got into.

One theme of the book is to never judge a book by it's cover. After Tyler got into trouble with the law, everyone judged him and assumed he was an awful person to be around. Another theme would be to always be yourself, no matter what others may think or say. Tyler always saw himself as the nerd boy and it caused him to do something rebellious to get noticed. The consequences to his actions were not worth just getting noticed, and having other people's view of him changed.

Tyler is a high school student starting his senior year. He has always been very smart and thought of very highly by the people around him. In his mind, he was a wimpy nerd boy that was known as a loser. He wanted to change that. He spray painted part of the school and got caught so he had to do community service and was on probation. Throughout the book, Tyler sees the consequences to his decisions and how they have affected the new person he is. For example, he is framed for a few incidents t he wasn't involved in because of his past.

The main character in this book, Tyler, could very easily be related to students in high schools today. Everyone wants to fit in because it seems like it's the "cool" thing to do, but most of the time people are better off just being their self. I recommend this book very much. It's short and easy to read. Also, it's easy to get into so you're not bored halfway through the book.

Pro life VS Pro choice

A woman having an abortion is choosing to have the fetus inside of her removed and killed. Some people are very strong opinionated on the subject of abortion. They may be very strong pro life, meaning against abortion, or pro choice, not necessarily meaning for it but also not against it. For me, I am for the most part pro life. I do not believe abortions are right for the situations most people consider it.

I don't know whether the fetus has thoughts or feelings while in the womb, but I do know that the woman and the people around her have feelings and memories. Not only is an abortion the killing of a baby, but the woman also has to live with it after. This could greatly affect not only the physical part of a woman but also the mental and emotional part.

The majority of people that are pro life are Christians. They believe, along with myself, that every child, starting the minute the egg is fertilized, has a soul and is a gift from God. One of the main verses that makes me believe abortion is wrong is found in Job 10: 8-12 which says "Your hands shaped me and made me. Will you now turn and destroy me? Remember that you molded me like clay. Will you now turn me to dust again? Did you not pour me out like milk... and knit me together with bones and sinews? You gave me life and showed me kindness, and in your providence watched over my spirit." In our world, there are many who are not Christians so it is hard to use the Bible to try to convince others to agree, but I do think it is a very good argument towards other Christians.

Another big part of my opinion on abortion is the methods they use. From the methods I have heard of and read, none of them in my opinion seem "not that bad" or "OK." To view some of the methods and facts and opinions about abortion go to http://www.buzzle.com/articles/facts-about-abortion.html.

Although I agree that women should have the choice of what is done with their own body, I do not believe that a baby inside of them is enough of their body for them to decide whether it lives or it dies.

Taking A Stand

In my opinion, taking a stand takes very much courage so I have a lot of respect for people who take a stand on important topics. Most people think of taking a stand as someone taking a stand against something they disagree with. I think taking a stand could also be standing up or standing for something you think is correct or good.

A senior that is in my youth group recently took a stand on something she thought was very beneficial to the people of Africa and for teens in America. From what I gathered, she has always had a desire to be a missionary in Africa, so she asked one of her friends to help her put together a benefit concert that was going to be called Scarfest. This concert would help raise money to donate to an AIDS mission in Africa and to an organization called To Write Love on Her Arms, a nonprofit organization to give hope to those who struggle with depression, suicide, addictions, etc.

Not only was this stand for those organizations, but it was also christian based. She was also standing up for her belief in God. By taking a stand on this large of a subject and still being young, she displayed how courageous and how much faith she had in herself to make something like this be successful, which it was. I also believe she gained respect from the people around her and also gained faith from them. This act encouraged me to not be afraid to stand up for something I either agree or disagree about. It also helped me realize how much of an affect I can have on others by doing this.

Speak

Laurie Halse Anderson's Speak reminded me to never be afraid to share with others what I'm feeling.

Melinda is a high school student at Merryweather high, an everyday high school. The cliques are in their places and aren't welcoming any newcomers. Melinda use to be in a clique, the clique that was everyone's dream to be a part of, the popular group. Now, she is at the bottom of her school. Everyone knows her name, but only because she was the girl that called the cops at the biggest party of the summer. With no friends and no encouragement from her family, Melinda must find the courage from herself to finally admit what happened at the party.

The characters are very real to me. I can see Melinda being the girl that everyone is scared to be friends with because they know the reputation she has and what rumors will go around about them. I could feel the tension and nerves the first day back to school when she had to walk by all the cliques, every staring and disgusted. The author did a great job describing the clans and the members of those clans. For example, the Marthas were the goodie-two-shoes. She described how they were always doing volunteer projects and acting sweet, but how fake everyone knew they really were.

Connections were very easily made for me while reading Speak. Although I do not know how it feeling to be competely disowned by every student but one at school, I could relate to not knowing whether to speak up on some subjects and get the courage to. The theme of this was taking a stand. Many students change themselves to fit in with a group at school just so they can have friends. Melinda did not change herself at all and was satisfied with herself, even if it was with no friends. Also, she told someone about the problem that occured at the party and took a stand by calling the police.

I highly recommend this book to anyone. It is a good reminder that even very soft subjects that you may feel should just be left alone can really effect someone until they decide to get it out.

Taking A Stand

I am a very quiet person around people I don't know very well. I am especially quiet when it comes to expressing my opinion and views are specific, touchy subjects. I'm definitely not known in school or any other place in town as the girl who will always stand up for what she believes in. I feel that the reason I do not express my opinions well is because I don't have enough information to back it up or I fear I will be proven wrong or embarrassed. I can recall one time that I did stand up for what I believed or thought was correct.

A very sensitive subject for myself is alcohol. I feel very uncomfortable when that word even comes up in conversation so there is no way in the world I would ever want to say anything about it. Many underage kids do drink alcohol because they believe it's "fun" or helps them have more fun during their free times. I, on the other hand, completely disagree.

A person I knew confronted me about her weekends and her partying experiences. She asked if I would want to join her one weekend and I quickly responded no. Trying to avoid further conversation about the the subject, a question was proposed by her, a question I did not want to be asked at all, "why?" I began explaining to her that it was unhealthy for people under 21 to drink and reasons to back it up. I also added that many end up alcoholics and since I already had that to worry about it I didn't want to add to the chances anymore.

After a very small stand being taken by myself, I realized that it wasn't horrible. No, I didn't have as much information as I should have to completely convince her that she shouldn't party and drink in her spare time, but I don't think even if I would have had that information it would have changed her mind. Knowing that she knew my all my views on that subject and remembering how I had expressed them made me feel a lot more comfortable when an uncomfortable subject was brought up in the future.