Making Sense-"keeping close to home"

The base which every person calls home is important. It is the foundation for our life. However, it is only the foundation and the first few blocks on top of it. Each person decides how to build the rest of their personal "home". It is not fair to blame the environment, race, financial status, or any other situations on how the final product looks like.

Each person builds their own home by leaving their original home. This doesn't require going from one coast of the country to the other. It does require becoming independent and becoming capable of forming personal beliefs. Conforming to the beliefs of those around the environment doesn't build the character which is desired by many. This doesn't mean that it is wrong to interact with people of all types of backgrounds based on race, religion, or social status.

Making Sense-"From a Native Daughter"

Possessions have value for many reasons. The most valuable of possessions are the ones which have a personal connection associated with it. An item given by a loved one contains more than the gift itself. The gift breathes "I love you" through it. This is an intangible that cannot have a price tag put on it. It would be a very difficult situation to have to part with this item if it was lost or stolen. It feels like a part of yourself is gone. Empathy cannot exist when this occurs. One must hold hope for to be reunited with something of such value.

Making Sense-"Blaxicans"

Rodriguez's essay tip toes on a very sensative issue in today's world, ethnicity. It is a fact that the United States in no longer a white and black country. It is the world's most diverse country. It is home to every country around the world. He explains how the term Hispanic is a gringo created term because it fails to properly associate with the people it describes. It only makes it easy to group a people with similiar geographic links in the South American region. Many people are accepting this false label that has been tagged to themselves. It would be interesting if the citizens of the United States adopted a new ethnic tag based on their surroundings. As a society, stereotyping would decrease because it would be impossible to know a person's surroundings at home. I would support this type of society because it would be a more cooperative environment. Each city would want to build each other up instead of tearing each other down. In an ideal world, this could be a reality. Unfortunately, this can only be a fantasy in all of the racially segregated neighborhoods.

Weekly Blog #4-"Time Management"

I have been able to accomplish one of my immeadiate goals going into college. Unlike high school, I wanted to be involved in multiple organizations. I have been able to be active in four different student organizations at Carroll in the first month. It has been very satisfying because I am meeting many new people and am applying my gifts in many different ways. The single downside to being involved is finding a way to balancing five hats at one time. The most important part of being at Carroll is being a student. I need to constantly have this mindframe throughout the next five years.

I had a chance to see what life is like being a student-athlete. I was a part of fall baseball practices in September due to the NCAA allowing four weeks of fall practices. I understand that these different roles are going to rule a large portion of my time. As long as I plan out my week in advance, I firmly believe that I will be able to comfortably be involved in all of these organizations.

Bird by Bird 97-109

I really enjoyed reading the second chapter of the reading. "The Moral Point of View" reitterated a point that I have temporarily forgotten about. It concludes by driving the point across that writers should write about something they love. She writes, "So write about the things that are most important to you." I write at my highest level when I am writing about baseball. I have a passion for baseball that is unmatched by any other topic. Because of this, my writing contains detail and a obvious spark to the words.

Separating Reality and Immagination

"We think we live in a world of sense-experience and what we can touch and feel, see and hear, is the sum of our reality." -Jeanette Winterson, "Imagination and Reality"

Today's society is confused between reality and fantasy. We live in a world that is materialistic. The majority of people that live in it live inside a box. They fail to see the big picture in life. The younger generation is being corrupted by the mainstream media. It gives false hope to many of these young minds. Because of this, the only picture of being succesfull contains goals which are not likely of being obtained. The goals usually contain making lots of money, owning a million dollar house, and many of the world's greatest cars. This is due to the fact that the "role models" of today are those who have all of these objects.

Emulating these types of people are causing a more corrupt society. On a daily basis, one can turn on CNN, Fox News, or MSNBC at any time of the day and find a headline which contains one of these role models digging a six foot grave for themselves. The true meaning of satisfaction is lost in this confusion. Money or possessions cannot buy happiness. Many of today's celebritites would give alot of their wealth to be able to wake up on a daily basis without the problems which constantly surround them. Happiness is what truly separates reality from immagination.

Making Sense- "I Stand Here Writing"

Sommers main point of the essay is driven in the direction of where writing ideas come from. Every writer has to have a unique way that they formulate their ideas. This can be through from many outlets. The facts are something that the audience can possibly be familiar with. The only way to prevent boring to be tagged with a writer's writing is to have a personal object that can be reliable to bring ideas that are relavent and interesting to the reader's eyes.