What kind of risks have you taken in your life?
What chances have you taken that may or may not have come out so well? Some people your age have tried dangerous things and survived. Many others, alas, have not survived. Some have taken other kinds of risks: social risks such as trying to make new friends, for example, or personal risks, such as speaking honestly to a parent, or even academic risks: doing something in class that might get them a great grade or result in horrible failure.
What risks have you taken in your life? Write about them.
Life is all about risks, right? Throughout my life, I have taken many risks. Some have worked out perfectly, and others…not so much. Socially, people take risks all the time. Someone might get a haircut just because they think it will impress their friends. Well, I’d like to tell those people that if your friends don’t like you the way you are, you need new friends. I would never take a social risk like that, because in all honesty it just takes away who you are as a person and turns you into a fake and a phony.
I, personally, would like to take better risks. I want to bungee jump or skydive before I go to college. I want to take risks that make me catch my breath and remember how precious life is. I do not want to take risks that could possibly take my life. Those aren’t risks, those are mistakes.
When it comes to talking to my parents, I feel like that is never a risk. I am comfortable with my parents to the point where I can tell them anything. I might be a little uncomfortable at first, but I know that my parents only have my best interests at heart, and they usually know what is best.
One risk that I took recently was skipping class and going to Oh What a Bagel. Throughout my four years in high school, I had never skipped a class and just drove off. I had a substitute, and we didn’t do any work that day, so it considering those odds it wasn’t a huge risk, but it was still exhilarating and I think that everyone should skip a class before they graduate. It might have been silly, and I can never imagine skipping class and leaving on a regular basis, but I think at the same time it was still worth it, for sure. There is no doubt in my mind that I needed that. I want to be able to remember high school, and little things like pep rallies and leaving school and watching football or basketball games with friends are going to be the memories that I will tell my kids about one day.
Someday, I’ll be doing big things. I feel like if I don’t take silly risks throughout my life, the variety will be to scarce. I am the kind of person that gets so used to a set schedule with a filled agenda that I might forget to have fun sometimes. Everyone in the world should do something outrageously fun and risky and beautiful at the same time, at least once a week. Keeping variety in your life will be your key factor to success. In college, I know I won’t be studying and doing homework during the day and sleeping at night. I will spend my days in class or with friends and I will pull all-nighters doing last minute homework and papers, and that is what will keep me on my feet.
Everyone needs a little variety and risk in their life.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Monday, January 30, 2012
Blog 18 - State of the Union
Every year the President of the United States gives a speech called the "State of the Union Address." In it he (or she, one day) talks to Congress about how things are going in our country.
Today, put down some thoughts for your own State of the Union Address, if you were to make the same speech.
How are things going in our country? Are you satisfied with everything? What is working in our country, and what is not working? Think about schools, transportation, national defense, our system of health care, the arts, protection of the environment, food stamps, welfare, treatment of the elderly, and other things that make up who we are as a people.
Be the President for a day, and tell us how we are doing as a country.
“My fellow citizens, I am your president, Gina Sarah Colette Cuiffo. I am here today to tell you how our country is fairing. To say that we are doing better than ever would be an understatement. Our nation as a whole has fixed each problem that we were given. Not only have I proven myself to you as a people, but I have proven myself to other nations as well. I am satisfied with all of the progress we have made, and I couldn’t have done it without the help of the great people of the United States. Last year when I came into office, I asked that you write down each thing that you think our nation has a problem with. I took those papers and personally looked over each one. I made it my mission to attend to each problem. I did not take a vacation this year like past presidents have done. I worked hard each day to prove to you all that I am good enough to be your president. Gas prices have decreased. The health care issue has been solved. Our schools have raised their graduating rates by over four hundred percent. Our environment is no longer going through global warming and is the best it has been in centuries. Food stamps are no longer needed, because I have solved the issues of poverty. Social security is taken care of. Any aspect of the nation that I should have covered has been covered. If you have any issues that you think haven’t been covered, I welcome you to come up and ask me about it and I will tell you anything you would like to know. According to any statistics you can find, you will see that I have done nothing but good for this nation and I hope you can all see that and consider it when you are voting again this year. No other president in the past has been able to compare, and I take pride in all the accomplishments I have made. I am so happy to tell you this, and I hope that you do not take my happiness as arrogance. I hope that you are all as proud of me as I am of you for making this nation what it is. Growing up, I saw bad people in the world, and I saw how they brought on our downfall. Now, with me in office, crime and drugs and all illegal acts have been completely wiped out and the world is full of good people again, just like it should be. I want to thank you for your time and consideration, and I would sincerely like to remind you that if you have any problems or concerns, or even positive feedback, please feel free to call me at any time of the day or night. As your president, I want to be available at any time for you to count on my help for any matter, whether good or bad. Thank you again for your time, have a lovely evening.”
Today, put down some thoughts for your own State of the Union Address, if you were to make the same speech.
How are things going in our country? Are you satisfied with everything? What is working in our country, and what is not working? Think about schools, transportation, national defense, our system of health care, the arts, protection of the environment, food stamps, welfare, treatment of the elderly, and other things that make up who we are as a people.
Be the President for a day, and tell us how we are doing as a country.
“My fellow citizens, I am your president, Gina Sarah Colette Cuiffo. I am here today to tell you how our country is fairing. To say that we are doing better than ever would be an understatement. Our nation as a whole has fixed each problem that we were given. Not only have I proven myself to you as a people, but I have proven myself to other nations as well. I am satisfied with all of the progress we have made, and I couldn’t have done it without the help of the great people of the United States. Last year when I came into office, I asked that you write down each thing that you think our nation has a problem with. I took those papers and personally looked over each one. I made it my mission to attend to each problem. I did not take a vacation this year like past presidents have done. I worked hard each day to prove to you all that I am good enough to be your president. Gas prices have decreased. The health care issue has been solved. Our schools have raised their graduating rates by over four hundred percent. Our environment is no longer going through global warming and is the best it has been in centuries. Food stamps are no longer needed, because I have solved the issues of poverty. Social security is taken care of. Any aspect of the nation that I should have covered has been covered. If you have any issues that you think haven’t been covered, I welcome you to come up and ask me about it and I will tell you anything you would like to know. According to any statistics you can find, you will see that I have done nothing but good for this nation and I hope you can all see that and consider it when you are voting again this year. No other president in the past has been able to compare, and I take pride in all the accomplishments I have made. I am so happy to tell you this, and I hope that you do not take my happiness as arrogance. I hope that you are all as proud of me as I am of you for making this nation what it is. Growing up, I saw bad people in the world, and I saw how they brought on our downfall. Now, with me in office, crime and drugs and all illegal acts have been completely wiped out and the world is full of good people again, just like it should be. I want to thank you for your time and consideration, and I would sincerely like to remind you that if you have any problems or concerns, or even positive feedback, please feel free to call me at any time of the day or night. As your president, I want to be available at any time for you to count on my help for any matter, whether good or bad. Thank you again for your time, have a lovely evening.”
Friday, January 20, 2012
Blog 17 - Earliest Memory
What’s your earliest memory?
Some people have amazingly detailed memories: they remember having their diapers changed, standing up in their crib and crying, or their mother reading them a story at age one. Others have a difficult time remembering last year, let alone their early years.
Think back: is there one memory that you see in that distant past? What is it? Does it include people speaking to you, or is it just a picture? Does it have other sounds in it—for example, people laughing or shouting? Explain it in detail.
Are there other ancient memories you can bring up? Do they relate in any way to each other, or are they random?
Write about them.
I have one memory that popped into my head when I read this blog topic. At the time, I was two years old. My family lived in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Two years olds usually do not have astonishingly great memories, but I have one simple memory that always boggles my mind. My memory has no sounds. No laughing, shouting, crying, no nothing. It is one picture in my head. There are no people in this picture. The memory is actually very silly and most likely pointless, but I feel like if it was pointless why would I remember it now when I am eighteen. Sixteen years later, I always picture the doorway to my old house in Carlisle. In the way I see it, I am standing with the door open, directly in the door way facing inside. I was two, so if you try to get a visual it was only two feet up from the ground. Nothing important is in this image-memory of mine. All I see is a light green welcome mat. It doesn't have any words or cool details, just a plain old rug. I asked my parents one day, and they told me that, yes, we had a green welcome mat, why? they asked. I had absolutely positively no idea at all. I am curious to know how a rug is symbolic for anything about my old house or something from being a baby.
I know some people that can remember childhood things very well, but I am not one of them. Recently, I have been watching home videos, some from before I was even born. And then eventually, it got to nineteen ninety-four (the good ol' years) and I saw myself as a small child. I thought it was so adorable and I loved seeing myself. While I want to remember those events when I watch them happen on my television, I can't. I remember weird details that have no important meaning to me. I remember when my family moved to Lakewood, New Jersey. I remember what my old tree house looked like (mainly because it was pretty kick-ass). I remember being in kindergarten at Holy Family School, and having to do the pledge of alegiance and then pray. And then things get more vivid as I got older and I eventually moved to Bayville. I hope that I keep all of the memories that I have from all my years here, because they have been more fun than I could ever even ask for.
Some people have amazingly detailed memories: they remember having their diapers changed, standing up in their crib and crying, or their mother reading them a story at age one. Others have a difficult time remembering last year, let alone their early years.
Think back: is there one memory that you see in that distant past? What is it? Does it include people speaking to you, or is it just a picture? Does it have other sounds in it—for example, people laughing or shouting? Explain it in detail.
Are there other ancient memories you can bring up? Do they relate in any way to each other, or are they random?
Write about them.
I have one memory that popped into my head when I read this blog topic. At the time, I was two years old. My family lived in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Two years olds usually do not have astonishingly great memories, but I have one simple memory that always boggles my mind. My memory has no sounds. No laughing, shouting, crying, no nothing. It is one picture in my head. There are no people in this picture. The memory is actually very silly and most likely pointless, but I feel like if it was pointless why would I remember it now when I am eighteen. Sixteen years later, I always picture the doorway to my old house in Carlisle. In the way I see it, I am standing with the door open, directly in the door way facing inside. I was two, so if you try to get a visual it was only two feet up from the ground. Nothing important is in this image-memory of mine. All I see is a light green welcome mat. It doesn't have any words or cool details, just a plain old rug. I asked my parents one day, and they told me that, yes, we had a green welcome mat, why? they asked. I had absolutely positively no idea at all. I am curious to know how a rug is symbolic for anything about my old house or something from being a baby.
I know some people that can remember childhood things very well, but I am not one of them. Recently, I have been watching home videos, some from before I was even born. And then eventually, it got to nineteen ninety-four (the good ol' years) and I saw myself as a small child. I thought it was so adorable and I loved seeing myself. While I want to remember those events when I watch them happen on my television, I can't. I remember weird details that have no important meaning to me. I remember when my family moved to Lakewood, New Jersey. I remember what my old tree house looked like (mainly because it was pretty kick-ass). I remember being in kindergarten at Holy Family School, and having to do the pledge of alegiance and then pray. And then things get more vivid as I got older and I eventually moved to Bayville. I hope that I keep all of the memories that I have from all my years here, because they have been more fun than I could ever even ask for.
Blog 16 - Balance of Nature
You may have heard about the "balance of nature." What is the balance of nature, in your opinion? We know that nature consists of air, water, land, flora (plants), and fauna (animals). How can those things be in balance? How do you think the natural system works, in its push toward keeping itself in balance?
Do you think the natural world is in balance today? If so, what keeps it in balance? If not, what's knocking it out of balance?
And what about human beings? Where are we in the balance of nature? What are we doing or not doing to keep our balance?
Write about it.
The balance of nature can be described in many different ways. I am sure that every single different human being has a separate definition of it. Some might differ widely, and some might be quite similar in the long run. To me, the balance of nature is perfect. My religion leads me to believe that God created the Earth, and he did it in perfection because that's what he was. Each part of nature lives off of each other. For example, humans breathe oxygen that is constantly in the air, and in return we breathe out carbon dioxide that keeps the trees alive. The trees keep a lot of animals alive, and those animals that eat the trees get eaten by other meat-eating animals. Eventually, we eat those animals. As far as water, we are seventy-five percent water, so I'd say water was pretty important to the human body and to the survival of the trees and those same animals that eat the trees. I am fascinated by the fact that they all connect. When you get rid of one element, it can possibly kill of everything. If we did not breathe out carbon dioxide, trees would not exist. If trees did not exist, all herbivore animals would not exist. If herbivores did not exist, carnivores would not exist. If herbivores and carnivores did not exist, omnivores like myself would not exist. It is the cycle of life.
One thing that is really hurting this cycle or balance or whatever you want to call it is the fact that humans are starting to think about it less. At this point in time, we have an ozone layer that might just metaphorically get up and walk away. This can not be blamed on anyone but humans. We messed with the balance, and we might just have to pay for it if global warming really happens. As humans, our main job should be to protect our planet and make it the best it can be. Instead, you see litter on the roads and smog in the sky. This is not okay. Maybe before, people did not know the effects, but now we do, so there is no excuse as to why we still have harmful things that hurt the Earth. And one day, it is possible that humans will really pay for all of their wrongdoings and the Earth will be no more.
Do you think the natural world is in balance today? If so, what keeps it in balance? If not, what's knocking it out of balance?
And what about human beings? Where are we in the balance of nature? What are we doing or not doing to keep our balance?
Write about it.
The balance of nature can be described in many different ways. I am sure that every single different human being has a separate definition of it. Some might differ widely, and some might be quite similar in the long run. To me, the balance of nature is perfect. My religion leads me to believe that God created the Earth, and he did it in perfection because that's what he was. Each part of nature lives off of each other. For example, humans breathe oxygen that is constantly in the air, and in return we breathe out carbon dioxide that keeps the trees alive. The trees keep a lot of animals alive, and those animals that eat the trees get eaten by other meat-eating animals. Eventually, we eat those animals. As far as water, we are seventy-five percent water, so I'd say water was pretty important to the human body and to the survival of the trees and those same animals that eat the trees. I am fascinated by the fact that they all connect. When you get rid of one element, it can possibly kill of everything. If we did not breathe out carbon dioxide, trees would not exist. If trees did not exist, all herbivore animals would not exist. If herbivores did not exist, carnivores would not exist. If herbivores and carnivores did not exist, omnivores like myself would not exist. It is the cycle of life.
One thing that is really hurting this cycle or balance or whatever you want to call it is the fact that humans are starting to think about it less. At this point in time, we have an ozone layer that might just metaphorically get up and walk away. This can not be blamed on anyone but humans. We messed with the balance, and we might just have to pay for it if global warming really happens. As humans, our main job should be to protect our planet and make it the best it can be. Instead, you see litter on the roads and smog in the sky. This is not okay. Maybe before, people did not know the effects, but now we do, so there is no excuse as to why we still have harmful things that hurt the Earth. And one day, it is possible that humans will really pay for all of their wrongdoings and the Earth will be no more.
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Blog 15 - Visit a Historical Time
What historical time do you wish you could visit?
Of course, the future is not historical yet, but think about particular times in the past. Maybe you’d like to visit ancient Egypt and live there for a while. Maybe you’d like to have been an Inca in South America, or a Roman soldier fighting Carthage, or a writer during the Italian Renaissance.
Maybe you’d only like to go back a short distance—say, to the 1960s, to visit the hippie days in San Francisco.
Write about the time you’d like to visit, why you’d like to visit that time, and what you would do while you are there.
I would really love to visit the time period of the early nineteen hundreds. Around this time, my grandmother was growing up. She always shows me pictures, and it truly fascinates me. I would love to visit here mainly to see what it was like growing up like that. A lot of people were in tough situations, considering the economy was horrible. But through all the lessons in history, the people seem genuinely happy and together. I would love it if the nation today seemed like we were ‘one,’ but I don’t think that is going to happen any time soon. I would also love to meet a boy in that time period. Then, chivalry was still well alive and it seemed as fun as ever. The movie Titanic was based on a true story from 1912, and it is one of the greatest love stories ever told. I would have loved to be on that ship (well, before it sank…) and see all the beautiful things that were in that movie, especially Leonardo DiCaprio. Another great love story is The Notebook. If I am not mistaken, the movie was portrayed to be in the early nineteen hundreds as well. I love the kinds of music they had, I love what they did for fun, I love that the people were so trusting of each other. If I could travel back to then, I would especially love to go to New York and see all the people interact. I would go to other states also, and see how things worked for all different people in different states. As much as I hate history classes, I am intrigued by stories that my grandparents tell me. I think that every older person has a few awesome stories up their sleeve. I would love to be in that time period and go to school. The curriculum probably hasn’t changed much… I would go to Times Square and see how different it is. I would go shopping (and probably spend a lot less money). I would talk to anyone I could and just listen to all the riveting stories and things they have to say. I might even meet a Noah Calhoun or a Jack Dawson, and go out on a date with a true gentleman. The specific things that I would do wouldn’t really even matter to me as long as I could be in that time period and witnessing and living through all of the things that they got to do. The time period is just interesting in general to me, and maybe seeing the way things were would knock a little sense into me and be a wakeup call. I wish that people now could act like they did in the old days, and dress like them, and speak with respect the way they did. I would have a blast from the past. :)
Of course, the future is not historical yet, but think about particular times in the past. Maybe you’d like to visit ancient Egypt and live there for a while. Maybe you’d like to have been an Inca in South America, or a Roman soldier fighting Carthage, or a writer during the Italian Renaissance.
Maybe you’d only like to go back a short distance—say, to the 1960s, to visit the hippie days in San Francisco.
Write about the time you’d like to visit, why you’d like to visit that time, and what you would do while you are there.
I would really love to visit the time period of the early nineteen hundreds. Around this time, my grandmother was growing up. She always shows me pictures, and it truly fascinates me. I would love to visit here mainly to see what it was like growing up like that. A lot of people were in tough situations, considering the economy was horrible. But through all the lessons in history, the people seem genuinely happy and together. I would love it if the nation today seemed like we were ‘one,’ but I don’t think that is going to happen any time soon. I would also love to meet a boy in that time period. Then, chivalry was still well alive and it seemed as fun as ever. The movie Titanic was based on a true story from 1912, and it is one of the greatest love stories ever told. I would have loved to be on that ship (well, before it sank…) and see all the beautiful things that were in that movie, especially Leonardo DiCaprio. Another great love story is The Notebook. If I am not mistaken, the movie was portrayed to be in the early nineteen hundreds as well. I love the kinds of music they had, I love what they did for fun, I love that the people were so trusting of each other. If I could travel back to then, I would especially love to go to New York and see all the people interact. I would go to other states also, and see how things worked for all different people in different states. As much as I hate history classes, I am intrigued by stories that my grandparents tell me. I think that every older person has a few awesome stories up their sleeve. I would love to be in that time period and go to school. The curriculum probably hasn’t changed much… I would go to Times Square and see how different it is. I would go shopping (and probably spend a lot less money). I would talk to anyone I could and just listen to all the riveting stories and things they have to say. I might even meet a Noah Calhoun or a Jack Dawson, and go out on a date with a true gentleman. The specific things that I would do wouldn’t really even matter to me as long as I could be in that time period and witnessing and living through all of the things that they got to do. The time period is just interesting in general to me, and maybe seeing the way things were would knock a little sense into me and be a wakeup call. I wish that people now could act like they did in the old days, and dress like them, and speak with respect the way they did. I would have a blast from the past. :)
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