Here’s to the nights we had in life…

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English Final

June 5th, 2007 by fraser

I believe that on the concept of getting revenge for something that someone did to you is almost obtuse in the fact that no matter what happens to you as a result of someone else’s actions, taking revenge against them will never right the problem, because as the old folks always say, two wrongs do not make a right. This is such an important quote that affects each and every one of our lives on an almost daily basis. For example, if your bag was stolen, and you found out who the culprit was, would you take revenge against them? Yes you probably would, but this just means that you are stooping to their level and committing a crime as well. Mercy, I believe is by far the correct path to take, as it heightens you to a more respectable position, and thus meaning you have not lowered yourself to the level of the original culprit. I also believe that mercy is the correct path to take when faced with the fork in the road decision between mercy and revenge, where the revenge road appears as a dark, gloomy, sinister dirt track surrounded by gnarled, twisted trees, whereas the mercy street is a properly paved, eight lane interstate highway, with lush green forest on either side. This should represent the fact that by following the path of mercy, rather than that of revenge, you would end up with a better result at the end of it all.
To support my theory, I would like to note a few characters from a few of the books that we read this year, Lord of the flies, A diary of a young girl, and Shakespeare’s The Tempest. Lord of the flies, because of the character Simon, who is a peaceful, almost pure human being reasons with the boys that have gone to live in the jungle, yet although they ignore him, and eventually end his life, his message still rings loud and true. In the true story, diary of a young girl, Anne Frank is a young Jewish girl living in hiding in Holland during World War Two, and she had never taken revenge on a person in her life, yet she was till captured by the Nazi Party and transported to a concentration camp, where she died as a result of Typhoid. This may all have started sounding fairly contradictory as both of the examples that I have used so far have ended up dead a short while after, but let me assure you it gets better from here. The Tempest holds its example in the form of the wizard duke of Milan, Prospero. When Prospero is exiled from his dukedom, his brother, Alonso takes it over, but when Prospero causes the huge storm around which the whole play is based, his brothers ship is wrecked on the island on which Prospero was shipped to, Prospero eventually Forgives Alonso and recovers his dukedom. This example proves that mercy is the right path, because it ended out with a good result.
Now, I would like to mention a few people who, even though they are not among us anymore, have, through their mercy, managed to make the world a slightly better place in which to live, and are remembered for it till this day. My first example would have to be, once again, they young Jewish Dutch girl, Anne frank, Simply because, her thoughts going on during the war, whist in hiding were simply, “Why is this happening? This makes no sense.” This thought process enabled her to understand that the war was pointless. This was her form of mercy. She didn’t fight back. She simply asked why. Next would be the famous, peace loving little Indian man that we have all learned about in social studies or history at some point. Yes, I am referring to Mahatma Gandhi. This man was a revolution in the way people think. He transformed the words peace and mercy from simple gatherings of letters, to concepts and topics almost never talked about before then. The last person on my list would be the sixteenth president of the United States, Abraham Lincoln, because he was the sole charging force behind the push to abolish slavery. Simply put, he felt so much mercy for the African American slaves, that he made the charge to abolish the slave trade.
My final argument is that there are, or were in two of these cases, people who made very bad decisions, and did not give mercy to the people in question, and now, even though two of them are dead, a percentage of people still dislike or hate these people. My first example, this is one of the dead ones, is Adolph Hitler. The fascist leader of the Nazi Party, who believed that the world should be a planet populated with a race of only blonde haired, blue eyed humans, and that Jews were evil and should all be eradicated. This thought process has meant that even sixty-two years after his suicide, he is still one of the most hated men ever. My next example is, and I hope nobody takes any sort of deep offense to this next passage, the current president of the United States, George Bush. I feel this way because he took revenge against the terrorist groups in the Middle East, and caused all of the destruction when he could have simply forgiven them, and not caused all of these almost six years of carnage. My final example is the recently deceased Iraqi President, Saddam Hussein because of his role in the Kuwait war, and the Iraq-US war, he gave no mercy in these situations, and is still hated for it.
To conclude this thesis, I would like to quickly address the opposing party, those in favor of revenge. To this day, almost everyone who has taken revenge against someone has been brought in under the same wing as the original culprit. Therefore, I believe that mercy is the correct path, leading to a good result, and that revenge is the wrong decision to make, resulting more pain and suffering for everyone.

Posted in Final | | | 0 Comments

Sub-Text

May 9th, 2007 by fraser

I would like to talk about an object. A very simple object, yet an object that can do and be so much for you depending on how you view and use it. Specifically, I am talking about the design of the proposed Mitsubishi Evo10 for the 2008 model year, known as the Mitsubishi Prototype X. looking at this vehicle from my point of view, this prototype meets all of my personal expectations for a powerful sports sedan. With its powerful turbocharged, 2 litre DOHC (Double OverHead Cam) inline 4 cylinder engine, it has immense reserves of power. It would appeal to me because of its beefy engine, comfortable interior and countless options.

To the average, married mother looking to purchase a powerful family sedan, the X has four doors, seating for five, seemingly infinite trunk space, and an engine with enough grunt to knock out a herd of elephants to get where you need to be. For the Average male who is looking to buy a speedy sports saloon, but can’t seem to find the money for a BMW M3 or Mercedes CL 55 AMG, this is an ideal car, with its stunning power reserves, drop dead gorgeous looks and lush interior with suede bucket seats and a manual 5-speed transmission with magnesium paddle shifters on the steering wheel. The X has a digital lap counter mounted in the rise of the centre console suggesting its use as a weekend circuit racer.

Based on class, this car will appeal to the middle and upper classes as an affordable sports sedan that can beat the breath out of many of today’s so called supercars and with its ample space all round, it will appeal to all genders, and most classes.

Posted in Poems | | | 0 Comments

Afghan Ambush

March 5th, 2007 by fraser

Sixteen Afghan civilians have died and 25 have been wounded in what a US military spokesperson says was a “complex” ambush in which a suicide car bomber and gunmen targeted a coalition convoy in eastern Afghanistan.

Posted in Social Studies Block F | | | 0 Comments

March 3rd, 2007 by fraser

James Langston Hughes was born February 1, 1902, in Joplin, Missouri. His parents divorced when he was a small child, and his father moved to Mexico. He was raised by his grandmother until he was thirteen, when he moved to Lincoln, Illinois, to live with his mother and her husband, before the family eventually settled in Cleveland, Ohio. In Lincoln, Hughes began writing poetry. Hughes’s first book of poetry, The Weary Blues, was published by Alfred A. Knopf in 1926. Hughes’s first book of poetry, The Weary Blues, was published by Alfred A. Knopf in 1926.

Night funeral



     In Harlem:



     Where did they get



     Them two fine cars?



Insurance man, he did not pay–



His insurance lapsed the other day–



Yet they got a satin box



for his head to lay.



     Night funeral



     In Harlem:



     Who was it sent



     That wreath of flowers?



Them flowers came



from that poor boy’s friends–



They’ll want flowers, too,



When they meet their ends.



     Night funeral



     in Harlem:



     Who preached that



     Black boy to his grave?



Old preacher man



Preached that boy away–



Charged Five Dollars



His girl friend had to pay.



     Night funeral



     In Harlem:



When it was all over



And the lid shut on his head



and the organ had done played



and the last prayers been said



and six pallbearers



Carried him out for dead



And off down Lenox Avenue



That long black hearse done sped,



     The street light



     At his corner



     Shined just like a tear–



That boy that they was mournin’



Was so dear, so dear



To them folks that brought the flowers,



To that girl who paid the preacher man–



It was all their tears that made



     That poor boy’s



     Funeral grand.



     Night funeral



     In Harlem.

I thought this poem was very moving and deep, and there was not much I did not like about it.

I wonder why Langston Hughes focused this poem on such a grisly topic as death.

Langston Hughes did not really use any metaphors in this poem.

Posted in Poetry assignments | | | 0 Comments

Crimson

February 26th, 2007 by fraser

All I see,

In front of me,

Crimson,

All the blood,

Inside of me,

Crimson,

Laying,

In a pool of,

Crimson,

Drenched in,

Crimson,

Crimson.

Posted in Poems | | | 0 Comments

Where?

February 15th, 2007 by fraser

Deep down inside me,

There’s a pressure welling up,

A pain in the pit of my stomach,

Numb from the waist down,

Falling onto the ground,

And yelling to my hearts content…

Where are you?

When I need you?

To help me heal this wound,

Drifting,

Wasting,

My life as I always knew,

And waxing,

And waning,

Like the moon across the clouds,

In the dead,

Of night,

Like a ghost of tomorrow,

A thorn in our side,

But we’ll take it in stride,

And believe me,
you will need,

Me all today,

Like a sweater,

In the cold and snowing,

Mountains of my kingdom,

And as you leap,

You yell to your hearts content…

Where are you?

When I need you?

To help me through,

This nightmare,

That I’m living,

To me this can’t be true,

To be so,

Contradictory,

It must be,

Quite hard for,

You to recognize,

The pain I hold inside,

And as I yell,

To my hearts content…

Where are you?

When I need you?

To help me construe,

The meaning,

Of the word we call love,

A message from above.

Posted in Poems | | | 0 Comments

Undertow

January 30th, 2007 by fraser

A rip in my soul,

A patch on my heart,

Why no,

Why not give it a try,

Caught,

Dragged under,

Can’t reach the surface,

Of this ocean of blood,

Sinking,

Slowly,

Drowning in the deep.

Celebrating a few months in my life

that were the best and worst of my life.

Posted in Poems | | | 1 Comments

A Dance

January 29th, 2007 by fraser

A dance to end all dances,

A tear in the night,

An encrypted message,

A signal to my mind,

To walk to you,

And ask you to dance with me,

In the dance to end all dances.

For her…

Posted in Poems | | | 1 Comments

ESLR and Write-Up for Anne Frank

January 28th, 2007 by fraser

The symbols we utilized for this iMovie were the Star of David, which represents the Jews as a group, an actual cattle carriage from the holocaust, which represents control and power, the smokestacks at Auschwitz, which represent loss and agony, Anne’s diary, which represents hope and good will, the tattoo that all Jews were scarred with upon their entry to a concentration camp, which, along with the cattle carriage, also represents power and control, We also utilized Hitler, as a symbol of hatred and anger, and finally, an actual memorial to Anne and Margot Frank, which symbolizes remembrance. The sound we utilized for our iMovie was the song, Face Down, by the Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, which conveys a sense of oppression, which is what all the Jews underwent during Hitler’s régime. These symbols can influence audiences by shocking them at just how atrociously the Jews were treated, and the song I chose can, as was said, captivate the audience with a sense of oppression. By creating the actual iMovie, which is 53 seconds long, and in my opinion, actually quite captivating, I illustrated the meanings of these symbols and the song mentioned above.

Also, I believe that the song, Face Down, was very powerful because of its sense of oppression and the lyrics themselves represent what Anne must’ve been going through. As a symbol, for me, the most powerful was the photo of the Auschwitz smokestacks, as they, as was previously noted, give a sense of loss and tragedy, and press on the fact that the Jews suffered tremendous loss.

I think that we should receive an “A” on this project, as we put a lot of work into creating the iMovie, finding pictures, and completing this very write-up.

We have written about 5 ESLR bullet points that we used as a group to accomplish our task, and we have given specific examples for each bullet point.

For contribution to the final project, I completed the iMovie, this checklist, and the ESLR write-up, Hana found pictures for the iMovie, and Farhad also found pictures for the iMovie.

Critical thinker

· Apply problem-solving skills to facilitate learning

I did this by doing this ESLR checklist and the write-up when Farhad wasn’t there.

Academic Achiever

· Demonstrate technological literacy and the use of technology as a tool for the efficient and creative completion of a project

We did this by, first and foremost, creating a memorial commemorating Anne Frank and the Holocaust, using iMovie. We also found all of our pictures on the internet.

Involved Citizen

· Demonstrate awareness and respect for the rights of others

We did this by creating an iMovie spreading information about what kinds of atrocities the Jews were put through.

Effective Communicator

· Incorporate/Utilize technology as a tool for communication

We did this, once again by, first and foremost, creating a memorial commemorating Anne Frank and the Holocaust, using iMovie. We also found all of our pictures on the internet.

Self-Directed Learner

· Identify their needs and apply appropriate learning strategies

We did this by identifying that we needed to create an informative project, and utilized iMovie to create a short film about the holocaust.

Posted in Anne Frank | | | 0 Comments

The Pedestal You Put Me On

January 18th, 2007 by fraser

A long way to fall,

Off the pedestal you put me on,

A lonely dove’s call,

A sole black swan,

A way to vent my anger,

An apocalypse of hate,

A dire circumstance,

A kiss to seal my fate,

A fallen elm tree,

Who could it be?

Could I love you,

If I paid,

Could I have you every day?

Or should I simply fall,

(chorus)

Off the pedestal you put me on,

The pedestal you placed me,

Ever so gently on,

A cry for help,

From a power above,

A cry to move me from,

The pedestal you put me on,

A love that none can explain,

Purity beyond belief,

A challenge to love,

You a fallen angel,

Too beautiful for heaven,

So god sent you down to earth,

To benefit our lost and broken souls,

Should I accept this gift,

Or fall off the pedestal,

And into the deep beyond,

All I need is you,

Or should I simply fall,

(chorus)

Off the pedestal you put me on,

The pedestal you placed me,

Ever so gently on,

A cry for help,

From a power above,

A cry to move me from,

The pedestal you put me on,

But all I see at the base,

Of the pedestal is you,

Waiting to put me back on,

The aggravation,

The eternal wait,

All I want is to be in your arms,

A wish that will never come true,

Because your heart wanders in empty space,

A bit hard to deal with,

But true nonetheless,

Because I will simply sit and wait,

Or should I fall,

(chorus)

Off the pedestal you put me on,

The pedestal you placed me,

Ever so gently on,

A cry for help,

From a power above,

A cry to move me from,

From this jail,

In the clouds,

A prison like no other,

A cell with no windows,

A loss beyond belief,

Because I simply fell,

(chorus)

Off the pedestal you put me on,

The pedestal you placed me,

Ever so gently on,

A cry for help,

From a power above,

A cry to move me from,

The pedestal you put me on,

The pedestal you placed me,

Ever so gently on,

A cry for help,

From a power above,

A cry to move me from,

The pedestal you put me on,

The pedestal you placed me,

Ever so gently on,

A cry for help,

From a power above,

A cry to move me from,

The pedestal you put me on

Posted in Songs that I wrote | | | 3 Comments

Here’s to the nights we had in life…

Here’s to the tears you knew you’de cry..

Recent update

English Final

Sub-Text

Afghan Ambush

Crimson

Where?

Undertow

A Dance

ESLR and Write-Up for Anne Frank

The Pedestal You Put Me On

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