A Vision of Students Today

There were a few statistics within this video that really stood out to me and that I could really relate to. The first one being that students spend hundreds or nearly a thousand dollars each semester on textbooks that they will hardly even open. I think that textbooks are completely unnecessary because majority of the time the teacher/professor doesn't put any questions on the exams regarding the textbook. I think that if some teachers would like to include some of the information in the textbook, they should download and email the information to the students so that they can choose to print it off or not. Also, I agreed completely with the fact most students have to multitask in order to get anything done. With so many things going on in college students life, there are very few times when they can focus on one thing without having to worry about another. It really does seem ridiculous, but I usually end up doing 90% of my homework while I am in other classes or while I am working on other things.

Creative Research Idea

I want to write about the topic of hunger throughout the world. I want to be able to write it in a fictional way that will include valid non-fictional information. I think that hunger is an issue that is sometimes overlooked so I would love to try to present it in a way that is interesting to everyone.

Introverts Blog Post

After reading through this article a few times, I was finally able to distinguish the areas where the writer actually used research. It isn't the typical research that we see in a lot of writing but instead it is a lot of personal experience and knowledge. He mentions a lot about his experiences with people interacting with him as an introvert. He says some of the things that are commonly said to introverts and gives us an idea of how an introvert reacts to these interactions. Another form of research was mentioning some famous people who were also introverts. By doing this he really helps the reader relate to what he is talking about and what type of a person he is describing. Using some of the quotes from these famous introverts actually helped add some character and humor to his writing.

Making a Living

URL: http://travel.nytimes.com/2007/12/23/travel/23galapagos.html?scp=6&sq=sailing&st=cse

Last summer I was lucky enough to have the opportunity of a lifetime. I was asked by my sister and her boyfriend to join them on a sailing adventure from Hawaii to California. Luckily I was on my summer vacation from school and my job was very lenient about giving me all the time off that I needed. I bought my airplane ticket for $180 and set out on the adventure of a lifetime.
When my sister was in college out in Hawaii she met her present boyfriend, James. Once they began dating she realized what an amazing catch he really was. He had his own motorcycle, his own house and even his own sailboat located right on the beautiful beach of Waikiki. It wasn’t long before he pulled her into the life of worry-free adventure. Having his own sailboat he became a well known captain around the Hawaiian islands and many sailors were beginning to recognize his name. Two summers ago he received his first offer to deliver a very rich man’s 57ft sail boat from the Australia to New Zealand. He took the opportunity and asked my sister to join him on the first of many adventures.
For the past 2 years they have been making a couple of thousand dollars per delivery. All of their food is always paid for and they get to visit some amazing places. Last summer they finally had a delivery that I too could join. I flew out to Hawaii and helped them prepare the boat for our journey. On the first day out at sea I regretted ever setting foot on the sailboat. My stomach was not ready for the constant movement and I spent the whole day sick over the edge. The next day I woke up to my sister yelling at me to come snorkeling with her. There was a pod of blue whales that we both decided to swim with and I loved every second.
After our journey I realized what a great life they had going for them. They get to live life the way that they want to with out bosses or worries or any of the things that come with a regular job. They make enough money to travel where they want and they get to experience once in a lifetime opportunities. In the article posted by New York Times the writer talks about doing just this. Once you can find someone that has a boat it really helps you get into this world. He mentions that he is in his thirties and that he is the oldest one on board. This really is the life of the young and adventurous and it seems like a pretty good one to me.

DNC Week

The DNC created quite the hassle for me. I live in downtown but work up in Thornton so I am constantly driving back and forth. Usually it only takes about 15-20 minutes to get from place to place but this week took much longer. I was late to work 3 of the 4 days and my boss definitely didn't like it. I found it funny though that there was such a hype about all of the riots that were going to happen considering nothing bad really happened. Everyday I waited to hear of some breaking news but nothing came. Overall the DNC was just an excuse for everyone to be late for work.

Poverty in Schools

I was able to find some pretty interesting statistics regarding race/ethnicity and poverty in schools. It was in a report done by the U.S. Department of Education titled, "The Condition of Education 2008". Though many people believe that race and ethnicity do not play a huge role in educational success these days, this report proves differently. It shows what a gap there is between the percent of black/hispanic children in high poverty schools vs. the percent of white children attending high poverty schools. It is proven that schools in poverty typically have less resources so therefore the success in learning is lower.
Link=http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2008/2008031.pdf

"We The People" commentary

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2008/aug/15/rosen-we-the-people/

This article most definitely caught my attention. The name alone is so common and well known that it makes the reader want to see what it is all about. I think that the writer did an excellent job at choosing something that most all Americans can relate to.
Once you begin reading you can sense the writer's sarcasm coming out. He points out things that seem pretty obvious to most and adds his own view to it. He brings out a new way of looking at something that has always been part of our nation's history. He relates to everyone by pointing out simple ideas about how nobody truly is alike so we never really can be considered "one". By the end of his column you can't help but agree with what he is saying.