last blog ever yay lol

As you can tell, I put off blogging as long as I possibly could. It's not because I didn't like them, I just couldn't find the willpower to get them done! I can't say that I had one single favorite topic, but I found it easier to write about the blogs that included our personal opinions on things. I absolutely dreaded the Walk through Harlem blog. I put a decent amount of effort into my blogs. Some more than others. Again, i enjoyed working on the blogs about my opinions more than others.
Not being rude, but I don't think I really learned anything from blogging. I had never used blogger before so it was fun to try that out.

My 3 favorite stories from this year:
Occurance at owl creek bridge
A Rose for Emily
The open boat

Mrs. Wolff

I think the best way to communicate helpful advice is through the Unhelpful high school teacher. these are some examples of what not to do.

This is my most dreaded line that any teacher could say. Make sure that before you say we've gone over something. that all the students can understand what we are studying and have a good grasp on it. 

Lol. Well I've never had a teacher yell at me, but i do think that teachers shouldn't be mad when a student gets a question wrong in class. If someone answers a question wrong, at least you know that they are trying. 

just please, promise me that you'll never torture your students with this remark.

This goes for writing notes too.  I know that myself and many other students find this frustrating. I know alot of teachers at Lutheran say that if they're going to fast to tell them to slow down. Please don't take offense if someone does ask you.

and a few more miscellaneous tips: 

-I love hands-on activities. School gets so boring if you're just sitting and taking notes all day. try to include as many group activities and games as possible

- extra credit opportunities are golden. 

- since this is an English class, I think that you should try to let students express their own opinions as well as facts. 

well, I think that's all. welcome to Lutheran! (:

The Great Gatsby

Ted Weems- Somebody Stole My Gal
this song can reflect how Gatsby felt about Daisy. Before Daisy even knew Tom, Gatsby was planning on marrying Daisy. Gatsby was blindsided when he found out that Daisy had married Tom without him even knowing

Fanny Brice- My man
throughout the book, Daisy cannot make up her mind about which man she loves. She has been married to Tom for awhile, and she loves the money that Tom has and how he uses it extravagantly.  On the other hand, Gatsby has loved Daisy for a long time, and he truly loves her. He loves her more than just because of money. Daisy in the end chooses Tom and money. 


George Olsen- Varsity Drag
This song describes the crazy lifestyle that Gatsby lives. He loves wild parties and living an elegant lifestyle

Marion Harris- I ain't got nobody
I think that alot of the characters feel this way in the book. Although they all partake in the fancy parties with alot of people, most of them don't have anyone that they can truly talk to about their feelings. 

Mark Twain's Wit

Growing up home schooled, our mom loved taking trips with us for a few days while everyone else was in school. One of our most popular destinations was Hannibal, Missouri. I remember one time as a souvenir, Joel got a book with Mark Twain's humor quotes. That was probably 8 years ago. i decided to try and find that book for this blog, but Joel doesn't get home from college until Tuesday, My parents don't know what i'm talking about, and in his pigsty of a room I have no hope in finding it. So i'm stuck with the good ol internet. But me and Mr. Twain go way back :)

I did find a few gems though, and it took me a while to decide which quote to to my blog on. I decided on this one:

              "Humor is mankind's greatest blessing. "


I love humor.  I love to laugh and to make people laugh. Every chance I get, I laugh. I believe without humor, life would be dull and boring. I also love my ability I have to make myself laugh. I allow myself to laugh at the stupid or silly things i do  and I don't really need other people to have fun.  Even though I can make myself laugh, I love being with other people that can make me laugh. My friends and I have the best times together and my stomach almost always hurts from laughing so hard after spending time with them. Our inside jokes and memories are better than i could ever imagine, and i am so thankful for God's gift of humor in my life.

Whats Good? SVU

For about five years, my favorite TV show has been Law and Order: SVU. I don't really know how i got started watching it, i just turned on the TV and it was on. The first episode was "Signature" in season nine. I remember how action-packed and interesting the episode was and The next Tuesday, i sat down and watched the next new episode.  Usually people think i'm a freak for watching it because alot of the episodes are sex crimes. What people don't know about the show is that like any other show, if you watch it long enough you can understand the connections between the characters and you can appreciate the underlying story line. For awhile i was convinced that i was going to be a forensic psychologist because of this show, and then i was convinced into being a criminal defense lawyer. [but these phases have long been over lol] Other shows have come close to being as entertaining as SVU for me, but SVU still reigns as the very best.

All my SVU seasons sitting in their spot on my dvd shelf. 

the season 12 cast. I was literally heartbroken when I found out that Det, Stabler [left middle] was leaving the show.

the season 13 cast. [current season] The show has a new producer and two new detectives. 

Story for the quest for civil rights-

This video tells the story of Bayerd Rustin, a Homosexual black man who took part in the civil rights movement. Although this video is 10 minutes long, i found it very interesting and powerful.  I can't imagine what he went through, being part of the two biggest minority groups in his time. Both groups are still discriminated against today, and the discrimination was much more severe in the 1960s.
 I feel like this man deserves more credit that he is given. Although I don't necessarily agree with Homosexuality, I support people who work for a cause that is important for them. As said in the video "He was gay, and we have not have the courage.... to honor a man because of his sexuality." He was an amazing man with an amazing story and I think that people should try to look past his sexuality and acknowledge him for the part he played in the civil rights movement.

Walk though harlem- Duke Ellington

Duke Ellington was a bandleader during the Renescense time era. He was also a composer and pianist throughout his life. His love for music started when he was six and was sparked by learning how to play piano. Today, he is still known as one of the best jazz music players of all time. Sadie and Bessie appreciated the music of their time period, including popular jazz music such as Duke Ellington. The sisters appreciated their time that they spent living in Harlem.

Having My Say

Although I appear to keep to myself about alot of my opinions, I am a very opinionated and headstrong person. One thing I am very opinionated about is cheerleading. And yes-- I do realize that I talk about this all the time. Most of the time, I'm not really bothered when people say that cheerleadings not a sport. That's their opinion, although I know they are misinformed. When most people think of cheerleading, the usually think of Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders or kicklines or waving pom poms. I agree, that is not a sport.  What bothers me is when people look down on cheerleaders because of their opinions. I cannot count the number of times i've been on facebook or other social networks and seen horrible statuses about cheerleaders and giving us horrible reputations. The reputation of cheerleaders has made me somewhat ashamed to tell people that i'm a cheerleader.

But what these people don't think of when they hear cheerleading is what I do: Allstar Cheerleading.
Allstar cheerleading consists only of competitions. We don't cheer for any team, we are the team. we are given 2 minutes and 30 seconds on the mat, and within our time we fit in as much flipping, twisting, jumping and throwing as we can. Its as fast paced as a basketball game and as nerve-wracking as a football play. Our season goes from May-April and we work endlessly perfecting our routines.  We work for the thrill of having our name called for 1st place and for the screams coming from the crowd. Our sport has idols and "cheerlebritys" similar to many other choices. All the best teams come together for The world championship at disney world. Worlds is the equivilant to the Superbowl or olympics. It's the ultimate goal for any cheerleader. Cheer is what i live for, and it just bothers me that my sport works just as hard as any other sport and we don't have nearly enough respect.


Well, this is alot longer than I meant it to be, but thats my say .(:

Jamfest nationals last year: me with Top Gun, my favorite team ever. <3

another one of my favorite teams: California Small Senior

Maddie Gardner Of Cheer Extreme Senior Elite on CNN.

Gives a pretty good inside look at Allstar Cheer

Expressions in art

This picture shows a black man searching for a job. He sees a sign, but cannot apply for the job because of the Jim Crow laws. This was an issue that the Delany Sisters faced throughout their lifes.  Their bus driver forces them to sit in the back and they can no longer shop at their usual drugstore.  The Jim Crow laws affected all american citizens of all races.

Connections from Whitman

"The mother with mild words, clean her cap and gown, a wholesome
odor falling off her person and clothes as she walks by,
The father, strong, self-sufficient, manly, mean, anger'd, unjust,"

This is the part that reminded me of my childhood. Being homeschooled, I spend alot of time with my parents growing up. My mom hardly ever worked and my dad worked one 24 hour shift every 3rd day. My parents spent the whole day with us. This Passage describes them perfectly, except for the "Mean, anger'd unjust" description of the father. I barely remember my dad every being angry at any of us kids. Both my parents were kind to all of us kids.

Me, my dad and Joel. I was probably 2 here and Joel was probably 4.

Joel, Me, and Nate. I would guess that we were five, seven, and eleven here.

In The Garden

A bird came down the walk:
He did not know I saw;
He bit an angle-worm in halves
And ate the fellow, raw.

And then he drank a dew
From a convenient grass,
And then hopped sidewise to the wall
To let a beetle pass.

He glanced with rapid eyes
That hurried all abroad, --
They looked like frightened beads, I thought;
He stirred his velvet head

Like one in danger; cautious,
I offered him a crumb,
And he unrolled his feathers
And rowed him softer home

Than oars divide the ocean,
Too silver for a seam,
Or butterflies, off banks of noon,
Leap, plashless, as they swim.


In this poem, the author is approaching a bird. She is cautious as she approaches to not scare the bird away. The irony is the bird is just as scared as she is. The bird flies away. I think this poem is showing the beauty and danger in nature. There are two sides to the bird, as everything in nature. With everything, one must take caution as we appreciate the beauty of things.

Affirmations of Life

There are many ways to handle something bad that happens in life. Realizing that hard times don't last forever is very important. Life is beautiful. Yes, it does have its ups and downs and everyone has bad days. When I feel upset I surround myself with people who can cheer me up and brighten my mood. I pray and ask God to help me and take comfort in knowing that my pain will be lifted soon.

And, one good thing thats happening is that i finally have time to catch up on the blogs that have been nagging at me for weeks. (:

Conncection with nature

I'm not a huge fan of the outdoors, but one of the few connections i have had with nature was when i went to camp about four years ago. It was a bible camp that my family has gone to many years and i have spent many summers there. For one of the nights we were there, we packed up tents, sleeping bags and food and hiked a couple of miles to a beautiful spot in the forest where we planned to camp out for the night. We cooked our food over open fire and chatted away about silly thirteen year old girl stuff. We set up the three tents that we took with us, but most of us ended up sleeping under the stars. We saw numerous shooting stars and stayed up most of the night laughing and talking as the fire slowly died.
My favorite thing about camp is how little you have when you are there. You're lucky to get a warm shower. There are no phones or ipods or internet. You are just there with other kids your age and you have no connection to what is going on outside of the camp. When i was young i didnt think too much about it. As i get older i am becoming more attached to my electronics so spending time without them is very thought provoking. Sometimes you have nothing to do except think. I can't say that I found one particular "Truth", but spending so much time in nature really does teach alot about yourself, the world around, and God.

I couldnt find a picture of where we camped out, but here's a picture of the beautiful lakeside campfire site at Ingham Lake, Iowa

Team Edgar

I have to say i've enjoyed Poe more than Hawthorne. First of all, i feel slightly obligated to say Poe because i wrote my research paper on him. I also find Poe's writing more interesting. Hawthorne's stories all have the same general topic of sin. Of course the stories are different, but the plot is generally the same to me. Poe's stories are each unique. I also like how Poe's stories have more complexity than Hawthornes. His stories take alot of thinking and are more psychological which makes them more fun for me to read.