Semester TWO, Blog #2

A dim light shines behind her, illuminating her right side, making her hair glow in the darkness. She slouches forward resting her chin on her knuckles. Eyes tired but focused, reflecting the crowded computer screen. She works on a small round desk, papers scattered around and 5th grade reading books pilled together. Her pencil holder carries erase board markers, and a stapler that reads “Ms.Luna”

It's no surprise she works in an almost pitch black room, it was easier to concentrate with almost no light the few days I worked in that room. Her laptop illuminates her smile as I walk in.

Ms. Luna, my former English teacher and current Principal of KIPP Adelante, has gone far by working hard and being prepared. She says she has never wasted time and she grabs opportunities as they come.

Ms. Luna started working at a paid job at the age of eleven. She continued to balance school and work ever since. When she worked with her mom, she loved cleaning an Archaeology professor's desk. It carried a variety of pictures from all the places he had traveled. There, her love for adventure started.

Looking around her office, I see thank you notes from students, teachers and parents. A brown Adelante award is nicely pinned against a wall behind her. An Adelante awards is given weekly to any student that has shown Teamwork, responsibility, achievement.......
This award was probably given to her by teachers and students. To the side o this award, I spot her San Diego State University bachelor's degree and further up the Leland Stanford Junior University masters degree.

We walk around the school as she supports a new member to the KIPP family, a new 7th grade science teacher. When she walks she sets a strong step, her keys jingle, hanging from a Stanford key chain strapped about her neck. The keys provoke a sharp sound of anxiety, letting know that someone important has stepped in.

I always carried a huge respect for her; she became the only teacher I could connect with. We have similar backgrounds and on our short daily conversations I find more things in common. Even though I have known her for years, I haven't forgotten that she is my authority and I should never disrespect her.

Questions:

How can I make details better? For example, I want to create a vivid image and I can find words to portray her. Can you find any?

Can you imagine what I am describing?

I need to add quotes, how should I do that?

Does she sound important or interesting?

Is my writing organized? I don’t think it’s organized; can you help me switch things around?

Semester TWO, Blog #1

We're working on your mentor interview...

John Mayer’s Dirty mind and Lonely heart

Rolling Stones magazines does set a scene at the beginning of the article, letting you get closer to person before the interview. You can barely notice it is an interview because the author gives his own criteria about the subject, as if analyzing the character. It includes quotes from the person, but it never sets a standard format. Most interviews state a question and then the answer, while Rolling Stones includes an interview hidden within a story. 

The 32-year-old singer-guitarist admits he prefers Continuum to his 2009 disc Battle Studies (”I know that I’m supposed to say that my newest is the best one. Bullshit,” he says), that he hasn’t stopped thinking about his split with ex-girlfriend Jennifer Aniston (”I’ve never really gotten over it. It was one of the worst times of my life”) and that his sex life has become an endless loop of new girls rejecting him in clubs (”Blowing me off is the new sucking me off!”).

It contains the context the person says in the interview yet it’s cut down into smaller sentences. It maintains the original sense given a clear view of the person’s character. The interview never gets boring and the analysis you make can differentiate from the ideas of the writer creating a discussion in your mind. 

Unpromising
Everyone complains when presidents 'break promises.' But is that fair?

This article uses interviews of politics and experts on Obama's administration and his current work in the office. What I like most about this interview, is the humor in which the article is written. Politics can be boring to many people but Newsweek creates a humorous report.

"Stewart turned on the television. He tuned it to C-Span. Nothing doing. C-Span 2? Nada. What about C-Span Classic? Sorry. Not even "C-Span: English but with a Spanish Accent," it turned out, was broadcasting any negotiations. Stewart looked crestfallen. "What gives?" he whimpered."

Honors History Blog #4

Here's the final Honors History blog of the semester.
Honors: A Personal History
Please complete all of the following:
1. Discuss your successes as an honors student this past semester.


2. Discuss what you might have done differently if you do this past semester of honors over again.

3. Discuss your goals for honors in the second semester.

4. If you could choose any parts of literature and history for our honors work, what would you pick and why?

Please post this before 11:59:59 pm on 12/15. Up to 20 points for completing each section.

Blog #27: Nature Writing

Into the Wild

Choose two of the following:

1. Do you feel, as one letter writer did, that there is “nothing positive at all about Chris McCandless’ lifestyle or wilderness doctrine …surviving a near death experience does not make you a better human it makes you damn lucky” (116); or do you see something admirable or noble in his struggles and adventures?

everyone who wrote a letter to the author, critiquing Chris' adventures and actions, were enrage that someone would follow their dreams. We all have dreams when we are young, dreams of exploring the world and living crazy adventures. then when we grow old and our dreams seem ridiculous. for some reason we stop following our dreams, we settle down with what society wants us to do. ----"Quote from book where Chris rejects society, and society is involve"---.

Blog #26: Professional Exhibition? Contest?

MSB projects must go beyond the walls of HTHMA. You have two basic choices: enter a contest or have a professional organization exhibit your work.

If you are entering a contest:

1. Post a link to the contest

2. Summarize the basic requirements including entry fees, contest deadlines, permission forms, file sizes, and other requirements.

3. Evaluate your work against their requirements. Will your work be accepted?

If you are having a professional organization exhibit your work:

1. Post a link to the organization.

2. Post contact information for a member of that organization that is assisting in the exhibition of your work.

3. Post the date & place of the professional exhibition.

4. Post any requirements they have & evaluate your progress towards meeting them.

The Great Gatsby!

5. Evaluate “The Great Gatsby” as a criticism of the corruption of the American Dream.

 

In the book, The Great Gatsby, by F.Scott Fitzgerald, every character has its own views of the American Dream. Each character interprets the dream differently to benefit them. The American Dream was founded on the phrase from the Declaration of Independence "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. The phrase itself has already been corrupted, but in the book, it takes a different meaning. F. Scott Fitzgerald creates characters and scenes, to explain the corruption of the American Dream in the 1920’s. Jay Gatsby, one of the main characters in the book, came from a poor family. He never did accept the fact he was born poor he actually invented another life for himself, were he could have wealth, which he believed was happiness. This, to him was the American dream.

Jay Gatsby idolized Daisy for her social status. She was wealthy, powerful and popular in society; she had all the characteristics that he wanted. He consciously became the man he had always dreamt of becoming. A rich, intelligent gentleman that was sure of himself and the people around him.  

“The truth was that Jay Gatsby, of West Egg, Long Island, sprang from his Platonic conception of himself. He was a son of God—… So he invented just the sort of Jay Gatsby that a seventeen year old boy would be likely to invent, and to this conception he was faithful to the end.” That is how James Gatz, the young farm boy, created Jay Gastby. He corrupted the American dream by becoming rich unlawfully; something he believed was the easy way into popularity. Fitzgerald creates this character to emphasize that the American Dream, in some terms, refers to the social climbing happening around that time, with illicit forms such as bootlegging.

Those who inherited their wealth like Tom and Daisy Buchanan who live a life of pleasure and luxury. Also corrupt the American Dream because they haven’t worked for their money. They waste and spend the money they didn’t work for, on materialistic objects. Throughout the novel Tom criticizes Gatsby for obtaining his money in an unlawful way. But at least Gatsby worked in order to get his money, as he is following his dream.

Tom also despises Gatsby for being a “newly rich” person. It is Tom’s selfishness and egocentric characteristics that corrupt the American dream, by not letting others pursuit their beliefs of happiness.

“I see now that this has been a story of the West, after all-Tom and Gatsby, Daisy, and Jordan and I were all Westerners, and perhaps we possessed some deficiency in common which made us subtly unadaptable to Eastern life.” Almost every character was provoked by the majestic lifestyle the East brought them. The lived a life of parties and no moral values. Jay Gatsby was devoted himself in trying to achieve happiness by living this way. He’s dream also included the socially acceptable Daisy, the love of his life. After all, Gatsby’s American dream was focused on wealth and power; he was reaching this by illicit ways. Ironically, Gatsby dies while trying to achieve his corrupted American dream. It was the pursuit of wealth that brought Jay Gatsby to his end.

Blog #24: More current events

Blog # 9 Hepatitis A Threatens Swimmers At San Diego Beach

This headline is a red flag waving, warning us that we have mistreated our beaches. We know that the Tijuana River empties their sewage on Imperial Beach. Its not the first time we hear this, we all know that eeverything that goes into the sewage system ends up on our beaches. What is important here is that our beaches have become much polluted and the water now contains diseases that we never expected. A team of researchers from San Diego State University took some samples from the Imperial Beach, and they found that 80% of the samples had Hepatitis A. this is very threatening to the surfers, swimmers and fishermen, and anyone that visits Imperial Beach.

"We export 2 million tires to Mexico every year to keep them out of California landfills and then they end up coming back when it rains through the Tijuana River channel at the end of the pipe."

This shows that even California, hasn't been able to find a solution to this problem, a way to recycle this material that will benefit us all. 

 

Blog #23: Environmental Current Events

This was an article from November 13, 2009. It stated that the City Council was in charge of deciding the fate of the seals at La Jolla Children's Pool. A law will go into effect on January 1; it makes it clear the uses for the beach. Jan Goldsmith, a San Diego City attorney supports Judge Timothy Taylor's decision to rule out a 2005 state ruling that orders the seals removal. 

"A new law goes into effect on January 1 that broadens the scope of acceptable uses for the beach. It also gives control of the Children's Pool to the city council. Judge Timothy Taylor ruled that nothing would be gained by enforcing the 2005 ruling for a month-and-a-half. San Diego City Attorney Jan Goldsmith said he's happy with the ruling."

I don't think everyone will be too happy about the ruling. Where could the seals possibly go? They have no other home, yet they do pollute the beach, so how are we supposed to know hat is the right thing to do? 

 

From D'Vaughn McCrae’s blog, since I know she has a similar question, I read one of her articles titled, Residents Protest End to 2nd Trash Pickup

I have actually been reading articles like this one that talk about the rise of recycling trash. 

"That additional service will no longer be provided as a result of cuts made by San Diego last year to close a $43 million midyear budget gap. Some Mission Beach residents are just beginning to learn about the loss of the service, which costs the city $58,000 a year, and are lobbying City Hall to restore it."

If the City or state raises the price on recycling or collecting trash, then less people would want to recycle. More trash would end up on the streets and eventually in the ocean!

 

San Diegans Urged To Throw Their Butts Away

How many times have we seen people flick their cigarette butts on the streets, when there is a trash can two feet away from them? This is something that upsets me so much! Cigarette butts are the most littered item in the U.S. They can be found everywhere, mostly on beaches. Even though San Diego has banned alcohol and cigarettes on beaches and parks, they are still a major issue. What are we doing to prevent this from happening?  

"Because you have birds and fish that mistake them for food," David said. "Also they are not made of cotton, they actually include plastics, so they never totally breakdown."

This article is reliable and supports my essential questions in some ways. San Diegans need to learn to dispose cigarette buts appropriately and HTHMA students need to learn to dispose trash and recyclable items correctly.