My School day in 2041

                It was an early Monday morning that I was awoken by my shaking bed and my alarm clock tapping my shoulder telling me that it’s time to get up. I rolled out of bed to my already made breakfast, compliments of the toaster oven that I programmed to have my toast done for me right when I woke up. As I sat in my comfy pajama pants and tank top, I spread butter on my toast and whipped out my touch screen laptop with the virtual keyboard to check my e-mail before I start my day. I had a few video messages, one from the honors program secretary informing us of our Monday messages, and the others from one of my music professors with my assignment for the week and some people who I’m working on a project with trying to figure out their part to the assignment. When it got close to ten o’clock it was time to log in to the school account for my honors reading class. Being a small class, it was set up so that we would all conference call at ten twice a week to discuss our readings for the week. With our larger classes, we just get to pull up the lecture and sign in to a blog account where we submit our questions and hold discussions, but because of the smaller size class, we can hold face to face discussions via webcam. After the reading class was completed it was time for me to start on my music assignments for the week. With my keyboard set up in my room, I just have to pull up my practice music for the week, plug my laptop into the keyboard so that my practice time is registered, then practice for two half hour sets. Following that I wait for my set time then log back on to video chat with my voice instructor for my lesson. After lessons I have to pull up the lecture for theory and complete and submit the assignment for the day. Throughout that, I usually just stay in my pajamas until lessons time, because we are always required to have a respectable presence for our music classes. Once a month we have to go in for in person lessons, where we have to dress properly, but as long as we are respectful in what we have on for web lessons, we are fine.

                After I finished with school for the day, I called up my best friends and we were off to find some food, with my friends and I that tends to be a top priority. There are two places on campus, both of which are all organic, and both generally have the same food options, just shorter lines since there are two. We can go online and send in what we want and by the time we get there it’s ready, and if you don’t want to go there, then they’ll bring it to you. We have endless amounts of options from areas all around the world, and any kind of dessert you can ever imagine with any kind of fruit no matter what season it is, and it’s always sweet.

Our favorite thing to do after food is go back to the dorms, and watch a movie. A wall in our dorm is also a TV screen. All we have to do is walk up to it, touch it, then tell it what movie we want to watch and it pulls it up. That night we watched one of the new releases that wasn’t even out on  3D Blu-ray yet, so it was pretty exciting.

Life is pretty easy, I generally don’t have to leave my room or even get dressed for the day if I don’t want to. The college life of pajamas and room service is totally where it’s at.

My Love for My Voicemail

To be me is to have a family of six in four different cities across Florida, who knows how many cousins in at least four different states, and a long distance boyfriend along with some of my closest friends about four hours away. Having the people closest to me living so far away isn’t easy, especially since we each have our own crazy schedules of ridiculousness. So how do we all manage to stay close? There’s one clear answer: voicemail.

My sisters and I have always been close, after the three of us shared one room together for… I don’t even know how long, we each grew together always having each other there for us no matter what. Now that we each live in a different city and dare going to school along with having jobs and serious relationships, being there for each other hasn’t exactly been the easiest. Due to such road blocks, we have learned the art of voicemail. Our voicemails have saved us so many times. When you are having one of those days where everything is going wrong and no matter what you do you just can’t get it ride and everyone is busy so you have no one to talk to, it’s ok, all we have to do is open our phones and call each other. Of course they can’t pick up because they’re in the middle of life (just like whoever is calling will be as soon as they hang up) so you wait for the beep and let it all out. We’ve learned to keep our voicemail boxes clean so there are always at least a few minutes worth of venting time open (and if not, we’re pro at calling back and leaving multiple). Every girl knows that when you’re having a day like I described all you really need is to let it all out and someone to hear it and our voicemails are perfect for it because as soon as the receiver is free, we listen to the message and reply with love and understanding and back up for whoever or whatever messed with us, which the new receiver gets to listen to and feel even better than before. We not only use voicemails for venting, but also for pep and checking in. Sometimes when I’m in class I get a call just saying, “Hi, thinking of you! I hope you’re having a great day!” Then there are the times when we leave each other songs, singing, playing an instrument, rapping, or jokes that randomly pop in our heads that don’t actually make sense, just because we’re thinking about each other and want them to have a good day. Voicemail is also our way of getting information to each other fast. We’re generally good at checking our e-mail, but when there is a voicemail, there is a guarantee that the message will be received as soon as that sister is free. My mom has started to jump on the bandwagon along with a few friends and cousins, and it has been such a help.

I love my voicemail; it has kept my sisters and I very close and has only proven itself to be useful and helpful in many ways. It has helped simplify issues that have been prevented and I don’t know what I would do without it.

Blog #4

Through years of Disney and Pixar creations, they heve continued to produce many inspirational movies, including all of the Disney Princess Movies, the entire Toy Story series,  The Lion King, The Incredibles, and Up. Within these movies, Disney and Pixar have also managed to slip deeper meanings into their movies that have a bit more meaning than just a smiling princess; what they added was a dystopian world within some of their movies. The specific one that I’m thinking of is Pixar’s WALL-E.

            In the world of dystopia fiction, there are many novels, plays, movies, and even games that fall into this category. WALL-E falls perfectly into this category due to the nature of the ship, of how the people on the ship lived, and how their information was controlled so that they only knew what the people in charge wanted them to know.

            The movie WALL-E takes place first on a dead Earth where there is no sort of living thing including plants, animals, or even people, all there was was a little robot named WALL-E who was sent to help clean up the rubble and collect anything that could mean that life was back to Earth. After WALL-E found something and another robot, EVA, came and brought it back to a ship, WALL-E jumped on board and entered into the dystopian world within the ship.

            Everyone from Earth was moved onto these ships so that they could be safe from all of the hazards that were on Earth. After being on the ships for so long, the controllers on the ships realized that  there were things that they could do on this ship that they couldn’t do on Earth. The created laid-back chairs that moved on their own so that people didn’t have to put effort into going somewhere if they needed to and if they needed to be somewhere, the chairs would take care of it, no problem. They also created robots so that if anything was needed, the robots could tend to their every need. The controllers also kept all troubling thoughts and the issues and information of Earth to themselves so as to not worry or misguide the people on the ship into thinking or even remembering where they were from. The chairs provided entertainment through TV, telephones, and computers, and the robots provided food, so essentially this world was perfect. All worries were gone and all needs were met.

            This was a very enjoyable movie, though very sad at points. Being that they didn’t even realize that they could go home and that this information was being held from them was really bothersome. The people on the ship had no choice in the matter, though because they had been there so long, that kind if life was all they knew, so it wasn’t until they realized that there was a world beyond their chair screens that they started making their own decisions of what to do.

"TheyJust Won't Mix"

    In the Article, "They Just Won't Mix,"James Montague wrote about The immigration issue in Spain from the view of a British man. He is a British person living in Spain and attending low priced night school so that he can learn Spanish, which is a language he has much trouble with. As the only Brit in the class, and one of the four Brits in the entire group of classes, he sits as a minority. Montague brings up the issue that Spain has about the British immigrants as a whole, which is that they, unlike most other immigrants, don’t take time to get to know the language or culture of their new country and even keep their kids segregated from the Spanish culture. Montague also brings up the fact that not only do the British generally not integrate with the Spanish when living there, they also make it challenging for anyone other than Brits to fit in, in their country. The Brits have highly priced school for English classes making it hard for the migrants to even learn the language.

    I find it really interesting to see what goes on in other countries when talking about immigration, being that I hear about America’s problems with it all of the time. It astounds me that when people go to Spain, it’s made easy for them to have the opportunity to try to learn the language and fit in, but when people go to Britain, it is made very complicated as though Britain just doesn’t want them there and will make it hard for them to succeed so that maybe they’ll leave. I also really likes Montague’s closing statement about how Spain sees teaching their language as an investment, which I can really see how that could be.






James Montegue, "They Just Won't Mix," New Statesmen, January 3, 2008.

An Argument in Everything

Being in a world surrounded by stereotypes and evil, we are put into a position of our minds being filled with loads of information, some true and some not, that can alter the way we perceive the world around us and our thoughts on different issues. When dealing with stereotypes, they can affect multiple subjects including, skin color, hair color, height, type of animal, may it be a dog or cat; kind of animal, whether it be a Poodle or a Rottweiler; and many others. The area I’m dealing with is that of a pit bull. These animals have been unfairly and unjustly stereotyped and as this picture exemplifies, there is another side to this argument.

For years, pit bulls have been known as ferocious monsters that should be feared and put down before they have the chance to bring anyone harm. Because of the vicious dog fighting rings that were breeding pits to fight to the death, tearing each other apart, leaving no life in their opponents, people started seeing these dogs as killers. Along with the illegal dog fights were the gangs and rappers who would then get pits as pets and train them to fight and walk them around as protection and for show to represent how tough they were, bringing an even worse image to the poor puppies. With such harsh images connected to these pups, people began to not give them a chance and only see pit bulls as murderers.

One problem with most of the people who hold this view, mostly because of their ignorance, is that they ignore the fact that these dogs are not born with teeth bared and a deep bark; they are born innocent and scared of the world around them. Just like all other puppies, they are new to the world and all they need is love and affection to survive (along with the whole food and water thing of course). These animals are actually known to be one of the most affectionate breeds who are said to bond to their companions closer than nearly all other breeds. Ironically, compared to what most people believe, pit bulls don’t actually make the best guard dog either, for they are extremely fond of humans. Pits are more likely to greet the intruder, hoping that they will share their love, than ward them off. Because of their muscular jaw structure, pit bulls can seem intense, but as soon as they can manage to sneak their head under a gentle hand, the intense look of their jaw turns into a sturdy smile that will rarely disappear. Pit bulls are also very gentle creatures, which has been publically noted through the use of pits as therapy dogs for the less fortunate.

As someone who was become very close with a pit bull and has had multiple friendly and adorable run-ins with other pit bulls who, I was a stranger to at the time, I can say that when given the chance and treated right these animals just want affection and someone who will play with them and love them with all of their heart. This isn’t the face of a monster that wants to rip you to shreds, it’s that of a puppy that will unpack your suit case when it sees that you’re leaving and will curl up and snuggle with you as long as you will share your embrace.

Necessary Elements for a Good Argument

Recognizing that arguments are a part of our lives that is entirely unavoidable, having a strong argumentation style is a very important skill to have. A large aspect of creating a strong argumentation style for one’s self is first recognizing what one’s style of arguing is, for in order to improve on a specific area, one needs to know where they are starting from.

As someone who has been raised being the youngest of a large group of people with strong opinions, creating a strong argumentation style for myself at a young age was very important in order to survive with my life being how I chose for it to be without the forceful influences of the people around me. Though finding common ground is definitely the best and most passive way of going about an argument “successfully”, essentially meaning without entirely losing, that is not the most successful way of following through with an argument, for success ends with a complete win, no partial victory.

Having one-on-one arguments being the easiest of the varieties of argument options because there is only one party’s mind to alter compared to a large group, such as in a courtroom argument, if there is the option of bringing the argument down to just a one-on-one situation, one should do their best to do so. Having only one person on either side makes it not only less intimidating for you, but also, the opposition has no one to back them up so the chance of being able to catch them up in their words and back them into a corner increases. Another great part about the opposition not having any support is that their opinion can be slightly altered and there wouldn’t be anyone to help them find their way back to their original view. Once someone you’re arguing with is off their original stance, their affectability lessens in their argument, because not all support will match up.

One of the most important elements of an argument is knowing one’s stance. It is very crucial to know every aspect of one’s side of an argument, including all of the facts and rumors of the topic, and any cons that may be viewed by the opposing side that will need to be refuted with strong support for the original view. With all of the information available for one’s stance in one’s mind from the start, nothing should be able to be thrown out by the opposition that might through one off and weaken their argument making them either shaken up or unsure of further support because some of the stated support has been revoked for any number of reasons. The number one way of winning is with concrete support, and as soon as that support turns to mush, the chances of having a solid win minimalizes.

Emotion is one of the other elements in an argument that can either make or break it. One should get personal with the issue so that they know it inside and out, and with that comes can come emotion and passion, which can help strengthen the argument. Also passion of a subject can help, too much of it can entirely destroy one’s efforts of the argument from the inside out. The argument starts becoming too emotional and personal and the concrete support will most likely start lessening as the opinions start greatening, which makes the respect for your argument die along with the concrete support.

Though there are many elements to a strong argument, I feel that these are the most effective for success and are for sure the elements that have helped me win the many debates and arguments that I have faced through the years.