WEX

A moment in time:

 

As I reached up towards the beautiful clear box I could only find interest in one thing. Chocolate or Vanilla?!? One question that seemed to warp my mind as I cringed at the thought of leaving one or the other behind. My gut feeling on this one was not helping; was busy providing butterflies. What do I want? It was a question with areas grayer than black and white. It was almost a metaphor of life. Choosing a cupcake; choosing a path. No wrong choices, simply the struggle of leaving a right one behind. My hand was now hovering over the clear box, which resembled a taste haven! My time was out, like so many other experiences in my life I had to choose. Stay safe with chocolate, or risk higher satisfaction with vanilla. It was at that moment which I headed towards vanilla, one of the many risks I will soon be taking in my life.

 

 

 

Conversation:

 

Simple motions seemed delayed as my guilty conscience tried to pinch my ear and drag me into a conversation that was not mine to speak. I could feel my neck trying to shrink into the unseen crease between my shoulders. My fingers fought my hands, trying to claw their way free; even my internal organs tried to shimmy up my throat and escape. My conscience was determined as my brain fought hard to find a single excuse of why I was not responsible to tell my mom about her unfortunate lost money.

 

 

 

Noise:

 

On the ground I lay momentarily lifeless. If I wasn’t knocked out I should have felt the dry cement pressed coldly against my cheekbone. My eyes were shut but my mouth remained barely open in a small slit, leaving only enough room to breathe. I wasn’t crying but somehow when my shocked watery eyes slammed open, a flood of tears were released. My head ached from the harsh slam. The noise behind me escalated, none voices that I recognized, mostly of worried strangers. It was then that I realized what had happened… while I was standing in a legal walking zone, the car the slammed into me was not in a legal driving zone. 

Pecan Pesto!

1/2 Cup Pecans

1/4 Cup Fresh, Grated Parmesan Cheese

1 Cloves Garlic

2 Tablespoons or more Olive Oil

1/2 cup lemon basil

1/4 cup water

Combine all ingredients in food processor and process briefly. Add two tablespoons of sugar is desired. If a creamier texture is desired continue adding small amounts of olive oil until the desired consistency is found. Pesto can be spread on crackers, used on pasta and added to sauces. Pesto freezes well. Experiment with other herbs and nuts. Traditional pesto uses sweet basil and pine nuts. Recipe makes one cup of pesto. ENJOY!

The first step is to grow the plants

as well as maintain them

and eventually harvest them

here our our needed supplies for the pesto sauce!

time to whip out the parsley!

chop off the stems

take out your garlic

peel off the layers. get that core!

perfect! just like that!

OK, now cut up that garlic into small pieces.

than add some cheese!

cut up some basil

then add some basil!

then add some pecans! yum!

don't forget the olive oil...

stuff that blender!

chop chop!



so close!

does that look delicious or what?!?

mmm

try the sauce with some chips...

...or pasta...

MM, maybe not dog food.

Thanks for reading! ENJOY!

Wonder: The point of this post, and in fact of our entire project was to inspire the class to grow their own foods. I think that we did this because it made it easy for us to see how fun and easy planting and growing plants are. Now that we were experienced in make veggies, we made an entire meal so that we could practice using our fresh plants to live sustainably. I think that the point of this process was to convince the class that growing your own foods and living sustainable is possible, and in fact easy. Cooking these herbs answered our essential question, "Why don't people lives sustainably? And how can I convince them to do so?" because we all had our misconceptions of growing food.... Why grow it when you can buy it? But this project convinced us that's its not hard, and therefore we can convince people to grow their own foods by showing them our examples of cooking herbs on our blogs. 

Reflection: Although the recipe was really fun to make, its turn out was definitely not one of my favorites. If you ask me, I think the cheese was a little much. However, the process was easy and fun, and I'd like to use basil in more recipes in my future.  The process did change the way I look at growing herbs. I use responsibility d to think it would be a hassle, but now I look at it more of a responsibility, a fun. Not one that is annoying, but one that your proud of. 

Pecan Pesto
1/2 Cup Lemon Basil Leaves
1/2 Cup Pecans
1/4 Cup Fresh, Grated Parmesan Cheese
1 Cloves Garlic
2 Tablespoons or more Olive Oil

Combine all ingredients in food processor and process briefly. Add two tablespoons of sugar is desired. If a creamier texture is desired continue adding small amounts of olive oil until the desired consistency is found. Pesto can be spread on crackers, used on pasta and added to sauces. Pesto freezes well. Experiment with other herbs and nuts. Traditional pesto uses sweet basil and pine nuts. Recipe makes one cup of pesto. ENJOY!

this I believe

This I believe is an incorporation which carries many intriguing stories. After looking through there official website, I found many stories in which I could relate to. However, one story in particular definitely stood out to me.

Kendra Jones' how to survive life's test really left an impression on me. I think that the reason in which I feel I can realate to her is because I too feel that living a strong, tough, steeliness life is what really pulls you through. Since I was born, I was raised in day care. My parents both worked full time and had to travel the world while I was young. I believe that being rasied as a day care baby you learn an important ethic called survival of the fittest. What I mean by this is that if you put everyone before yourself, you're going to end up last. And while it may be important to be self sacrificial, that will get you no where in life.

However, on the contray, I feel in disagreement with Kendra. Although you should be strong, you dont have to be mean to push yourself to the top. You can be aggressive and assertive, but dont eliminate your competitors for your own sake. While day care may have taught me to be aggressive, it never taught me to be hurtful.

links to more basil recipes!

More lemon basil recipes:

the first one is homemade lemonade

the second one is lemon basil chicken

Here is a link to a delicious food website:

food network

Here is a link to a video of how to make my favorite dinner:

Penne with Chorizo and Baby Spinach

recipes (lemon basil)!

1.
Pecan Pesto
1 Cup Lemon Basil Leaves
1 Cup Sweet Basil Leaves
1/2 Cup Pecans
1/4 Cup Fresh, Grated Parmesan Cheese
2-4 Cloves Garlic
2 Tablespoons or more Olive Oil

Combine all ingredients except olive oil in food processor and process briefly. Add two tablespoons of olive oil and process. If a creamier texture is desired continue adding small amounts of olive oil until the desired consistency is found. Pesto can be spread on crackers, used on pasta and added to sauces. Pesto freezes well. Experiment with other herbs and nuts. Traditional pesto uses sweet basil and pine nuts. Recipe makes one cup of pesto.

2.
Lemon Basil Muffins

1 Cup Unbleached Flour
1 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
3 Teaspoons Baking Powder
1/4 Cup Sugar
1 Cup Milk
1 Egg
1 Tablespoon Canola Oil
3 Tablespoons Plum Flavored Baby Food
1/4 Cup Chopped Lemon Basil Leaves

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease the bottoms of 12 muffin pans or line with cupcake papers. Make a dry mixture by combining fours, baking power and sugar. Make a wet mixture by combining remaining ingredients. Pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture and stir only until all flour is moistened. Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into a muffin. Recipe makes 12 muffins.

3.
Cinnamon Basil Sorbet

3 Cups Apple Juice
2 Cups Sugar
4 Large Sprigs Cinnamon Basil
Juice of 1 Lemon
Grated Rind of 1 Lemon

Combine apple juice and sugar in a sauce pan and heat until sugar is just dissolved. Add cinnamon basil and cover. Let steep 30 minutes. Strain out basil. Add lemon juice and rind. Chill thoroughly. Prepare in ice cream maker according to manufacturers instructions or pour in a shallow dish and place in freezer, stirring about every 30 minutes, until frozen. Recipe makes 4-6 servings.

Sustainability Visit!

ME AT THE FARMERS MARKET VVVV!



Interview Transcript:

Do you think you are educated on the foods you eat?

response#1: yes, I think I am somewhat educated on food because I have attended multiple health classes and I try to stay trim.
response#2: no, I think I could be more educated on products I eat but I don't have much of a will power when it comes to cookies and brownies
response#3: yes, I believe that I am educated in the products I eat because I try to filter out foods with high levels of glucose from my diet.

What is your favorite grocery store?

response#1: I like to shop at Albertson's because its close to my house and I know that I am getting decent products even if it isn't supporting the local living economy.
response#2: I usually go to the farmers market for more of my fresher foods because I don't trust industrial stores like Von's or Albertson's to give me the best products.
response#3: The Earth!

Do you own or have you ever owned a garden?

response#1: yes, I grown tomatoes, lettuce, basil, and strawberries all from my backyard.
response#2: no, I just come here (farmers market) to buy most of my fruits and veggies.
response#3: yes, I used to own a garden but when I moved out to San Diego I just never got the time to start re growing one.

1. What struck you about the location you visited?

The location I visited was very pact full of people. I didn't expect so many people to be interested in the local living economy, but I was wrong. People from all over San Diego reach out in order to take part in this event every Wednesday.

2. Do you think you will start attending the Farmers Market?

Yes, I have been attending on a regular basis for quite a while. I usually make it about once a month but I think that I will start to go more and more often as I continue learning more about the local living economy through this project.

3. Do these places fit into our essential questions?

Yes, these place definitely help San Diegans live more sustainably. I think that through my project I have created an ad campaign targeted toward a great place and I definitely think that i chose a great cause to help. These places are perfect for a great example of how easy it is to grow fruits and veggies within your community!

Ecological Intellegence

Ecological intelligence is our ability as humans to understand that buying and wasting products on a non infinite planet is unrealistic. As stated from Coleman, "We no longer have the luxury of living life without making an impact on our planet". This is important because we must take care of our planet and keep resources available to our future children.
This project connects to our essential questions in humanities class because it is showing people not only a problem, but a solution. It is creating awareness through media (newspaper) just as we are creating awareness through our ads campaign! I also think that this article targets the question... "How could we live more sustainably?", through various solutions!!
I think that I am doing an excellent job at raising my ecological intelligence through my humanities class; however although I am educated on the subject, I am still in the process of moving from thinking about the problem... to helping create a solution. I think that I could definitely become more active in this subject because I have a passion for it. If I got off my butty and started to put my thoughts into action, I could do a lot to not only help my community, but to help others help theirs.

Data Collection

What struck me about the data my group collected was that a lot of people seemed to think that they were educated about the products they ate. Personally, I believe that their claims were false because if they were really educated on what they eat, then I am sure they wouldn't be as over weight as most of them were. I would like to pursuit their claims with a follow up question to ask them if they know certain common products in their food in order to test their knowledge. 

I however was surprised by the large amount of people that considered Trader Joe's their home store. I didn't think that the numbers would come so close to those who considered Von's their home store. These results did not match my expectations. To my surprise, I was very pleased with the outcome of number of people with Gardens. I didn't expect so many people to be pro home planting. This result was a nice change.

Based on my data I would like to run a campaign that targets the OB farmers market as a great candidate for a grocery store. I shop at the OB farmers market and I am very supportive of the cause. I would like my campaign to target people who are putting "crap" in their bodies. I want to make the consumers aware that the farmers market is a fresh and healthy place to buy locally grown foods. 

The Dervaes Family

Today in class, we watched a video about a very special family. This is a family who has dedicated their modern life to being 100% independent on nothing more than their backyard. This family lives on not what they need, but what they have. They are still a very happy and successful family, they simply just don't apply the term 'want' into their lives. In class we are reading a book titled My Ishmael. This book is about a deep philosophy on how the world came to be through agriculture. I believe that in the book they are trying to convey a meaning to the reader that we are destroying our world and it doesn't have to be this way. Through this film we watched a family in a regular san diego home transform their small yard into their personal farm; the movie was very inspirational. They are trying to show their ways of life through various websites like this, this, and this. I think that their attempt to reach the world is making an important difference in showing people that change is possible even in a world like this. Their outreach is growing and they are setting an important example to the people of our future. 

Eratic Retaliation

Anthropomorphism

An`thro*po*mor"phism\, n. [Gr. ? of human form; ? man + ? form.]1. The representation of the Deity, or of a polytheistic deity, under a human form, or with human attributes and affections. 2. The ascription of human characteristics to things not human.

1. When Ismael talks about Anthropomorphism on page 82, he is referring to the fact that humans put their own emotions, feelings, or characteristics into a thing not human. It is like how Ishmael describes the dogs marking its territory and humans assuming that its because it wants to feel like it has a "home". But in reality it is just marking its possessions, not the land itself.

2.

My Ishmeal Questions

1. What are Ishmael’s two general rules on how to identify people from our culture? Do you agree with Ishmael when he says that people from all over the world are part of the same culture? Why or why not?

His two general ways of recognition to their culture is first, The food is always under a key and a lock... And second, they perceive themselves to be part of a race that is fundamentally flawed, and that wisdom is a rare commodity, and because they are flawed they are not surprised to be living in a world with poverty and corruption. This culture is only one of many cultures across the world, states Ishmael. I agree with his statement because still today after millions of year you can find tribes in the middle of the forest who treat the earth and their bodies as blessings rather than junk. I felt very strongly about when he says we accept that we are not fundamentally flawed. I felt strongly because my whole life I have been accepting that fact that we were just born wrong, but Ishmael brings it to a whole new perspective when he says that we are not fundamentally flawed, we just point the finger at anything but ourselves and because of this, we cannot save ourselves because we are too lazy.

2. Ishmael disagrees with Mother Culture’s voice that says that humans are inherently flawed. After reading through page 66 of My Ishmael do agree or disagree with him? Why?

I agree that humans are not inherently flawed, but that mother culture is teaching us to accept our mistakes and point the blame towards anything but ourselves. The reason why I agree with Ishmael's reasoning is because I believe that humans are capable beyond much more than we claim. I KNOW for a fact that we could do something to change the world and possibly save it, but it is our culture to be lazy and not do anything about our problems. In fact, we are so lazy that we would rather except our failure than try to fix it while there is still time.

3. Ishmael uses a parable of Tunes and Dancers to explain his idea of Takers and Leavers. Who are these Takers and Leavers and how do they relate to American culture?

Takers and Leavers represent dancers. The Dancers were happy with only a little dance each month and they worked with what they had rather than trying to perfect dance; just like the leavers were happy with what they had, and they left everything to the Gods and Nature to take care of them. On the other hand the more serious dancers wanted to devote all of their time to learning the best dances and doing things humans shouldn't naturally be able to do; just like the Takers wanted to devote their time to growing food. By doing this they took their fate into their own hands, making them takers. When the more serious "Dancers" got with the less serious "Dancers" they used their culture to persuade them to let the more serious dancers show them how its done.

Sustainable

What does it mean to live sustainably?

To live a sustainable life mean to keep order and consistency in ones life. I think that in order to live a sustainable life you must lead one. For example, you will not be stable if you go around creating drama or making bad decisions in your life. You must act with responsibility rather than stupidity. "With freedom, comes responsibility" a popular quote from spider man states. I believe that sustainability comes from your characteristics. Another popular quote states "Watch you thoughts, they become words. Watch your words, they become actions. Watch your actions they become habits. Watch your habits, they become your character. And watch your character, for it will decide your destiny." I think that this quote has a lot to do with sustaining a healthy life style.

How much freedom do you have at age 14-16?

At the age of fourteen, freedom comes with trust, and trust will only come through strong character and good decision making. I think that at age fourteen, in our society we are not trusted. It is not to blame on parents for being paranoid, the only ones to blame is ourselves. In teenage ages, wisdom is not part of us... therefore we must be molded into responsible beings and learn how to be wise as it comes.

As a fourteen-sixteen year old how can you live your life more sustainably?

As a kid, sometimes it can be hard to live sustainably. Most children lack in motivation and responsibility, because they don't understand its importance. One way that I could live more sustainably is to prove myself responcible by continuing to make good grades. If I continue to prove that I am able to be independent, then I will be given more independence.

Dialectic Journal: Book 7& 8

The picture above is of The actual place the sparatan wrote the passage "tell the spartan passing by, that here obidient to their laws we lie,"

book seven: page 318- "Let the raid succeed or fail. it does not matter. Just send men out. And if the Gods have truly taken part in cause, well... Dithyrambos grinned, and clasped my masters hand in farewell."

This passage struck me because it reminded me a lot of gambling. However they were gambling their lives. Though what struck me the most is that no matter what they want the Gods will in what happens. If they die they will not regret sending out men because it was the Gods who wanted them dead or the Persian King alive. They must have truly believed that the Gods are real because they have so much confidence in them. I can relate to this because I am a Christian and sometimes its easier just to let God take control and let fate happen. I have seen a lot of religious figures take risks and it reminds me of the risks that these Spartans are taking. I think that the author does a very good job at displaying the point that these Spartans don't live for themselves but for others. As Dienekes says in book 2 "This body does not belong to me, if it did I would be scared shitless" [or something like that]. These Spartans truly believe that a higher power is guiding them. I think it is their lack of doubt that keeps them alive so long!

book seven: page 333- "the opposite of fear is love."

This passage made me really think. At first I would have guessed that the opposite of fear is courage. And in some ways it is. However courage really originates from love. If you don't have a reason or love that compels you to be courageous then you have no reason to act with bravery. The Spartan men were not courageous just because they were born like that. Over the years they had developed a love for their families, fellow warriors, their town, squires, freedom, and they even loved the flat out title of being brave. All of these reasons to strive and fight for their country was what made them brave. Their love overruled their fear. It makes me think about a story I heard a few years ago about a man who fell onto train tracks while having a seizure and a complete stranger jumped on top of him to hold him down and save his life. I wander what compelled this man. I wander what love he had for a perfect stranger that made him love the man more than himself.


book 8: page 360- "A king does not dine while his men go hungry, nor sleep while his men stand on watchout,"

When I read this passage I actually was very impressed king Leonidas and his loyalty to his men. Many kings sit from afar and watch their men die without grief, Leonidas is such a passionate king. He is so close to the men because he understands what they are going through in battle. I respect him for this. He does not look up at himself as a king, but he sees his life just as important as any one of these men. By this I believe he makes the army as a unit come very close together. If the director of battle can understand the was from a warriors point of view, perhaps he can make the best decision. His bravery is striking and his humility is more than most kiongs. I cannot relate to his decisions because I have never been a greek king who fights in the depths of the persian army upon the battlefield of thermopoly, however in more modern terms I can relate this too my project based learning school. For exaple every group has a leader when working on a project. If the leader was not involved in the work and only told people what to do, it wont motivate the team. It also is harder for a leader to direct the inside from the outside because he doesnt understand how the inside works.


book eight: page 384- "Tell the Spartan stranger passing by, that here obidient to their laws we lie."

When I first read this I was actually surprisingly sad by this line. I re-read it and I noticed that I pictured a gravestone that says this saying on it. I think I felt sad because they gave so much for their city and no one will ever know the terrible and scared feelings they went through in this passage. No one can even begin to imagine it. I like the sound of this line because it flows so well. I would definatly. Again I will never be able to closely relate to this. Especially because they are like silent martyrs. They didn't show anyone what they had suffered from. It was very graceful of them and thats one of the reasonss that their army was so respected. I definatly think that these 300 men will go down in history forever and ever, all components considered they were probably the best army in history and not because they dominated but because of their relationship. This passage definatly shows patrionism when it says 'obientdien to there laws we lie'. It really shows that these men look at life as a duty rather than a life to get what they desire.

Grateful!

I think that in my life I have been extremely blessed. I have great health, family, and home. I think however, out of those three my most grateful blessing is my family. I was raised very well and I love my childhood very much. My parents have never been very protective over me and they give me alot of space to do what I want but they keep me in check with morals and standards.

My mother is probably my best friend. I love her to death because she is absolutley hilarious. From the six weeks after I was born to about six grade, she was gone alot. She left on buisness trips and put me in day care too often. At the time I was sad, but now looking back I think that being raised in day-cares, camps, and after-school programs has made me alot more independant. Not to mention that my immune system is indomitable thanks to my early exposure to germs [lolz]. Once she had climbed the work ladder and was at the top, we had alot more time to spend together. I was older and more mature so we could hang out alot more and have fun for both of us. I love my mom because no matter what, she will love me back. She always laughs at my jokes and supports me. Something that I am very thankful about how she raised me was the trust she put in me. She let me do alot of things that other mom's wouldnt appove of. She thinks of me more an adult than a child [which is a good thing because she allows me to do adult things].

My dad, is a whole different book. I have to admit he is pretty funny, however he really isn't much of a parent. Like my mom, he holds high morals and standards; the difference is that while my mom is very involved in my life, he is very involved in being a teenager [even though he is 48] I actually, enjoy the fact that he acts like a kid because I find him much more entertaining like that. So many people have serious and strict parents, thankfully I'm not one of those people. My dad is in love with trying to be hip... for example he just bought a drum set and is learning the base and drums; he also just bought a verrry expensive car called the SRT8 [he thinks its cool]; oh yea and he just got back from tijauana and bought me this huge meddalion chain necklace that has a big money sign on it. Like I mentioned, he is more of a child than me.

One huge thing I have learned from my parents is that raising a child to be a good person doesnt have to mean your strict, mean, and boring. I will always love my family and I want to raise my kids exactly like they raised me.

Dialectic Journals: Chapters 8-12

1. Shaelyn Washburn

page 91- "The swells were getting bigger; a cold wind had gotten up. We were going no where. I supported Alexandros again as another chocking fit attacked him. He stuck his thumb between his tongue and bit through the flesh until it bled. The pain seemed to steady him."

When I read this passage I totally pictured myself doing that! Whenever I am upset or have to deal with something I don't want to I always dig my fingernails into my palm until I either bleed or draw blood. It sounds kind of creepy but it actually does steady me and balance me. Even if I am dealing with a sore wound or cut by pinching myself it takes my focus away from the main problem even if just for a bit. I think that the author portrays his way of cope very well by saying it "steadies his pain".  However personally for me it doesn't just steady the pain, for me its more of a distraction to get my mind off of something. When I read this I wandered if it is a common trait to cause excess pain to steady yourself. This made me think about how maybe this was a more common way to cope in the past, since now we have many other things like shopping, music, art, ton of more resources to distract pain. I wander what other coping ways they used in the past? This passage raised a lot of connections to my world, I wander if it did the same thing to many other readers? 

2. Shaelyn Washburn 

page 106- "As wolves in a pack take down the fleeing deer, so did the Spartans right fall upon the defenders of Antirhion, no in frenzied shrieking rage, lip-cured and fang-bared, but predator-like, cold-blooded applying the steel with the wordless cohesion of the killing pack and the homicidal efficiency of the hunt."

This passage showed the authors intelligence in so many ways. I was struck in awe of how well his connections through animals portrayed the Spartans in such fitting format. I love how he compares them to predators over wolves. It is smart how he talks about them not just being crazy for the kill and incredibly strong but how he calls them cold-blooded, and a killing pack with homicidal efficiency of the hunt. When I read this I saw the narrator showing strength plus brains. Like how they are smart as humans but with the bodies of animals. I could definitely relate to when he says the lip-curled and fang bared wolves because I have been camping many times and seen animals acting only based on senses and not on smarts. I can relate to seeing wolves out of control just hungry for the kill and not using and approach or strategy of a predator. When I read this it put the Spartans in a whole different perspective for me. I used to imagine the Spartans like wolves but now I picture there attacks more sneaky like alligators that sit barely peeking from the water and are patient for the attack. 

3. Shaelyn Washburn 

page 115- "Then this man returns, alive, out of the slaugher. He hears his name called and comes forward to take his ticket. He reclaims that part of himself that he had earlier left behind." 

When I read this it made me very compassionate for the people who have ever faced death by war. The authors metaphor of setting aside half of your life made me feel sorrow. I can't even begin to imagine how hard it must be to step out of your world and leave your wife, husband, kids, house, friends, family, and city all behind. I am not able to relate to this because I have never been asked to give up such a thing but I can only imagine that it is the only way. If a man went into war thinking that every spear jabbed towards him could take away everything he loves in one hard contact. If it were me I would be a train wreck. This is exactly the reason why it is necessary for these men to put aside their lives for the time being so that they don't mess up due to human emotions. Life in the dialect journal above... you kind of have to become an animal, drop your emotions to pick up your senses. I wander if this could be a characteristic of a real man... to put aside every desire he has in exchange for the life of his desires. Does this mean that the Spartans were able to love something so much more than themselves? Yes, I think so. 

Dialectic Journals: Chapters 4-7

1. Shaelyn Washburn [chapter4]

page 21- "Things are fallen, which had stood upright. Things are free which should be bound, and bound which should be free. Things which had been hoarded in secret now blow and tumble in the open, and those who had hoarded them watch them with dull eyes and let them go. Boys have become men, and men boys. Slaves now stand free, and freeman slaves. Childhood had fled." 

This passage of the book really helped me visualize the absolute chaos that went on during this slaughter. It was interesting to me how is seems that chaos is the exact opposite of society. For example in the passage 'everything that should be bound now run free' is stating that when things are not in order of society (bound) everything is chaotic (free). It was as if this invasion turned their entire city inside out. It was scary to think that this book is based on true events and some event in this book still go on today. I may be safe in America for now but what will happen when we are finally invaded? Xeones, Brutiex, and Diomache had to live in the mountains for two years.. and they were the lucky survivors! This chaos in the passage shows how easily society can be broken. It made me think about how quickly it could all be over when huge masses come to destroy. It was also interesting to me how a few paragraphs later in the book it talks about animals being lit on fire. It confused me to think about how pitiless these invaders were. It had to be more than just evilness driving them, maybe it was delusion, or even simply insanity...?

2. Shaelyn Washburn [chapter 5]

page 35- "Never forget Alexandros, that this body, this flesh, does not belong to us. Thank God it doesn't. If I thought this stuff was mine, I would not advance another pace towards the enemy. But it is not our my friend, it belongs to the Gods and to our children. Our fathers, mothers, and those of Lakedameon, a hundred, and a thousand yet unborn. It belongs to the city hat gives us all we have and demands no less in requital."

This passage struck me because it is Dinekes explaining his view of himself. He is totally selfless in the fact that he doesn't even consider his body to belong to him, but a gift from the Gods to protect his city and those within it to honor the Gods. I find it a neat opinion to look at life in this theory because it seems to give a load of courage to him. For example when he says "If this stuff was mine, I would not advance another pace towards the enemy" it shows how he figures that he is not living a life for himself and that this life has no purpose in serving himself but in serving  his city. It seems to give him grave courage and he does not fear death because of this. I wander if maybe this is what makes him a man? A characteristic of a man is to not be a coward and Dienekes shows no fear in his selflessness. If he however was selfish and wanted to live he would be a coward. I cannot relate to this passage because I live in a town where men do not have to show that they are a man in their day-to-day lives. I find it interesting how much manlier men were in earlier times. I do still believe that there are times to prove that you are a man (in war, hard situations, etc.) but it is not as common. Would man from today's time would be considered a boy in Lakedameon? What would a boy from Lakedameon be considered in our world? 

3. Sahelyn Washburn [Chapter 7]

page 43- " My intent is to simply convey, through the experiences of two young children and a slave, some poor measure of the soul terror and devastation which a vanquished population, any population, is forced to endure during the hour of its nations extinction."

This passage really stuck me with its impactful use of vocabulary. The words like 'soul-terror' and 'nations extinction' were a lot more impactful then 'scary' or 'defeat'. I think that the author does a beautiful job at portraying the absolute horror he is trying to communicate to his majesty. This passage however not only impressed me with its vocabulary but it stung me with its pain. The way he explains how hard it is to covey his experiences makes them even more unfortunate. Things were so bad that he couldn't even describe them through words let alone stories. It pained me when I thought about how good I have it compared to children like this who still exist today, who absolutely never get a break in life! Its bad enough that both of his parents died but on top of that, his town was destoryed, his love was raped and doesn't love him back, his slave friend Bruteix died, he is crippled, and now he cant even fight as a warrior against the ones he seeks vengeance. It made me realize how stupid our everyday problems that we complain over are. Now a days people actually cry over a pair of lost earings! This passage made me think... Have we cheapened sorrow? What is our pain compared to their pain? How would we handle their kind of stress in today's life? We have coaping methods, what were their coaping methods? 

Election: 2008!

Being a republican who lives in one of the most democratic states of America can get really annoying. I was raised to be on the far right wing with two republican parents. Living in California has opened my eyes to the democratic world. As much as I wish I could agree with my neighbors opinions, listening to them talk only makes me more republican.
I wish I could be a democrat and have the excuse to say, "We want peace, not war." However I think that the war is a lot more complicated then Americans just wanting to destroy peoples happiness. I believe that the war is not made just so we can get oil. I think that we are trying to fix their corrupt government. As much as I do wish the war would stop, I do believe it has to be done. They stone people to death for committing adultery. They will kill themselves just to kill one American family. We are not trying to bombard their country, we are trying to help the children who are killed daily in drive by bombings. Americans aren't cowards and if we run away from helping these people they wont just say "Oh now they are gone and we can go back to living happy lives" I am sure that they will follow us into America trying to destroy us with schemes like September 11th. I'm not fond of being in war, I just think of it as something that has to be done. However trying to awnser the war in a few short paragraphs is impossible.  There are many other reasons why I am a republican, many having to do with christianity. I am 100% against abortion. No acceptions. Not for rape, not for accidents. A baby has every right to be born as we do. 

I believe that the power should be in the people not in the government. When the money goes to powerful people, there is no telling how corrupt things may get. ex. four judges overturned the votes of 60 million people's vote. 

irrelevant

*** I found this article, "ten good things about high gas prices," I though it was interesting.

Pictures & My Hero

1. I like this photo a lot because I think that shadows are a good representation of who people truly are. For instance this shadow shows the person being really big therefore showing that although he may be small in person his soul is big and courageous. Shadows can show many thing in people. I also like pictures of people who may be standing plane with headphones listening to music but there shadow is photoshoped into the person dancing like crazy. I think having a shadow that doesn't match your pose is very artistic.




2.
Picture For Blurb: look up :]
Blurb: A hero is someone who can put others before themselves while consciously aware that they will end up last.
Malia is a beautiful, A+, model student, who refuses to let life’s unfortunate events control her. On November 5th 2007 she was diagnosed with enlarged Ventricles. It was pure luck that she came in only months before it would have led her to her death.

Preview, Predict, Code: Secret Life Of Bees

Preview:
Title- I think that the title is a deeper metaphor relating to a way of life in the book. I think bees represent something important.
Cover- On the front cover I see 4 black people standing close together all smiling except one. On one of the smiling black ladies I see a white girl sitting on her shoulders, this white girl looks like she fits in with the black family.
Inside cover- The cover states that this book is about a girl finding the history of her mothers past. I think that she will discover something about bees in her mothers past.
Chapters- There are 14 chapters all of which incluse a metaphor at the top of the page. I think that the metaphor will forshadow things in the story.
Length- The book is roughly three hundred pagess, the print is small and so are the pages. Maybe it takes a while to describe the mothers past.
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Predict:
Genre- I think that this book will be realistic fiction because it seems like it is based on humans but may or may not be true. I think this because it seems like a classic tale about people redisocering who they are and a deeper meaning of life.
Book- I think this book is going to be about the metaphorical meaning of life and how someone changes over time and becomes wiser. I think this because the title seems to have a deeper meaning.
Easy?- I think thast this book would normally be easy for me because it seems interesting and books that keep my interest, I am able to read very quickly and understand well. However I am reading another book right now so I am hoping that I dont get these two book's storyline mixed up.
Enjoyable- I think I will enjoy it because it seems interesting, however I would much rather prefer not to read two books at one time so that part might be hard for me. I think I will be able to enjoy it however once I get the storyline straight.
Start- I think that this book is going to start will a flashback of her mothers death to keep the reader interested, then I think it will start making the foundation of the girls life so it can build off of it.
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Code:
Accuracy- My predictions were very accurate. I guess the overall theme of the book, however I did not anticipate all of the twists and turns. I overall was right about the deeper meaning of life part.
Predictions- I was most right about my prediction of the bees. I predicted that they would have a deeper meaning in life. The bees turned out to represent many different characters in the book. I was also very correct of my predictions of the start of the book, I guess how the book would start with a flash back and build a foundation and although the order of this was wrong, I was correct about what happened in the beggining.
Less accurate- I did miss alot of characteristics about the book including: time period, racism, female communtiy, and religion. I think that i missed this because In order to understand the religion in the book the author has to use many pages to describe it. However I do think that if I looked more carfully I would have noted that there were all girls, also that there were 4 black women and only white woman which incorperate famlae community and something to do with race or racism.
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Overall I definatly enjoyed this book. The author was very good at playing the roll of a 14 year old. I would definatly recomend this story to any reader who wants an interesting story line which incoperates many strong points and twists.

LDW: Alliteration

At the lock in last weekend, I depended on sleep'n. I could not comprehend, my best friends descend on my amend to stay awake. for the sake of the ache in my eyes made me take her by surprise. It was unwise to disguise my wish for demise. In the end it was fine, maybe it was a sign designed to resign us for tomorrow.

Tomorrow we had soccer, surely it would be a shocker if we didn't win, we intend to defend our name holding no shame as undefeated. As a team we are completed, never cheated, together we are heated when we are greeted no need to repeat it. We take the ball, we will sprawl and maul the other team will recall as they fall off the field, trying to shield their unhealed wounds that we have peeled. The other team will fear as our adhere teams cheer. You better hope your on my team dear.

As An Additional Adhesive to add alliteration I am writing this perfectly pretty paragraph. It should be something able to show some simple sentences of alliteration so you know I know what alliteration is.
*B
-Beautiful Babies build blocks by Big kids kind help.
-Born Beauty is not bad but bad behavior can make you icky
-Bad Bigots should burn their minds free of racists comments
-Boys burden big barriers when asking beautiful babes hand in marriage