Choice:The Change on Textbooks

Within the time period we are in now, things that use to be complex and hard to mange are not being brought to use in a different formant and look. Things such as cars, music, and communication have evolved into bigger and better ways of use. For example, instead of having big desk tops computers that could never be portable, we now have laptops that come in all different shapes and sizes and colors to individualize it. You can take your work to a library or your local McDonald’s instead of staying at home to use a computer. So many things have evolved into new forms that are more practical for the world today. Something, which is very useful that has evolved into more of a particle form, is having a plug to connect your iPod in to the stereo in a car. This is so much more efficient then just having a regular CD player or even a cassette player, since no one really uses CD’s anymore because of iTunes this is very useful to listen to music in the card, and takes up less space and is more organized in the car.

            Applying this technique of evolving into a more modern state by using E-reader machines such as the Sony Portable Reader and the Amazon Kindle instead of textbooks would be a very interesting thing to consider.  This seems like a good investment and would save a lot of money and energy. Having a system like this would also cut down on the usage of paper, which everyone is trying to save. Cutting down on paper would be one of bigger benefits to this investment. Having a Sony Portable Reader or a Amazon Kindle replacing a textbook would also save money for both the schools and students. Yet, it would ruin the whole system for all the publishers that make these textbooks. In the long run it would put a lot of people out of business, which would be horrible to our already bad economy. The last thing we need to do is take jobs from people. 

End of Semester

Over these pass 16 weeks I’ve learned more than money could buy, more than I could ask for. Even though I didn’t do so well in many of my classes I still retained much of the information. I often catch myself using the terminology and detailed explanations when helping others start their gardens or even how to start managing their land. However book knowledge is not all I have learned, life lessons and experience are another thing you learn. Even if it’s something simple as not putting a desk in front of a class room door because, A. Fire hazard and B. Someone could get hurt. However you want to look at it you could be kicked out of school for that if you piss off the wrong teacher!

     Then there is my English teacher who, if it wasn’t for her I probably wouldn’t have stayed in collage this long. Had her for both semesters and any time I would have a problem or any doubt in my work she would take the time out of her very busy schedule and work with me and give me good constructive feedback, unlike a lot of my teachers that would just tell me to figure it out myself or make it even more complicated. This year she taught everyone a valuable lesson in the “Bystander Effect” which is when someone is doing wrong and no one does anything about it thinking it’s not there responsibility (should get like dub points for remembering that).

Why New York makes me want to scream

 There are tones of reasons why New York makes me want to scream. For starters they have a ridiculous tax rate on cigarettes; I mean $10-$12 a pack. That’s robbery making it addictive then taxing the crap out of it knowing people can go crazy without their cigarettes. Another thing to point out is if you get over 6 points on your license you get fined for $300 you can pay it in $100 yearly increments or all at once. If you get a ticket within that time you have to pay $75 for every point you got for the next 3 years.

To me that seem like a lot of bull crap and just scream “I’m broke”.  However I’m just getting started here. Recently I read in the news paper that New York State was trying to have us register our petal bikes like we would a car. Now that right there is just stupid and ridiculous thankfully it never got passed as a law. The big talk now though is the gas prices; they are over $4 per gallon. I know that it’s not all of NYS but we just have high out the butt tax rate.

I was not a fan of the last govern of New York I would of rather kept the one who bought all the hookers he at least knew how to spend his money (hahaha). But slowly and surly we are heading into majo backrupcy if the government doen’t get there head out of there ass and start cutting costs where we DON’T need it not where we need it.  

The Sad Cat

       There once was a sad cat names Mr. Pixy. He spent his days lying on the couch eating catnip puffs, drinking milk from the milk carton while watching Tom and Jerry. He was a big lazy cat, with short orange and white hairs that glisten in the sun. He had long white whiskers that stuck out of his cheeks and around his eyes.

   Mr. Pixy’s owner Jane McFarland never really spends any quality time nor lets him outside to get any exercise. She’s usually to busy with school or work then when she has any alone time its spent locked in her room. Even when Pixy meows and purrs for affection she ignores or yells at him. As Mr. Pixy becomes distraught he leans to food for comfort.

     But along came a mouse by the name of Chi Chi, he traveled from Mexico in search of gold so he can live rich in cheese. Chi Chi starving from the lack of food and money sees the now fat sad cat eating the nip balls watching TV. He enters through a crack in the window and introduces himself to the cat, but scared the jeebers out of him. In delight Mr. Pixy see a chance is having a friend and someone to play with.

Invention:The Cell phone

Cell phones are one of the greatest inventions in this century, but also the most dangerous (next to the internet). Cellular phones have evolved from a paper weight with a large antenna, to small pocket size mini computers. You can do just about anything from your phone, for instance you can check your Facebook while you’re talking to someone and you can even pay your bills from your online back account all at the same time!

     They have even gotten faster and get reception in a lot more places that electricity can’t even be reached. However they can be very dangerous, you can be easily tracked down and tapped. Or with the texting that come along you can say something that could be held agents you later in life because of the locking feature on the phone.

     But despite the dangers they can make your life so much easier. I personally use my phone for an alarm clock, watch, and computer even sometimes for school. I remember growing up and no kid had a cell phone, you were lucky to even have a computer. But when I got my first one it was the most amazing thing I could do so much one it (even though they were nothing like that are today) they had simple features that made life a little easier. Like having an alarm clock that goes off and you don’t have to worry if your alarm will get unplugged. The calculator was my favorite because it made math faster and easier. But there are always downsides to ever good thing.

     Texting has taken over real life interactions even if people are only 2 feet away. I just feel there is no reason to do some things over texting like brake ups, job terminations, and fights/arguments. These acts should be done in person not through a device because you’re scared to face the facts. This is the true danger in society everyone is becoming a faceless drone that can’t think or act for themselves, without a device that is meant to help manage your life not become your life.

Headlines:ARE FEMALE DOGS SMARTER THAN MALES?

A study that was led by Corsin Muller of the University of Vienna, tested 50 dogs of different breeds on there ability to detect the different size in balls. The tense ball being the “normal” size ball a dog would be use to. Female dogs stared at the larger balls that were rolled behind a transparent wall longer than the male dogs did. They cannot say if there are differences between male and female dog brains because they have to do more study and research. 

(Choice) My Tattoo

     I’ve been debating for long time weather I want a sleeve tattoo or not. Some people have said that I could pull off one and others say I would regret it and I would look ugly and what not. But I try and not listen to other people who put personal choice before a logical question.

My concern is what type of theme I would want for my sleeve. I was thinking about an aquarium scean with an Oscar, 2 different species of rainbow fish, bloody parrot fish, and a golden wonder killie fish. I want it wrapping up my arm with water and waves crashing around them. But then I had another idea of a tribal theme that took up my whole upper arm and making a half sleeve.

I found finding the perfect, one of a kind tattoo is a long and hard posse but is rewarding in the end, knowing you have this tattoo for a reason and it’s not something you just randomly got because you liked it. Those are the people who regret getting tattoos are those who don’t wait or put any though into that tattoo.

My first tattoo was done on a wim but it came out really nice and I enjoy it still to this day. It’s a red rose with green petals and a tribal theme around it. I had it placed on the top of my foot and it flows beautifully. 

A funny thing happened

    A funny thing that happened was when Keri, Sara, and Krista when to subway after class and I had just ordered our food and I went to had Sarah her drink cup and some guy walked by and grabbed her cup and in shock I said “HEY! That’s not your f****** cup and your name isn’t Sarah, now is it.” I get very grouchy when I’m hungry and people don’t listen.

     But after that is when the real funny comes in. We were driving through the subway parking lot and there was a giant wooden deer sitting in the bushes and I thought it was a real deer for a second. So I slammed on the brakes and yelled “sh** there’s a deer!” I had my windows rolled down and everyone just started busting out laughing and I was really embarrassed.

     But not as embarrassing as the time my friend pissed her pants in bill grays. Her and her sister when there for lunch and what not and after they ate they went to leave. On the way out her sister walks into the glass window thinking it was the door. She slammed so hard into it she bounced back and the look on her face was priceless

After all that had happened she fell on the floor and started laughing really, really hard and before you know it there was a puddle beneath her. They loaded her in the car and sped out of there still laughing. To this day I don’t know how they drove home under the influence of heavy laughter.

Tornado's Attack!

Growing up in upstate New York you don’t see very many tornados, but if you travel out west its best you keep your eye on the sky at all times especially during tornado season. I was about 12 or 13 years old when my family and I decided to travel to Illinois to see my aunt, uncle, and cosines.  It’s about a day’s worth of traveling but if you travel with my mother it’s like two (lots of bathroom stops).

We headed out west and everything was going great until we get about 20 minutes away from my aunt’s house when a huge storm took place thunder and lightning everywhere then it started to rain heavily couldn’t see 2 feet in front of you. Then huge hail balls started to fall. At this point my mother is freaking out and she pulled up to this random house hoping they have a basement because we all knew there was a tornado nearby.

After pulling up we all ran out of the van and up to this lady’s house pounding on her door we ask to come in and she let us in. Come to find out she doesn’t have a basement only a little crawl space. She tells us her mother’s house is up the road and if we could take her with us. So we all run to the van hoping not to get hit with the baseball size hail that is coming down. We took off but could only go 20mph because we couldn’t see anything with the hellish winds and rain.

About a mile down the road my brother and I spot a small tornado forming in the field near us. We look at each other with big dinner place size eyes and swore not to tell mother because she would freak out even more, we just kept our eyes on it, in amazement of seeing a tornado form close up. We finally reach that woman’s mother’s house and the storm had already passed them. So we were safe and come to find out that were where three tornados near where we had driven through. 

Why is grass never greener on the other side of the fence?

Why is grass never greener on the other side of the fence? Many people ask themselves this questions at least once in their life time and I am here to answer that questions in a very easy understanding English way or “kindergarten style”  is what I call it. Just pay attention and ready for the ride of your reading life!

It all started when a man and a woman loved each other and a stork named Kippy. She had laid a golden egg in mid flight above their house; it dropped into the chimney and rolled to the middle of the living room where the man and woman lay watching Will and Grace peacefully. In a great excitement they jumped to their feet and pick up the ash covered egg placing it carefully in a display case for all to see. Not realizing it was a golden fertile egg that had within a great bird that could save the world, so in ignorance they leave him to die in an ash covered golden egg.

After weeks of being on display the egg had become smelly and mushy. This foul order had many people in fear of coming near the home thinking they were murdered by the ashy egg and the smell was form their bodies. However the man and woman decided to throw the rotten egg into their backyard in hope it would be gone with the retched smell it possessed. After doing this the couple woke up to a great surprise.

The next day they looked out onto their lawn and realized it was a lush healthy green color and the man decided to pain his fence white to match the grass. As he is standing on the latter he peers over the fence to find a dull grass. So that’s why grass is not greener on the other side, no magic ash covered golden eggs. 

Saddest day of Joe Bob Rainey. . .

The saddest day of Joe Bob Rainey was when his1969 Ford Mustang blew up, literary. It was on a summers’ day, on June 15, 1990. Bob, as he liked to be called, was working on the mustang’s engine giving it a fine tune up for next weekend’s race. At the time he was changing his oil and went over to the cupboard that has everything from window washer fluid to transmission fluid. Bob always double checked the labels so he didn’t accidently use the wrong fluids, which could cause serious damage to the mechanics of the car.

As Bob had grabbed for the oil, his wife Nora came into the garage and told him lunch was ready. Bob grabbed the transmission fluid instead and walked it over to the car and sat it down and preceded to poor it in the car. Not realizing what he was doing since Nora distracted him with conversion. He checks the dip stick a few times to ensure the oil levels are right then wipes off the engine and oil cap so the oil won’t smell. Then he heads in for a nice lunch, which is a turkey sub on white toasted bread and chicken noodle soup on the side.

After lunch Bob went out to test drive his mustang to make sure everything was running smoothly and also to gas up the car. On his way to the gas station Bob decides to take a long rout so the oil can have time to work through the engine and what not. After hitching his way on the highway he floors it to about 100mph and held it there for about 1000ft stretch (no idea how he didn’t get a ticket). After letting the car slow down he get off the highway there was a weird banging sound coming from the engine, so he pulls over and pop the hood and lit a cigarette then the car exploded and he died.

Exploding Brains...

I’m bored out of my mind, there is nothing to do and I feel like all I do is schoolwork. I’m house sitting for a friend out in Irondequoit watching her two dogs and three birds. Its great having a house to yourself but it sucks when you don’t have any friends around to come over and chill. The closest friend is like 15 minutes away and wont drive out here to see mee so I’m extra bored now. PLUS nothing to write about and I’m just filling spaces now with meaningless words.

Also I really don’t like my biology teacher, when she teaches it feels like your getting yelled at and she pulls childish high schoolish threats and it’s so annoying. I just want to walk up and scream in her face. OH! Then she confuses the Jesus out of everyone in lab, (or at least me and my lap partners) this makes me so mad just talking…err… Typing about it but it’s something I can use.

Then Friday she had us (my lab partners and I) write out or experiment for lab but gave us no real good outlines of what she wanted or expected, so after we did all that hard work she wanted us to e-mail her our written “experiment” to her. Of course she didn’t like it and blah, blah, blah, and it just makes me so angry that she wouldn’t check it Friday or give us good instructions or whatever. I really need to pass this class and she’s not helping at all just making it a lot harder by doing everything half-blah backwards.

However I’m not saying she’s a bad teacher just saying I don’t like her teaching methods. They don’t work for me and I don’t like to be treated like I’m some stupid kid who knows nothing or suspost to know everything.(depends on the teacher). Now that my head has exploded I think it’s time for a cigarette.

Blog Review: Mind Readings

     Out of pure luck I actually found something decent to read its short but to the point and it describes her feelings and thoughts as one. I found it by clicking on my blog page “next blog” after reviewing a TON pages nothing seemed good till I crossed her page. Endless Scroll is the avatar she uses for her blog name and title and the most current blog post was entitled “mind readings” which quickly grabbed my mind.

     She started out by delivering a question “Do you believe in mind readings” ("Mind Readings"¹). She continues on with a philosophical question, summed up saying “do you ever wonder and search for answers that you could not find?” In a poetic fashion lays out her thoughts

    “and out of a sudden, light bulb lid. You get a hint, a tip or a message from a conversation, or message that flash passed you. So, do you consider that person does mind readings? It’s as though the person knows what's bothering you, and he/she does not want to tell it out explicitly, while casually phrase it in a normal conversation between 2 human beings.” ("Mind Readings"²) 

This flows very smoothly to me I love her choice of words and how it builds a picture in your head, however you do have to read it a few times to get the hole picture or for it to make any sense.

     In conclusion you never know what you might find a few clicks away that you can write about. Even this was hard to write about but a lot easier than other I have came accosts that just had a trillion pictures and very few words.  My last words of rambles, I must say this was a fun yet frustrating challenge for me but defiantly worth it in the end as my writing skills grow.

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Work Cited

Endless Scroll. "Mind Readings." Blogger. 11 Feb. 2011

<http://endless-scroll.blogspot.com/?expref=next-blog>

Fishing with Father is all I ever wanted

When I was ten years old all I ever wanted was to go fishing with my father because we always had the greatest time, we would drive all over to fish form Lake Ontario down past the Finger Lakes and we would stop and random family owned diners and always order a cheeseburger, fries and split a strawberry milkshake.

Sometimes my daddy and I would go into the woods behind my house to go to our favorite spot we nicked named the “perch” because it was on a hill that had a shallow slope, when it met the water it created like a mini beach area. We brought buckets to use as chairs and if we caught anything worth keeping we had a bucket on hand.

Then dad taught me how to catch carp, it’s easy to get them to bite, but to actually get them in it takes lots of time and arm strength. We were in Canandaigua behind Abbotts fishing out of that small pond and he put bread on that hook and after it was in the water for five minutes he got a bit and it was a HUGE carp weighted like 20 something pounds (in reality it was like 15lbs).

It took him like 10 minutes to get it in, and then he showed me how to take a hook out of its mouth and how to hold the fish. He said that you have to revive the fish from the fight by holding him in the water and in a back and forth motion until it takes off.

He also use to take me to trout fishing tournaments in power mill park, I never won one, but I had more fun spending time and learning form my father how to fish. Someday I hope to be as a good of a fisher as he is and get a really big fish mounted like him! 

Emma. . .

I’ve been debating on what I should write for this last journal entry (for the week) and I think I’ll share with all of you about my dog, Emma. I was about ten years old when my mother and father got me Emma, which is a Rat Terrier, I remember driving out about an hour away (don’t remember what town we got her form) to a breeders house and there she was, long thin legs and a shot body, big bat ears, and stubby tail. She was a cute awkward looking pup kind of reminded me of a new born calf or fawn, but full of energy and loved giving kisses. Her coat was white with black patches like one of those milk cows.

Emma was a very fast, smart dog she could climb fences like it was her birth right, she love to hunt for mice, rabbits, snakes, chipmunks, basically anything that moved really fast.  But when it came to our hand raised rabbits she played in the cage with them eat with them, and even sleep with them. She was a very kind and loving dog very gentle and could always put a smile on your face.

She was the world to me, the best dog anyone could ask for but a few years down the road (like 8yrs) she had gotten a heart murmur(sp?) and the vet said that its normally not a big deal but if it gets worse she could just drop dead one day but chances are she’ll live for a while.

He was right she didn’t pass away till May 16^th, 2010 (2yr later). That day was the worst day of my life. I came home from work to my dad standing in the door way and he just hugged me and said “I’m sorry”. At first I was like what, then it hit me and I started say “Wheres my dog” over and over then he said she died in the backyard when she was playing she just dropped dead. After that I lost it and walls got holes in them and I wouldn’t come out of my room for the rest of the day.

 It was the most heartbreaking experience in my life. A 10 year close relationship with her and then BOOM gone one day.. I still get upset about it, but it hurts just a little less each day.

<3

I Expect. . .

I really don’t want to write this blog, it’s just too much thinking for me to sit here and make something good come out of my brain. However I have high set goals this semester because I hardly passed any of my classes last semester other than beginning camping and English comp. I was put on academic probation, which is I guess you can’t sign up for more than 13 credit hours or something like that I honestly don’t know, but what I do know is that it’s a bad thing.

So I’m trying really hard to do my homework and actually read the text books that I spent way too much money on. Also if I need help with any of my stuff I’m so taking advantage of the tutors they have here. Then listening in class and taking notes are my biggest issue I can never focus and if I don’t understand a word they are saying I’ll just end up getting angry then go into la-la land. But I’m going really well so far and I’m not too far behind and I’m getting closer to reaching my goals.

But there is a flip side, I do expect a lot out of my teachers because I do pay them a lot of money to teach me something. But just some of these teachers really do suck, either they sound like they hate their jobs or like they want to kill half of the student because they make a judgment before they even know any of the students then it’s too late because that student hates them now, so it’s a fail-fail situation and everyone’s time gets wasted. And most of all I hate teachers that complain and make fuss out of a student because there a little slow or shy or just weird. I’ve overheard way too much of that but I’m getting off topic now…     

So I expect that my teachers take the time to teach a lesson properly and with some fun mixed in with it, because who likes to learn form a boring old grouch? I expect them to be fair and know what they are teaching (we’ve all had a teacher that had no clue) and simply to make it fun to learn and shape my mushy brain right.

It's a Zoo

I have so many memories that I don’t even know where to begin from, but since I really only have the time to write about one (unless I want to be an over achiever like Mary, Ha-ha). My uncle owns a privet zoo where he collects many types of animals but as a kid I remember going to his place and seeing all the typed of animals he had. I just remember being in amazement every time I would go down there seeing and touching all different species that most people haven’t even herd of let alone seen at a regular zoo.

He had owned at least 20 + different species everything from a Himalayan Black Bear to a Giraffe to some of the weirdest and wild looking animals, some I can’t even remember the species but a lot of them were African originated animals. However he never owned any big cats not really sure why, guessed he wasn’t a fan but he did own a pair of serval cats (medium-sized cat, measuring 59 to 92 centimeters, or 23 – 36in) but he didn’t keep them long they weren’t hand raised so very unfriendly.

He did own regular animals like dogs and a house cat, he had lots of miniature horses, llamas, alpacas, donkeys, and camels. I always remember feeding them then getting chased because I had the food in buckets.  Trust me just because the horses have realllllly short legs don’t mean they can’t out run you or drag you when you’re walking them!

Growing up around all these types of animals and the interactions I’ve had with them really shaped my interest in working with wildlife and how important it is to conserve what we have left so that my child can grow up and enjoy the sight of nature and the animals that bring joy to our hearts.

The Emotional Oscar

About a year ago I had wanted to set up an aquarium because they are very beautiful and there are many types of fish you can keep. I ended up buying a 30 gallon aquarium that had everything I needed for under $100!

It’s about three feet long and about two feet high with a nice wooden frame, the glass was clear with no scratches and it had light and dark brown gravel at the bottom. Also it had a built-in light in the hood that fit perfectly at the top.

After I let it set up for about three days I went out in search of fish I would enjoy having. I ended up at a loco pet store and they had baby Oscar fish for sale. There were tiger Oscars, albino Oscars and red Oscars but the one that caught my eye had an R shaped strip at the end of his tail. He was the most lively and aggressive one in the tank so I picked him and named him Pharaoh because he is the boss.

Now he is about 9” long, and can grow to be anywhere from a 12” to 16” long. Pharaoh is full of personality and emotions, you can’t tell me now fish don’t have feeling because, boy, I was proved wrong. When I clean his cage and move his things around he become very angry and will try and splash water in my face if I’m not careful. He is so very smart as well I have taught him to eat out of my hand and jump out of the water and also likes to be petted once in a while.

All in all I’m glad I had picked him for a fish because I think I would be very bored if I had just a plain goldfish. 

Wild Alaska

Alaska is a place I would love to visit one day because it’s thee most beautiful place on earth, well for me at least. It’s been my dream as a child that I would walk across the warm grass filled fields where the caribou graze and the swift fox hunts.

I would love to hike through the White Mountains of Alaska with the blue hazed skies and the snow covered peaks. The mighty pines stand strong at the foot of the mountains with the hungry grizzly bear grading the bright green pine forest.

Ahhh, the days I long to be there in person to smell the fresh pint scented air and breath in the fresh crisp, not as polluted, air like we have back here (which is still better than China’s air). The birds of the air are quite a sight to see as they fly from east to west in search of food and a place to nest.

The next thing on my list would be fishing in the clear drinkable streams and rivers that come forth from the great mountain ranges; catching the spring fed salmon and the time sensitive trout. With rock filled banks all around me as I would stand in the middle of the rough river, fly fishing away hoping to catch that big one!

However there is a slight downfall to this magnificent place which is the blistering cold winter with a non-ending darkness that overcomes the landscape for months at a time but not all is lost. The winter brings forth new beginnings and ends old endings. Polar bear cubs are born and the old and weak are terminated.

The wolves come alive in the moonlit nights and hunt down the weak and the sick using their skilled hunting techniques. Dashing through the forest onto the snow covered fields to stalk and kill there pray. That would be a magical sight to see one day. Someday my dreams will come true, until then I work hard so that I may enjoy my trip to wild Alaska.

The many Faces of an Intellectual Beggar

When I think of an intellectual beggar it brings to mind a very devious cunning person, or simply a door to door salesman. If you think about it there whole sales pitch sound like they are begging you to buy their product. Some however are good at not sounding like they are begging, but in reality they just use large words just to confuse you, then that’s where you fall and become their pray.

Other than just a salesman, also an intellectual beggar can be perceived as someone who seeks and wants to learn and seek out knowledge begging for what they need to get a better education. For instance a person who wants to get a better job goes to college and seeks higher education he learns that college life is hard and takes a beating on him. He learns to beg parents for money and teachers for extra time and help on assignments.

During hard times you have to do hard things but everyone at some point learns to beg wither it’s for food or just to get your way. It’s been imbedded since we were born. We start learning how to beg our mother for food as babies, as kids for toys and teens for the car to drive. It’s a natural habit that cannot be erased or broken.

In conclusion it really depends on how you preserve to define an “intellectual beggar” because you never know how many variations you can come across. It can be anything from a sales pitch to your very survival in this world.