Ms. Tomlin (CRR)

 we had to write a cute little shout out paragraph for Ms. Tomlin ..... here's mine.

YASSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS! CLASS OF 2014 WE MADE IT!  I am beyond excited. Thurgood watched me from doo braids to 28’ inch popping.  Throughout these six years I was blessed to experience some of the best memories I shared with my family and friends. I thank them for dealing with my attitude and seeing the best in me. I want to especially think my family for always being there and supporting me no matter what. I can never forget the class of 2014 everyone is like one big family we all fight, argue have disagreements but we always find away to make each other laugh and made the best of the previous years. It hurts that we all have came to an end of our journey but, this journey was a memorable one. 

Hamlet ( ID)

We have currently done a lot of fun and interesting things in Ms. Hegemens class. Fist we started out reading different Shakespeare stories such as much ado about nothing to get a feel and be ready for the things that are to come in Hamlet. At first we thought Hamlet was just going to be a boring story about boring and old Shakespeare people but, it wasn't yes I'd admit it was sometimes hard to understand but with the aid of Ms. hegemon and Ms. Brown we were able to get into character and learn a lot about what's actually going on in the play. Then after that we went to BAM performed it and had a great time doing so. It made us appreciate the class and the story more and gave a even better understanding. It also allowed us accomplish and conquered new, difficult and challenging things. All in all it was a beautiful experience and I know its going to help me in the future.

In ms.p's class (p)

I just currently learned what Parkinson's disease is. I found this very interesting because I never heard of a disease such as this let me enlighten you with my knowledge.

What is Parkinson’s disease?

Parkinson's disease is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder and also the most common movement disorder. It is characterized by continuous loss of muscle control, which leads to trembling of the limbs and head while at a resting state, stiffness, slowness, and imbalance of the body and body functions. As the symptoms become more intense it may gradually become difficult to walk, talk, and complete simple daily tasks.Parkinson’s disease causes difficulties with movement and coordination. Many researchers believe the disease comes from the midbrain and brain stem. This disease gradually develops after the age of fifty. It affects both males and females. Parkinson’s disease slowly destroys brains cells that make dopamine. Dopamine is a chemical substance made to help control muscle movement. It is more likely to occur in older people but that does not make it uncommon in younger youths. When a young child is affected it is most likely due to genetics. Without dopamine, the nerve cells in this part of the brain cannot send messages properly. This leads to a loss of muscle function throughout the body some may occur faster than others.  The reason for the destroyed cell is yet unknown. Many people with Parkinson's disease live long lives, whereas others tend to notice the systems getting severe at a faster rate. The results of the symptoms getting severe are premature death which is usually due to complications such as injuries related to falling or pneumonia. Most of the movement related symptoms of Parkinson's disease are due to lack of dopamine which is caused by a loss of dopamine producing cells in the substantia nigra. The substantia nigra is a brain structure located in the mid brain. When the quantity of dopamine is too low, there is communication loss between the substantia nigra and corpus striatum, and movement becomes difficult to occur. The more dopamine being lost, it causes the severity of the movement related symptoms. Other cells in the brain also become affected because as we know the brain is a composed of many different sections that work together to get messages across and to get task done. Therefore whatever effects one affects the rest within the matter of time Parkinson’s disease has been around since 5000 BC.  Around this time, an ancient Indian civilization called the disorder Kampavata created treatment using seeds from a plant containing therapeutic levels of what is today known as levodopa. But, it was not until Dr. James Parkinson wrote about it in a detailed medical essay in 1817 that the disease hit main stream. This Disease was first known as Shakes Palsy.  The publication was entitled "An Essay on the Shaking Palsy". A Frenchman by the name Jean Martin Charcot tested and saw the importance of the disease and then later named it after Dr. James Parkinson. Although there is no real cure for Parkinson’s disease there are many treatment options. A doctor can diagnose the disease and how bad it is based on your symptoms. Since there is no real cure the treatment options are meant to control the symptoms. In order to control the symptoms your doctor may prescribe you with many different medications but, you can also help yourself by changing your diet into a more nutritional one and exercise to keep your muscles moving. Surgery may be an option for some patients depending on the severity. 

 

 

Internship s (FC)

I think that internships are the dumbest thing every created on earth. It immazes me how people are actually able to work hard and put up their best posture and put in there all in order to be in the liking of the employers . The employers have the right to just say they don't want you being apart of their organization just to say it so they could get another free worker. I'm currently apart of an internship that for about 3 months and at the end of it the decided if they want to keep us there's a couple of other workers  there also. We are basically only able to work 20 hours a week but some of the workers there work over 50 hours a week. I don't see that as dedication I see that as pure stupidity. They are just basically being used the employers hype them up and all but imagine after all that hard work they don't even get hired they just get told that there not good enough to work there . All in all I'm currently in this internship I just want to know the ending result because they are always complimenting me saying how good of a worker I am blah blah blah but if they dub me at the end I don't care I'm wrecking the place and cursing all of the the hell out idk who they think they are dubbing people when they feel like it . The interns work harder then the workers that at the place some of the workers are some freaking stupid it's sad that they get paid for that but I'm just waiting till the end of the month to get the results

freebie

FREEBIE :)

Expencive clothing( FC)

            Is it worth it to by expensive clothing? Prior to answering this question let’s not focus on our want but our needs.  Take the time to understand how clothing is made and how much is money is actually spent on the expensive clothing we were verses how much we spend on them. Wearing cloths is a basic human characteristic from back in the earlier time period of wearing animal skin until discovering cotton and other different types of fibers.

           

            What you wear tells a lot about you as an individual. In our society we tend to judge people based on what they wear this can be proven by a study made by sociologist Ben C. Fletcher. He carried out a research with over 300 adults (men and women). They looked at images of a man and a woman for just 3 seconds before making 'snap judgments' about them. In some of the pictures the man wore a made-to-measure suit. In others he wore a very similar off-the-peg suit bought on the high street. The differences in the suits were very minor they had controlled color and fabric, as well as making sure the face of the model was pixilated so that there could be no hidden messages in the facial expressions. The result of this research showed that after 3 seconds of viewing each picture they decided that the man with the made-to-measure had a review of having more confidence, successful, flexible, and a higher earner than when he wore a high street suit mind you this was the same model in both suits.

            Most of the cloths that we wear today are made from cotton. The cloths that were made in early times wear actually handmade but today since technology advanced. We are able to make more things at once and respond to supply in demand faster. People wear cloths depending on what region they live in what we as New Yorker's think is in style and trendy is played out and made fun of somewhere else and vice versa. ”The process starts by harvesting mature cottons. Then the mature balls are placed in machine which blows the ball away from the cotton and leaving only the fibers resembling puffy cotton balls. It is then placed in cotton gin to clean and remove the seeds from it. In the past, the cotton was spun on the spinning wheel that was operated using foot pedal. But in the recent years, the process is done using electrical power. It is important for the yarn to be carded before placing the cotton to the loom. It is where the cotton is stretched across the drum, brushing any impurities before lying flat on the loom.” (“How is it made?”)

draft for Ms. Hegemen's essay ( p )

The title of the play is “much Ado about Nothing “Which was created by Williams Shakespeare. The play was first played (performed) by the cord chamberlain’s men at barrages’ “The theatre”. The name of the director is Christian Amato. The place we attended to watch this performance was 115 Mac Dougal street New York, NY 10012. We attended this trip March 5^th the production company is called TC&CO. I had past experiences on Shakespeare performances from reading Macbeth and another book which I cannot recall the name to. I was able to make a comparison between the plays and how the general idea of the stories has a resemblance yet some differences. I am also reading another play called “Hamlet”.

Macbeth was basically about a king being killed off his thrown by a brother and the mother and the brother become lovers and it is now up to the son whom the ghost of the lost king reveals himself to avenge the death of his father and this is the same genre and theme in Hamlet sop it’s kind of boring. I really enjoyed the dramatic scenes in Macbeth, the suspense , floating knifes in mid air and all that good stuff was very interesting and made a non Shakespeare reader such as myself able to enjoy and understand it. Hamlet in my perspective is too straight forward and boring, because I expecting the father to haunt his brother or something but instead he left all the revenge in the hands of his frail son and said he was going back to hell. It is not fair to me that the king after being killed still has to taste the heat in flames.

            The play “Much Ado about Nothing” is pretty different from all the other Shakespeare experiences I had. This didn’t have any spooky thinks about it was pretty modern and caught my attention. The drama and suspense of it all had me at the edge of my set. It was sometimes very difficult to understand what they were saying because I am not accustomed to the Shakespeare verbal ways. I feel that it would have been better if they had proper English subtitles that let the audiences that were lost know what’s going on in the play. Since it was hard for people in my class to understand and I had the advantage of sitting next to my teacher and ask questions when I was lost caused them to fall lose interest fall asleep or become very disrespectful.

            Being that the whole setting, plot and them of the story was different from the rest caught my attention. I appreciate the fact of them changing things up instead of a having basic literal murder being done and all that extra stuff. They faked a death made him realize his faults. They showed a little bit of everything some betrayal, pain, agony, comedy. It was really good and I’m glad I had an interpreter when I got lost.  The first impression I had of the place when I first walked in was that it was an amateur place. Due to the small squished seats. The stage was too close to the crowd so it didn’t really give us that Broadway experience. The furniture on the stage seemed pretty cheap. In fact everything about the place was cheap even the costumes.  In my opinion if the place was larger and the stage was higher than the seats we would have no choice but, to pay attention. On top of all that if we were able to get Proper English subtitle everything would've gone perfectly.

            But all in all the play was good. The actors/ actresses were terrific. Even though we were on our worst behavior they kept it professional and continue doing what they came to do and complained at the end. I found it a little disrespectful though when one of them told us to stay in school.  

Flowers in the Attic ( SSR)

                                  A flower in the attic is a movie that I watched in Ms. Sawchucks class. This movie was really depressing and choking to me. This movie is basically about a modern family which includes a mother, father, two daughter, and two sons. You would generally think that they are a regular happy family. The mother is a stay at home mom and the father go's to different business trips but as he returns the family has a routine of hiding and surprising the father. Of course the oldest girl was the father’s favorite child and the mother seemed a little jealous of her. The father would always bring extra things for the daughter and even gave a ring he once bought for the mother to the daughter since she never wore it. One day it was around the time the dad usually came home so everyone hide behind the couch and waited for him to open the door but only this time it was police officers at the door. They came to inform the family that the father had been involved in a terrible care accident and died instantly. Since the father was the only source of income and the family didn’t want to lose their house that they grew up in, they had no choice but to sell everything they owned but that still wasn't enough. The mother had no choice but, to pack their bags and move in with her mother, the kid’s grandmother. The kid’s grandmother was a devil she was against the marriage of the father and her daughter that's why her daughter ran away but now that she was back she had to act as if all the kids never existed. So they looked the kids in the attic of a mansion where no one knew the existed and no one could hear them. The mother wanted to inherit everything she was missing out on so she was okay with the idea of pretending that her kids didn't exist. She would bring them food and put rat poisoning in it to kill them off one by one. Then after a while they weren't dying quick enough for her she decided to starve them the youngest one was getting sick the quickest so the oldest male had to feed him his blood. That still couldn't keep the poor boy alive and he eventually died. After his death the mother decided to get married but, the kids had a different thing planned for her on her wedding day they popped up and started bad mouthing her in front of everyone and she disowned them until she tripped backwards and got hung.

Hamlet ( ID)

                                     Currently in Ms. Hegeman’s class our focus is Shakespeare. She wants us to be able to face the challenges of not being able to understand something difficult so we use different techniques and ways to manipulate the words until we have a better understanding of it. She wants us to be able to ask questions and get help from other sources and each other to get a better understanding. At first we went to go watch a play called “Much Ado about nothing". That play was really good and I understood it more because I keep asking questions about things I didn't understand and the actions and expressions of the actors/actresses gave me a better understanding of what's going on. We are also currently reading Hamlet.  Hamlet is about a Prince's father dying. Hamlet is the name of prince and His late father’s name was Hamlet also. After the father’s death the mother and the Uncle gets married and that causes a weird relationship between him, his uncle/step father and his mother. One day the ghost of his father appears to the guards but it doesn't say much, than eventually the ghost appears to Hamlet himself and the ghost is the ghost of hamlets late father. The ghost tells hamlet that he was killed by King Claudius and wants his son Hamlet to avenge his death since he's already going to hell for what he has done during his prime. Hamlet doesn't know if he's bugging or not so he decided to perform a play based on what the ghost said to see the reaction of King Claudius the reaction that the king gives off is what's going to prove the ghost right or wrong. In the mist of this entire catastrophe Hamlet is in love with Pinonilous a commoner’s daughter Ophelia. Ophelia and Hamlet love each other very much but her father and brother are both against it because they believe that Hamlet would never love her he would only seduce her well basically sleep with her and leave her due to the fact that she is not of royal blood. So she decides to leave Hamlet alone so he starts going crazy and I guess the term is “Crazy in love" and we had a discussion in class of what we think being crazy in love meant. My response of what being crazy in love means is being obsessed with someone and loving them more than you love yourself.

RESEEARCH PAPER AND CREATED MY OWN RESTAURANT (FC)

                   Research Paper

Name of country: Ivory Coast

Population: 19.84 million

Type of currency: West African CFA franc

Type of government: Republic

Country flag: Orange, White and green

Goods Imported:  natural gas, electricity, and oils

Goods Exported: cocoa beans, coffee, and palm oil, palm kernels, rice, corn, cotton, sugar, sweet potatoes, manioc, and bananas, hogs, goats, chickens, and sheep, which produce byproducts of eggs, milk, and meat.

Indigenous Crops: N/A

Median Income: N/A

Minimum Wage: 90 euros, $120

Common Meals Eaten: Popular local dishes include kedjenou (chicken with braised vegetables), attieke (cassava ground into couscous-like grains and eaten with fish or meat) and specialties such as pan-fried frog’s legs.

Original Meals Eaten:  aloko, fried banana served with onions and chillies. Other street food includes yam fries, fried fish and fufu (or foufou) made from fermented and mashed vegetables such as cassava and plantain.

                                               Restaurant profile

Name of restaurant:  “La Karamoko “

Years of experience: 15

Owners: Myself

Location: 865 Morning side avenue

Daily Hours: 10+

Number of Workers: 10

Yearly income: 30-50 K

Workers wages: Minimum wage

Restaurant occupancies: $50,000 Food Sales/Month X 30% = $15,000 (Food Usage) and $15,000 / 30 days = $500/day of food usage 

Restaurant Slogan: “Where the food sticks to your soul “

LIFE SKILLS ( CRR)

                             

                In Ms. P's class we are basically learning different life skills and things that are going to better help us in the future. Such as giving good advice on what we need in our life. In order to survey in this busy world one of the things that you need is steady financial place which is also know as a job or a career. We are basically learning how to make a great resume and a good cover letter to go along with it so you can make yourself look good and giving yourself a better opportunity of getting whatever job you are trying to receive. Some people don't have the advantage of knowing how to make a good resume while still in school they have to do themselves and hope for the best. But, we were lucky enough to have aid and tips on how to dress to an interview, the dos and don'ts, how to answer certain questions and so much more. I learned thinks that I never knew were so delicate and important like how important a cover is. I thought the resume was more important than the cover letter but, in reality the cover letter is often your first and only chance to make a good impression to future employers. It gives you a chance to sell yourself before they even look at your resume.

REAL STEEL (ID)

In 2020, human boxers have been replaced by robots. Charlie Kenton , a former boxer, owns the robot 'Ambush', but loses it to a bull belonging to promoter Ricky. Having made a bet that Ambush would win, Charlie is indebted to Ricky. After the fight, Charlie learns that his ex-girlfriend has died, and that he must attend a hearing deciding the future of their son Max. There, Max's wealthy aunt Debra  and her husband Marvin request full custody, which Charlie concedes for $100,000, half in advance, on the condition that Charlie retains Max for three months. Thereupon, Charlie and Max, and Bailey Tallet, the daughter of Charlie's boxing coach, acquire the once-famous robot 'Noisy Boy' and arrange a fight, in which Noisy Boy is destroyed. Attempting to scavenge parts of a new robot, Max and Charlie discover 'Atom', an obsolete but intact robot designed to withstand severe damage, and capable of mimicking its handler's motion. At Max's behest, Charlie pits Atom against the robot 'Metro', whom Atom overcomes. Max convinces Charlie to train Atom, resulting in a series of victories culminating upon national champion 'Twin Cities'. Elated by victory, Max challenges global champion 'Zeus'. Immediately, Ricky and two henchmen attack and rob Charlie, who thereupon returns Max to his aunt; but persuaded by Bailey, Charlie arranges the challenge offered by Max and convinces Debra to allow Max to witness the fight. Ricky bets $100,000 that Atom will not last the first round against Zeus, but loses his bet and is cornered by the fight's bookmakers. In the penultimate round, Atom's vocal controls are damaged, whereupon Charlie guides the robot through his mimetic powers to overwhelm the weakened Zeus; but is unable to win within allotted time. Zeus is declared the winner by number of blows inflicted; but the near-defeat leaves the Zeus team humiliated, and Atom is labelled the "People's Champion".

Health Class (CRR)

                                                                                                                                                        In Health class we are learning about all the different components that come together to help our body complete there daily activities. Our body uses nutrients as an energy source,to heal, build and repair tissue to sustain growth, help transport oxygen to the body cells and regulate body functions. There are six types of nutrients carbohydrates,proteins,fats,cholesterol, vitamins and minerals. Carbohydrates are starches and sugars found in foods we consume that the body uses as its main source of energy. Proteins are nutrients the body uses to build and maintain cell and tissues these are found in the amino acid and proteins also help you grown from childhood to adolescent. Fats are naturally stored in your body but the different fast you consume have a different effect. Fats help you stay in shape and are a good energy source. It also protect some organs and bones in the body. The three different components of fats at saturated, unsaturated and trans fat too much can cause cholesterol  which is a waxy fat like substance in your blood need to create cell walls, certain hormones and vitamin D. That's when high blood pressure comes into play. Too much fat causes to many of the cholesterol substance to flow in your blood which starts blocking your arteries and makes it difficult for the blood to circulate throughout the body leading to many different diseases and sometimes even death. Vitamins, minerals, and water do not provide energy, but performs a wide variety of body functions. Vitamins are compounds found in food that help regulate many body processes. Minerals are elements found in food that are used by the body. Water is essential for most body functions because all body cells contain water. The function of water is moving food through the digestive system, digesting carbohydrates and protein, and aiding other chemical reactions in the body, transporting nutrients and removing waste, storing and releasing heat, cooling the body through perspiration,cushioning the eyes,brain, and spinal cord and lubricating the joints. 

Goals ( P)

I am passionate about being the first in my family to graduate High School and attend college. As I stated in my previous blog I want to make it somewhere big in life and become so successful to the point where everyone knows my name where every I go. If that doesn't work out then I just want a successful career in which I make a lot of money. Some people believe money is th root to all evil but I strongly disagree. I believe money is the key to happiness honestly. Like my idol " Rihanna" said " Money make the world go round.... still got my money ". I don't believe money can buy love but money sure can buy happiness. For instance money doesn't betray you , break your heart, bring drama, non of that money just keeps you happy and gets you what ever you want. I just want to be successful independent. Its going to be an accomplishment to know that every dime I spent is mine.

Abortion ( FC )

The thought of abortion always brings some many controversial arguments  Some people are against it and others are for it. The pro-life as the supporters are called always have the same basic excuse " Oh what if it were you that were being killed", " the baby did not choose to be there" , " the baby is innocent" " the baby is innocent" the baby does not deserve this" or the most common one is " you shouldn't be having sex in the first place. My question to them is " Are you going to help the mother take care of the suppose baby ? " , " Are you willing and capable of helping the mothers with there responsibilities?" , " are you going to be able to erase all the flash back and painful memories the sight of the baby brings"?. I feel that people are always so quick to judge others they are always talking about the innocent baby but, do they ever stop to think about the person the baby is inside of , the person who feel every motion and sensation the baby sends, the one who has to provide and nurture the fetus. NO ! its always about the baby like get it together. If the mother knows that they are not capable of taking care of the baby or going to be able to be the best mother they could possible be then they have the right to terminate it. Why bring something into the world that you know is going to go through hell that right there is the actual terminate  If  I personally find out that I'm pregnant today regardless of what my parents think I would keep it if I knew was financially stable but if not I have no problem with an abortion. The safest way from this situation in my perspective is to just not have sex or have protected sex. But, just because you use a condom doesn't mean you wont get pregnant. Even thought abortion is against my religion and many other religions I still support it. Because in this world you have to be realistic and understanding  I am not bias and I believe a women should do whatever she think is best for her regardless of what your family,friends,or spouse have to say. You are the one with the baby inside of you not them. 

freebie :)

WHITE LINES by Tracy Brown ( SSR)

                       Before telling you what I learned from this amazing novel. I would like to give a brief little summary about what the book is about and express things that grabbed my attention and made me more interested in the novel. Jada left home at the age of sixteen, running from her own demons and the horrors of physical abuse inflicted by her mother's boyfriend, whom she was raped by.  
                     She partied hard, and life seemed good when she was with Born, the neighborhood kingpin whose name was synonymous with money, power, and respect. But all his love couldn't save her from a crack addiction. Jada goes from crack addict and prostitute to survivor and back again before she finds the strength to live for her and come out on top. And her stormy romance with one of the fiercest hustlers on the streets makes it hard for her to stay away from the demon that's been calling her name (cocaine). 

                               He hates the drug but, he sells it because he's in it for the money. She told him everything about herself and he trusted her enough to allow her to deal with the drugs and help him back it to sell it. She was able to control herself for a good period of time until she meets Sunny. Bones trusted partner in crime girlfriend. Enough about the booklets get to what I learned about it because the way this book is set up I can’t stop talking about it when I start. This book had me very interested because it sounded like a story that was ripped right out of someone who experienced it life. 
                         
                        I adore stories that are realistic not only because it’s an urban fiction book and its main focus is not only about sex it gives very inspirational and lifelong messages that can help you in any situation. For example at first I was upset at Jada for being a crack head again after meeting born because I felt that there was no reason for her to because now she is living the good life. But, then I realized that all the money in the world could not replace the love of family that she never had. All she had was her little sister but, her little sister was sent away from her so she was stuck with her disgrace of a women called a mother and her alcoholic boyfriend. The thoughts of those things kept flashing back in her head and even Born the love of her life wasn't able to fill in that gap.

Ms. Horne ( Government ) ( ID)

In Ms. Horne's class we are doing a project on the cointelpro and how government allowed the rights of citizens to be violated and neglected. I made my connection with Doruba ( Robert Moore ) . Who was accused with the murder of two police officers with no proper accusation . They just framed him and had him spend 19 years in prison. He was later on found not guilty and released. The cointelpro is basically a legalized spying method brought into light by J Edgar Hoover  he was a cop and against the activist movements such as the black panthers and other activist parties so he brought up the plan of having each committee go against each other so that they can tell on each other. Because he was clever enough to think thoroughly that the only way to destroy a society is  by having them destroy themselves. His theory was very affective he was able to clash all different types of groups and organizations legally because the government supported him and other followers one hundred percent The cointelpro was a very terrible thing because it allowed false accusations to be made and people were being spied on with everything they do in there day day life. I think this is a despicable act and it supposedly stopped but , in my perspective it still continues on until today .

SUCCESS( P)

 I am passionate about being successful. I want to be the one in  my family to bring everyone out of the gutters. I hate the idea of seeing my father slaving everyday to make someone else's dream come to light. I really do not like the idea of working for someone else and my temper and attitude is built up the same way. I am going to become my own boss. A entrepreneur there for it is not up to anyone to hire or fire me. The thought of someone else having control of weather I eat or not kills my spirit. I am a very independent person. I have no problem being to myself because it gives me time to gather my thoughts and think about who I am and what I am doing with myself.Even the thought of having a dominating partner in any situation such as a boyfriend or husband still has me questioning my future , because in the future I look forward to having my own little family and providing them with things my parent were not able to provide for me. I refuse to spoil them though because I do not play those silly games. They are going to have to work for every penny even if not physically it will be done mentally. I want them to understand the value of money and success through hard work either academically or doing little chores around the house and not allow everything to just be handed to them. But , without education success is just a figment of the imagination so I am going to step my game up in English class because that is the only class I'm slacking in.