Three Topics

I think three topics that interested me and that i could do are self image, movie/tv/video game influences, education.

The first topic that interested me was self image. Self image is people feeling insecure about themselves because they look different or don't wear the latest trends. I've always had some thoughts about this subject because some people take it to far. People need to be happy with themselves and not worry about what other people think. If you are happy with yourself then no bully will get under your skin and make you feel inadequate. I don't think this issue has impacted our school enough that it is nessecary to raise a lot of awareness, but it is an issue that we need to adress. When people have a poor self image of themselves they could go into depression and even kill themselves. Those two topics are a big issue in America today and if people would have a possitive view on themselves they could have a positive view on life. I think their isn't much you can do to raise awareness for this problem because it is an indivdual problem and can only be solved by the individual.

My second topic is how movie/TV/video games influence today's society. With the advancement in technology, all types of video entertainment have become more realistic and thus more believable. I personally have been watching rated R movies since I was about 13 and it never influenced me because i've always understood that it is fiction and could never happen in real life. But now really younger kids watch/play whatever they want because their parents don't supervise what they are watching/playing. When kids almost 10 years old are watching shows like Sons of Anarchy or playing video games like Grand Theft Auto, their minds are going to be corrupt. I think it is an issue in our community because kids in elementary school see things on TV or in Video Games that they don't need to know about till they are older. I think a way we could raise awareness is telling the parents that they need to be observant about what their children are watching/playing and when there is a show/game that their child shouldn't be viewing then to not let them play/watch it until they are an appropriate age.

My last topic is about education. Mainly about how homework and tests rarely teach the students anything. In high schools everywhere, students attempt to cheat on homework and test to get a good grade. they believe that if they have good grades they can get into a good college and can be succesful when in reality the students never learned anything. They faked their way through high school cheating and getting good grades when they never learned anything. I believe that this is a huge issue in our school. Cheating is a daily thing in our schol because the kids aren't wanting to learn and just want to get goods grades and make them look smart and make the school look good. I believe the way to raise awareness is to discuss with our teachers and school board about changing the way we teach the kids. If we can find a way to teach our kids a proper way while still following the states common core, the students at Orion High School and many other schools could actually learn instead of cheat.

Blog #6 persuasive topic

I think I topic that I find interesting and very debated is whether on paying college athlete for their performance. I believe that college athletes should be payed for their performance mainly because of the attention and publicity they bring for their schools. One of the most talked about athletes in the college world is Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel. As a redshirt freshman, he brought excitment and attention to the University and did not get a single thing out of it besides a Heisman Trophy and a Cotton Bowl victory. Most people think that a free education is enough for for these athletes, but when most of these students can't get jobs because they are to busy with their studies or practicing, they have no money for the weekend and no money to spend freely even though some are national icons.

I think another interesting topic is the future of reading. With the advancement in technology and a childrens lack of interest to read, it could be very soon where paper back books are nonexistant. Along with books, with most newspapers haveing their own website and posting what is in the paper online, actually newspapers may disappear because of lack of sales.

Informative essay topic

            I feel something I could write about is my future study of audio production and design. Audio production and design is recording and producing music. I feel like I know a lot about recording and producing from past experiences with my band. That being said I feel like I need to learn more so I am better prepared for my future. I feel this topic is important because not a lot of people know how much work goes into a song being played on the radio. It takes numerous man hours making sure that everything sounds perfect for the listener for their entertainment.

Blog #4 Info writing

One of my favorite meals to prepare is a chicken parmesan sandwich. To prepare this sandwich you first need the ingredients of a chicken patty, marinara sauce, mozerella cheese, and bread. While you are getting your ingredients, set your oven on a temperature of 350 degrees ferinheight. Once the oven is pre-heated put your chicken patty in for 10 minutes. Once that ten minutes is up, flip the chicken patty onto its other side and let it cook for another 10 minutes. Once that ten minutes is up, put a spoon full of marinara sauce onto the chicken patty. After putting the sauce on lay the slice of cheese onto the patty and put it back into the oven until the cheese is melted. When the cheese is melted take out the patty and put it on the bread. After that the sandwich is complete and you can eat your sanwich.

Personal Narrative Prompts

1. One idea I have for my personal narrative is how i effected people, in a good way, just by playing music. Just this last summer I played some shows with my band that people really enjoyed. At one show a couple weeks ago as we were tearing down our gear a little boy ran up to us and just started staring at my drums. I decided to give him a pair of my sticks so he could play with them. He started beating the crap out of them but it put a smile on his face. He was almost in tears when i told him i had to pack up my drums and he had to stop playing. I let him keep the sticks so he could hit some stuff around his house. I turned out that little boy was one of the lunch ladies grandson. She told me he wont let anyone touch them and he has been beating on anything he could find. That really put a smile on my face because I had a little impact to a kid's life. Even if he doesn't play drums or ends up throwing away the sticks I gave him it was still a cool experience for me to have. There is one or two other stories I could expand upon but you get the point.

2. My other idea is when my nephew was born just last March. I was in school when third hour I got a text from my sister saying "THUNDERCATS ARE GO!" which was code that she was going into labor. I got so excited because 1) i was going to become an uncle and 2) because i thought i was going to get out of school early. I ran to the office to see if my mom called and gave me permission to leave. I had to stay in school the whole day; That really made me mad. At about 8 O'clock that night i finally got to see my nephew Mason. I really changed my view on life because now as he grows up i hope he looks up to me and realizes that I'm awesome. With that being said as he grows up i can't be making stupid decisions that could effect his view on me.

Summer Vacation

This summer was filled football and music, the two things I love to do the most. Monday through Thursday at nine a.m. I was at the school to lift with our football team. It is very demanding to wake up somewhat early in the summer, but it was fun seeing all of my friends so much during the summer. Our 7-on-7 team had a great summer going up against some of the top teams in the Quad City Area such as Moline, Rock Island, Assumption, and Bettendorf. We played in two diffeerent 7-on-7 tournaments this summer and at both finished 3-1. One of the tournaments included a lineman challenge, consisting of a bunch of tasks that linemen would  incounter during the season. Our schools linemen finished 2nd out of 40 teams! Now football season is getting under way and I'm looking forward to a great season!

The other half of my summer consisted of playing with my band. We played three shows this summer, but were some of the biggest shows we have ever played as a band. Our first show of the summer was at the motorcycle ralley called Ralley on the River. When we first showed up it was very hectic and unorganized. We showed up at 10 a.m. to set up our stuff for our show at 1 p.m.We ended up not setting up until 1:30 p.m. and had to cut our set shorter so that the bands after us were on time. In the end we played a great show and got a lot of postive feedback from everyone at the show. Our second show was just 2 weeks ago at the Orion Band Shell's 100th birthday celebration. This show also was interesting because just earlier that week I had burnt my arm. I had second degree burns all up my right arm and wasnt sure if I was going to be able to play drums or not. The night before I decided to suck up the pain and play the show. We played a great show and again got a lot of possitive feedback. I got a lot of complements about playing so well with a burnt arm, but I knew it was going to be a great show no matter what. Our last show was just last week at the music festival River Roots Live at LeClaire Park in Davenport. Our last show of the summer ended up being our best show and least hectic. After the show as we were tearing down our gear a lady that none of the band members knew asked us to sign her shirt! She said it was very rare that she liked a band as much as she liked ours. That put a smile on my face making someones day just because my friends and I got up on a stage and did what we love to do.

In the end it was a fun summer. Sure I didn't take any fancy trips or do something crazy, but I did what I love to do. Thats why this summer was one of my favorite and I can't wait until next summer!

Me as a Writer

I've always felt that I have been a strong and confident writer in my academics. I feel that some of my strengths are haveing a wild enough imagination to right crazy fiction stories, yet assertive enough to have a strong persuasive essay. I think some of my weaknesses are not having a very strong vocabulary. When im a persuasive essay i could make stronger points if i had a larger vocabulary. I think what I'd like to improve on is having a larger vocabulary and not going off topic in essays. I always have a feeling that when im writing an essay i could have stronger topics and better stories then the ones i write but can never think/ find any. I like the writing process but only if i give myself enough time to really think about my writing. I dont like rushing through a paper and making gramatic mistakes or not making sence to the reader.

I think i need more practice in writing itself. After anytime I write anything im always asking my teacher to read it and see if I could improve anything or need to change anything. I want to get to a point where I can write something and know that it's good enough to not need a teachers approval before the papers even due. I appreicate my teachers going over it but i want to be even more confident in my writing then i already am. I think this class is going to be a great preview of how college is going to be. I feel confident with my ability in this class because we went over a lot of the things we will be going over in my English 3 class last year. The only thing im worried about is the amount of essays we will be writing because I am only used to two or three a year not six in one semester. Im sure everything will work out.