Saturday, December 22, 2007

Week 5, Post B

Before I read this chapter I thought Sai was a really Quite girl who tried to connect with people around her but i was wrong. After reading this i have realized how strong sai is. sai's grandfather had invited his one and only niece named lola to his house and when she walked in the house Sai was the first to greet her. sai had been really shy when she was little but after the whole thing with her parents she noticed that there is no one she can talk to unless she starts to talk so now she is more open to everyone she meets. Sai and Lola have a good relationship when Lola moves in. They talk about everything and they have a lot in common. In this section one important thing also happens , Biju for the first time in years has called the cook and talked. This was a major break though for the cook because he didn't think his son cared but now he knows that he does. after this has happened Sai fells relieved. Now Sai kind of feels like a family because she has someone she can talk to and everyone feels connected. This is probably the most important part in the book because it puts everything together.

Week 5, Post A

Vocab:
foliage-(p.244)-the leaves of a plant, collectively; leafage
dispel-(p.255)-to drive off in various directions; disperse; dissipate: to dispel the dense fog.

Quote:
"Are you alright?" asked Biju.-(p.254)-This quote represents that Biju finally realizes that his father loves him very much and that he hasn't cared about him in the past years.

Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Week 4, Post B

In this section i feel that sai finally for the first time since she has moved in with her grandpa she felt like she was part of a family but not with her grandfather. Sai has been wishing to have a mother and father but that can't happen. the Cook has wanted his son to come back but he can't because his son needs to earn money so he can also make a living. Now The cook has treated Sai like his daughter because they see each other every day and they both feel a father daughter connection. The Cook talks to Sai about when he was little and when he was sai's age. sai is really interested because she really didn't know her real parents history so wished to hear about the cook. After reading this section i was kind of confused because the cook forgets about his son in america and acts like he doesn't have a son, just a daughter. I also feel very happy for Sai because she finally found someone she can talk to and someone to love. reading this book it's kind of weird because it never says where sai's grandpa is but he just pops out of no where and starts talking sometimes. in the beginning i thought sai would have a really good relation with her grandfather but it turns out her relationship is better with the cook. It must be really weird for sai to have a better relationship with an outsider than with family.

Week 4, Post A

theme:
They feel warmth and family like. This section Sai and the Cook feel warmth and feel like a family.

Vocab:
venom-(p.179)-something resembling or suggesting poison in its effect; spite
bemused-(p.183)-bewildered or confused

Tuesday, December 4, 2007

Week 3, Part B

In this section Sai gets closer to the cook and the cook becomes friends with sai . they act like family now and they can trust each other. when sai has something she wants to talk about and doesn't know what to do she goes and askes the cook. Sometimes when Sai thinks about it she kind of wished that the cook was her father but whenever the cook talks about his son it's a whole different feeling for Sai. In this section sai reflects her own feelings and thinks though a lot of things. Sai think a lot about her parents and has decided to let her parents go and forget about them so that she wouldn't be as depressed all the time. Sai really wished d=she had a family to love but the closes thing she has is the cook and her grandpa, which is not her real grandpa he is the father of her adopted parents. sai has not said much to her"grandpa" but she feels a connection but doesn't know how to confront him sometimes. Sai's grandpa doesn't really talk but some how sai feels that he cares and wants to do something nice and take care of sai. The cook once talk to sai's grandpa and he said to bring Sai back when he had found out what had happened to sai's parents and if he didn't care he wouln't have had the cook bring sai to his house. In this section there is a bit of confusion but hopfully i will find some answers in the next section.

Week 3, Part A

Theme: one theme that takes place in this book right now is trust because Sai really has to trust the people she is living with because if she doesn't there is no one else she can trust. The people that sai lives with most trust her to because they are trying to be family but they are taking it one step st a time.

vocab:
barricaded-(p104)-a defensive barrier hastily constructed, as in a street, to stop an enemy.
patels-(121)-in Acronym Finder

Thursday, November 29, 2007

Types of Debates

Political debates: these debates occur on T.V., The purpose is to see which see is right, it helps deciding which side is better, it is structured, it effects the decision making because if they have really good points you might believe in them more.

School debates: occurs at school, purpose is to settle an argument between two groups, it helps you decide when one group has better points than the other, it is kind of structured.

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

Week 2, Post B

In this section it talks about Biju which is the cook’s son. The cook usually talks to Sai about his son and that’s all they talk about. The cook talks about his son so much Sai always says she knows more about Biju than the cook. Sai has never met Biju but knows a lot about him. The cook cares a lot about Biju but Biju doesn’t really care. Biju lives in America and bounces from one job to the next, in the past year he has had over twenty different jobs. Once in a while biju will write to his father but all his letters usually say is don’t worry about me I have a job. Sai doesn’t like how Biju treats his father because Sai really wants a family to care for but doesn’t have one, and Biju has family and doesn’t care for them. Sai really wish she had a family like Biju to love but she doesn’t and every time she thinks about the more she hates Biju. Sai tries writing a letter to Biju to care for his family before they leave you and before you regret it but when Sai asked the cook for the Address of where Biju lives, the cook asked to read it. When the cook read the letter he was furious and got so mad at Sai. The cook had told Sai that if that letter was sent out it would affect Biju and his work so the letter was never sent. The cook in side really wanted Biju to see that letter and really love his father but it would affect Biju in making money. At the end the cook quietly kept the letter in his cabinet and never spoke of it again.

Week 2, Post A

Defecated-(p.54)-to void excrement from the bowels through the anus; have a bowel movement.
Introverted-(p.67)- To turn or direct inward.

"Bite your tongue, you evil little girl. Take back your words!" shouted the cook. (p.98) after reading this quote i have really realized how sensible the cook is and if you say anything bad about his son he will never talk to you and treat you worse than anyone has ever treated you. the cook loves his son but his son doesn't know it. his son is in America and never goes back to see how his dad's doing or if he's okay. from what the book says Biju(cook's son) doesn't even know if the cook is alive or not.

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Week 1, Post B

I think that in the beginning of this book it does a great way explaining where Sai lives and how it feels to be her. It also shows how scary it is for Sai to live in the house with people she doesn’t really know. I think Sai is very brave because although she doesn’t know the people she is living with, she still tries to communicate with them. Sai has always tried to love the people around her as much as possible all her life but by the time she really connects to them they leave her and now that has really left a scar in her heart because now she doesn’t want to love anymore. Sai is going though a hard life because when she was really little her real parents had already died. Then her foster parents had adopted her but about a year ago her foster parents had both died in Russia so she really doesn’t have any relatives left to care for anymore. After reading the life that Sai is going though I feel very lucky to have all the things that I have. I also fell that all the times I said something were unfair, they really weren’t that unfair compared to the life Sai’s living. This book is really descriptive and very exciting, when you are reading this book it makes you want to keep on reading because one thing chains on to another so once you read one more chapter you want to read the next.

Week 1, Post A

wrought-(p13)-produced or shaped by beating with a hammer, as iron or silver articles.
quota-(p15)-the share or proportional part of a total that is required from, or is due or belongs to, a particular district, state, person, group, etc.

"They're dead, dead". This was said by Sai and it tells us that she has nobody with no family members no friends. She has never told anyone what had happened to her parents before but this is the first time she had realized that her parents are gone and she will never be able to see her again.

Monday, November 12, 2007

Imformation for book approval

Book name: the Inheritance of Loss
Author: Kiran Desai
Publish Date: 2006
Genre: Fiction
Number of Pages:357
Evidence it is a book for sophomores: It seems like a hard novel because there are lots of thing in this book about history.It also has lots of challenging words.
Why you Chose the Book: Got recommended to me, and looks interesting.

Sunday, October 28, 2007

The Sea Inside Post 3

In "The Sea Inside" I think the camera technique that is used the most is close-up because when ever they are very emotional in the movie they have a close-up of their faces. They also use high angle to look at Ramon when he is lying in the bed i think this makes him feel smaller than others and to feel useless. In the movie they also used dolly a couple of times to show that they are angry. When the attorney was looking at the poems Ramon had written they used an extreme close up at the letters and at her face to show her facial expressions at the time. There were a lot of techniques used in this movie but I think most of them were used to show the actors feelings and expressions.

The Sea Inside Post 2

I think the biggest difference between "The Sea Inside" and "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" was that in "The Sea Inside" Ramon wanted to die and in "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" jean didn't. Ramon would always ask people to let him die but no one would help him. Jean Dominque never asked to die but instead wrote a book telling people how it's like living in a locked in syndrome. i think Ramon had more freedom then Jean because Ramon was able to talk and move his head. I also think Jean is stronger than Ramon because jean tried to live his life even though he couldn't move and Ramon just wanted to die.

The Sea Inside Post 1

I think Ramon had a right to die and when the court said no i was really surprised because I think each person has a right to die or live. When his family didn't let Ramon die I had two different reactions , one was Ramon shouldn't die because it would make everyone really sad and someone would be convicted of murder, but on the other hand i thought Ramon should be able to die because he doesn't want to suffer anymore. In the end when Ramon explained how he was able to die without getting the courts permission i thought was really clever because if one person helped him they would go to jail but Ramon had multiple people helping him. I also thought it was smart of him to video tape it so everyone knows that he wanted to die and it wasn't anyone else fault.

Saturday, October 20, 2007

Week 5

Summary:
In this section Julie's mom and Dad are constantly yelling at each other. one day Julie's mom was yelling at Julie's dad and he got so mad he took it out on Julie. Julie's dad grabbed Julie by the head and started yelling at her about dropping her kleenexes everywhere, Julie started tell her dad that it wasn't her but her mom would just say she's always making excuses and not to believe her. Julie's dad believed julie's mom and slammed Julie's head on the corner of the coffee table. At that moment Julie didn't even cry because she was sure that she would die. In that split second she felt relief because she could die and not live in this world anymore. After this has happened Julie finally wanted to come out and tell the world what she was going threw. One day Julie went up to her brother and wanted him to go with her and tell everyone about their parents but when julie asked if he remembered all the things their parents did he just say no and didn't agree to anything julie said. when this had happened Julie went alone to tell her psychologist by herself but they didn't believe her instead they thought Julie was crazy.

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Week 4, Part 2

In this section the doctor's have finally figured out what was wrong with Julie but they wern't absolutly right. Julie's mom was so happy that Julie was going to the hospital but not because she knew Julie was getting better it was because that way she knew Julie was very sick. After Julie got home from the hospital her mom was really upset because that meant that julie was okay for awhile. when they got home Julie's mom got a horse for julie because had nothing to do when she wasn't at the doctor's. Julie was really happy to have a horse because when she was riding it, it was the only time Julie wasn't controlled by her mom.

Sunday, October 14, 2007

Quotes from Memoir (Week 4, Part 1)

Sickened by Julie Gregory
"honey do you look alright/ You're looking a little peak-id." (p 17)
This quote is often said by julie's mom even though julie looks find, it was another excuse to get julie to the doctors.
"I mean I try to get her into the 4-h, she's tired. We get in the car, she's carsick. i mean, I'm a good mother, what did I do to deserve this?"(p 102)
These are the word mrs. gregory tells the doctor about julie.

Monday, October 8, 2007

Reflection on "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly"

After reading this book i feel really lucky to be who i am. Just thinking of being in a locked in syndrome is very scary. If i was in a locked in syndrome and the only way to communicate with the outside world was by blinking my eye lid i would be so scared. I do not think i would even want to live anymore and i would never have written a book if i was unable to move. I wouldn't know what to do because i would not be able to talk to anyone. The way Jean Dominique describes how he is in this locked in syndrome must have been really hard i can not even imagine writing a book by a blink of an eye. When I am reading this book i always think about how much time Jean Dominique had on his hand. I also think about if Jean Dominique hadn't written this book we would never know how he lived during the time he was in a locked in syndrome. Not only would it be hard for Jean to communicate, but also it would have been hard for Jean's children to communicate with him. Jean probably wrote this book just to tell us not to give up and even if you can not move you can still accomplish a lot of things. I have also realized that i should be happy with who i am because time if something happens like what happened to Jean Dominique your life could be taken from you in a split second.

Sunday, October 7, 2007

Week 3 Part 2

In the book sickened i sort of feel sad for julie because of what her mom does to her but on the side of me i don't feel bad for her because she doesn't do anything about. I think that is Julie doesn't want to go to the doctor she should tell her parent. but Julie doesn't do anything her mom doesn't want her to do. she raher get hurt then tell her mother.

Week 3 Part 1


www.enotalone.com/img/partners/775.jpg

1) In this section Julie mom is almost strangled to death by her husband. If it wasn't for julie her mom would have been dead. Julie's mom was just trying to talk to him about the kids and finance problems. when Julie saw this happen she quickly ran to the kitchen to grab the gun and point it at her dad's head. after all this has happened Julie's mom relizes that Julie doesn't hate her for all the things she has done to her. Julie's mom has been nicier to julie but still continues to take her to the doctor. When she is tested with many tests but they still don't know what is wrong with her so the doctors usually give Julie pills to help her with her headaches. Julie's mom doesn't really keep track of all the pills that Julie eats but when Julie looks sick her mom just gives her more than what she's supposed to eat. Julie's mom also takes in some foster kids at their house, She's doing this because then she gets child welfare all the other stuff that comes with it like food and money.

2) Julie was born on May 16, 1969. when Julie was little she just had little things like headaches or sore throats. but as time went by her mom kept bring her to the doctor and soon had symptoms of a heart condition and needed surgery. Julie didn't refuse anything her mother wanted to do to her whether it was taking pills, getting surgery, or hurting herself Julie did all of this just to make her mother happy.
http://www.juliegregory.com/sicked.htm

Wednesday, September 26, 2007

10 Loaded Words (Section 1)

Masive pg42 (-)
Slave pg48 (-)
Flakey pg55 (-)
Diabetic pg60 (-)
Taut pg67 (-)
Death pg67 (-)
weak pg68 (-)
Strong pg68 (+)
Slender pg70 (+)
Chicken legs pg 70 (-)

In this section Julie's new brother is born and everyone is happy. Julie is so jelous of her brother because he is loved by everyone and most of all he is healthy. Julie went to the doctors and the doctor told her not to eat specific foods but Julie's mom forced her to eat what ever she wasn't supposed to. they also had Veteran's living in their house because if they let veterans live with them they will get more money and won't have to pay for a lot of things like food and electric bills and stuff like that.

My reaction on this section is that i think the mom just wants attention on her because she always brings julie to the doctor even when Julies feeling fine. Julie's mom also tells Julie's dad that Julie and her brother do really bad things even though they didn't do anything.

Outside reading section 1 summary

Julie is a very sickly child as her mom would say as she went to the doctor more than twice a week. Julie is weak but she is not as sick as her mom thinks she is. sometimes Julie feels sick and needs to go to the doctor but her mom would tell the doctor she is really sick and lie about what's really wrong with Julie. Usually Julie would have headaches but her mom would say she 's vomiting , doesn't want to eat, and maybe even having a fever. Julie doesn't really know why her mom does this but she just goes with whatever her mom says.

My reaction on this section is that i think the mom really want's to find out what is wrong with her daughter but she is making Julie more sick than she really is and if she keeps doing this she is never going to figure out what is wrong with her.

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

this i believe assignment

1. A link to the essay
www.npr.com/templates/stories.php?storyID=14080528
2. Author
Robin Baudie
3.Title
The strange Blessing that Brought Me Home
4.one sentence of what the belief is
I believe in a strange blessing
5.2 examples in the story that showed their belief
one example is that the hurricane brought her closer to her family
second she doesn't have back pains anymore
6.1 favorrite passage
the hurricane that took my home away brought me home

Wednesday, September 5, 2007

One goal I have

One goal I have at the High school is to get straight A's. Last year I didn't really study enough for tests so I wasn't able to get all A's but hopefully I will be able to do better this year. This year i'm going to try harder and hope that i can achieve my goal.

One thing I'm anxious about at EHS

One thing I'm anxious about at the Edina High School is getting to know new people and making new friends. I'm also anxious about my classes because they are going to be different from middle school classes. Overall I'm pretty excited to be in high school.