Random

I really don't know what to blog about right now. I had a good break, the 6 hour drive sucked but I survived. I really miss my family and it was hard to come back. I have a ton of homework to finish but I think I will go to bed instead. Looking forward to a fast 3 weeks and then we all will get to be home with our families for Christmas!

Brainstorming Exercise

In Young Goodman Brown, there is a symbol for everything. Goodman is a symbol for the Puritans of the time - the average person. Faith his wife, is a symbol for Faith itself (Faith in the Lord). Faith's pink ribbons symbolize her innocence and her purity. The woods is could be seen as temptation and sin, or it can also be seen as purgatory. The Devil is the symbol for all evil. After reading the story and talking about it in class, the moral of the story became very clear. It was a story on good vs. evil. It was basically saying keep your faith and don't let sin take over you.

Young Goodman Brown

Young Goodman Brown is a story with many hidden symbols behind it. I think the story is basically Good vs Evil. The woods almost portrays a "purgatory", Faith is faith, Goodman is the human kind, the Devil is evil, etc. Goodman is tempted and has to choose whether to keep his faith or follow his temptations.

A Rose For Emily

I enjoyed a Rose for Emily. The author did a great job on keeping the readers wanting to read. You want to find out what happens with the arsenic. The way the author talks about Emily makes you want to keep reading and find out what happens. By the end of the story you're kind of in shock. The author does a great job in making the readers ask questions and want to know more.
I enjoyed it.

Katrina

Ichabod always stared at me in class. I always thought he had a thing for me. It didn't matter, I loved Brom Bones. I started to notice that Ichabod and Bones had a thing for me. I enjoyed them "fighting" over me. I could tell that Brom wasn't a fan of Ichabod. Thanks to Brom, Ichabod left. I didn't think would honestly ever leave. Guess I won't have to worry about him anymore.
Being the hottie of the town is fun.

Katrina

Buffy

Watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer was a good way to start of analyzing literature. It was easy to analyze that show, so it was a good idea to watch it. It was pretty cheesy, but I enjoyed it anyway. The basic theme I got from that episode was that we all need to be our own person, don't change for anyone. Trying to be someone you're not won't help you in the end.

Favorite Book

The truth is I hate reading. But since you're making me blog about it I'll have to come up with something. I'll admit, I enjoyed reading the Twilight series until it became so popular. I liked the suspense it had and just how stupid it was...a girl dating a vampire. It had a pretty good story line and it kept me going. However, as soon as this whole Jacob vs. Edward business happened, it made me hate Twilight. If they wouldn't have made movies out of it, the first book of the series would have to be my favorite. I think I read it in two days, which is pretty good considering I hate reading.

Blog about anything

Let me tell you about my weekend. I drove six hours and made it to Rapid City. My first night home, I was sleeping in my amazing, comfy, queen size bed, with my little sister. I woke up at midnight, to her puking on my pillow. Yes, puking on my pillow. Not only did I have a puke-covered bed, I got to do laundry at 12 o clock in the morning. After finally getting some sleep, I woke up to a house full of flu-infected children. All four of my sisters had the flu. I thought I could get away from it. Turns out I got the flu, was up all night and missed Monday's classes. I then had to drive 6 hrs recovering from the flu, every bump and turn made me want to vomit. About 20 miles from the Vermillion exit, I notice my car making weird noises. I think it was the transmission. As soon as I pulled up to the parking lot, my car completely died on me. It would turn over, but the check engine, oil light, and battery light were all on. I tried 6 times, and finally got it over to a parking spot, where it will sit until someone will tow it.
I've had an awesome weekend.

TOPICS

I have no idea if this is what you want:


Topic #1: Horse Slaughter Ban
Question #1: Who does it affect?
Question #2: What are the affects that horses are having?
Question #3: What is the outcome of this ban?

1. The horse slaughter ban is affecting owners, horses, and owners of slaughter houses. 
2. Horses have negative affects, they are being left to starve, and now are illegally being transported and crammed into trailers with little to no food. 
3. The outcome of this ban are owners are paying more and earning less, the horse market is crashing, horses are being abused, and slaughtering is still in existence, just illegally. 

Topic #2: health care
Question #1: Does the government really need to spend time on this issue?
Question #2: Is it fair that the government is doing this?
Question #3: Who is affected?
The U.S. government has way too many issues to be worrying about right now. I personally don't think it is fair that the government is doing this - people on welfare who already live off the government and do not have jobs get free health care, while doctors work hard and get negatively affected.
Doctors are negatively affected, people who don't have health care get the positive outcome. 


Topic 3: Supernatural
question 1: Do ghosts exist?
question 2: Are angels and demons considered ghosts?
question 3:  Does it go against religion?
I would have to do research and determine whether I think ghosts exist. The same goes for angels and demons. Also I know that some parts go against certain religions. 

Class

Class on Tuesday was very helpful. Getting in a circle and having those discussions are always fun. It is nice to get out of the standard classroom setting, and I think doing so helps our minds think a little better. Using all those little "the worse thing about Vermillion is..." was fun and I think it really helps narrow down a topic.
Learning about semi colons and colons was a little helpful, it got confusing when Ryan had to keep asking the group questions. It was still nice to get out of that standard classroom setting I mentioned earlier....

English Experience

In all honesty, Composition 101 has been a review of high school. I always hated my high school English classes, but our teachers would slam everything into our heads so many times that now everything just comes naturally. I also enjoy how small our class is, it reminds me of high school and I feel like our teacher can connect with each student. I enjoy the discussions we have in class, especially when we are trying to decide topics. It makes it so much easier to find a topic that will work when we have those little activities.
I was expecting my English class to be hard and boring. I have realized now that it is opposite of what I was thinking. So far I've had a good experience in this class and I feel like I will be learning a lot more throughout the course.

Literacy Narrative Review

In choosing my literacy narrative topic, the methods we used in class helped. We came up with many ideas to help narrow down our topics, to help make our writing process easier. I chose my topic because it really has helped shape me into a better person. I used a personal topic that was easy to write about.
Methods that helped my writing and revision processes were ones that I have learned in high school. The peer-editing that we did in class helped as well. It is very helpful to have others help critique your writing. In the past several weeks, my paper has changed because of mainly grammatical errors.

Topic for Proposal Essay

Passing of the Horse Slaughter Ban

I have been around horses my whole life, I've dealt with having horses go to the auction, which gives the horse a fifty-fifty chance to go to a new home or the slaughter house. We've had horses be poisoned from certain grasses, go lame, and get sick. We've also had extremely dangerous horses that we just couldn't have around, we couldn't risk our own lives to keep a dangerous horse around, and we didn't want to put another person in danger by selling the horse. With this new ban on horse slaughtering, horse owners will now have to pay more. The cost of owning a horse has gone up. Sick/lame/dangerous horses are an expense. Putting a horse down is extremely expensive, and on top of that you have to bury the horse, which is even more expensive.  Horses will now be living injured, which is only painful for the horse. Horses will now be starving, living in pain until they die naturally. We need to be realistic. Banning the horse slaughtering is only causing more pain for those sick and injured horses. I agree that something needs to be done with the transportation and treatment of those horses who are being taken to the slaughter house, but banning it completely is going too far.

Gay Marriage - Colbert

The judge who overturned the ban on same sex marriage is openly gay! Judge Walker was able to make the decision on gay marriage, his decision was totally bias. He makes good points, such as gay marriage is bad on children, he just has a funny way of going about it. I am against same sex marriage, so I have to take sides with Colbert. I don't think that this decision should have been made with an openly gay man. Obviously the gay man would want same-sex marriage legal. That's a no brainer. It's as simple as this -  "If an openly gay judge can rule on same-sex marriage, we should just let cases about endangered species be decided by a manatee."

Opinion on Article

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1812397,00.html

This article is about lowering the drinking age. The writer of this article thinks that lowering the drinking age would be a horrible idea, causing more deaths and chaos in our country. He is writing about a man who thinks that lowering the drinking age would be a good thing.

I think that lowering the drinking age would be a good idea. No matter what anyone wants to believe, the truth is, underage drinking happens all over the U.S. There is no way around it. By lowering the drinking age to 18, there would be less tickets given out to those who get a minor consumption. I also believe that most teens drink alcohol because they are not supposed to. It's their way to rebel and act "cool". With it being legal, it might not be such a "hit" like it is today. Many of my 21-year-old friends say that being 21 isn't even that big of a deal, that it's not as fun as it's played out to be. They can do it legally now, so the excitement of doing something they're not supposed to doesn't exist.

One point the writer of this article made was that there would be more fatal car accidents. I believe that part of the reason there are so many fatal car accidents is because these 'young adults' don't have anyone to call for a ride, they are scared to call their parents, fearing that they will get in trouble, or don't want to show up at home in a taxi with our their own car. Having the drinking age at 18 would make these young adults feel more comfortable to reach out for sober rides.


At 18 years old, you are considered an adult. You can vote for the person who will lead our country, you can adopt children, and even go to war. With that being said, I think if you are able to serve our country, you should be able to sit back and have a beer!!

Topic for Literacy Narrative

I have chosen to write about my mother's battle with breast cancer.  When my mother was ill, in May of 2008, my family and I changed. We realized life should not be taken for granted, we are not invincible, cherish the moments you do have, and that in every bad there is good. Once I found out what my mother was up against, I had to sit down and realize that yes, this is happening to my mother, not someone's mom on tv, not a celebrity's mom, MY mom. That was the hardest to take in. We watch reality shows about this kind of stuff all the time, you never think it would happen to your family.
During this time, I never thought twice about fighting with my sisters or not listening to my parents. My family's main goal was to "get mom healthy". Life can not be taken for granted. Anything can happen at any moment. With that in mind, don't dwell on the small stuff. Don't worry about the little things in life. In the end, my mother became healthy. Even though she dealt with chemo and radiation which made her sick and sore, my family changed for the better.

Literacy Narrative Topics

There are many things in my life that have helped shape me into a better person, shown me what NOT to do, and helped me change the things I need to change. However, I've chosen three topics for this narrative. The first is horseback riding/racing.

Endurance horseback riding has taught me how to be and independent person. I had to take care of a horse, an animal that needs the proper treatments and training. I learned how to be responsible and take care of something other than myself. I also became a very determined person. I always wanted to do well in my races and make sure my horse was healthy. Because of this, determination is something I have in everything I do, not just horseback riding. The second thing I could possibly write about is getting in trouble by the police.
Last summer, my friends and I were stupid enough to drink in my house. Unfortunately we were too loud, and the neighbors called us in. "FREEZE!" is what we all heard. My natural instinct was to run...and I did. I got tackled and laid out by the policeman. We all ended up getting caught. We had to blow in the breathalyzer. Luckily they did not give out minors. From this whole situation I learned to not be stupid! All we had to do was use our brains and we wouldn't have put ourselves in that situation. I learned that a rule is a rule, and if you break it, there will be consequences. The last topic I can write about is my mother's battle with breast cancer.
My mother was diagnosed in 2008. As soon as my dad got off the phone with the doctor and told me the news, I literally pinched myself. I couldn't believe what I had heard. When my mom told me she had to get a biopsy done, I kept telling myself "Oh that won't happen to us." I realized we are not invincible. Anything can happen at any minute. Watching my mother go through chemo and radiation gave me a whole new perspective on life...don't take it for granted.

 

Kaitlyn - What defines me?

 I have a loving family that contributes to who I am today. My four younger sisters can make me go crazy, but they have shown me over the years that you can find fun in just about anything. My mother was diagnosed with breast cancer two years ago, her illness made me realize that life should not be taken for granted.  My friends are a part of who I am. We are outgoing, crazy, and fun. I am a determined person in everything that I do. I'd like to thank that to horseback riding. I had to do things on my own at a young age. I was an eight year old rider competing against adults in fifty mile races. I was always trying to prove myself to those older riders, showing them that I was just as good as they were. With all that being said, there is not one exact thing that defines me. My hobbies, friends, and family have all contributed to who I am today.