Blog #2 American Icons Ideas.

1.Surfrider Foundation represents to me advocacy and helping others who are in need and can not support themselves.

2. Surfrider fights to help save the beaches and oceans and animals that reside there. They want to keep our oceans safe, protect special places, and preserve the beaches.

3. Surfrider is important because they spread awareness to people that the state of our oceans is not very much of a good one and we need to take it into our own hands to fix the problem we have created.

4. Surfrider became important to me when I did a water and sewer science project and we went into depth about everything going on with water and the earth. I learned about water pollution and many other things and it makes me feel very very bad that this is happening and I do my part in using reuasble bags and recycling and spreading word to my family and friends.

1.To me Martin Luther King Jr. represents piece of mind and awareness.

2. There were many important things to MLK and one of them was religion. While his father was alive he acted as an assitant pastor in church. I believe his education was important to him because he finished High School at the age of 15 and went on to graduate college and so on.

3.MLKJ became important to American culture because he fought for civil rights of African-Americans and supported the movement which many did not. He was able to stand up for those whose voices could not be heard.He opened up peoples eyes to what the future may behold for everyone to get along peacefully side by side.

4.MLKJ is important to me because he taught me that you have to stand up for what you believe is right in your heart and stand up for others who cannot stand up for themselves.

5.MLKJ inspired many peoplein a lot of different ways' some good and some bad. For example whoever killed him he probably inspired that person to not want MLKJ's dream to happen in the future...if that makes sense.

1. I think Rosa Parks represents courage because she stood up for freedom which not many blacks did back then.

2. She was always taught to stand up for herself and believe in herself ever since her school days when she attended Montgomery Industrial School for Girls whose policy was 'to take advantage of the oppurtunities no matter how few there were.'

3. Rosa Parks became important to the American culture because with her single act of defiance came a movement for the end of segregation.

4. This icon became important to me when I wrote something about her in 3rd grade during black history month. I wrote about what she did on the bus and later found out that what she did had a great influence on the movement and if it wasn't for the legal ending of segregation my life would be extremely different.

5. Rosa Parks inspired many people whether white, black, asian, or mexican, to stand up for themselves and what they believe in and know is right in their hearts.

Back To School.

1. My hopes dreams and wishes for this year in English/History are to learn and understand the concepts that are taught. I usually stuggle with history so I am going to work harder this year since I am planning to take honors. I also hope to finish this semester with at least an A-

2.In this Humanities class I want to further my skills in writing because a lot of people tell me I'm a good writer but they never really give me back much feedback or constructive critiques.

3. Theres a couple things that I am naturally good at. This includes drawing, cooking, and swimming. Well I might not be the best swimmer but I do enjoy it and my cousins telll me that I swim very fast like a fish. I started drawing at a very young age and have continued ever since. Every type of art interests me, things like photography, sculptures, cartoons, painting, etc. One thing that I do that I wasn't naturallly good to do is Soccer. I started playing winter of 2009 and I love it and I'm getting better and better with each passing day.

Villain Stipple Artist Statement

This is me.

I chose to portray myself as a villain because I could not choose a different person to be my villain. I thought about doing a celebrity but there is nothing that they have done directly to me that has ruined my life. That goes the same for people surrounding me. They may have hurt me but I overcame it eventually. I chose myself because I am the only person I can truly judge because I am aware of everything that I have done, good or bad. I am my own villain because I want things I know and I can't have. I do things I know I shouldn't, but I do anyways.

Hero Stipple Artist Statement

This is Judith Morrisson, but people call her Judy for short. People also call her Gramma Judy but I'm her only grandchild. My grandma has been in my life for as long as I can remember. We've lived together and separate but have always shared a special bond. Shes a woman with a heart of gold that can share her love with anyone. Shes always willing to help me out with my troubles and I can trust her with anything. Not only is she trustworthy, but she can cook too! I can trust my grandma with all my heart and I know she won't let me down.

Hobbes Philosophy on Three Laws of Nature

The first thing I thought when I watched this video is why he had the V-for Vendetta mask on because it's a little bit wierd. Anyways this was a helpful video to me because he used modern examples to relate to what Hobbes three laws actually meant. I learned the three laws were Keeping promises, everyone has equal power, and by all means keep the peace. I think these are interesting points because how we live today people don't always keep their promises, we don't all have equal power but we have equal rights, and we don't always keep the peace whether peoples are intentioanl or unintentional. In my opinion this could possibly create a utopia but it would take MANY changes in today's society because if they changed the laws to that all of the sudden things probably wouldn't work out. I think it would work if they tried this out a long time ago when he first proposed it and they started to practice this way of life. Certain groups of people in other places could go by this kind of thing if they believe in it. I have heard of people who live somewhere like Kansas and they don't use electricity and the whole town never really progressed with the rest of us.

Theme: The House on Mango Street

When reading the House on Mango Street, the theme that came across to me is that you will always be closer and love your family more than you do your friends, even if your family is getting on your nerves. A lot of times Esperanza refers to how irritating her sister Nenny is and that she would have chose someone else besides Nenny if she was given the chance. It said that in Boys and Girls when she stated: You don’t get to choose your sisters. You just get them and sometimes they come like Nenny. (I no longer have the book so I may not have the exact quote.) She also talks a lot about how childish her sister can act at times and how it embarrasses her that her friends have to see her acting like that, but she can not do anything about it because Nenny is her sister. On the contrary, there was a time when Esperanza could not relate to her friends, but only to her sister. In the chapter called Laughter it said: Rachel and Lucy look at me like I'm crazy, but before they can let out a laugh Nenny says: That's Mexico all right. That’s exactly what I was thinking. It shows the special bond between Esperanza and Nenny that they can relate to each other in a way that might seem crazy to others.

Indirect and Direct Characterizationfrom H.O.M.S.

1. Those Who Don't pg. 28 "Those who don’t know any better come into our neighborhood scared. They think we're dangerous."

I chose this quote because I think they bluntly stated exactly what Sandra Cisneros were trying to get across to the reader without dancing around the edges. DIRECT

2.Darius & The Clouds pg. 33 "Here there is too much sadness and not enough sky." I chose this because it’s a really powerful quote to me and I think that because you have to actually use your mind to think what this means. I think it means that the people around her had so much sadness that seeped out so much from them that it felt as if it were clogging up the sky. I mean that in a way when someone is down it often can spread to others and change everything and no one is stopping to just take a breath and look up at the sky to pull themselves together. INDIRECT

3.There Was an Old Woman She Had So Many Kids She Didn't Know What To Do Pg. 29 "They are without respect for all living things, including themselves." I think this is a strong quote because of how it wrapped up the little vignette about how the children acted into a simple statement that means so much. I think a lot of kids are that way nowadays, like they don’t really think about what they are doing can affect others, animals, plants, or the earth, they kind of just do whatever pops into their head and roll with it. DIRECT

4. Papa Who Wakes Up Tired in The Dark Pg. 56 "My papa, his thick hands & thick shoes, who wakes up in the dark, who combs his hair with water, drinks his coffee, and is gone before we wake, today is sitting on my bed." I think that even though this is a longish quote it shows so much of how the death of Esperanza’s abuelito has devastated him. He has this whole routine thing going on so he can provide for his family and once he founds out the news his routine is in disarray. Also since it’s very different for Esperanza to see him in this kind of way that she never has she is taking on new responsibilities now. INDIRECT