To Act or Not To Act

In Hamlets To be or not to be soliloquy Hamlet debates whether or not his life is being wasted, he describes it more honorable to live with a troubled mind than the cruelty of life. Hamlet isnt as positive as Steve Jobs was in his speech, Hamlet explains that why live on this earth where all these bad people live with all this corruption and hurt, why deal with all of this when we can just basically die if we wasted. Why live a long crazy life? When you can experience the afterlife where you dont dwell  on anything, and all of what you've done is forgotten. Hamlet had a total different perspective of then Steve Jobs, where JObs focused on the positives of bad situations and didnt give up in the worst of situations he kept his head held and pulled through.

Dear Steve

After I was done reading your speech a lot of what you said actually made me think and I soon realized that you were absolutely right. When you described when you got fired from Apple and how it was devastating but it was actually the best thing that happened to you got me a little confused because you got fired from something you loved to do, but then you explained getting fired from Apple opened new doors of opportunities and those opportunities lead to you creating Pixar which went to create the worlds first computer animated feature film, Toy story. Even though you got fired from a job that you loved(which they eventually took you back) you didnt give up because it was your passion but instead you took a different alternative and decided to start over which was really inspiring to hear. Another challenged you faced was cancer, which is such a scary thing to deal with and the fact the doctors said you only had about three months to live is quite surreal I bet but the way you saw and handled things with such a positive outlook was surprising to see. I really gained respect for you when I read that, its just not many people sees death as you put it " it clears out the old to make way for the new", actually i didnt even see it in that perspective but its true,  it was a real eye opener. In your speech i loved everything you had to say it was touching and motivating to hear all the stories you went though from adoption to even having cancer and through those situations you still found a way to see light though all the darkness is phenomenal.

Netvibes

to be really honest i have no idea how to use Netvibes and im absolutely clueless so im going to need help on how to set everything up and how to use it. For the most part it looks like a cool website to have and maybe if i get the hang of it i will use it on a daily basis.

Vocabulary #6

Adroit- someone who is quick and skillful in their thoughts, behavior, or actions
Amicable- friendly
Averse- having a strong feeling of opposition
Belligerent- Agressive
Benevolent- characterized by or expressing goodwill or kindly feelings
Cursory- done or made quickly
Duplicity- deceitfulness in speech or behavior
Extol- to praise highly
Feasible- possible to do easily or conveniently
Grimace-   a facial expression usually of disgust, disapproval, or pain
Holocaust- destruction or slaughter on a mass scale
Impervious- immune
Impetus- a moving force
Jeopardy- danger of loss harm, or injury
Meticulous- extremely careful and precise
Nostalgia- a sentimental longing of affection
Quintessence- the pure and concentrated essence of a substance
Retrogress- go back to an earlier state
Scrutinize- to examine or observe with great care
Tepid- lacking in emotion warmth or enthusiasm
Accede- to give one's assent
Brandish- to wave or flourish
Comprise-  to consist of
Deft- skillful
Destitute- deprived of
Explicit- clearly defined
Extirpate- to destroy completely
Inopportune-  occurring at an inconvenient time
Ironic- the opposite of what is expected to happen
Musty- to emit horrific odor
Officious- assertive of authority in an annoyingly domineering way
Ominous- giving the impression that something bad is going to happen
Pinnacle- the highest point
Premeditated- think out or plan beforehand
Rampant- violent in action or spirit
Solace- comfort in a time of distress
Supple- bending readily without breaking or becoming deformed
Venal- open to bribary

Declaration of Learning Independence

I want to learn not to procrastinate all the time so i can get my work finished and not having to worry about it the day before its due. I also would like to learn new methods of studying because using the same old method is boring after awhile and i want to teach myself how to make learning fun and not for it to be something that i have to do but something that i want to do.

Freedom of Choice

As we are little all we ever dream about is becoming old enough to make our own choices because we got tired of parents telling us what to do! But as im getting older I've realized that the choices that i make are in my hands now and it really scares me. The feeling of making our own choices feels pretty great, but intimidating its a big responsibility to take on and I guess you can say its a step into a adulthood which feels quite unreal. Making your own choices can have its pros and cons like for starters making your own choices is being able to take responsibility for your own actions and doing what you want to do because its your life and no one elses, but you really dont have parents to help you out on decisions you make because you're the one taking control now not them. Opportunities that it brings is deciding what you want to do with your life and what paths to take and how to accomplish your goals without people making those choices for you because you're the one taking control now. For me i love making my own choices but sometimes i do miss my parents helping me make choices for me but as you get older you learn that you need to take control of your own life and not let other people control it for you.

No Child Left Behind

 Students using tablets instead of books is a fantastic idea! I mean think about it schools are already spending thousands of dollars a year replacing and buying new books for students  why not use that money towards a tablet where a child can also learn from. I feel that students would have more fun using a tablet and be more entertained. Technology is growing and becoming an importance in society, we should give this tablet idea a try. Using tablets will grasp more students attention and it will give the students a chance to be more engaged in class because they arent just sitting there bored out of their minds they are using technology to learn which is way better than reading and learning out of some boring old textbook.

Vocabulary #5

Adroit- someone who is quick and skillful in their thoughts,behavior, or actions
Amicable-friendly
Averse-having a strong feeling of opposition
Belligerent-aggressive
Benevolent-characterized by or expressing goodwill or kindly feelings
Cursory-done or made quickly
Duplicity-deceitfulness in speech or behavior
Extol-to praise highly
Feasible- possible to do easily or conveniently
Grimace-a facial expression usually of disgust, disapproval, or pain
Holocaust- destruction destruction or slaughter on a mass scale
Impervious-not allowing entrance or passage
Impetus-a moving force
Jeopardy-danger of loss harm or injury
Meticulous-extremely careful and precise
Nostalgia-a sentimental longing in affection for the past
Quintessence- the pure and concentrated essence of a substance
Retrogress-go back to an earlier state
Scrutinize-to examine or observe with great care
Tepid-lacking in emotional warmth or enthusiasm

Sentences-
1. She is adroit at handling problems.
2. The two enemies came to an amicable agreement to make peace.
3. Most students have an averse feeling toward boring subjects.
4. His belligerence tended to severely limit his relationship with friends.
5. Santa Clause is known for his jolly, benevolent personality.
6. I spent a cursory amount of time on my economy project because i had very little time to complete the task.
7. The cop interviewed the witness for an hour and he didn't see any duplicity in his statements.
8. The golfers extolled the benefits of membership at their country club.
9. It is not feasible to win the lotto.
10.The grimace on the mans face clearly spoke his opinion of the president's speech.
11. The Holocaust was an evil and tragic that took place in World War II.
12. The coat is impervious to rain.
13. The business firm was in jeopardy collapsing because of fraud.
14. Students who are meticulous in their work make the best of their education.
15. When walking through the halls of her old school she felt so much nostalgia.
14.  Drake is the quintessence of the rap culture.
15. She retrogressed to the starting point of her rehabilitation.
16. The young girl had a tepid reaction in meeting her new step-father.

Literature Analysis #1

Topic(s) and or Events
1. In I know why the Caged Bird Sings Maya Angelou describes herself as an insecure black girl in the South during the 1930's. When Maya was only three years old her parents divorced and her and her older brother Bailey were shipped off to Stamps Arkansas to live with there grandma. Even though Maya describes her life as a struggle going back and forth between parents she illustrates how strength of a character and love of literature can help overcome racism and trauma.

2. I think she wanted to describe her life struggle and bring attention to the reader to the suffering of her race.

3. I choose to read this book because I love the poetry Maya Angelou writes and I saw she had a non-fiction book about her life story and I was really intrigued to read it; when I began reading this book I felt an instant connection and the more I read the more I just couldn't put it down.

4. Yes, I did find the book realistic I mean just the way she described everything makes you feel that you were in that exact moment with her. In the book she described how her parents weren't together all of her life and how they dated other people which I can absolutely connect with because I've been through the same situation.

People
1. Maya describes most of the time how people in her life are so good looking like her mother, grandmother, dad and brother. She describes how her brother is really smart but we might portray things differently like we all have your interpretations of beauty.

2.In  the book Maya describes her brother Bailey as a total stud, he has curly back hair, smooth dark skin, he is just all around good looking. But he isnt just good looking he is also really smart and witty too. Bailey has always seeked affection since he didn't really get it from his parents because they werent really around much. Bailey cared for Maya he took care of her, bought her books, and defended her from insults( he meant a lot to Maya). If i had to write Bailey as a fictional character I would want to reveal his personality through his thoughts and words because Bailey had such a strong personality wish was quite great to read.

 "Momma" thats what Maya and Bailey called their grandma. Momma was a very religious women, she knew all of the bible versus by heart and said a prayer everyday. Maya describes her Momma as a very good looking (but with a deep voice) women. Momma was a very strong and strict women, she taught Maya and Bailey how to work and she emphasized the importance of education, cleanliness, and manners. I would write Momma just like Maya did I loved how she made statements about Mommas personality, it gave me a real good feel how Momma was on a daily basis, and thats what the reader likes to feel that they can relive the moment that the writer describes.

3.Bailey and Momma were a big part of Maya's life, they both taught her values that she learned to apply. What made them interesting to write about is how Maya admired them dearly and how they affected her life, they were really important people to her and it was touching to see how much it they they meant to her.

Style
1. The author used foreshadowing and symbolism in her story. For example Momma is a strong and bold person she refuses to challenge they way white people in the town treat her but Maya and Bailey have a different opinion on the matter. This difference of opinion foreshadows a possible confrontation over the issue later in the book. When Maya and Bailey receive Christmas presents from their parents one year, they both burst into tears. Why would they cry over presents? Its because these presents reveal to Maya and Bailey that their parents are still alive and living in California without them. So presents which usually symbolize giving ends up symbolizing rejection.

2. Maya Angelou used lengthy descriptions of places and people in the book because she is a story teller and thats what story tellers do, describe.

3. Maya confronts the effects of racism and segregation in America at a very young age. She doesnt let people walk all over her just because she is a different color. The mood she creates is a girl who is confused about a lot of things, since she never really had parents to guide her.

4. Maya doesnt agree that blacks have to struggle, where the whites take so many things for granted. She notes that black people dont nearly have as much as the whites do, and still the whites wouldnt know how to survive of what they have nearly as well as the black community.

5. Well in the book Maya mainly talks about segregation and how it was really difficult during that time, it was hard that the blacks were treated like such dirt and had no respect what so ever. And when she was explaining during that time in the 1930's, it made me realize that we have it so easy compared to them at that time and we take a lot of things for granted and we should start giving more than taking more.

One thing i will expect to remember from this book is when she described when she got raped. It was so difficult to read but it was sad that she didnt know it was wrong she thought it was out of love and she actually liked it because she was getting some type of love she had never felt. It was hard to hear that at first she thought it was okay, its one thing I will always remember because she never new what love really felt because she never felt it from her parents.

Vocabulary #4

Accede-  to give one's assent
Brandish- to wave or flourish
Comprise- to consist of
Deft-  skillful
Destitute- altogether lacking
Explicit- clearly defined
Extirpate- to destroy completely
Inopportune- occurring at an inconvenient time
Ironic-  characterized by or constituting irony
Musty- to emit horrific odor
Officious- assertive of authority in an annoyingly domineering way
Ominous- giving the impression that something bad is going to happen
Pinnacle- the highest point
Premeditated- think out or plan beforehand
Rampant- occurring without restraint and frequently
Solace- comfort in a time of distress
Stately-  majestic
Supple- bending readily without breaking or becoming deformed
Suppress- forcibly put an end to
Venal-open to bribery

Vocabulary #3

Accomplice-  a person who helps another commit a crime
Annihilate-  to destroy completely
Arbitrary-  determined by chance and not by reason
Brazen- bold without shame
Catalyst-  A substance that causes or accelerates a chemical reaction without itself being affected
Exodus- A departure of a large number of people
Facilitate- make (an action or process) easy
Incorrigible- incapable of being corrected or amended
Latent-  present but not visible
Militant- vigorously active and aggressive
Morose- gloomy, bad tempered
Opaque-  not able to be seen through
Paramount- more important than anything
Prattle- to talk in a foolish or simple minded way
Rebut- to refute evidence or argument
Reprimand- A severe, formal or official rebuke
Servitude- the state of being a slave or completely subject to someone more powerful
Stagnant- having no current flow
Slapdash-  done too carelessly
Succumb- to yield to superior force


Sentences
1. The bank robber had an accomplice waiting outside in a car.
2. The dropping the atomic bomb on Hiroshima resulted in its total annihilation.
3. He felt brazen when he admitted to the crime he committed.
4. The catalyst is needed to make this chemical reaction occur.
5. Once the students found out there was a fire they made a mass exodus from the school building.
6. Exercise and diet are the key ways to facilitating weight loss.
7.  Some people are incorrigible towards certain subjects.
8. The detective found latent fingerprints on the wall.
9. He was very militant in defending his beliefs.
10. He became a morose person when his grandfather passed away.
11. Bathroom windows are usually opaque for privacy.
12. It's paramount for you to respect others.
13. Parents like to prattle on with their lectures.
14. The attorney rebutted the arguments in the case.
15. The defendant was reprimanded when he found out he was guilty.
16. Southern plantations relied on the servitude of slaves for their crops to make money.
17. The pond is stagnant because it has no movement.
18. He did a slapdash performance on his project and got an F.
19. In the movie 300 the spartans never succumbed to the persians.