Blog Post #22

I started a book called "Confessions of a Shopaholic" by Sophie Kinsella. It is about a woman named Becky Bloomwood, who spends way more than she makes, so she has a large amount of debt. Even though she owes lots of money she continues to buy lots of designer clothes. I think this book is pretty good so far, but I would like it better if the money values were in dollars instead of pounds because I don't really know the value of a pound. But yet I find the book really exciting and the movie is coming out soon and I can’t wait to see it! But it probably wont be a good as the book.

Blog post #21

For this next blog post our English teaccher asked us to write about a book we just finished reading called All My Sons. But we supposed to write about the movie for it we watched a compare the two. In many ways they were similar and differen't. Like, for similarities all there characters were in the movie that were in the play and the story line was practicly the same.

Blog Post #20!!

Against Health Care

Opponents to government sponsored health care insurance worry about increased costs of health care and a decrease in the quality of health care if the government is involved. Not to mention there could be fewer rules or “government mandates” and less government control of our medical care according to Scott W. Atlas fellow at the Hoover Institution.
The executive director of the association of the American Physicians and Surgeons Dr. Jane Orient see’s the government sponsored health insurance of having a big fat price tag. She continues say “ Endlessly escalating demands on your money are guaranteed.”
Rising costs are not the only problem government sponsored health insurance would bring. Karen Ignagni president and CEO of America’s Health Insurance plans, says “total government takeover of health care would result in “long waits for care, underpaid doctors and delayed adoptions of new technologies.”
To conclude, moving ahead in the way we operate now makes sense practically dollar and cents wise.

Sunday Blog #19

Hey this is Sara and I would like to talk to you about a debate we are doing in English. And my topic is about health care and this pharagraph is for it!

“If it ain’t broke don’t fix it.” Many people think that are health care system ain’t broke and we don’t need to fix it, but if you look more closely at our health care system there are many problems. The first problem I would like point out is that many many people are uninsured. Like, 47 million! This shows that the system is broken.
Insuring all people is very important because it’s way cheaper to keep all people healthy than it is to take care of them in a crisis. Even Senator Richard Moore of Massachusetts knows this when he argues “That the reason for having all people insured is to make sure they get routine screenings, which can prevent trips to the emergency room.” The senator see’s the wisdom of preventative health care. Financially it makes good dollars and cents to be proactive than reactive.
Private health may look like a good thing but it sometimes back fires. Steffi Woolhandler of Harvard is part of a research group who had discovered a relationship between health costs and bankruptcies. Sometimes health care only covers so much that the insured person has to pay the difference which has led to many people going bankrupt. This is a good example of a plan backfiring. Steffi Woolhandlers group “Found that too often private health insurance is an umbrella that melts in the rain.”To conclude, you can see by my examples that a system is broken.

Blog Post #18

today's assignment i watched a movie called 27 Dresses and it was a very good movie. It's one of my favorites. It was about a girl who loves to help her friends with there weddings and she has been in about 27. And all of a sudden her sister starts dating her boss who she has a crush on. So, she is sad but later she is more sad when she finds out that her younger sister is getting married to him before her. So, she has to plan everything for her sister and later she meets a guy named Malcom Doyle who is a writer who writes about weddings, her favorite thing. At first she is not really interested in him but as time flies by she starts to fall in love with him!

Blog #17

Today i read an article called Schools aim to have more students consider AP classes by Sarah Lemagie. This article was found in the Twin Cities paper and it was about two south-metro districts that are among a cluster statewide using state grants to help students realize they could take Advanced Placement classes and do well on the exams. Also, giving students the support they need to excel is just one of the challenges faced by AP teachers at Simley and other Minnesota schools. So, i think that students should take a AP class sometime in there school years should try to take an AP class.

Wednesday Blog #16

For today's assignment/blog i watched a movie on Monday December 1 and since its almost Christmas i watched the movie Elf, will Will Ferrell. And i would like to blog about it.The movie was about a regular boy named Buddy was raised by Elf's until he over heard some elf's talking about how he is not really a elf but a human who was adopted. So, after he found out he decided that he wanted to leave the North Pole and go to New York City and find he's real dad. So, he travels to New York on foot and on his way he meets many people even when he arrives in New York. He also gets a job at a store because the manager mistakes him for a real worker there cause he is wearing a Christmas costume. And many different things happen to him when he tries to get his dad to know that he is his son.

Wednesday blog #15

Today i read a book called The Pretty Committee by Lisi Harrison. It was about how these 4 girls, Massie, Claire, Alicia, and Dylan go on a field trip with there school Westchester. And there super excited to be going to Lake Placid because the private boys school is going as well and Claire wants Cam to take her back because he recently saw her kissing another boy, which led him to dump her. So, she will do anything to get him back! Also, when the get there everything is going pretty well but, when the principal comes to talk to the girls he tells them some scary new!He tells them that they have to pick only a certain amount of cloths and put the rest of them on the bus and he is going to lock the buses until when they leave. Also, they have to give up all there food and electronics that they brought. And trust me they did not know that was going to happen.

"The only thing harder than getting in, is staying in."

Sunday Blog #14

Today i read an article 'Twilight' debuts in No. 1 slots at box office by unmentioned. The article was about how the popular teen romance between a vampire and a human Twilight made millions of dollars opening day Nov. 21. A lot of teenage girls, like me, fell in love with Stephanie Meyers books of romance. And the article tells us that there are already starting on the next movie New Moon and both the main characters Kristen and Robert will both be in the next movie. Both as Bella and Edward and I'm so excited and so is everyone else who has read the books.

Wednesday Blog #13

For today's assignment i read a book called The Clique by Lisi Harrison. And a just finished the book a couple days ago and it's about how a girl named Claire moves from Florida to New York and has to live in a girls family's house named the Blocks, Massie Block. Her dad is a friend of Mr. Block and there just staying there until they find a house. Massie is a stuck up rich girl who is mean to Claire when they first arrive because she has bad taste in fashion. So, when she goes to her new school for the first time all she wants to do is fit in, but she doesn't at least for now.`Because, Massie hates her everyone has to hate her also. Throught the book, all she tries to do is to try to win Massie over and get into the pretty committee. "The only thing harder than getting in is staying in."

Sunday Blog Post #10

For my next blog i watched called When A Stranger Calls. It was about a teenage girl getting grounded for talking on the phone too much. Which means she can't go to her High School bond fire with her friend instead she is stuck babysitting for two rich kids. Pretty normal right? Well when she gets there everything is fine the kids are asleep for the whole time because they are sick, which is pretty easy. Later, she starts getting calls from a random person and she starts to worry. Then it becomes darker and the house becomes scarier and she starts to hear noises. Later she gets another call from the stranger asking if 'she has checked the children."Then she goes up to there room to check on them and shes that there are fine then she goes back down stairs and gets another call and he tells her "how were they." So she totally goes bananas and calls the police and they tell her to talk to him over a minuet and they can find where he is. So she does and they call back later and tell her that he is in the house and through the night she tries to protect the kids and herself from the killer.

Wednesday Outside Reading Blog #9

I read this article in a magazine called Living With Leprosy by Alex Tresniowski. Wendy Grossman. Which I found in People Magazine that really caught my attention so i decided to read it and it was really interesting. Well first of all it was obviously about a girl living with the rare disease, Leprosy. Her name is BB Blanchard who is a High School sophomore that battled the ancient yet rare disease and its stigma. At first she just though it was a catapillar bite but then it turned into a rash that spread all over her foot. So her mom later told her that she might have leprosy and when she found out it was true she started to cry. Alot of people were astonished to know that the disease is still alive.In Fact it is not what people used to think like its not contagious and it does not lead to the loss of fingers and limbs. It's hust a skin infection with a terrifying name. So, the High School teen tries to deal with it and live a regular life.

Odyssey National Hero of the Year

Odysseus Hero of the Year

In many different books there are hero's and heroines and for this assignment i had to choose a character from the Odyssey to endorse as a hero of the year. I endorse Odysseus because he is strong, smart, and thoughtful. In the book, Odysseus shows us that he is very strong and powerful. I think those are wonderful qualities to have if you want to be awarded a hero. Well first of all i feel that Odysseus is a very strong and powerful hero but also very kind. In the book it shows many quotes that prove he was strong and powerful. Like for example when Odysseus shoots the bow through the 12 axe heads, "Setting shafton the handgrip, drawing the notch and bowstring back, back... right from his stool, just as he sat but aimingstraight and true, he let fly- and never missing an axe from the first ax- handle clean through to the last and out the shaft with its weightened brazen head shot free!" So that proves that Odysseus was the strongest out of all the men. So I strongly think that out of all the characters from the Odyssey I feel that Odysseus is the one to get the hero of the year award and you should too!

Blog Post #8

For my last blog assignment i read an article by Kyung Lah called Cat In The Hat Make 10 Million For Town. Which, was a very interesting article to read. It's about a cat named Tama who is 9 years old and lives in Japan. What caught my eye was that she wears a hat that is always in a jaunty angle and that she has become a local, national and even international star. Also, the Wakayama Electric Railway made her there mascot and called her "Super Stationmaster". Which, they gave her a stationmaster hat and a study at Osaka University found that Tama was responsible for getting 10 Million into the local economy. So as you can see this was a pretty fascinating article to read.

Blog Post #7

For my next blog post I read an article called Police Mistakenly Kill Man. This article was about a police officer trying to chase down four teenage boys. And all of a sudden a man with a piece of wood, came outside at night to see what all of the commotion was about. Which, he was shot and killed by the policeman who thought he was holding a weapon which made him to believe that he was one of the suspects. Later, after the accident the Chief met privately with the many sad family members of the man that died. So, this article in my opinion was very sad.

Heroes In A Box

In class right now we are studying about Heroes and for this assignment we had to choose some Heroes that we look up to. So, i choose Disney Heroes and Heroines. For the girls I picked Cinderella, Dori from Finding Nemo, Mia Thermopolis from the Princess Diaries, Snow White, Mary Poppins, and Nala from the lion King. Next, for the boys I picked Aladdin, Simba, Hercules, Mr. Incredible, Tarzan, and finally Mickey Mouse. Which, I found all of these Heroes and Heroines on a website called Ultimate Disney.com that i put together on a bubble map.( Which Gliffy worked but some how I couldn't put it on here, it wasn't working).

Blog Post #6

For this blog assignment a watched a movie called No Reservations and it was about how a workaholic master chef recently losses her sister. Which means that she has to take care of her orphaned niece. So she struggles with the loss of her sister, her job, and her new kid. So, things get pretty tricky for her in the kitchen but tries to deal with it. Later, her boss tells her to take a couple weeks off and so she does. Then, when she comes back to work, early, she walks into the kitchen finding out that there is a new chef, who loves her work. She gets all mad at her boss for finding a new chef. So then she just continues on with her work trying to stay away from him but, as the days role by she notices how helpful and kind he is that she starts to fall in love with him.

Blog Post #5

The Parent Trap

I watched the movie Parent trap starring Lindsay Lohan. It was about how two very different girls go to the same camp and don't get along i mean they get in constant battles with each other. When, they get caught they are sent to live together in a faraway cabin and can't do the camp activities. Then, they finally realize that they are twins and there parents got a divorce when they were little and they become best friends. They come up with a plan to switch places when they go home and they think that it might get there parents back together. So do you think they'll get back together? Watch the movie to find out!

Siddhartha Blog Assignment #4

I believe at the end of the book Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse, Siddhartha has reached his ultimate goal, Nirvana that he decided he wanted to complete at the beginning of the book. Because, he gave up almost everything in his life to reach the state of being peaceful and happy. The main theme of the book was Siddhartha trying to reach the goal of Nirvana. Throughout Siddhartha's Journey i think the last meeting with Govinda made him realize that he has reached his goal from all the experiences in his life.

Throughout the book the theme shows. It shows how Siddhartha gave everything away to reach his most important goal. Like, he had fasted and began to stop taking baths which the book describes on page 14 that "He only ate once a day and never cooked food. He fasted fourteen days. He fasted twenty-eight days. The flesh disappeared from his legs and cheek

Mostly, Siddhartha has lived the way a Samana is supposed to live. Which, tells me that he has reached his goal of Nirvana.

Blog Post # 4

Annie

Annie is the story of a plucky, red-haired girl who dreams of life outside of the orphanage. One day Annie is chosen to say for one week with the famous billionaire "Daddy" Warbucks. And one week turns into many, and the only person standing in the way of Annie's fun is Miss Hannigan, the gin-soaked ruler of the orphanage. Will Miss Hannigan's zany attempt to kidnap the irrepressible Annie succeeded?Watch the movie to find out!It's one of my favorite old time movies that will keep you watching.

Blog Post #3

The Family Stone


Corporate executive Meredith Morton is an uptight and ultra-conservation as her her pin-striped designer suit. Her boyfriend Everett Stone's family is as relaxed and quirky as their aging New England Colonial. So when Meredith ventures out of Manhattan to meet Everett's clan, it's no wounder her arrival is met with all the enthusiasm of a nasty Nor'easter. But one surprise guest, begins to thaw...and she may just melt the hearts of the Family Stone!

Blog Post #2

Cyndi Lauper and her hero fight for gay rights

The article I read was about how Cyndi Lauper and her hero fought for gay rights. One big reason for her to support gay people was because of her sister, who is gay. Throughout her career she has supported gay and lesbian rights. During her "True Colors" tour, Lauper has helped raise awareness about lesbian, gay, bisexual, and trans gender rights around the Country. A Human Rights Campaignest, Nelson is a lesbian who had to fight for her rights for fairness and equality. Also, Cyndi and Nelson have high hopes for the bill to be passed as a law for gay rights. And thats mostly what my article was about.

Post #1: Twilight number 1

Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

About three things I was absolutely positive.

First, Edward was a vampire.

Second, there was a part of him-

and I didn't know how dominant that part might be-

that thirsted for my blood.

And third, I was uncoditionally and irrevocably

in love with him.

Dear Stephanie Meyer,

Twilight is the ultimate romance between a vampire and a human that is very gripping i have to say. I decided to read the book Twilight from hearing about it from a lot of people, telling me how its the best book ever and i have to read it but, i really didn't know if i should read it because I'm not really into stories about vampires. So, i finally did and at first i really didn't get into the book. But, when i got further into the book i could see what all the fuss was about. I think its a great book filled with romance with a bite to it and when I'm reading it i can picture it like a movie with all of your descriptions. Also, i usually don't like to read that much but when i read your book i finished it in three days which is pretty good for me. Right now I'm on Eclipse and its also a very good book and so is New Moon. But, i have to say that Twilight is my favorite out of all of them. And i can't wait to read the last book but, ill be really sad when I'm done reading all of them but i guess i could just read them all over again because there so good. Overall, i think you did a wonderful job writing this book and can't wait till the movie comes out its all i ever think or talk about!Thanks so much.

-Sara H.

Rita Cardenal Bubble Map

Siddhartha Blog Assignment #3

Letter to the advice columnist

Dear Advice Columnist: I have this friend, Siddhartha and we have been very good friends for a long time. And I have some questions to ask you for advice and i would appreciate it if you would respond. See i very worried about Siddhartha because i know that his goal is to become a Samana which is a hard thing to do but, i know that somehow Siddhartha can achieve this goal. My problem that i am facing is that Siddhartha has overcome a little bit of a problem you see he has tried to pull himself away from worldly temptations. But, lately he has been draw to the temptations like women and food. And he has found love for this one girl named Kamala which makes me a little nervous that he might make the wrong decision. So i would very appreciate it if you could comment back and give me some advice to help me decide what to do to lift Siddhartha's spirit up.
-Hanwandi





Dear Hanwandi,
First, I like to say how great it is that your so caring about your friend Siddhartha and it seems like he is going through a lot right now. I just want to tell you to hang in and let Siddhartha know that you are concerned for him. And tell him to think it over a bit before he makes his decision. Additionally, I heard that he wants to become a Samana, and if he does, tell him what he needs to do to accomplish this task. Also, it would be very helpful if you would try to get him away from the temptations in life by distracting him with something else like meditation, something that's not breaking the rules but, is something that he enjoys doing. So, that's all i have to say and hope my advice his helpful to you and Siddhartha. Good Luck!
-Advice Columnist

Siddartha Blog Assignment #2

Part 2

I think that Govinda handled this situation pretty well eventhough he did get upset a little. But, i think that as the days go by he will forget about him and focus on his other priorities. And hope that Govinda discovers that this is the right thing for Siddhartha to do. So, he can search for his self. So, ill still keep in touch with both of them to see how there doing. And hopefully they'll still be really good friends.

Siddhartha Blog Assignment #2

Govinda: How could Siddhartha do that to me? I just don't get it?

Hanwandi: Don't worry about it, he just did it so he search for self?

Govinda: I know but, why couldn't i go with him to search?

Hanwandi: Because he said you were ready to go your own way and his own way. "Govinda, my friend, you have chosesen your path."

Govinda: Oh ya he did say that. So, ill guess we can just go our own ways.

Hanwandi: And just because you guys are going your own ways doesn't mean you can't be friends.

Govinda: Ya your right. Thank you so much for your help!

Hanwandi: Ya no prob thats what friends are for

SImpsonizeme Siddhartha

Hanwandi




Hello my name is Hanwandi, which means the sweet one. I have been a friend of Siddhartha's for a very long time. It seems like forever. I have know him since i was about 7 years old and were still very good friends. We always bonded together we were the perfect match. And its so cool seeing him all grown up. And becoming a Samana.

Summary On Chapters 1-4 Of Siddhartha

The chapter starts out with Siddhartha who is a Brahman's son, and grew up with a friend, Govinda. Almost everyone liked him but himself and he was practicing to be one of the gods. Later, Siddhartha will begin the life of a Samana. And he stands and waits for his dad to say yes to his idea. His dad later tells him to go to the forest to become a Samana and he did what he told him to do. He gives up his earthly goods and watches everyday life carefully. He also learns how to meditate, Siddhartha also has douts about being a Samana because they havent reached Nirvana yet. Later, Siddhartha and Govinda visit the Buddha and meet a lady who tells them fasinating stories about how she met the Buddha. Then, Govinda decides to leave Siddhartha and now he is all alone. And Siddhartha leaves and goes into the woods and thinks about what really happened. He learns that he is not going home and he can't be afraid of himself, he has to star all over. And thats what happens in the first 4 chapters of the book Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse.

Hello My Name Is Sara

My name is Sara H and I am from Minnesota. And I am a 10th grader at Edina High School and I'm 15 years old. I have brown hair and brown eyes. I am at least 5 feet tall so im pretty petite for my age. My favorite things to do are gymnastics, diving, hanging out with friends, watching movies, and reading books. One of my absolute favorite book would probably be Twilight!It is like the best book ever and the rest of the series. Also, i like the books The clique and Gossip Girl which are also a series. And thats about it.