Thursday, March 2, 2017

My Biggest Regret

       Mistakes are made every single day, every single minute, and every single second. However, some fall into different catagories. We have the small mistakes, the unnecesary mistakes, the average mistakes, and the 'we-don't-talk-about-this-one-mistakes". The one mistake that I regret falls into the 'we-don't-talk-about-this-one-mistake.'

       This mistake happened on February, 2015.  There were only two people/animals involved at first, my dog and I, and then it progressed to about 5 other people involved.  Here's the story.  It was a cold February night, there was snow outside, and I decided I wanted to binge-watch this show called Eye Candy.  Before I started the episodes though I took my dog out to use the bathroom.  However, I forgot to bring him in.  At this point I was starting episode two when my sister came downstairs and asked,"Where's Jake?". My heart instantly dropped as I ran outside and called his name, except he never showed up.  Immediately tears started streaming down my face and I grabbed my coat and boots to go looking for him.

       I called my parents while looking and they told me to, well, keep looking.  Then I face timed my best friend because I was having a panic attack and she walked over to my house to help me look for him.  My neighbors also came out to help, as well as my siblings and parents (when they got home).  By this point I was completely and utterly vulnerable. It wasn't until an hour or so later when my mom suggested  we call the shelters and when we did one of the dogs matched my dog's description.  So we went and luckily he was there.

       That was one of the worst days of my life.  I felt like such a bad person and a horrible dog-owner. Not to mention in two weeks, he'd be put down.  If I were given the opportunity to redo that day I'd start by not watching that show that day and to stay outside with my dog until he was done doing his bussiness.  Then I'd just chill with him inside and appreciate his presence, because at the end of the day that's all I wish for.  To be with him again.















Friday, February 24, 2017

Natzi Propoganda Towards Children

       The propaganda piece I have chosen to analyze today is one that displays Hitler being happy and compassionate towards three young German kids. The caption reads, "Children, What Do You Know of the Fuhrer (Father)". The point of the message is to make Hitler look more friendly and as a better leader that can be looked up to by the German children.  It is intended for the entire nation to see, especially the kids because it encourages them to look at him as a role-model and it also encourages the parents to put their kid's lives in his hands.

       The propaganda works to effect people's perspectives because it changes their view on Hitler. It emphasizes on the image of him being a good, reliable leader and a happy person who's best interest is out to the children. It doesn't allow them to see the bad side of him.  The image itself effectively changed people's perspectives because it led to people portraying him as a 'god like figure' or messianic. 

       In my opinion, this exact image is being recreated with our presidents, leaders, etc. To be good with kids is a very important trait when running something big because people then view them as kid-friendly and an excellent candidate. Hitler knew that and used it to his advantage. If someone were to stumble upon this picture today, having no previous knowledge of Hitler or the Holocaust they too would most likely believe of him to be a good and trusting leader.  There is always a different side to a person that is never shown publicly.


A Day Out with Calum

       Imagine getting to spend a day with one of your favorite famous people. Being able to actually talk and hang out with them for 24 hours! It's a dream only few people get to live. Personally, there's too many celebrities I'd want to hang out with. Too many fandoms I'm involved in, but there is one person that I'd absolutely love to spend my time with. And that person is Calum Hood.

       Calum Hood is a member of the band 5 Seconds of Summer. He plays the bass and is also a singer. I've been in love with the band since 5th grade so just being able to picture this day in my head is too much for my heart to handle. Since Calum and I have one big thing in common I think we should do something along those lines. We both love puppies!

       This leads us to our activities I have organized. First we will grab some brunch together, not breakfast because I'm too lazy to wake up early, but lunch and breakfast combined. He can eat whatever he wants and I'd eat a delicious belgium waffle. Next, we will go look at puppies at the shelters and adopt two, one for each of us. With these little fur balls we will go to PetCo and buy them supplies and then take them to the dog park and play with them. After, we will grab ice cream while walking our pups. Towards the night we can go to the beach and watch the sunset or something cliche (doesn't really matter to me, I mean at least I get to hang out with Calum!). Lastly, we can watch some funny band moments of 5SOS on YouTube and just have a laugh before he has to leave.

       This is what a day with Calum in my mind looks like. Food, puppies, and laughs. *sigh* If only this were to become reality.












Wednesday, February 22, 2017

The Land Down Under

Book: Cultures of the World - Australia
Author: Vijeya Rajendra
Page #: 1-140 (finished)

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       Australia is one of the world's 7 continents, and it's own country. It's climates come in variety such as; tropical, humid, dry, and cool. Their goverment is also very close to the United States, as well as a similarity in diversity they have. Like the rest of the world they suffer from global warming but they are trying to use more energy efficient sources. Many indegious people also live there and still speak their native languages. Howevever, Australia has different types of foods, sports, and animals. Overall, Australia is an interesting country/continent to learn about and it's very similar to the United States.

       This book was a very interesting book because I've always loved Australia and it always drew my attention.  I never really realized the differences between Australia and the United States, nor the similarities. One similar thing they have in common is their goverment, they have a legislative assembly (House of Representatives) and a council of review (Senate). However, there voting system is a little different, "...voting in Australia is compulsory for all adults 18 years and above." This means everyone must vote and if they don't they are fined!

       I also pictured Australia to be just desert but it actually contains a lot of urban cities, and it gets really cold in the winter and snows! The climate comes in a large variety. In the book it states, "The continents desert interior gives way to tropical regions...where most of Australia's population lives, is cooler and drier..in the south of the country, temperatures drop considerably in the winter and frosts are common..." This shows the climate in some parts of Australia, we also have many of these different areas and temperatures.

       Overall, the book Australia is very interesting and factual. I'd recommand this to any person that loves to travel or is fascinated with different parts of the world. I strongly suggest to learn about other countries and become familiar with our world.



     

Thursday, February 16, 2017

Happiness Is...

       Happiness is an emotion of love, joy, and satisfaction. People experience happiness everyday, every minute, every second. It would look like a ray of sunshine beating down on the bright colors of a rainbow that leads to a pot of gold, at least to me it would. I can recall many moments where I have experienced this emotion. So, what is happiness to me? Well, happiness to me is:

* The feeling I got when I used to walk my dog around the block and get to bond with him.

* The taste of the cupcakes I worked so hard to bake and frost.

* The privledge to greet my parents when they get home.

* The funny inside jokes I get to share with my siblings.

* The warmth my grandparents bring to me when I visit them.

* The touch of a puppy's tongue licking my face.

* The smell of freshly baked cookies my dad made.

* The loud dinners I get to share with my family everyday.

* The hot, thick taste of a champurrado on a cold winter morning.

* The cool sweet taste of a raspado on a hot summer day.

* The phenomenal view of the trees and sunset from the top of the sand dunes.

* The cold refreshing water meeting your lips the moment you get home from a long walk.

* The heat an extra blanket brings on a cold night.

* The salty taste of popcorn during a good movie.

* The familiarity of childhood memories when my cousins come over.

* The option to actually go to school and learn.

* The love my bestfriends have gave to me.

* The blessing to experience new memories with my family.



Tuesday, February 14, 2017

Perseverance

       Perseverance, to me, means to continue doing something even when things get hard to implement a goal. To keep going and push no matter what obstacles are in the way.

     The last time I preserved was about a week ago when I couldn't figure out the answer to my math homework so I just continued to work on it, watched youtube tutorials, and finally got the answer 2 hours later. I worked on it for so long because I wanted a good grade because good grades lead to a good education and a good education leads to a good life! One of the qualities that helped me do this was my stubbornness because it didn't allow me to give up and encouraged me even more to finish what I started on my paper.

       In order to persevere there are certain qualities a person should have. Thsee qualities are integrity, courage, kindness, self-respect, etc. In the video we watched Nick had self-respect because he accepted the way he was born and also made sure people respected that too. He is also very kind because he accepts other people and compliments them to make them feel better about themselves. Lastly, another characteristic he had was courage because he was able to get up in front of a crowd and tell them a part of his story and how he once felt.

       Nick, compared to me, has done way more. However, we both preserved to get something done. We didn't give up and encouraged ourselves to do good. Everyone can do this, anyone can preserve to do good.