A little venting on my blog...

I've been sick the past week and people seem to be getting the wrong idea of me. It's very irritating. When I'm at school I'm smiling, be positive, and doing my best In class. Even though deep down I feel like I am about to pass out sometimes. Because if you end up acting like a certain way you can become what you're trying to be. I don't even know if many people are keeping up with my blog but like that video link I posted on that TEDTalks: Life Hacks.. "Fake it 'til you make it." Please consider on watching it I highly recommend it! The link should be on my "Reflections on Week #1" post. 

Beowulf in Class Discussion Notes

Vocabulary #2

accoutrements - personal clothing
apogee - the highest or most distant point
apropos -concerning something or pertaining to something
bicker ­-constant arguing
coalesce - to grow or into one body
contretemps ­-an embarrassing moment
convolution -a rolled up or coiled condition
cull -to choose, select, to gather
disparate ­­-distinct in kind, essentially different
dogmatic -stating facts that haven't been proven to be true
licentious -sexually unrestrained; promiscuous
mete -to divided punishment
noxious -harmful or injurious to health
polemic ­-to speak against something or someone
populous - full of residents
probity -integrity, honesty,moral principles
repartee ­- a quick, witty reply
supervene -to take place, to occur
truncate ­-to shorten, cut off
unimpeachable-to not be questioned

(will finish later)

Beowulf Comprehension Questions

I decided to work with  Miranda Gomez (5th period) and Kevin Lake (3rd period).  I did BEOWULF AND GRENDEL'S MOTHER all the way to BEOWULF RETURNS HOME. I also did the last 3 questions of Beowulf's Funeral while Miranda did the first three questions. The assignment took me about an hour and a half to do. Mainly because I had a very hard time figuring out the story. I read it and even tried googling numerous websites. I also looked at the links that my peers had posted on the post on the Comp questions. I ended up finding Maria Luna's comment and a link to a 26 minute long video. It is honestly the only reason why I got my work done. It wasn't boring and it made sense to me. So thanks Maria for posting the link! :)

BEOWULF AND GRENDEL'S MOTHER (lines 1251-2199, pp. 60-79)

[Another Attack] (lines 1251-1382, pp. 60-62)

1.Why has Grendel's mother come to Heorot? Is it the same reason Grendel had?
-Grendel's mother goes to Hereot to seek revenge because Beowulf killed her son.

2.What is Hrothgar's response? Whom has Grendel's mother killed?
-Hrothgar was in mourning because Grendel's mother had killed his close friends.

3.What sort of place is the mere?
-A dark  bottomless lake.

[Beowulf Fights Grendel's Mother] (lines 1383-1650, pp. 63-68)

1.How does Beowulf tell Hrothgar to respond?
-Beowulf agrees to fight.

2.What happens at the mere before Beowulf enters it?
-He goes into some underwater place.

3.How does Beowulf prepare for the battle? What sword does he take with him?
-He preps for the battle by telling Hrothgar what to do when in case he dies in battle. He takes Unferth's sword.

4.What happens when Beowulf enters the mere? What is surprising about where Grendel and his mother live in the mere?
-Beowulf fights serpents. The surprsing part is that he doesn't get hurt by other monsters.

5.What happens to the sword Beowulf borrowed from Unferth?
-The sword sort of broke when it hit Grende's mom and he only had the handle.

6.At one point Beowulf is on the floor, with Grendel's mother sitting on him and drawing her knife. How does Beowulf escape?
-Beowulf escapes through his strength and defeats Grendel's mother.

7.How does Beowulf kill Grendel's mother? What weapon does he use? What happens when she dies? What does Beowulf take with him from her home? What happens to the sword he used to kill her?
-Beowulf killed Grendel's mother witht eh sword that was hanging on the wall. When she died the little cave suddenly became bright. The sword sort of vanished and all there was left was the handle.

8.What happens when Beowulf returns to the surface? Did his men expect him to return?
-When Beowulf returns people are shocked and start to cheer. They didn't expect for him to return.

[Further Celebration at Heorot] (lines 1651-1798, pp. 68-71)

1.What does Beowulf give to Hrothgar?
-He gives Grendel's head.

2.What message does Hrothgar have for Beowulf? What and why does he tell us about Heremod? Why and how did Heremod die? What lesson does Hrothgar teach with the Heremod example?
- Hrothgar's message to Beowulf is to not be so cocky because that can cause great dilemma. 

3.What does Beowulf give to Unferth as he leaves?
-The sword he lent to him. And also says this thanks.

[Beowulf Returns Home] (lines 1799-2199, pp. 71-79)

1.What future does Hrothgar predict for Beowulf?
-A wonderful future as a king.

2.Who is Hygd and why is she not like Modthryth?
-Hyd is  the wife of Hygelac. She's not like Modthrynth because she would hurt a person for looking at her.

3.Beowulf reports to Hygelac that Hrothgar may marry his daughter Freawaru to Ingeld. Why does he plan to do that? What does Beowulf expect the result will be? (Remember the Finn story, lines 1070-1158.) How does Beowulf think the peace will be broken? Is this the type of report we expected from the hero Beowulf, or are we seeing a new side of him?
-Beowulf doesn't find wedding the two people as a good idea because it can cause tension between two different groups. Which isn't something Beowulf would say because he's more of an optimistic person rather than a pessimist. 

4.How does Beowulf report about his own adventures? Does he report accurately?
-He reports his adventures in a weird boastful way.

5.What does Beowulf do with the treasure he was given? What does Hygelac give him?
-He gives him a sword and a throne.

[Beowulf's Funeral] (lines 2821-3182, pp. 92-99)

3. What does Wiglaf tell the crowd that comes to see the dragon and Beowulf?
- Wiglaf tells the crowd that Beowulf has a very desolate future.

4.What happens to the dragon?
-The dragon is pushed off into the sea.

5.What happens during and after the funeral celebration?
-The Geats mourn for their king. And the people have no idea who their future leader will be.

6.What did the Geats say about Beowulf in the last three lines of the poem? Are these the terms one would expect to be used to describe a military hero?
-The last three lines say that he wasn't like any other man. That he wasn't royalty but he deserved to be praised. He can be described as a military hero with the bravery he carried with him.

Vocab Tips!

Rewrote the definitions for the 3rd time this week. It is a waste of time sometimes but it helps me memorize when I rewrite! And I used different colors  to make it more fun. :) I love using colorful pens for memorization. My 8th grade teacher told me that it helps with studying. I forgot why.. Hmm? Anyone who went to Mckenzie remember? I SHALL GOOGLE IT.

MY OPINION ISN'T (A) RIGHT

STUDYING WITH A MESS

Am the only one who does homework/study with a huge mess behind me? Do I look weird using an exercise ball as my chair?  It helps your posture. Even though I'm currently slouching. Oops. Photo credit: Lander Lacsina

Vocabulary #1

adumbrate (v.) to outline; foreshadow; faint indication
I had to adumbrate an essay for English last week

apotheosis (n.) example; epitome; elevation of a person to the rank off god
Michael Jackson is the apotheosis of pop music.

ascetic (n.) a person who dedicates his or her life for religious purposes
A buddhist monk lives a very ascetic lifestyle. 

bauble (n.) trinket; ornament
I went to an anitque shop the other day and saw mulitple baubles on a Christmas tree

beguile (v.) to pass (time); to influence by trickery, flattery
Multiple people are happy when they beguile with another persons emotions

.burgeon (v.) to grow or develop quickly
My younger brother burgeoned into a very smart person through the years.

complement (n.) something that completes or makes perfect
My parents are a wonderful couple who complement eachother very well.

contumacious (adj.) stubborn; rebellious
My older brother was a very contumacious teenager when he was in high school.

curmudgeon (n.) bad tempered; difficult 
My father's boss was a very caring guy but he was also a very curmudgeon man when people didn't 
do their job correctly.

didactic (adj.) intended to instruct; teaching
My history teacher was a very didactic person

.disingenuous (adj.) lacking sincerity 
I dislike it when people are disingenous when they apologize for something they did wrong.

exculpate (v.) to clear from a charge of guilt or fault; free from blame
They jury had to exculpate the suspect due to lack of evidence.

faux pas (n.) awkward moment; social blunder 
I created a humiliating faux pas during dinner when served my vegetarian friends meat.

fulminate (v.) to explode with a loud noise; detonate 

My mother fulminated when the topic of texting a driving arose.
 fustian (adj.) bombastic
I went to a fustian melodrama the other day

.hauteur (n.) arrogance
His hauteur made me think of him as a snobby person.

inhibit (v.) restrain
I need to inhibit myself from eating too much rice.

jeremiad (n.) prolonged mournful complaint
When I don't get what I want I usually have a jeremian complaing to my cousins.

opportunist (n.) a person who takes advantage of opportunities
She was an opportunist who later on became a wonderful Doctor.

unconscionable (adj.) no inner sense of what is right or wrong 
Sometimes I am a very unconscionable person and make stupid decisions. 

REFLECTIONS ON WEEK 1

1) Are there any factors that you think are going to affect your participation or experience in this class? Access to a computer?  Mobile/smart phone?  Transportation?  Friends/family? Schedule?

Technology isn't an issue for me. Although I have bad luck with printers if we needed to print anything for class that would be my only reason for not doing some of the work. That's pretty much it. And sometimes I won't be home until 8 or 7 because of doctors appointments and my younger brothers Physical Therapy.

2) Think of an awesome best ever learning experience that changed you. What did you learn? Where were you? What happened? Who else was there? Did it teach you anything about how you learn (or pay attention... or remember, or think?) How did you know what was happening? 

Well I can't think of a time where this happened in school. But a couple months ago I was watching Netflix and I came across TEDTalks: Life Hack. It was about body language and how you can shape yourself into something you think you can't be. "Fake it 'til you become it." was one of her quotes. It really caught my attention. The whole 20 minutes I didn't go on my phone. I didn't even look at the screen if it lit up or rang. I was watching it with my little brother and we were hooked. It taught me about not giving up. And to not be so negative. 

3) What are you most [excited/concerned] about in this class? What do you look forward to in learning?  How do you think it can/will make a practical difference in your life?

I'm most excited about reading other peoples blogs and learning about others through a different perspective. Yeah, I usually talk to anyone and be friends with them but  I always believed a person's blog can show a different side of a person that you may have never found out. Honestly I look forward to learning about myself and the way I interact with others when it comes to school work I get very intimidated. I'm also excited to learn more new words because my vocabulary is very bland. I think this class will change that way I look at everything. I already right little sticky notes to myself if I come across another big question. 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ks-_Mh1QhMc If any of you want to watch the TEDTalk I came across this summer feel free to click this link! 

Erasing your mistakes.

This definitely catches my friends attention when they walk into my room. A huge eraser. It's as long as my pencil and its pretty heavy. Obviously this eraser has some meaning to it. Do you believe you can just erase any BIG mistake and pretend like it didn't happen?

1987 AP Exam

1. c
2. e
3. c
4. e
5. e
6.c
7. b
8.d
9.e
10. c
11.c
12.b
13.c
14.c
15.e
16.d
17.b
18.e
19.e
20.b
21.a
22.b
23.c
24.a
25.d
26.b
27.e
28.c
29.b
30.e
31.d
32.d
33.d
34.c

47.b
48.b
49.e
50.e
51.c
52.a
53.e
54.d
55.c
56.a
57.b
58.d
59.b
60.b
61.c
Notes: I thought this exam had many common characteristics as the AP exam I took last year. Although this particular test has a lot more poetry and I have a hard time reading poems. Especially if they were old English. The level of both exams were equal and the questions were very much alike from last years

It's that time again....

Back to doing homework and studying on Sundays. On the plus side Breaking Bad is on tonight! Super stoked.

The Big Question

I already posted a comment on Preston's post but I have more.

"DO YOU THINK THAT THE FACT THAT SOMEONE IS A BAD KISSER RUINS THE RELATIONSHIP?" 

Let's just say you are already so infatuated! The person you're with has the looks, the brains, and common interests and so the fact that they suck at kissing isn't such a big deal until MONTHS LATER. Would you confront the person and hurt their feelings or go on with the relationship and just try to deal with it for even longer?

Poetry #1

"The Laughing Heart" by Charles Bukowski
Your life is your life
don’t let it be clubbed into dank submission.
Be on the watch.
There are ways out.
There is a light somewhere.
It may not be much light but
it beats the darkness.
Be on the watch.
The gods will offer you chances.
Know them.
Take them.
You can’t beat death but
you can beat death in life, sometimes.
And the more often you learn to do it,
the more light there will be.
Your life is your life.
Know it while you have it.
You are marvelous
the gods wait to delight in you

1. The poem being used in the commercial is called "The Laughing Heart" by Charles Bukoski. 
2. I believe the use of the poem is very ironic considering the fact that the poem is suggesting not to be influence by others yet the commercial is advertising Levis.
 3. The poem doesn't reflect that authors reputation because Bukowski tends to be more harsh with his other pieces but he comes off as more positive and motivating in this particular poem.
4. I found #1 by asking Javier Solis where the link to the poem was and I Googled more about the author and found information here:  http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/charles-bukowski

Before I post anything about literature...

Here is one of my current favorites. The title caught my eye turns out it's about love. Oh well. Check it out guys!