Mayhem in Missouri

    Recently in Missouri (as in last weekend) there were huge tornados. The death toll is at least 89. The death toll will most likely rise with devastating outcome. Approximately 2,000 buildings were damaged in the wreckage. The path of the tornado was about 6 miles long.

     I feel really bad right now for the people that have to go through this loss. I imagine it was like a living nightmare. I can't even begin to understand what those people were going through and what they are still going through:(

Currently Sad:)

Mattie:)

The Beatles Give Peace A Try

          One of my favorite songs of all time is Give Peace A Chance by John Lennon. It doesn't get better than this song.

Ev'rybody's talkin' 'bout
Bagism, Shagism, Dragism, Madism, Ragism, Tagism
This-ism, that-ism, ism ism ism
All we are saying is give peace a chance
All we are saying is give peace a chance

(C'mon)
Ev'rybody's talkin' 'bout
Minister, Sinister, Banisters and Canisters,
Bishops, Fishops, Rabbis, and Pop Eyes, Bye bye, Bye byes
All we are saying is give peace a chance
All we are saying is give peace a chance

(Let me tell you now)
Ev'rybody's talkin' 'bout
Revolution, Evolution, Masturbation, Flagellation, Regulation,
Integrations, mediations, United Nations, congratulations
All we are saying is give peace a chance
All we are saying is give peace a chance

Ev'rybody's talkin' 'bout
John and Yoko, Timmy Leary, Rosemary,
Tommy Smothers, Bobby Dylan, Tommy Cooper,
Derek Taylor, Norman Mailer, Alan Ginsberg, Hare Krishna
Hare Hare Krishna
All we are saying is give peace a chance
All we are saying is give peace a chance

 This song has so many different values and cultures incorporated in the lyrics. This song is really good for whats going on right now in the news. I mean we have delusional Gaddafi, Dead Osama and all the other power struggles/revolutions that have happened in the past year. I think the lyrics to this song is very inspirational because we really should Give Peace A Chance.
Mattie:)

Interview with Ali:)

          When you first see Ali you notice his thick outgoing personality and his energetic laugh that makes you think he loves his life. Ali is a blast to get to know and I was fortunate enough to get this opportunity to ask him questions. Ali is from Ghana and is attending my school as a foreign exchange student. Everyone in my school has gotten to know Ali and has learned many things from his presence in our school. So lets get started with the Q&A interview!!!!


Q&A WITH ALI!


Q: Who inspires you?
A: My Dad. He's always ready to take responsibility for his actions. He's also a great leader. I look up to him a lot.


Q: What are your dreams for the future, after linworth?
A: I would like to be a medical doctor. I want to help kids that have malaria in Africa.


Q: How do you access most of your current events?
A: My host mom helps a lot with getting big news to me and explaining what happened.


Q: What are your passions and interests?.
A: I love soccer. I also like facebook because it helps me connect with my friends from home. I really enjoy reading. My favorite author is Charles Dickens.


Q: What are schools like in Ghanna?
A: In Ghanna the schools are boarding schools. So I am used to being away from my family but when I am with my friends it's like being with a huge family. We have a student council in my schoola dn i was vice president. Schools in Ghanna are based mostly on memorization and schools here are based more on discussion.


Q: What did you think of the weather?
A: The snow was cool. The weather on Ghanna is really different.


Q: What advice do you have for future linworth students?
A: I think you should be really open to making new friends.


Q: What is something most people do not know about you?
A: Most people do not know how to say my full name.


Q: What is your favorite class?
A: Chemistry, I like Mark a lot.


Q: What is your favorite ice cream?
A: Vanilla with Chocolate chips.


Q: What are some things you did for the first time here?
A: I went swimming, I went skiing.


    Ali experienced a lot of things here. In Ghana Ali did things we can't even imagine such as riding elephants. It was a pleasure to get to know Ali and hear his amazing stories. Ali has made lots of friends and likes his host family a lot. I hope to get to know Ali more over the course of the year and we will all miss him. It was great to meet Ali. I was very pleased with this interview.
Currently Answering,
Mattie:)

Favorite Movies!

         One of my favorite things to do on a rainy day is  snuggling up with a blanket and watching movies in the comfort of my own home. I deem the movies I watch on these days rainy day movies! Some silly uplifting movies can make your day fun and humorous. Some sad, tear-jerking movies leave you in a pondering mood and help you 'get in touch with your emotions'.
        Some movies I really enjoy are The Pursuit of Happyness, Roman Holiday and Funny Face. I like Dreamgirls, The Blind Side and Legally Blonde.  I love all the Harry Potter movies. Honestly just curling up with a good movie and hearing the rain drip outside is enough to put me in a great mood.  I think inspiring actors that tell a story with their role make movies so believable and i really enjoy watching them and getting into them. I guess i just really enjoy the art of a movie:)
Currently Watching,
Mattie:)

I ACT like such a DREAM

       The DREAM act is short for development, relief and education for alien minors. Basically the dream act is targeted towards illegal cizens that reside in the united states. This act provides permanent residency for deportable illegal students that graduate from a United States school. They also must be of good moral conduct and arrived in the USA legally or illegaly as a minor. They also must have been in the USA for at least five years prior. This is the half or the dream act i completely and totally agree with.
       I think the DREAM act is a really necessary thing. It helps those who came to the USA as minors see the beauty in this nation be being educated and getting an understanding of how this nation works. I also think that by saying education will help them to permanately obtain citizenship is a smart idea.The dream  act is really cool until it gets to the second half.
       If someone was to complete four yesrs in an institution of higher learning or two years in the military they would obtain temporary residency for about a six year period. During this period they are expected to have proof of your years in the military or your experience in higher learning.
       I agree with this to an extent. I feel that it's important to feel some sort of patriotism to your country or loyalty but I do not agree with the temporary residency.
       All in all I think that we should be pushing for the dream act but with a lot of reservations.
Currently Considering
Mattie:)

A fishy situation:)

                  I have many different fears. One is rather irrational and I honestly don't understand it. I hate fish. They are so frightening! From the beady eyes to the scaley skin they just petrify me. They wriggle around and flop in weird ways. I don't appreciate the way they look or feel. The only fish I like are on my plate at dinner time:)


Another fear of mine is expectations. I'm always frightened that I will not meet up to expectations. I'm afraid someone will think I'm not up to their caliber, get tired of me and leave. It's a pretty pathetic fear but it's rational.  I don't like getting this feeling and expectations just overwhelm me. I feel as though i never meet them even when I do. It's hard for me to trust myself as well as anyone else.

Currently Fishing (NOT)
Mattie:)

Goodbye Osama....I won't miss you

              Osama Bin Laden died on May 1st causing major celebration in the States. My question is why celebrate when someone dies no matter how horrible that someone is. I can't bear the thought of jumping for joy at someone's death even when that person is a major terrorist. For some the death of Osama marked the end. But for me I believe that this is just the beginning. By killing the leader of the major terrorist group, Al Quida (Osama), we have enraged his followers and made Al Quida unhappy. 
             Osama died and I'm glad but what price will we pay for his death? Should we be celebrating at the death of a human being, even if that person was more devil than human? I believe we need to watch what we say or do for a while and we need to make sure there are no holes in the safety of our country. It was important that this happened and I'm glad it did. Seeing where he lived and who he lived with just made me sad. He was an awful terrorist that caused our country to suffer many losses. I'm not condoning what he did. I'm not forgiving him. I'm rather angry, upset and sad at what he did and who he was. He was human.
Currently Not Very Forgiving,
Mattie

Snaps for Sophia!

             

              Sophia Bush is a person that I truly admire. She is not only a talented actress she is a big believer of charity work. She Has worked with severa; different organizations as well as creating some of her own.
              Sophia has recently done many different things involving several different charities. Such as urging people to help out with recent floods in Australia that had a devestating impact. She has asked people to help RSPCA in order to help animals in Australia as well as asking people to help those who evacuated their homes. Sophia created a benefit CD called Gasoline Rainbows (available for download on itunes) in order to help further with the oil spill. She pulled many bands and artists together for this CD and also made a PSA about the oil spill. 100% of the proceeds went directly to help for the oil spill. She felt especially passionate about this particular thing after visiting Louisianna and seeing first hand the damage that occured. She decided to help in whatever way she could. Not only has she done these things but she has also done so much more. She urges people to help in whatever way they can because she does the absolute same. She is amazing and she is a great role model. Sophia deserves snaps of admiration for all she does with her fame. She deserves snaps for being the kind of celebrity that I look up to.

Honey works better than Vinegar

                     I've learned recently, as in yesterday, that honey works a lot better that vinegar. This is metaphorical of course:)
                     I believe that when you act with kindness (no matter how much you don't like the person or what they're doing to you) you are the better person. Now i'm not saying that I always act with kindness or "honey" but i believe its something everybody should work towards. If you've ever heard the saying kill em with kindness then you definitely know what I am rambling on and on about. I just think that acting with honey will help you in the long run. I learned this through another person yesterday who made it clear she was acting with vinegar and it made me think about how to go about protecting ones feelings. Honey is the way to do that. You act with honey towards somebody you like/ respect and are close to.
                  Sometimes I wish that i could act with more vinegar towards people to their face instead of behind their back so that they know what I'm feeling and I don't have to beat around the bush. I think that you should act with kindness (honey) but sometimes it's just better when you are honest/ blunt and if that percived as vinegar then so be it. It depends of the situation and who you are talking to plus the amount of respect you have towards that person or the situation. I believe that you watch yourself and your reputation in public and such because thats what is expected.
                  A person deserves a certain amount on honey and vinegar to have the perfect concoction in their life. To reach the right amount you have to judge who you are and what the situation is.
Currently Philosophical,
Mattie:)

Interim :)

                  I spent a week outside of my lovely school learning about the future career I would enjoy doing. I would love, love, LOVE to be a teacher. It's exactly the sort of thing I'd be perfectly suited to do. I enjoy kids a lot. I think being a middle school teacher would be the right job because it is a time in a kids life where they need someone to rely on and someone to teach them things properly,
         On my interim I went to Phoenix Middle School and taught with the health teacher. Due to budget cuts the health teacher also took over some of the role of the guidance counselor. This amazing teacher and wonderful mentor taught me something very cool.
         The middle school age group is a time where kids try to define themselves. It's a time that can be very hard for some kids. A guidance counselor can be very important in this ime because they take on a lot  of emotional burdens and even support groups for those that need it.
         I did a lot. I taught some health. I helped the kids with a project that had to do with todays social issues and I helped kids tackle fears about high school. I learned how to deal with a kid that you may not get along with.
         I learned that every little job is important to keeping a school together. A kid should feel safe in their learning enviroment and I feel that sometimes a guidance counselor can be the one to provide that. I had a great time during this week and i feel that it was very beneficial to explore my options. I'm so glad i chose to do this sooner rather than later. I learned things outside of the textbook that week and i'm very blessed to have had the opportunity.
Currently (i'm) lovin it,
Mattie:)