My Writing

I think my writing has dramatically improved from the beginning of this semester. Something that really brought me down in my writing was that I used to get terrible writers block and now that's not a problem for me. Practice makes perfect and from all the essays that I have had to write, my writing has become a lot better. I have learned how to organize my thoughts and bring them together for a well thought out essay. There's no sign that I have found that shows that my writing could be any weaker. The more I tend to do something the more I enjoy it and become better at it overall.

Group Editing

Peer group editing can be either a hit or miss. In the class, it depends on the students and how hard they are willing to work. If you have a class full of bozos who don't want to do any work and write crappy essays just because they want to then you will get a peer editing group just sitting around talking about sports or the weather. If you have a willing class, however, that wants to learn and progress in their writing, you will find that the peer group editing is very sucessful. Another good trait for students to have when editing eachother's papers is honesty. Being able to be honest and come right out and say this paper sucks or you need to re-do this whole paragraph is mandatory for a sucessful editing process.

Horror Movies

Personally, I love horror movies. I love them because it is unlikely for me to come across a serial killer, shark, 50 ft. anaconda or ghost. I like to be thrilled and scared but I don’t get scared after watching one of the new Hollywood horrors because they are not real. Recently, I saw Paranormal Activities, twice. I highly recommend seeing this movie, it’s amazing. It’s a less graphic version of The Exorcist and leaves you scared with just your imagination. There are a lot of things in Paranormal Activities that leave you hanging on your seat to only come up with in your head what things look like or what could actually be happening. For example, the writer told you it was not human nor a ghost but that it was a demon and shows foot prints that look like ancient dinosaurs but never shows what it actually looks like. I love letting my imagination wonder and not knowing what the “bad thing” is. In the movie Signs, M. Night Shyamalan showed exactly what the alien looked like in the end which I believe was a huge mistake because it would have been 10 times scarier. Horror films are entertaining for me and show my imagination things that in real life I would never get to see.

CCR

Whenever I hear “Bad Moon Rising” by Creedence Clearwater Revival a detailed memory is triggered. I remember being 6 years old at a party in the basement of my old house in North Stamford. It was in the house that my grandpa had built and when he passed away, my family moved into it. It was 2 floors and not big and tall but very wide. It was made of dark blue shingles and brick. The basement was the size of the whole house and our sound system for it took an entire one of the walls. It had red floors which I think were painted concrete and it also had a bar in the corner. During one of the parties that my parents threw every once and a while I remember running around with my friends and playing Barbies. There were people everywhere, all of them were having a great time and wore a smile. I remember distinctly looking up at all of the grown-ups dancing around and hearing an album by CCR come on. “Bad Moon Rising” will always remind me of that basement and scampering around on the red floors.

My paper

I wrote an essay on how outside forces impact the way people look at themselves. After reading it I decided that I am pretty satisfied with the content. The grammar, however, I think could use a little revision. I feel it was a very honest essay an relatively revealing to my personal life but it was all in the effort to really put across the message that people should be happy the way they are.

Body Art

People get tattoos and piercings as a form of self expression or for religious reasons. Piercings are an opportunity for people to wear jewelry in any place on their body rather than just the normal ones. Some people take it really extreme and get their whole face pierced because they think that it look unique. That’s the whole theory behind them though, people want to be different. Recently I got my nose pierced and I love it because it’s not something that everyone has. Personally I like piercings more than tattoos because they don’t have to stay with you if you don’t want them to. Someone going for a job interview can take out their nose piercing but they can’t simply peel off the butterfly tattoo on their neck. Some people are really dumb when it comes to tattoos such as getting them when they are drunk because they think it looks cool or if they are under pressure and trying to rebel. Those people are probably already regretting it. For the most part people get tattoos for self expression and the way it makes them feel. They love something so much and are so passionate about it that they want it drawn on their body forever and for the whole world to see. People may get tattoos for their religion, babies, marriage, deceased loved ones, or any big event in their life.

Cosmetic Surgery

At this point in my life, being a freshman in college, I have no reason to throw any money away on cosmetic surgery. If I was ever to get any cosmetic surgery it would be after I graduate college and have a steady income that could fully support it without any issues. Someone I know has had a nose job in the past year and to be honest, I think she looked better before she had it done. It was an insecurity she had her whole life, however, and it reflected in her self confidence. She was very shy and never came out of her shell until after the surgery. It was an unnecessary procedure however because she could have just came to terms with her nose and been happy. That is something that I have done and I have very high confidence. Basically, I think cosmetic surgery is a waste of time and money.

My Impression of Cluture and Ethnicity

My impression of culture and ethinicity growing up was pretty much like any other white, female, American. I didn't have too many traditions growing up in my family except for the birthday parties or holiday gatherings where everyone sat down to eat chicken paprikash and spaetzle. I was raised in north Stamford and had little knowings of people being different than me. My parents always had friends over who were different than us and I would play with their kids and we never judged eachother. When you're little you don't see people as different colors or not coming from the same background as you. Everyone is equal when you're a kid. In preschool we all played together and all the way through middle school everyone was able to get along. It wasn't until high school that people started to branch of and stick to hanging out with people that they had the most in common with. I'm not saying that I wouldn't associate with people who weren't white with brown hair and blue eyes, or the girl with red hair wouldn't talk to anyone that didn't have red hair, but for the majority everyone stuck to hanging out with people that they had the most in common with from where they came from or what they believed in. Mature high schoolers would branch off AT LEAST in school but some wouldn't even look at someone they thought wasn't worthy of their time. Personally, I never stuck to hanging out with one "group" of people. My friends were always scrambled, even from different schools and if I were to throw a party no one would even really know anyone else. I think it's because thinking back on my morals that my parents set in me growing up and the fact that they never told me that one person was different than the other had a huge impact on the way I chose my friends. My parents never told me that anyone was any different than the other and that's what I plan on doing with my kids as well.

(Journal # 1) Pop Culture for Composition

Cars, clothes, fashion, designers, art, movies, music, life today... You could go up to anyone on the street and ask them what they think the latest or hottest trend is in one of those topics and I bet a million dollars they could give you a straight answer being their opinion as to what they believe is the "it" thing. That's pop culture. As said in Mirror on America, pop culture studies are just that - popular. It's a great theme for composition and no one can deny that. There's nothing better than writing about what's a "hit" today. Everyone has opinions and pop culture is easily a top of the charts opinionated subject. However, I think some people may over analyze it too much because in the book Mirror on America it is said that someone has their Ph.D in Pretty in Pink... I'm not sure if you can go very far in your career with that. An opinion is a very valued thing for everyone to have and writing about pop culture is the simplest way of standing your ground for legalization for example.