Thank God It's Over

Thank god it's over!

As I jumped from my seat at the sound of the final bell, this was my first thought.  It was Christmas break and the end of the first semester of my sophomore year. 

With only five more semesters, I'm one step closer to college.  At first this was a relief.  After all college is going to be a blast!  

But now a slight panic is creeping up on me.  

I don't have a clue what I want to do or where I want to go.

Well thats not true... I actually have several clues, but can not pick just one!

Should I go to my dream college which is out of state or stay close to home?  Should I dream big and take a risk or follow the other safer smaller dreams?  Should I be a pianist, a physical therapist, a writer, a dancer, a journalist?

But I've got a while to decide.  After all it's only the end of the first semester of my sophomore year.

Julius Caesar- friends

One of the underlying themes to Julius Caesar that William Shakespeare tried to convey was friendship.  The point was:

Be a good friend and you'll achieve more than someone who is the opposite.

Mark Antony is the first example.  He was a loyal and good friend of Caesar. 

 When Caesar was killed he grieved and made sure Caesar's murder was not falsely presented.  Antony made sure Brutus didn't make Caesar out to be any less of a man than he was. 

 Antony went on to win the battle. 

Cassius was the opposite.  

He was deceitful and two-faced to Brutus.  Cassius used Brutus to gain more power, and never truly had what was best for Brutus in mind.  

Cassius died in the battle.

Julius Caesar

In my opinion, people with high power should put their subjects before himself in order to be a great leader.

In the tragedy, Julius Caesar, by William Shakespeare, only one character did this, Mark Antony. All the others were just interested in power and would do anything to gain a higher status. Including deceiving the entire population of Rome and manipulating friends.

Antony never became power hungry or mad for revenge after Caesar's betray and death. Speaking at the funeral, he gave only facts and let the Romans decide for themselves whether Cassius and Brutus were traitors or doing what they had to for the benefit of Rome.

Antony, displaying genuine interest for Rome, showed real leadership.

Relationship Bank Account

I remember a day that I had the perfect opportunity to make a major RBA deposit and didn't.

One of those deposits that doesn't seem that major, but when you get caught with your fly down or spinach in your teeth, you really appreciate someone letting you know.

I was eating lunch with three friends and an older couple with kids my age. The cafeteria was serving pipping hot cookies, chocolate chip ones, that we were scarfing down.

Then the couple's son strolls up with a hand full of cookies and starts chatting with the group. He begins telling some story and eating his cookies all at the same time.

Bad move, buddy!

Chewing with his mouth open, chocolate began coating his teeth and lips! Now I'm not exactly sure how you don't feel half a cookie on your face but I guess he found a way.

He continued to deliver his story but by this point I had no earthly idea what he was yakking about; all I could do was stare.

I jerked my eyes away to see if anyone else had noticed this oddity. As luck would have it, my three acquaintances had noticed and turned to look at each other with bewildered eyes.

That was it! I busted out in giggles and had to cover it with fake coughing.

We tried subtle hints and desperately tried not to laugh but he plowed on in his story. No one told him, not even his parents. As far as we knew, he could have walked around all day that way.

So my entreatment is this:
The next time something like that happens, just tell the person. I'm sure you would want them to do the same for you.

This quote is the perfect explanation for my title, Insides Out:
"All art is a kind of confession, more or less oblique. All artists, if they are to survive, are forced, at last, to tell the whole story; to vomit the anguish up." -James Baldwin

Begining with the End in Mind

At first glance this headline struck me as odd. I didn't quite grasp what the author, Sean Covey, was trying to get across in the "2 habit" of his book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens.

Then as I read the "habit",chapter, I understood what he meant.

A summary of those thirty and some odd pages is nicely summed up in a quote from Mencius:

"Men must be decided on what they will not do, and then they are able to act with vigor in what they ought to do."

Sean's ideal way of sticking to your goal's for life was to write them out as a mission statement, a written form of your "will and won't"s, to refer to when you reach a crossroad in life.

So that's what I did. I couldn't find the perfect quote but I found three that do the job:

1. Leave no stone unturned. -Euripides
2. The great man does not think beforehand of his words that they may be sincere, nor of his actions that they may be resolute - he simply speaks and does what is right. -Mencius
3. A man is the orgin of his action. -Aristotle

Letter to the President

With all the issues floating around regarding the presidential election, I want to express my opinion on the candidate I think will win, Barack Obama. I support him on many issues, such as, withdrawing the American troops from Iraq, views on diplomacy, abortion, same-sex marriage, and global warming. Obama has my full support and I know he would be the best choice for our nation.

My opion of sci-fi

For English 10 I read The Time Machine. This novel is a science-fiction book by H.G. Wells. I enjoyed The Time Machine and found this novel was a good way to get lost in another world. With all the science involved in the story, this genre is very complicated and I will probably stick to fantasy for my escapes to those worlds so different to ours. Even though I struggled to wrap my mind around the science part of The Time Machine ,or any other science-fiction book, the story line of the book was very interesting. With twists and turns, thoughts and theories, the reader is constinently on the edge of their seat.


I am new to this genre but have read a few novels. The spotlight, for my generation, seems to have shifted to a different genre than sci-fi. Reading the classics of sci-fi will ensure to keep this genre alive and expand our imaginations. This creative genre will help us think outside the box and possible lead to scientific discoveries.

Meet Tanzia

Tanzia is a sixteen year old girl with long, brown hair and shocking green eyes. Her emotions affects the weather. Although she is a loving, loyal teenager to anyone that will claim her as a friend, few will call her a friend declaring she is jsut too dull. In reality, her dullness is controling her emotions for their own saftey. When she is sad thunderstorms spring across town; when she is happy golden rays of sunshine warms every ones back. Tornadoes threaten when she looses her temper. This year, leaving the safety of being home schooled and attending the public high school will force her to face all the drama of high school: rumors,boys, and girls. On top of all the normal conflicts, she has to learn how to control her emotions. If she can't, on a bad day she may blow away the school with a tornado. This year, she will discover just how much self-control she has. Will she conquer anger or strike a foe down with a bolt of lightning?