Last Blog!

Finally it is the end of the year!  My favorite blog was the Having My Say blog because I was given the ability to just say whatever I wanted to.  It felt good to be able to express my opinions to the world.  I did not like the blogs where you had to look on the internet to find articles or songs because sometimes I would have a really hard time finding one.  It would become extremely time consuming for me, and it seemed like it was simply busy work.  I put some effort into my blogs, but I definitely could have put more in or have done them on time.  I usually completely forgot about blogging for a couple weeks.  I did learn a lot from the blogs, but I mostly just learned to express my opinion on things.  I think it was a good learning experience just to learn to say how you felt about certain things.  I think that next year's juniors should do the blogs, so that they could grow as I believe I did.  I will most likely shut down my blog after the year mainly because I would just not really know what I should write about on it. 

Steven Crane

Steven Crane-Once there was a man

Once there was a man --
Oh, so wise!
In all drink
He detected the bitter,
And in all touch
He found the sting.
At last he cried thus:
"There is nothing --
No life,
No joy,
No pain --
There is nothing save opinion,
And opinion be damned." 

I believe that this poem is about how everyone can't always be happy.  It shows how no matter how smart, how wise, or how rich a person is, they may not have it all like most people think that they do.  I like this poem because it shows the reality of life.  It also talks about how sometimes opinions are not respected or appreciated.  Opinions do not mean anything is some matters, you just want facts.  Part of me also does not like this poem because it does not have a "bright side" to it, as I would like it to have.  It is about how sad this man is, even though he is very wise.

Mark Twain Quotes

"Always tell the truth; then you don't have to remember anything. "
"When in doubt, tell the truth. "
"Love your enemy, it will scare the hell out of them."


   I really like all three of these Mark Twain quotes.  I appreciate the quotes about telling the truth because I feel that many people now do not generally tell the truth.  Honesty is a big deal to me and I try not to lie and I really do not getting lied to.  People always get caught up in their lies and they fail, but they would not have gotten into so much trouble if they would have just told the truth.  
   I also like the quote about loving your enemy.  When you say something nice to an enemy they get thrown off guard so much that they cannot do anything about it.  Being nice to someone that you are fighting with just scares and confuses them so much! I like Mark Twain's logic with all three of these quotes.

A Walk Through Harlem

  Bessie's dentist office was on Seventh Avenue, along with James Weldon Johnson's house, Mother A.M.E. Zion Church, and the great architecture of Striver's  Row.  James Weldon Johnson was a black attorney, writer, and also headed the NAACP for 11 years.  He was a rather important and prominent citizen of Harlem during the Harlem Renaissance.  Sadie and Bessie also most likely went to one of the churches shown on the map, since religion was so important to them because they grew up with it, and their father was a pastor. Sadie and Bessie also used to go to Madam C.J. Walker's beauty salon to get their hair done.  They most likely spent some time at Speaker's Corner listening to people talk and protest.  They appreciated it when people did this.  Harlem was a busy place to be during the time that Sadie and Bessie lived there.

Expressions in Art

   This photo shows the slaves on the ships all chained up, so that they could not leave.  They would be chained so that they were not able to escape and jump of the ship.  The slaves were held captive and treated terribly.  They were not even regarded as being humans.  This was such a bad time in the history of the world, when people would treat others this terribly. Most of the slaves on the ships were terrified about what would actually happen to them, or whether they would even live to see land again.  This would be very fearful for anyone.



Picture: http://www.tfaoi.com/am/10am/10am92.jpg

Having My Say

   I feel very strongly about many things in our world.  I feel very strongly about justice and fairness.  I believe everyone should be treated equally, even though that may never happen.  I do not believe in people getting special treatment, no matter who they are.  One example would be celebrities getting away with crimes.  I cannot stand when a celebrity is obviously guilty of a crime and even gets found guilty, but they do not even go to jail.  I believe that if someone receives a jail sentence for a certain crime, then everyone else should too.  People should also work for their respect and try their hardest at every single thing that they do.  They need to earn their equal treatment.  I think that people who don't do anything or work hard shouldn't receive better treatment, with things like welfare.  I also do not think celebrities with no true talent should be glorified like they are.  Everyone should be treated equally and fairly. 

Whitman Connection

     I really enjoyed the poem, There Was a Child Went Forth.  The detail Whitman used to describe things was incredible.  The lines I connected most with and made me think about were, "Whether that which appears so is so, or is it all flashes and specks? Men and women crowding fast in the streets, if they are not flashes and specks what are they?"  It made me think about our lives on Earth.  It makes me consider very religious and philosophical topics, like the meaning of life.  I wonder if we really exist, or if this may all just be a dream.  It also makes me wonder how big the universe is, since we are just one small planet in one solar system.  In comparison to the rest of the universe we are just flashes and specks.  Some of these are just too big of questions to consider for anyone.  It is difficult to consider our existence or the size of our universe.