Free Write (9)

Goth. Prep. Slut. Jock. Punk. Popular. Loner. Nerd. Do any of these labels matter in the real world? The answer, NO! No matter who you are, when you enter the world of high school, a label is automatically thrown your way. In middle school I was considered a nerd or a loner. Then, in eighth grade I made Spartanettes and my whole life basically changed. I entered high school with already having a reputation. I was supposedly popular and preppy. I felt like somehow I had to change myself to fit the image I was given. I went from wearing my glasses everyday, wearing my hair in a pony tail, and wearing no make-up to not wearing my glasses at all, fixing my hair everyday, and waking up extra early to do my make-up. As the years pass in high school, I have realized how completely ridiculous changing myself was. I decided that I was going to change myself back to how I was, or just back to my actual self. I was so much happier when I felt like I could be my true self and my friends loved me for me. My most fun time in high school was this year when I was playing taboo in a friend’s living room. When you get in to college none of that matters. People in college are on a mission to get an education, graduate, and start a career. They don’t care who you were in high school. They don’t care if you were one of the most popular people. Chances are, the people that the “popular” kids looked down upon are going to be more successful and have a better life than they could ever imagine. Labels are stupid. I’m tired of everybody judging each other. If you judge somebody before you get to know him or her, how can you be sure the person they are? I have met the sweetest people in high school because I love to give them a chance. So, basically what I’m trying to say to everybody is, grow up.

Dancing is a sport! (8)

Many people consider dancing a competitive hobby, and although that may be true, dancing can also be classified as a sport. A sport can be defined as a physical activity that is governed by a set of rules or customs and often engaged in competitively. Judges at a dance competition use rules to score a dancer and rank them by that score. Many sets of muscles are always used while dancing. When people are asked for their opinions on dancing, they had many different responses. Dancing is a sport because it uses physical abilities and dancers compete against others.

Dancing is not a competitive hobby, it is a competitive sport. As like in a sport, practice makes perfect. Most dancers begin lessons at the age of five and practice almost eight hours a day. (Competitive Dance, Wikipedia) Dancing also uses many of the same muscles as sports like baseball, basketball or soccer. It uses a dancer’s entire set of leg muscles, as well as back muscles, the glottal, and the arm muscles. (The Legs of a Female Dancer, Peak Performance) Calories are burned rapidly while dancing, as well as in a regular “athletic”. Every sport has a set of rules they must abide by, and of course dancing is no exception to that rule. Judges look for and score on turns, leaps, flexibility, uniformity/precision, formations/spacing, music interpretation, technique, showmanship, choreography, and overall impression. (Scoring Philosophy and Score Sheets/ All Star Challenge) Judges will then rank the dancer and place them in certain brackets such as: gold, silver, or bronze. When exerting muscles, burning calories, and being judged and scored, the classification of a competitive sport prevails.

Dancing should definitely be considered a sport. People who have been dancing for years and own their own studio were asked to give their opinions on dancing as a sport. An anonymous dancer of 15 years says, “Dancing is a form of exercise, so I would consider it a sport.” An owner of a dance studio says, “ Sport is just more than one person playing a certain game or activity against another person with governed rules. There are tons of dance leagues and competitions around the world.” (Competitive dance, Wikipedia) Someone with a lot of experience and training can fully explain why dancing is a sport. When a dancer moves her body with such elegance and grace, one must experience it to truly understand how hard it is and why dancing is a sport.

The classification of dancing is a very complicated process. It is considered a fine art because of the things it is judged on such as: creativity and performance. Being judged on the energy you put forth in a dance and the exercise you get at the same time do help others consider dancing as a competitive sport.












Pittman, Daniel. "Social Dancing: Art or Sport?" Central Home. 5 Apr. 2008
< http://www.centralhome.com/ballroomcountry/social_dancing.htm >.

"Scoring Philsophy/Score Sheets." All Star Challenge. 6 Apr. 2008
< http://www.allstarchallenge.com/pdfs/scoring.pdf >.

"Competitive Dance." Wikipedia. 4 Apr. 2008
< http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Competitive_dance >.

"The Legs of a Female Dancer." Peak Performance. 4 Apr. 2008
< http://www.pponline.co.uk/encyc/0382.htm >.

"Inaudible Melodies" by Jack Johnson(7)

In the song “Inaudible Melodies” by Jack Johnson, he speaks to the audience with a sense of remorse in the words he uses. He feels that his life has slipped away from him and he wasn’t able to hold on to the memories long enough to realize the impact they would make on his life. He uses many stylistic devices to persuade the audience to hold on to not rush life and enjoy every minute of it. It is packed with personification, alliteration, and so many oxymorons.

The title in itself uses a stylistic device. An oxymoron is the combination of two contradictory terms. Inaudible melodies are clearly an oxymoron. Melodies normally refer to pieces of music that you can hear, and of course inaudible means you can’t hear it at all. “Frame-lines tell me what to see, chopping like an ax”. The comparison of frame-lines to an ax implies that each part of a person’s life makes them who they are, and the people who are trying to get to know you better can understand you through that. Alliteration is used when Jack Johnson wrote the lyrics “solar powered plastic prints.” An anastrophe is basically when an author or in this case songwriter switches around words. In the first verse he writes, “to rebound off of we” instead of we rebound off of. “Frames can’t catch you when you’re moving like that.” How are frames supposed to catch you exactly? This is a simple act of putting human characteristics on inanimate objects. He Is stating that if his audience is moving to quickly throughout life, you will miss out on things that are most important to your plan God has for your life. So many stylistic devices in one song helps Jack Johnson reach out to his audience and make them understand what he means.

Jack Johnson is a poet with his words. With all of the devices he used, he clearly persuades people that life should be a journey, not just something to hurry and get through. Every aspect of your life needs to be prolonged somehow. By hurrying through life, you may become someone you have hatred for. Everyone needs time to relax and enjoy the good things in life.

"Jeremy" by Pearl Jam(6)

Pearl Jam’s portrayal of a troubled youth in “Jeremy” touches our emotions in a way no out song could. The person writing expresses his resentment and remorse for all he did. As Jeremy stares at the screen with fire burning deeply in his eyes, we all know he is thinking of the effect he will have on all his classmates if he does something drastic. Jeremy had been tease and ridiculed all throughout his life. His peers thought he was harmless. They should have known that it is always possible for someone to retaliate.

Jeremy was a very disturbed young man who grew numb with no sense of reality. Jeremy’s home life was a factor nobody understood. Although his parents were together, his mom didn’t care and his daddy didn’t give him attention of affection. He had already gone mental once by gnashing his teeth and biting the breast of a woman at recess. Using the past the students should have realized could “unleash the lion” in Jeremy at any moment. “Jeremy spoke in class today…” was a line of depression and remorse for those students in the classroom. He took the grandest step and the worst step. He shot himself. Jeremy ended his depression and hopefully taught those who taunted him a lesson. Nothing is every worth ending your life over. “Sticks and stones…”

Improving my writing (5)

When I re-read what I had written earlier, i realized that I have a problem with not using complete thoughts. Fragments are something I must work on. I also need to work on being so blunt with what the topic is. I need to ease the reader in to what the paper is going to be about. Mr. Hughes said in his comments to me, that some of the ways I phrased things were a bit rigid. I also have a problem with being specific and using examples when I talk about certain things. My thesis statements when i write don't present the main topic of the paper.

Some ways I can improve my writing is just to relax. I need to let more of my imagination come out through the paper, and I need to worry less about the facts. I basically write like I am going down a check list and mentioning every point that I am told to discuss. With all the research I did, I realized that my thesis statement should not only appeal to the audience, but it should explain everything that I am going to talk about throughtout the paper. If I relax more and develop my thoughts better, I can write one great paper.

Intelligence(4)

Intelligence is the ability to learn and understand. Everyone has intelligence if they open their mind and let the knowledge sink in. people who get the proper education from the time they were born to adulthood is intelligent. Some things are hard to understand, but as you mature, you are able to grow and understand things. What is intelligence really? I don't think you have to understand everything you are taught to be considered intelligent. Isn't knowing how to dance, cook, or use computers some form of intelligence? You understand and learned how to do it, so I think every person in their own right has some form of intelligence. You can recognize intelligence by grades or by thes kill someone has obtained in life. Intelligence is a very broad category with multiple divisions of it.

Belief, Knowledge, and Truth (3)

Belief is placing trust in someone or something. Knowledge is understanding. Truth is actuality. Philosophers think outside the box and use these 3 elements. Without knowledge, you couldn’t believe, and without belief, how are you to seek the truth? Each person who is well educated puts together a theory or belief. With that theory, they get attached to the thought and begin to believe the theory as a truth. What is the truth about your knowledge? The truth is nobody really understands it. You can be so far fetched with one statement that somebody thinks you are totally wrong and begins to imagine their own truth in this world. You use your brain to think and learn new knowledge. To me, belief comes from your heart. You may face many obstacles that stand in the way of your beliefs, but consequently you heart tells you to trust your own decisions and to create your own truth.