Writing for HS, AM (Scalice, '07): Stephanie Chan

Causes and Effects of Global Warming

(SChan) — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 02:22:27 GMT

Global Warming is rapidly evolving into the core problem that essential personnel, such as environmentalists, climatologists and Al Gore should primarily focus on. While one may state that issues such as poverty have more importance, issues such as the above are nothing compared to Global Warming. Issues in similarity to the above should be correctly classified as secondary. It is simple logic of the fact that, if we neglect to stop Global Warming, then our world will be ravaged beyond recognition. It would be pointless to even try to solve other problems before stopping Global Warming.
Perhaps, the human race has no knowledge of when exactly our planet began to deteriorate. However this does not evade the uncompromising fact that if we do not act soon the world will be plunged into chaos. Various regions of the planet will have the ice age upon them while others will be turned into scorching hot deserts. Extreme weather will be common, as well as weather will be awkwardly out of place. Even though there are floods today, this disaster will continue to increase until entire locations are submerged under water. Hail will grow to the size of golf balls as rain fall and storms increase. Both plant and animal species possibly will become extinct through the effects of Global Warming.
Overwhelming proof leads us to ourselves as the source of global warming. The greenhouse effect helps keeps the earth’s temperature in check, but with alarmingly increasing greenhouse gasses dating back from the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, the ozone layer weakens. Weakening the already weak ozone layer will make us even more vulnerable to the sun. Major contributing gasses to Global Warming are water vapor and carbon dioxide. The U.S. is the largest producer of carbon dioxide, followed closely by China, Russia, Japan and India. Also, over the past thirty years, ice has been melting at an alarming rate of nine percent per decade. Ice melting disturbs the oceans’ currents and causes the sea levels begin to rise. Polar bears now have to move to land to give birth because the ice keeps getting scarcer. If the sea levels begin to rise more rapidly, countries could even be under water very soon.
Some people say that global warming is not going to happen until a hundred years later or so. Some people even say “Why try? We’re all going to die anyway and doing little things don’t make a difference.” Well I beg to differ. Global warming is already happening today and if you look at the news, there will be articles and stories about the new tycoon that murdered many people, wild fires in Lake Tahoe, floods that swept away little children etc. We are all going to die someday but what are we going to leave for the next generations? Are we going to leave them this problem to solve? We created this so we should be the ones to solve it. Little things do make a difference though. Turning off lights when you do not need them and walking to places where you don’t need to drive makes a huge difference. When it is cold inside, wear lots of clothes and block any drafts that you notice. Switch regular light bulbs to fluorescent ones and if you’re driving a car, change it to a solar powered, electricity powered, or hydrogen powered one. Better yet, take BART, metro or MTR. Little things can help this situation a lot more than you can imagine.
Global Warming is the primary problem that is facing humanity at the moment. If we take time to solve other problems then our world will be gone and our efforts were all in vain. What use is it, to solve the issue of poverty then have the world destroyed after that? If we do not focus on how to prevent global warming from happening then our world and everything in it will be gone.

Goodbye Allos Hello Carlos

(SChan) — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 13:31:26 GMT

[still working XP]

Everyone goes through changes when they’re growing up. You start to realize that the world isn’t always such a “dandy” and “lovely” place. You began to think about things differently and your innocence begins to die away. Carlos Bulosan has changed the most in the book. He used to be young and depend on his family but now he has learned to be independent. He has learned that the world can be very cruel sometimes and that at times all you have is yourself.
“But I knew it was the end of my life in Mangusmana, the end of the bitter days of childhood. It was actually the end of my life with my father, the end of my farming life in the Philippines, the end of blinding heat and heavy rains. I was leaving all of my childhood now, leaving forever to face the demands of sudden manhood, and there was no return journey anywhere. I knew I could not go back to Mangusmana, and my father knew it too because he witnessed it before, when my own brothers went the way I was going, away from him and his earth forever. (pg.30)
At a young age, his mind matured and he knew that he had to leave and face manhood even though he didn’t want to. When you become older, you have to face things that you don’t want to because you know the consequence. When you’re younger you don’t think before you act. You just act!
‘“Did you bring home a book with pictures?” I asked.
‘“Sure,” he said. “But you should wait until you are better.”
“I would like to look at the pictures now,” I said. (p.32)

Even though Bulosan is maturing he still has some childlike qualities within him. In the first quote he was ill in bed but he asked his brother, Macario if he had brought a book with pictures. When Macario said to wait until Bulosan was better, Bulosan said that he wanted to look at the book now, no matter what kind of physical state he was in.
“I wanted to laugh because it was so comical, but my mother looked at me with angry eyes. “Someday you will understand these things,” she said, looking up at the house. ” (p.35)

In this second quote, a poor and ill woman begged Bulosan’s Mother for a taste of boggong. Her hands were cracked and she asked if she could at least dip her hands in it. Bulosan’s Mother said yes and the woman dipped her injured hands into it quickly and pulling it out because it burned. She dipped her hands in some water and drank from the bowl with hunger. She ran to her house for rice to mix it up with the leftovers of the boggong. Bulosan wanted to laugh because she looked so strange but if he had been older, he probably would’ve looked at the woman surprisingly or at least felt pity for her.
“I was getting restless and fearful of the uncertainty that pervaded our household. I felt like running away- anywhere. I wanted to cast off the sudden gloom that shadowed our family, and I thought the only way to that was to escape from it. I would also be escaping from my family, and from the bitter memories of childhood.” (pg. 63)

When kids grow into the teenage stage they become restless. They want to be older and try to persuade their parents if they could do this by themselves or at least do it with friends and with no parent supervision. They want to be independent like baby birds first learning how to fly. They struggle to spread their wings at first but they’re restless to fly correctly.
“But the girl was pretty and her body was nicely curved and graceful, and she had a way of saying that aroused confused sensations in me.” (p.105)

“I wanted a weapon- anything to hit back at these white men who had leaped upon us from the dark.” (pg. 110)

Bulosan became attracted to women as he matured like any boy growing. However, his peaceful childhood self disappeared with the second quote. He not only wanted to just watch violence but be part of it. As he grows up, he realizes that violence surrounds him because he is a Philippine and he feels like he could never escape it in California. Instead of trusting people on the spot like how children trust people he began to not trust anyone, afraid of being hurt or killed.
“I knew that there was nothing better than life, even a hard life, even a frustrated life. Yes, even a broken-down gambler’s life. And I wanted to live.”(pg.116) As Bulosan switches from time to time, he’s beginning to finally understand that it’s a dog eat dog world in America. He realizes that he has to survive no matter what and admits that he has to survive no matter how hard it was. If it was a child they would’ve just pushed away reality. Bulosan is beginning to grow in many ways.
As the book progresses, Bulosan begins to fully leave his childhood. He goes into gambling houses, gets raped, meets plenty of strangers etc. He works anywhere and keeps on finding his brothers and their friends. “I thought I had lost interest in everything. But here I was again, working industriously as before, hoping to survive another winter. It was a planless life, hopeless, and without direction. I was merely living from day to day: yesterday seemed long ago and tomorrow was too far away. It was today that I lived for aimlessly, this hour- this moment. It gave me an acute sense of time that has remained with me.” (169) Bulosan implies that he’s working more diligently than ever just to survive. He realizes that time is scarce, that today is really the only day to care about. It’s now. Whatever he does at the moment can affect his tomorrow so today is all that matters. Yesterday has already happened so why should he worry about it.
“Then I knew surely that I had become a new man. I could fight the world now with my mind, not merely with my hands. My weapon could not be taken away from me any more. I had an even chance to survive the brutalities around me. But I was beginning to cough, and I could not sleep at night. I was sick: the years of hunger had found me last.”(224-225) Many men believe that violence can solve all problems. They say to fight physically but Bulosan is smart. He found out that he doesn’t have to fight the world with his hands. He could fight it with his wits, his words. However, now he was becoming sick and this is when he matured the most. He began to write poems about his life and send them to newspaper. His friend Eileen kept him company and also brought books when she visited him in the ward.
“How could I forget one of the most significant events in my childhood? How could I have forgotten a tragedy that was to condition so much of my future life?”(283) Bulosan has been through so much that he had already forgotten a major part of his life back in Binalonan like a very old man. When you face so many things in your life that has made it hard you tend to forget that you ever had a nice life for once.

How my Brother Leon Brought Home his Wife

(SChan) — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 17:46:11 GMT

Why did they go through the Waig?
Father asked if they seen anyone on the way so obviously he didn't want the couple to be seen. pg16
Father wanted Maria to deal with the countryside change. He's testing her and seeing if she would fit in.

Maria is tall, pretty, has dimples and smells like papayas in bloom.
Baldo is about twelve years old and he's very innocent.

He describes things really well. Pg. 6

She is from Manila and the brothers are from the countryside.

Why was Leon first mad about going the long way?
He doesn't know what's going on.

Why did her tone of voice change when Leon mentioned Manong, his home?
She's afraid of not being accepted with the Father. Leon starts to sing 'Sky Sown with Stars' the song he and Father sang. He taught it to her so he's introducing her to the countryside and trying to comfort her.

Why did Baldo think that the girls were crying?
Tears of joy and she never met the family.

Why did the father ask if Maria was afraid of Lebang?
He's testing her.
Why did Father ask Baldo to water Lebang when the couple came in?
After interrogating Baldo about Maria he sends him out because he accepts her.

Why does she call Leon, Noel?
Does Leon have two identities?
Leon is old fashioned name. Noel is a cutting edge name.
younger generations were now foreign to older generations. America was in control of the Phillipines back then so there was American influence.

Father's interrogation(pg. 17) ends and he accepts her.

daintily
elongated
waver
vanish

Themes between the two:
City life vs Rural Life.
What did City and Country mean to Bulosan and Arguilla? How did the experience affect them?
They mean many things to each other.
Modern vs. Not Adapting
A
The City adapts to the country in the person of Maria.
personal

B
The country adapts to the city in the person of Carlos.
social

Dream Countryside vs Nightmare, Real Countryside
Old Customs and Traditions vs. New Ideals

How my Brother Leon Brought Home his Wife

(SChan) — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 17:46:11 GMT

Maria is tall, pretty, has dimples and smells like papayas in bloom.
Baldo is about twelve years old and he's very innocent.

He describes things really well. Pg. 6

She is from Manila and the brothers are from the countryside.

Why was Leon first mad about going the long way?
He doesn't know what's going on.

Why did Baldo think that the girls were crying?
Tears of joy and she never met the family.

Father's interrogation(pg. 17) ends and he accepts her.

daintily
elongated
waver
vanish

B
The country adapts to the city in the person of Carlos.
social

Dream Countryside vs Nightmare, Real Countryside
Old Customs and Traditions vs. New Ideals

Sin City

(SChan) — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 07:37:57 GMT

I have never seen Sin City so I can not judge it. From what I have read , I agree that David Walsh is right. Directors use gore and torture to attract people. However, sometimes it is taken to an extreme. For example in Sin City, David said that Marv shot a guy in the chest and in the crotch. You don't have to shoot a guy twice. Marv thought “When I find out who did it, it won’t be quick or quiet like it was with you. No, it’ll be loud and nasty, my kind of kill. I’ll stare the bastard in the face and laugh as he screams to God and I’ll laugh harder when he whimpers like a baby.” After reading that I became terrified. Why does everyone in the world like to take revenge. It's not healthy. What Marv thought is really twisted and corrupted. Also the directors said," ..This is human nature. Brutish and cruel." Human nature is not just that. Yes I admit that we can be cruel, even brutish maybe but we also have a caring and nice side as well.

Movies have changed over the years. Back in the 1900's we used to watch movies with great plot and with barely any killing. There were barely any scary movies too until the late 1900's. Now most of the movies in theaters are r-rated that contain violence, horror etc. What has happened to movies about human life situations? Yes I admit that one of the reasons that I like going to the movies is that anything can happen. However I don't want to go see people's limbs being torn out of their body and being fed to the dogs. Whoever really likes seeing those kind of movies have some kind of mental problem. I like to see only a little bit of blood and plenty of action but today's movies are just too extreme for my liking. Also they follow the stereotypes for heros and women and the plot is usually horrible. It's like the directors are thinking," How much gore can we put into this movue?" David mentioned Christianity in this article and about how we can watch it and realize that we are living in a sin city. However, there are other ways to realize that we are living in a sin city and that we can only be saved by his health. We can watch the news and see what is going on the world. Most the news today talk about murders and drugs. Isn't that enough proof that we are living in a sin city? Also the news talk about celebrities going to rehab and ending up in jail. You don't need to watch Sin City to realize that we are living in a bad world.

Worldview Response

(SChan) — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 07:13:10 GMT

What the author is saying is that the world has turned into a horrible place. Robberies, poverty, global warming and suffering are some examples. Most of the terrible things that are happening are usually human caused. It's not that we do not have enough but other people have too much. We now define people by how rich and poor they are. How come laborers barely get any money when they do all the work for the rich? What has happened to our consciences? Have we become so corrupeted that we only think and care about ourselves? We need to make room for change and take action. However before we change what we have caused we must change ourselves. We have to stop talking about change and actually take action.

I am persuaded by this worldview because the given evidence is mostly true. However I disagree with some of the authors details. The author implied that the rich is one of our problems. I don't think that it's just them but the poor too. Some people have quit school to get a job but they couldn't get one because they had limited education. Is it the rich people's fault that they quit school? Also the events happening are not only caused but some are unfortuanete circumstances. We have no control of what's going to happen and of our birth. If I were to write such an essay, one of the basic premises of it would be that those wo ignore situations are part of the problem as well because they don't do anything that stop it. I would also list more examples about how the world is turning worse everyday.

Night in the Everglades

(SChan) — Thu, 28 Jun 2007 18:31:22 GMT

The first impression I had of the Everglades was tranquility. It was night and the sky was ebony with stars twinkling like Christmas lights. I could see the constellations as Mr. Parrish pointed them out to our club. One of my favorites that he pointed out was the Ursa Major, the magnificient bear that ruled the night sky. As I looked up at the Seven Sisters, another constellation that looked back down on me. It made me feel small. At the moment I knew how ants feel.

Students were milling around, whispering to one another like best friends spilling out their secrets. They would point out things to each other and shine the flashlights out in the swampy marsh like candles shining their light. Mr. Parrish and Mrs. Owen constantly had to shush us like we were young children. "You're going to scare Mother Nature away," Mr. Parrish scolded. "You're like kids sprinting towards the ice cream truck on a hot summer day."

The scent of the marsh crawled up my nose and Id realized that it would be a scent I would never forget. It was so different from the suburban air I was used to but I embraced the change. It made me feel more alive as love makes elders feel younger. Somehow I knew I had never smelled something so wonderful before. I wished my friends back home could smell it too.

Even though my impression of the Everglades is tranquility, there was a sense of eeriness as well. As my friend, TJ, and I peered over the bridge, we looked down at the murky water. Red eyes soon appeared, piercing our gazes. Somewhere in the distance, a bired called out, making TJ and I shiver. "Those red eyes are gators,"Mr. Parrish whispered in our ears. "When they are antagonized, they hiss and that's when you know you need to run as fast as a cheetah chasing after its prey. Hopefully we won't hear that sound tonight." Mr. Parrish rasped before walking away. TJ and I stared right into the hypnotic eyes of the alligator and it hissed like an angry cat. We left the bridge and quickly headed toward the front of the group like mice needing protection from the owl.

The group walked slowly, listening to the tour guide rant on and on about all the animals in the Everglades. I thought he would never stop talking. I liked it much better when it was just me and TJ. All you could hear was the crocodiles and alligators swimming and hissing, the birds singing its eerie song and our breathing. Now the whole scene was destroyed by the asinine tour guide. As we neared the exit, a light shone out to us, coaxing us to go back onto the bus and take a good night's rest.