Title: Job offers coming up short for class of 2008
Author: Sherry Saavedra
Date: 4/25/08
Source: The Union Tribune
Summary: The job growth rate for college graduates this spring is expected to be at its lowest level in 5 years. More than 2 million students in the U.S. will recieve a bachelor's degree this academic year. For students wanting a career in education or the financial industry, this is a problem.
Reaction: The article said it's more of a problem for people who want to be teachers. This sucks because that's what a want to be--a high shcool English teacher and the rate can only drop from now up until I graduate college. Maybe HTHI will cut me some slack and hire me because I went to school there.
Friday, April 25, 2008
Friday, April 18, 2008
Current Event
Title: Verizon offers live TV locally for cell phones
Date: 4/18/08
Author: Jennifer Davies
Source: The Union Tribune
Summary: Verzin Wireless, using Qualcomm's MedioFlo technology, launched a service that broadcasts live TV to certain types of cell phones in San Diego yesterday. Instead of past ideas, where you would have to download shows or movies, and they would only be a short clip, real, live TV will be broadcasted to the phones with the service. As of right now it is unpopular becasuse of the cost and the very few types of phones that are able to get the service.
Reaction: When I was a kid this kind of thing would make me go crazy--in a good way of course. I was fascinated by the idea of having live TV on something so small and carryable like this (is carryable a word?). I still think it's amazing how far technology has come but I won't go out of my way to get this service even though it sounds cool. I can watch TV at home and I won't miss anything when I'm away because I have DVR. But for people who don't have but have a grip of money laying around, then they should get it. Every body would want to be friends with them.
Date: 4/18/08
Author: Jennifer Davies
Source: The Union Tribune
Summary: Verzin Wireless, using Qualcomm's MedioFlo technology, launched a service that broadcasts live TV to certain types of cell phones in San Diego yesterday. Instead of past ideas, where you would have to download shows or movies, and they would only be a short clip, real, live TV will be broadcasted to the phones with the service. As of right now it is unpopular becasuse of the cost and the very few types of phones that are able to get the service.
Reaction: When I was a kid this kind of thing would make me go crazy--in a good way of course. I was fascinated by the idea of having live TV on something so small and carryable like this (is carryable a word?). I still think it's amazing how far technology has come but I won't go out of my way to get this service even though it sounds cool. I can watch TV at home and I won't miss anything when I'm away because I have DVR. But for people who don't have but have a grip of money laying around, then they should get it. Every body would want to be friends with them.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Vocab.
Defamation
defmamation - the act of defaming; false or unjustified injury of the good reputation of another, as by slander or libel
I remember watching Spiderman and this guy is always trying to have his newspaper print negative things about the hero to DEFAME him, or give him a bad reputation. Don't be mistaken by the use of this reference, I thought the Spiderman movies were crap.
Quell
quell - to suppress; put an end to; extinguish
These firefighters are trying to quell that huge fire.
Vertigo
vertigo - a dizzying sensation of tilting within stable surroundings or of being in tilting or spinning surroundings.
Every time I get off these things I have a feeling of vertigo. It feels like you're still spinning even when you're off the ride!
Panache
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panache - verve; style; flair
Audrey Hepburn was the name that came to mind when I saw that panache was on our vocab. list. She could do whatever: be dramatic, be funny, be sweet, be classy, etc. And panache is my favorite word now.
Forlorn
forlorn - desolate or dreary; unhappy or miserable, as in feeling, condition, or appearance
Throughout the beginning of the movie Casablanca, Humphrey Bogart's character, Rick, just seems like a forlorn and synical guy. Then, when his old flame who abandoned him once comes back into his life, along with her husband, he becomes even more forlorn.
Book Report - Into the Wild
Krakauer, Jon. Into the Wild. New York. Anchor Books: 1997.
I chose this book because I was running out of ideas for books to read and I remembered hearing about how good the book was and its subsequent movie. So, I bought it. I don't know what I would call this book. It's more like a documentary in book form than anything. Maybe even partially a biography. And some action adventure thrown in too. I didn't mean to start that last sentence with "and." The events in the book happened from 1990 to 1992.
The book starts at the end of the main character, Chris McCandless,' story. Hunters come across an abandoned bus in the middle of the Alaskan wilderness and they discover his dead body in a sleeping bag in the back of the bus. The book then flashes back and tells the story of the young man. Chris graduates from Emory University, stops communication with his family, and just hits the road. He does many things, like change his name, give $24,000 in savings to OXFAM charity, goes to a recreational area around Lake Mead in the middle of a desert where his car gets stuck in a flash flood and he burns the cash in his wallet, hitchhikes around and eventually gets to Carthage, Minnesota, where he befriends Wayne Westerberg and works for him. His journey does not stop there. When Westerberg gets in trouble with the law, Chris (now known as Alex) hitches around some more and ends up in Arizona, where he goes on a canoe trip down the Colorado River and ends up in Mexico. He gets lost when the river splits up, but with help from two duck hunters, he gets to the Gulf of California, paddles south, ditches the canoe, and then walks up north, back to America. He makes his way around the southwest and the west, meeting more people, even getting a job here and there, and working for Westerberg in Carthage again. He then starts to make his way up north, into Alaska where he plans to hike an old, yet arduous trail in the wilderness, called the Stampede Trail. He feeds himself with only the bag of rice he brings with him, berries and plants he finds, and a few, lean animals that he is able to kill with his .22 caliber rifle. When he finds the terrain too rough for him to hike to the coast as planned, he camps in an abandoned bus. He tries to leave, but his route is blocked by deep, speeding water created by the thawing snow. He stays at the bus for three months and gets overcome by extreme weakness he believes is from eating the seeds of Alaskan potatoes. The author also theorizes that the seeds contain a toxic alkaloid that causes weakness, and then starvation because it blocks nutrient metabolism to the body. Chris writes his last journal entry, crawls into his sleeping bag, and dies at age 24.
Chris was a quite intelligent but adventurous guy. He was a deep thinker who just wanted to create a new, free life for himself. I have a major respect for him because he knew how money and materialistic things were completely insignificant and he was actually willing enough to dispose of them. That is something very few people, especially young poeple, myself included, would be able to do.
I did enjoy the book because Chris' story was interesting and all, but I didn't really enjoy the actual writing. I expected an actual story, but reading the book is just like watching a documentary. The events are out of order and are brought forth in interviews of people who knew Chris. So, since it is out of chronological order, it could be confusing sometimes, and it just didn't really capture the emotion of an actual story like it could have. I know it's a true story but still.
I have never heard of this author before reading this so I probably won't read any of his books. However, Chris wrote in his journal about The Call of the Wild by Jack London and how good it is so I might read that sometime because other people have recommended it as well.
I chose this book because I was running out of ideas for books to read and I remembered hearing about how good the book was and its subsequent movie. So, I bought it. I don't know what I would call this book. It's more like a documentary in book form than anything. Maybe even partially a biography. And some action adventure thrown in too. I didn't mean to start that last sentence with "and." The events in the book happened from 1990 to 1992.
The book starts at the end of the main character, Chris McCandless,' story. Hunters come across an abandoned bus in the middle of the Alaskan wilderness and they discover his dead body in a sleeping bag in the back of the bus. The book then flashes back and tells the story of the young man. Chris graduates from Emory University, stops communication with his family, and just hits the road. He does many things, like change his name, give $24,000 in savings to OXFAM charity, goes to a recreational area around Lake Mead in the middle of a desert where his car gets stuck in a flash flood and he burns the cash in his wallet, hitchhikes around and eventually gets to Carthage, Minnesota, where he befriends Wayne Westerberg and works for him. His journey does not stop there. When Westerberg gets in trouble with the law, Chris (now known as Alex) hitches around some more and ends up in Arizona, where he goes on a canoe trip down the Colorado River and ends up in Mexico. He gets lost when the river splits up, but with help from two duck hunters, he gets to the Gulf of California, paddles south, ditches the canoe, and then walks up north, back to America. He makes his way around the southwest and the west, meeting more people, even getting a job here and there, and working for Westerberg in Carthage again. He then starts to make his way up north, into Alaska where he plans to hike an old, yet arduous trail in the wilderness, called the Stampede Trail. He feeds himself with only the bag of rice he brings with him, berries and plants he finds, and a few, lean animals that he is able to kill with his .22 caliber rifle. When he finds the terrain too rough for him to hike to the coast as planned, he camps in an abandoned bus. He tries to leave, but his route is blocked by deep, speeding water created by the thawing snow. He stays at the bus for three months and gets overcome by extreme weakness he believes is from eating the seeds of Alaskan potatoes. The author also theorizes that the seeds contain a toxic alkaloid that causes weakness, and then starvation because it blocks nutrient metabolism to the body. Chris writes his last journal entry, crawls into his sleeping bag, and dies at age 24.
Chris was a quite intelligent but adventurous guy. He was a deep thinker who just wanted to create a new, free life for himself. I have a major respect for him because he knew how money and materialistic things were completely insignificant and he was actually willing enough to dispose of them. That is something very few people, especially young poeple, myself included, would be able to do.
I did enjoy the book because Chris' story was interesting and all, but I didn't really enjoy the actual writing. I expected an actual story, but reading the book is just like watching a documentary. The events are out of order and are brought forth in interviews of people who knew Chris. So, since it is out of chronological order, it could be confusing sometimes, and it just didn't really capture the emotion of an actual story like it could have. I know it's a true story but still.
I have never heard of this author before reading this so I probably won't read any of his books. However, Chris wrote in his journal about The Call of the Wild by Jack London and how good it is so I might read that sometime because other people have recommended it as well.
Monday, April 7, 2008
My Last Words
So yeah, yesterday morning I was out exploring when one of those things latched on to my face and laid an alien embryo inside me that will be bursting out in about 2 hours. I will die and there's nothing anybody can do, but I have excepted it. I'm really terrible at this kind of stuff so I'll make it quick. Don't take life too seriously, have fun with it. I've seen too many people get worked up over miniscule things and waste a good day stressing out. And in the end, it's no big deal and they get embarassed that they got so crazy. I have good grades but I can still live a relaxed life. We're in high school, which is pretty much a safe zone even though it can suck sometimes. Sure, all that college stuff is coming up that we'll have to do but we're still here! Once we graduate we're in the real, adult world. No more safe zone. So, calm down and enjoy the immaturity of HS. And that's another thing: immaturity. It's ok to be immature sometimes, and not just in high school. Once we leave too. It kind of falls under the don't take life too seriously umbrella. I'm not saying become a bum or anything, but it is possible to be both successful and fun. And take time off work to go somewhere fun, just because. Even if you go alone (even though it won't be as fun). Go to Disneyland or surfing or to Japan or something that's not just shopping or some boring crap. And cherish the cool little moments you have with your friends. The one's where you look back and say "that was really chill," but when you try to tell someone who wasn't there how it was fun and chill, it doesn't seem that fun and chill but to you it still seems fun and chill. Fun and chill. Make EVERYTHING fun. Oh and one last thing before I die: did anybody see the movie 21? Did you like it? Thanks. Alright it's time for me to bounce.
Sunday, April 6, 2008
Protest Songs About America
"Americana" – The Offspring
Well I'd like to tell you all about my dream, it's a place
Where strip malls abound and diversion's mere moments away
Where culture's defined by the
Ones least refined
And you'll be left behind
If you don't fit in
It's all distorted
In americana my way
Well fuck you
Whoa Whoa Whoa
Well my dream has come true
Whoa Whoa Whoa
My vision has come true
Now give me my cable, fast food, four-by's, tats right away
I want it right now cause my generation don't like to wait
My future's determined by
Thieves, thugs, and vermin
It's quite an excursion
But it's okay
Everything's backwards
In americana my way
Well fuck you
Whoa Whoa Whoa
Well my dream has come true
Whoa Whoa Whoa
My vision has come trueIt's all coming true
I'm a product Of my environment
Don't blame me, I just work here
But I wanna fuck you!!!!!
My rights are denied by
Those least qualified
Trading profit for pride
But it's okay
Everything's backwards
In americana my way
Well fuck you
Whoa Whoa Whoa
My nightmare has come true
Whoa Whoa Whoa
My nightmare has come true
Yeah, it's all coming true
Yeah, it's all coming true
Obviously, we haven’t really turned out to be the "America that we originally set out to be." The founding fathers had this idea of greatness, but nowadays when you think of American culture, this song just about says it all. The song came out in 1998 so not much has changed at all. If anything it’s just gotten worse now that we have things like the invasion of Iraq.
Obviously, we haven’t really turned out to be the "America that we originally set out to be." The founding fathers had this idea of greatness, but nowadays when you think of American culture, this song just about says it all. The song came out in 1998 so not much has changed at all. If anything it’s just gotten worse now that we have things like the invasion of Iraq.
"Holiday" – Green Day
Hear the sound of the falling rain
Coming down like an Armageddon flame (Hey!)
The shame, the ones who died without a name
Hear the dogs howling out of key
To a hymn called Faith and Misery (Hey!)
And bleed, the company lost the war today
I beg to dream and differ from the hollow lies
This is the dawning of the rest of our lives
On holiday
Hear the drum pounding out of time
Another protester has crossed the line (Hey!)
To find, the money's on the other side
Can I get another Amen? (Amen!)
There's a flag wrapped around a score of men (Hey!)
A gag, A plastic bag on a monument
I beg to dream and differ from the hollow lies
This is the dawning of the rest of our lives
On holiday
hey!(3,4)
The representative from California now has the flooor...
siege Heil to the president gasman,
Bombs away is your punishment!
Pulverize the Eiffel towers,
who criticize your government!
Bang bang goes the broken glass man,
Kill all the fags that don't agree!
Trial by fire, setting fire
It's not a way that's meant for me
Just cause, just cause, because we're outlaws yeah!
I beg to dream and differ from the hollow lies
This is the dawning of the rest of our lives
I beg to dream and differ from the hollow lies
This is the dawning of the rest of our lives
This is our lives....On Holiday!
This song talks about our president abuses his powers and will not have anything any other way than his and how war is such a dominant and terrible solution to everything.
"The Hand That Feeds" – Nine Inch Nails
You're keeping in step, in the line.
Got your chin held high and you feel just fine
'Cause you do what you're told
But inside your heart, it is black
And it's hollow and it's cold
Just how deep do you believe?
Will you bite the hand that feeds?
Will you chew until it bleeds?
Can you get up off your knees?
Are you brave enough to see?
Do you wanna change it?
What if this whole crusade's a charade
And behind it all there's a price to be paid
For the blood which we dine
Justified in the name
Of the Holy and the Divine
Just how deep do you believe?
Will you bite the hand that feeds?
Will you chew until it bleeds?
Can you get up off your knees?
Are you brave enough to see?
Do you wanna change it?
So naïve
I keep holding on to what I wanna believe
I can see
But I keep holding on and on and on and on(Repeat x8)
Will you bite the hand that feeds you?
Will you stay down on your knees?
This song was written about how Americans always complain about the terrible things our president has done, (specifically the invasion of Iraq) but do not act or try to change it. I think it really nails a big part of American culture because I myself am a person who complains about issues but never actually tries to find a way to stop it.
This song was written about how Americans always complain about the terrible things our president has done, (specifically the invasion of Iraq) but do not act or try to change it. I think it really nails a big part of American culture because I myself am a person who complains about issues but never actually tries to find a way to stop it.
"Sleep Now in the Fire" – Rage Against the Machine
The world is my expense
The cost of my desire
Jesus blessed me with its future
And I protect it with fire
So raise your fists
And march around
Just don't take what you need
I'll jail and bury those committed
And smother the rest in greed
Crawl with me into tomorrow
Or I'll drag you to your grave
I'm deep inside your children
They'll betray you in my name
Hey, hey
Sleep now in the fire
Hey, hey
Sleep now in the fire
The lie is my expense
The scope of my desire
The party blessed me with its future
And I protect it with fire
I am the Nina The Pinta The Santa Maria
The noose and the rapist
The fields overseer
The agents of orange
The priests of Hiroshima
The cost of my desire
Sleep now in the fire
Hey, hey
Sleep now in the fire
Hey, hey
Sleep now in the fire
For it's the end of history
It's caged and frozen still
There is no other pill to take
So swallow the one
That made you ill
The Nina The Pinta The Santa Maria
The noose and the rapist
The fields overseer
The agents of orange
The priests of Hiroshima
The cost of my desire
To Sleep now in the fire
This song talks about the terrible things America has done in the past, such as the conquest of Native Americans, slavery, the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and Agent Orange in the Vietnam war. This song is a prime example that we are not the America we once set out to be.
This song talks about the terrible things America has done in the past, such as the conquest of Native Americans, slavery, the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and Agent Orange in the Vietnam war. This song is a prime example that we are not the America we once set out to be.
"…And Justice For All" – Metallica
Halls of Justice Painted Green
Money Talking
Power Wolves Beset Your Door
Hear Them Stalking
Soon You'll Please Their Appetite
They Devour
Hammer of Justice Crushes You
Overpower
The Ultimate in Vanity
Exploiting Their Supremacy
I Can't Believe the Things You Say
I Can't Believe
I Can't Believe the Price You Pay
Nothing Can Save You
Justice Is Lost
Justice Is Raped
Justice Is Gone
Pulling Your Strings
Justice Is Done
Seeking No Truth
Winning Is All
Find it So Grim
So True
So Real
Apathy Their Stepping Stone
So Unfeeling
Hidden Deep Animosity
So Deceiving
Through Your Eyes Their Light Burns
Hoping to Find
Inquisition Sinking You
With Prying Minds
The Ultimate in Vanity
Exploiting Their Supremacy
I Can't Believe the Things You Say
I Can't Believe
I Can't Believe the Price You Pay
Nothing Can Save You
Justice Is Lost
Justice Is Raped
Justice Is Gone
Pulling Your Strings
Justice Is Done
Seeking No Truth
Winning Is All
Find it So Grim
So True
So Real
Lady Justice Has Been Raped
Truth Assassin
Rolls of Red Tape Seal Your Lips
Now You're Done in
Their Money Tips Her Scales Again
Make Your Deal
Just What Is Truth? I Cannot Tell
Cannot Feel
The Ultimate in Vanity
Exploiting Their Supremacy
I Can't Believe the Things You Say
I Can't Believe
I Can't Believe the Price
We Pay
Nothing Can Save Us
Justice Is Lost
Justice Is Raped
Justice Is Gone
Pulling Your Strings
Justice Is Done
Seeking No Truth
Winning Is All
Find it So Grim
So True
So Real
Seeking No Truth
Winning Is All
Find it So Grim
So True
So Real
This song uses some symbolism and depicts a corrupt legal system (America’s). Obviously, having a justice system that is so filled with injustices, is an oxymoron and no the way we originally set out for.
This song uses some symbolism and depicts a corrupt legal system (America’s). Obviously, having a justice system that is so filled with injustices, is an oxymoron and no the way we originally set out for.
Friday, April 4, 2008
Professor's Last Lecture
When I watched this I was amazed at how charismatic the guy was despite the fact he was dying. He even made jokes about how he was dying. But, then again, that's how you have to be when you know you're dying. You can't do anything about it so you might as well have fun. The lecture made me think of my childhood dreams and how most of the time, I dismiss them as being to difficult to accomplish. I've gotten better with that, but still. Things aren't as impossible as I make them out to be sometimes. So, I might go ahead and audition for that small role in that small movie and maybe go from there and become a real actor. You never know. I love doing it. Wow. I think I just realized what I'm passionate about. That's cool. Alright I'm out.
Current Event
Title: Inspectors say FAA ignored lapses
Author: Matthew L. Wald
Source: The Union Tribune
Summary: Three Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspectorstestified that their agency allowed Southwest Airlines to fly uninspected planes and that the airline continued to fly the planes even after it later found cracks in one of them. The inspectors said that when they complained, their bosses threatened their jobs. One was removed from his job as an office manager and another was encouraged to apply for a transfer. A third was temporarily removed from his role overseeing Southwest after complaints from the airline.
Reaction: I thought this was hilarious but obviously sad at the same time. It's sad because it's just another harsh example of the corruptness of American corporations. It's scary to think a person was fired because they knew the truth. It's like friggin' 1984!
Author: Matthew L. Wald
Source: The Union Tribune
Summary: Three Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspectorstestified that their agency allowed Southwest Airlines to fly uninspected planes and that the airline continued to fly the planes even after it later found cracks in one of them. The inspectors said that when they complained, their bosses threatened their jobs. One was removed from his job as an office manager and another was encouraged to apply for a transfer. A third was temporarily removed from his role overseeing Southwest after complaints from the airline.
Reaction: I thought this was hilarious but obviously sad at the same time. It's sad because it's just another harsh example of the corruptness of American corporations. It's scary to think a person was fired because they knew the truth. It's like friggin' 1984!
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