Quote of the Day Aug. 31

Nothing is built on stone; all is built on sand, but we must build as if the sand were stone.   -Jorge Luis Borges

AP Novel Choice

Moby Dick by Herman Melville is my choice

I have heard lots of things about this novel and have had never had a chance to read it.  I peaks my interest (As a bonus, it is also a Great American Novel) and seems like it would make a great literature analysis.

Quote of the Day Aug. 30

I believe much trouble would be saved if we opened our hearts more.   -Chief Joseph

Quote of the Day Aug 29

If you want to lift yourself up, lift up someone else.   -Booker T. Washington

Quote of the Day Aug. 28

You are always new, the last of your kisses was ever the sweetest.   -John Keats

Vocab Sentences

Accolade:

The student received an accolade for his achievement in school.

Acerbity:

The critic, best known for his acerbity writing, wrote about a subject that he loved.

Attrition:

The school had a massive rate of attrition after budget cuts forced the dropping of many programs.

Bromide:

The teacher taught in a bromide tone.

Chauvinist:

The general was a Chauvinist.  He was willing to do anything in the name of his country.

Chronic:

The woman with chronic back pain decided to go to the doctor to have it checked out.

Expound:

The ranger gave an expound lecture on the history of the national park.

Factionalism:

The country factionalism in nature, being split up into so many states.

Immaculate:

The diamond was immaculate, free from all the flaws of the world.

Imprecation:

The witch put a imprecation on the poor man.

Ineluctable:

The meteor heading towards Earth was ineluctable.

Mercurial:

The mercurial cartoon brought laughter to the girl's mornings.

Palliate:

The medicine only palliated the illness.

Protocol:

The checking of luggage is only protocol, nothing more.

Resplendent:

The star shined resplendently in the night sky.

Stigmatize:

The banished prince was stigmatized by the commoners.

Sub rosa:

The conference was sub rosa and was kept private from the public.

Vainglory:

The valedictorian was vainglory about his achievement.

Vestige:

Fossils are a vestige way of showing what lived on Earth in the past.

Volition:

The flag was brought down with the man's own vilition.

Vocab + Definitions

Accolade: Any award, honor, or laudatory notice
Acerbity: Sourness, with roughness or astringency of taste
Attrition: A reduction or decrease in numbers, size, or strength
Bromide: A person who is platitudinous and boring
Chauvinist: A person who is aggressively and blindly patriotic
Chronic: Constant or habitual
Expound: To set forth or state in detail
Factionalism: Of a faction or factions
Immaculate: Free from fault or flaw
Imprecation: The act of imprecation
Ineluctable: Incapable of being evaded
Mercurial: Animated
Palliate: To relieve or lessen without curing
Protocol: The customs and regulations dealing with diplomatic formality, precedence, and etiquette
Resplendent: Shining brilliantly
Stigmatize: To set some mark of disgrace or infamy upon
Sub rosa: Confidentially; secretly; privately
Vainglory: Excessive elation or pride
Vestige: A mark, trace, or visible evidence of something that is no longer present or in existence
Volition: The act of willing, choosing, or resloving

Quote of the Day Aug. 27th

To find out what one is fitted to do, and to secure an opportunity to do it, is the key to happiness.   -John Dewey

Beowulf Questions

Here is what I got for my answers. It isn't all the answers because the class did a collaboration at these two sites. http://www.facebook.com/groups/485303688147891/ http://rhsbeowulf.blogspot.com/2012/08/my-answers.html#comment-form

Quote of the Day Aug. 26

Don't look back. Something might be gaining on you. -Satchel Paige

Quote of the Day Aug. 25

The mind is the root from which things grow. If you can understand the mind, everything else is included. -Bodhidharma

Quote of the Day Aug. 24

Many a trip continues long after movement in time and space have ceased. -John Steinbeck

Quote of the Day Aug. 23

The future starts today, not tomorrow. -Pope John Paul II

Beowulf Notes

Quote of the Day Aug. 22

One person with a belief is equal to ninety-nine who have only interests. -John Stuart Mill

My Essays for the 1987 Exam

I got my profile set up at Pathbrite.  Here are my 2 essays.

My YouTube Channel

This is my YouTube channel for those people who want to watch my videos.

http://www.youtube.com/user/TheThunderBoltStudio?feature=mhee

Just added my 100th video.

Quote of the Day Aug. 21

What you get is a living, what you give is a life.   -Lillian Gish

Go Forth Poem Recital

Dr. Preston offered us the chance to record our recital if we could prove there wasn't a paper we were reading off of.

Reflections on Week 1

1) Factors affecting my participation?  Maybe just reciting poetry... I hate reciting anything and it takes me longer than the normal student to memorize it.  It took me all week just to memorize the Go Forth Poem and in class you said that you regretted giving it to us.  My experience in this class is going to be amazing. I love how you are trying to integrate science and technology into this course.  It is different from all the other boring English classes and offers a change for students.

2)I believe my most awesome learning experience was one at Righetti.  I learned, with a hands on demonstration, on how to work a higher grade video camera in Mr. Garcia's class.  It brought me into film making which is now my passion and i wouldn't change a thing.  I knew it was happening when, after making my first video, I just wanted to make more and more videos.  I hold that learning experience close to my heart.

3)I am most excited for all the technology we get to use in this class.  It allows us to accomplish so much more out of class and allows for students who miss a day to catch up without needing to even consult the teacher about it.  I am dreading the memorization the most.  I simply hate it with a passion.  I look forward to the lessons and experiences when I think of learning. I think that this class can and will make a difference in my life.  It will allow me to experience new things and meet new people.

Quote of the Day Aug. 20

The difficulty lies not so much in developing new ideas as in escaping from old ones.   -John Maynard Keynes

Quote of the Day Aug. 19

There are obviously two educations.  One should teach us how to make a living and the other how to live.   -James Truslow Adams

Quote of the Day Aug. 18

Might as well do it for weekends too

I invent nothing, I rediscover.   -Auguste Rodin

Quote of the Day Aug. 17

If I cannot overwhelm it with my quality, I will overwhelm it with my quantity. -Emile Zola

The Nicest Place on the Internet

This is truly the nicest place around.  A place where people from around the world give hugs to complete strangers just to make them feel better.

http://thenicestplaceontheinter.net/

Quote of the Day Aug. 16

I am thinking of starting a week day thing of blogging a quote.  I'll see how that works for a week or so and decide if I want to keep at it.

Formula for Success: rise early, work hard, strike oil -J. Paul Getty

Additional Thoughts on the Montaigne/Austen Essay

1)I would have done more planning at the start of the essay to make sure I was staying on track with the prompt.  I feel that in being rushed, I messed up the prompt and lost the gist of what I was writing.
2)After I left, I knew that my essay was going to be rushed and not very good.  The interruption messed up my essay.
3)The interruption completely screwed with my thought process. By the time I got back, I wasn't even thinking about the essay anymore.  I would rather redo the essay once more and have a better time than have interruptions in the middle of the essay.