Eleanor and Park Post Reading Post

“Saturdays are the worst, Mondays are the best.”

This quote is hard to understand at first if haven't first read the novel. If you have then you know that this has to do the with the problems that come with being "young and in love" and challenges that are faced.

In the novel Eleanor and Park wild-haired problematic Eleanor falls for an Asian kid that goes to her school named Park. The only problem is that life throws a myriad of obstacles at the both of them. Eleanor isn't as privileged as the other children at her school one prime example being that she doesn't have a telephone.Eleanor live very humbly in a tiny home and a two bedroom home where she shares a room with her four siblings.Park was her escape. For Eleanor falling in love was the easy part sustaining it wasn't as easy as she once thought it'd be. Saturdays are the worst in that sense because it means that she has to spend the day locked away in her own personal prison where the warden is her step-dad, Richie. Mondays were the best because she gets to spend time with Park on the bus and at school. To Eleanor spending time with Park is the way she can be free and she can be herself around him. Spending time at home for her is just miserable she has no voice that is higher than a whisper. Her own mom can't even protect her from the person that's hurting her most because if she did the outcomes would be very bad for her. In the end the very reason why a Saturday for Eleanor is horrible is the very reason that she ends up leaving her life behind.

In my life this quote has a very less traumatic and morose back-story and it all comes down to me loving school. Saturdays aren't typically "the worse" but they can be. School is my passion I love coming everyday because I know that my hard work and dedication will get me somewhere in life. Mondays to me are hard but at the same time there's a beauty to knowing that you have a whole week  of new discoveries, learning, and conquering something new ahead of you.

“Good friends, good books, and a sleepy conscience: this is the ideal life.”
― Mark Twain

Eleanor and Park Pre-Reading Post

Thinking about all areas of your life, write a thorough explanation of the difference between "like" and "love."

They're both a warm and caring feeling for someone or something . I feel that there are distinct differences between the two as well. It is sometimes hard to tell which is which however one is a lot stronger than the other.

 In life I have liked a boy. I could've sworn it was true love. In my life (so far) I have loved a selected few.What is love really though? The dictionary version defines it as "An intense feeling of deep affection." My definition of love to me would be having care and compassion. Love is everything and nothing at all. When you love something it is blurry and clear at the same time and is never tainted no matter what. And what I mean by that is that when you love, what you love has always been there and is apart of you. Love is blurry because you can never see any wrong in anything the person does "love is blind." Love never fades.

 Like is the feeling you get before love. I feel that like is not as deep as love. When you like something or someone you approve of it you see something in it that you find beautiful and intoxicating. Like is the feeling that you get just when you start falling into the bottomless black hole that we call love. For example I have friends that I've made over the years. At first it was the stage of like. I liked the way that they carried themselves and their personality. As time has progressed I find myself actually loving them for who they are and for their compassion towards me.

 In the novel Eleanor and Park I believe we will see a lot of love and like play out. It is a love story and so far there is not any connections I see in them yet. That's the amazing part about love it's almost like fate. I believe that in the novel the two main characters will have an amazing "star crossed lovers" story.

 "There's a thin line between love and hate" -Anonymous

My Sister's Keeper Post Reading Post

"Sometimes to get what you want the most, you have to do what you want the least."

This quote means that you may not always want to do something but sometimes the destination makes the journey worth it. I have commonly heard people say that you never know unless you try and even though you may not want to do something it will most likely get you to were you want to go.

In the novel My Sister's Keeper Anna must file a lawsuit against her parents to finally be free of the medical slavery she was born into. The last thing she would want is to see her sister die and her to partially be to blame. She also doesn't want to file a lawsuit against her parents, what thirteen year old does? Anna had to make a big sacrifice and do something brave to try to get what her and Kate both want. You could also apply this quote to Sara and Brian. They were the parents of a child with cancer and they did everything they could to keep Kate alive. They didn't want to see Anna hurt from so many blood drawings and transfusions but it was something they had to do to help their child. In their positions it was easy to know that Anna wasn't the happiest with getting stuck with a needle everytime Kate needed it but they thought they were doing the right thing for their family.

In my life this quote discribes how I try to do things that are out of my comfort zone. Sometimes the risks that you don't want to take in life get you amazing outcomes. For me writing is one of those things I try to takes risks in. I've learned that risks are scary you never know what could happen however some of the best outcomes come from them. For example some of the best papers and stories I have written were out of the box "risks". I feel that you never know something unless you attempt it. This quote to me means that even though something may be tough, scary, or rough and you feel like backing out or you just not sure, remember to get what you want sometimes you have to play hard ball and take risks. You never know what's possible!

"Do you want to know who you are? Don't ask. Act! Action will delineate and define you."

—Thomas Jefferson

My Sister's Keeper Pre-Reading Post

Write a blog post that defines the word "fair." Use examples as well as non-examples to help your explanation.

When something is fair it's usually means something are just and honest. it goes neither your ideal way but at the same time it doesn't go in favor of the way you don't want it to go. It's like a median. When something is fair you are usually okay with. Fairness can also be the equality of rules, laws, culture, and different views on different topics. You could see fairness in the way that people or things are treated or in different doctrine and belifs. People have different ideas of what fair is which can sometimes cause nasty disagreements and even physical altercations.

In my eyes fairness is more commonly seen as equality or balances. I feel that when something is fair you don't get exactly what you want. For example doing drugs is illegal but that's not how everyone feels it that it should be. With this law however comes many things that would be more pro good it keeps you healthy and it keeps streets safer. So in my eyes I see this fair it keeps things balanced and is equally makes the streets safer from the promotions of drugs and even gangs. Still what I see as fair someone could see as unfair. While I agree that drugs are prohibited by law someone else in the the world sees me as wrong or unfair.

I do however see things as what they are and how sometimes things are are just simply unfair. Something I know that is unfair is bullying. It is in no ones view of a good day to be bullied. When someone tries to posses the power of how you make you feel about yourself and take control of your emotions. I feel that sometimes we don't even notice bullying can be to everybody even people high up in notoriety. People who make movies and music are human too and also have feelings but we never really notice or take into consideration that they're human as well. I think almost everyone can agree bullying is unfair on many different levels. Bullying is unfair, prejudice, and not right.

" Great is Liberty! great is Equality! I am their follower;"–Walt Whitman. "Great are the Myths."

Post Reading Post

"For better or worse, you'll find out everything you want (or don't want) to know about this world."

The quote explains how in life you learn more and more everyday about various subjects history, math, and life especially. Having learned so much about so many brilliant things, you collect a myriad of knowledge you wish you hadn't. You begin to witness different situations.  You become more aware of the atmosphere and settings around you and and you misplace things. Innocence. Curiosity. Yourself.

In the novel Black and White two friends Marcus and Eddie hold stickup's to get money for the expenses of life. Marcus and Eddie find themselves in a sticky situation however when life, or karma I suppose catches up to them. The two learned a lot through the trials and errors of life and how things can change in seconds. Marcus experienced the rough, gruesome, and awful inhabitants of jail. He commonly thinks on how many of the law breakers could be locked up for far more dangerous things than him and how any of them could hurt him at any given moment. Marcus received the knowledge of a new experience but not one he'd want to know of. Marcus also learned a valuable lesson on sacrifice. Marcus gave up a scholarship and his freedom just so that his friend could have a chance to become someone and they both wouldn't end up behind bars.

In my life I have a lot of things that I hope I can know one day. I want a masters in psychology and one for photography. Sometimes I wander how much easier it would be if you could learn life like a class, take notes, have test, and everything is figured out. But that's not how life works. You have to find who you want to be even if it means learning the good and loving side of humanity and the bad and indifferent side as well. Life throws many curve balls and you may learn that not everything In the world is moral in courageous and there are some things that we wish we could overlook in the history and in the world. But we still have to learn to enjoy ourselves and live because life is to short to be unhappy and upset at the things that we can't control.

“The most important thing is to enjoy your life—to be happy—it's all that matters.”

― Audrey Hepburn

Black and White Pre-Reading Post

Have you ever heard the phrase, "don't judge a book by its cover?" Yet that's exactly what we do every day. The cold truth is that everybody is judged and everyone judges for different reasons from the way that people dress, look, or things they've head. One way that people are often judged or categorized is by the color of their skin. Their race their heritage, even though the color of our skin shouldn't be a big deal why is it? More importantly why does it divide nations?

In my life personally I haven't witnessed racial divide in my everyday life but that doesn't mean it doesn't happen. In the mid 1900's there was a major racial divide against African Americans and White Americans. Nowadays it isn't as bad as it once was but that doesn't mean it doesn't still happen however nowadays it's mostly based off of history or silly stereotypes.

In the world there are many stereotypes against all races around the world. In life such harsh things and comments can hurtful and can even push nations apart.

The biggest racial division I know of and have seen is the presidential election of 2012. It is a historically known fact that the south was states for slavery, and had most segregation and riots during the era of the sixties those were the states that had the majority of Romney's votes while more northern states or neutral states had a majority of Obama's votes.

Even in foreign countries today in the Middle East there are many problems that deal with religion and racial divide every day. The fighting there is very violent and can be a very dangerous place for someone to live. They fight for simple things like gender, religion, and of course race.

Sometimes when I sit and wonder about the world and how far we've come but yet we still have to go really far and sometimes that makes me wonder how much has really changed in the world.