Excited much!?

I guess I am starting to take after my cousin and am using my blog for my ramblings and all. things that I feel I need to tell someone about, so whoever is reading this, I thank you. Leaving for vacation and I could not be more excited! So far this week has been primarily good. Between watching How the Grinch Stole Christmas in health, to the awesome Mock Trial scrimmage today. [which we utterly and completely won, by the way.] Way to go fellow mockers!!

Merry Christmas!

So I just thought I should let everyone out there know...when I get nervous, I ramble. And I talk extremely fast. Not just "I need to tell you this because it's urgent" fast, but so fast that I don't even realize I'm talking so fast and someone has to tell me to slow down. And to make matters worse, I start rambling about things that don't even make sense. So yeah, that's pretty much it. Oh, and it's usually only in front of large groups of people. [Large being 10+] Since this happened twice today, I think it's becoming a pattern. No public speaking in the future for me, oh well.

Happy 2nd night of Hanukah!!

Givethanksing

Sorry, I couldn't help myself, this was just too good to ignore. :-)

Thanksgiving

Ok, well let's start with a list of things that I'm thankful for. Generic things, but I'll expand, don't worry. I'm thankful for my family, the friends, for being free and living in a free country, my horse, my car, and I'm sure that I'll think of more as I go along.

So I'm thankful for my family. But more importantly, I'm thankful that I get along with my family. My mom and I get along and I can relate to my dad easily because we are both the youngest child in our families. My brother and I act like siblings, annoying and bickering when we are together but caring and respectful when it really matters. He's always the first person taking pictures at a special time like the NHS induction or my 8th grade graduation.

My family is not limited to just my parents and brother, but extends to all aspects of my family. I have members of my family who aren't even blood related, but are more a part of my life than actual cousins or aunts and uncles. I'm thankful for these members of my family as well.

I'm thankful for my friends. I have the type of friends that can call each other losers and nerds and stuff like that, but you know that they love you anyway. They're the type of people that would pull your chair away as you go to sit down, laugh, then make sure that you're ok. And I know that I can always talk to them about anything. They're also the type of friends where we can not see each other for weeks at a time, like over the summer, but when we start hanging out it's like a day hasn't gone by.

I think I have to say here that I'm thankful for my past and my future to come. Everything that I've done in my past has helped mold me into the person I am today. Sometimes I don't like this person that I've become, but I think I'm a pretty good version of what I am. Sorry if that sounds confusing. Even though I hated the big fight I had with two of my friends in 8th grade, it really helped me see what matters. And see who is really going to stay friends with you or just fizzle out. Why boys really aren't a good thing to fight about. Sorry, again, if that offends anyone.

We started talking about this next topic in Psychology last week. Being thankful for being free. We live in a country where you can pretty much do whatever you want, but with limits. I'm not saying that I can go rob a bank and get away with it, but as far as school goes, I am not required to say the Pledge of Allegiance every morning. I mean, yes, I have to stand up and be respectful, but I don't have to say it. And I'm thankful for that.

On a different note, I'm thankful that my parents decided to raise their family in the country. I love being able to see the sky at night and the stars. My mom always tells me about how she loved working in the city for a few years. Her family had a small apartment in the city and she told me how she used to live there part time in the summer. But seriously, I don't like the city. [referring to NYC of course.] It's too big, too busy, too loud, too polluted. I love being able to breath in fresh air, see cows in the fields near my house no matter where I go. [Thank you Erin for proof reading this!]

As cheesy as it sounds, I'm thankful for my horse, Joseph. He's like a best friend that never complains because obviously he can't talk back. I'm sure almost every little girl has dreamed of owning a pony and riding around their neighborhood. Some of us are lucky enough to grow up and get a horse of their own. Now he's not exactly mine, but for the most part he is. My name is on the nameplate on his stall door as the owner. And that makes me smile more than anything. I heard someone say that "horse girls" [as we are affectionately called sometimes] know what they want. They take control of almost every situation and they do what they have to get what they want. I guess that's true, and I guess I've never realized why I like to be the leader in a group. I guess there's something to be said for the fact that as a sport I like to ride a 2,000 lbs. animal. Ok, so maybe Joseph isn't that big, but Oliver is, and I've ridden him.

I think here is where I should add that I'm thankful for my riding instructor who has shown me a whole new way of riding and loving horses. Between March and May of Freshman year I was thrown off two horses and got hurt pretty bad. The first time I didn't think anything of it, but the second time was quite different. I call it the "Shorty Incident" but I don't expect anyone else to understand that. This horse I was riding, Shorty, took off with me on him. He ran out of the ring and kept on running for about 2 miles until he decided to stop and visit with a random pony he saw in a field on a road near by. I, needless to say, bailed out pretty quickly, jumping off the horse as he ran into my mom's car and kept going. Ok, anyway, I'm thankful that I wasn't hurt too seriously, just a lot of bruises,[well actually I didn't even bruise that time. Weird since I fell into a gravel parking lot] a trip to the hospital, A LOT of x-rays, and a crazy x-ray technician who made racecar sounds as he pushed my bed through the building into the x-ray room. Let me get more specific about the number of x-rays. The first time I got thrown off I suffered a fracture in my back and a whole bunch more x-rays. After that, the orthopedist [the bone doctor] discovered that I had a slight case of scoliosis and said I needed even more x-rays.

Ok, I'm definitely rambling now so I'll stop. But really I'm thankful for second chances. I guess the main second chance I'm thankful is the second chance I've gotten to love horses and to love riding. And I'm pretty sure I've reached my "I'm not afraid of anything anymore" point, my "just get over it" point, and I'm grateful for that. Because now I can enjoy riding even more. Right, I'm rambling. Ok the next thing I'm grateful for....

I'm thankful for my car, or uh, truck rather. My parents kind of spoil me so they helped me pay for my vehicle. I'm thankful that they trust me enough to let me drive around on my own. I'm thankful that they understand the demands of where we live and made sure that I got a vehicle with 4-wheel drive. I know 4-wheel drive will not protect me from everything, but it gives me the confidence to drive carefully and safely in bad weather. I must be a decent driver if my friend trusted me enough to drive her to school on Monday when it was snowing.

I know most of the things on my list are pretty generic and apply to most people. But other things on my list are different and specific to me. I guess I'll just sum up the things on my list. My family, My friends and the friendships I've created throughout the years, my past and my future, my country and where I live, my horse, new opportunities, second chances, and my car. I'm sure I could go on and on for a pretty long time but I won't bore anyone who's going to read this.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!!!!

Social Issues in The Glass Castle

There were so many social issues presented in The Glass Castle but I'd like to focus on one. Education, or the lack of. Jeannette and her siblings were denied a proper education because of her parents' life style. They were constantly moving around because of her father and don't even get me started on their Bi Polar mother. It just wasn't fair to these kids the way their parents moved around so much that they never got a proper education.

I think parents involvement in their children's education has a big influence on the outcome. If a parent is involved, asks about their child's homework, how their day was, etc., the child will do better in school because their parent actually cares. On the flip side, if a parent never shows interest in their child's school work, the child may feel that they don't have to try as hard because the parent won't care about the outcome. But this can also work the other way. A child may feel driven to make a better life for themselves despite what their parents care about.

Another negative affect on the Walls children is what would happen to them if they had to take a Standardized Test? They have been moved around so much that they are learning different things and for a very short amount of time. I'm sure there were even places that they lived when their parents didn't even sign them up for school. It's lucky for the Walls children that they were all smart for their ages. They were able to help their mother grade papers when she didn't want to and got into one of her moods when she hated being a teacher and didn't want to do anything.

One of the times that the Walls children suffer in school because of their constant moving around is when their mom takes Jeannette and Brian to sign them up for school and she tells the principal how smart her children are, but they can't understand what he is saying because of his accent. He puts them into the slow classes because he feels that they are dumb, but really they just can't understand him. How unfair is that? Because the parents are moving around all the time their children are denied a proper education.

I'm so glad that Jeannette and her siblings are able to escape their past and turn their lives into something good. Yes, she does sometimes feel guilty that she lives in a fancy apartment while her parents lived on the street, but those are the lives they have all chosen for themselves. Jeannette was able to overcome her past and her lack of education as a child to become successful. That should be the result of children whose parents don't care about their education, but unfortunately many children fall into a routine of falling in their parents' footsteps.

The Glass Castle Mini Movie

So I watched that little video about Jeannette Walls that Ms.H has posted on her blog. First I'd like to start off by saying that my internet was not cooperating at all and got me very upset, so I had to watch the video 5 seconds at a time. So I apologize if I butcher any of the meanings of Ms. Walls' words.

Ok, now I'd like to use a quote that Ms.H said in class the other day. "A dysfunctional family, the gift that keeps on giving." How appropriate. I mean honestly, a normal family is a boring memoir. The things that happened to the Walls children is quite different and makes for a great memoir. There is so much going on in the book that I almost feel overwhelmed. Sometimes I want to explain a small scene of the book to my mom, but I can't explain that little part without explaining half the chapter before it. It's crazy how it's all tied together.

Next I'd like to quote one of my friends. The other day she said "You shouldn't care what other people think. Don't let their opinions influence you." And I wish I could live by that motto, but I can't. I know I'm affected by peer pressure, media pressure, etc. So anyway...this made me think of Rex and Rose Mary Walls. They never seemed to care what anyone thought of them. I think Ms. Walls hits the nail on the head when she talks in the video about seeing her mother on the street when she was on her way to the party. I believe this is also the first scene in the book . She recalls being nervous about people asking her why this homeless woman knows her, and she said she would be embarrassed of what other people think. And this quote come to mind. You shouldn't care what other people think. You should care what you think of yourself. Jeannette's mother was happy living on the streets and no one else's opinion could change that.

I started writing this post a few days ago and stopped to think. So if I contradict myself or anything of the sort, I apologize in advance. I was just on NiceNet [ok, call me a nerd] and I looked at the page for the 12A class reading "The Glass Castle". Only one person had posted so far and they wrote about how it was a little slow in the beginning. I reassured them that it would turn out to be a great book. I wrote about how the attitudes of the entire family plays a big part in the story. The father seemed optimistic at times, like when he wasn't drunk. The mother went from one extreme to the other. I just thought that this little video tied together what I was trying to say. Have a good attitude and don't worry about what other people think about you, just worry about what you think of yourself.

Ok, I think I'm done.

Courage or No Courage? That is the Question...

It seems that courage is really important to al the soldiers in this book, and I guess that makes sense. Who would want to go to war and be labeled a “coward.” I mean, could you imagine having all your friends making fun of you for being afraid to shoot someone, or running away when things started to get real bad? I don’t think I’ve ever been called a coward before but I know I’ve been called a quitter, and that made me feel really bad about myself. I guess you could say it’s along the same lines. I think having no courage at all is kind of like giving up on something.

Courage is defined as “the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear; bravery” according to Dicitonary.com. These soldiers were definitely facing difficulty, danger, and pain through out the story and the war. The pain, however, was both physical and emotional. They had to deal with the physical pain, such as when Tim describes what it felt like when he got shot, or the emotional pain that goes with losing a friend.

Norman Bowker is a prime example a person with courage but someone who did not reach their full potential to act on that courage. When they are being fired upon in the s**t field and Kiowa sinks below the surface, Norman tries to save his friend. He tries really hard to pull Kiowa out but then Norman starts to slide under and has to let go.

I think the hardest part for Norman Bowker about the night Kiowa died is that he wasn’t as courageous as he could have been. He could have tried harder to save his friend. He could have gotten the attention of another guy and they could have pulled Kiowa out together. But instead he lost his friend that night. He talks about what happened that night in this paragraph:

He would’ve talked about this, and how he grabbed Kiowa by the boot and tried to pull him out. He pulled hard but Kiowa was gone, and then suddenly he felt himself going, too. He could taste it. The s**t was in his nose and eyes. There were flares and mortar rounds, and the stink was everywhere—it was inside him, in his lungs—and he could no longer tolerate it. Not here, he thought. Not like this. He released Kiowa’s boot and watched it slide away. Slowly, working his way up, he hoisted himself out of the deep mud, and then he lay still and tasted the s**t in his mouth and closed his eyes and listened to the rain and explosions and bubbling sounds.

He was alone.

He had lost his weapon but it did not matter. All he wanted was a bath.

Nothing else. A hot soapy bath. (149-150)

At this point, I don’t think Norman really cared about courage, or the lack thereof. Later on, I think he realized that he was not courageous at that moment and felt ashamed of himself. No one blamed him for Kiowa’s death, but there was still blame to be put somewhere. He was afraid of what the other soldiers would say about him.
But then again, I wasn’t there. I was never a soldier, so my opinion of courage and what it means is completely different than someone who actually went to war and experienced something like this.