Assignment 8 - Gates

Fears: Not being happy in life, choosing a job/career which I don’t like.

Annoyances: People who breathe heavily during tests, the amount of homework I get.

Accomplishments: Having a decent GPA

Confusions: How some people can say they don’t understand things and be confident that it’s the teacher’s fault, when they don’t do the assigned homework.

Sorrows: The almost non-existent free time I have, having to leave behind things you care about.

Dreams: Be happy in life and have good friends and relationships.

Idiosyncrasies: Loving to argue so much I constantly argue the opposite of what I even believe.

Risk: Jumping off 20-30 foot cliffs into water, doing high ropes courses, repelling

Beloved Possessions: car, computer

Problems: Sitting down to study

So out of the so called “territories” the easiest one for me to write about is how annoying loud breathing is. 

 First of let me just say it definitely impairs my learning and test taking success.  Some people can focus with the TV on and music blaring let me just say I am not one of these people. As a result of this any little thing may set my mind of on a time wasteful tangent. When I’m taking a test, studying, etcetera. When someone is breathing loudly not only can I not focus, the sound just annoys me. It makes part of me want to stand up yell some cuss words and throw things. I would consider it a educated guess to say my blood pressure goes up a good 20 points in these situations.  I am really not trying to sound mean because I know everyone gets stuffy noses and such, but seriously the sound they make is about the most annoying thing I have ever heard. Nails on a chalk board…not a problem.  Loud breathing, you are now on my short list of people I hate.

Assignment 14 - Gates

This year, my thanksgiving will be spent in Lexington at my house. It will just be our immediate family, but all of us will be there because my brother and sister are coming back from college. Usually when we stay home, my dad prepares a feast complete with your trite thanksgiving staples (turkey, corn pudding, etc.) but he also makes this chocolate pie that is amazing. It takes multiple days to prepare and requires some work beforehand, but the end result is worth it by far. Overall, I enjoy the holiday (and the break from school) and spend it “bonding” with fellow family members. One of the best thanksgivings was when we went out to Vegas to see the Grande Canyon. . It will be hard to forget that thanksgiving dinner in Vegas, with 30 people somehow crowded around one table at a buffet and a seemingly endless array of American and exotic foods and family to share it with. 

Brave Little Toasters - Kevin LaZur

Many people think I'm just a table. I'm more than that. I'm the table in the center of Mr Logsdon's classroom. Every day I get the eyeballs of academy kids who think they know me. They think they can figure out who gets to sit in those special chairs at my side. I get so tired of all of these students looking at me with their pondering gaze. I'm not just some place to keep papers. These children don't understand the multifarious purposes I can serve to the functioning and organization of this classroom. I'm so much more than a surface.

Mr Logsdon is the only one who seems to understand this. Whenever I feel judgment weighing me down, he knows how to remind me that it's not pointless. And maybe I do just hold papers. But I hold Mr. Logsdon's papers. When one person recognizes my utility, it makes the ungratefulness of others seem unimportant in comparison. I hope he knows how happy he makes this old, ordinary table.

Assignment 13 - Changes - Gates

Bad drivers have existed for as long as cars have, and they continuously make every day a struggle for everyone on the road. For years, people have tried to find solutions. Traffic citations all the way up to Google's self-driving car are perfect examples of attempts to solve these problems. The citations obviously have not kept bad drivers off of the roads, and Google's self-driving car has already been in multiple accidents(all of which, are results of bad driving). It is time to take drastic measures to solve this massive problem and there is one way to go from here: incarcerate anyone who receives a traffic citation or causes an accident. Sentences will range from 25-Life and through this new system, bad drivers will not only be eliminated, but average drivers will have a reason to become better drivers.

Brave Little Toasters - Gates

Life of a T.V. Remote

Being a remote is a hard life. Waking up in the morning, you make yourself some cereal and get ready to leave for work. Then you realize you don't have a mouth, and you don't have to leave for work. You lay on a couch and prepare to be tormented, sometimes for hours on end if the user is especially indecisive. The users pudgy fingers poke and prod until you can't take it anymore. You sit on the arm of the couch for several more hours, hoping today might be the day they don't come back. However, today is not that day. Your hear the sound of a door opening and closing. You try to lean and look to see who's coming, but you fall off the edge of the side. You slowly look up, just in time to see  a large foot crushing down on you. You cry out in pain, then notice no sound is coming out, due to your lack of mouth. Then you hear the sound of the user falling, slipping on your slick plastic frame. The user is in pain struggling to get back up, and you know what you must do. Time for the remotes to seek revenge. Time to fight back.

Flying Turkeys- Max Kaufman

I have always wholeheartedly embraced thanksgiving. My most impressive dedication to this wonderful holiday was sucumming to a "turkey coma" mid meal at age 5 in pseudo authentic native american garb. My thanksgivings are all relatively normal. However one stark difference is that the holiday for my family has migrated away from what we are thankful for but rather just gives us a good excuse to nap excessively, watch football, and eat the same food for two days, in eachothers company. sweatpants are worn exclusively, and it seems that there is never a time when someone is not heating up leftovers. One other thing is that for my family thanksgiving is essentially casserole-fest. I'm actually surprised that the turkey has not yet manifested itself in casserole form. I would have to say the strangest thing to happen on thanksgiving in my house would have to be the time that two stray great pyrenees dogs wandered onto our property, each one weighed around 100 pounds needless to say we ran out of leftovers much faster than we normally used to.

Flying Turkeys- James Jones

          My Thanksgiving is fairly similar to the stock image, but I get to experience it multiple times. My parents are divorced so I have dinner with my mom's family, my dad's family, and dinner with my step-mom's family. My mom has her dinner on the weekend and I get have great food and see family and I value that a lot. On the actual day of Thanksgiving both my dad's family and my step-mom's family have their dinners almost always within an hour of each-other. It sounds like it would be a hectic day considering you have to fit two dinners into one day and and still manage to spend time with family, it's a little hectic at times but it's always fun. I still spend time with my family and eat a lot of food (which i regret once I realize how full I am) and enjoy the day.  I'm not exactly sure which Thanksgiving is my favorite, I enjoy all of them because I always enjoy getting to see my family.

Changes!-James Jones

          As we are all hitting the age at which we can finally drive I think we have all noticed something. That something, is traffic. I despise traffic so much that sometimes I find myself becoming aggravated with other drivers even though they are just part of the long line of painful traffic. So, I have come up with a plan to rid our selves of this slow nuisance. My simple plan is to completely eliminate all traffic signs and lights. That way we will all be able to travel at a reasonable pace, not too slow but not too fast. Police officers will still monitor speed to make sure no one tries to ruin the fun for everyone by being irresponsible. Just think of it, no stop signs, no red light mocking you when there is no one even going through the other lights at the intersection. However, we all have to be responsible, and I believe that we all can, it's not our fault traffic is so painful, everyone drives perfectly. If we rid ourselves of all of the unnecessary driving restrictions caused by distracting lights and signs we can all show how great we really are at driving.

brandon castillo- i never had to choose my subject, rather my subject chose me

Fears: Robbers, Future (college, job after)

Annoyances: Freshmen, Little brother, scratchy noise made by a utensil scrapped across a bowl

Accomplishments: Good grades, strong Christian, broke 18:00 minute 5k this summer

Confusion: Creationism

Sorrows: Every Monday

Dreams: Heaven, good future

Idosyncrasies: Sports geek, Christian

Risks: Sneaking into places, stupid stuff with my friend Cole

Beloved Possessions: Bible, Family and Friends

Problems: Oblivious to other's feelings

I choose to expand on the subject of idiosyncrasy.

First off, I am a livid sports fanatic. I love every single sport except baseball and cricket. My favorite teams are the Baltimore Ravens, Louisville Cardinals, and USA national soccer team. I considered sports one of my idiosyncrasies because they are what i live and breathe. During school, my friends and I talk about what happened over the weekend in the NFL. After school, I go to cross country practice for an hour and a half only to go home and do homework while watching whatever football or basketball game is on that night. Then on the weekends I'll wake up too early in order to go to a 5k race that will be miserable, watch college football on Saturday, then NFL football all Sunday- all for the love of sports. I consider sports a idiosyncrasy because it can be what controls my happiness... or sadness. Just last week, I lost my third straight game in FANTASY football and it ruined my Sunday and Monday. I just deleted the official NFL Fantasy Football App on my iPhone.

Next idiosyncrasy is my Christian ways. I strive- and fail- to live up to the standard of Christ everyday. It is a struggle that I will have for the rest of my life. I want to become a pastor in a church; it is my calling. I attempt to read the bible everyday and live a "Christian" lifestyle. I have a community at my church, Crossroads, where I have meant some of the greatest people I know at Henry Clay Missional Community (if anyone actually reads this and wants to join, just ask!) and genuinely enjoy my time spent at "church".

brandon castillo- on this date

October 8^th, 1871 marked the start of the Great Chicago Fire. The fire started in a barn owned by Patrick and Catherine O’Leary; a cow kicked a lantern inside the barn that started the whole fire. It would go on for two days and kill about 250 people, destroy 17,450 buildings, and cost $3 billion US dollars (in 2007, but was about $200 million in 1871 dollars). But, the city was very arid and already averaged two fires per day, so a huge fire was bound to happen some time.

At the time, this was a bad thing as it cost so much money to the city of Chicago and caused unreal devastation. But, in the long run, it would come to help the city as it was able to build a modern city on top of the ruins, exponentially increase population, and economic growth in the years following.

I appreciate the event as a turning point for Chicago but also believe that it could have turned south just as quick, they are just lucky they had great leaders at the time it occurred.

Changes!- Max Kaufman

We as americans today face a harsh and scary reality, crime rates are rising exponentially and we sit idle as prisoners erode away our precious tax dollars. This causes a lack of resources which leads to slums which then leads to high crime rates. This is why I propose a simple solution, deport all current and future inmates to antarctica. A recent study showed that the average inmate costs the taxpayers an average $31,000 annually. The expense of relocation is a fraction of this. This new policy will benefit the country completely. In lessening tax expense on inmates we will have enough free resource to benefit both major political parties, more money can go towards financial aid than before whilst taking a smaller percentage from taxpayers letting small business flourish. This will also lesson party clash in regards to capital punishment, as well as saving the environment seeing how the polar bear population will benefit as well from this. Support relocation, support a better America.

Brave Little Toasters- Max Kaufman

My name is George, I'm a dollar bill. I'm a vagrant drifter most of the time. I have a quite busy life and I've done it all. I've been to at least one vending machine in every one of the 50 states. I wasn't a huge fan of Nevada, the weather is way to dry. I am a proud survivor of being in two tragic laundrymat accidents, thats right, two. But I yearn for more from life. I want to travel the world, climb Everest, see the Great Wall, drink wine at the Eiffel Tower, run with the bulls. I want to do it all, but it seems every time I'm traveling I get left behind in a rest stop vending machine or in a penny press for the worlds largest rubber band ball, or pumpkin, or giant rooster statue, or whatever, just distasteful. Sometimes I just feel downright worthless, what with inflation and all.

Do you know your neighbor?- Max Kaufman

My neighbor is Kevin, for those of you who don't know the only people I have known longer than Kevin would be my parents, not even my sister who is two years younger than us. Kev and I are essentially blood brothers. His favorite TV show is Breaking Bad. He plays hockey along with his older brother Ryan and his dad. As well as this he is a fan of pc gaming Borderlands 1 and 2 being some of his favorites. He has always been more proficient at video games than me. Ever since I first got a gamecube at age 5, he has been impressing me with his skill and tact when playing Mario Kart Double Dash, particularly Rainbow Road. But beyond the superficial things, Kevin is one of the most thoughtful people I know. Kevin has always been the one to stop and contemplate whereas I am usually being impulsive in some manner. As we have grown into manhood Kevin has always been more of a romantic than I. If I had to place Kevin in 5 years I think he will in college most likely UK studying to be an engineer or programmer. If Kevin were an animal he would me a chameleon. Cautious and thoughtful the chameleon likes to be subtly in the background but much like the way that the chameleon can change color, Kevin is full of surprises.

Flying Turkeys - Jeb Brumley

My Thanksgiving is all about spending time with family and being thankful for what we have. Each year, my family and I go to my grandparents house to have a big meal and be around the family. My aunts, uncles, and cousins all come. When the food has been prepared, we say a prayer and remember to be thankful for what we have. Next, we fill our plates with a lot of food and enjoy all of the delicious dishes. After we eat, I hang out with my cousins or watch football games. Then we get out the desert which usually includes a variety of pies and cookies. Finally, after spending several hours at my grandparents house, we leave and head to celebrate with my dad's side of the family. We spend  a lot of time catching up with family and friends we have not seen in a year. Then we will usually watch more football or play basketball outside if the weather is nice enough. I really enjoy Thanksgiving because i get to eat a lot of food and spend time with my family although I do not have any strange or wonderful memories of the holiday because all of my family lives in Lexington and we celebrate the exact same way every year.

BOO- Max Kaufman

Zombies have attacked (yikes). My first move would be to gather close friends, family, and anyone who would be useful. Use my group of people to gather supplies mainly things like medicine and dried foods like rice, beans, and grain, with the addition of various weapons of course. Then the next stop will be the airport this is when we will hijack a plane and fly towards Arizona. Hopefully we will have timed it so that there is not much resistance to our stealing of said plane, bargaining to take people with us might be necessary. Why Arizona, you might ask, simple, the flat terrain allows for easier zombie spotting and killing, plus due to a relative that lives there I am headed towards a familiar area which is abundant with blackberries and pecans plus the land lends itself to easy agriculture due to irrigation on this property. As well as this the climate will not hinder me significantly because it is stable and relatively easy to thrive in. Whereas if I were to go to Alaska where the lower population might play to my advantage the sheer effort required to live on this land would be inefficient and handicapping. But the key piece of this is that the zombies will act exactly the same whether I'm in Alaska or Arizona. But once I am at my relatives property first thing is  to set up base camp this is easy as there are many already existing structures. Making allies is essential, we will split into two groups one centered around fortifying base camp the other centered around gathering supplies mainly food in bulk in addition for seeking for survivors. This is my plan so far.

What is it good for?- Max Kaufman

The topic of intervention on an international level is and I believe will always be a very difficult decision. I am in no way a violent person but I do believe that in some cases war is necessary. For instance a situation that war would be more than called for would be genocide. I think that when war is "called for" it might be necessary but in no way will ending a life be a good deed, it might be completely justified but it is merely the lesser of two evils. I think that in a situation involving genocide a countries do have a responsibility to engage in conflict. However I think there are more effective ways to resolve certain problems like simply conflicted interests. For instance I think building up defense should be a larger priority then stopping the problem at its roots. In a situation when you could build a good defense to prevent bloodshed that will always be a better answer than sacrificing lives acting on essentially a hunch that a country might attack.

Flying Turkeys - Meagan Hale

Thanksgiving at my house is most likely the tastiest and funniest event of the year. Family is something I hold close to my heart but my family is full of storytellers and tricksters so you have to watch out. For about a week in advance it is just my mother and I cooking while my uncles and aunts and cousins are all sitting around talking. The house is full of the sound of laughters and the mouth watering aroma of thanksgiving on its way. You must be careful though because turn the wrong corner and someone will jump out to scare you or hide fake spiders in the microwave. As funny as it is the first time, believe me, it gets old fast. We've had everything from 72 hour Justified marathons to pies imploding. One tradition at my house that actually contradicts Thanksgiving is that there is a ham where the turkey is suppose to be. The kitchen starts to fill with corn pudding, dressing (stuffing, for you folks lacking southern slang), sweet and mashed potatoes, deviled eggs, and the most beautiful ham you have ever seen. Once everyone has a plate we all migrate to the dinning room where after giving thanks the eating commences. The stories start up again, though they never really stop just go on pause, and the laughing continues. By the end, everyone is either groaning from being so full or making no noise at all because they lapsed into a food coma. Thanksgiving is one of my favorite times of year and I love being surrounded by my family. There is no other place I would rather spend the holiday than in my house with my loved ones.

Changes! - Meagan Hale

Stupid people are a burden to society. Life threatening mistakes are made by stupid people. Stupid people cause car wrecks and stupid people touch priceless artwork with their greasy hands and stupid people hit others with the bat instead of the piñata at birthday parties. If stupid people are allowed to remain they will kill us all. Perhaps the most dangerous trait in stupid people is that they are easily manipulated and being manipulated by the wrong people could be very detrimental to our world. We should all fear stupidity and as long as it remains prevalent in our society stupidity will continue to reek havoc on us all. It is up to us to protect the human race. A test has been developed to weed out the stupid from the intelligent. A common sense test will be administered to the current population. Those who do not earn the desired score will be terminated making the world that much safer. Science, Math, Language, history, and english can all be taught and learned; common sense cannot. By targeting common sense we can insure that those with potential are safe. This is the future. This is the protection we have been looking for. Crime will be reduced and mistakes will be limited. Once the stupid are removed from the existing gene pool the generations to come will be more intelligent then we could possibly imagine. Cancer will be cured, Mars will be walked on, the ocean floor will be explored. Without stupidity holding us back, the human race will excel to unfathomable heights and beyond.

Brave Little Toasters - Meagan Hale

I am a hybrid. Ingeniously formed from two of my famous ancestors. I am the future and I am innovative. I live in a master suite next to my brothers and sisters. I am slave only to the giant who slides out my home and retrieves me when I am called to service. Only the giant is worthy of my talents. I am paraded around the cooking room like a trophy. The giant carries me to the large cooling chamber in search for something to devour. They remove some sort of containment chamber housing a strange source of nutrient for my master, I cannot wait to slay this foe for my master. The giant opens the compartment and reveals my new enemy it is yellow and seems to be chewy in nature and surrounded by the same shade of yellow cream. What is this? I think the giant calls it mac and cheese but such foolish words mean nothing to me. From the look of this enemy I must use my sharp spears rather than my dull side. No matter, I will serve my master as I always have and as those who came before me. The giant sets me down as they put the sustenance in the hot spinning torture machine. I watch it turn round and round burning in the box until I hear the glorious chime of battle. When the chime sounds and the yellow enemy is good and tortured, my master retrieves it from the box. My time has come. This is what I was made for. The giant picks me up and I begin to stab the Mac, killing it and handing it over to my master. When the battle is finished I am taken to the soap machine where it rains and the blood from my enemy is rinsed from my metalloid figure. I am returned to my home. I am victorious. I am Spork.

Do You Know Your Neighbor? - Meagan Hale

In English class I have the privilege of sitting next to Sam. I say privilege because I met Sam freshman year and have gotten to know him the past few years and he is by far one of the nicest people I have ever met. No one would argue that being around Sam is always a fun time and there's a pretty good chance you will be laughing because Sam is very funny. I have had several classes with Sam since freshman year and I have seen that Sam has a smile on his face about 98% of the time which is one of the reasons he is so enjoyable to be around. Sam is a casual person and is easy to talk to. You can talk to Sam about anything really and no matter what it is he always has a joke at the end. I think I would characterize Sam as green because he is both relaxed and energetic at the same time. And when I say green I mean like the Monster energy drink green because Sam's energy level is through the roof. In five years, I see Sam in college studying something he loves and surrounded by a lot of friends because I know he won't have any problem making friends. Sam is definitely a dog. Fun, playful, energetic, sometimes loud, and loyal. I really have enjoyed my time sitting next to Sam and look forward to the weeks ahead by him as well as the rest of high school.

BOO - Meagan Hale

Zombie Survival Plan - When In Doubt Know Your Way Out

First I would gather my family and hopefully others who would be of use, preferably people who have a specific skill set which is key to survival. A doctor, someone who knows how to hunt and track animals for food, someone with government or military connections who could find a safe zone or an evacuation site. Next would be to gather any food and water we could, weapons for defense, and find a safer location. Staying in a house in a neighborhood surrounded by people is not the best idea when people start becoming zombies. When finding a safer location we do not tell others where we are going in case of losing our spot. Most people should be avoided all together as panic makes people lose their humanity and they can become more dangerous than the zombies. Having more than one working vehicle is ideal in case we need a speedy escape. When choosing a new location, I would pick something either rural in hopes that it will be hard to find and the zombie population will be significantly less, or something larger with several exits but not too big as it could become too difficult to defend. A structure with a preexisting barrier such as a prison is ideal but not as common as you would think. Resources are valuable now and should be treated as such, there is no room for wasting. I would be very hesitant to trust other people outside of my group because people's sense of self preservation could be a danger to my own well being. Although easier said than done, I would try to learn something with every zombie I encounter because the more I know the better prepared I am. Once in a safe location where I can defend myself and have a somewhat steady flow of resources, my only option is to settle down and stay alive unless threatened in which case I would start the process over. 

What Is It Good For - Meagan Hale

    World War I, World War II, Civil War, War of the Wolds…in any case either fiction or reality war has a negative connotation. The casualties of war are immense and what can follow can be even worse than the fighting. Civil unrest, the rise and fall of regimes, famine…death. If war could be avoided entirely I believe the world would be a much better place but unfortunately that isn't going to happen anytime soon. Since we were children we were taught to use our words instead of hitting. One day the fists become guns and bombs and make much more of an impact to those we hit with them. You can tell your child to stop talking back or ask them to use their indoor voice but when words cease to have an effect there is nothing more deliberate than a good old fashion spanking. In todays world many people are almost as afraid to defend their country as they are to spank their disobedient child. The preferable way to settle disputes is through diplomacy but there comes a time when words no longer register with your enemy. We fight with our siblings, we fight with our parents, we fight for freedom, and we fight our enemies. Fighting is not a new concept to the human race yet people are still horrified when we use violence to protect ourselves and others. We don't realize that its soldiers and guns and wars that have a massive impact on how wonderful of a life we live and that it's their sacrifice that gives us our freedom. War can create problems but it also solves them as well. Many of the countries are countries today because of a war fought to free themselves from others. War is not for the purpose of destruction it is for defense and preservation of well being and it certainly is tragic that so much death results but it is inevitably unavoidable. You would protect your loved ones by any means necessary, war protects our homeland on a broader scale.

"I never had to choose my subject- my subject rather chose me"- Max Kaufman

Writing Territories

Fear- Shots, Bees

Annoyances- Excessive complaining, intentional distraction when I'm driving

Accomplishments- Generally not being in trouble

Confusions- discrimination

Sorrows- Modern Music (death of the guitar)

Dreams- Stable career 

Idiosyncrasies- musician

Risks- Bungee jumping (want to do)

Beloved Possessions- Pacifier and musical instruments (then), Car and musical instruments (now)

Problems- Time management

Just recently, in relative terms, I have started a new chapter of my life. I am now mobile. In the process of accomplishing this I of course required a teacher. Naturally this responsibility fell back onto my parents. So far this sounds pretty normal, but that is if you haven't met my dad. Emmet and Kevin both can vouch having known my dad for a while that he is, well, different. I love my dad but learning to drive with him was interesting, possibly because in his younger years he raced cars, or because he is just a reckless person, most likely a combination of the two. My dad had a driving "course" he created naming it, quite appropriately, driving with distraction. This involves operating a vehicle under the duress of excessive poking, screaming, hair tosseling, and loud music, accompanied with the occasional light wheel grab or momentary obstruction of vision (but never at the same time, that would be dangerous). Needless to say, this makes for difficult driving conditions regardless of the fact that the car I was usually driving was a manual. But I guess I can say that I am pretty confident that if I can drive with my dad, I am ready for carting around rowdy friends.

On This Date - Sam Flomenhoft

On October 2, 1982, a bomb attack in Tehran killed 60 people, and injured 70. On the site I found this, it was very worthy of noting, yet today we probably wouldn't think much of it. It would certainly be one of the bigger terrorists strikes into today's Middle East, yet it wouldn't be all too uncommon. This event influenced the city of Tehran greatly I'm sure. There were 60 families who lost someone, and even more who were scared senseless. It impacted the Middle East overall because it exemplified the growing strength and danger of terrorism, that would eventually blaze through the Middle East, making it as lethal as a war zone. It impacted the World because it brought attention to terrorism, and its awful impacts, yet we were still unable to stop it. I do not know much about this event but overall I hate it. I hate that something like this could happen and I hate even more that this has become so common today. When one thinks of October 2, this attack probably doesn't come to mind but for many people this is a day of mourning and remembrance of lost loved ones in the bomb. For this reason, this event is worth noting, and remembering, for the future October seconds to come. And also, we can hopefully make tragedies such as this a less common event in the Middle East, and throughout the world in general. One day we can join together to reduce the amount of October 2, 19862s.

"I never had to chose my subject - rather my subject chose me" - Sam Flomenhoft

Fears- consequences of death, being a bad person

Annoyances- bullying

Accomplishments- making it to junior year

Confusions- stereotypes

Sorrows- poverty

Dreams- help the environment, become a park ranger

Idiosyncrasies- outdoors man

Risks- doing things I'm not sure about in general

Beloved Possessions- phone, backpack I take on vacations

Problems- organization

I have a big problem with organization in about every sense of the word. I don't organize my stuff for school well, I lose important papers, and I manage time poorly. I wish I could be organized and I often clean up and make myself organized for a day but everything falls apart within a week. 

It often has bad effects on me. For example, I waited until last second to do my GSP application and now my application won't be as strong and I have a smaller chance of getting in. Another example is even though I usually do my homework, I sometimes can't find it to turn in which costs me valuable points and is often the downfall of my grade.

Every morning I wake up and tell myself I'm going to get organized and every night I go to bed and tell myself I'll do it tomorrow. My lack of organization often results in a lot of panicking and frantic searching for papers, books, or other important items late at night to turn in the next day. It will forever be a problem for me, but hopefully, if I work on it, I can be come less unorganized and it will be a problem I can ignore most of the time.

Create Your Own Adventure- Madye Moore

1.) At this moment in time, who do you think is the most influential person in the world? Why?
2.) If time machines actually existed, would you go back in time? What would you change? Is there a particular day you would go back to?
3.) What is your all-time favorite city to visit and why?

I am going to respond to the third prompt. My all-time favorite city to visit is Boston, which is my favorite because of many reasons. Boston has the "big city feel" of New York, including numerous places to shop and many places to go sightseeing, without the filth and enormous amount of tourists like NYC. Not to mention the food places! Most big cities are full of new and exciting places to eat, and Boston is no exception- you could eat at a different restaurant for all 3 meals of the day your whole trip and not go to the same one twice. It may not have Times Square or the Statue of Liberty like New York does, but it sure does make up for that! Along with Boston being a wonderful city due to many reasons, it also has some great sports teams if I do say so myself (including the 3 time Super Bowl champs, the Patriots, and 8 time World Series champs, the Red Sox). So, if you ever get the chance, I would definitely recommend visiting there, you won't be disappointed!

What is it Good For? - Sam Flomenhoft

Throughout history the human race has been witness to many violent, bloody wars, leaving innumerable carnage and the devastation of civilizations. Along with the wars, there are people who argue that it was the wrong choice to go to war, and there are people who argue it was the right choice. While many times, war can be avoided and I would side with the first argument, I cannot deny the fact that there have been times in our history when war was inevitable.
 The example that first comes to mind when I think of an unavoidable war is World War II. Hitler was tearing through Europe, gobbling up defenseless nations, and destroying cultures and livelihoods. Originally, an attempt to avoid war was made by British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain when he implemented his policy of appeasement. This failed when Adolf Hitler didn't stop with the smaller countries, he originally claimed were his only goal and moved on to the rest of Europe. The United States tried to circumvent the war as well, maintaining a biased slant towards the British effort, yet restraining from engaging in any combat. This position was no longer acceptable to keep after December 7, 1941, when the Japanese air force bombed a United States naval base in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. In both these situations the countries retaliating (the USA and Britain) had two options: 1) stand idly by while their countries and others were destroyed, or 2) defend the world against domination by a twisted dictator. Human conscious tells us the first choice is not an option, so both chose the latter, and we went to war.
Most times I would agree with the fact that war isn't the only option. Some conflicts could have have been evaded, such as the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, or Operation Enduring Freedom (the War in Afghanistan), but when there are injustices in the world such as genocide, persecution, or slavery, as human beings we are pushed to war as an only option. The other option, to ignore these evils, is unacceptable and that is why, sometimes, war is necessary.

On This Date- Max Kaufman

It was on October 11th 1939 that Albert Einstein first wrote his famous letter to FDR on the possibilities of a nuclear weapon. In this letter Einstein shaped our modern day by urging the importance of the need for the development of a US atomic program. Without this who knows what state the world would be in today. I am not one to encourage war and destruction, but I will be very clear in saying that it is a good thing that the US discovered the atomic bomb first. Some might argue that the world would be better off without "The Bomb" but do not want to even imagine what the world would be like if Germany had beaten us to the punch, so to speak. I think that at that point in history nuclear weapons would have been created regardless of the US discovering them, so I'm glad we were the first thanks to Albert Einstein's letter.

Create Your Own Adventure- Max Kaufman

1. If you had $500, how would you use it to benefit society?
2. If you could be born in any year what year would you choose? explain your decision.
3. If you could exist in any fictional work what would it be? i.e. Harry Potter, Star Trek, Marvel Universe... Explain who you would be an why.

3. Many of you might remember from your childhood the show Avatar: The Last Airbender. Well if I had to choose, I would definitely live in this universe. Beware this is about to get very nerdy/geeky. I will go ahead and say that I would be the obvious choice I would most definitely be an avatar, being able to control all four elements would be quite snazzy. However I do not think I would enjoy being Aang, having your entire culture wiped out would deserve a thumbs down. I think I would enjoy being an avatar later down the line from Earth Nation decent. This universe in general would be cool just because the concept of being able to control air, water, earth, fire, or in the avatar's case all of them is just awesome. Then you throw in the fact that it is set in a pseudo pre 20th century world and it goes from awesome, to mind blowing.

For the Love and Hate of Television- Max Kaufman

The topic of television and pop culture in general is something that I find quite funny. It is not without a sense of irony that on one hand our society is completely dead set on the importance of education, but to what effect? The Emmys are a perfect litmus test in regards to what really matters in our country. The importance of education in our country seems to be only superficial, just a way to compete with the rest of the world. Instead of a cure for terminal illness or a source of clean energy, our society chooses to focus on what TV show is the best. Don't misinterpret what I'm saying, I value performing arts heavily, what I find disconcerting is the lack of continuity in society. We live in a society that is famous for killing creativity and nurturing science, and yet every year we host a number of grandiose and glitzy awards centered around this creativity, and the one science award that we have is just quietly mentioned on the news and easily forgotten.

iWrite- Madye Moore

One could argue technology being both a good, and a bad thing. Personally, I have seen some people very close to me be hurt majorly by things said on social media as well as through other things technology has created, therefore I could argue that technology is a very bad thing. I have a younger sister, Merrick, who is 13 years old. When she was in 6th grade, classmates of hers bullied her over social media to the point where she stopped eating for 3 months (losing 30 pounds in the process), almost forcing us to put her in the hospital because of the damage it was doing to the rest of her body, among many other things she had to go through over the course of those months. Not only did that take a major toll on her, it also took a toll on the rest of my family, and I hope that we don't have to go through that again. So yes, I could definitely argue the point that social media is definitely a bad thing, having a negative impact on today's society. On the other hand though, I could argue that technology has a positive impact on today's society as well. It has led us to discover many new findings about certain diseases and conditions, such as cancer among many others. It also helps keep everyone informed about the things that are happening all over the world at any given moment, which is definitely a good thing. 

Flying Turkeys- Madye Moore

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays by far, mostly because of the fact that it doesn't revolve around getting presents, it's just about being with all of your family and actually getting to spend time together. Thanksgiving in my family is one of the only times of the year that most of our family is together, which is the main reason I look forward to it every year (besides the food of course). Thanksgiving at my house is pretty typical you could say, everyone goes over to my aunts house around 3 (after we've watched the Macy's Parade and finished up with all of the cooking), where we end up having way more food than needed but end up eating the majority of it anyways, and the night normally ends with a Nerf gun war between all of the boys or a "friendly family competition" which of course doesn't end up friendly whatsoever! I would say that's been our tradition since I was born but that wouldn't be the truth. A lot of things have changed with Thanksgiving over the past couple years: we went to Florida 2 years ago (but we decided we wouldn't do it again because of the fact that it definitely didn't seem like Thanksgiving without all of our family there), my grandfather quit coming because it's "too far" for him to travel by himself, and my cousin was born, causing my aunt and uncle to not be able to come 2 of the past 3 years. But despite all of the mix-ups, we still manage to have a great Thanksgiving, because it doesn't really matter as long as you have family there with you! My most wonderful memory of Thanksgiving was 10 years ago, the last Thanksgiving that my Nana was at, and in my opinion was the last Thanksgiving that our family was whole. I was 6 at the time, but I still remember it like it was yesterday. My sister was 3, my brother was 8 months old, neither of my older cousins had kids like they do now, and Nana was still alive and well. We were all at my aunts house, and of course we had all the food we could imagine! We had a great day of course, joking and playing around like usual. The one thing I remember most though, was toward the end of the night, before Merrick hit the wall and Mason started wailing, we managed to get a family picture with everyone in it. I found that picture the other night and it just reminded me of that day once again, and how I would do absolutely anything to get that day back.Thanksgiving is still very much a family thing at our house, it just will never be the same again. 

Flying Turkeys-Silvia Todorova

I love everything about Thanksgiving, especially the food. Every year we spend the holiday with my aunt and her family as well as a really close family friend of ours. We usually take turns hosting it and this year thanksgiving will be at my house. To begin the day my family and I all watch the thanksgiving day parade and then my litter sister watches the dog show that comes on right after while my mom cooks. I usually help my mom cook but sometimes I don't really know what I'm doing so it's better if I help set the table instead.  Every year my little sister, my cousin, and her friend (all who are in elementary school) do a "thanksgiving day production/fashion show/dance" as they call it. It's my favorite thanksgiving day tradition. It may seem kind of silly, but It's actually really cute to watch them sing, dance, and walk down a fake runway. Thanksgiving day is one my favorite days of the year. I love getting together with my friends and cousins and catch up on things while we eat yummy food. 

Changes-Silvia Todorova

Our education system is so perfect in so many ways it's almost impossible to comprehend it's greatness. It's very disappointing when you see teachers who really try to help their students learn and engage them with interesting discussions they can participate in. All teacher should give the students a textbook, tell them to read it and then comprehend it on their own, then give a super hard test at the end of the unit. The best part about this method is that the student learns so much and will be able to score very well on the final or AP test. With this method the teacher is totally useless so if the government could even fire the teachers because the students are teaching themselves anyway. Image all the money that could be saved.

Brave Little Toaster- Silvia Todorova

I'm warm, soft, and very comfortable. Silvia spends a lot of her time laying on top of me in between big fluffy blankets. On weekdays during the day, I'm all alone. It's hard for me and Silvia to be away from each other for so long. There is nothing to do with out her. When she is gone the cat and dog keep me company. Sometimes the cat, Sophia, comes and lays on me, but she just sits there and sheds. The dog Rocky, who isn't allowed on the furniture comes to sleep underneath me where it's dark and dusty. I don't understand why he likes it so much under there but he does. Once Silvia come home she immediately huddles under all her blankets, we aren't separate until the next morning. It isn't a very glamours life, but that's fine by me.

What is it good for -Silvia Todorova

Some people believe that war is never justified, others believe that war is always justified. I think that it's completely depends on the situation. War sometimes is a necessary evil and should be used only as a last resort. Some countries in order to have peace, must accept the pain of war. If the people feel that the government is not ruling justly, they sometimes have to fight against the government. It's important for a country to protect its people and if that means going into war with another country, then that's what is necessary. Conflict will happen between groups of people, and having war might be the best way to handle the situation. War is a way to protect, honor, stand up for our country, but it should be used as a last resort when nothing else can be done to fix the problem.

Flying Turkeys - Emily Salamanca

               Most of my mom's extended family lives in Lexington, so it isn't really a huge celebration. The same number of people come to Christmas, or my birthday, or dinner when my mom makes too much spaghetti. The most different thing is that my older sister and brother come home. This makes life a little more challenging. Our house is nice, but it's small. There are 4 bedrooms - only 3 of which are for kids. Thus, I am forced to sleep on the couch, though I gave up my room lovingly this year. My brother is always incredible. He laughs and makes an effort to be friends with me. He easily gets the title of 'Favorite Male Sibling'. My older sister litters her makeup all over the house and I never see her, even when she's living with us. I never had a time to bond with her, so I don't know as much about what she does, or who she is, or what she plans to be. I don't know much about her at all. 

             My mother is the only one of her immediate family members who hosts parties, but since there are enough people living in our house, she doesn't want to deal with the stress of cooking and cleaning and primming the house for guests. Instead, we go to our country club and get served. I always feel so bad for the waiters and waitresses who are serving us rather than being with their families, but it is so enjoyable to just relax. My grandmother, who is approaching 90, summed up our Thanksgiving pretty nicely, "Yes, I've had fun. Now, I'm going to go get dessert."

I Never Had To Choose My Subject - Meagan Hale

Fears: drowning, being out of control, losing people I love, being abandoned
Annoyances: people who think everything is about them
Accomplishments: making it this far
Confusions: Two sided subjects (ex.white/black mentality)
Sorrows: anger management, too high expectations, seeing the worst in people, family issues
Dreams: traveling, being a surgeon, having a family
Idiosyncrasies: I love unusual gifts/knickknacks (ex. the birdcage candle holder I want for christmas)
Risks: Skydiving(for my 18th birthday)
Beloved Possessions: books, my vintage lock box, my cats, my bed
Problems: Procrastination, Organization, poor emotional control

I suppose I'll talk about my idiosyncrasy of loving knick knacks. There's not really a start to it it's just always been a part of me. Yes, I am completely aware of the uselessness of knick knacks which is why they're called knick knacks and no that does not stop me from loving them. Some of my knick knacks remind me of people or places or memories or a moral and some are just decoration. I'm both a curious person who is very visual and tactical prone so knick knacks are of a huge interest to me. Whenever I am shopping with a friend or my mom the questions, "what would you use that for?' and, "why would you want that?" generally come up at some point to which the answer is always, "I wouldn't," and, "because I just do." I do not want every knick knack I see nor am i prone to hoarding tendencies. I'm very particular about them and it's either hit or miss. I either love it or I hate it. I have my kaleidoscope that I received when I was very young, my owl that was carved out of a big nut, my antique perfume bottle, my wizard of oz snow globe, and many more. I think the beauty of knick knacks is that they do nothing at all. People are too caught up in "what does it do" that they forget the beauty in doing nothing. You don't ask the Mona Lisa or the Colosseum what it does, do you? No. Because moving or preforming a trick or a task doesn't make it beautiful, it's simply beautiful. Don't dismiss knick knacks because they don't do anything, take in what they have to offer. Look at them, their colors, their shape, their size. Run your fingers over them and roll them over and over in your hands, feeling the material. Appreciate the beauty of nothing.

On This Date - Meagan Hale

     On this date, October 1, 1946, twelve Nazi leaders were sentenced to death at the International War Crimes Tribunal in Nuremberg, Germany. Putting men to death cannot exactly be qualified as good but it was not bad either as these twelve men commanded many others to murder 11 million innocent men, women, and children. To some this news brought relief and in the eyes of most of the world this was justice. This in and of itself was not necessarily earth shattering, because anything directly following something as devastating as World War 2 and the Holocaust would seem pretty minute in nature. However, that does not make this event irrelevant. This was evidence to the world that those who judge so harshly that they would condemn 11 million people would not go without punishment. A world without laws, checks and balances, crimes and punishments, will inevitably be self-destructive. I believe the quote, "those who forget history are doomed to repeat it," greatly applies to events such as these. A war that led to a genocide that led to twelve leaders sentenced to death because of a mistake and mindset that doomed millions of innocent people. The consequences of such actions are to be remembered. Even today there are dangerous prejudices that could be leading nations to war for this tragedy to reoccur. As a world, we are skating on thin ice and if too much pressure is applied in the wrong place we will fall through the ice and drown. Then we would become the event that decades from now people are remembering so they are not doomed to repeat our mistake.

Create Your Own Adventure - Meagan Hale

Prompt 1: What is your most memorable traveling experience?

Prompt 2: If you could go anywhere in the world where would you go and why?

Prompt 3: What is something you have always wanted to try? (i.e skydiving, scuba diving, etc)

My most memorable traveling experience is when I went to Bermuda. I struggled between choosing Bermuda as my experience or my Europe tour but because I spent my time in one place instead of jumping from country to country like I did on my Europe tour it made my memories more vivid. When my mom first told me we were going to Bermuda my first question was, "like the Bermuda triangle?" I was convinced we were going to die. Thankfully we didn't die but we did fly into the second smallest airport I've ever been in, the first being the one in Costa Rica which the run way was not a run way but in fact a dirt road. We were taken to our hotel and along the way got to see the clearest, most blue water I've ever seen. We got to our hotel which consisted of several cottages rather than one building with several rooms. We immediately went exploring. While there, we ate at a few local restaurants, visited the little aquarium there, took ferryboat rides all around the island, went on a history walk that explained the island in ways a brochure never could, went to the little shops around, and got a pina colada ever five minutes because it was incredibly hot there. Oh, side note, grocery shopping in Bermuda is not fun. They have everything you could ever want and aside from the grocery stores being the size of Henry Clay classrooms, the price of living in Bermuda is extremely high. When I say groceries are expensive, I mean a box of Cheerios is twenty dollars kind of expensive. Anyways, I saved my favorite three activities for last. We collected sea glass which is pieces of broken beer bottles mostly that the sand and water has gone over so many times it becomes smooth. I also went on a horse drawn carriage ride around parts of the island to parts we would have never seen had we not. We were taken to an old worn down look out station and you could look down to see the bright blue waves crashing on the rocks. My favorite and final activity I did in Bermuda was the sailboat ride I took. We rode around the island and stopped in a little lagoon where we were able to jump off into the water to swim and snorkel. It is still the most beautiful thing I have seen to this day.

For The Love And Hate Of Television - Meagan Hale

     Sitting around the living room, everyone squeezed onto the couch or in a chair, blankets covering everyone while we await the theme music for the next episode of a favorite tv show. In the mean time we are discussing last weeks episode and making guesses as to the outcome of this weeks. Before there were tvs, families huddled around the radio, and before that it was a fire listening to a member tell a story that was passed down through their lineage. There is a sense of community when watching tv together. This is one of the reasons I enjoy watching tv. Another reason is solely for entertainment purposes. We can watch shows about our favorite hobby such as cooking or an interactive show such as wheel of fortune or we can watch genre shows such as action, adventure, horror, or reality. I watch tv because there are so many options to choose from for whatever mood I'm in. I also watch for both educational purposes and as my main source of news. Depending on the show I learn something new all the time while watching tv. As for the news aspect, there's several channels each giving me insight into what is happening in the world. Two of my favorite shows right now are Justified, which follows a U.S. Marshal in Harlan County, Kentucky, and The 100 which is a post apocalyptic show.

Brave Little Toasters- James Jones

         Oh finally he's awake I can hear him getting out of bed reluctantly. Okay I just have about thirty minutes until he's done getting ready. Yes he's finally putting his pants on alright now don't forget to put me in your pocket, I'm important remember, I have your permit, and your money, I wish you realized I mattered as much as that phone thing, Maybe I'm just jealous. 

         He's pulling me out of his pocket I'm so excited! See I'm just as fun as that phone I'm a leather Jacob's ladder and I give you money. Wait why did you stop flipping me and stuff man? What's going on? NO NO NO, please don't take a dollar out you don't need the chocolate bar. I knew it you took a dollar out I'm already too thin you need to feed me more, get a job or something, well then you'd have less time to kill by playing with me. Wallet life is a struggle. Wait what's going on now are you seriously taking out more money? Why do you need gum?! And you dropped me great this day is perfect.  Sense my sarcasm? 

         Wait are we home? Why are you taking me out of your pocket this time? We are home I knew it, well I was done with you any way, taking my money, dropping me and stuff, some could call that neglect. No don't put me on your nightstand yet I was kidding. I miss you. 

Do you know your neighbor?- James Jones

          My neighbor Max Kaufman is quite the character. He and I have an interesting friendship, and it has been that way since middle school. He plays bass and guitar though his main instrument is the bass, I hear he's pretty good. I know he's jams with his friends a lot and I believe they play a lot of funk which I respect. At some point in the last two years he has decided to broaden his musical horizons (from RHCP) which is good, at this point he overall has a good taste in music. He has some innate skill with subjects that combine science and math, meaning chemistry last year and physics this year, I call it magic but he claims he's just that good. If I had to call him a color it would be "I don't know" because we're both colorblind and if one of us asks the other about anything related to color that's the answer the other will receive. In general he's a nice guy who I've known for years and I'm glad to call him my friend.

BOO- James Jones

A time in my life in which I was fraught with peril:
          I was just a young boy, with short spike-y (or bouncy as my friends called it in middle school) hair, I was very different back then. All of the children in my family including myself had gone to my grandmothers house because we traditionally went trick-or-treating in her neighborhood. We all got ready and put on our costumes, I had a ninja costume because I was a ninja for Halloween at least years in a row. We went out the front door and started walking down the street, all excited for the sweet taste of unhealthiness known as candy. Our parents followed close behind as we went door to door filling our candy bags, and all was right in the world. Until, we arrived to that house, that forsaken house that I hated so much. I could feel it's presence before we even got close. I walked closer and closer, not this year I thought. Every year a man who lived in that house dressed up as Jason Vorhees, he was around 6'5" and had a pretty good costume so it was convincing I'll give him that. I think he's pretty cool now, but back then I hated him. He had a machete that a would drag on the ground as he walked down the sidewalk towards me, always me. This year I saw him just after I got my candy, we made eye contact, like always, I raised my chin proud that I wasn't scared, then he charged after me, and the sound of his machete got louder, and I ran like the small child I was, the end.
         

What is it good for?- James Jones

Absolutely nothin! Say it again!
Well now that I've gotten that out of my system I can say that in my opinion war is never preferable and should never be considered a good option by any means. At heart I think wars are a moral wrong-doing not only by the first side to declare war but any side that fights. I do understand the reasoning behind war in some occasions however I don't agree with the reasoning or believe that as people we should actively participate in so much destruction. In what occasion is the value of a human life to be disregarded so that one entity can be eliminated? Is it really okay to kill many when the true targets are a select few? The lengths that nations go to when fighting wars are the biggest problem, no nation should be willing to harm as many people as are harmed in the event of bombings etc. However, we will continue to fight wars as no one is willing to compromise. Opinions are so polarized (yes I realize being completely against something such as war is a polarized opinion of sorts but oh well) that no in-between is good enough for either side. In my opinion compromise and discussion would be the best alternative. However, as issues arise we will continue to have war and at this exact moment I can do nothing about it, so, I end my rant here.

"I never had to choose my subject, my subject rather chose me."- James Jones

Fears- The future, losing family or friends
Annoyances- People who behave like they don't know to walk in the hallways, the noise of someone "smacking" their, someone who smacks their gum after being asked to stop.
Accomplishments- passing all of my AP Tests, decently managing while taking 4 AP classes, not giving up on guitar when I was younger or now
Confusions- what I really want for the future
Sorrows-waking up at 6:30 everyday, not sleeping well, monday
Dreams- to maintain my current happiness later in life
Idiosyncrasies- Guitar Player, decent rapper for a white boy if I know the song well enough
Risks- so much procrastination(this is bad I know i don't enjoy it it just happens)
Beloved Possessions- all of my musical equipment, my phone, shirt my great grandfather gave me
Problems- even more procrastination, time management in general, organization

          The subject I want to discuss is fear. The biggest fear I have is the future, which is great because it's inevitable. Could you sense my sarcasm? Even though I have ideas and plans for my future I can't lie to myself and say I'm not scared. I'm terrified, because I'm not ready. I finally got to a point where I was enjoying high-school, and I realized it's almost over. I think as juniors we are all starting to realize that our time here is almost up. In middle school I was nervous and just wanted to get this four year period out of the way, now I'm not ready for it to end. Thinking about college and my life after that is much more stressful than I thought it would've been. However, in the end I know I will face these fears and do what I need to be successful and happy, and that is what keeps me from being overwhelmed by the future. I wish you all the best in figuring out what you want to do, I know it's hard for me, but I think we can all manage to do it.

On this Date- James Jones

 On October 4th, 1957 the space race began when SPUTNIK was launched by the Soviet Union. SPUTNIK was the first satellite to launched into earth's orbit, and was a milestone in the technological advances of the time. After the satellite was launched the U.S. suffered a period of fear and worry referred to as the SPUTNIK crisis. Over time the crisis would persist and the U.S. and the Soviet Union would battle each other with new developments until finally man set on the moon. In the end the launching of SPUTNIK was a problem for the U.S. considering they didn't have the ability to claim the first successful satellite launch and the space race had been officially started, but it was an overall accomplishment for science. Though as a U.S. citizen I should probably be patriotic and have an issue with the Soviets doing this before the U.S. overall I think it's cool that people were able to launch this satellite in the first place, and it was a great accomplishment.

BOO - Sam Flomenhoft

Zombies have attacked. Detail your survival plan

At this point I don't know if I'd have a real survival plan. If you do a good job of surviving and killing zombies, you end up three years down the road with the same people everyday, under a lot of stress, hiding from an ever growing number of zombies, and you probably had to watch most of your friends and family not die, but be turned into mindless, flesh eating monsters. That being said, I'm still not an advocate of becoming one of those mindless, flesh-eating monsters.
The best course of action would clearly be to spend the first couple of days expressing your anger, finding the zombies who used to be people you disliked, and absolutely going to town on them with a baseball bat. After that I'd probably go to the store, take all Arnold Palmer Iced Tea - Lemonade and all the popcorn, find a place to whole myself up, and binge watch Netflix. Do you know how many shows I could finish before my death? Finally I could get around to that long list of shows people recommend such as House, Dexter, Grey's, etc. Of course eventually the brainless zombies would somehow figure out I was off somewhere gorging myself on popcorn and Arnold Palmer, and would come find me. On the bright side I had a nice last few months AND I've fattened myself up for the zombies so I would be tasty and I can take pride in being one of their most delicious meals.

Do you know your neighbor - Sam Flomenhoft

I sit next to Meagan Hale in sixth hour English, and she is as good of a seat partner as anyone can ask for. She doesn't talk too much (even though I do) but she often has amusing comments on things happening in the class. She's also smart and pays attention so if I ever need to know what we're doing I can just ask her and she usually knows. I would characterize Meagan as orange ( a mix of yellow and red) because she's usually nice and happy which is yellow but she has a sarcastic side sometimes which is red.
In five years I see Meagan graduating from a good college and continuing on to graduate school. I'm not sure exactly what she wants to do but she is talented and fairly motivated so I think she'll be fairly successful. The animal Meagan is most like is a cat because sometimes she can be nice like a cat when they're being affectionate but she can also be cold and sarcastic (in a good way) like cats when they're ignoring you. Cats are also considered to be intelligent creatures by many and I think they represent the type of witty intelligence that Meagan has. The type that you can't always necessarily see because she doesn't show it off but sometimes it shows in her funny comments. I'm glad I sit next to Meagan and have gotten to know her better over these past few weeks although we were already friendly before (although I might add all of my peers in the academy are quite lovely).

Brave Little Toasters - Sam Flomenhoft

My favorite inanimate object is my Phone: Cohen the Phone.

(from Cohen's point of view)

I spend most of days either in Sam's pocket or on a desk singing music. Its a pretty good life, I run messages back and forth for him but he takes care of me and always feeds me and gives me plenty of rest. Its not always so easy, one time specifically this summer. Sam really likes nature and hiking and that kind of stuff so naturally we went to Red River Gorge, which is a beautiful place by the way, you should visit sometime. Anyways, Sam did all the work as normal, he carried me all the way to Natural Bridge, which is the main feature of the gorge. Well we got to the top and I must say, it was a beautiful but frightening view (a long way down). What happened next though, I don't think anyone was ready for that.
Sam was wearing athletic shorts that day, which had shallow pockets so I was fairly liable to slip out. I don't think Sam realized this because he walked over to an edge with a slight slant on it and sat down and guess what, I fell out. I slid right out of his pocket on to the slanted part of the edge, and from there I slid right off of Natural Bridge.
It was a long fall, it felt like eternity and I was sure I was done for. I would smash into a million pieces on impact and Sam would most surely be brought to tears. That wasn't what happened though, fortune was smiling on me that day and I fell into a bush on a lower part of the trail (which was the path up to Natural Bridge). While this was extremely lucky what happened next might have been luckier. At the exact moment I fell into the bush, some friends of Sam's were walking by and they recognized me as Sam's and brought me to him. It was surely one of our crazier adventures, and since then Sam has always taken very good care of me and kept close watch to make sure I wasn't falling off any more bridges.

Changes - Sam Flomenhoft

Over the past few years this planet has seen an increase in the amount of people identifying as "homosexual" which has created much controversy throughout the world. This could be a problem for our whole society because its not natural. They won't be able to have their own children and therefore won't be able to contribute to our overpopulation of the world. Also, eventually if they grow to be too many they will overtake our society and force us to switch from being heterosexual to homosexual and we can't allow that to happen. The only reasonable option here is to give them the option of becoming "straight" or being enslaved. This way we can convert some to our side and suppress the others.  This will also bring us back to the glory days of the United States, before the Civil War when we had free labor. At the same time that this fixes the homosexual problem, enslaving them will also stimulate the economy, eventually solving the market woes we've had since 2008, when the homo-lover Obama took office (coincidence? I think not, and George Bush had nothing to do with it!) Some of you may be skeptical because you think gay people aren't strong enough for physical labor but who said it has to be physical labor? We can turn them into enslaved fashion experts or interior decorators (which will further stimulate the clothing industry and create an economical boom). In the end I offer this solution not as a homophobe, but as a true patriot, who is looking out for the good of my country. If we all unite in the War on Homosexualism, we can win it before it gets out of control.

Flying Turkeys - Sam Flomenhoft

Thanksgiving is widely regarded as one of the better holidays of the year and many people's favorite. With the holiday comes the image of the big extended family meeting in a big city and sharing stories of the past year and being amazed "at just how much (insert child's name here) has grown". My thanksgiving is usually like this (except we all meet in Lexington) and I always have to go through a lot of inspection of my changes. 

My favorite memory of Thanksgiving comes from a very recent year. Our cousins had brought a whip cream gun. Essentially, you fill it with cream (and sugar if you want), shake it up, and then spray it on your pumpkin pie in any aesthetic design you want. The problem was there were two discreet problems to this new discovery which we would soon find out. Originally we were unable to get the whip cream to come out so we shook it up. For a long time. A very long time. After a solid ten minutes of vigorous shaking we went to spray it on the first pie and when the trigger was pressed down fully whipped cream shot out and exploded everywhere and I mean everywhere. It flew a solid fifteen feet in the air and all the way across the twenty foot table. That was the first problem. The second was, even after we figured out how to control this incredible power the whipped cream had no taste. We weren't aware that we were supposed to add sugar so the cream had only a disgusting nitrogen oxide taste, which you might compare to seltzer water. Even though it didn't make our food taste better, this event made it a memorable Thanksgiving. 

Overall I like Thanksgiving. It has much to offer: good food, good football, and good family. But at each Thanksgiving every year there are tense moments when the excessive family time gets to someone and a fight explodes. Even so, this is usually only enough to ruin the mood for a shot couple of minutes and its back to Thanksgiving cheer quickly. In the end I don't think Thanksgiving always lives up to its unrealistic expectations but its always a fun, memorable holiday. 

Flying Turkeys - Amelia Caldwell

For the past five years or so my family decided that Thanksgiving dinner would be held at my house. The day before Thanksgiving and the morning of my mother and I slave away in the kitchen making all the food and keeping my brother and dad out of the food we already made. It is always my job to make the mashed sweet potatoes, the stuffing, and the pumpkin pies. Of course, I help with everything, but those three dishes are all mine.
At around 4 o'clock on Thanksgiving Day my grandparents and whoever else bothers to come arrive. We normally eat around 5 and then the adults talk and watch football. I am then on cousin duty. My 5 year old cousin, Peyton, does not like to sit still, at all. So I have to keep her entertained, and out of trouble. When some of my other, older, cousins are around, taking care of Peyton becomes much easier because I don't have to deal with her by myself.
I love Thanksgiving, and I love my family. However, the moment everyone finally leaves my house I automatically breathe a sigh of relief.
The most memorable Thanksgiving was the year before we started having at my house. We went to my cousins Cody and Seth's house. Cody was sick, but of course my entire family still came. My parents invited Seth to come spend the night at our house to get away from Cody.We got back, and little did we know Seth was going to the restroom and he was sick too! He did not tell anybody he was sick for an hour. My dad drove him the two hours back to his house. The next day we were supposed to be decorating, but my dad, my mom, and I were all extremely sick. My brother somehow managed to avoid the sickness, so he was jumping all around waiting for us to get out of bed. As you can probably imagined, we crushed his dreams just slightly.

Flying Turkeys- Eliza Jane Schaeffer

Thanksgiving at the Schaeffer house is a total cliché. We watch the Macy's day parade in the morning and eat pumpkin bread and banana bread. We eat dinner around two. My mother makes us wear nice clothes and gets out the fine china and the silver, which seems silly to me, but when else are you going to use it? We have sweet potato casserole, turkey, asparagus and tomato salad, homemade bread, stuffing, etc. My mom is in charge of making all that, and I usually make the desserts. Last year, I made a praline cake and a peanut butter brownie pie, but this year, sadly, I was a little more busy and only had time for cupcakes and blondies. Thanksgiving is probably the only day (besides Christmas) that my whole family hangs out together. Usually I have something going on, or my dad is working, or my brothers are being moody teenagers. But there are no excuses on Thanksgiving! That's why it's one of my favorite holidays. Sometimes we have family in town, but this year, it was just the five of us, which means we have a LOT of extra food. Looks like we'll be eating Thanksgiving dinner until the end of next week. 

Changes - Amelia Caldwell

By far the most annoying issue I have to deal with on a daily basis is when people eat my food. If I bought something for me to eat, why on earth would anyone believe they would be allowed to eat any of it, but most of the time all of it, without even asking my permission. Granted, these people know that I would refuse them even a crumb of my food. I do not care if you wake up in the middle of the night hungry, it is my food!
There is a solution to this overwhelming problem. Shock collars. If someone starts to eat my food, all they need to stop would be a little, or big, shock. Yes they would feel pain, but do I not feel pain when I realize my delicious food was enjoyed by the wrong person? If I could just shock all the people who ate my food, the world would be so much happier and automatically there would be less household fights.

Flying Turkeys- Isabelle Rinker

In my house, unlike most others, we have our Thanksgiving feast around mid-day rather than later in the evening (we have small children in our family that can't wait all day to eat). Regardless, Thanksgiving never fails to be a great day for our family, and is probably my second favorite holiday (Christmas being first).

One of my dad's hobbies is cooking, so Thanksgiving is always a delight for him. He usually gets up around 6 AM to begin preparing turkey, sweet potato casserole, green beans, mashed potatoes, and my favorite, pumpkin pie. My four younger siblings and I usually assist him as we have the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade playing on TV. Around noon, we dine. This year, my grandma joined us, but sometimes we have other relatives in town. Right after our meal, we prepare for our annual Christmas card photo, and as my father is an avid Steelers fan, we proceed to watch the NFL Thanksgiving games on TV.

My favorite part of Thanksgiving is being surrounded by love and appreciation from friends and family. Receiving texts of gratitude from my friends and calls from distant relatives, as well as spending the day with my family is what makes Thanksgiving so special to me (granted, I love eating as well, but that's beside the point).

Flying Turkeys-Maya Creamer

        To me, Thanksgiving is one of the best days of the year. It's a day filled with family, good food, and good conversation. On Thanksgiving morning, I get up and sit with my family to watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade; we all sit together in the living room snuggled under blankets to enjoy the parade together. My parents usually start cooking the food around noon, with help from me and my siblings, as well as whatever extended family has come to celebrate with us that year. It's a pretty hectic afternoon, with an assortment of delicious smells coming out of the kitchen. We sit down around 4 or 5 to eat; we have some classics, like turkey, mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie, and some recipes that are family traditions, such as corn casserole, roasted brussell sprouts, and apple crumble. We sit around the table for a few hours, savoring the food and talking. We usually start by sharing what we're thankful for, then the conversation switches to catching up and talking about what's been going on in our lives.
        I don't really have one particular best Thanksgiving memory, because it's a great day every year, no matter the specific things we do. Thanksgiving always reminds me of how lucky I am, and reminds me to give thanks. Every year, I give thanks for the chance to have a good meal with family that I don't get to see very often, and I reflect on the previous year. And every year, I realize how happy I am with what I've accomplished and the things I've gotten to do in my life.

Changes-Tapan Darji

I have problems with know it alls. I am talking about the people who think they know EVERYTHING and argue about things and will never admit that they are wrong. 

My solution to this problem is a simple one that everyone will agree on. It has no flaws and is perfect. My solution is that since they are so smart, they should teach us. If these people teach us they will always be right. That would mean no pointless arguments about random things. Everyone will agree on things. The know it alls won't have to admit they are wrong because they are  not wrong anymore, but they are now right all the time. We will believe these people because they are our teachers. This plan would also make our students smarter because they have the smartest people, who are never wrong, teaching them. I think that this is a perfect solution, don't you?

Flying Turkeys- Tapan Darji

My Thanksgiving is very different from the stock image. My Thanksgiving only includes my parents and me. We do not cook turkey. My mom usually bakes a chicken in the oven. We eat that for dinner. In the morning my family wakes up and watches the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on NBC. After the parade is over I usually help clean up the house by vacuuming, dusting the selves, cleaning the sofa, dusting my room, and cleaning the dinner table.  Then I go with my dad to his store. I usually help him with things or do homework and watch television. My dad and I watch some of the NFL games coming on T.V.  Then we go home. My parents and I will sit around and talk and watch T.V. and then have dinner after eight. After dinner we will go to Walmart for Black Friday shopping.
I enjoy Thanksgiving. It is a day off from school where I can relax and spend time with my parents. It is a day where I don't have to worry about homework or school and I can play video games and watch NFL games without working on homework.
My most wonderful moment in the holiday is watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade and enjoying eating dinner with my parents.

Changes!- Eliza Jane Schaeffer

Every one knows that anyone who is not white suffers from Disadvantaged Syndrome, a deadly disease that only the government can cure. The only problem is that sometimes people are part white and part ethnic. This leaves us confused as to whether or not they have Disadvantaged Syndrome! Usually, when unsure, we assume they are- better safe than sorry, right? But we need a sure method to determine the degree to which someone suffers from this deadly disease. That's why I propose we do a blood test on every baby born. Then, we will mark their descendants' races by percentage on a tag attached to their earlobe. For every 1% of non-Caucasian blood in their veins, they will receive ten dollars monthly from the government. If they have more than 15% non-Caucasian blood, they will qualify for affirmative action. 

I am absolutely positive this program will solve the race problem in the United States. Some may argue the issue is culture, not blood. What an awful and racist suggestion! Accusing people of ethnic descent of having a different culture and different ways of interacting with authority is simply disgusting. It's not their fault that the blood in their body is contaminated with Disadvantaged Syndrome. Some may also argue that the issue is socioeconomic class and not race. Preposterous! Even the billionaire ethnic citizens had to struggle through extreme oppression. Their families might have had plenty of money, but because of their blood, they are prone to Disadvantaged Syndrome, and they too need help. With enough money and special status, we can cure these poor suffering souls. Opponents accuse us of "crippling" those of ethnic descent and making them "dependent on outside help." But so what? As long as we are there to hold their hand, it won't matter whether or not they're dependent! 

brandon castillo- flying turkey

To me, Thanksgiving is about being with family, eating a lot of food, and watching football. Every year I am in either Louisville or New Jersey, depending on which side of the family we are celebrating with that year. I love Thanksgiving as it marks the beginning of the true "Holiday season" where people stop judging you for listening to Christmas music. Usually I do have fun when I go to these places, I have cousins in both that I love to hang out with. On Thanksgiving day, there is football all day and if nothing else, you can enjoy your holiday with this. The two best Thanksgiving that I've ever had was in Louisville and in Baltimore. In Louisville, my cousins and I entered a flag football tournament and won, it was an awesome experience and I wish I could do it again with them. The second was in Baltimore when my dad and I went to the first meeting between the brothers John and Jim Harbaugh when the Ravens played the 49ers. It was also the first ever Thursday night game in Baltimore so the atmosphere was "electric". And the Ravens won which was the icing on top!

Assignment 14 :Flying Turkeys

The stock image Thanksgiving involves a lot of people around a nicely decorated table with a large turkey and a ridiculous amount of extra food. This image doesn't always depict the reality of the holiday though.

What does your Thanksgiving look like? Do you enjoy the holiday? What is your strangest or most wonderful memory of the holiday?

Minimum of 150 words - due Sunday, November 30th at 11:59 pm

Changes- Isabelle Rinker

I absolutely abhor the hallways of Henry Clay High School. From adolescent couples who grope each other on the staircases to the throngs of freshmen who find it necessary to scream in the halls at all times, my daily transitions between classes seem unbearable to an extent. Not to mention, there are always hundreds of kids who walk at the pace of a snail, and even others who chose to stand in the middle of the hallway without budging, obnoxiously conversing with friends, without even bothering to move an inch when kindly being asked to do so.
But I have a proposal that will put an end to this mayhem. Those of us who have read Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl and/or seen the movies based on the novel, must know of the Great Glass Elevator. The elevator, made of glass, is not just any up-and-down elevator. It can move up and down, side to side, diagonal, and any other way you could think of! All of us productive students who want to get to class on time without dealing with the chaos of the HC hallways should be at access to a Great Glass Elevator of our own.

Changes-Maya Creamer

         When dining at my favorite restaurants, I am forced to deal with lazy, incompetent, inconsiderate people who call themselves "waiters" and "waitresses". All I want is to eat a nice meal that my mom didn't make, but these imbeciles just ruin it. They can never get my order right, and it takes them forever just to bring me my food; because of their extremely slow pace, my food is lukewarm by the time I eat it. How hard is it to bring ten full plates of food to three different tables on opposite sides of the restaurant in five minutes? And having a waiter walk up in the middle of your conversation to ask about the quality of your food and refill your empty cup is so annoying. Don't they understand how rude and inconsiderate they're being? Wait until I stop talking and shove some more food in my mouth, so I don't have to talk to you! And don't even get me started on how hard it is to flag down a waiter when you need something. Hello, a paying customer needs you right now! I'm not going to tip if I'm not satisfied.
         The only way to solve this problem is to require that waiters and waitresses remain silent unless spoken to, and only come to the table when they are called or flagged down. They should wear a small shock collar, much like a dog, that jolts them if they speak of their own accord, interrupt a customer's dining experience, or don't immediately head to a customer's table when they call. A needy customer should be their priority, and they should focus solely on each customer; if someone needs a glass of water, they should stop what they're doing to get them one. They will become trained to do exactly as the customer wants, when they want it, thus enhancing rather than hindering their dining experience. Everybody wins-the customer doesn't have to deal with the nuisances that are waiters, and the waiters learn discipline and earn bigger tips from their happy customers.

Emily Salamanca - Changes

              Perhaps the greatest of problems I find in the world is the peculiar amount of hazard I find walking down a city street. Though I rarely peruse our ever-changing city streets, I always am daunted by the one annoyance I can always depend on: catcalling. Regardless of what I am wearing, what type of year it is, or even whether or not I'm walking with my mother or father, there is always an instance of a honk of of car or a yelp from a man. So the solution? Begin to enjoy it!
               This may seem like a ridiculous idea, but it is the best solution. Hasn't everyone always told us to ignore the negative and focus on the positive? Then this is the way to do it! Instead of dreading the constant harassment, take it as a compliment. Oh, so you think my skirt is a little too short? Excellent! I probably look oh so much sexier. You think my skirt is too long? Perfect! I'm just teasing, of course.
                The best time catcalling can happen is a school, where I always feel safe and comfortable. After all, I'm surrounded by such lovely staff that always make sure I am learning effectively. When I am called out by teachers in the hallways for showing my bra straps, I'm so glad they took away so of my learning time to dedicate to a fashion faux pas. When boys in the hallway occasionally corner me, I just feel so lucky to have my shoulder wrapped around by a sweaty, 'funny' guy. A warm embrace is always welcomed of course, even if it isn't consensual! Who needs consent, right? It's just so great to be happy about everything! Feelings are for the weak!

Changes - Adrian Wyllie

We all do things on the internet that we later find crazy. We then do everything we can to hide them, to forget them. But the one thing about the internet is, once it's there, anyone and everyone can see it. So we hide behind these 'firewalls' that are supposed to protect us and keep our information safe. Are they really working?
There have been several 'leaks' on the internet, things that were released to the public that the government did not want us to see. The question is, were they ever private in the first place? The simple, not very complicated answer is yes. The truth, however, is as far from that as possible.
Firewalls, networks, complicated virus detection systems, we are obsessed with privatizing the public domain. It's like this, instead of the fence around your front yard stopping at the sidewalk, it continues, right out into the middle of the very busy street you live on, to hide your bad lawn skills. And because it's such a busy street, people have just got to get through your property. On either side of your fence over the street, there is a gate, so people going through can get through. If they just look around, they'll see your bad lawn. But here, you don't really care, because you think they don't care.
So once that single ping goes through the firewall to connect to another server, you've just leaked some of your data, that the ping may have seen. It's like trying to hide your phone in class, but you're just making it obvious.
So why do we still have these firewalls, if these gaps exist? It reassures the mind, but it doesn't actually do what it says on the box. Good luck solving that one!
That's not the only flaw with the internet, but it is the one that bugs me the most. I mean, even if you delete something on the blog here, I could find it so easily. Everything on the internet should be public, because it already is.

brandon castillo- changes!

I have chosen to talk about the multi-million dollar industry of fantasy football. August. You wait all year for it. The greatest month of the year, every year. The month of the millions of fantasy football drafts. You read that right FANTASY football, not the real game with the pigskin, players, and fields but the fake competition with the internet, computer mice, and men from all ages. Fantasy football is one of the most intense and greatest contests God gave to his planet. It is not gambling, it is an art just like actual football. You must know the players, if they are going to get injured or not, if they are going to get major points or not. In my league, to do this, I get a magic 8 ball that will tell me how my players are going to do and base my decisions off of its magic. The second best thing about fantasy football is the trash talk. We are able to just tear each other apart during the season and it’s awesome! I love seeing all my friends in tears as I take their money and get my trophy at the end of each season. These are just part of the greatest cornerstone of American society that is known as fantasy football.

Assignment 13: Changes!

Think of all of the things and ideas that exist in the world.

Which one bothers you the most?

Think on Jonathan Swift's "Proposal" and write your own satiric solution to your troublesome issue.

First I would spend some time watching and or reading a great deal of satire to get into in the mental mode satire requires.

Minimum of 150 words - due Sunday, November 23rd at 11:59 pm

Brave Little Toaster- Madye Moore

I'm just about every teenagers obsession. They're using me as well as many other things of my kind constantly. Most of their parents and teachers hate us, except of course the ones that know just how useful we can be. Most of the things we do are good, but some people misuse us to the point where we aren't helpful anymore. Technology is ever-changing nowadays, and so are we.

My day starts off around 7:30, when she takes me off the charger to check her messages and social media accounts, then puts me in her pocket and keeps me there for a while. Then about 30 minutes later when she gets to school she takes me back out (once again to check her messages). She spends the majority of first hour using me because there really isn't anything better to do for that hour. But then I'm normally not taken back out until 3rd hour or lunch, depending on whether she wants to listen to music or needs to text anyone. After that, 5th hour I'm pretty off limits, and 6th hour I'm using sparingly. But by the time 6th hour ends. I'm normally on 40%, so as soon as she gets home I'm plugged up for awhile. She only uses me to play music while she's doing homework, and the occasional social media check. Once she's done with that, I'm used the majority of the night until I have to be plugged up again to rest for the next day to come. I could be sitting on the charger for a while though, she gets me taken away quite a bit, at least once a week. Even though my days are pretty busy, I wouldn't change it, mostly because I get to keep up with everything going on, all thanks to the social media I kind of force her to be connected with. 

Brave Little Toaster - Amelia Caldwell

I have been used and left hanging from the corner of Amelia's mirror for the rest of my life. Why couldn't she just put some jet glue on my back and dance a few more times. She says that I am "dead," she is far from the truth. I feel as though I am being suffocated the way she hung me up on her mirror, like she does not care that I am capable of feeling pain. I look around at her purple room, there are probably 200 other pointe shoes in here. I can tell she used some of them longer than she used me. What, just because her teacher didn't like the way I fit onto her foot she can't wait a week longer? I know I still have some support left in me for her. Granted it would be my fault if she rolled over my head.... Maybe Amelia was right to leave me all alone on the side of her mirror. Amelia is coming into the room, I wonder why she looks at me like a long lost friend. Maybe she is remembering the last performance we shared together, after all it was a big moment for the both of us.