Last outside event

Thank God I made this final outside event. This was my second to attend at the otherlands coffee house thing and it was so much better than the last because this one was not about gay fantasies. The reader this time was a woman whose name escapes me now. Anyways, she read a narrative story about a sculpture in mid-town. The sculpture was described as a large globe with the oceans just as holes in the sculpture. She tells about the man who created the sculpture. The sculptor had to put a support on the sculpture so that it would stand. He did not want it to just be a support he wanted it to tie into the piece. So he made it a small glass globe with three wax babies inside. The wax babies melted and were mutated. He thought it helped the piece even more because it show how fragile the earth is.

Snow

I cannot wait until it actually snows in Memphis. We need more than one day of snow too because that is cheating. All my friends up in Knoxville and Chattanooga have been talking about how they have been walking to class in the snow and throwing snowballs and just having a gay ole time. I want to walk to class in the snow and possibly get a couple of snow days. That would be real cool. I know as soon as january and february roll around we will get some weak frost and some snow that will not stick. When we do have snow that does stick, it turns into ice and sucks real bad because ice balls hurt. I'm moving to Canada for the winter.

Operation Repo

Operation Repo on TruTV has turned into one of my favorite shows within the first two episodes of watching it. The show is about this group of people who repossess automobiles. The best art of it is the massive white guy, Matt. He is super jacked and has the worst temper I have ever seen. They pretty much go around trying to piss off the people that they are taking the cars from. The victims are mad already and they just instigate and make it worse. So this Matt guy tackles and beats the crap out of guys that he instigated. The violence is completely unnecessary which makes it even more hilarious. The stupid people with their cars being repossessed try to fight back against this huge white dude. They have made the dumbest decision of their lives.

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels

This past Sunday I went to see the musical "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels". It was being performed in St. Benedict High School's auditorium. I knew many of the students in the cast, so I decided to go watch how they did and see what this play was all about. I hadn't heard anything about the play before I went. The play begins in a casino with a man tricking a woman into giving him money . This man, Lawrence, later sees a man on a train who is also tricking a woman out of her money. His name is Freddy. Freddy is envious of Lawrence and wants him to teach him his ways. After a while, they decide that the town isn't big enough for the both of them. They make a deal that who ever tricks a woman out of $50,000 first got to stay in town. Freddy pretends to be paralyzed and needs $50,000 for rehabilitation. The doctor turns out to be Lawrence. They try to trip each other while both trying to get this woman's money. In the end the woman is the one who is scamming both of them, and she manages to make off with the $50,000.

Visiting Parents

Visiting your parents house after not being there for a while is the best. They are so happy to see you first of all. Second of all you do not have to do anything. cooking gets old, especially when your only cooking for yourself. Parents cook the best food that you have had in what seems like years. I am used to chef boyardee and ramen noodles. When I can afford it I splurge for some skinless boneless chicken breasts to grill. When I get home I can eat brownies, cookies, steaks, and the first green vegetables I have eaten since the last time I visited. When home I don't have to worry about washing my clothes: my mom does it because she misses me. I am also taken out to dinner a lot when I come home. Sushi is my favorite. This Thanksgiving I did get really good leftovers though so I will have some delicious thanksgiving food to eat. I will probably go eat some now actually...

You know what really grinds my gears?

People who are way too good at online gaming. I get on as a recreational user and enjoy to play some Halo or Call of Duty. These guys take video games way too serious. They get on their little microphones to talk crap when everyone knows in real life that they could never back it up. Just because they like to stay inside all day and play video games only proves that they are good at being anti-social. When is being good at video games going to get you anywhere in life? never unless your so good that you somehow get to be a professional gamer. Not likely. So stop kidding yourselves and get out in the real world. Then talk crap to somebody and see what happens. Your going to get knocked out. Especially those twelve year olds who like to get on and talk crap for some reason.

Mrs. Rebecca Skloot visited our class last week to talk about her articles for the New York Times. She writes mostly about things that have to do with the field of Biology or animal medicine. We had prepared many questions for her about her background and other questions about some of her writing. She is publishing a book on Henrietta Lacks. Henrietta was a black woman who died of cancer. Scientists have used her cancer cells to find many vaccines for diseases. The most important vaccine so far has been the polio vaccine. Rebecca talked about what it was like to be a writer and how important it was for a scientist to also be a good writer. I enjoyed her question and answer session and I look forward to reading her book next semester.

Thanksgiving break is coming up and we have class until wednesday. I feel like we should have wednesday off because students from out of town have no time to get back to their hometown for the holidays. If they plan to get back there they will possibly have to catch a plane because a long drive right before thanksgiving may be a bit hectic. The roads are always packed over the holidays and there is inevitable traffic. I am looking forward to thanksgiving most just to get a break from schoolwork. I am so sick of going to lectures every day only to get a ton of homework dropped on me so I have to spend the rest of my day doing the homework. I want some me time already. Some professors need to realize that we have families and friends and everything is not all about school all the time.

uhhhh....

alright so I went to the outside event tonight at The Otherlands Coffee bar. Jonathan May and Emily Thrash were reading their poetry and short nonfiction pieces. First of all... What the fuck was that all about?! Pardon my French but that was by far the most uncomfortable I have ever been. I did not hear much of Emily's writing but Jonathan's was a little... homosexual. Don't get me wrong, I could care less if people are gay, but putting what he put down on paper should be illegal. He was talking about giving his bisexual friend blow jobs while they were on cocaine and acid trips. I am not sure how honest you all want me to be but I will stop there. To say the least, it got worse. I went with Alex and we could not even look around the room because this guy was saying the most ridiculous things. As far as the venue goes, it was a small room with a couple futons and tables. There were different chairs set up all facing the speakers who were behind a table. The walls were covered in sheet metal and paintings. It seemed like a very liberal part of town where a lot of artists and aspiring writers lived. By far the weirdest experience of my life. Wow....

You know what really grinds my gears?

Cereal box toys.

When I was younger I would always have my mom buy the cereal with the sweetest toy. Even now I buy the colorful cereal boxes but they don't always have toys in them anymore. When I do find ones with toys, I am always disappointed with what I find lurking in the bottom of the bag. The cereal companies make the toys look so cool, but they always end up sucking. They cant chip in a little bit more money to give a toy that is worth a damn. I want some freaking matchbox cars that I can take off sick jumps and stuff. I don't want some stupid "decoder ring" that does absolutely nothing. It decodes nothing. There is no secret message that i really need to know. There are no x-ray specs that actually work. The 3-D glasses are a joke. I can get a piece of red plastic and a piece of blue plastic and put them over my eyes and it will have the same effect. If they are going to put a toy in a box make it worthwhile. Don't waste my time with the crap you put in there. I don't want to dig to the bottom to be disappointed anymore. I've just now decided that I am done buying cereal because of the empty promises of cool toys.

When they do promise something cool, you have to buy like fifty boxes and send in the box tops. NO thats not even worth it. I want to talk to the owners of these companies.

Registration

Well, today was the first day to register for spring classes. It is pretty annoying going through the whole process because we had to find classes that fit into our schedule, and didn't conflict with other classes. My biggest problem was finding classes that didn't conflict with the classes i had already signed up for. Overall I am happy with my class selection. I am not looking forward to taking chemistry and biology in the same semester, both with supplementary labs. I did not get the math that I wanted to take, so I had to substitute in World Civilization I. I think I will enjoy the history class, because that interested me in high school.

Inglorious Bastards

Over the weekend I watched the movie "Inglorious Bastards" illegally on the internet. It start Brad Pitt who plays the leader of a small behind enemy lines battalion. The story takes place in Nazi Germany in the 1940s. The most interesting part of the film was the way in which it was presented. It was directed by Quentin Tarantino. Tarantino directs his films in mostly the same way. He breaks the plot down into chapters. In each chapter, you meet different characters in different settings. In the end all the characters end up meeting. In this particular movie, the characters meet up and come up with a plot to kill Hitler. I will not give up the ending, but it is a good movie. In my opinion, Brad Pitt is best when he plays a somewhat comedic role. In this movie he is pretty funny and to top it all off he is a moonshine bootlegger from the hills of Tennessee.

You know what really grinds my gears?

messy roommates...

I have recently moved in with a couple of my buddies from high school. We live in a house just off campus. I have known these two for four years, and I thought we would have a great time. After the first few weeks it was great and I didn't really care if something bothered me. After a few months of living with it I am beginning to go crazy. Is it really that difficult to clean up after yourself? I mean you can leave one or two dishes in the sink, but if you never clean them up then they pile up and begin to stink. Then I cant use the sink when I need it and I have to end up cleaning it for him. Then when i tell him to clean up after himself he just tells me that i'm bitching at him. I am about ready to knock his face in. Obviously he was just raised in a messy house and likes to live in a pig sty, I don't know. All I know is that once my room began to smell like mildew and ass I would start to realize what a damn slob I am. I would probably feel bad if my roommate constantly cleaned up after me, but that is just me, maybe I am just a nice guy. Next time the dishes start to pile up in the sink you can bet they will make it to his bed so I can use tha damn sink. I could go on for days, but I am done for the week.

introduction to paper

Back in the early nineteen hundreds, my grandfather, Donald Simon Sr., visited a lake in the Adirondack Mountains in upstate New York with a friend. He camped there numerous times after that and fell in love with the mountains. When he had some money saved up, Donald bought a piece of property on that same lake. My father was raised on that lake, and I was also brought up on the lake. Ever since I was a small boy, nature amazed me. I continuously questioned my father about the mountains, and the animals that inhabited them. I also enjoyed fishing and was always studying the species that lived in the lake. I could experience deer, black bear, coyote, beaver, porcupine, and countless other species first hand.

When I got to high school and took my first Biology course I knew what I wanted to study in college. Biology is known as the study of living organisms, and that is what I have been interested in since I was so intrigued by everything I experienced growing up in the Adirondack Mountains. Although I no longer live in upstate New York, I visit the cabin every summer to hike, fish, and observe the natural beauty of the region. I decided that I would like to teach or work for the government in a state or national park. I want to teach because I would like to see future generations enjoy the natural world and hopefully preserve it.

After enrolling in college, I have learned that biology is not only about the larger organisms that I am so interested in. Biology includes the living things down to the cellular level. Everything living is composed of cells. Inside of those cells are many organelles and the nucleus. DNA runs these cells and determines what the larger organism will look like and what species it will be a part of. Every living thing has its own unique DNA code, even members of the same species. For this reason, governments have recently been using DNA profiles to fight crime. Anyone taken into custody has a DNA sample taken of him or her, which will become part of a growing National DNA Database (NDNAD). The NDNAD had sparked a large controversy because of an apparent violation of constitutional rights. However, the database is also receiving a large group of supporters because of its ability to help solve crimes.

The required "Works in Progress Symposium" was today and I was impressed, but also baffled. The first presentation I was impressed by because it dealt with food. The second presentation however, went way over my head. I was very impressed with the ideas coming out of the University of Memphis. I am not sure if these were grad students or just seniors but they had some patentable ideas. The first presentation was about the presentation of pureed food. The second was about evidence that a new electronic device for Parkinson’s disease is beneficial to patients.

As I have previously stated, the pureed food presentation was really interesting. The presenters each challenged themselves to make pureed food more presentable. They were also trying to make the protein content higher. Pureed food is like regular food but thrown in a blender and blended into a mush. It literally looks like throw up. It does taste like the food that it was before it was blended though. These researchers showed that the visual appeal greatly influences the way the eater tastes the food.

The students chose different ways to prepare their pureed food. The female chose to puree chicken stir-fry. She blended each of the ingredients separately and shaped them into their original shape. She then froze them. When she heated them up after freezing, they retained their shape and it looked like an actual stir-fry. The man chose to puree a sandwich. His did not turn out as well. He also pureed each of the ingredients separately and froze them into sheets. He thawed the frozen sheets and rolled them into what looked like a burrito. It was not as appetizing as the stir-fry but results showed it tasted like the real thing, not to mention it was not a blob of mush anymore.

The second presentation was tough to follow. The woman mainly used medical terms that were way over my head. From what I understood, she was improving on an already existing technology. Her improved version would not require as much invasive surgery as the existing product does. She used a lot of other fancy medical experimental terms, but it was all about the same subject, so I zoned out.

You know what really grinds my gears?

eHarmony commercials. If you have a TV, you have seen at least fifty of these. They come on the commercial with that white background with their newfound "soulmate" and you see them hanging all over each other laughing. What's funny? I would really like to hear the joke one of them just told because it seems like a real riot. Then they come on saying "I never thought I would find anyone, but then I tried eHarmony, and looky looky what I got now." First of all, if your on a dating website like that, then you will pretty much take anything they throw at you anyways. Of course your going to get along with the person. They are doing the same thing you are. They can't find anyone in real life so when they get matched up with someone they believe that this is "the one" based on a stupid compatibility test. Really? Yeah, I think I will let a computer analyze my answers and tell me who I am compatible with. No, that is dumb and I do not believe that for one second. How many people even really get matched up and married anyways? They probably come out with a new commercial every time someone does to make it seem like a lot. Out of the countless people on that dating site the only ones that have gotten married are the ones they have made a commercial about. GARBAGE! stop making commercials to waste my life and make everybody dumber.

"Scholarly article"

This is one of the few Scholarly articles I found that I did not have to have a subscription to read, and it turned out to be very helpful. Although it talks a lot about the DNA database in Wales and the UK, it shows what it could become in the United States. I think the U.S. could learn from what other countries have done wrong with their DNA databases and make one that is a lot more fair. I liked what it had about the retention of children's DNA samples, and the samples of people that were acquitted of all charges. I think it will help me provide a good argument for the anti-databasing, which was what I have been looking for.

genewatch

The movie we watched in class last thursday was about tracing the paths of human populations out of Africa. It showed us that we all come from the first human who was from Africa. National Geographic took DNA samples from a large number of people from Queens, New York. From these DNA samples, they took the .01 % difference in different races and traced them back to the first human. Then, they showed when and what path a particular group took out of Africa to inhabit the rest of the world. They also showed how certain races are related, and where and what time they merged in history. I thought it was very interesting to see how we all are actually related from a very distant ancestor. I'd like to find out what path my ancestors took out of Africa and where they ended up.

Computer Assisted Ordering

Computer Assisted Ordering (CAO) is used by retailers that carry large quantities of products to help keep track of the number of goods in stock. It is used with a barcode scanner that has items in a super market stored in its database. It is useful because it automatically generates and sends item orders to a wholesale vendor. What that means is, the program can notice when the store running out of a product and automatically send that information to the manufacturer or other vendor that holds large abundance of every product. It makes for a lot of saved time and labor hours to employees. I was interested in the inner workings of CAO, so I asked expert, Ashley Livingston, for some insights.

Ashley is a veteran Kroger employee who has been using the system for years. To scan the items she uses what they call a “RF Gun” which is a hand-held, battery-operated scanner. When an item is scanned, it comes up on the screen of the RF Gun and lists the information of that particular product. The screen shows the product name, balance of product on hand, minimum number of product that must be kept on the shelf, number of products per bulk box, number of the product the shelf can hold, and the status report of the product. When asked the difficulty of use of the CAO program, Ashley responded, “It is really not too difficult it only took a few weeks to learn.”

With such ease of use, it is no wonder that the majority of supermarkets use it. It saves the company time and money, which can obviously boost profits. Also, with everything being electronic, there is no room for human error. Therefore, a company is never low on product that is in demand by its customers.

You know what really grinds my gears?

I have decided to do a "You Know What Really Grinds My Gears?" section for blog followers, one in particular (Spamma).

18 Wheeler drivers. These guys are freakin crazy... I was on my way back from knoxville today for reasons i wont say and these assholes think they are Gods gift to the damn road. What they do is get right in front of you to pass another big rig which is going even slower. Then they just kind of linger there going 10 miles under the speed limit while a line of cars builds up behind them. Hey, I have got somewhere to go buddy is what I tell them, but are they listening... nope. There are up there on their high horse all meth-ed out with no teeth and they look down on you like they are mad your passing them. HEY your going like fifteen miles an hour on the high way big shot why don't you turn your ugly face away from my car.

Thats what really grinds my gears.

As technologies advance, more and more problems seem to come about. Critics say some of the newest advances in science are causing people to play God, invade people’s privacy, or even own parts of human bodies. There has always been great controversy over new scientific discoveries. People do not want to change traditions or beliefs that that have been part of a culture for generations. DNA databases are one of these new scientific breakthroughs. A DNA database is a government database of DNA profiles of citizens. These databases are used by law enforcement officials to solve crimes. Many people are for continued use of the DNA catalogs to solve sexual assault and rape crimes. However, there are also some cons to their use. Once complete, the databases will be used to profile numerous innocent people. Once a gene is located that can be traced to committing crimes, it will not be long before the government is playing big brother. People for the DNA databases are comforted by the safety it guarantees while people opposed to them are concerned with their right to privacy.

A pro to the DNA database is the number of crimes it helps solve. In the United Kingdom, where they have a database in place, DNA testing has been credited with solving up to 60 percent of major old crimes. It is also being praised because it can free the innocent and wrongly convicted.

People against using the DNA database are worried about the abuse of it, and the possible constitutional violation. Many are worried that unauthorized persons will be able to access the database if it does not have proper safeguards. It is believed that genetic discrimination will occur. Life insurance companies could access the database and raise premiums based on a person’s susceptibility to certain diseases.

http://www.bc.edu/bc_org/avp/law/lwsch/journals/bciclr/24_2/05_TXT.htm

WEBSITE

I found this website and thought it was interesting. It is a transcript of a radio show from Australia with reporters and the UK detective superintendent. In the show they talk about how Australia is implementing a DNA database as well. It seems that this database idea is really catching on around the world. The United States will probably be the last large country to begin to use because of our privacy laws. However, I think that we will end up using it because of the efficiency with which it solves crimes. I doubt I will use this source in my final paper but is helpful in pointing out the real controversy over the matter.

A clockwork orange?

I'm not sure if anyone has seen the movie "A Clockwork Orange" or not but it is by far one of the weirdest movies I have ever seen. It was released in 1971 and is set in england. It is about a delinquent 14 year old who goes around raping and beating people. He finally gets caught and sent to jail where he pretends to be reformed. Because of his good behavior, the government preforms tests on him. The testes are teaching him to be sick whenever he sees violence or sexual crimes committed. In the end the kid ends up killing himself because people subject him to violence to the point where he cannot stand it anymore. It was an extremely tough movie to follow and i think the producers were tripping acid when they made it. If you want to watch a movie that will keep you interested i suggest "A Clockwork Orange".

Anthropology.

So the assignment we have to turn in for anthropology class requires us to answer each of the nine questions with 200 words or more. I do not think Hicks has thought about how difficult it is to write 200 words on anything, given the limited information we were supplied with. The questions that are from the film have no way of being answered in 200 words. The film talks about the question for maybe a minute in a half and does not even answer all of it. I don;t think she is very strict about the word count thought because my last paper didn't have enough words to answer all the questions and I still got a good grade on it. Let's see if i can slide another one by.

More DNA database

http://www.genewatch.org/sub-537968

This is a link to a website about the laws regarding DNA data basing in the United kingdom. It is basically a timeline showing the major events concerning the use of DNA in crime solving. It shows the progression of laws, and how the police have been receiving more and more power. I think it will be useful in my paper as a reference to the laws of taking DNA samples and how they have changed over the years. It is also interesting because you can notice how the science behind the taking of DNA samples had improved over the years. As scientists discovered new ways to take and use samples, legislation had to come up with more restrictions.

Probably one of the funniest pictures ever, had to show somebody haha

Exam jitters

Our first chemistry test was scheduled for friday the 9th. I had studied fairly sufficiently, and I was ready to get it over with. The whole class was sitting and waiting for Dr. Freilich to come in to give us the test. We waited and waited. Thirty minutes later, one of the other chemistry professors came in to tell us that Dr. Freilich had decided to leave town for the weekend. The TA he asked did not show up, and everyone was excited that we did not have to take the exam. Now that monday rolled around, everyone was freaking out again. The exam turned out to be fairly easy actually. A lot of worrying for nothing it seemed.

DNA database

So I was searching around on the internet and found a gold mine of information on my evaluation topic. I have chosen to write about the DNA database and found a full report on it. It is located at http://www.genewatch.org/uploads/f03c6d66a9b354535738483c1c3d49e4/NationalDNADatabase.pdf. It is loaded down with content but I will be able to draw a lot of information from here. Unfortunately you need more than one source because it can't really reflect the ideas of only one paper. However, in the pdf file it gives the sources that were used to write that paper. Maybe if I use the sources cited in the pdf I will only have to use that one site. I am planning on showing both sides of the DNA database argument and why people are either for or against it. The people for it like it because of the feeling of safety. The people against it are concerned with their right to privacy.

Evaluation essay

After looking over the three topics for the evaluation essay, I have decided to write about the DNA database. I feel like that is the most controversial of the three, and might greater affect our culture in the long run. Even though I Would like to share my opinion on the database, I will not be able to because of the nature of an analytical essay. I was debating wether or not to write about the designer babies also. I was interested in it because it could lead to discrimination once and if it became mainstream. However, I did not think it would be legal to alter a baby's characteristics for long. I think it will be legal only to check for diseases. The DNA database it extremely controversial because everyone is worried about their right to privacy. Also, I would be very worried about the profiling of innocent people. It is going to be interesting to research this subject more thoroughly.

Chemistry

This Friday is our first chemistry exam. I am a bit nervous about it because I really do not like chemistry and haven't really caught on to all of what we are studying right now. I plan to look over the Chemistry all week to better understand what is going on in the class. I am also going to attend a the chemistry help center at least on time this week. The thing I am most worried about is finishing the test during a class period. We have covered so much material that I do not know how much or exactly what will be asked on the test. The lab this week will not help me finish the right amount of studying that I really want to do. I wish the work load would calm down a little bit so I can catch up on everything. We had better not have homework over fall break or I will kill someone.

Streetcar

The play "A Streetcar Named Desire" was written by Tennessee Williams. I had read this play last year so I knew already what was to happen. Either way, it is an interesting play and I am glad I had a chance to see it actually acted out. The story goes that Stanley and Stella are married, and Stella comes from a wealthy background while Stanley does not. They live in New Orleans. Stella's, sister, Blanche comes into town who we find out later has shaky moral values. Stanley is suspicious of Blanche when his good friend begins a romance with her. Stanley finds out Blanche was getting a little freaky with a seventeen year old student back in her hometown and they kicked her out of town basically. Stella is pregnant and has a child and Blanche begins to go crazy. They have Blanche committed to a mental hospital, and the play ends. That was a short, sweet, and to the point rundown of the plot.

So, I went to my first outside event this past week on tuesday. It was Mike McCarthy speaking about his new film and his views on pop culture. He is an interesting man. He began by saying that the golden age of American pop culture died with the death of Elvis. This may be true or it may not, I do not really know because I'm not really into pop culture myself. The underlying message behind what he was saying was good however. He told his life story about coming from a small town in Mississippi and not knowing he was adopted until much later in life. He dropped out of first grade, but came back to graduate highschool. He has really been in the underground film industry and is not making very much money at it. He says he loves what he does though so it does not matter how much money he makes. I thought that was the message he was trying to get across besides promoting his films.

Observation topic?

I have decided to do my observation report on a Catholic mass. I figured that not too many people around here are catholic and there are many rumors that I have heard about the Catholic faith. These rumors might need to be cleared up. So, I am going to go into mass with a pencil and paper and observe the priest and really pay attention to the details that I have not looked very closely at before. Hopefully, I can enlighten people with the truth about Catholics. Mass is not really something people get excited about either way, but it never hurts to understand what is going on in other religions because it makes people more accepting and less prejudiced towards people. Prejudice stems from people not understanding things and maybe even being afraid of them.

I feel like education can function as a little of both. Once the younger generation gets educated, they can then understand the social norms and choose wether or not to continue with them. They can also choose to be free from the norms of of the older generation. They can break free and experience things and create things that an older generation has never thought to do or experience. Every generation has their mark that they leave on the world and that they are known for. I think that if these generations were not educated, they would not be able to develop their new ideas and thoughts about the world.

In my life, religion has played a very large role. I was brought up Catholic and attended mass every sunday. I went to a Catholic high school and was required to take a religion class. We also went to mass during school once a week. I also love to learn new things and experience new ideas. I particularly like biology, and the Theory of evolution has done nothing to draw me away from my faith. I know that people can choose to believe what they want to believe, but my roots are too deep into the Catholic faith to believe that there is simply no higher being. I am very open to the idea that evolution happens (and it does happen), but with the help of this higher being, or God. I refuse to just think that everything happens by complete coincidence.

So, in class today we forced Bobby and Elliot to sit face to face and have a conversation with each other while we all watched and took notes on what they were saying. Right off the bat you could tell that Elliot was extremely uncomfortable and I felt bad because I would have been too. Before long, Bobby was feeling quite anxious himself and began to look around the room. I have to hand it to Bobby he handled the pressure well and kept the conversation going even while Elliot was a bit unresponsive and answering his questions with one word answers. Of course eventually, everybody runs out of things to say if the other person is giving them nothing to feed off of. When the whole class was feeling bad for the two of them (or maybe it was the boredom), a few willing individuals began to talk to the two of them sitting in the middle of the room. I kept out of it to keep observing. The worst part was that I wanted to talk and add on to their conversation because the topics brought up had some potential, and I had some personal experiences that I wanted to throw in.

When I first watched the short movie "A Typical Conversation with my Mother" in class, i noticed all the things that people notice when they are just watching and not really observing. But each time I watched it I noticed more and more. The difference when I watched it at home was that I started to relate things being said in the clip to things that happen to me in real life. For example, my mom likes to put celery in her tuna fish and she constantly does it when I have told her I hate celery being in there. When the mother comments about getting a jacket for later I immediately thought of how my mom gets cold very easily and never forgets to bring jacket if we are going out, even in the summer. When I was home watching it with my eyes closed, I began to visualize what was happening on the screen at the time the words were playing. I could see the pictures in my head that went along with that part of the movie. In class I was too involved in writing things down and trying to pick out small details to actually listen the way I did at my house.

I don't know if it is just me but Dr. Freilich out Chemistry teacher is a nut. These first few weeks of class he has come into class five minute slate each day and yells at us for not being prepared. I swear this guy is on something. Also, all these things that are supposed to be "review" from high school are not really review. My Chemistry teacher in high school did not teach us much of what we are flying through in Freilich's class. So, naturally I'm a little behind. It may have been that my high school chemistry class went over it, but that was over two years ago now. How many people can remember things as detailed as stoichometry for over two years? I will tell you. Not many. So Dr. Freilich no offense but COOL IT MAN. Your class is not the only class in the world and we have enough on our plates already.

This past weekend I watched the UT Volunteers play the UCLA Bruins in football. My favorite team is the Volunteers so naturally I was pulling for them to win. It started off looking fairly good for the Vols but the quarterback, Jonathan Crompton, who played awfully last year showed his true colors once again after having and amazing first game against WKU Hill-toppers. Crompton decided it would be fun to throw three interceptions on consecutive drives ultimately blowing the game for the Vols. However, I cannot blame it all on Crompton, because the standout freshman, Bryce Brown, did not look like the player he as made out to be either. Overall, it was a disappointing weekend for Big Orange Country.

Anecdote:

As a junior on my high school baseball team I was put through the most rigorous conditioning training I or anyone else i know has been a part of. Our conditioning coach was literally cut from the same cloth as the likes of Hitler or Stalin. We were out in the sleet and ice cold rain the entire fall and winter until the spring season. All of this was apparently to make us a better team.

What it says about me:

It shows that I can work hard when it i necessary and I will get the job done no matter the circumstances.

What it says about me that is different than what I want?

It might seem that I am complaining about the severity of the conditioning. However, after talking to friends on other baseball teams from other schools I feel that I am entitled to my complaints. I do not want it to look like I was not up to the challenge.

How can people identify?

Most people have had to endure an intense workout regimen for a sport or something that they are training for. If people want to attain a well conditioned physical state it take hard work and discipline.

pg.7

1. The last difficult writing assignment that I had to write was due in December of my senior year. It was a seven page research paper on an unsolved mystery and i picked the mystery of the Bermuda Triangle. It was assigned in late October and was due in early December so we had a lot of time to finish it.

2. After receiving the assignment i had to pick a topic to write on. Once I picked the Bermuda Triangle, I had to find sources, pick what I was going to use from those sources, and paraphrase them so i wouldn't be plagiarizing. I was writing because i needed a good grade and my intended reader was my english teacher and a few classmates that had to proofread my paper.

pg.23

1. split, rounding, trailed, picked, chased, smashed, entered, ran, coming, wound, chased, glanced, pounding, fling, point, chasing, impelled, compelled, tore, running, discovering, caught.

2. considered, entered, fling, point, find, slow, discovering,

3. The air was cold; every breath tore my throat.

We kept running..., running a frantic course and choosing it simultaneously.

pg.24

1. "He was in city clothes: a suit and tie, street shoes."

"He was a tall thin man, all action."

"...a man in his twenties"

"The man's lower pants legs were wet... cuffs were full of snow, there was a prow of snow beneath them on his shoes and socks."

"... driver of the black Buick."

"sainted, skinny, furious redheaded man..."

2. He doesn't seem to really be mad once he catches them. He simply says "you stupid kids" in his Pittsburgh accent.

3. I see a middle aged man who seems very angry with the children but seems to get out his anger during the chase. He ends up a long distance from his car soaked with snow.

1. perfectly white snow, perfectly spherical, and squeezed perfectly translucent.

2. I can really identify with the comparison of "every breath tore my throat" because for off season baseball practice we would have to run in the freezing cold with every breath feeling like ice.

pg. 25

1. She makes it seem as if the chase and chewing out wasn't really worth the crime and the man was only chewing them out because he really had nothing else to do at that point or he would look stupid.

2. "I wanted the glory to last forever"