Reflective essay

In the beginning of the quarter, Mr. Sutherland told us we would be blogging and doing most of our assignments on our blogs. At first, the idea did not seem too appealing. However as the year went on, each post got easier. Everybody’s  writing was connected with each others and it made it easier for people to develop opinions on my writing. This year, I have blogged about topics such as responses to posts about Justin Beiber, football, and essays about books. Over the quarter, I have improved my writing and learned about the differences between open-ended and academic writing. Additionally, I have analyzed my classmates writing in response posts.

My favorite post that I responded to was Sam’s post on Justin Beiber. I chose to respond to this post because it sounded ridiculous. He had no proof to back up his facts and his points sounded completely illogical.

I believe there is a reason why many child stars are disliked.  It is because everyone is jealous of their fame, their money, their social life, and how easy it is for them to get girls, or boys.  Get the message guys! Many girls like Justin Bieber, maybe if you started at least pretending you like him girls might just respect you a little more.  I also don't understand why people think he can't sing very well.  Is it just because he has a high voice, I bet if a girl the exact same age as him with the exact same voice would be loved for their talent.  I also think guys have a hard time liking him because they think its cool to hate.

I had a good time responding to this post, which is why it is my favorite. I know Sam and it seems like he is a Justin Beiber fan just because no one else is, and he believes it will benefit him. I think truthfully, that he does not really like him. I also, chose to respond to this post because Sam is one of my best friends and I thought he was really opinionated when he was trying to use factual evidence to support his claim. My inspiration for this piece came from the massive amounts of people who like Justin Beiber. I wanted to show the differences between him and some of the more talented stars. Also, I wanted to spark controversy, to see their opinions, and find new topics to respond to.

Having the ability to write openly on a blog has definitely changed the way I view writing in school. For every grade, I viewed writing as something you are forced to do for a grade. Now with my blog, I feel like writing is not so much a chore, but a way to express myself. In regular wring and English classes, writing is structured and the grading is almost robotic.It is graded the same each time for each essay.

First, Justin Beiber is barely a child, so i don't know how he can be classified as a "child star." When is the last time you heard someone call Justin Bieber a child?

Also, you say many child stars are disliked. Last time i checked, not many people hated Micheal Jackson as a child. I dont remember people saying they hate the Olsen twins on the show "Full House". Micheal Jackson was a child star,, not justin bieber. Also, the  songs Justin Beiber sings do not appeal to most guys or at least aren't supposed to. He sings about "true love" at age 16 or 17. One of the main points you make is that "all" boys hate him. I think boys dont hate him just dont appreciate hhim. Some might, and that is perfectly ok. At the end of Billy's post, he says if he hasn't influenced the bieber haters, than think of how many more girls he could get than you. I don't think this is a valid argument to persuade anyone to like him even more.

Looking back at this essay, I remember how I had fun on it. It would not have been accepted in a normal, structured writing class. I believe that Mr. Sutherland’s class is a class in which to express yourself and at the same time improve your writing academically. Many English teachers would have just thrown this away as garbage but with the freedom of blogging, I can express my views however i choose. I chose this response because this is the one I had the most fun on. I had an easy time finding inconsistencies throughout the post, and responding and attacking them in my post. I chose to focus on this one post for the whole essay because it is the one I am most proud of. I had a good time writing it, and I did not view writing this as a must-do kind of thing.

For the second quarter, I have many goals to improve my writing academically. First of all, I would like to stop procrastinating. I usually wait until Thursday or Friday  night to finish and polish my blog posts. For my writing to be satisfactory, I usually have to plan to make my writing better. Another goal I have is to get more response posts. I received  total of 3 this quarter. I am interested to know what people think about my writing and the topics I write about, even if I write a response to a response. Also, I would like to improve the content of my writing. This goes hand in hand of not procrastinating. The last goal I plan to achieve is topic related. I would like to write about things that are current, so they may appeal to other students leading to more responses.The only times I got responses were when i wrote about something current or controversial. All of these work with each other when creating an exemplary essay. My final goal is to make my writing better organized. Sometimes, I just do 1 or 2 big paragraphs. I need to separate ideas and create an organized structure so it is easier for the reader to to follow.

of mice and men

Of Mice and Men Conflict essay

John Steinbeck’s 1937 realistic fiction novella, Of Mice and Men tells the story of two men, George and Lennie struggling to find work during  the great depression. These two men struggle to hold a job because of Lennie’s simplistic personality. Lennie is mentally challenged so he cannot tell right from wrong in many situations. When they get a job, George and Lennie are thrust into many conflicts. There are two major layers of conflict that each relate to the characters. It has one major conflict and one sub conflict.The main type of conflict is character vs self because Lennie and George have to deal with their own problems many times throughout the story. Lennie has to deal with not being able to react correctly in awkward situations. George also has to deal with his own feelings and his stress with Lennie. The sub-conflict in this story is character vs. society because Lennie has to deal with society’s discrimination.

George begins to confide in his overseer, Slim, and says that Lennie does anything he tells him to do. For Lennie, this can be dangerous because he does not know how to react the way a non mentally challenged person would.

“I turns to Lennie, and says jump in, and he jumps. Couldn’t swim a stroke. He damn near drowned before we could go in and get him. An’ he was so damn nice for pulling him out. Clean forgot I told him to jump in." (40)

This is character vs. self for Lennie because he has a hard time controlling what he does and if it should be done. Also, he has a hard time doing what is correct. Lennie deals with internal problems like this all throughout the story. This quote is trying to emphasize Lennie’s innocence. He does not know what to do in some situations such as the incident in Weed when he pulled the woman’s dress. Or when he killed Curley’s wife in the same situation. The quote shows that Lennie does not mean what he does and he has some issues that are hard to control.

Early in the story, George is discussing the future with Lennie, as he has many times before.

Geogre went on, “They ain’t got nothing to look forward to.” “With us it ain’t like that, we got a future. Were gonna have a little house and a couple acres and  cow and some pigs. An’ live off the fatta the land!”, Lennie shouted. (14)

This quote shows character vs. society because George is saying they have a future. They have to work very hard and they are very poor so it will probably not happen. They basically have to fight against society to make this dream come true. Also, they have to face society’s discrimination against Lennie while trying to make money in the great depression.

Also, many people aren’t aware of the mental diseases people are born with. Lennie is born with one of these and society does not accept him for it. Society is not very accepting in this time period to many people including disabled and people of color such as minorities. The boss pointed a playful finger at Lennie. “He ain’t much of a talker is he?” (20)

In this quote, George and Lennie are meeting the boss. The boss keeps asking Lennie to talk. George knows that Lennie has mental problems but even though the signs are obvious, society is ignorant.

While George takes a break to go into town, Lennie is talking to Crooks. For them, they both go through character vs. self conflicts. Crooks is African American  and already goes through discrimination. He is just putting himself down and he keeps telling himself he is not as good as everybody else.

“The white kids come to play at our place. Sometimes I went to play with them. My ol’ man didn’t like that. I know now why he didn’t like that.” (71)

In this quote, he is putting himself down. He is saying that just because he is black, he cannot succeed in life. This is important because he is going through character vs. self. He does not think he can go places and he is letting himself bring himself down.

In this novella, the main conflict of character vs. self is widely displayed throughout the story. They show that Lennie has many problems in his mind and throughout himself. He mostly has to deal with internal conflicts. Also, George has to deal with conflicts with himself, such as his dream to move to a house and own rabbits and other animals. It is also character vs. society because Lennie is discriminated against in the unnaccepting society of the 1930’s.

Response to Devin

Response to Devins post
 In the AFC East, the circumstances are difficult, but I pick the Jets to win this one.They have arguably the best defense in the NFL. That doesn't mean they have no offense at all as they can score a decent amount of points. For the afc north, I pick the steelers to win. They have a quarterback that led them to the Super Bowl two years ago. Afc south is a tough one, but I go with the colts. Peyton Manning is just too good. For the afc west, I'm hoping Oakland will win, but I believe the chargers will take the division like the past few years. Oakland, however, would pose the biggest threat to the chargers.
        To the nfc east, the giants take this one. Eli Manning (quarterback) brought his team to the Super Bowl within the last five years. The criteria to win the nfc north is huge, but I take the packers. They're building a great team around Aaron Rodgers. The afc south isn't such a hard choice. I choose the saints. They were champions last year. The nfc west is possibly the weakest division in football. The 49ers will be the team to beat. Mike Singletary will lead them to the playoffs.
        Wild cards would be the texans and the vikings. Texans are a surprise team and vikings will barely get into the playoffs.


In the beginning, you say that the jets will win the AFC east. What? The patriots have the best offense in the NFL and an improving defense. Tom Brady has reached 100 wins recently and has done it faster than any other Quarterback in the NFL. they have the best offense with wes welker, tom brady, and many others. 
For the AFC north, i agree. Even with his suspension his backup has been decent and there defense is still sufficient to get to the playoffs. In the AFC south, i pick the titans. They have a good coach, a decent offense and a good defense. You also say the 49ers will be the team to beat. So far, if i am correct, they are 0-4. Last time i checked, that is not a very organized team. Yes, i know they are better under Mike Singletary than under Mike Nolan, but they still have a few offensive and defensive changes to make. You also give no substantial evidence to what you say, such as the TExans are a surprise team. How?

Of mice and men economy free post

In many ways, the situation in the book, "Of mice and Men" is very similar to the recession we are going through today. The great depression started in 1929. It took a whole world war to get out of it. Now, in 2008, the stock market crashed again. Not as bad as 1929, but still enough for banks such as Washington Mutual to fail, and for hundreds of thousands of jobs to be lost. George and Lennie are in the same situation as many farmworkers. They are also migrants so it could be hard for them to land a job. In this economy, many people have lost their jobs, just like in the great depression. Right now, we are in a recession. This isnt as bad a a depression but it is still bad. George and Lennie are victims of the dust bowl. The dust bowl happened when people used the lad too much and took out protective grass. Soon, the ground turned to unfertile sand and dust and nothing could be planted on it.
In the book, they often fantasize about having their own place with rabbits, chickens, a stove, and many other amenities. Being poor, George realizes this cannot happen. When they meet a new person named Candy, he offers to help them finance their dream if he can live with them in their new home. They only have to work another month to pay for it. The trouble is, they get in trouble with Curley and him and Lennie get into a fight. This jeopradizes their chances for getting the land and the house where they can live off the "fatta" the land, says Lennie.
Today, many farmworkers are looking for jobs. the migrant farmworkers are out of jobs and are looking for new ones. Many companies have laid people off and over 10% of people are out of jobs today in the United States.
In the book "Of MIce and Men", people everywhere are feeling the sting of the economy. People work on farms for a month the quit to find better pay or they are just worn out.

Response (10/1)

I chose to respond to sam's response post to Billy's post.
I chose to respond to Sam's response to Billy's post because i disagree with it.


I believe there is a reason why many child stars are disliked.  It is because everyone is jealous of their fame, their money, their social life, and how easy it is for them to get girls, or boys.  Get the message guys! Many girls like Justin Bieber, maybe if you started at least pretending you like him girls might just respect you a little more.  I also don't understand why people think he can't sing very well.  Is it just because he has a high voice, I bet if a girl the exact same age as him with the exact same voice would be loved for their talent.  I also think guys have a hard time liking him because they think its cool to hate.  Well I can tell you its not.
First, Justin Beiber is barely a child, so i don't know how he can be classified as a "child star." When is the last time you heard someone call Justin Bieber a child? 
Also, you say many child stars are disliked. Last time i checked, not many people hated Micheal Jackson as a child. I dont remember people saying they hate the Olsen twins on the show "Full House". Micheal Jackson was a child star,, not justin bieber. Also, the  songs Justin Beiber sings do not appeal to most guys or at least aren't supposed to. He sings about "true love" at age 16 or 17. One of the main points you make is that "all" boys hate him.   I think boys dont hate him just dont appreciate hhim. Some might, and that is perfectly ok. At the end of Billy's post, he says if he hasn't influenced the bieber haters, than think of how many more girls he could get than you. I don't think this is a valid argument to persuade anyone to like him even more. Sam also mentions that it is not cool to hate. Who decides what is "cool" or not? Please feel free to comment.

Favorite shows: response to Elton

I  chose to respond to elton's blog post.

My favorite show is whatever I like, I vary on what I love and hate but I usually get so glued into one show that I will watch till the end even if it doesn’t seem to interesting to me personally. But I guess my favorite show would be School Rumble a anime I watched which is a romantic comedy. Suggesting to myself my favorite type is romantic comedy for one thing I love funny things but also I love to watch people fall in love for some reason.

I chose to respond to elton because i thought it was interesting what he said about how you get hooked to a show even if it isnt interesting. This is true for me too. I watch shows sometimes just to watch them. They may not be entertaining or funny but sometimes i just watch them. Also, I think it is interesting that me and elton like almost  completely different shows. He likes Anime and I  like Comedy. A few of my favorite shows are South Park and  Family guy. I do have more but i explain those two more in depth down below.

I have many favorite shows that I like to watch i my spare time.

The first one is South Park. It is a raunchy show about 4 4th grade boys, Stan Marsh, Kyle broflowskki, Kenny Mckormick, and Eric Cartman. who do  stuff together. They cuss and make jokes but  everyone needs a little laugh once in a while. This show references things that happen in the  real world and pokes fun at  them. Because of its humor, it has encountered some contreversy. 

The second one is family guy. This show is like south park, but is not as contreversial. It follows a family in Quahog, RI. Peter Griffin, the father, is the stupid one. No one likes Meg, the daughter, and Stewie, the baby, is an evil genius. Chris is the other son and he is no to smart. 

My other favorite shows are the office, 24, glee, and Big brother.