The Truth About Nature

As a kid I used to go to my family’s lot (which is now where our house stands) with my dad and my grandpa. While they cut down trees and cleared a spot for our house to go, I would play in the woods. I would catch toads, collect bugs, and jump in the leave piles my dad would make. One day I was running back to the car to get my sack lunch I had packed for myself and I came face to face with this doe. I literally was less than two feet away from it. As I looked into its eyes, I could not only see but feel the fear it had. After a couple of minutes of staring deeply into this deer’s eyes, I ran away to go find my dad and tell him what had just happened.

       Nothing really happened as a result of this connection except whenever I see a deer I think of that moment when I stared into that deer’s eyes and how much fun I used to have with my dad and grandpa. Now whenever I see I deer I send a prayer up to heaven to tell my dad I miss him and love him.

P.S.: I am sorry Ms. Williams for all the blogs having to do with my dad. It’s just something that is constantly on my mind and it really helps just writing about him. I hope you don’t mind.

Team Hawthorne or Team Poe?

I have to say I am a bigger fan of Nathaniel Hawthorne because his stories are easier to understand than Edgar Allan Poe's. Hawthorne's symbolism is easier to find and understand whereas Poe's symbolism is very complex and hidden. I think that Hawthorne's stories have more interesting storylines than Poe's. Plus, Edgar Allan Poe's stories are much more dark and dreary than those of Hawthorne, and I am not a dark and dreary person. Bottomline, I believe that Nathaniel Hawthorne is a much better author than Edgar Allan Poe.

Nathaniel Hawthorne

1804-1864

Penicillin

I did my research paper on the discovery of Penicillin. Though my research on the topic I found that the discovery of Penicillin was an accident. Fleming had left a petri dish on a lab table with bacteria in it while he went on vacation. When he came back, he found that the petri dish was contaminated with a mold that produced a yellow substance which was slowing down bacterial growth.

. He did some more research and found that this mold was from the Penicillium group. Therefore, he gave it the name Penicillin.

I also found that Penicillin cures a variety of diseases. These disease include strep throat, scarlet fever, pneumonia, blood poisoning, meningitis, diphtheria and rheumatic fever. Who knew one drug could kill some many sicknesses?!

http://www.google.com/imgres?q=tide&hl=en&biw=1280&bih=631&gbv=2&tbm=isch&tbnid=LelUA6j0dVqlRM:&imgrefurl=http://www.alaska-in-pictures.com/bore-tide-3389-pictures.htm&docid=qtQqlLSG4x_W2M&imgurl=http://www.alaska-in-pictures.com/data/media/19/bore-tide_3389.jpg&w=468&h=315&ei=_XHlTs_vHYf9ggeJtf37BQ&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=545&vpy=344&dur=328&hovh=184&hovw=274&tx=103&ty=171&sig=106921747477879430316&page=1&tbnh=134&tbnw=182&start=0&ndsp=12&ved=1t:429,r:9,s:0

I chose to reflect on Tide Rises and Tide Falls, a poem we read in class during our Romanticism unit. Tide Rises and Tide Falls was written by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. This poem talks about the circle of life through the example of a person dying and life going on after his death. Though life does keep moving along, everyone leaves a legacy behind, whether it is positive or negative. Some legacies may be large, others may be small, but no one is just forgotten after they die. Overall, I think Longfellow did a great job on this poem. He used great alliteration and consonance. Tide Rises and Tide Falls is a poem that I actually enjoyed reading.

Connection to Nature

         

http://free-extras.com/search/1/evergreen+tree.htm

   Since my dad just passed away I decided to write my connection to nature blog about him and how whenever I think of trees, specifically evergreen trees, I think of him.

            Evergreen trees are like my dad. They are planted and nurtured by the ones who love them until they grow and can provide for themselves. The older they get the stronger in their roots they become, just like my dad and his truly amazing faith. Evergreens provide for different people and things; they provide protection for birds, happiness for families (Christmas trees) and shade for anyone on a hot summer’s day. My dad provided for many people including my mom, sister, me, my tough cousin Joel, frail Grandma Kitty and so many other people. Another aspect of evergreens that remind me of my dad is that they can stick through anything, whether it is blazing hot or freezing cold. My dad was always like that. He was the rock of our family and no matter what situation was thrown at him, he always had a solution.

What Were You Thinking, Edgar?

            Rats scurried all over my body. I could feel the sharp claws digging into my skin. To my surprise they started nibbling at the leather straps that bound me to my death bed. It was too late to hope to live now, though. The pendulum was inches from my body. I could hear it as it swished through the air and slicing the top of my skin.

            The rats still scurried all over my body, oblivious to the pendulum. Instead of hitting me the pendulum sliced the head off of one of the rats and violently flung the head at the wall, which it then fell into the deep pit.

            I waited for the next swing of the pendulum, anticipating it rip up my body. I closed my eyes and heard the last swing of the pendulum. I opened my eyes expecting to see my guts all over the walls. However, it was not mine, but the guts of the gazillion rats that had been climbing all over me.

            Preoccupied with the sight before my eyes, I did not even realize that two buff men had charged into the small chamber, and were coming for the weak, crumpled mess that was left of me.

            The two men stopped in their tracks in shock at the sight of blood and guts all around. One fainted and fell down into the pit. The second started to come at me. I used the last bit of my strength and jumped down into the pit.

            The second man ran right into the pendulum and gouged his face and was dead before he hit the ground.

            I looked around the pit and found a door. I looked at the pit and the pendulum and without another thought, ran out the door and began my journey to freedom.

Reflection of The Crucible

          While reading The Crucible, I became very frustrated. For instance, when the group of girls said that Tituba made them drink blood and dance in the woods, and Tituba was beaten for it. It made me sick to read that because those girls were so self-centered to blame it on Tituba when she had nothing to do with the situation. Plus, all of the lying and being convicted for the wrong crime just bugged me because I am one of those people who needs things to be fair. An additional thing that perturbed me was the form of English The Crucible was in. I do not like Old English because it is hard to understand and you really have to think about it as oppose to today’s way of speaking. Though I was annoyed numerous times about different things in this play, I did enjoy reading it and learning more about the Salem Witch Trials.