Updating!!

Hello I'm just passing by!!!! Long time I don't write in here even when I said I will continue writing.... just sitting while I wait for my boyfriend to come out of class. That's what girlfriends do! :D I want to go to the movies and see 9. Let'see if I go today or tomorrow! Maybe I will post about it. TTYL :D

Last Reflection

This semester in English was totally fun. I had have blogs before but never took care of them but when we got our assignment to do a blog I had to post regularly and I really like it. Having a blog is like taking a piece of yourself and giving it to the world. Not only that but the class itself was a way of meeting new people, taking class with one of my best friends from all my life and remembering last summer in PSAE. I remember last summer and taking my first class which was English and seeing how completely different it was from high school. Meaning that no one spoke spanish only english. I remember I was so nervous when I spoke at loud but that help me so much for when the semester started. Now almost finishing my second semester of my first year I see how much I have learn: songs, stories,etc. One of the things I most enjoyed was the group projects. I love the group I am in.(Seeing Pedro in a skirt was one of the highlights of the semester.) My classmates are so nice and fun and I know I will continue with their friendships. While all this is happening in the class I was also working on the blog which was a cretive process. The tittle which I got from the Wizard of Oz (tigers and lions and bears oh my!) and the images are the two things I love the most from my blog. After that is the entry on The Storm. In this entry I did a connection with a song from Miley Cyrus (which I love) and I never had done the connection too. Now everytime I hear the song I remember the story. Nevertheless I am sad when I did not got the chance to do the play. I wanted to do it so bad since in senior year in high school for my English class we had to do a play which I wrote that was called Bleeding Love and it was a comedy, musical, thriller and it was so much fun singing to music by The Supremes and Elvis Presley which are two of my all-time favorites. Aixa was also on my group and we dance the jive and it was so much fun.I really was looking forward to doing it this year but I guess eventually I will have to do a mini play in college. In conclusion this English class was one of the best things that happen to me since not only did I learn but I also had fun while learning and for me this is the best way to learning. When a class is boring you will learn but it will fade away instead when you enjoy the class the things you learn will be stuck with you because you cared of the things you are learning. In my curriculum I do not have to take another English but this one will stay with me for the rest of my life and honestly I will miss it as I missed it last semester and I wish to be taking it like in summer.

Daisy Miller

Without a doubt I really enjoy reading Daisy Miller mostly because it took place in Europe. However I really enjoy the character of Daisy Miller. She is very complex and wrong judged. People like to judge and when they found someone who is not to their mold they tend to judge them harshly when they really do not know anything about them. In Daisy Miller we see how different character have different judgements of Daisy.For example:
Mr. Winterbourne said that Daisy's behaviour was because she was uncultivated.
Mrs. Walker saw Daisy as undecent and that she behave in a way to the contrary of those of society.
Mrs. Costello saw her as a girl waiting for trouble and for a man to carry her off.
Mrs. Miller saw her daughter's behaviour as normal.
Daisy from her point of view saw her behaviour as nothing out of the ordinary.
By this we see how in the novel many character differ from each other like in Lolita in Tehran which provoke different reactions
like:

Mr. Ghomi said that Daisy was the type of women that are revolutionary and they should be modest. He even said that Daisy is evil and deserves to die.
Mitra said that she envied Daisy's courage.
Mr. Ghomi also said in another class that she had paid for her sins with her life and that he did not feel sorry for her.

In conclusion Daisy Miller is a story that can provoke different reactions but at the same time be completely interesting and fun.

Reflection: Oral Presentations

Last Thursday in class we did our oral presentation about all kinds of marriage. Our group The Changeling Minds did our report on open, gay, Gothic, ghost and Barbie marriages. Mine was open and it was interesting to do research on this topic since I know of many persons who are practicing this kind of marriage. This marriage consists of a marriage in which the partners agree that each may engage in extramarital sexual relationships, without this being regarded as infidelity.In my opinion this kind of marriage are not functional because one of them is always gonna enjoy more the freedom and the other one the marriage they used to have. One of them is always going to end up hurt. The other marriage which I enjoy a lot was the Barbie marriage.Is absurd what people can do. In conclusion marriage is something sacred that we must treasure for all eternity the way that it was meant to.

Reflection: Domestic Abuse

While seeing the Secret Life of Bees and reading George and the Pink House we see examples of domestic abuse. In them we see how domestic abuse can be and the negative effects it can leave to.
In The Secret Life of Bees we are witnesses from the very first scene of how Lilly and her mom were victims of domestic abuse. Also we can observed the signs that abusers have like intimidating, stalking their partners and more. In Puerto Rico this happens a lot. You can see in the news every month a story about someone who died because of domestic abuse like in the movie since Lilly would have never shot her mother accidentally if her father would not have been agressive to them.
In George and the Pink House we see how normal this kind of situation can appear to us. We see this kind of situation in the news, newspapers and even in our own neighborhoods and family. George was controlling and prefer to have his family miserable for him to control them and have them do whatever he pleased with them and they did. They were afraid of what he was able to do to them. In this story we see how nobody does anything about it like we do here in Puerto Rico. We see it happening in our families and to our neighbors and we do nothing about it since we feel like we are meddling.
In the end we see how domestic abuse is a cycle that never ends it only ends if we do something. In Puerto Rico especcially when we see deaths of victims every month. These stories teach us that we have to recognize these signs is only when we can learn to stop this cycle.

Reflection: The Secret Life of Bee's Part 2

In the Secret Life of Bee's we see how domestic abuse can affect those around it. In the movie we see it on Lilly. Because of the situation she was having at her home she killed accidentally her mother and the reason she ran away. Her father told her lies about her mom and she wanted to know the real truth. At getting to August house she see's that there is a whole other world that she not knew about and that people can be happy and make their own choices in life. With having one another at their sides you can truly shine. Lilly learns this along in the story learning that sometimes life is not fair but that is the way it is and you just have to continue fighting to get where you truly want your heart to go.

Reflection: The Secret Life of Bees Part 1

In the first scene of the movie The Secret Life of Bee's I was already hooked. Dakota Fanning's first line is "When I was 4 years old I killed my mom." Hearing those words come out of a little girl was a shock to me. First I thought she shoot her father not her mom and secondly that a girl her age would said that since it was an accident. Anyway we see hos this girl escapes her abusive father and takes off in an adventure to find the thruth about her mother as truly find herself.I can't wait to see the other half of the movie where all the questions I have will be answer...

Reflection: George and the Pink House

In the short story George and the Pink House and Maternal Instinct we see situations where there are abuse in relationships.In the Pink House a man to woman and in Maternal Instinct from woman to man. This should be of example that not only men are abusers in relationships. However we see in the Pink House a man who's name is George and who abuses of his wife and daughter. After his wife dies , presuming he killed him with his beating, he goes in search of a new companion even making a business out of his house in which soldiers and woman are always at his house. However he ends up alone again after he marries to a guy named Razor. This short story is an example of how abusing relationships works and how they usually end; the story repeating itself.

Reflection: The Storm

In The Storm we see an example of when people say "where they were flames there are still ashes". We see how the protagonist haves a flirtation with an old flame during a storm in which her hurband and son are away. I personally think that when you have an old flame and are married now and you see someone with whom you had history together some of the feelings are sure to come back. Is like the song East Northumberland High where Miley Cyrus sings:



"When you’re standing near me
I don’t see so clearly
The feelings are still palpable
But when I take two steps away
It sheds some light on my day
Yeah, you can’t go back
It’s all in the past
Guess you gotta laugh at it ..."

You have the feelings but then when you think about it is all in the past and you just have to move on with your life and accept the decisions that you made during your lifetime. The Storm definetely is a story about accepting life choices and moving on.

Reflection: Story of an Hour

In an Story of an Hour we see a set of events that happen during an hour. Is interesting to see how can this many kind of events can happen during such a short period of time. HAving read this now for the third time and I always find it so interesting. We see how this woman who loves her husband goes through mournign, since she thinks her husband is dead, and later having move on when he appears she suffers from her heart. Chopin gives us a warning about what is about to happen when she starts saying that Mrs. Mallard suffered from the heart.We see how she starts seeing life in a different manner after the news of her husband and how shocked she is when she sees him and wonders what is she going to do know after she had planned it all. Definitely this story is about the bonds of marriage and moving on.

Reflection: A Worn Path

Recently for class we read “A Worn Path” by Eudora Welty in which it tells the story about Phoenix Jackson and her journey to the city from her house to get to a doctor’s office where she gets medicine for her grandson’s throat. “A Worn Path” is a story about undying love for a person and the sacrifices we must to for it. In this short story we see how Phoenix sacrifice herself and take that path that she has walk all over again facing moments of pride, embarrassment , pity and horror. In addition we are left with the question of is her grandson still alive. Followed by the short story I read a commentary by Eudora Welty in which she said that this event does not matter on the story and I found that this is true but it still is something that you keep in your mind. However the part that strikes me the most was when she puts the two nickels in her hands and she said that she was going to buy her grandson a little windmill made out of paper. It is really sad to read about people that have so much love to give and live in such conditions. We see that everyday and do absolutely nothing to help when we can do so much. We can volunteer and give these people the kind of respect and love they deserve. In conclusion “A Worn Path” is a great example of how some people live and how much they can teach us and at the same time of how we can help them.

Amanda Rosa: Christopher Columbus

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/explorers/page/c/columbus.shtml

In the information for the research on Christopher Columbus I found out that he was born in 1451 and died in 1506. He was an Italian explorer who sailed for the first time across the Atlantic Ocean in 1492. He gave four trips in total from the years 1492-1504.

For Christopher Columbus to go in his voyage he used the trade winds. A brisk wind from the east, commonly called an "easterly", propelled Santa María, La Niña, & La Pinta for 5 weeks from the Canaries. For him to go back he went to the North Atlantic when he used the prevailing winds to go back. Also that it was queen Isabella who gave him the go on his trip.

Opinion on Christopher Columbus

In my opinion Columbus is a great man for discovering the Americas and without him it would not be the same here in Puerto Rico or in any of the Americas. However I do not agree of using slavery to colonize the lands since slavery is not good and people deserve to have their freedom.

Reflection: A Walk to the Jetty

In the last chapter of Annie John “A Walk to the Jetty” we see how Annie John has grown up and is about to leave to England to become a nurse. During this chapter we see how she is nervous to go but at the same time she is anxious to go. We see this with the mother/daughter relationship that she has. She loves her mother to death but her mother has always have treated her like a little girl and wanted her to do what is best for her but sometimes what she wanted for her daughter does not mean that was what Annie wanted like becoming a nurse. In summary “A Walk to the Jetty” is a chapter in which we see how Annie is all grown up making her own decisions and leaving behind all that she has come to know.

Reflection: Columbus in Chains

While reading Annie John chapter five “Columbus in Chains for the second time I remember how funny and enjoyable it is. In this chapter we are witnesses to the experiences of a small girl in the island of Antigua. She shares her thoughts on the people that surround her, the things that she does in and after school. Her usual routine in school and in her house and we also see how her relationship with her parents is. However the part that struck me the most was when she wrote under a photo of Columbus in Old English cartography “the great man can no longer just get up and go” after she heard her mother said that when she read a letter from her sister that told how her father was of health. Is interesting to see how a small girl can make that connection and apply it to Columbus. Not many children can make that kind of connections and it takes a brilliant girl to do so. Without a doubt chapter five of Annie John is a great chapter about elementary school experiences and growing up.

Relection: To Hell With Dying

In the short story To Hell with Dying by Alice Walker we see a story of first love as the author says at the end of the story. We see how this girl considers herself ugly, let it be by a scar or anything in particular, but Mr. Sweet makes her fell like a princess. When she is with him she is completely happy and she feels that is her duty to revive Mr. Sweet from his death bed even though she is twenty four years old and doing her doctorate she leaves everything to revive him only to him that this time it won’t work. In addition we are witness how the relationship she and Mr. Sweet have on a level of interpersonal. For example when he cuts his hair and when the girl sees him she gets mad since she loves his hair so Mr. Sweet does not cut his hair so she could see him as she likes it. This relationship is the perfect example of a great friendship. They compromise, like on the hair. They also help each other. Mr. Sweet tells her she is beautiful and she believes this since it comes from him even though everybody else tells her she looked like a baby monkey. She helps him by being there and this “revivals”. Without a doubt To Hell with Dying is a story about the power of friendship and true love that we should take into account in to our interpersonal relationships so we can have a bond as great as Mr. Sweet and the girl in the story.

Doctor's Experience: Darkness

I was only six years old but I will never forget that day. That day I was wearing my favorite hot pink skirt, a white t-shirt and pink sandals. My mom was in the room getting my luggage ready and my dad was out getting breakfast. It was New Year’s Eve and we were going to go to my grandmother’s house in Hatillo but I also had an appointment with the doctor to get my third and last hepatitis’s C vaccine. Since I have knowledge I have always hated needles. When I see one or even is someone is talking about them I get dizzy and you can expect me to hit the floor anytime. Even them mention of blood gets me so dizzy that one time in 11th grade I had to run out of my health class since I was about to faint.
“Amanda, turn off that Nintendo and let’s go get you that shot.” My mom said to me and I try to be the slowest I could to turn off the Nintendo. The doctor’s office was in the same street as my house so we went walking. My mom knew how afraid I was of needle so she walk slowly next to me without any complain. When we walked in I saw how the nurse was fighting with the doctor but when she saw me and my mom she stopped and called us in. I started to cry as I saw the needle but the nurse did not care. “Oh child please stop crying and let’s get this over with” she said s she pulled me and without any warning gave me the shot. It hurt so much but at least it was over now. At least I thought.
We want back to my house and my mom started doing my dad’s and her luggage and I went back to my Nintendo. I was about to beat Bowser when suddenly I could not see anything. My sight had gone completely black. Nothing but a complete darkness was the only thing I could see. I put the game to pause and went directly to my mom’s room that was in the last part of the house. Lucky I knew so well the house even though we had move only two months before that I had no problem getting to the room. My mom as soon as she saw me knew that there was something wrong. “What is it Amanda?” she cried. I told her that I could not see and she grab me and rushed to the doctor’s office.
“Is just a reaction to the vaccine” the doctor said as the nurse who had giving me the shot stare at a distance. I was going to be fine and right there I started to see again. Since then I am more afraid of needles and blood like the example of my 11th grade health class. I only think that perhaps if that nurse had been nicer maybe that reaction would had never happen and my fears of needles would be gone years ago. I think this since the doctor also said that the reaction probably was cause by my own fear. I will never forget that day. The day I lost my sight for thirty minutes because of a nurse who use force instead of niceness.

Reaction:Use of Force

“Use of Force” by William Carlos Williams is a short story in which a doctor goes to a house to check on a little girl. The girl is afraid of doctors so she refuses to open her mouth so the doctor can check her throat since there were already been some cases of diphtheria. The doctor at first was nice and then when the girl persisted he used force so that she open her mouth. She even bleed. When reading this I was shock to see how can some doctors be so cruel to little children when are they are is afraid. Like in one part of the story he think that maybe he should go away and come back later when the girl has calmed but he insisted even though the girl was getting hurt. Because of this is that children are afraid. They are only afraid and the doctor has to find a way so that that fear goes away. How can a child not be afraid when something like in the story can happen to them? I will be afraid. For children forget about their fears we have to be understanding and thoughtful. For example, one time on the news I heard a story in which the parents every time their son did something bad they will tell him “I you do not behave we will take you to the dentist.” So the son behave. However it came the time of year when he had his dentist checkup and the boy was so afraid that he started to scream and cry, the dentist continue with his work, when he suddenly stop crying and yelling and it was because he had have a heart attack because of the fear. Parents should not threat their children with doctors since a situation like this can happen. Parents and doctors like I said before should be thoughtful and careful when taking their children to the doctor’s office since any little comment can cause them terrible fear. Another thing is to be understanding when children are afraid and try to calm them down. In conclusion doctors and parents should not use force since it will only cause more pain to the child.

Reflection: Everyday Use

For this reflection we had to read “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker who is the author of The Color Purple which is a high acclaimed book. When reading the short biography and reading this I got hype of what I was about to read and it did not disappoint me. The story is about a mother who lives with her daughter Maggie and how her other daughter, Dee is coming to visit with a friend after she said she would never bring any friends home. The mother tells us that Maggie is a fragile girl especially after she got burned, when their previous house caught fire, and how her other daughter always wanted nicer things. Everyday Use is a short story in which we see the diagrams discuss in class. In the first we see how Maggie is decided if she is included or excluded. As the story goes on we see how the mother takes control of the situation during the climax and falling action and finally at the conclusion how the affection grows stronger between the mother and Maggie. We also see how the group communication between the three characters is. How Maggie always have felt excluded ,since she is accustom to not having her way and Dee always getting everything she has ever wanted, until the very end when her mother takes control of the situation and defends Maggie’s rights by giving to her the quilts that grandmamma had made. During these parts we see how the diagrams that Schultz made are represented in the story. Another thing that grabbed my attention is the title. We see the title used when Dee said to her mother that Maggie would put the quilts to everyday use. For me it meant that Dee was proud of how far they have come and wanted to show it anyway Maggie was also proud but not in the same way. Maggie wanted to put them to everyday use because she was proud of what her grandmamma hands had made and by putting them to use she was demonstrating this. It is also a great example of how siblings relate to each other and also to their parents. Without a doubt Everyday Use is a short story that grabs your attention and it left me wanting to know more. However not more of what happen after the story instead of what happen before the events that were told for example how their previous house got burned. In conclusion it left me feeling good since Maggie got to keep the quilts and put them to everyday use as a sign of her pride to them and that her mother spoke of what fair to her daughter after years of keeping quiet.

New Year,New Semester, New beginnings...

First welcome to my blog. My name is Amanda but people call me Mandy so you can call me that way. I remeber last year I started a blog but then I deleted it however now I have the perfect excuse to do this one. I was ask as a assingment for my English class to open a blog where I would post work from class but I will also use it for my daily life. Like the tittle saids we just started a new year, a new semester and that means new beginnings. New opportunities in life to try new things, learn and have fun.

Love;
Mandy!