This and That

Listen to: Ever Since by The Head and The Heart

 

 

Read This: How to Find Your Soulmate Without Losing Your Soul by Jason and Crystalina Evert.

 

Watch This: House MD

 

Play This: Clue, a good mystery game. 

 

Eat This: Tacos from Birrieria Y Taqueria Aranda's on 406 N Scott St, Joliet, IL 60432.

 

Do This: Its actually a lot of fun to do and watch.

Click This: Pinterest is always a fun way to pass the time.

Go Here: Cristo Redentor, Christ Redeemer in Rio De Janerio, Brazil. It has a beautiful view of the city.

My Tale as a Writer

This power point was used for a presentation I did in class.

My Feels in Brazil













These images are meant to show how I felt on my trip to Brazil. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Public Speaking

In the article Toastmasters International they give you ten tips for public speaking. I will do an analysis of Jason Evert's Theology of Her Body presentation, to show if he has followed the ten tips.
In Evert's presentation he sounds confident with what he is talking about, which covers the first tip from the article, know your material. He knows his audience because in this video he is speaking to all the women (tip #3). In addition, he is relaxed and cracks jokes to make his audience laugh (tip #5). Overall he sticks to the message he wants to protray to his audience (tip #9).
Some of this tips from the article one can just infere that he might have done. Such as practice, visualizing himself giving the speech, and getting to the location early. Seems to be that Evert does follow some tips for good public speaking.

 

So Far...

Violence in the media has surprised me more than I thought it would. After doing all my research on the how the violence in the media affects teenagers, I’m shocked at the statistics I have found like, some statistics, the affects the media has had, the experiments, and more. I am not feeling very good about me paper, to be honest. It looks a bit rough, luckily this is the rough draft so  I still have some time to fix it and make it better. I feel like I am still disorganized and I jump from one thing to another without really making a connection. The major change I still need to make is organizing my thoughts better.

 I have learned a lot from my research paper. For example, the teenage rebellion began when the teens wanted to express themselves, but found nothing they could relate to. That was until rock ‘n roll was born, teens started listening to this music feeling free. In addition, the movies that came out at that time were mostly about teenage romance and fast cars. After watching the movies teenagers would come out ready to do what they watched in the movie. This was just the beginning of the teenage rebellion.

Another thing I have learned is the great increase of violence in PG-13 movie has had since the mid-80s when ratings first came out, it has tripled (McVeigh). I cannot believe that some PG-13 movies have more violence than R rated movies, it just amazes me how normal it is for us now-a-days.  It’s sad to see that violence has been confused with action; you can’t find a decent non-violent movie because apparently what the audience wants is more violence. Later on, people are complaining because their children are violent and they blame the media. No, blame the parents because they should have control over their children, it is kind of their job. Slowly, but surely in the end I will write I sucessful paper.

Violence in The Media

Media today has changed the way the youth interprets violence. The violence in media has dulled teenagers to the actual seriousness of certain bad situations. Some say that the violence in media is not a big deal; people just tend to exaggerate it. I disagree; the media has had a huge influence on teenagers since the mid-50s. Many teens started to rebel once they heard what song lyrics meant, once they saw who was on

TV, they started to imitate it causing adults to be disturbed by these teens’ actions. Although adults attempted to stop it, as rebellious teenagers, they continued to do whatever adults did not approve of. This still continues on today, but it has just got worse.

One morning, I was talking to my mom about video games and movies, she said that teenagers are dumb because we copy everything we see on the television and repeat what we hear in song lyrics. When she made this comment I wondered if maybe the movies and songs were about teenagers in today’s society, just that it’s harder for us to recognize it because we’re the ones living the moment. We refuse to believe that we do such things now-a-days. This is how I began to question what rappers are really rapping about and why movies and video games are so violent for teenagers.

In this paper I will investigate teenagers from the 1940s, 50s, and 2000s. I want to see where it all “went wrong”. In addition, I will research the good or bad influence the media has had on the teens, such as song lyrics, television shows, movies, and video games. I want to know where and why the teens changed from being the, suppose, good kids to some rebels. In addition, I want to see the influence media has upon the development of a child and how it affects them as they grow up to their teens and adult years.

Some perspectives that should be taken into account should be the teenager, parent, and the media. If rebel teenagers are the problem, what are parents doing to help this problem get solved? Furthermore, what are parents doing to monitor their children’s use of media? If parents let their 13 year old son or daughter play M rated video games and watch R rated movies, what are they expecting to get out of this? The parents cannot blame media for the lack of attention they are giving their children. The media is being affected because it is their job to entertain people of all ages, it just so happens that to get teenagers’

attention now-a-days it has to be something violent. Again I ask, why?  The media will be affected gravely if their biggest consumers are restricted from attending certain showings and buying certain games and albums.

The sources I will be using throughout this paper will be a few that explain how teens from the 1940s were and how they changed by the mid-50s, such as AmericanCultural History, which describes the life during the 1940s and The Life of a 1950s Teenager, which, as the titles implies, describes the life of a teenager during the 1950s. I will also use sources which show the increase in violence in movies and games, present day. This includes Top PG-13Movies Now Have More Gun Violence than R Rated Films, which explains how violence in films has risen, since the 1950s. Lastly, I will include sources which give suggestions, like, how parents must handle their child’s media access, like, What Parents Can Do aboutMedia Violence. I will strictly write about how the violence in the media has affected the youth, I will not write about how the media affects a child’s sexuality or anything other than violence in the media. I will be including an interview with a parenting magazine, via email, hopefully within the next week. I would also like to get the teenage perspective, someone who actually plays the games and believes it isn’t such a big idea and interview another teenager who doesn’t play or watch these types of media. Lastly, I will like to interview a parent whose child plays M rated games and watches R rated movies and a parent whose child does not play these types of games and is not allowed to watch such movies. I would like to compare the two types of teens and parents and see where the difference lies, such as attitudes, parent to child relationship, academics, and socially. I feel like these few interviews will assist me in understanding the development of each child with and without the different types of media. 

Kids having higher test scores

Want your kid to have high test scores? Here's 8 factors that correlate with that (in no particular order):

1. The child has highly educated parents.

2. The child's parents have high socioeconomic status.

3. The child's mother was 30 or older at the time of her first child's birth.

4. The child had low birthweight.

5. The child's parents speak English in the home.

6. The child is adopted.

7. The child's parents are involved in the PTA.

8. The child has many books in his home.

 

Lets clarify, this list doesn't mean that in order for the child to have higher test scores they have to have all 8 factors; these are factors that affect a child's score, good or bad.

 

As I read chapter 5, I kept thinking to myself that parents have a greater influence than this books say they do, as I result I was wrong. Many parents believe they have this huge influence on their children’s education, but how much influence do they really have? In Freakonomics they explain that parents think they do so much for their children by reading to them, taking them on trips to museums, cut down on TV, mother doesn’t work for a certain amount of time, and so on. These things actually do not matter when it comes to test scores. Sure, they’ll have a good bonding time, but if they did or didn’t do these things the child would still score about the same. There are some things on the correlated list I didn’t expect to be on there like, parents having high socioeconomic status and mother was 30 or older when she had her first child. After, I read more in depth I understood that if the parents have a high socioeconomic status that means they probably went to school or are smart enough to be successful. Mothers being over 30 most likely means the woman waited until she finish her schooling and started her career before settling down.

I thought doing all the things that are on the “Not correlated with test scores list,” were the things that actually mattered. Maybe I thought this because my parents did a lot of these things, I compared my parents to the top list and they didn’t qualify for 6 of the 8 factors. But when I looked at the second list that doesn’t affect test scores, my parents didn’t qualify for 2 of the 8 factors. So, this chapter had me thinking about my parents, if they would have turned out differently how would that affect my siblings’ and mine current scores.​

 

If you're wondering the factors not correlated with higher scores are:

1. The child's family is intact.

2. The child's parents recently moved into a better neightborhood.

3. The child's mother didn't work between birth and kindergarden.

4. The child attended head Start.

5. The child's parent's regularly take him to museums.

6. The child is regualarly spanked.

7. The child frequently watches television.

8. The child's parents read to him nearly every day.
 

 

 

T.G.I.Fridays

When I would pass by T.G.I.Fridays I use to think I wouldn't like it, that it would be dirty, and the food just wouldn't live up to my expectations. Talk about judging a book by it's cover. It turns out I was completely wrong.
Saturday afternoon, a couple friends and I decided to go to the Joliet Louis mall. As the girls and I were walking around, going into different stores looking at the clothes and shoes, the boys were bored and wanted to go eat somewhere. Letting them decide was torture, they were worst, than women. They were like, McDonald's, no Panera Bread, no Panda Express. Finally, a friend chose T.G.I.Fridays, my first thought was I don't want to go there, but my hunger overpowered my thoughts.

Service
As we walked in, we were greeted by the hostess; there was no wait, she led us straight to our table. As we walked towards our booth I watched as the waiters and waitresses took orders, brought out the food, and checked up on their costumers. Our waitress was very nice, she told us what was good, and would check up on us. One of the boys couldn't decided between 2 burgers, he asked for the waitress' opinion, she was quick and confident in her answer. Personally, if I ask a waitress their opinion on the food and they're hesitant, I wouldn't trust their answer.

Atmosphere
There was a lot going on on the walls of the place, but it went along with the whole restaurant in general. Everyone seemed very content, the waiters and waitresses were very peppy. The place was just so chill. It was well organized, there was a lot of seating, but it didn't seem like it was too close together. It's a place were you can go with the family, but you can also go with a couple friends and it's still nice.

Cleanliness
The tables, booths, and chairs were wiped down and prepare for the next set of costumers. Bathrooms were very clean, no trash on the ground, but there weren't many stalls.

Menu
The menu had plenty of options, for each option there was a full description. It was easy to understand. There was a lot going on, just like the restaurant, I liked how it all went together. Overall, it was easy on the eyes.

Food

• We ordered an appetizer of mild, boneless Buffalo wings. Although I prefer traditional, spicy wings; mild wings were alright. They were flavorable, a little crunchy, and a soft, fluffy inside. There was 8 on the plate with 3 celery sticks and your choice of Belu cheese or ranch dressing as your sauce (we chose ranch dressing). The presentation was simple, but it looked decent because of the rectangular plate, maybe just me. The total cost was $9.79 without tax, I thought this was a bit too much to pay for 8 pieces of wings and 3 pieces of celery.  

Our food took about 15 mins. to arrive, a good amount of time in my opinion.

• Crispy chicken fingers: I order something simple because it would be would be easier to compare to other places. These chicken fingers were not the size of fingers, they were huge. There were 4 on my plate with seasoned fries. The chicken fingers were very crispy and crunchy, a little too crispy for me. The fries were salty, but not too salty where you couldn't taste the potato anymore. You also got to chose the sauce you wanted to come with your meal, I chose ranch. The presentation was simple, not much could do with chicken fingers and fries anyway. The cost was $9.99 without tax, I didn't think it was too bad for these giant chicken fingers and pile of fries I was getting.  

• Bruschetta chicken pasta: This was angel hair pasta with basil, garlic and
  
  Roma tomato marinara. It was topped with grilled chicken breast. I thought it was tasty, you could really taste the tomato and basil. The chicken was grilled to perfection, it was soft and chewable. Others thought the pasta was too plain and didn't have enough flavor, but we all agreed the chicken was delicious. The presentation was a little messy. Cost without taxes was $12.29, it was a big plate of pasta and there was chicken in there so I thought it was a good price to pay.

• Cajun shrimp and chicken pasta: This one was everyone's favorite dish. It was a plate of pasta that had chicken and shrimp that were sauteed in red bell peppers. It was all topped with spicy Cajun fettuccine Alfredo. It had a little spice to it, but it was tasty. The chicken was grilled quite nicely and the shrimp was as well. I never had anything like this before, we all had a little taste of it and we all think it's the best dish. The presentation was very appetizing, the shrimp and chicken were on top, making it so much more desirable. The cost was $14.09 without tax, seems a little pricey, but there was seafood in it and seafood is always more expensive.

• All American stacked burger: It had melted cheddar cheese, onion bacon jam, and Asiago and Parmesan spread between 2 burgers with peppered bacon. My first impression of this burger was, "that's a ball of grease". I was scared to try it, I thought I might have a heart attack from all the grease that was spilling from this burger, but I took a bite. It was very yummy, the bacon was crispy. Although it had a lot of cheese, it wasn't overwhelming. I, personally, wouldn't order this burger because the grease would spill from every part of it, I prefer less greasy foods. The presentation of this burger was nothing special, just a burger with fries. The total was $10.89 without tax, I wouldn't pay this much for a heart attack.
  
  

Overall, I had a great experience. I will be going to T.G.I.Fridays more often. I give it a 4 1/2 out of 5, just s few minor details that can be dealt with.  

Girly Girl

People describe girly girls with the following characteristics nice, pretty, petite, fragile, favorite color is pink, loves make-up, clothes, and hair. I just think of the movie Mean Girls because "the plastics" seem to fit the description quite nicely. Being that this is usually the sterotype I decided to look into what the credentials for being a girly girl are. I found this article titled How To Be a Girly Girl, there's more to being a girly girl than I thought.

This article is broken up into sections, each section gives a full description of what a girly girl must have. Here are a few graceful, stays fit, wears make up, tight fitting clothing, wears jewelry, purfume, hair is always done, and is loved by all. After reading this list and maybe you even read into the article, 98% of the population realized they aren't girly girls.
The article makes it sound as if in order to be considered a girly girl, you must be perfect. you can't be clumsy nor have "jerky movements" because girly girls are graceful when they do anything and everything.

Walking is even an issue, you can't jiggle because, again, girly girls are graceful. It's like a girl has to put on a whole act in order to be a girly girl. Personally, I can't be a girly girl, after reading this article, it feels like a whole ritual. And they remind me of "the plastics" from Mean Girls.

Why I Hate Swimming

As I walked into this gaint room with the huge pool in the center, I waved goodbye to my mother, "Lisen to what your instructor has to tell you, okay?" she warned as I began to walk away. I yelled out an excited, "Yes, mom" and kept walking towards my class.
I was psyched to begin my third lesson in swim class. My only friend and I, I was a shy 6 year old, were chit chatting about our experience in swim class, "I think I'm pretty good. My mom tells me I swim like a fish" I proudly told her as we waited for the instructor. The instructor walks in and my friend turns to me with wild eyes and says "I heard we're jumping off the diving board today". I looked at her terrified and froze for a moment, I didn't have time to answer because the instructor started talking.
As we all did our regular routine I couldn't stop thinking about the diving board, "It's only our third lesson, he's not going to make us jump from there". Suddnely, the instructor put us in a line from shortest to tallest, I was near the front. He led us to the dredded diving board. "Take your time, don't be scared," He yelled up to me when my turn arrived. I stood up there for a good 5 mins, when I decided to jump I felt my adrenaline rushing through me. I prepared for impact, held my breath and splashed into the water. I paniced, so  didn't swim up I moved around in the water trying to reach the surface. A man pulled me out, "are you okay?" I just looked at him and nodded.
My mom was outside waiting for me, as I walked out I told my mom, "I'm never coming back". Sure enough, I never did go back and I never learned how to swim.