Good Food Review

Within the past few years, I have acquired a liking of sushi. There is a great sushi place close to my house. It is called The Sit Down and is on 53rd Street. It seems like anytime I go there I have to order something different because there are so many choices. I started out with California rolls, and then to shrimp, salmon, tuna, and yellow tail. When compared to the big name sushi places downtown like Sushi Samba, The Sit Down tastes better to me. For those who do not like sushi, The Sit Down offers a wide range of other foods. Some of these are sandwiches, bruschetta, and one of the best pizzas I have ever tasted.

Another meal that is unexpectedly good is White Hen's chicken fajitas. The first time I heard about them, I was a little grossed out that White Hen even sold chicken fajitas and that people actually bought them. I eventually gave in and tried them one day. They were much better than I thought. From that point on, I was hooked. At least twice a month I would make the walk to Racine and Adams and pay the $5 for the fajitas. Then, White Hen turned into Seven Eleven, and I was crushed. One day, I walked there just for a fajita and realized that they no longer sold them. So now I am in search of another place where I can buy chicken fajitas for under $5 within 10 minutes of the school.

King Still King?

Yes. Dr. Martin Luther King is still king because of the fact that we, as a nation, take the time to dedicate a specific day just for him. Saying that he is not the king because everyone does not commemorate his birthday is like saying the Washington was not president because we all don’t do something in his honor. Of course there were many people that were influential in the Civil Rights Movement, and indeed some people may have made a bigger change, but that does not invalidate what he did and what he stood for.

I'm a Shoe

We are used for different seasons.
We are used for different reasons.

We are bought and sold each day.
We are bought so you can play.

We are needed to go in stores.
We are needed for when it pours.

We are made to relieve.
We are made to be recieved.

We are sold at a high price.
We are sold for looking nice.

We are the ones sold in twos.

We are the most useful shoes.

Globalization

Many people think that globalization is a new concept created by the UN and outsourcing, when actually it has been around since the beginning of time. Americans in particular see globalization as enforcing our culture onto unwilling countries and destroying their history in the process. Actually, the United States was founded by globalization. The Spanish and British came across the ocean to expand their empires and to acquire natural resources. This way of living is nothing new and should not be expected to die down quickly-or at all. We should all accept the fact that cultures are going to mix and people are going to travel and that this is all just a part of life.

Winter Poem

Time for short days and long nights.
Soon the New Year will appear.
Time for big family fights.
Hope the neighbors don’t hear.
Time for putting up lights.
Seen from far and from near.
Time for seeing “the cites.”
Many blown up reindeer.
Time for slipping on ice.
Get your car the right gear.
Time for gifts over priced.
We’ll all hate the cashier.
Time for worshiping Christ.
Though the true date is unclear.
Time to check the list twice.
So you be of good cheer.
Time to try to be nice.
Carrying a smile from ear to ear.

Sports in My Life

Sports have always been a part of my life. I loved playing with the boys at recess instead of whatever the girls were doing. When I was six years old, I joined the Hyde Park division of AYSO on a U-8 team. I continued with AYSO through the U-10, U-12, and coed U-14 divisions. While in my last year of AYSO soccer, I became seriously involved in my school’s cheerleading team. The time came to make a decision between my two favorite sports. I decided to switch sports and did not continue with soccer. Now that I look back, I realize that I did not have to make the choice between soccer and cheerleading. I wish that I would have stuck with soccer because it would have lead to a more successful future than cheerleading will. With soccer, there was a high possibility of playing college level and I am almost completely sure that I will not pursue cheerleading after high school. Next year and throughout college will be the first years since my first grade years that I will not be on an athletic team. So as of now, sports are a big part of my life, but as for the future, I do not know. I hope that I continue with soccer at some level later on but nothing is certain.

Thankful for a Classmate

This is the week of Thanksgiving, so saying who we are thankful for is appropriate. If there is one person in sixth period Philosophy In Literature that I am thankful for, it would be Xavier Muhammad. Why? I have known Xavier for four years and have never had a real class with him until this year. He seemed like a cool person so I was naturally happy that I had a class with him. In class, I can always count on him to make a joke or make me laugh. Also whenever we have to break into groups for classwork, I know that there is someone who wont mind being in my group. So, thanks Xavier for being a cool person and making sixth period Philosophy In Literature better.

Open Letter to Cormac McCarthy

Dear Cormac McCarthy,

Reading your book The Road has really given me a new perspective on the future that our world is heading. Before the recent few months, I have not given much thought to how the actions of today and yesterday will effect tomorrow. I wonder how we as a people, as a race did not stop and think about the consequences of our actions and why now there is such an increased awareness of the problems we have created for ourselves and children. I want to thank you for creating a story that exposes the almost certain future.

Along with your reveling of the future, The Road showed how human kind resorts to our most basic survival instincts when things get tough, losing our morality, humanity, and compassion. I believe that the majority of people want to think that this will never happen and that the human race is better than it actually is. Through reading your book, the world will gain a true understanding that underneath all of our evolutional progression, we are animals, and will behave as so when necessary.

Another interesting thing about your writing that interested me is your unique style. The way that the text does not fit “the mold” of what is considered good literature makes you stand out as a creative writer who is not afraid of self expression.
Chelsea Dawkins

Defend The Poet!

Charles Bukowski's Dinosauria, We is an alomst flawless prediction of how our world is today. When reading the poem, it is hard to imagine that it was written over thrity years ago. The title itself explains the meaning of the poem. Dinosauria, We compares us to the extinct prehistoric creatures that we know as dinosaurs. In the poem, descriptions about our current recession are referenced. "As the supermarket bagboy holds a college degree" "Into the sight of broken factory windows of emptyness" "Into hospitals which are so expensive it is cheaper to die."

The end of the poem however, is very disturbing. It has lines that talk about the rivers and oceans drying up, all vegitaion dying, men will eat other men. While reading this, I was reminded of the novel The Road. The apocalypitic descriptions are very similar between the two works of literature. Maybe McCarthy got some of his ideas from Bukowski. Or, maybe they were both trying to warn us about the future.

A Direction The Class Needs

I do not feel like the class needs a new direction. In my oppinion, the way that the class is structured now is fine. The class discussions that we have are better than reading out of a text book. The things said in class are more memorable than the things that I read in the text book. If i were to change one thing about the class, it would be to get everyone in the class to participate in the discussions. I think that hearing more people's view points allows us to better understand the subject and to completely formulate our own oppinoins. One thing that I like about the class is the journals. They allow us to express our feelings on topics that we do not cover in class. However, I think that we should talk about these journal prompts in addition to the discussions. Besides those two points, I believe that the class is in the best direction.