Blog # 15

Ehrilch describes cowboys as being thought of as rough, rugged, and unable to connect on thew outside but on the inside being this soft, caring, people who have as many emotions and feeling as women, they're just more hesitant to show it. Her tone is very sympathetic towards them like she feels how they do. The way she describes them in a softer more "feminine" light makes it seem like this is how she really wants them to be.

Blog # 14

The way that Sante breaksdown secrecy really shows us how much we rely on it in our daily lives. Internet is a big part of this. You can put anything you want on the internet without fully realizing the countless amount of people that will see it. This is just a way secrecy is "spread". Someone tells someone on this website then emails another person and so on and so forth till half the world has seen something that was only meant for that one person.

Blog # 13

Values and ethics is not something i think should be taught in a school setting.
These types of things are what our parents or family members are supposed to be teaching us. Yes, values like honesty and integrity should be reinforced by staff but definitely not taught.

Blog # 12

Movies usually comes with a genre attached to them which is a great way to catagorize them, but many good films incorporate many genres into their plot. Different genres many times seems like a recipe for success. Movies that have the next scene to be totally obvious are never fun. You want twist so youre always guessing and you stay attentive and interactive.

Fantasy:
Lord of the Rings
Harry Potter
Pans Labyrinth
Up
Avatar

Horror:
Hostel
Scream
Amityville Horror
Dawn of the Dead

Musicals:
Mama Mia
Chicago
Across the Universe

Romantic Comedy:
Pretty Woman
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Hitch
When Harry Met Sally

Blog # 10

Alone, fearful, outcast. The boy thinks and feels this way as he walks into the cafeteria doors. He stands in the lunch line scanning the vast room filled with his new peers. He pays for his food, turns around, and is frozen. Where do I go? He stands for a moment, turns, and leaves.
Nobodiness: usually felt in a new place, with people you dont know, or in uncomfortable situations. Kids especially know how to make our peers feel this way. You feel almost ostracized from everyone else but it always seems like it your fault when many times its not.

Blog #9

While reading Tuesdays With Morrie I never wanted to put the book down because I wanted to know the next enlightening thing Morrie would say. He teaches Mitch many lessons but I learned not to be so concerned with the possessions i have and worry more about the "important" things in life: family, friends, etc...
Morrie really ended up having the most positive attitude when it came to anything. Even to his dying day he was happy about the life he lived and didn't really focus on the fact that he was staring death in the face. He made me realize how lucky and blessed I really am.
The only thing i couldn't help but still fear is death. Even after Morrie tells Mitch about letting go, I just cant. Dying is basically my ultimate fear and I have a feeling it will be for the rest of my life. Living my life, and everything about it is amazing. Sure it has its ups and downs but experiencing new things is something I always want to be able to do. End of story.

Blog #7

One of the books I read over summer was The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd.

In my opinion one of Kidd's arguments was forgiveness. Lily is left with just her father and she seems to blame herself and her mother for her predicament. Lily runs away to escape her father and ends up in another place with memories of her mother. She was told that her mother had left her behind with her father. What she wasn't told was that her mother would eventually be coming back to take her away from her dad. She has this small hint of hate for her mother but a strong longing and love. I think Kidd was really trying to show that you can't just hold a grudge with someone forever. Lily ends up not only forgiving her mom but also forgiving herself. You need to eventually forgive, because in the end being upset will only cause yourself more pain.

Blog#6

I walk into third period and take a breath: Orchestra. I walk to my chair, grab my violin, and just talk to friends. The familiar faces is something that makes me feel just that bit better about being at school. No one judges, we're all just there, doing something we've dedicated time to. I've known most of the students since elementary school and it's somewhere I enjoy to be.

A lot of kids in school think people in music programs at school are weirdo's and all we do is play music. It's not like that at all. I'm in the class because why quit in high school just because people thinks it's "weird". For me the class is a place where I can keep friends I've had since I was a kid. Music isn't something I'll be pursuing when I'm older I just want to have a familiar place in the always changing Vaca High environment.

Blog #5:Questions

The only thing that I questioned in The Box Man was how did the writer know how the box man actually felt. How would any of us know exactly whether or not a homeless person was more a less happy than i was. Just curious.

Blog #4: Compare and Contrast.

Even though this has absolutley nothing to do with literature or anything but this is what I came up with.
Two things that are ironically similar but different are...brains. In a sense when you look at two brains they look 100% the same. (usually, not including brain defects and things like that). All brains include the same parts and they have the same function. But mentally they're different. Different thoughts run through them and are used differently.
I know I might not be hitting the nail on the head with this one but I tried. :)

Blog #3: Critical Review

"The Secret Life of Bees" by Sue Monk Kidd was really a fantastic book. A big part of the book was the underlying theme of countering racism. The narrator Lily Owens' life in the book stars out quite rocky: her learning she killed her mother accidentally, and a not so fantastic father T.Ray. Lily's idea of racism is very different that others, adn she overcomes it towards the end of the book. "The Secret Life of Bees" really opened my eyes and made me look at things from another point of view.
Definitely a book I could read again.

Blog #2:

So far my non-fiction history includes: "The Diary of a Young Girl" by Anne Frank and "Fast Food Nation" by Eric Schlosser. Out of these two books the themes I remember were from "Fast Food Nation", and it was basically the truth about our country's fast food. It really told it like it is and showed people the "behind the scenes" of the food we all eat, whether we eat it everyday or every once in a while. It was quite a shocker. Now, "The Diary of a Young Girl" was a completely different thing. This book, from what I remember, was quite intense. (Given that I read it in the sixth grade.) The major themes were really about Anne growing up in such a stressful time in history and really about the person she was and how the events in her life made her who she was. Also, the theme of acceptance for others unlike yourself was obviously very strong.
The book that had more influence on me was Anne Frank's book. It really showed me to be optimistic about people that are different than me. A way to describe it for me was not judging a book by its cover. Its definitely cheesy but that's how it seems to me. Ever since I read the book I definitely had a different outlook on things. I wasn't so close-minded any more. You don't really understand how a book like that changes you opinions till you really think about it.
But both were great books!

Introduction: Yours Truely

Basically I am just your normal and somewhat average 16 year old girl.  I tend to have a blunt and honest personality, and I’m ready for just about anything. I have a close group of friends and I’m not into cliques. I’m just ready to legitimately start living my life.