Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Eight Weeks of English




Superpower
(original)
If I woke up with a superpower tomorrow, it would be to have the ability to change my past decisions. This would help me out now and in the future. I would go back and make more mature decisions so that my life would be easier.
First I would go back and save a lot of money that I chose to spend on things I didn’t need. I would save that money for when I graduate from high school. I could get my own apartment or use it as a down payment on a new car. This would’ve saved me from using credit cards and unnecessary loans.
I would also have made the decision of going strait to college after high school. If I had done that in the first place I would be graduating with every one I went to high school with. I would be able to begin with my career instead of just now starting college.
Changing my past decisions would change my life greatly. My life would be completely different than it is now. These changes would definitely make my life better.







My Super, Super power



(revised)
If I woke up with a superpower, it would be to go back in time to change my past decisions. I would do this because I see how some of my past decisions have affected my life. If I had this superpower I could go back and make better decisions that would help me out today. Some of the decisions I made in the past have made things harder for me today.
When I was younger, I used to always play sports and video games instead of school work. My parents would always tell me I need to focus on school more. I never listened and because of this I had no money to go to school after high school. My superpower would enable me to change that. I would go back in time and spend more time studying for test and quizzes. I would go back and take classes that would benefit me today. I didn’t take a math class when I was in the twelfth grade because it made that school year so much easier. I had already taken all the math classes I needed to graduate from high school so I figured I would take a year off. Now that I am back in school, I realize that I should’ve taken that math class to make things easier for me now. Going back in time to change my study habits would change my life greatly.
Another thing I would go back in time to change is my decision to join the Navy. I wouldn’t take back joining the Navy, but I would change my job. If I could go back I would not have let my recruiter talk me into choosing a bull shit job. I would’ve done all my research and been more cognizant of the Navy so that I could choose the right path. When I joined I just jumped into the decision without really thinking. I just listened to everything my recruiter said about the Navy even though everything he said was good and nothing was bad. I would go back and make smarter decisions in my Navy career. I could’ve picked a job that would have given me a bonus and a better opportunity to continue a career in.
If I had the ability to go back in time and change my decisions, I would have made my relationship better with my baby’s mother. I would do this so that I could have a family and we could both raise our child together. It’s hard to raise a child on your own and it’s just the right thing to do when two parents stick together. We would be able to work together to raise our child and have each other’s back. There would be no custody battle and no child support cases. Neither one of us would be stuck with the burden of raising the kid by ourselves. This would make things better for our child because she will be able to have her mom and dad with her at all times. Less stress would be assessed to both parents and life would be a lot easier.
My superpower is probably the most wanted superpower thought of. Many people would love to go back and make changes to their life to affect their futures. The superpower of changing past decisions reflects the rhetorical appeal of pathos. This is because my feelings and emotions are what makes me want this superpower. My life would be drastically changed if I would have made better decisions in the past. My superpower would enable me to make these changes. The changes I would make would make my life better and easier. I believe that everyone that these changes affect would also be happy with my new decisions.




The One-Eleven Experience
English 111 was a reality check for me. This is because I had not attended any school or taken any college classes within the last five years. I really didn’t know what to expect the first day or actually at all. I actually chose to take an eight week course because I though I would just breeze through the class. The experience of the class for me was a great learning experience. I had to learn how to be organized and to do school work in a timely manor. The experience of taking this eight week course to go along with all of my other responsibilities was very difficult, but it also was a great start for my college career.
When I chose to take an eight week class for English 111, I was only thinking about the opportunity to get both of my English classes out of the way in one semester. When I went to the class I found that it was basically rushed and cramming all 16 weeks of the class into eight weeks. I never thought about that before I chose to take this course. I was only enrolled in two classes including the English class, and I found it very difficult to find time to get all my work done on time. I am a single parent and it was hard for me to find a baby sitter for my child while I needed to go to the library and put in extra time for work. I also work active duty in the military so my hours are always subject to change. It’s not easy to raise a child, work full time, and go to school in an area with out any family members to help.
In English 111, I experienced the school life all over again. I had classmates and met new people to socialize with. This brought back old high school feelings but it was different because this time I was all grown up. I had not been to school in five years so my writing and brainstorming skills were a little on the rusty side. The first assignment was my warm up with a diagnostic essay. This assignment was my first writing assignment in years. The assignement was to write about a superpower I wish I had, and explain what I would do with it. This assignment helped me with my confidence although it was an ungraded assignment. My thinking and brainstorming process’ improved throughout this course because before I would always be stuck thinking about how to start and finish my papers. I would really have a hard time with the writing process.
In English 111, we used peer review, which was one of the most helpful activities to writing a good paper. In peer review, every student would pass out a copy of their rough drafts of their writing assignments to two other students for comments and suggestions. This helped me find many grammatical errors and suggest better words to use in different parts of my papers. When I did peer review on the other student’s papers it gave me ideas that they were using in their papers. I would see what I left out in my paper or even if I made mistakes in the format of my paper. I could go back to my paper and use what I saw in other student’s papers to help make mine better.
My overall experience in English 111 was great. It was an excellent learning experience and will be very helpful for me in other classes that require me to turn in writing assignments. English 111 was a reminder to me of what school was like. I had to learn discipline to study and to take the time out to complete all of my assignments. The class helped to expand my mind and now I don’t get stuck in the brainstorming process. I learned how to write quality essays and how the rhetorical tools of logos, pathos, and ethos are reflected in writing assignments. My experience in English 111 was definitely and eye opening experience for my college career.


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