Dominion Power

      For the Honor Program I went to listen to Ernest Greene, from Dominion Power. I learned many things going to the event. Dominion is the largest power company on the east coast, and they have been in existence of 100 years.
      They use different types of fuel to make electricity. In Southwest Virginia they have a hybrid plant that uses both natural gas and coal. In Chesterfield, Virginia they own a plant that has state of the art pollution control. They have two nuclear plants in Virginia, one in Surry County and one in North Anna. The nuclear plant in North Anna was planned for three reactors but only has two. They may build a new reactor because there is such a huge demand. Currently they are building a natural gas burning fire plant in Brunswick County. Natural gas is a very clean source of energy. Bath County uses water to produce electricity. Since everything requires more electricity the demand is going up.
      There is a power grid and if Virginia needs more power than it supplies then they could get it from another state and vise versus. Another thing that Mr. Greene talked about is how many people complain about Dominion not putting power lines underground. Since Dominion has been around for such a long time it would cost a lot of money to do that. Dominion is also funding many different forms of electricity like solar and wind. The problem with wind is the birds would die because they would run into the propellers.
      Although people may think that Dominion is just people working on the power lines but that is not true. They have jobs available for every career imaginable. They also offer scholarships and internships. I truly enjoyed listening to Mr. Greene and learning about Dominion Power company.

Writting Process 2

            My writing process for essay 2 was better than one, even though I enjoyed essay one better. I had to plan more than essay one because it was more in depth. I took notes in class and I looked information up to have a better understanding of everything. Once I had all my information I started my paper. I have not finished correcting my rough draft yet but I will get it done soon.
            My anticipations for essay three is hopefully. I can finally see the light at the end of tunnel; we are almost done writing essays for English! I believe I will like essay three better because I can write about pretty much anything and everything. For essay three I plan on writing about abortion, I am going to use the story “Hills like White Elephants.” I think I am going to write about the effects on women after they have had an abortion and if they regret having one or not. I also am going to include what influenced their decision making.
            I am doing well with keeping up with the blogs and I am almost done writing them. I usually write them on my computer and forget to eventually post them. Another thing that I am pretty good at is getting the papers done when they are supposed to. One thing I could improve on is learning to love poetry. I do not find it very interesting and sometime hard to understand maybe this class will teach me to love poetry again.

Spring Break, Papers, and Packages

      It's sad that Spring Break is over, and of course I waited till the last minute to do all of my homework. I did not travel anywhere over Spring Break. It honestly didn’t even feel like a break because I was doing so much! One thing I did do over break was my best friend Blake and I started to make care packages for the Navy Aircraft Carrier, USS George H.W. Bush. There will be boxes around campus soon, so that people can donate food and other items like Chap Stick and magazines. I’m really excited to send them, I know that they will appreciate it and I am so thankful for them for fighting for our country.
       I finally finished my rough draft on my symbolism paper. It was not hard, it was just hard finding the time to actually sit down and do it. I used many symbols like the fire escape, blue roses, the movies, and the glass unicorn. I was searching for information on the internet and found so much more explanations on the symbols that I never would have thought about. Peer reviews are Tuesday and Thursday which are helpful but also somewhat boring. I am so ready for summer.

Job Success

     For my second outside of class activity, I went the Capital One Seminar. It was quite interesting and had very good advice. I went to the one entitled “Job Success” the two people who taught it made a lot of sense. They said it was all common sense and it really was, but not many people think about it when they are in the situation.
     Many things can help you with success in a job. One key point they talked about was shaping a conversation. Say a boss came up to you and was telling you that you did something wrong, you can turn the situation around and say something like “Thank you so much for the advice I really appreciate it and I want to become better at my job.” So now the boss looks at you differently, the boss feels like a mentor to you and wants you to do better because your success now reflects on your boss and your boss knows that you can take criticism. They also said that you can ask your boss to do projects but you have to stay focused because many other problems will come arise and just stick to your main project and finish it and then you can go back a focus on the other ones. Self-image is very important on the job because you want to be known as the person that is great to work with and smiles all the time not that person who looks mad all the time and is not a pleasure to work with.
     Overall the seminar was very helpful and really gave great advice. I will use it after college when I get into my career. The people who taught the seminar said it wasn’t rocket science and it’s not you just have to remember how to handle a situation when you are in it.

 

El Orfanato

     For my first outside of class activity, I went to a Spanish movie for my Spanish class. It was called The Orphanage. It was hard to follow but in the end the teacher explained all of it. Basically a woman bought an Orphanage that she use to go to and she was trying to bring it back and open it up again. During the process of trying to reopen the orphanage, her son then goes missing, and the ghost children that use to live at the orphanage had her kid and she had to search for him. The end was very hard to understand and is up to interpretation. The movie was in Spanish with English subtitles, it is a very good movie but like I said before it was a little hard to follow. I would suggest it to people who like scary movies.

Essay 2

         Today in class, we had to write about our writing process and our anticipations for the essay number one.  To start my first essay, I started off brainstorming by writing down many ideas I had to connect myself to the story “Hills like White Elephants”. I wrote the paper in one sitting because I got into the mood for writing and my fingers started typing. Peer review helped me see many different takes on the same writing topic. My groups helped me correct any mistakes and had some very good ideas. I was really happy with my writing process for this essay. For my next essay, I’m nervous because the first one was so easy for me to write and I really enjoyed it. This essay seems a bit more analytical than essay one and not as broad as the last one. The first easy was so easy to write about because it was your own personal experience and there was no right or wrong answers, as long as you had textual evidence. I am going to have to do this paper a little bit differently because I have to actually have to have a source other than the book.

Peer Review

Last week in class, we corrected our papers in groups. My group was really helpful and had great input. Both of their papers were great and really had meaning behind it. Hearing other classmates’ papers made me look at my paper differently and add more content to it. The peer review required us to read our papers twice and then we had to pass it around for the grammar check. Although at first I did not think the peer review would help, it really did. I wrote about “The Hills like White Elephants” and how I can compare to her because I had to make many decisions in my life. Although I have not had to make a big decision, like Jig in the story, I have made numerous decisions that have affected me in many ways.

Revenge

The other week in class we read “The Cast of Amontillado” by Edgar Allen Poe. Basically it was about revenge which leads someone to murder another person. The story’s tone is very dark, and so is the ending.

Many people seek revenge after getting hurt or betrayed. Once someone has completed his or her quest for revenge, they are often left feeling worst off than before. Sinking down to the level of the person who hurt them is the worst thing anybody can do. Although it may be hard, rising above someone who hurt will ultimately make you feel better than seeking revenge.

Commit the Act, Pay the Price

            One of the short stories we read this week was Hills like White Elephants. When first reading through it I didn’t quite understand the whole meaning. After doing my research I discovered that there was so much symbolism within it. The girl is struggling with her decision on having abortion and the guy is saying that he does not see another way. The girl is thinking about how she could overcome these obstacles and make a life with her unborn child.

In real life, I believe that many girls struggling with the decision on whether or not to have an abortion. Most guys are all for abortion but the girls are the ones who have to go through the emotions and it is truly real. For guys they don’t have to go to the abortion clinic and actually have the procedure done to them and it is not as traumatic. I believe guys should be more supportive on how the girl is feeling and focus on her and not just think about his personal gain. If a guy is responsible enough to commit the act, then he should be responsible enough to take care of a baby.

Crazy Obessions

One of the readings for this week was “The Yellow Wallpaper”, it is hard for me to understand that someone could write so much about the yellow wallpaper. If I did not read the background of the story I would have been completely lost. Stating that the author, Charlotee Perkins Gilman, had a mental disorder helped me understand it a little bit more. I felt sorry for the writer because no one would tell her that she was really sick just that she had a case of “nervous depression”. I honestly cannot fathom how she spent her days and nights thinking and staring at this yellow wallpaper. It amazes me that someone with a mental disorder can make something out of nothing.

At one point in everyone’s life there has come a point where they have made something out of nothing or obsessed about something. When we were little, we would hear a noise and automatically think that there is a monster under our bed. Even now in college, people obsess over papers, tests and people's opinions. Everyone wants to have a certain control over their life and may overthink things too much; maybe not on the degree that the writer did but aren’t we all a little crazy and obsessive inside?

Day of the Dead

On Halloween, I went to the Day of the Dead spanish celebration. For Spanish 201, we could make a mexican dish and come to the celebration. For my two dishes I bought churros and emanpadas. Ms. Finney always does a wonderful job decorating and making everything fun. The Day of the Dead is a celebration in Mexico and many other countries where they believe that the loved ones that had passed away come back for this special. The celebration is very up beat and is truly a celebration of life. The decorations are beautiful and are very colorful. To prepare for the celebration we made sugar skulls and decorated them with icing. I wish in the United States that death not so dreadful but rather a celebration of life!

Mondays

Today I drove thirty minutes, walked all the way to class to find out that class was cancelled. Mondays are hard enough to get out of bed and to find out that class was cancelled and I could have stayed in bed! Although class was cancelled I am glad that I can write my blog for the week and work on my paper, that I have yet to start. Its so hard for me to work on a paper that is due at the end of the semester because I have so many things that are due before that. I know I should stick with the schedule but its really difficult. If I would have known class was cancelled at home than I would have not been as productive as I was. I really hope this week goes by fast, I'm ready for a break already. Only seven more weeks in till Winter Break!

Bullying

Last week in the news, there was a girl named Rebecca Sedwick she was bullied so bad that she jumped from a three story tall cement plant structure. She was only 12 years old.  She changed school to flee from the bullying but it continued on the internet. The girls who bullied her were 12 and 14 years old which honestly blows my mind. How could these two girls be so hateful and harassing to Rebecca to lead her to kill herself? The two juveniles are being charged with aggravated stalking which honestly I believe they should. The 14 year old girl had the audacity to post on Facebook “yes I bullied Rebecca and she killed herself but I don’t give a ___”. It’s one thing for this 14 year old girl to bully a fellow classmate but to write that on her Facebook she has no remorse! My question is where were the parents of the children who were bullying her? If the bullying was so bad that Rebecca had to change schools I am sure that the bullies’ parents knew about. I am in disbelief on how bullying caused a 12 year old to commit suicide she had her whole life ahead of her! When these girls are charged I hope it makes a statement to all of the bullies out there.

Sex Ed

The next paper I am writing about is sex education in school. Personally I think that sex education in school is important. Some students’ parents do not talk about sex or anything like that because it is awkward. Sex education is also important because during the class there they talk about not having sex and birth control methods if someone is having sex. The question is when is the right time to have sex education in school? Depending on the age and maturity I think that determines when the right time is. In Chicago, they were talking about starting sex education in kindergarten. They would teach about the body parts and stuff like that. In America, I think sex is made into this big deal. While in other countries they do not make it a big deal and is talked about in everyday life. Just like alcohol in other countries, kids drink wine, and when they turn the age where they can buy alcohol it is not a big deal because they have been doing it their whole life. I believe people need to stop not talking about things and just get it out in the open.

"Listen to many, speak to few"

"Listen to many, speak to few" -William Shakespeare

This week during class we talked about an article about a boy that really wanted to be a girl. Topics like this are hard to talk about because they are so debatable and make many people hostile. I honesty had no opinion about it because I think people will say they will do something but when he or she is actually put in the situation it might change. One thing I noticed when watching people discuss, or more like argue, about the topic was some people get very angry and say stuff like “I’m about to go off.” Personally I love hearing everyone’s’ opinion on what he or she might do if they had a kid that wanted to be the opposite sex. Hearing both sides makes me realize views that I have never thought of before. Listening and observing other people’s views truly makes someone intelligent, or at least more aware. When someone blocks out different views it makes them look quite ignorant.

The Other Side of Immigration

Last week Lindsey, Tyler and I went to see the movie “The Other Side of Immigration”.  The whole movie was in Spanish and there were English subtitles. Families were talking about how hard it is for their loved ones to go to the United States and not know when they are coming home. Farmers in Mexico have stated that they cannot compete with the farmers in the United States. Citizens of Mexico said that Mexico’s economy depends on the United States’ economy. In the end, Mexico stated that they were working with United States to come up with a program where immigrants can work for six months in the United States and go home for six months. This will not leave the immigrant’s family wondering when their loved one will be home.

Personally, I thought the movie was very informative. I do not believe in immigrants coming to the United States to work. There are so many United States citizens that do not have a job and cannot because all the jobs are occupied. I find it very frustrating that Mexico’s economy depends on the money that is sent from the United States. I believe that Mexico should make their own economy sufficient.

 

Guest Speaker

Today, I had the pleasure to listen to Dave Saunders who is the Chief Idea Officer of Madison+Main. Mr. Saunders graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University. Madison+Main is a company who did the Richard Bland commercial and is based in Richmond, VA. Listening to Mr. Saunders talk was truly enjoyable. I learned that there are three types of business: 1) The ones you love 2) The ones you hate 3) The ones you don’t know about. Richard Bland right now is considered a number three. That is why Madison+Main is trying a new approach and is trying to make Richard Bland known with the commercials and new website. Also Richard Bland is a people based business, if you look on the internet there are pictures of students all over the website. The pictures are of real students and are not actors. Another business that is considered a people business is Chick-fil-A. Whenever you say thank you at Chick-fil-A they always say “My pleasure”. I’m glad I attended the speach especially because I want to major in business.  

Difference between Living or Dying

Gun control is a big topic in the news right now because of all the shootings. Personally, my feelings are strong about gun control. The second amendment states “A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.” I believe that there should be harsher laws for someone to obtain a gun. If someone has a mental health problem or has gotten in trouble with the law then of course he or she should not be able to have a gun. I think the media has a negative effect on people’s opinions toward gun control. The media rarely airs a story on how a gun saved someone’s life. For example, a woman rushed to the aid of her neighbor’s daughter, after hearing her screams, a man was ripping the young girl’s clothes off. She said, with a gun in hand, to the man “Stay put or I’ll shoot.”  This woman prevented a 12 year old girl from being raped. People never think what if someone had a gun could this have been prevented? A gun may be the difference between living or dying, being raped or not, or even saving someone or watching them die.

 

Source: http://townhall.com/columnists/johnhawkins/2013/02/02/10-stories-that-prove-guns-save-lives-n1503549/page/full

"Eye for eye, tooth for tooth"

 

In class we were talking about the writing guidelines and paper topics. The point of the Writing Guidelines is to get people writing.  You ask yourself many questions and it gets you to write down thoughts and ideas. It allows you to get everything out of your mind and on to paper. I will definitely use the writing guidelines when writing my paper. When I am at a dead end I will ask myself some of the questions to get me going again.

 

The research paper I am most passionate about is Crime and Punishment. I feel like if the government had a harsher system that there would be less crime. If people knew they could not get away with things they would not do it. Any criminal would say “I didn’t think I was going to get caught.” The saying “Eye for eye, tooth for tooth” is my motto for crime. If someone was proven guilty of a crime, or confessed, whatever crime he or she committed should have harsher consequences. Criminals have so much leeway on the crimes they have committed. Harsher consequences equals less crime.  

Intro Post

 

My name is Anna Smith, this is my second year at Bland and I will be graduating in the spring. I intend to go to William and Mary and major in business, then continue onto law school. Last English class, we had to decide on three paper subjects which was difficult to do because there are always a couple of people who are stubborn and don’t want to agree. I’m used to a democracy; it has worked so far in America so why can’t we use it in class? Some of the paper subjects interests me, while some I have no desire to write about. The one that interest me the most is the Crime and Punishment, I could go on all day about do I think the death penalty should be used and how often it should be used. The topic gender, I honestly have no idea what I would write about. English is not my subject, I would much rather be doing 100 math problems, rather than writing a blog. I honestly don’t know what the point of blogging is. I think people use blogging to just complain, at least the ones I have read so far. I hope I get better at this.

Anna Smith