The color that represents me is blue because it is the most similar to me than any other color. Blue is associated with depth and stability. It symbolizes trust, loyalty, wisdom, confidence, intelligence, faith, truth, and heaven. I try to fulfill these expectations to my greatest ability everyday and although sometimes I might not exceed to these great standards I strive as much as possible. I hope blue is the color that represents me because the characteristics it symbolizes are great qualities.
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Friday, July 8, 2011
Autobiographical Narrative Final Draft
7/6/11
Priester
Autobiographical Narrative
Final Draft
Comprehension of Maturity
In the typical American family the kids treat their mothers with disrespect, they take advantage of their family and they don't know how good they have it. Unfortunately, I have been departed from my mother since I was two years old. Due to my unfortunate circumstances I have had the chance to build a close relationship with my brothers and my sister. I am currently living with a foster family and my brother. My other brother was separated from us and is in a group home. Our whole family has been mixed up and corrupted but I will continue to strive for one big normal family again. I am now thirteen although I haven’t seen my mom since I was eleven. To see my mother would be one of the greatest gifts I could have ever received, so I thought.
It was now 5:30 p.m. and we drove to the store. I followed her in and asked if she could buy me a Dr. Pepper, and she said, “Yea I’ll bring it to the car.” As Mom walked out she emptied most of a can of squirt, poured a little bottle of vodka in it, and downed the whole thing. As my mother entered the car she and my sister argued about the alcohol. We started to drive and my mom started tripping. I would try to avoid slang, but I don’t know another way to explain it. We were all joking and I said something to her and she looked back and started laughing. I too started laughing and then she had a blank stare and started saying something in Spanish. Her face showed emotion in each word. Her mouth was shaping every letter and her face seemed so strong. Although the only words I can make out are a couple cuss words and God. Then she started laughing so I too joined her, and then she started speaking Spanish again. Well, at least I think it was Spanish because she was mumbling it so low it was hard to comprehend. I was shocked because after all we’ve been through and after an hour of seeing each other she cusses me out. I didn’t know how to react I just sat there. My sister also realized what was happening and I could tell she did not know what to do either. Then as we drove my sister noticed we were going the wrong way because she was so nervous and she wasn’t paying attention. My mother then was almost massaging Monique’s neck with one hand and Monique told her that we were going to head back. Mom didn’t like what she said and sort of pushed her head which made her neck jerk forward. It is hard to explain but it was also very shocking. I was crying because I didn’t know what else to do. My mother was so strange I felt as if something was wrong with her and now she laid her hand on my sister. My sister also started crying so she pulled over at a McDonald's. Everyone, but she and Mom left the car so they could talk. My mother was continuously touching Monique and then throwing her off of her. As they were hugging for about ten minutes my sister gestured us to almost help her because they were hugging for so long. We stepped in and they stopped. I guess they spoke about taking Mom back home or about her drinking but whatever it was she understood. We parked across the street from our mom’s house this time so we would not get hit and we all got out. We had to jay-walk and everybody ran except my mother. My mother just walked and as she did a bus was coming. My mother didn’t mind it and she casually kept walking although we were are yelling and telling her to hurry. As the bus came to a screeching stop a couple feet away from my mom all she did was spit at it and kept walking. It was terrifying. We gave her her bags and said goodbye. I knew that this was the best thing to do because my mom wasn’t the same mom I saw two years ago. I believe the drugs have a big part in her actions, but it doesn’t change what she did. I almost think that it was my fault because I vouched for her to join us and whatever anyone else said I would not change my mind. I wanted her to change and I thought that this was a great opportunity, but then again she is about forty-two so she has had many of those. I don’t know why, but I thought something was different.
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Friday, July 1, 2011
"Marigolds" Before You Read: Moving into Adulthood
"The Cask of Amontillado" Content Paragraph: Evaluating the Narrator
Thursday, June 30, 2011
"The Cask of Amontillado" Before You Read: Revenge (2)
Revenge is like hatred's cousin. The act of anger or despise can be considered revenge due to its intentions. The main intention of revenge is for the opponent to suffer. I have never heard of a happy angry person and this is why I believe revenge enters from mixed feelings. What I'm trying to say is no one happy has ever committed an act of revenge. Revenge is the negative way of getting back for all the negative feelings given by the opponent. It is never okay to seek revenge, because one who seeks revenge is blinded by anger and will not see the truth, only what he/she thinks of the situation.
"The Interlopers” Content Paragraph: Another Point of View (P.1)
I stay pinned against dirt and rocks. I feel my ribs touching under the giant tree. All I really see are leaves and dirt and I try pushing the giant stump off of me. When I was almost at defeat I recall saving a bit of alcohol in my pocket. I offer some to Goerg knowing he is in the same situation I am about 3 feet away from me. He denies it with a disgust look on his face. I drink the rest and then realize the ignorant feud we are having is unnecessary. I look at Goerg and he is in pain. We quarrel about whose group will get here first and proclaim they will kill one another. I then tell Goerg that I give up. I said that this feud is ridiculous and should never be spoken of again. We both agree to be eternal friends and we decide to call for help. We both scream and yell and finally about 7 or 8 figures appear a couple yards away. Goerg says it is my group because his group was smaller. And as I look on I see whiskers. Not only whiskers, but teeth and red eyes. I look over to Goerg about as pale as snow and tell him that those figures are not my group. Those are wolves.
“Marigolds” Post Character Analysis Paragraph
"The Interlopers" Before: Family Feud (prompt 1)
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
"Marigolds" Character Avatar
She retold the story so vivid as if it were yesterday, which shows this event has really effected her. After she has matured and grew older she showed her sympathy when she planted her own marigold garden. Eugenia was also very emotional due to her childhood, which is expressed in her story. She was obviously pore because she didn’t have any shoes and the area she lived sounded like a ghetto desert.
Monday, June 27, 2011
"Thank You M'am" Character Comparison Paragraph
I knew a kid also named Joseph and he reminded me of Roger. This is so because they both stole from stores and they were both burnt. Another words they were not slick. My friend Joseph was caught stealing shoes from J.C. Penny's. I was with him and I told him to leave, but he decided he really wanted the shoes just as Roger did. Although I wasn't practicing what I preached, that day when he was caught I learned my lesson also. I realized how useless stealing was, and I am glad I did at such a young age.
Friday, June 24, 2011
"Thank You M'am" Before You Read: Going Gets Tough
The cliche; when the going gets tough, the tough gets going almost makes no sense. I understand the point of the phrase which basically states that when life or an event is getting difficult or unfair then your conscious or something inside you sparks that knows you need to push harder. It is almost as a negative motivation that brings positive things. There is truth to this because as we all have experienced this pinch of motivation which I believe is created from ones roots. Basically their foundations or their past. There is no way to prove this but everyone is effected in some way due to their past. I think it is almost a guard put up when the going gets tough. When someone is stressed it is almost all mentally so when someone pushes mentally they will succeed. It is almost logic, but the quote should be restated.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
“The Most Dangerous Game” Plot Change
If I was General Zaroff I would do a couple things different. Although he invented this evil game with no nice intentions at all, it makes since why the General gave Rainsford a chance. All that did was basically prolong the evil game and Rainsford's death. All it did was teach Rainsford what not to do. I think if I was General Zaroff I would have killed him the first day when I seen him. Another thing I would've done differently is going home. If these changes occurred the plot might not have been interesting although these decisions I made were to win and not to make a book, but there would've been more hunting. And if there is more hunting then this is also interesting and I either would have had a really short or really long rising action.
"Dog Star" Chronological Order of Flashback Paragraph
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Summer School Plan
I have simple goals for summer school. I plan on going to school. Second I plan on doing all the class work. Third I plan on ignore distractions and try as hard as possible. Fourth I am going to do all my homework. If and when I follow these basic goals I am just going to fly right through the classes. I plan on taking these unnecessary classes and just moving on to my wonderful summer. These plans are basic, successful, and easy. I am actually not looking forward to summer school, but it is what it is and I just have to strive.
"Dog Star" Before You Read: Special Animal (A)
I am an animal person myself, and tend to like dogs a lot. I kind of feel sympathetic for them so I always care for them. For example, on my street there was a pit bull owned by a horrible owner. It wasn't mean but it just sat in its yard. One day I went to pet it and it started eating my chips that were in my hand. I realized it was hungry so I brought it some left over, and I did this for several months. During these months I also owned 8 dogs myself and two of them were stray that my family and I kept. I was also close to these dogs, just as I was to my other dogs in the past.
"The Most Dangerous Game" Before You Read Fascinating Villain Paragraph
My favorite villain is from the movie "Batman the Dark Knight." The character's name is Joker. This villain is intelligent, funny, and so insane he totally fits the villain character. Another words his role in the movie as a clown and a bad guy was totally full-filled. All of his schemes were planned out perfectly and done with precise measurements. Not only is the Joker evil but when he speaks and is in the act of a scheme he laughs and jokes and also has fun. All of Jokers tactics and plans are very intelligent and he is a great villain.
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Portfolio - Improvement
Over the past two years I have made many improvements in my social and academic life. I have been taught many rules within grammar that I was not aware of before. Since I have been in high school I have also been taught greater vocabulary which helps me write better. I have always been able to read well, but since I have attended S.P.A. it has gotten better. I am able to read more sufficiently and with emotion, rather than before when I was shy. Another thing that I have improved is my speaking skills. I have done many exercises. For example, ten second sound off and we do that almost every day. This helps my public speaking and it helps my insecurity of speaking aloud. My group-working skills before high school were a bit different because as years went on I learned to strive. And I learned to work as a team and give other people chances to strive. One more thing high school has impacted for the past two years is my tech. skills. Technology was not my main focus and/or it wasn’t available where I lived. In elementary school I was the student that would help the other kids with their computer games and teaching them how to turn it on and what not. Although these are the basics I believe that this is why technology comes easy for me to understand. I am glad high school is offering such great knowledge on such a topic that will affect us our whole life. Technology is the future. I have obviously changed over the past two years, but all these improvements I totally give credit to S.P.A.
Monday, June 6, 2011
Portfolio - Future
My future is a blur of goals, dreams and needs. All I want is success for my family and me. If I’m not successful my family won’t be. I understand that money does not make the world go round but it certainly does make life easier. I was told to strive, strive in life. But I believe if I can eliminate as much dilemmas and obstacles as possible, why not? If my life can be easier then why not avoid those problems and focus on the real ones that impact my life. For example, money. I can be happy without money, but I think money can make me even happier. This is so because then my blood family will have money, and my own wife and kids will have money. It won’t be an issue and if there ever is an issue I’d rather be because something happened in life that was unfortunate only because it is only normal for life to do so. What I want is a future in something I am interested in, make great money, and have extra hobbies on the side. It is very complicated to see such a successful future that consists of fame, wealth and fun. I want to be known for the good I do. I want my family’s life to be easy. I want a lot so it’s going to take a lot to get there.
To view a list of all my schools click the link below:
http://bit.ly/iiucRb
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Playwrights Project Play Performance Paragraph
During the performances I felt astonished. Almost inspired but sympathetic. The one word that describes how I felt was touched. One of the most amazing stories I heard was Tierra's playwright. It was sad and depressing. Or when I heard mine, although I have not experienced these things, I realized how heart-braking it must be to live such an unfortunate life. And how Destiny's playwright impacted other viewers in the audience just shows how real these things are. Everybody has their story and once you put it into a movie, book, or in this case a play it reveals the depth of its reality. Everyone in this place has had it bad, but always know that someone else had it worse.
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
End of Year Reflection – Greatest High School Achievement
My greatest high school achievement is achieving a 4.0 in third quarter. I tried so hard and I actually succeeded. This is a great example that what ever you put your mind to you can do. I devoted my time, effort and energy into my academics and it paid off, literally. Especially since everyone who got a 4.0 received $200.00. When I attended the awards ceremony I wasn't sure if I was going to receive an award for a 4.0. I was still second guessing my grade in one class. I went to the auditorium where they were holding the ceremony and I was nervous. When they announced my name I knew that I achieved my goal. I was excited and happy. Now I need to continue doing so.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Portfolio - My Educational Experiences
Due to my educational experiences, I am currently succeeding in school. I have had a great foundation which has started me off great. I attended Laurel Elementary school in Whittier California. At this school I pushed hard but only because I was pushed by others. I believe this school had a great impact on my qualities and the people around me were even more greater. If I didn't attend this school my whole view of school would have been different. For middle school I mostly attended Pershing Middle School. This school is where I found myself and although academic wise it was sort of a set back it was a great influence on my social life. I was the president and Pershing Middle and it was nothing but positive for me. The last school that has had a great reflection on my life is this school, San Pasqual Academy. This school is a bit corrupt due to administration and student's view and opinions but none of that matters when it comes down to my grades. All that matters is my diploma, and I have the incentives of a car and many scholarships. I plan to take advantages of these opportunities with full force. All these schools shaped who I am in school right now. To view my academic timeline click the link below:
bit.ly/jp9dNa
End of Year Reflection – Greatest High School Obstacle
I have had many dilemmas and obstacles the last two years of high school. The reason for this because my hardest obstacle continuously happens. This obstacle is controlling my social and my academic life. The time schedule is quite rough and I love having my social time. I have gotten better with controlling my actions and managing my time, but it still affects me. If I could give any advice to the next class it would be to manage their time wisely and not to procrastinate as I do. It will help in the long run because that was my biggest obstacle in my high school years.
Friday, May 27, 2011
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Free Post
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Playwrights Project Play Completion Reflection
I feel very confident now that my play is done. For example, I know that I have edited my paper, and many others edited my paper, so I am positive it is almost perfect. Also, the emotion and devotion put in the play was from the heart so I know that my play is real and bad things like this are unfortunate and occur. It's a shame how life can be twisted, but put all these things in a play and it is inspiring. Well at least I thought it was. That's why I am so comfortable with knowing that my play is legit. If my play was published and performed professionally every week I will feel accomplished. And I would know the kid whose story it is will feel great because he knows people actually care for such misfortune lives.
Sunday, May 22, 2011
SPA Prom 2011
Prom was on Friday the 20th. This was the same day as my brothers birthday. At first I wasn't going to go, but I ended up going. My tuxedo that I ordered was messed up and they delivered me a pink vest. I had to rush to the mall and buy suspenders because I decided I didn't want to wear a vest. They cost $60.00 but I guess it was worth it. Then it we all left. I think the fact that this year the genders were separated by buses is a bit ridiculous, but then again I understand. At prom they had a photo booth, and we all took many pictures. Then we ate very delicious food. After we ate the prom court was announced and other awards were given out. I won an award for best shoes. Everyone danced for a couple more hours and it was alright. I thought last year's prom was more fun, but I can't complain.
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Kids in the Mud Scene
• Characters: Sarah: Chris' older sister, 7, brat, loving
Chris : Sarah's younger brother, 5, naive, whines a lot.
• Setting: In the backyard sandbox, at 3:30 p.m., right in front of the garage.
• At Rise: Chris and Sarah are laying in the sandbox getting all dirty.
Sis, I want to be the bad guy!
Sarah:
O.k. Fine, but I'm the princess the good guys save.
Chris:
Ahhh! I'm going to get you!
Sarah:
Help good guys! Help!
Chris:
Haha, never!
Sarah:
I don't want to play no more. I want to play with the hose again. Then we can jump back in the sandy. Hahaha
Chris:
I want water too!
Sarah:
Okay come play with me Chris.
Chris:
Yay!
Sarah:
Turn it on brother!
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Summarize, Paraphrase, and Quote Peers’ Posts
Best friends are hard to come by. Best friends are friends who are willing to sit down and listen. They are the ones that are going to be there no matter what happens. Best friends should never lie and have no secrets. I never took the easy way because then I will never learn from my mistakes. Over all friends is for ever while people are for notes and information.
Paraphrase <- This is a paraphrase of a section of It’s All About Nora's blog post title, Comment-Seeking Post. To access the full post, click here: http://itsallaboutnora-sam.blogspot.com/2011/05/comment-seeking-post.html
Basically Destiny had a bad today. She had some serious problems so she just left to be with herself. Someone else accompanied Destiny, and they both got restriction for it. She realized why it is fair that I got restriction, but Destiny am glad that it was settled. But tomorrow she will get everything done that she missed.
Quote <- This is a quote of a section of Destiny’s blog post titled Comment-Seeking Post. To access the full post, click here : http://dessyl.blogspot.com/2011/05/comment-seeking-post.html
"Bipolar is a brain disorder that causes unusual shifts in mood, energy, activity levels, and the ability to carry out day-to-day tasks."
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Quote, Summary, or Paraphrase Paragraph
Welcome students! Today, I am going to teach you about the difference of three key terms. These terms are evidence, summarize, paraphrase, and quote. Evidence is text you will find in a reliable source that will help to answer your focus question. You summarize evidence when it is a long selection of text, such as multiple sentences or an entire paragraph. To summarize you retell the main ideas of the text using fewer words. You quote evidence when it is a short and very specific section of text that you need to copy exactly to keep its meaning. To use a quote you copy the text exactly as it appears and put quotation marks around it. You paraphrase evidence when it is a short ans simple selection of text that you easily put in your words. To paraphrase you retell the ideas using your own words. To help you remember this, you should study every night and even come up with a study guide to remember.
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Comment-Seeking Post
Basketball is a great sport that contains many great athletes. My favorite basketball teams, of course repping L.A. are the Lakers. The Lakers are in the second round of the playoffs playing against the Mavs. The Mavericks are an alright team, but should not of won the first game of the second series. This game got me frustrated, a lot! Other than my favorite team which have won 2 consecutive championships in a row and 12 others in the past. Kobe has five of those rings. The M.V.P. for this year is Derrick Rose, the starting point guard from the Bulls. Rose is a sophomore in the NBA, and is doing fantastic. I would trade him for Derrick Fisher any day. Although this year the player with the highest leading points is Kobe Bryant with an average of 36 points a game. The leader with rebounds is Dirk Nowitzki for the Mavericks, with an average of 14. And for assists it would be the Kidd, who also plays for the Mavericks, with an average of 11. Playoffs are exciting, and truthfully I would want the Bulls to meet us Lakers at the playoffs. And at the end Kobe will have as many rings as Jordan. Now that is victory!
Monday, May 2, 2011
President Obama’s Big Announcement
To learn about Osama bin Laden’s death, I read, [http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704436004576299463704074984.html], and learned that the
Now that I have read/watched the news, I predict the Muslim nation will be very angry and upset at the
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Posters in the Hall
I don't think that the students who posted Caucasian's quotes on our wall are wrong, but simply instinctive. By that I mean they decided all the best quotes that actually meant something to them were said by Caucasians. This might be different to someone else because meaning is totally opinionated, although it might be offensive to others. This is where the judging enters and as we all know judging may cause dilemmas, rather than just taking it for what it is and built on if there is a problem. So this act was neither right nor wrong. It was what it was and is what it is.
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Playwrights Project Scene 1 for Feedback
Joseph B.
per. 4
4/21/11
Why Me?
Characters: Demetri Douglas Ybarra - Mexican, 9 yrs. old, short black hair, heavyset, independent, also known as D
Elizabeth Rose - Beautiful, White, D’s mother,
Dr. Jeffer - Deep voice, almost apologetic
Rosa - foster mother of Demetri, not a major character, Mexican lady, in her 30’s, red and black hair.
Officer Greg - White male, in his uniform, black facial hair, 5’11, deep voice
Setting: In the living room, it’s about 3:30 p.m., sunny dayAt Rise: D is at the door just about to enter from school as the phone rings. he is wearing his backpack and after hears the phone rushes to the phone. The living room is one of the biggest rooms of the house.
Background: D’s father has been in the hospital due to his cancer. D has a close relationship with his father and is upset that mother Elizabeth wont let D see his dad. Elizabeth won’t let him visit his father because he is just getting worse and she doesn’t want D to see him looking like that. This does cause a bit of conflict, but is the best for everyone.
D:
[D is on the other side of the door. There is a sound of keys and as D is opening the dorr the phone rings. ]
Oh snap!
[D runs through the door rushing to the phone.]
Hello?
Dr. Jeffer:
[Has a deep, apologetic tone to his voice.]
Hello is this the Ybarra residence? This is Dr. Jeffer.
D:
[Confused look on his face]
Oh yes, yes sir. This is D, Mr. Ybarra is my dad. How is he doing? Is he o.k.?
Dr. Jeffer
[Same voice]
Well, actually that is what I called to talk to talk about. But, is there anyone else I can talk to? Your gaurdian or someone along those lines, because you do know information about a patient is confidential.
D
No, but I am his son sir.
Dr. Jeffer
Well son, I am so sorry to tell you this, but your father past about five minutes ago. Please notify your mother and again son I apologize for your loss.
D
[In awe, and then blows up and throws the phone. The phone complete shatters and a piece cuts his arm.]
…
No!
Dr. Jeffer
[sympathetic, but not able to finish his sentence.]
Wai...............
D
[Angry, he doesn’t like to cry, but since no one wherre a couple tears rolled down his cheeck.]
No! Why? God, why? Dad I love you, don’t die please don’t die...
[Wipes his tears and sits on the couch]
God why did you take my father away from me? Huh? You have no reason I want him, I miss him already!
[He stands up, his blood smeared with blood and tears. D grabs his backpack and storms to his room.]
THIRTY MINUTES LATER...
Elizabeth
[She just came home from work, exhausted. Then she walks in to his room with D sitting on his bed with a blank stare]
D! D are you home? D? Oh hey, I guess you heard?
D
Why mom, why? I couldn’t at least see him once?
Elizabeth
He was just getting worse sweetie, I didn’t want you to see him like that.
D
[Angy tone in his voice]
That’s my dad, I think I am old enough to choose if I want to see him! He’s dead now mom! Dead....
Elizabeth
Don’t raise your voice at me son it was for your own good! We all are suffering of your father’s loss!
D
[Left the room after he spoke]
Well now he’s gone Mom, but at least you got to see him right?
Elizabeth
[she sinks her head into her arms and cries.]