FINAL CONCLUDING BLOG!!!

The wind blew through the city, one fine summer day. The frogs hopped and the crickets chirped. Just kidding. The sky was blue. But rainy. Typical Washington.

All the sudden, it started pouring...Ice cold raindrops dripping down your face and onto your shoulders.


Boom boom, I imagined for a second that the racing highway was thunder, and the brief moment of excitement brought a smile to my face.

And then it was sunny. Just like that.


Washington weather is just a mystery.

Anyways, on the two block walk to school I saw many things that would change my life-forever. The yellow and black zebra that galloped across the way, bumping and sloshing through a puddle. The roar of a lion and the smoke coming from a campfire drifted into my view. The wide open, gaping doors of a nightmare to come. OK, I guess it wasn't that bad-but after returning from a summer full of splashing waves and sunshine, this wasn't the most ideal place to return to.

From that first day to the last day there were several rules of survival:

The Three Rules:
1. A metaphor is a simile, but a simile is not a metaphor
2. A square is a rectangle, but a rectangle is not a square
3. Facebook is your number one resource (mostly...)

Those were the things that I learned, that first day of school. The rest of the year definitely didn't fly by. Why? You might ask. Because-I think I should probably leave it at that. We talked about killing mockingbirds and such, and how we all have great expectations. And how some crazy animals lived on a farm run by some crazy overweight guy named napoleon(a.k.a. a pig). In addition to that, we talked about other stuff. But I'm going to pause for a second and tell you about a certain day...

It all started out as a normal day. Walking to school without an umbrella like a real Washingtonian...or not.

OK...nothing happened. I guess nothing ever exciting happens at school. Except for the days when teachers forget to give us the homework on the boar. That, is the most amazing thing that can happen. Almost.

We talked about
Stuff that made me shout.

For it is without use
As we write about moose,

Or something else random
Like riding a tandem.

Poetry is obviously, NOT NOT NOT my favorite subject. And as for the rest of the year we covered a lot including how to write a paper.

1. Take out a piece of paper or open a word document
2. Read the prompt pronto
3. Examine the checklist
4. Go on Facebook for a second, to verify anything
5. Write the paper

Now you don't HAVE to follow these simple guidelines. But they are simply AMAZING. So yes. You should.

In the bland but more exciting beginning of the year, we did more things in pairs. Much much much much (I can't even begin to say how much) more fun! We got to write a whole essay in a group, and write papers as a group. As the year progressed that was a long lost memory as we traveled through the desert of writing our own papers. That one extra credit, amazing chance was the tree in the middle of the desert. Okay, that was under
estimated. But you get the general idea.

But obviously, things weren't going to stay amazingly easy forever. The first few blogs, were actually fun(not that the other ones weren't...hehe)-about when you were little and things like that. Those always make the most interesting stories, especially when they aren't/weren't the most talented or smart little kids. Those blogs were DEFINITELY and by far the most entertaining! Zodiac signs have never really interested me. And according to some other peoples blogs, not to them either. But I guess it was an ok blog because we didn't have to say whether we liked them or not! Then came the VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY long stretch of blogs about literature. From The Importance of Being Ernest to Romeo and Juliet. Now those. Those were killers. The epically long and ongoing blogs about the same thing on and on and on so we could meet the requirements. That would NOT be so fun to grade...(hint hint). I have to admit that the blog about the modern influences and Romeo and Juliet was kind of entertaining with all of the different songs that people chose. Especially peoples comments. Those were always VERY entertaining. Knowing what you want to hear as you are the grader, I am going to say and in fact lie and I am fairly sure that I may be speaking for many other students here...just bear with me. If I say, "I ABSOLUTELY LOVED THE BLOG! I LOVED COMPLETING IT EVERY WEEK!" I might possibly be telling the best lie ever. But to tell the truth in the most-ish blunt manner possible, "I AM SO HAPPY THAT THIS IS OUR LAST BLOG!" But, on the weeks when there was an interesting prompt, I occasionally was entertained by peoples posts. Also, asking the questions about the novels and having them answered by our group members was pretty helpful, especially on the essays! One of my favorite quotes ever, that was introduced to me by my first and second grade teacher is, "Be the change you want to see in the world" which was said by Mahatma Ghandi. This quote has driven my life so far, and will hopefully continue to do so. I think that giving you this advice about the blogs will inform you about next year and many years to come. Throughout this year, this has driven me to every week get my blog done, before midnight the day it was due. This quote has given me the motivation to stay up until midnight finishing an essay or a project. This quote has helped me to do my best when someone else says that this isn't possible. This quote has given me a true meaning to life, and something to strive for. If it was possible to have a quote that explained your life, I would choose this one. Mahatma Ghandi, you have given hope to so many striving souls.

writing on essay writing

Over the course of this year, I have learned many boring and not so boring things. Knowing how to write an essay with the fill in sheet bubble box thing helped SO much. Knowing that the thesis came after the hook. Knowing that you really do need to cite things correctly...or else. Knowing that with every essay, there is something that you can make a metaphor of your own out of the idea. Considering these facts, I have determined that I have learned quite a lot about essay writing this year. I guess you could say an essayist would be me...but i think that that only applies to people who REALLY enjoy writing them. Not the definition of me! But sure, I've learned enough about the structure and body of the essay that you could call me a Gessayist (gilman taught essayist). One of the main things I learned was to EMBED QUOTES CORRECTLY. Main point.

The main things I usually use points for are either not explaining one of my quotes sufficiently to the text I am using it in, or not citing things correctly. Generally I have "good original ideas" that get my essay rolling although the putting it together part is sometimes harder. Like a puzzle...if you don't have all the pieces it's hard to put it together. So far, I am pretty satisfied with my essay. At first I had this one idea and then it wasn't working. I had an epiphany for a new idea to use. The next thing I knew the essay was pretty much writing itself! (not literally...) Of all the essays we've had to write, this has by far been the hardest. Something about the concept and the characters just couldn't seem to relate to me enough! But, as it turns out, I think that everything IS falling into place just like a puzzle. Like my own metaphor?

Reading in the summer? Nah...just kiddin'

I love summer. Everything about it, from the warm sun to the swimming and just the hanging out. Sadly, I will have to read The Good Earth, but also a few other books of my choice(which are nearly ALWAYS better than books we have to read!). Also the book for AP World...Hopefully, nothing that I ever pick will be something like a book where in the end pigs stand up and "turn into" humans-ahem. Animal Farm=an embarrassment to literature(OK...not really but you get the point)!

The following books are on my POTENTIAL reading list:

First, a very short read, which is the book One Whole and Perfect Day, by Judith Clarke. Generally in the summer i enjoy doing nothing, running around(not meaning actually running... but the sense of it like hustling around slowly doing things with friends), playing soccer and funny and good books, and OF COURSE laying in the hammock. I love hammocks. I just wish i lived in a tropical place with palm trees, hot sun, waves crashing, soft sand...OK back to the subject. I think that this book will hopefully cover that since I have gotten recommendations from several friends. Also, I love books about non-real, or "book life" because they have it so much easier than us. In some fantasy novels this is how THEIR life might go. In the morning, they get up and a robot makes their breakfast, makes the bed, cleans the house, does their homework. And then, they get in their little modern flippy car thing that flies them to their school while they are eating a chocolate milkshake. How good is that. I'm not even going to START about real life...but anyways, sometimes i wish i could just live in a book! Another book I would like to read, is Tomorrow, when the war began, by John Marsden. I have always enjoyed multicultural novels and novels with high action such as this one. When seven teens from Australia return from a camping trip to find that their country has been invaded, the must hide to survive. The plot of the book sounds like a great story! I always thought it would be kind of cool to have to hide to survive. Very, ya know, crazy and...suspenseful! I guess not if you actually had to, but in most books cases the story is told through someone as if they were living in the moment so technically, they would have had to live to tell the tale.

Astrolololology

To me, Astrology signs have always been rather, well, I don't know how to put this nicely-pointless, annoying, i don't know, non-purposeful. Sometimes when I look in a random magazine I pick up( because i don't understand why you would want to read some of the magazines being published now), I see my "monthly horoscope". Of course in February, all of them for every single month have to do with, "oh! you will fall in love and everything will be happy and pink". Stuff like that. Seem like me? I didn't think so...Sure, sometimes they can be true-but sometimes what they say could be true of anybody. Over the years, some horoscopes have said that my sign is Scorpio while some have said Sagittarius- i don't really know how that happens, but anyways. One goes from October 23-November 21(Scorpio), and the other one (Sagittarius) goes from November 22-December21. Although I highly highly doubt it, someone could believe that this could be an "influence" on my no good decision making skills...I really really hate making decisions. One horoscope website said that the following was my horoscope for may 4th...

Tue May 4: Maternal Moon

The ties that connect you to your family should be especially strong today while the maternal Moon zips through your fourth house of home and family. Intuition is strong, so pay attention to any hunches you might have now. The past has a funny way of influencing the present and the future, so take a good, long look at yours. Where have you been and where would you like to go? Beneficial colours are pearl white and teal. Lucky numbers are 11 and 17.

Since spring break I have been tanner than I was so i guess white has looked better on me than before...and i guess i have always loved teal, but the rest to me is jibber-jab. Anyways, this relates to the play in many ways because of the characters' opposing views. This is shown when Romeo says, "O, I am Fortune's fool!" (3.1.142) because fortune/fate is something they believe determines their future. Also, maybe that fortune is responsible for Tybalt's fate.

S.O.A.P. -Not by Other Girls - Romeo and Juliet

Romeo and Juliet

It's a lot like Romeo and Juliet
It feels like
Something´s happening to me

In the summertime I met a guy
He was so fine, He blew my mind
My friends are telling me
Girl he's a loser
But they can't see

It's a lot like Romeo and Juliet
It feels like
Something´s happening to me

From the first time I saw his eyes
There was sunshine
Everytime he walks into the room
I feel my heart go boom boom boom

It's a lot like Romeo and Juliet
It feels like
Something´s happening to me

There was a time, when I was young
And love it felt so strong
Now it comes back to me
What's going on

It's a lot like Romeo and Juliet
It feels like
Something´s happening to me


In the song Romeo and Juliet, by Soap(Not by Other Girls) , there are many direct references to Romeo and Juliet(the novel). 
The song not only uses the names Romeo and Juliet, 
but also talks about the plot-how two people fall in love(in the song in the summer), 
and also the song brings up the very common motif of "sun" in the novel. 
Although unlike in the novel, the person in the song realizes that it was a typical "summer love", 
while in the novel their love is much more(all though weird) real. 
Also, instead of being in feuding familes, other people (like her friends) 
thought that he was a loser(as it says in the text of the song) which in the book is one of the main conflicts. 

Although there were many scenes in this novel, very few contained lots of action. Three that would be interesting to perform, would be:

1. When Pip first meets the convict. This was one of the events that actually contained suspense and intrigue. Mainly the parts where pip is getting shaken up and he stutters and doesn't always know what to say. This part was interesting because you don't know if he will actually get his liver taken out and such at this point in time (although considering the fact he is the main character and there are still about 487 pages to go...). The only two people in this scene are Pip and the Convict, so it would be a pretty easy scene (although I wouldn't want to be the one to be in it!)...

2. Another scene that would be fun to see, would be when Miss Havisham catches on fire. Yay! just kidding...This scene actually contained action and you don't know whether he is going to live or die. The characters in this scene are Miss Havisham and Pip. This is one of the more interesting and DRAMATIC scenes of the book.

3. Also, another scene that would be interesting to see was when Pip is first sent to Miss Havishams to play-the part that would be interesting, would be when Estella just calls pip out on everything he does. Like calling jacks knaves and all that stuff...Although this wasn't one of the more suspenseful scenes, it would be fun to act out [no lack of arguing :) ]

THE END

Great expectations that really aren't so great...More and more questions...

In this weeks reading, there were many mysteries revealed including those pertaining to Pip's benefactor and Miss Havisham's intricate web of social life. One of the parts I was confused about, was on page 357 when Pip narrates that Drummle reminded him of Orlick. "I could not have said from where, whether from the inn yard, or the street, or where not- and as Drummle leaned down from the saddle and lighted his cigar and laughed with a jerk of his herad towards the cofeeroom windows, the slouching shoulders, and ragged hair of this man, whose back was towards me, reminded me of Orlick." (357) I don't really understand if Drummle was ever associated with Orlick or if Pip is just reminded of them? Is he missing his past? I don't really get the connections between all of the characters...