traditions

What are different holiday traditions for you? Every family has them maybe it's a certain type of cookie you always make every year. Maybe it's a song you listen to on christmas eve that is only played on that night in your house. Well, here our some of my famlie's traditions. Every year we go to my grandma's house and have a big dinner with my entire family, and every year my aunt makes a special dip. She builds an igloo out of this cream cheese dip and makes people out of crackers and penguins out of olives, it's soooo cute. Then we watch for 24 hours straight the movie a christmas story. Even when we are sleeping we play it in case "santa" wants to watch it when he comes to our house. Every year we leave Santa's milk and cookies in a special mug and plate, it's the only night we use the two items out of the year. My dad will also bring out old xmas vinyl albums and we listen to the best and most classic chirstmas music ever! Also, each year our presents our always placed in the same spot. My brothers to the left mine in the middle and my sisters so the right. We have so many more traditions that just make the holiday season the best time of the year. So tell me some of your holiday traditions, or some you have heard about. Maybe write about a tradition you would like to start.

Xmas Break

I wish wish wish wish wish I could be going home for christmas today. I watch everyone packing their stuff and telling their friends good bye and a happy holidays. I watch all the parents come and give their kids a big hug, because they are so happy to see them. All the kids are smiling and saying I'm so happy to be going home. Yet, me all I can do is watch and feel down, because I can't go home, well not till the 23rd. Since I'm on the swim team and we are "in season" our coaches are allowed to make us stay longer over xmas break. Swimming already takes up so much of my life I never get to go home on weekends cause of meets and practice, and well I live a little over 3 hours away. I swim mornings and afternoons so I'm not able to call my family as much or my friends. Really swimming is most of my life, well it seems. Now, finally a break finally a time to see my family and friends whom I haven't seen since August. Yet, no we have to stay and ruin our break and swim. Then to make it even better we don't get to stay the rest of the break, o no. We get to come back a week early on January 2nd and just swim the rest of that week. I knew I would have to be at ball state for some part of my break but not for more then half of it. I just think it's unfair for our coaches to make us stay later and then come back earlier, just choose one. I would still swim at home with my high school team, and their practices are just as hard. I want to be able to enjoy my life and relax! Also, girls who live more then 4 hours away are being able to go home early since they can't see their family as much. I live just 45 minutes closer, and 3 hours is a long drive for me too. It makes me mad that they are now playing favorites and some girls can go home while others can't. UGGGGGHHHHHHH!!!! F.Y.I. swimming is so not fun!

Journal Entry #5

This past Thursday and Friday I worked on our facebook page by trying to invite more members to the group, and I posted some new information about FGM on the site. Also, our group wants to create holiday cards that could be sold to be sold. All the profits from the cards would go to bringing awarness about FGM, and these cards could be used as a tax right off. So, people would know exactly where there tax money would be going to. I also continued to write more for the speaking part pf the presentation during class Tuesday. I spent about 3 hours working.

Journal Entry #4

This past Monday and Tuesday I added new post and put up a discussion board question on facebook. I also tried contacting a more developed FGM facebook group to see if they would post our page on theirs and then theirs on ours. We also sent and are sending out more invited for people to join the group and be apart of finding out what is FGM. I then created a flyer/ small poster that can be handed out or posted on walls to bring awareness of FGM to mass groups. The poster is directed to mothers mostly by it's title and then female color scheme. I also looked up some statistics about FGM, so I added one to the poster. I also have began writting out a our speech we will give to the class. In class on Tuesday the group collaberated and picked one phrase that can be put on all the items we make, and we are making are projects looking more unison. Hours spent 4 hours.

Journal Entry #3

Worked on the facebook group some more by finding videos and pictures to try and add into the group so more people can have different medias of information to look at about FGM. Went to different websites to look up different types of cards or postcards they used to display there information using pathos, ethos, and logos. Also researched radio recordings of or just auditory messages helping with awareness. looked around at other sites that talked about fgm and was seeing how they were using pathos, ethos, and logos. researching and working on the group I probably spent about 2 hours working on different things like this.

Journal Entry #2

Tonight my group got together and we wrote our proposal. In the proposal we officially decided that we will be making a brochure and cards about FGM to be given to our target audience(middle aged mothers). Also, I created a facebook group this week about FGM. My goal is to continually update and post new videos, pictures, and information about female genital mutilation for are target audience for the page teenagers. The group and my postings on it took me around 45 min to do this week. There have been 82 members who have joined and the group is going well. In our meeting we developed ways we will colaborate on the project. We have decided that everyone will be involved in each others individual projects. So even though Lindsay is doing brochures I will know everything that is in the brochure where it will be and why it looks the way it does. Our group met for about an hour and fifteen minutes.

Progress Journal 1

Our purpose is to inform people about female genital mutilation.This issue is not well known so we want to address the health issues dealing with FGM to the public. We want to develop a website with a video slide show on the site to give an easy accessible resource for people to get information on FGM. Female genital mutilation deals with health risks for young girls, so we were thinking of making brochures that could be found in doctors offices or medical settings. Also, in places dealing with our focus audience.

Our audience is going to be mothers. In the procedure the girls our usually held down by the moms and grandmas with someone in there family doing the cutting to them. I want to really exagerate this scenario and play upon the idea of helping a daughter. Maybe - Would you hold down this young child, save a daughters life? This would use pathos by relating the African moms and daughters to an American mom.

I was also thinking maybe of putting up a facebook page for just another hugely popular source that can help get info of FGM out to the public.

We are still in the beginning stages, but we have very good ideas so far.
20 minuetes talking in class about ideas 15 min looking at other ad examples from
http://www.adcouncil.org/default.aspx?id=15

I am quite excited for thanksgiving!!! I am very pumped to be able to see my whole entire family. I love being in a small house with a lot of people inside with noise just ever where. People standing shoulder to shoulder talking about the old times or what new embarrassing thing someone in my family did. The house is hot from all the cooking that was done the whole day and there are smiles on everyones faces. The atmosphere is just to die for, and well so is the food. I just loved the turkey and party mashed potatoes which bring my taste buds to life. The corn caserol, rolls, and green beans are always so yummy. Always, Always, Always the pumpkin pie is absolutely divine. I stuff myself until I feel like I'm going to explode, and then go back for seconds a couple hours later. It's not just actual thanksgiving that I'm looking forward to either but the days after too. I will have time to spend with my family, boyfriend, and high school friends whom I haven't seen in a while. I can spend the days doing christmas shopping or going to cheer on my old swim team mates in there home meet. It is just a time to catch up with people, and make new memories in the process. This is why I am looking so forward to thanksgiving break every morning I wake up I know I'm a day closer to going home. I hope everyone else is excited to because it is the holiday season, and should be something to get exited about. Have a good next few weeks, and hopefully you start to feel the holiday spirit!

Movies

I am so so so very excited for the new movie The Lovely Bones! I never read the book that the movie was based off, but I know the general plot of the film. The director of the movie is Peter Jackson who did the lord of the ring movies, I thought those were really well done so I'm excited for this movie. I have watched the trailer about a million times and the story seems so fascinating I'm dying for it to come to theaters. The cast doesn't have any block buster stars in it which is refreshing to see new faces on the big screen. The movie and well book is taking a new twist to the generic murder/ mystery plot with adding in fantasy. The plot which is seen in the movie trailer right off the bat is a simple one. It shows a young teenage girl who is very kind and simple, with her extremely close and loving family. This all changes when she is murdered. Her family is an absolute wreck and wants to find her killer. While what is extremely different from other movies is they still tell the story of the murdered girl. She is almost now in her own fantasy afterlife world. In the world she is happy, but slowly becomes sadder and more depressed as each day goes by her killer isn't found. She is suffering from great grief and pain seeing her family in such agony. Her family knows that their daughter would never go off with someone she didn't know, so her killer must be someone she knew. It's the story of a girl trying to find peace in the afterlife, and a family trying to find peace and understanding of what happened to there daughter. Please go check out the trailer, and you will see how awesome it looks, well in my opinion!

I'm in a long distance relationship. I go to Ball State and my boyfriend goes to Purdue. We obviously don't see each other as much as we used to. Everyone always says long distance relationships are extremely hard and don't work out. Yet, in my opinion it hasn't been as sad as I though it would be. It takes a lot of time and effort to keep it going though. Every night I make sure to try and call him so I can hear his voice and just chat. Also, it keeps us a part of each others daily lives, cause we know we will get a call from one or the other at night. We text all throughout the day, which helps make me feel apart of his life during the day. I go and try and see him on the weekends as much as possible, even though it is a 3 hour drive. A relationship is very time consuming, even a long distance one. People might say well you barely get to see him how can that be time consuming. Well to always be kept in each others life it takes time to do that. My next door neighbor always tells me about how her daughter and daughters boyfriend went to two seperate colleges that were 12 hours apart. Now they are happily married and doing fine. Long Distance relationships can work out. Is anyone else in a long distance relationship? What do you think about long distance relationships, would you ever get involved in one?

I officailly have a bad ear infection. Which means I can't swim or at least put my head under the water. So my coaches have to make a different practice for me which is pretty much all kicking with a kick board in the water. My practice is easier then the other girls, but it was not my wish to get this ear infection to have a little easier practice. So, the girls during practice just stare at me in anger. Why does Mallory get to be in the diving well. Why do we have to watch her have an easier practice then us? So, the girls on the team don't like watching me do my kicking practice, because they feel it is unfair. Yet, one day my coach told me not to go to one of the morning practices cause my ear hurt so much. Then the girls asked, Why isn't Mallory here? It's not fair that she is getting to sleep in. Even though she has an ear infection she should still come to practice. This seems to be a lose lose situation for me. Even, if I;m there or I'm not the girls are mad at me. I can't help I got an ear infection and just need to get better. Yet, I just don't like these tricky situations when no matter what you do you can't win. Has anyone else experienced a situation in which they just couldn't win?

One of my good friends this past month got engaged. He is so happy and so excited to finally make the jump and ask his girlfriend the question. I actually knew his girlfriend before I knew him, so I understand the both of them fairly well. Yet, sadly I can not say that I approve of this engagement. When he asked her the question it was on their 5 month anniversary. I'm like 5 months you want to marry a person after knowing them and dating them for 5 months. It's true they met on a blind date five months ago, so they didn't know each other at all prior to their first date. Also my friend just turned 18 and his now fiance is 19. In my opinion that seems a little young and fast to be getting into this. Another thing is they fight every single day all the time. Why would you want to be getting engaged to a person you fight with constantly? To me it doesn't sound like that solid of a relationship to begin with. He says he is sooo happy and that they only fight about stupid stuff. Well then what will it be like when they are fighting about big stuff world war III. I think they are rushing this engagement, and wish they would call it off. Yet, it is not my place to make them do that. Does anyone else have problems like these? Or are you engaged and think it's the best thing ever, and I'm wrong? Please speak your views I don't mind.

Tired

Don't you get the feeling some times that you just can never feel better. I started off my swim season healthy and feeling good. Then a few weeks into the season I got a cold. My coaches said don't worry about it just take a day off and rest. Well the cold lasted a week, but I still swam. Five days later I had a tinge in my throat, the next day i was coughing up a lung. I go to the doctor, and I have bronchitis. I missed three days of practice, but felt sick for a week and a half. Finally I got better and was feeling more normal. When in practice all of a sudden my back starts to hurt. I know this feeling, because for the past three years I have had back problems. All I can think is just when I'm getting better of course it starts to hurt. My back hurts when I sleep, in class, in practice, and pretty much all the time. I went to the trainer then for three solid weeks straight for two hours every day to get my back feeling better. I still practiced the whole time, but felt completely awful. This past week I had my fourth week of doing physical therapy stuff, when finally my back starts to feel better. Friday was my last appointment with the trainer, so I thought I would finally just be able to be healthy and swim. Until I woke up this morning with a throbbing pain in my left ear. Turns out I now have and ear infection and might be out of the water for a few days. Does anyone else every feel like right when they get better or things are normal again something else happens to you. All I want to do is be healthy, but I know I'm not as my ear is actually bleeding a little bit. I'm not trying to complain, but just wonder if anyone else seems to always be kicked back down after they stood up like I am right now.

new pet

I don't know if it is a gift or a mess. From my "big sis" in swimming I got a pet fish for my gift. He is cute and small. He is blue and black and well a beta. Since he is a beta well they are well known to be a mess and well smell. He seems like a nice fish but after two days he is already starting to smell. I am so busy all the time I don't have time to clean a fish bowl every few days. Also, beta fish have a tendancy to live kind of long. My neighbors beta fish lived for six years. I think its so cute that she got me a fish, yet its not in my best interest to even have the simplest pet. I can't get rid of it, because it is a swimming tradition to keep and take care of your fish for as long as it lives. Also, when I leave for weekends for meets for some times three days, am I going to have to get some one to take care of this fish. The nicest ideas can sometimes turn into bad outcomes. I am looking at my fish bowl right now and see that it is cloudy and dirty. I just sigh and say ugh, for I know this is the future with my pet fish.

This past weekend the Ball State Girls swim team had there first meet, and well it was different. It was an inner squad meet, and the first one I have ever competed in. I was really excited before the meet and just really pumped up for the first time I could compete this season. I walked into the pool area nervous, but ready to swim. Yet, as I stretched and warmed up my excitement went down and down. I looked around trying to see another team, parents, or offiails. Yet, there was no one just my coaches and my team mates. All of a sudden, this felt more like a practice rather then a competition. The coaches were waiting to see amazing times and awesome races, well mine were just decent and not very exciting. I didn't give any excuses when they asked why I didn't go faster. All I said was I will do better. The meet was a big dissapointment and we had to give up our entire fall break to swim in it. I was very upset with it, and wish my coaches could understand us better. I wish they understood that we all wanted to go home and see our families, and not swim in this fake meet. I just wish coaches could understand that there is so much more to life then swimming.

Article

The author is Yolanda Suarez-Balcazar and the tiltle is Introducing systems change in the schools: the case of school luncheons and vending machines. The article is focusing on children a=obesity, and the cause of children obesity is due to school food. She argues that the meals schools give to children are unhealthy, and very fatty. She argues there is no healthy choices for children to choose from. By schools serving kids an unhealthy lunch and maybe even breakfast this is resulting to a dramatic weight gain. She is also unpleased about vending machines located in schools. The vending machines let kids buy candy bars, chips, and cookies easily for snacks or meals during there school day. Schools should not be supporting unhealthy eating by giving kids an easy accesible machine to get any junk food they want. By even having the machines in the school shows kids that the school approves of these unhealthy items. She says we need a new meal plan for cafeterias and no more vending machines in our children's schools.

Suarez-Balcazar, Yolanda, et al. "Introducing systems change in the schools: the case of school luncheons and vending machines." American Journal of Community Psychology 39.3/4 (2007): 335-345. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 18 Oct. 2009.

I may not be Fred Flintstone, but I bet I can make your bed rock.

I can't find my puppy, can you help me find him? I think he went into this cheap motel room.

Your body's name must be Visa, because it's everywhere I want to be.

Do you have a map? Because I keep getting lost in your eyes.

You know what? Your eyes are the same color as my Porsche.

I think I need to call heaven because they’ve lost one of their angels.

Is your name Gillette? Because you’re the best a man can get!

Here are just a few random pick up lines I quickly pulled up from a website. Girls do you like when guys use them, and guys do you think it's clever or just plain dumb to say.

My personal favorite is "Have any raisons?" "No" "Well then how about a date?'
Personally I think pick up lines are cheezy, but very fun to just hear and laugh about.

Killer Queen

She keeps moet et chandon
In her pretty cabinet
let them eat cake she says
Just like marie antoinette
A built-in remedy
For kruschev and kennedy
At anytime an invitation
You cant decline

Caviar and cigarettes
Well versed in etiquette
Extraordinarily nice

Chorus
Shes a killer queen
Gunpowder, gelatine
Dynamite with a laser beam
Guaranteed to blow your mind
Anytime

Recommended at the price
Insatiable an appetite
Wanna try?

To avoid complications
She never kept the same address
In conversation
She spoke just like a baroness
Met a man from china
Went down to geisha minah
Then again incidentally
If youre that way inclined

Perfume came naturally from paris
For cars she couldnt care less
Fastidious and precise

Chorus

Drop of a hat shes as willing as
Playful as a pussy cat
Then momentarily out of action
Temporarily out of gas
To absolutely drive you wild, wild..
Shes all out to get you

Chorus

Recommended at the price
Insatiable an appetite
Wanna try?
You wanna try...



Love this song it's by Queen and I think it is amazing. Comment if you like it have some insight or analysis on it or any background info about the band or era. Thank You!

the question that helped me the most during our peer reviews was

Where is your thesis?
Well I had though I had a thesis, and when I looked at my paper I saw one. Yet, as I looked closer I could see my thesis was very plain and generic. If my thesis couldn't stand out to two people how is it going to stand out to any one who reads my paper. This showed me I needed to elaborate and develop a more direct clear cut thesis to my audience. A thesis is what makes a analysis and synthesis paper, so I need to work on mine.

Roomies

So I am obviously in college and happen to be a freshman. As we all know freshman must live in dorms and experience the wonderful world of a roommate. Now I understand a lot of people fall in love with their roommate and become best friends forever. Yet, that is not going to be my roomy and me some day. We are both swimmers so we are both teammates. From the first day I met her I could tell that she hated me. Before the simple words "Hi" could come out of my mouth she had given me the death glare. Through the weeks she has done so many nice things for me. (sarcasm) As in: hide my stuff, tell all my friends mean things about me, ignores my presence at all times, puts head phones in her ears when i try to talk to her, tells the coach lies about me, and well is just a meanie. She is the strangest person I have met she is extremely friendly to every single one of our other teammates besides me. She hugs them and laughs around them but pushes me away when I'm with them too. I have never had someone hate me this much before so it is weird to deal with, exspceially since we have to live together. I can't switch because that would cause friction the rest of my four years on the swim team. So, I must grin and bear it and try to ignore her as much as possible. Yet, I know people probably have it much worse then me out there. My friend's roommate tried to gage my friend's ears in the middle of the night. So, she has it bad too. If anyone wants to vent or tell any horror or happy stories about them and their roomy please tell. I'm interested to find out how others are doing with living with strangers.

Subliminal Messages

Today in Psyc we learned about subliminal messages. They are mostly found in advertisements, songs, and studies. Everyone has heard of these messages, but in reality never actually notices them. They are so trickily placed and so unconscious to you that you have know idea. You might think that you want to drink that can of pepsi, but would you really want it if that good looking person wasn't on the box. In advertisements subliminal messages can be quite obvious or very subtle. In a magazine you can see a women holding up a bottle and opening the top with her teeth. That is a more obvious one since it shows sex and attracts men to that product. Yet, some adds are much more subtle. In many ads they don't use real ice cubes they actual add computer generated ones instead. Well, on some ads if you look at the ice closely there is the word "sex" spelled out. In psyc we also looked at some songs with subliminal messages hidden in them. For the song "Stairway to Heaven" if you play it backwards slowly Jimmy Paige is saying words about Satin and his love for him. While in the song "Another One Bites the Dust" by Queen if you play a part slowly backward you can hear Fred say I like to smoke marijuana. Do you think that you are another victim of subliminal messages or do you think subliminal messages even work on people? Do you know of any other subliminal messages? Please tell all cause you never know what's out there so it's interesting to find out what people know.

This is the ad I personally chose in class, but are group didn't put it up. All the time we see weight loss ads on tv, billboards, and in the mall. Every time they look the same. Why do these ads always have a common theme? What do you recognize in the ad? Why those people, why do they use those descriptive words, and why do people buy these weight loss pills from ads like this? Give me any input if you want. Thank You!

Song

Billy left his home with a dollar in his pocket and a head full of dreams.
He said somehow, some way, its gotta get better than this.
Patti packed her bags, left a note for her momma, she was just seventeen,
There were tears in her eyes when she kissed her little sister goodbye.

They held each other tight as they drove on through the night they were so exited.
We got just one shot of life, lets take it while were still not afraid.
Because life is so brief and time is a thief when youre undecided.
And like a fistful of sand, it can slip right through your hands.

Young hearts be free tonight. time is on your side,
Dont let them put you down, dont let em push you around,
Dont let em ever change your point of view.

Paradise was closed so they headed for the coast in a blissful manner.
They took a tworoom apartment that was jumping evry night of the week.
Happiness was found in each others arms as expected, yeah
Billy pierced his ears, drove a pickup like a lunatic, ooh!

Young hearts be free tonight.time is on your side,
Dont let them put you down, dont let em push you around,
Dont let em ever change your point of view.

[instrumental verse]

Young hearts be free tonight.time is on your side.

Billy wrote a letter back home to pattis parents tryin to explain.
He said were both real sorry that it had to turn out this way.
But there aint no point in talking when theres nobody listning so we just ran away
Patti gave birth to a ten pound baby boy, yeah!

Young hearts be free tonight, time is on your side.
Young hearts be free tonight, time is on your side.
Young hearts be free tonight, time in on your side.

Young hearts gotta run free, be free, live free
Time is on, time is on your side
Time, time, time, time is on your side
Is on your side
Is on your side
Is on your side
Young heart be free tonight
Tonight, tonight, tonight, tonight, tonight, yeah

I really love this song and want to analyze it and apply it to A Long Way Gone

Eshu

Eshu in African mythology is the god of the crossroads. He also deals with the deity with the power over fortune and misfortune, and the personification of death. Esu is also the god of chaos and trickery. Which during pre-civil war era many African slaves prayed to him to visit their white owners. Eshu is personified by many people as being beyond good and evil. Today he is identified with fate so people make him offerings of candies, cigars, and rum to have a more fortunate life. Supposedly all his deeds he does are for a certain cause. Humans might not be able to see the good in it, since nobody else knows what he knows. Eshu's colors are black and red and his number is three. African try to look at Eshu in the best ways possible, by saying well his intentions are always some what good. Even though the people have no idea what they are. They also place his picture on their doors. Since, where he lives he guards his home from all dangers. His pictures look a lot like are devil which makes it hard to see him almost as a good god. When I think of the American devil i think Satin. Mean, decietful, burning fire, just nothing good. I would never associate anything good with Satin, while Eshu is always looked at in a optimistic light.

Ishmael

I will be listening to an online recording of an Ishmael interview, so hopefully he will be very descriptive in it. Though I would like to hear him to answer three questions. 1) Was it hard becoming Americanized, or learning American our lifestyle?- Was it scary, exciting? 2) Do you ever deal with nightmares or issues dealing with the war? Are you upset that you had to kill people? Did you have to go through therapy to deal with anything from the war? 3) Do you still think about your family every day? Even though they are not physically with you does the relationship you had with them still play a part in tour life today?

I know those probably won't all be brought up, but they are mostly questions dealing with how his life was after he got out of Sierra Leone. I think it's fascinating to find out how someone copes or how they live their life after such a dramatic event occurs.

High School

Either you loved it or you hated it. I have been a college freshman now for about three weeks, so i still remember my high school years clearly. High School a place where everyone knew about you or your buisness. Either you liked having people know about you, since maybe if you were feeling in people would care. Also, you were constantly seeing and saying hi to your friends in the hall ways. OR maybe people knew everything you didn't want them to know since rumors spread fast Did people pick fights with you in the hall or classroom cause of drama. In high school you got to know your teachers. You might have become the best of friends in the classroom, or always felt like they were out to get you. In high school you might have had a solid group of friends that you had since elementary school, or were you a person who was just acquaintance. Did you like being labeled as the jock or artist, or did you just want to be known as you no certain word associated with your name. High school is totally different from college. In college you barely know anyone who walks by you most of your classes are ten times the size as they were in high school. When you walk by someone they are not going to know your name you are just another nameless face. College is also a place of independence, freedom, a time to meet a lot of new people. A time to experiment and find out what you want to do in life. It's in general a totally new adventure in your life. Tell me do you miss high school and wish you could go back or did you absolutely despise it? Also, do you like college or do you wish you could just go back home and sleep all day? Give me your opinions. I personally loved high school and had a blast almost every day with my friends. I likes seeing everyone I knew in one building, and knowing that a lot of these people cared about me. I do like college though. I don't think that it is as good as high school since I'm still adjusting. Yet, I like being more independent and my own person here. So please comment you won't be judged by me on what you say.

do u trust what i say

In psycology class we have been talking about not believing everything that is told to you. Our professor told us that George Washington was not the first president of the United States he named off another guys name and showed a picture of him. He said your teachers before hand have never shared this information with you, because it is an extremely new fact that has just been proved. Everyone in the class looked at each other like "No Way". For my whole life I believed he was the first president and now all of a sudden he isn't. Our professor started to smile and said don't believe everything I say. He said just because he is a professor doesn't mean what he is telling us could be the truth. Professor Truelove was showing us we needed to not be so trustworthy. If something is said that you aren't a 100% sure about go look it up and research it. Now don't go to Wikipedia, because that will do you know good. Think about things and prove that was you are being told is true. When you heard Pluto wasn't a planet for the first time did you believe the person that said that too you. So, know where to get the right facts from and don't be fooled so easily. Who knows I heard John Adams was actually are first president, am I right go find out and see?

memoir

"Hi mom, How are you?"
"Mallory I was just waiting for your call. How is camp?"
"Mom we just got here silly we are going out to dinner now."
"Awesome where to?"
"Gosh Darn it Mallory you are waisting my minuetes give me my phone back you little brat!", coach Kristy yelled from her hotel bed.
I began to sniffle and my voice started to waver as I said, "Um I don't know mom I have to go Kristy is, I just have to go bye mom love you."
"I lov....," were all I heard from my mom as the phone was wretched from my tiny ten year old grasp. Kristy caressed her phone as if was her newborn baby. She looked over at me as if I was one of her young she wanted to eat instead of attack. Kristy began yelling about her precise minutes and all I could do was stare at the way her brown eyes glared down at me. Also, how her reddish purple dyed hair was all knotted from laying on the maroon flowered hotel beds. Reality hit me when she raised that screechy high pitched voice of hers and said I should pay her back money for her two minutes I wasted. Her antics were all so comical I couldn't help but roll my eyes in frustration.
"Don't you roll your eyes at me, bathroom now!"
I ran to the bathroom and slammed the door. My knees gave out and I landed on the dirty tiled bathroom floor. My hands instinctively went to my face as tears began streaming down my cheeks. All I could think of was I can't stand Kristy I just can't stand her. My tears became even worse as I whispered to myself," I just wanted to talk to my mom." My tears became weeping as I clutched my ten year old scabbed legs thinking why did I come here?

My location was Pennsylvania an eight and a half hour drive away from my home. My companions ten teammates and my two of my gymnastics coaches. For months I had been excited about Gym Dandy's Gymnastics Camp. I couldn't wait to be away from my mom and dad and feel independent and my own women well more so girl. Yet as my heart felt like it was getting trompled on by a gorilla. All that came to my mind was, "She didn't even get to finish I love you too."

Listening

I was sitting in my chemistry class pondering what should I talk about in my blog. I turned over to my friend Lauren and asked, "What should I say in my blog?" She said," Hmmm oh can you repeat that again I wasn't listening." Typical she never listens no one seems to listen well any more now a days. Hey blog topic maybe, yes, people today are all talk talk talk. Yet, people need to shut up and listen. I was asking Lauren for help as others probably ask there friends for help too, and the thing that makes it even worse is when they can't even pay attention to you. A person talks to be heard. They want people to listen to what they have to say, and be able to give their advice as well. It feels awful to be ignored while talking or trying to make a point. Now I'm not saying you have to just nod your head yes and keep your mouth shut when listening to someone. Ask questions about what they are saying, make eye contact, and just stay involved with the conversation. Also being a good listener is knowing when someone is just coming to you to talk. They are there to vent to you and probably don't want to hear any comments. They feel comfort just by the presence of someone, and just want to express what they feel right now. So, we are a nation that needs to put a sock in it and learn to listen.

We are a generation of tradition. The image I put up was a popular one in the generation of the baby boomer, and has now come back in to popularity today. We are the offspring of the baby boomers, so maybe we are more like are parents then we think. Give me your thoughts on this picture or idea.

About Me

My name is Mallory Przybylinski and I am a freshman at Ball State University. I will be swimming on the Ball State swim team this year, my events are the 50 and 100 freestyle. I am nineteen years old and live in Chesterton,Indiana. It's a small town up by Lake Michigan. So I have spent a majority of my life at the beach, which has kind of made me a beach bum. I would consider myself athletic, this past year i competed on my high school swimming and track team. Sports are a big part of my life, so i couldnt go on to college without participating in one. I am a pre-physical therapy major, so I will be going on to graduate school after BSU. Besides athletics I really love art, expecially drawing and photography. I hope to take some photography classes in my next four years. When I have time I love to sit down and read a good book. My favorite author at the moment is Louise Rennison. So, for girls I would recommend any of her books, sorry guys they are directed towards a female audience. I guess don't be afraid to comment on ANY of my blogs. I find it fascinating to here different peoples opinions, so please comment away. : )