Free Blog Day

A few weeks ago I talked to my friend Xenia, and she asked me if I would be able to come out there and visit for a few weeks. I said maybe but its SUPER expensive and I don't know if my mom would let me go. However, I took a chance and asked my mom and she said YES!!!! I freaked out. I couldn't stop smiling or laughing because I was so excited. I got home and emailed Xenia, and wrote in big bold letters GET READY BECAUSE I'M COMING TO GERMANY! she answered me with O MY GOD FINALLY! we have been talking back and forth about dates and it seems as if I am going 5 days after my 18th birthday. My mom is freaking out about me flying over there all by myself so she is trying to figure out all these plans so i won't be flying alone, but there really isn't anything she can do; I'll be 18. My first passport came two days ago and I cannot wait to use it. I have never been out of the country and going for the first time to a place with one of my best friends I amazing. I also found out that my very best friend in the world might be in Europe at the same time so I might go to Paris and meet her there! That would just make my trip even more amazing!!!!

Another thing that is on my mind is my dance recital. I'm a little nervous because it's a lot of different kinds of dance. One of the dances is swing and it's a partner dance and it is very awkward!!! But the other kinds of dance are fun. For our choreography projects we broke up into groups and choreographed a dance, who ever did the best got to be in the rectial. My group was one of those groups! whoo hoo!

In Character

1) Barbie always made little girls feel older. Barbie was their best friend; they could take here everywhere and she wouldn't complain or talk back. Barbie was a role-model for little girls; they aspired to be her! She however, was completely unproportional. If she were an actual size person, Barbie would have had a 36-inch waist, and a size 18 waist! Now they have made Barbie more to look like an actual person, more proportionate, and made her a better role model. Barbie has tried to stay "classy" while new characters are being introduced as a little more sexy.

2) Pollyanna was a girl who always had a good outlook on life. Some scholars say that the Pollyanna Principle is when you look for the bright side and hope for the best! Some people believe that her outlook on life is not able to fit into American society. Pollyanna hits a note in a lot of people as being the girl next door type. Also in the video when she fell and paralyzed herself, people thought that it was sad and yet could happen to everyone.

3) Tracy Turnblad from the movie and play Hairspray is a character that is important to our society because she never let anything get her down. She stands for equality of race and for people to be proud of who they are no matter what they look like big or small. People can admire her because she actually tries to be a good role model!

Well told stories!

Part one: In childhood stories are important because it helps expand your imagination! If a kid finds a story that they like, they want to have that story read to them repeatedly and they get a picture in their heads of what the story is about. Reading actual stories gets kids into the mode of reading and getting pictures in their head and having them remember things. Kids can also learn what to do and what not to do in certain situations.

Part two: People beyond high school read in order to expand their minds on many different topics and ideas. Also books give people something to explore and apply to their real life. Reading also gives people a hobby and lets them get into different genres.

Part three: Stories are important to our nation because it gets people into an escape from the real world and brings them into a life not like their own a lot of the time. As a national identity we are one of the most looked up to countries in the world and if we are educated we just look even better. Many stories written are controversial over the war, or are about a conflict that someone can relate to! Stories let people think about another world or even confront their own lives.

Part four: One of the stories I remember from childhood was a book called, Cocoa the Clown goes to the Circus. This story was written for me specially! It's about a clown and he takes me to a circus and I meet all of his circus friends. This story sticks out to me because it was written for me from my great grandmother, and it always makes me happy. I connect certain stories with certain people. For example; if I hear a story about a fire I am immediately taken back to the story my grandmother would tell me, when she was little she was in a fire and her mom died, and then she was put in an orphanage; the story goes on for so long.

Part five:
1) A conflict between to people
2) A personal conflict with the main character.
3) There should be a lot of dialogue
4) The ending should solve something and not left hanging, as if there is a sequel. (Some sequels are good but not most of them)
5) The characters should all have their own personalities that stand out.
6) I like stories when they are told in one perspective, such as first, but can switch to different people.
7) In stories it's nice to hear people's thoughts and not just see their actions.

Unpoetic

The beach is one of my favorite places in the world. Sitting in the sand looking at the water is the best thing ever. The only other thing that is even better than the beach is being on a boat in the middle of the ocean. My favorite vacation that I have ever been on was with my dad, my brother, and my aunt, uncle and cousins. We spent a week in the summer and just hung out on the boat in the ocean. We drove the boat to Miami, which took 6 hours; I, however, slept the whole time, because the sound of the motor makes me sleep. I have been on a boat since the day I got home from the hospital. My dad and I have the a special bond over boats and Florida. Every year we go to the boat show at the convention center in Minneapolis. We go and look at all the boats and look at the ones we would get if we didn't have a house. My dad and I would live on a boat if we could. Just being on the water is where I am at my happiest! On the water I forget all about my health problems, all about my friends, my family, and drama, and I can relax and breathe.

If I could just be in warm weather all the time it would be the best thing EVER!!!! I can't stand snow! It is so depressing. I don't understand why people want to visit the cold! I would much rather visit any place in the world that is sunny! In fact, I would love to go to Puerto Rico. My dad and I were talking about taking the boat all the way from Florida to Puerto Rico. It would be a long trip but worth it!!

poetry/ song

Beautiful Flower
India Arie

This is a song for every girl who’s ever been through something she thought she couldn't make it through
I sing these words because
I was that girl too
Wanting something better than this
But who do I turn to

Now we’re moving from the darkness into the light
This is the defining moment of our lives

Cause your beautiful like a flower
More valuable than a diamond
You are powerful like fire
You can heal the world with your mind

There is nothing in the world that you cannot do
When you believe in you
Who are beautiful
Yeah you who are brilliant
Yeah you who are powerful
Yeah you who are resilient

This is a song for every girl, who feels like she is not special
Cuz she don’t look like a supermodel coke bottle
The next time the radio tells you to shake your money maker
Shake your head and tell them, tell them you’re a leader

Now we’re moving from the darkness into the light
This is the defining moment of our lives

Cause your beautiful like a flower
More valuable than a diamond
You are powerful like a fire
You can heal the world with your mind

There is nothing in the world that you cannot do
When you believe in you
Who are beautiful
Yeah you who are brilliant
Yeah you who are powerful
Yeah you who are resilient
Yeah you who are beautiful
Yeah you who are brilliant
Yeah you who are powerful
Yeah you who are resilient

This song is for you
yeah you
this song is for you
yeah you
this song is for you
yeah you
yeah you
you are brilliant.

1) I selected this song because it gives a confidence to whoever reads it, that you are something and no one can hold you back.
2) I heard this song on Oprah one day and India Arie wrote it for the girls in Oprah's school in Africa. India let the girls in the school name it. The girls picked a good name, because every person is beautiful!!
3) This songs has a lot of metaphors: "More valuable than a diamond" and
"You are powerful like fire" These are metaphors because you are not a fire and you are not a diamond, but she adds a lot to the song by saying "diamond" and "fire" because they are such strong visuals. Those words could also bring in personification.
4) The tone of the piece is powerful. It brings a strength to the listeners. She succeeded in this by using powerful words.

the Kind of Writer I Am

1) I like writing about experiences that I have had. I like revisiting my life in different ways. I also take experiences that my friends have had and I twist them in my head and make a story out of it. I don't really writing outside of school just because I don't really have the time. I like the topics that are realistic and they could possibly happen. One of my favorite books I have ever read is The Dashwood Sister's Secrets of Love. It is one of those stories that everyone can relate too. The story is of three sisters whose life is turned upside down by losing someone close to them, and they must move away from the house, school and friends they love. However, in the new town the three girls all have these different experiences with love. It just amazes me how people so close can be so different, have the same tragedy happen to them, and how they all act so differently.

2) Writing Territories= childhood words
during my childhood I spent a lot of my time traveling between my mom, in Florida, and my dad, in Minnesota. I have been doing the same thing every week since i was 5 traveling between my mom and my dad. I had always been in warm weather, in Florida or the summers with my nannies. I have had about 6 nannies that I can remember. We had nannies because my dad worked all the time and so in order for us not to go crazy my dad got us people to take us swimming or to the parks. I loved always being in the sun, and I still do. Which i think is why one of my other words is warm weather. I never really was in the snow except for a week during winter break. I still, to this day, would rather be in the sun in the middle of the ocean on a boat.

Toward the Future/From the Past

1)I did not like how we had to write each persons name and then the way they were supposed to say something. However, I liked the fact that there was not a whole bunch of descriptions of things. I sometimes get lost in those kinds of stories, where there is too much description not enough dialouge. I liked that it was all dialouge. I found it suprising how easy it was to write the play as a whole. However, it was difficult to write what the characters were thinking and showing how they should be speaking and acting. I don't think that I tould ever write a play or anything remotely close to it because you can't get across what the characters are thinking and that is the best part of books.

2) I would tell a ten year old that they should make promises to themselves and then keep them. From my personal experience; I had made a promise to myself that I would not drink through out high school. I had been really good with that promise. Into my junior year i started getting sick. After they finally figured out what was wrong, my doctor told me that along with eating habits, and monitoring my blood pressure, I cannot drink alot. Now I am only a senior but I had already planned on not drinking but his health scare just made it planted into my head even more. I have seen many people give up on their own promises to make other people happy. I know that if someone does not accept my own values then they are not worth my time.

3) I think the reason that Jane Austen's stories are still considered the best is because her stories are timeless; you know the boy meets girl, boy falls in love with girl, and they live happily ever after. I cannot see myself writing a story that last as long as Austen's because hers was the first and every writer wants to be the next great romantic writer. However there is only the select few who make it.

Theme in writing

1. How important is theme in what you write? Does a great piece of literature need to express an idea? Explain your thoughts on the matter using examples from things you've read. In your response, address the opposing viewpoint. (Write at least 100 words.)
I believe that there should be a theme to a story. The theme doesn't have to be siad straight out, but it can be an underlying thought provoking story, that makes you think about the theme. Some people say that a story can be written so it can just be a story. Yes, this is true but the stories usually relate to someone is someway, and that makes people think. I love relating to a story, because then it makes me think about my life. A story's theme is to try to relate to people and that's what good stories do; relate to people's real life.

2. What might be a theme that you'd consider communicating through your play. It could be a theme about something that concerns you (think back to what you wrote in your first blog), a theme about something you see socially or politically. It could be a theme about anything else. Write about that theme and why it is important to you? (Write at least 100 words).
A theme I would write about would be friendships. This theme of friends/ friendships is important to me because my friendships are one of the most important things to me. I have seen way too many friendships/ relationships lost. Those friends can be lost over the dumbest things. In my theme it would show the importance of friends and how they can shape who you are and what you become. This relates to everyone because even the most shy person has that ONE friend that they can go to and talk to when things get hard.


3. What is one conflict you write about in your play. Generate some ideas for conflicts you could write about. This may or may not be connected to potential themes. (Write at least 75 words)
A conflict I would write about would be a person-person conflict. It would deal with two people having a problem with a bunch of other people or even just one other person. I would also have an internal conflict with a main character feeling insecure about one specific thing. The characters would all have their own way of dealing with conflict. But in they way that they deal it somehow related to another character.