Blog 8

After reading Andrew Braaksma’s essay, “Some Lessons from the Assembly Line,” Braaksma discussed his insight of becoming more appreciative of his education process due to his horrid experience working a part-time job at a factory during his time off between college semesters. He felt that not only was the money not worth the time and effort, but it was not worth sticking around for the rest of his life. Braaksma felt that he was lucky to get the chance to go back to school and change his career path, other than the older people who had been working there for far too long. Like Braaksma, I too had an experience that helped me decide what I really want to do for a living.

When I was about 15 years of age, I started to do volunteer work at Loaves and Fishes for an early start on my senior project at Pleasant Grove High School, little did I realize how repulsive the people I was helping would be. The Building the volunteer work was located at was in the north part of down town Sacramento on the corner of North C Street and North 12^th Street. It was not a very friendly neighborhood at all. Although I enjoyed putting in time and effort into helping feed the hungry with no price attached, after time had passed by I realized, like Braaksma, that I did not want a job like my volunteer work for a future career. One of the key moments that opened my eyes was when I was sitting in the luggage room, breathing in the vulgar smell of body odor and drowning in the filth of others around me, I gazed in astonishment at the dreadful behavior of the way the homeless acted towards one another, making them seem more like wild animals rather than civil human beings. After that instant on that gloomy day, it came to mind that I also would not want my future looking like those who I was helping feed. I decided after the first or second time volunteering there that it was both a necessity and desire of mine to take my education more seriously and to never give up.

7th Blog

In Langston Hughes essay, “Salvation,” Hughes discusses his personal experience of peer pressure and the awful feeling of guilt for lying. Hughes informs his audience of how numerous people told him how important and glorious it is to feel and see Jesus Christ himself. He describes in vivid detail how all his church members stared at him with intensity and fear, praying for him to be saved by Jesus. Hughes did not want to get up like the other children because he did not feel or see Jesus as everyone had told him he should. He waited and waited with anticipation to see this holy man and feel his magnificent presence as eyes glared at him and weeps of prayer were whispered throughout the room. Hughes admits crying in shame that night for the guilt of having to lie about seeing Jesus in church for salvation to get rid of the peer pressure he had felt. Like Hughes, I too have had the unfortunate experience of peer pressure through out my life.

            Just recently I have experienced a lot of pressure to tell my father information that is not mine to tell. Not too long ago, about a month or two ago, my 17 year old sister, Hayley, had told me that she is pregnant and she could not be happier. She is about five months along now and still has not told my dad. My other sister, Nicole, who is 16 years of age, keeps pressuring me, being the older sister, to tell Hayley to tell my dad or that I need to inform him myself. I do believe my dad should know about her position and I do not wish to tell him because I feel that it is not my place because it is not my business to tell. Unfortunately I do not only feel pressure from Nicole but subconsciously I feel it from my dad, step mom, and myself as well. Hayley refuses for me to be apart of her or her baby’s life if I can not support the idea of her becoming a young mother. I don’t feel it’s fair to do that to herself or the child she carries. I feel that it is a huge responsibility, bigger than she imagines. I have seen one of my old best friends go down the same road and it changed her and she went through a lot. I don’t want my sister having to go through that and I don’t feel that my sister has the proper healthy environment to raise a baby at the moment. I have felt a lot of pressure to help her even if I don’t approve but I feel that telling my father would be both a good and bad idea. I feel that it is a good idea so my sister won’t be in the dark anymore and hopefully receive help in some ways but I also feel that it is a bad idea because the news will destroy my dad. To this day I am still debating on what I should do, being in the position that I am. I can hear the clock ticking away as the ninth month sneaks closer every day.

Blog Entry #6 Charles Fisher

In Charles Fisher’s essay, “Cell Phones and Social Graces,” he explains how he is against the use of cell phones and why. Fisher talks about how he doesn’t have a cell phone and how he refuses to ever use one due to the fact that you loose your social interaction with people and your politeness. He believes that although cell phones are incredibly intelligent, they also create and show how rude people can be. Fisher also finds it very inconvenient it is that people make themselves available to anyone and everyone at any given second thanks to cell phones. He feels that back in the day when there were no cell phones and people were not always available, life wasn’t so complicated and full of problems. For the most part I, too agree with Charles Fisher because I have felt the same way when it comes to my personal experience.

            I have had the unfortunate experience of knowing some good friends, Joanna and Josh, who got into a rather harsh fender-bender during rush hour because Joanna was paying more attention on her phone texting, rather than keeping her eyes on the road. I have also had the experience of trying to spend quality time with my boyfriend/best friend lately and every two minutes I catch his eyes glued back onto his new cell phone. I agree with Fisher when he states that cell phones are a “demise of common social courtesies” and that there is a “controversial safety record of drivers using cell phones.” Although I do not fully agree with him on the fact that it is always a bad thing to be available for someone to get a hold of us. I feel that it is important to have a cell phone when it comes to an emergency, whether the call is being made to you or you are the one making the phone call. I believe that like Charles Fisher, we should all have the idea to have the common decency to turn off our cell phones when they are not needed such as when your driving, socializing, in an important gathering, or just even to enjoy yourself in society.

#5... Darkness at Noon

In Harold Kient’s self experienced story, “Darkness at Noon,” he explains his disability and how the rest of the world treats him by judgment. Just by being blind does not make him incapable of hearing or talking or any other function known to man kind. The people in today’s society are so wrapped up in judgment that they will label anyone who is handicap as useless. I agree with Kient’s belief due to the fact that I too have had the experience of sitting in a similar position as him.

            Not all health problems can be seen visually. Like myself, I have an internal disease known as diabetes. I was about to turn eight years old when I developed type-one diabetes. I found that it can be rather easy to hide from people if you know how to take care of it, but it is not the best idea. I was ashamed and embarrassed at how different I was from the other kids and all the extra work I had to put in just to have a small snack or go play outside. At first it had nothing to do with the reaction of the other kids, or even the adults around me. I was judging myself and it hurt. I started to come out of that phase after realizing how ridiculous I was being and was more willing to tell people that I was diabetic. At least I told the people I felt were closest to me, who wouldn’t be to harsh with their judgments, because after all, it wasn’t my fault or a choice to become diabetic, I had no control or say in the matter.

 Later on down the road I felt pretty comfortable and confident in telling people about my situation. Then one afternoon, during my freshman year of high school, I was on a bus on my way to a volleyball game at a different school with my volleyball team. I over heard one of the girls on my team, Kendra, talk about one of her friends who also had diabetes. She sounded somewhat disgusted and so judgmental by the way she talked about him and what he had to do before he could even put food into his mouth. I felt like I was a kid again, ashamed and embarrassed and my team had no idea. Later I confronted her about judging people for actions they have no control over in order to stay healthy and alive. I think she is the one who felt ashamed and embarrassed at the end of the day for the way she criticized other people who were different. I felt accomplished and proud of myself for being able to stick up for not only myself but others as well. Like Kient, I wish the world could change in a heart beat and realize that they shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.

"So What's So Bad About Being So-So?"

In Lisa Wilson's article, "So What's So Bad About Being So-So?” she states that in today's society we take life too serious to the point that everything is not just for fun, but it is merely nothing but competition.  I believe Wilson proves a very valid point. It is true that we over work the children in today’s society, but we are also setting them up a more successful future. The key thing we should be motivated to accomplish is finding a middle ground for both time for relaxation and hard work. I have experienced watching my step mom always trying to compete with other people she knew in any way she could to one-up them. If she visited someone’s house she would take a good glance at they’re furniture and any other décor and would have to go out the next day to by the same exact material or something that resembled the same material, only better. She had the same problem with the any materialistic brand such as a clothing brand, purse designer, jeweler, and so forth. It was upsetting to see her in such a state of mind to have to be better than everyone else. Eventually she slowed down on her spending on herself when she had her first child. Now she spends most of her time on how to make her children better and smarter than the rest. It is unfortunate to see how much trouble she puts herself through to make this happen but as time passes by she is starting to find a middle ground for a time for relaxation and time for the competition.

Journal #3

Anne Quindlen’s wrote “Stuff is Not Salvation” in purpose of opening the public’s eyes to the nation’s failure to realize when they need to stop spending money they don’t have. Quindlen’s solution to the nation’s outrageous consumption problem was to get rid of credit cards. Credit cards give the greedy a key to open a door to money that does not exist, putting them and the country in dangerous debt. I too can relate my people close to me to this situation, whether they are addicted to shopping or they are alcoholics.

            All my life I have been surrounded by people spending more money on their desires rather than their necessities or they do spend it on their necessities but can not find the will to say quits on where else they spend their money. John, a good friend of mine, has a problem, along with a good majority of our country with sharing a common disease known as alcoholism. Alcoholics are a perfect example in today’s society on people who spend money they don’t have on something that is not a necessity but a desire. As millions of dollars are being plummeted down the drain, the further we, America, go into debt because most of these people are not using money they have. They are borrowing the government’s imaginary money other wise known as credit. I believe that my friend, John, has the same problem that the people in Ann Quindlen’s short story had. That problem is the over use in money that we do not have which causes America debt because we Americans have this hunger for more and do not know how to stop spending. 

Hi there!

            My name is Christyna O’Brien; I am 18 years of age and a new student at the Art Institute of Sacramento, CA. Although I am 18 years old, and the oldest girl out of my siblings, I just happen to be the youngest out of all my friends. I am really fond of bonding with friends and family. One of my hobbies on a day-to-day basis is getting to know new people and always being very open-minded to anything. All my life I have had a passion for sports and any other outside activity. I graduated from Pleasant Grove High School in May of 2010. Right after graduation, I decided to jump straight into a 4 year college and continue my education until I receive a Bachelors Degree. Originally I planned to join the Art Institute to major in their most popular study, culinary, but right before I started to attend I changed my mind and decided to major in their smallest program, Interior Design. I am happy with my life at the moment as it’s beginning to form. I have a non-stop busy schedule, being that I spend all of my time at my job, at school, at home doing house work or homework, or spending what little free time I have left with my boyfriend. It is hard to fit in hours for my first job as a hostess a Mexican Restaurant as a hostess in Carmichael, while trying to concentrate on my school work and attending school in West El Camino and attempting to squeeze in time for my boyfriend and others when they live in the Elk Grove area, but I manage.