Presentations

I didn't realize that there are so many different ways that you can revise your work. Some of them are very obvious and others aren't. Some of them I do automatically and others I want to try on my next draft of my paper. These are rather refreshing ideas that will help our papers grow and develop until we get to the final product. The presentations were good and seeing some of the other presentations, I wish our group would have done something that involved interactions. It was very hard for our group to get together because we are involved in sports, had other classes or have jobs. Overall I think that everyonen did a really good job and nobody I saw fell asleep.

In class we went over commas, which seemed a little out of place. Then we had another peer review, which I always enjoy. The sheet we used this time was better for what we are doing, especially when breaking down the topic sentences and what goes into it. The class went by really fast and I read Fallon's proposal and it was on education in the Reservation about alcohol abuse. I have stayed with a friend of the reservation and my dad built a youth center out there. It was very cool that I got hers.

Proposal Essay

Thesis Statement: Why are so many people against electronic voting or are there good things that can come out of voting electronically?
Supporting Details:
1. Controversies derived from 2000 election, Bush vs Gore.
2. Pros and Cons, much faster results. Pros and Cons about jobs.
3. Electronic voitng results in unbiased results.
4. Disabled Americans using electronic voting.

Messing Up America

100 People Messing Up America really makes you look at America and that it isn't the perfect place everyone envisions it to be, well how Americans view it. Other countries actually see it for what it is. We are so critical and listen to people who don't have any clue about what is going on.
Celebrities have such a huge influence on many people's views, so many of us listen to everything they say, even if it is idiotic or goes against what we already believe.
There are other people who jump on the bandwagon of what is popular. Jesse Jackson did that with Martin Luther King's civil rights movement, but he didn't keep on preaching what the invisionary King had in mind, no he warped it into what he wanted. But since he said he associated himself with King, people listened.
There are a lot of things that are wrong with us and we need to realize and know what is right and wrong and not listen to all the crap out there.

Peer Reviewing

I have always enjoyed peer reviewing. Since my days of working on the school newspaper in a journalism class, writing and reviewing has always been something to look forward to. Reading others and having my own reviewed can always reveal a lot. Someone might think of something I hadn't and vice versa.
I enjoyed reading another classmates paper. Especially with the narrative, you can learn a lot about a person. Especially with a good narrative, you can actually picture all of the events and see their transformation.
The people in my group were honest with one another and that really helps. If its bad, its bad. If its good, its good. No point in trying to hide it. Just get it out there so the person can fix it. I'm glad I was in a group of expert writers.
Knowing that you helped someone with their story and eventually thier finished project should give a person joy. Once this paper is done, we will all have something to be proud of. We should all take pride in that.

Where am I going in life? Going nowhere?

Everything in life I have done so far has lead me up to do great things. Starting with getting involved, doing good in school, being valedictorian, and going to college. Although they aren't profound things like some people have done, I am proud of everything that I have achieved. I plan on doing more schooling to become a nurse anthesithist and having a family. To some people my doings are extraordinary and others leer on them with judgement. Honestly, as long as I am happy with the way my life is going, nothing else matters. But there is still part of me that wants to meet everyones' expectations and even surpass them. I plan on striving for more, but if I don't succeed, the world isn't going to end.
I hear the words, "you are going nowhere." To me, it was almost a driving force. All of us have done something and been through things to get to where we are now, I know I have. I may not be the boldest person in the world, but I can voice my opinion when I see fit. Don't get me started on my political views. I can go on for hours, just ask my friends. Some people may think that I am timid and shy, but once you get to know me, you will find out that is a lie.
I am going places, if I die and I'm not in the history books, that's okay. As long as I die with a smile on my face, I will be okay. I am going places, try and stop me.

Stereotypes

   The things said in class were a huge over exaggeration. Well most things anyway. TV, books, movies, magazines and many other sources develop stereotypes that we are constantly being bombarded by and our brains are infiltrated with this faulty information. Watch almost any show and you will see a man being stupid, cocky, a pig or watching some sport on television. It is the same thing for women, blonde, dumb bimbos, needy women looking for a man to complete her. Also, you see over-protectiveness on both sides.
   We really are too tough on one another. It is almost as if we look for the faults in a person before we actually get to know them. Just by looking at them we decide what kind of person they are. It is are responsibility to get to know a person before we categorize them to a stereotype.
   Beyonce's song If I Were a Boy hits the nail on the head. Makes you look from both points of view.

The end and a start

   I just finished reading The Notebook and  The University of Life. I know a lot about both books just because I have read all of The Notebook and have heard a lot about Hillary Clinton since her run for office. To me, The Notebook excerpt seemed like it was talking about the end of a life and everything that has gone into it. Noah says, "I am nothing special: of this I am sure. I am a common man with common thoughts, and I've led a common life. There are no monuments dedicated to me and my name will soon be forgotten, but I've loved another with all my heart and soul, and to me, this has always been enough."
   Hillary writes about how she got to a certain point in her life where she believes it directed her life to where she is now. Talks about the specific people who molded her and her path. She leaves us off thinking about what's to come.
    Both mention the future but in different ways. Hillary is optimistic and has a thrill about wondering what is to come. Noah just hopes the notebook works its magic and, if not, he will try again the next day both win or lose.
   I and most other college students are at the point where Hillary is at in the excerpt. Full of wonder and hope of what the future holds for us. Maybe when I get to the age eighty, I will have the insight and respect for the past and all who helped me.

The Three Stories

   After reading the three stories, I was thinking to myself. All three of these stories have a main character who you hear their thoughts, worries and ideas. At one point in time they are all thinking negatively about the situation at hand. In When Mr. Pirzada Came to Dine, the girl thinks negatively about Mr. Pirzada and his family and home situation. In Learning to Read and Write, Frederick Douglas learns why people don't not want African Americans to read and the true meaning behind abolition. He resents white people and everything they took from him and his people. Finally, in Me Talk Pretty One Day, David Sedaris gets a brutal lesson in French from a teacher. He can't do or say anything right to appease his teacher. The three main characters are faced with negativity that nearly consumes them, but they are able to overcome and come out in the end as stronger people who have a better understanding of the world. Although, some of the lessons that they learn are not the easiest to understand at first, but make them stronger and more intuitive people in the end.