School Reforms

As a current high school student, the thought of more days of school as well and longer hours at school makes my stomach turn. As much as i agree that its technically unnecessary that we have summers off, people need to remember that were just kids still and need to have some fun in our lives. Having activities like dance and karate on campus would be ideal for some but a nightmare for others. Some kids all around hate school and would rather do those kinds of things elsewhere and some buinesses may even suffer too. Force feeding "fun" down kids throats will only make them puke.
What about jobs? The more hours we have to stay in school, the less hours we have to work to earn money for gas, car insurance, etc. No one is going to want to hire someone who can barely work during the week. If you take away our summers to then no teenagers will find a decent paying job all year.
Yes, there are kids who fall behind but everyone else shouldn't be punished for that. They can take summer school or get a tutor or one of the many other options out there. I feel like once people graduate and become adult they forget how they felt when they were in school, but since it doesn't effect them anymore they don't care. No one wants to be in school longer then they have to not even teachers.
This method has been used since school first began and its created great scholars, scientists, and politicians. So if its working so well why does it need to be changed? i think we have bigger issues to worry about then school reforms.

"Straw Men"

I have to agree with the author when we says that people can be very ignorant about a lot of various topics. The school board official who hated computers and characterized them as expensive toys that promoted laziness, liberalism, and pornography, should definatly not be on the school board. Each year the point of new technology is to use it to grow and make more new technology to help better the future. staying in the stone age helps no one.

I love when he says, "We are a nation of consumers who see facts as a commodity to be processed, packaged, and presented according to our tastes. Any fact that leaves a bad taste is rejected; any half-truth or bald-faced lie that conforms to our preferences is gobbled up without question." Everyone in a position of power just do what they please and don't seem to care about the consequences. Like how President Obama can have the General Electric CEO help "reform" the corporate tax structure even when they paid no taxes at all.

I agree with the argument about the new nuclear power plants that are suppose to be built in California. Senator Alexander's argument about how 'we don't abandon highways, bridges, and planes so why would we abandon nuclear power plants,' its well thought out at all. All American was really asking him was to not build them on fault lines instead of not build them at all but i guess that was too hard of a concept to grasp. Something I've learned over the years is that you can never win an argument with an idiot.

UCLA

There is a common stereotype of blondes being stupid or slow but sometimes its not always true. But for this blonde female to not only prove how dumb and ignorant she is, and on a nationally viewed website, is just plain hilarious. Her reasons for disliking the Asian people at her school shouldn't have even bothered her in the first place.

1. They talk on the phone in the library. Yes its suppose to be a place of quiet studying but I'm curious if she would have minded so much if it was someone making a phone call in English instead of Chinese or Japanese. Her comment about maybe the phone call was about the "Tsunami thing" was so ignorant i couldn't help but just laugh at her.

2. Apparently they help each other do laundry or clean rooms or something. WHO CARES? is she jealous no one is helping her? because that has no relevance to her whatsoever.

3. There everywhere. News flash, UCLA is a very good school and (though its stereotypical) Asian are typically very smart. Plus Asia and California are close to each other so its no surprise a lot of Asian students attend there.

I hope this was just a joke that this girl took a little to far but if not then this girl needs a serious reality check. to be that ignorant she must have had quite a sheltered childhood. i no if i had gotten into a school like UCLA I'd spend my time studying rather then making racist videos.

Sexting 2.0

Sexting is Teenagers who text or e-mail nude or suggestive photos to one another or post them online and is, as far as im concerned, incredibly dumb. People date, they think theyre in love, they send photos to eachother, then when they break up each side has blackmail on the other. Typically bad breakups result in a picture or two being spread around the school but there are always those few guys that are just show it around for fun. I personally agree with this new law because kids make dumb decisions and i think it to harsh to get labeled as a sex offender for life because you sent your best friend a picture of your girlfriend when your were 15. Now if they continue sexting after they have completed this diversionary program then the consequences should worsen. its only far since they clearly know what theyre doing is wrong. I'd say 90% of the time girls are the "victims" (everyone sees their picture) but that doesn't mean it doesn't happen to guys as well. You can never be too sure who you can trust so the best solution is to just not send any pictures of yourself to anyone.

Deadly Distractions

This article is both sad and stupid in my opinion. i absolutely love texting (God only knows why) but one of my biggest pet-peeves is still when people text and drive. i have actually resorted to yelling random noises and smacking my friend on the arm of just taking the phone out of their hands and offering to send the text for them. I do admit i do text at work sometimes, although i only work at cvs, i don't do it in front of customers. (Plus cvs is in a bad service area so it kills my battery fast anyway). Another thing that bugs me is when i have to ring up a customers and they can't take a few seconds to get off there phone to pay for their things. its just plain rude.
The guy driving a boat and texting, well that's just bad luck. if i was on a boat in the middle of water i probably would have done the same thing especially if it concerned the near death of someone close to me. Driving a boat is different then driving a car where you don't have to be completely focused 100% of the time.
As for the woman she was just and idiot. I can't get over the fact that she left and autistic kid in a locked van for hours let alone the fact that she was texting the whole time. Her boyfriend couldn't wait til she got home to make plans? the common sense people have these days really makes me sad. if i babysit yes i will send out some texts but it takes me two seconds then I'm back to focusing my attention on the kids. texting shouldn't take up a whole day of your attention that's ridiculous.

to move on is to grow

I'm having the biggest brain fart ever that i wouldn't even be surprised if a few kids in a 5 foot radius of me could actually hear it. this morning when my dad came in and woke me up at 6 i was initially mad before i realized that it was Monday morning..my favorite. the only reason I'm happy its Monday is because I'm that much closer to getting my paycheck on Thursday. since i took a week of I've been basically broke for days and it slowly killed me. random ADD moment but i really need to get myself a new bathing suit since my favorite one broke in august. i was looking at some of the ones in the Victoria's Secret magazine i have but they're waaaay over priced for the most part. i found a pretty cute one at target which i will most likely go back for. Lindsey is sitting next to me blogging about some concert she went to as a sit and stare at my screen biting my nails. yes i no its a bad habit but we all got a weakness..my is anything on my nail that i feel needs to be removed. the Asian woman at the nail salons hate me, i swear the only English they ever say to me is "you bite nails that's baaad!" now linking back to the part about Lindsey i can't wait to go to another concert. maybe ill go to warped tour again this year or possibly bamboozle, I'm not sure yet. i know I'm definitely going to XTU though in a short bus painted green (yea riding in style i know its OK to be jealous). wellll i honestly can't think of anything else with out my head hurting so I'm down for now. hasta luego

i honestly cant think of anything to write about today. I try to focus on school stuff but its becoming harder and harder to do. take a classic case of seniorites and mix it with the loss of a mother and missing a lot of school and that basically equals my attention spand and will to do things on my first full day back. i want to catch up with all my work and eventually i will but for now all i want to do is just sleep and hang out with friends. My friends and family have all been so amazing in this hard time and its overwhelming how much love myfamily has been shown. i usually write more but likei said i don't really have the will power so this shall be all for now (plus i have notes to catch up on).

Bad Decisions

Why do good kids sometimes make bad decisions with their friends? Yes it may be because of peer pressure but mostly its just free will. In the years between puberty and adulthood kids are constantly searching for who they are and many of them can be easily influenced by friends just but being around them. If your friends curse a lot you may start cursing a lot just because you hear it all the time. Plus every kid wants acceptance and if your hanging out with a cad crew you might feel you need to do some things you wouldn't normally do to earn respect.

Though for most kids its just their free will to do bad things. They choose to drink or do drugs just because they want to. Teenagers are all about experimenting, learning what they like and do like, but yes friends do also influence that as well. I have friends who like to do drugs and i love them and all but i don't like some of the things they do. According to this survey i should not be trusted because of my friends but i know better because like i said, its free will.

“The lesson is that if you have a kid whom you think of as very mature and able to exercise good judgment, based on your observations when he or she is alone or with you, that does not necessarily generalize to how he or she will behave in a group of friends without adults around. Parents should be aware of that.” How i act and speak in front of my parents is different then how i act and speak in front of my friends but that doesn't make me a bad person. My parents trust me to make good decisions even though they make not like my friends. I feel like according to Dr. Steinberg, parents should keep their kids on a leash until they go to college. Its absurd and ridiculous.

Freshmen Stress

I agree with a lot of the reasons stated for the growth in stress in college freshmen. For many of them, excluding those with full scholarships and those whose parents are loaded, college loans will hang overhead for years and i expect that for myself in a few months when i too start college. With such a bad economy tuition looks just about impossible to pay off and i feel like some colleges may lose out on great potential students because of how expensive they are.

Plus, once again thanks to our amazing economy, the fear of finding a job after graduation is also a very scary thought. The only benefit of this would be the fear causeing one to push themselves to achieve greater becuase in this job world you need every little advantage you can get.

Women having worse mental health in the survey only half surprises me. Women tend to have a great drive to achieve and are likely to try to take on too much responsibility and feel overwhelmed. Men i feel have the more layed back attitude but i think they eventually they realize they cant just cruise by and they need to buckle down thus causing more stress. Males have such a macho attitude but i know that they need to talk about how they feel just like everyone else they just need more convincing.

As a soon to be college freshmen myself i can admit that i am terrified about starting that chapter of my life for all the reasons stated. I expect to be overwhelmed, stress, piled high with bank loans, and scared of finding a job once i do graduate, if i do. But even with all of that i can't help but be excited to start my new life.

Athiests

"It is great that we live in a country where people are allowed to worship freely or, if they so choose, fully reject the notion of a supreme being." I totally agree with Sanders that every person in this world has a right to worship whomever they want if they so please. So why are the leaders of a religion based on treating others with love and respect, showing hatred and discrimination? They did nothing wrong and their reasoning of "intending to reach out to nonbelievers who may feel a little lonely or isolated" is righteous. If those with have are so shaken by the message but on this bus then maybe they should worry less about everyone else's faith and more about their own.

I myself am christian. I'm am not overly religious but i go to church and the important days like Christmas and Easter, yet this ad doesn't phase me in the least. i understand others have different beliefs as i do just they they should understand the same about me. Personally i think this could be viewed as a hate crime in a sense. Atheists believe in something different then the church so they want to attack them in a hope to get them to change their beliefs. Some ministers actually telling their followers to boycott these buses is absolutely ridiculous. The only thing worse then these corrupted ministers is those who actually follow such a silly command. Thinking of priests and nuns being the leaders of a hate crime is kinda funny because of their religious positions.

i had to go to religious education school for years and if nothings else the one thing i will always remember is WWJD. It stands for What Would Jesus Do and I'm 100% sure that Jesus wouldn't discriminate against those who don't believe in him and he especially wouldn't want his followers to do that. Sanders sums everything up perfectly when he says "Just remember that this is America, a land where people can believe whatever they want to believe and a place where even the nonbeliever has a right to bear witness to his or her nonbelief".

Common App

I applied to six colleges over the last few weeks but only one of them, University of Delaware, required the common application. Personally i did find the Common App quite easy to use and i especially loved that i could save my progress and come back to it whenever i wanted. It also showed you on the website when you completed a required section. But i did not go out of my way to use the Common App when i wasn't required to do so. I went on each individual website and looked up the application checklists and used the application provided. I feel like its part of the process of applying to college and it made it almost more special in a way to send each application with the school title in the top corner. Who knows maybe some schools will find i showed more interest in their school by applying specifically to their website instead of using Common App. But like i said i only applied to six schools so doing each online application wasn't that bad. i do suggest though that for those applying to many schools should use the Common App.

Beauty Bias

Appearance discrimination is probably one of the worst yet most ignored issue in my opinion. Young girls are put in a world where they think they have to look like the perfect (digitally retouched) models all over the magazines. Its bad enough they have to suffer through that through the "awkward teen" years but to have to go though that all their life is just ridiculous. Woman in positions of power who may be as old as 74 should be focusing their attention on our government not botox and hair dye. I wish it weren't true but i strongly believe that more attractive people will get a job over someone who is "lower" in the looks department. Department stores are the worst with that kind of thing. They need a pretty face to attract costumers so if your not "perfect" then they ll just keep looking.

My friend was telling me how this actress (possibly Sarah Jessica Parker, i forget) went on a talk show and made a video of her daily routine. She went through hours of make-up (with stylists), a few hours of hair (with stylists) and she took a picture of herself. This picture was also digitally retouched first and she looked gorgeous. then she did her own hair and make-up and took the same picture without any re-touching. she looked completely different and the host of the show asked her why she did it. She said her daughters were at the age where they thought they had to be skinny and perfect and she wanted to show them how much work and retouching goes into making the pictures they see everyday on billboards and in magazines.

If making appearance discrimination illegal will help then so be it but i don't think it will be that easy. You need to change the way people think or they will just be sneakier when they do discriminate.

It's a Jersey Thing

Recently, i watched an episode of South Park that both annoyed as well as made me laugh. In this episode New Jersey had taken over half the U.S. and Colorado was about to become "West Jersey". All the people from Jersey were characterized as those shown on the stereotypical show "The Jersey Shore". i personally hate that show because all the people on it are from New York and give Jersey people a bad rep. This one family apparently used to live in Jersey but moved away and now that they were closer to people from Jersey their "true personality" came out. The boys gelled their hair up and put on tacky jewelery while the girls put on slutty clothes and had a "not-so-friendly" attitude if you no what i mean. Through out the whole show they kept say "its a jersey thing" so almost everything they did. now i personally think that if they really wanted to capture the essence of New Jersey that defiantly should have put in a few Wawa's to make it legitimate. i love South Park with its crude humor so it bashing the show The Jersey Shore was great. The perfect ending to the show was when Colorado enlisted Al Quedas help and they few several plans into the oncoming Jersey attack. Osama Bin Laden won an award for his service then he was shot in the head. i really do love South Park. =)

personal style

What does it mean to have a personal style and what does it say about you. For a while i didn't have any specific style just wore whatever and never really tried to make a statement. Within the last few years I've finally figure out what i like and what fits me. i liked to express myself by wearing bright vibrant colors. My favorite thing to wear is my purple hoodie with black tiger stripes on it. i don't go overboard as to drawn a lot of attention to myself. a bright shirt or hoodie suits me better. i used to think uggs were some of the ugliest footwear that Ive ever seen until i tried a pair on myself and realized how amazing they were. since that day uggs have become an essential part of my wardrobe mostly because of their comfort factor. I, like most girls, love to wear my skinny jeans but nothing beats a lazy day in sweatpants. All those things make me somewhat similar to everyone else but what makes me unique is my love of gauges. I'm currently wearing gauges with brass knuckles in them but they are small enough that they don't make me look trashy. All these things make me Jill and i love the way i dress. i think it expresses me perfectly. I have my girlie days and my lazy days but who doesn't?

Engineering Essay

Why did I choose to try to become an engineer? If I said it was just for the money, it would be a lie, although it doesn’t hurt either. Engineers find ways to make life simpler and they must constantly strive to improve themselves. It’s a career that’s not only challenging but interesting as well.
I’ve always had an interest in technology ever since I can remember. If I or someone in my family got a new cell phone, computer, etc. I’d know how to work it within a half hour. One of my favorite things as a kid was building the Kinex roller coasters or other theme park rides and watching them come to life. Starting back in sixth grade was my first actually technology class where I felt completely at home, whether I had to make a bridge out of toothpicks or design boxes for cookie sales. Everything I did came fairly easy to me and if it didn’t then I strived to figure it out. I was recognized by my tech teacher and classmates and was chosen to be the leader in charge of certain projects, which made me feel both excited and honored.
I stuck with technology as I took the plunge from middle school to high school. I enjoyed taking the first two drafting and design classes where I did well, but it was my third year that really got me hooked. My architecture class was what got me thinking that maybe I could actually have a career that I really enjoyed doing. That class gave me a better understanding of the world around me and I began truly observing my surroundings. I noticed things I never saw before and became amazed with the simplest things, like the arches under a bridge or the way all the rooms in a home flowed together. From there I decided I wanted to be an architect and design houses for a living.
I was very determined until the possibility of becoming an engineer was brought to my attention. They have a broader spectrum of types and they don’t have to worry in the money department which is good for a girl who was always told she has expensive taste. I began researching the topic and found that a civil engineer sounded like a perfect career for me. They don’t create homes but instead they design things such as bridges, roadways, and cities. Being a very big hearted person I liked the fact that I could help people on a larger scale and make their living simpler in little ways. It’s like killing two birds with one stone.
With all that in mind I went into my engineering class with an open mind and was not disappointed. I loved using our new program to create 3-D objects of whatever I wanted and I already have begun imagining creating larger scale things like a robot of some sort. Each project we get becomes a new, exciting challenge to figure out. Some people find making miniature working catapults boring but I think it’s thrilling.

Tyler Clementi

This article was really heartbreaking. It's extremely messed up that kids as young as 13 feel so alone and isolated that they kill themselves when all their doing is being true to their self. Over the years most people have become more open about gays but their are still some people who are hateful towards them but i don't understand why. They are no different then we are and they have the same rights as everyone else to choose who they want to love.

Schools think just by having an assembly once a year will fix this problem but clearly its not. i think school administraters should get more involved in stopping bullying against kids in the GLBT community. They should have stricter consequences to hopefully keep the bullying at bay.

The problem should be helped not just at school but at home too. More people should be like Wendy Welsh who, when her son came out to her said, "OK sweetheart, i still love you no matter what". More families should be like that so even when kids get picked on in scholl they have a loving environm

My life in a nutshell

I wish i could say my life was crazy exciting during the week but its not. i get up around 6 every day Monday to Friday and do the usual routine of stumbling sleepily to the bathroom, stressing over what to wear, then deciding what id like to eat for breakfast. most people just have waffles or cereal and sometimes i do too but i also love to have chicken burritos and macaroni salad if i have it around the house. my neighbor would pick me up but i recently just got my license so ill be driving myself to school now. after school i go home and watch TV and if I'm in the right mood i may do a little homework. with SATs coming up Ive been lectured every night about preparing for them. on the weekends is my time to do whatever i want. I'm usually with my friends as much as possibly and we talk and laugh and just plain relax. since its my senior year every once and a while ill have a college visit on the weekend so that's takes up a day or less of my time. I also like to go to concerts on weekends if some one good is in town. my life may not be crazy exciting or busy but i like it.

yurrrrp

so im back in the computer lab one year later writing my 1st blog of the year again. im sitting next to chris and hes got not idea what hes doing but its quite entertaining. all i can think about it next period i have to test my catapult and hand in the documentation part and im praying i get atleast a B on it. im also crazy excited for friday because i am finally taking my liscense test! then monday i think im going to rutgers w my dad to visit it. all this collage stuff is kind of overwhelming but i know it has to get done eventually. i'm really tired today because i kept waking up last night so im going to go try to nap in the last 6 minutes of class

Skip College?

I am one of the many who since they could walk and talk was told i had to go to college so i could get a good job and take care of myself but is that really the only option? This article proves otherwise. With the ever growing price of tuition for collage for two years let alone four or more is astronomical and absurd. Personally i do want to go to college if not for the education purpose but for the experience of it, through i do think having any sort of college degree is better than not having one at all. Although i also agree that if i got offered and apprenticeship at a firm that I'm interested interested in i would defiantly go straight for that rather than collage because if it'll help me get a job faster that why wouldn't i want to do it? Everyone is different so the choice whether to go to college or not is fully up to them so whatever they choose, if for the right reasons, its perfectly acceptable.

Good Movies

So i finally saw Iron Man this weekend and it was so awesome. Normally i wouldn't be home on a Friday night but since i have an "unsatisfactory" chemistry grade according to my parents i was stuck there but i must say that watching Iron Man made my night better. To me it had all the things that made a great movie, a good story plot, good actors, some action, and of course some good humor. Robert Downy Jr. portrayed Iron man perfectly and one of the things that made me love the movie so much was his sense of humor.

Another good movie i saw recently was Avatar. I've heard many mixed reviews about it and i wasn't sure what to think but when i finally saw it last weekend over my grandmothers i was amazed. The concept of the movie was a little hard to pick up on at first but once i figured it out i didn't want to stop watching 'til it was over. The animators who designed all of the avatars and scenery did a fantastic job. the tress and the animals were so beautiful and majestic that i wish i could have visited that world in real life. i also thought the movie made a good example of our government. they wanted to destroy everything the avatars stood for just to get more powerful energy. it showed how careless and too military gung ho America can be but with the main characters who lived with the avatars showed how there is still good people in the world.