Who We Are : Machine Head

    If there is one thing I have learned thus far in my life, it's that we are who we are. We are all born and predetermined to everything we do and say. I believe that this is what brings us together and should not differentiate us from one another. Diversity is what drives the culture of being a human, whether it be ethnicity, race, religion, political view, music, or hobbies, and we should be proud. What does the song Who We Are have to do with this? Everything.

     

     Metal, in my opinion, is the truly the only music that every person in the world can share some sort of experience with. The songs aren't crude and don't talk about money, but they rather share tales of true struggles throughout life that we as people will have. Machine wrote this song with the intent of delivering the message that we are all different, and that we should not be shunned or cast away because of this, but we should allow others and ourselves to embrace us because of this. The chorus chants "This is who we are, this is what I am, We have nowhere else to go, divided we will stand." These powerful lyrics impose the thought of diversity is a good thing. This song really hits home, because most people can't understand this idea. I hope to play this song on drums during announcements, and hopefully, that will get my point across as I play the lyrics on the screen behind me. 

Global Analysis Project

So far, my global analysis project has been pretty solid, except for the fact that I don't have enough cards for my research. I believe that I have plenty enough sources and information on the 9 sources that I have as of now, The only problem is that I haven't made many cards at all. I think that this will hold me back, but by the end of this coming week, I will have more than the required amount of cards. I need to get a good grade on this paper, and the cards will probably help a lot with that.

Right now I am working on the intro and first body paragraph and how to integrate my facts that I have into them, and which order to put them in, meanwhile, Mia and I are working on a poster board type project for this assignment. We feel strongly about this issue and why it must be stopped. We plan on putting many photos and statistics of people in the human trafficking and prostitution ring.

Free Write (Track)

     For a couple of weeks now, the track team has been working very hard to do good in our first indoor meet of the yer, which is this weekend. With the loss of many key people from last year, we are basically starting fresh. Are main goal as of now is to qualify in the state meet, which I think we definitely have the ability to do. The only problem is that most of the seniors and key players this year are doing other sports, and unlike most of the other schools, EHS doesn't recruit players to run track. With over 70 registered guys and quite a few girls running this year, we should have a great team.

     This year I am sprinting and throwing the shot-put and discus for the team. My main goal as of this year is to just improve as much as possible. I believe that we have a chance at winning state, because as far as I know, Episcopal has more determination than any other team out there. I really can't wait till outdoor when everyone comes out and we have a JV team. In outdoor, I can finally compete. 

Outside Reading for this Week (2)

     This week I have still been reading Black Voices. Although it is long, I still really like reading it. As far as things go, I have been more interested in books that are very influential and books that can teach you many life lessons. Along with Black Voices, This I Believe also falls under this category. This I Believe is a collection from many different people, some famous, who share their life philosophies. These philosophies range from going to church and praying to being nice to the pizza man. This book is for anyone who would like to hear about life from a different perspective. 

     Next week, I hope I can go and buy the book American Sniper that I was talking about. But if not, I will finish reading Black Voices and This I Believe. I can't wait until we read the book in class. I heard from some people that it was a very good book. I still need to look back at my goals and try not to be lazy with homework. I keep slacking off on reading and annotating, and my grades are suffering because of it. I guess there is no point in making goals unless you do them. Next week I hope I will do better

 

Outside Reading for this Week

     This week I have decided that to better get in the "spirit" of Martin Luther Kind Day", and because Black History month is coming up, I read a book that my brother received from his AP English class. The title of the book is Black Voices: An Anthology of African American Literature. To be honest, at first I didn't feel like reading it, and it is still not the most interesting book, but this book can show the real side of African American Culture in writing. If writing is art, than this book is a Picasso, the overwhelming sense of learning about this culture grabs your body. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn more about the culture of African American people through their writing

     Later on next week, I plan on reading some other books that are culturally oriented towards other groups as well. I would love to read more books about war, and I plan on purchasing the book called American Sniper by Chris Kyle. Chris Kyle is a retired Navy Seal sniper with over 160 confirmed kills on insurgents, putting him in the record books as the deadliest sniper in US history. This book, from what I have heard is very good, so I can't waint to get my hands on it.

  Although 2011 was a terrific year socially, academically, and family wise, I hope that as far as school goes, I achieve better goals and set higher ones for high school. With the start of the new year, I think that I need to start setting higher goals for myself because, if I become more responsible and set these higher goals, I should be able to make higher grades and achieve a higher GPA. Goal setting is an all around way to gain more self responsibility, because honestly, you have to fight to reach the goals you intend to set.

   This quarter I intend to try and do all of my homework to the best of my ability. Last semester, and especially first quarter i thought that high school would just be another grade, as in middle school I got A's with little to no effort, but I was wrong about high school. This was the first time that I saw F's on papers. With my newly refined experience, I can now strive to work harder. I also intend to take better notes. I strongly believe that if I took notes in class, I would have a 3.5 or higher GPA, but I never take notes. Next, I also need to practice and hone some of my different studying skills and need to practice more math. Finally, I just want to be an overall better person in and outside of the class.