3rd Quarter Blog

Hi Mr. B and Doc Oc! This is my favorite post from this quarter :)

Saturday, May 30, 2015

Fish Are Friends, Not Food

I was scrolling through the internet this afternoon and I came across an article that really shocked me.  A fisherman was killed by a swordfish when he was impailed by its bill.

The victim was a 47 year-old Hawaiin fisherman named Randy Llanes. According to the guardian, Llanes speared the fish, but as it struggled to escape the spear’s line got tangled in a mooring anchor. Caught on the anchor, the fish swam back around toward Llanes at a high speed and struck him in the chest with its 3ft bill.

It is crazy to me to think that something that seems as harmless as fishing can result in a death.  I don't think people realize just how much talent it really takes to deal with fish.
Being a fisherman is one of America's most deadly jobs.
It is odd to me because when I think about fish, I think about that classic line from Finding Nemo "Fish are friends, not food".  It doesn't seem like our friends should be killing us.

Wednesday, May 27, 2015

ABC 7 Chicago Live From New Trier

Recently New Trier High School has received a lot of negative attention in the media.  It is a school that prides itself on helping others.  However, recently on a service trip, a student allegedly posted a picture of African Americans on a social media site, with a racially offensive caption.

The media immediately pounced on this and had reporters on the campus and were interviewing students.  Surely enough, it was on the ABC news and all over social media sites.

Here is a link to the article that ABC 7 News reported on about this incident.

I think, that while yes, what this student did was very wrong, that it is interesting that the media pounced.  In an afluent area, like New Trier Township, if something is off, the media seemingly always finds a way to shine a light on the wrong.  Comments by others on this incident are also stereotypes that "rich" kids could always get away with something as horrible as this.

To me, I think that it was a terrible mistake that this student made, but what I think is the most interesting is the media coverage and how people now view the area.  I feel like even more now, a "snotty" "stuck-up" reputation of people who are racist will follow students from the area.




Friday, May 22, 2015

Where Are You Going To College?

The much anticipated copy of the New Trier News came out in advisery this morning: The Destinations Issue.

Every year the New Trier News puts out a newspaper that has a list of nearly all the seniors and where they will be attending school the upcoming fall.  It is always so much fun to see where all your peers will end up and is always my favorite issue of the paper.

Interestingly, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign takes the cake with the top number of New Trier students attending this fall.  A whopping 62 seniors will be together for the next four years as they journey on in their academic careers.  Followed by University of Michigan (37 students), Indian University (28 students), Northwestern University (24 students) and Miami University, Oxford (21 students).

One thing that I noticed this year was that the paper had to include a portion that said,

"We at the New Trier News intend for the Destinations Issue to be a source of pride, not ridicule.  While there is a lot of competition surrounding the college process, this list is meant to be a source of recognition and celebration for the accomplishments of seniors, no matter what they go on to do after graduation..."

This struck me as particularly interesting because in a place like New Trier Township people would ridicule others on where they end up going after high school.  Not everyone takes the same path or will end up in college, but I think it is interesting that in our society it is assumed that kids will continue on with their academic careers.  However, it is still so cool to congratulate all these seniors on their hard work and see where they will end up.

I am so incredibly proud of all my senior friends and wish them the best of luck wherever they are next year!!!

Monday, May 11, 2015

Do You Have Power?

Today in class we were having a very interesting discussion about how you can tell who has more power in a situation. We were talking about if there were potential ways to tell if two people are having a conversation, which of them has more power.

We originally started in regards to scenes in The Great Gatsby, and talking about which character seemingly had the most power in context of what was happening in the text. For example, we talked about how Daisy, who despite talking at a murmer, held the most power when we first meet her because everyone is leaning in to hear what she has to say. She had to hold the most power in that situation or people just wouldn't listen to her.

We then listened to a report on NPR about language and power. It was very interesting that it started out talking about the filler words we use, and how two people might be more compatible based on the types of words we use. At the end, it suggested that the language we use can also show how much power we have in that situation.

It was interesting because we also heard that you cannot change your language to change your personality, but rather, your language changes when you person changes.

Are there any patterns you see in people's behavior and how they assert their power? Do more factors beside language, or lack thereof, play into who has more power?

Wednesday, May 6, 2015

The Dog Days Aren't Over

I know I am a little late on the news, but I keep seeing something that is making me so sad, dogs are getting infected and dying from the flu.  The article I was reading today said that the flu was now in 12 states!

The number one concern of many people was that they would get the flu.  However, people cannot get the dog flu.  To date, there is no evidence of transmission of dog flu viruses from dogs to people and there have been no reported human infections with the canine influenza viruses,"

As the article goes on to explain, the flu is spread from nose to nose contact between dogs, which is bound to happen when you see two dogs play with one another.  Dog owners were told to avoid dog parks and keep a tight leash on their dogs if they wanted to help avoid the spread of this outbreak.
Puppy eyes are cute, but not when they look at you because they are miserable.  Keep those dogs safe!!

Thursday, April 30, 2015

The Joke is on Us!

No worries.  The full draft due today, the one that everyone spent hours trying to perfect and stayed up until all hours in the morning to finish was not the final draft!

We did a peer revision instead.

All jokes aside it was a very helpul 80 minutes of class with very constructive peer editing.  The best thing is to have someone else who doesn't know your topic read your paper so you can see if it makes sense.  When you are so caught up in your research, you sometimes can forget that other people don't know what you're talking about because they haven't been looking up your topic for over 3 weeks.  It is very helpful to have someone read over your paper and suggest what areas need some improvement and how you can make that huge important paper the best it can be.

Monday, April 27, 2015

Freakout #2: Full Draft Due Thursday

I am stressing a little because today in class Doc Oc told us that we would have a full draft of our entire paper due Thursday.  I am very stressed because I still feel like I haven't read "widely or deeply" enough as we have been told to do.  Reading widely and deeply means covering all potential answers to your why questions.  It is Monday and I have 3 nights to feel confident about my research and write this essay.

On top of that, we have to interview an expert in the field, which is really fascinating and I think I will learn a lot.  The problem is I've sent about 8 emails, and have gotten exactly 0 responses.  I am still crossing my fingers for Bernardine Dohrn, but I really get the feeling she will follow through.

I probably shouldn't be publically admitting this, but I have only written my introduction thus far and I really am feeling very overwhelemed.  It is so funny to me that everyone defines junior year with the dreaded Junior Theme. It is odd that so much of your grade in the class depends on the one paper.  I have friends in other classes whose Junior Theme was worth 25% of their final grade.  That seems crazy to me. People always warn you to prepare yourself. I think I am really starting to understand why people hate this dreaded paper so much.  Wish me lucck.

Thursday, April 23, 2015

Common Themes Within my Junior Theme

As I am continuing to embark on this journey of writing my junior theme, I have continually noticed two major problems that crop up in a lot of my readings.  The first problem is that without a proper definition of homelessness, it is very hard to get a direct counting on the amount of homeless people. A term called doubling-up is also something that is over-looked in many counting proceses.  Doubling-up is where a family or person no longer has a home and they move in with family or friends.  Because there is no proper definition of homelessness, that leads into the second common problem I have seen of it being extremely difficult to get an accurate number on homless people.

 It is almost impossible to get an accurate number of homeless people. A major reason why it is so hard is that many people have found different refuges besides formal shelters.  Clearly, if people are in shelters, it is easy to count, but those who are on the streets can be constantly moving around and hiding.

Because of this, it is obviously very difficult to get statistics on homeless people in the country and especially homeless children.  It is especially difficult with homeless children because they tend to run away or hide places where it would be difficult to find.  For example in the book, Ask Me Why I Hurt,  by Dr. Randy Christensen, children go to such extremes to hide as to dig a hole in the middle of the desert and call that their home.

Sunday, April 19, 2015

Freakout #1

Junior Theme is a project that causes continual stress. Today I had my first meltdown of I'm sure what will be many to come. I started feeling the stress and pressure of getting this project done, and it has not been very long.  We have to have 5 annotated bibliographies by Monday and I feel like I am so far behind.  But there is one particular source I have really enjoyed and wanted to talk about.

I have been reading a book called, Ask Me Why I Hurt, written by Randy Chirstensen with Rene Denfeld.  The book is a first hand account of Dr. Randy Christensen who devoted his life to caring for the homeless children who live on the streets and have no place to go.  He travels from town to town in Arizona, in a Winnebago as a portable doctor's office, treating the homeless children.

Within the first 50 pages of the book, we meet a young, very reserved girl, named Mary, who wears a bracelet around her wrist that says, ask me why I hurt.  She is very skeptical to tell Dr. Chirstensen or his assistant Jan anything.  As she begins to trust them more, she finally tells them the story of why she hurts.  Turns out, she had been sexually abused by her father,and was so scared because he threatened to kill her if she told anyone.  She ran away and found shelter in a hole dug in the ground. Dr. Christensen was able to find out all of this information after weeks, waiting for Mary to trust him.  He ended up helping her find her aunt who would take care of her and give her a nice home, rather than a hole in the middle of the desert.

This is just one of the heart throbbing stories of the patients that Dr. Christensen helped.  There are many others in the book along with the doctor's own personal conflicts and how he feels helping these children.  It is a very easy read that is very hard to put down, but hard to read at the same time because of the sadness of the topic. I don't know if I will end up using this information in my paper, but I think it will be good to get an emotional account of the serious issue of child homelessness.


Tuesday, April 14, 2015

For a town of one sqaure mile, there is not always a lot of excitment in Kenilworth, Illinois.  However, yesterday afternoon experienced a shock that had Sears School students on lock-down. Sadly, right before the schoool day was let out, a man was found dead with a bullet wound on Townly Field.


Kenilworth Police Department
***Information Bulletin***

Sent: April 13, 2015

Deceased Subject Discovered – Townley Field
On 4/13/15 at 3:04 p.m. the Kenilworth Police Department was notified by the Kenilworth Park District staff that a body was discovered in Townley Field.  The Joseph Sears School was immediately instructed by the Police Department to initiate security procedures for precautionary purposes while the incident was being investigated.  Upon arrival, Police personnel discovered a deceased male white in his 50’s with a gunshot wound.  The investigation into this matter continues however, preliminary investigation into the matter supports that the wound was self inflicted and there is no danger to the community.  It is unknown at this time the exact time of occurrence.  No reports of suspicious subjects or the sound of gun shots or fireworks were received prior to the discovery by Park District staff.  The name of the subject is not being released pending notification of the family.  The subject is not a Kenilworth resident and it is unknown at this point if they have any connection to the community.

Kenilworth Police Department
419 Richmond Road
Kenilworth, IL 60043
(847) 251-2141

Monday, April 13, 2015

Think Before You Act

Accusations of rape are not something that should be taken lighlty.  The heart breaking statistics show that about 68% of sexual assults are not reported to the police, and that every 107 seconds another American gets sexually assulted.   People deserve to have their tragedies reported and not have to live with the burden of such a horrible secret.

However, claiming you have been raped when in reality you haven't, is also a heinous crime.  9 years ago to the day, four Duke Lacrosse players were accused of raping a stripper at a party.  The problem is, once these accusations were made, they followed these four innocent young men wherever they went.  Last night there was a special 60 Minutes story that ran on this subject and Mike Pressler, the head coach of the Duke Lacrosse team at that time said,: Google up one of the boys' names, my name, and then, you know, on the computer you saw the word "rape," "sexual assault" next to your name. That, to me, that just was-- even today, I get emotional about it. Because it just-- everything you built, everything-- all-- everything you stood for. And to have two of those type of phrases or words associated with your name just-- even right now, as I speak to you, Armen, I'm getting angry over that.

Not only did it effect these young men, but it also had a huge impact on Pressler's life.  He was told he either had to resign or risk losing his job.  Being stuck in a spot, he resigned.  However people turned on him as well.  People would come to his house and put signs all over his yard that said "Rapist Lover" and "Do your duty. Turn 'em in" and his daughters and wife's personal lives were completely exposed.  He had a ton of trouble finding a new job because no one wanted to hire someone involved in this scandal.

In the way it played out, the four players were proven innocent and Pressler was able to land a new coaching job and completely change the culture of the school.  He continues to be a very successful coach.  

To me, it is absolutely unnaccaptable to be accusing four people of such a horrible crime.  Rape and sexual assult should never be taken as a way to get attention or money or whatever else might be the case.  You have to think about the consequences that could come from your actions.  The stripper could have seriously ruined a lot of people's lives and it is very lucky that things worked out in the end the way they did.  

Thursday, April 9, 2015

So It Begins

That dreaded time of year has finally arrived.  For the next few weeks I will be working on what every student tries their hardest to avoid: the Junior Theme. I have been wracking my brians and reading for hours on end to try and find a topic that seems interesting enough to persue and write this unseemingly endless paper.

I think I have finally decided that I am going to explore the continual issue of homeless children in America.  From the reading I have started to browse through, I have seen repeatedly how homeless children have perhaps a record or have a parent who has been incarcerated.  I want to continue to explore the possibility of a cycle of having a child who has an incarcerated parent and are left homeless and see if they are more likely to end up incarcerated themselves.

As of right now I have a very broad question of which I am attempting to answer which would be, why are their so many homeless children in the United States?

Thursday, March 26, 2015

Why Do We React So Violently?

I was shocked and devastated this morning when I was scrolling through CNN and found and article titled "Florida boy kills one brother, wounds another after food fight" At first I was a little confused because when I saw food fight, I thought your normal high school cafeteria scene.  However, upon reading it, I thought the reason he killed his brother was just as silly.  

The three boys were home eating dinner with their mom and oldest brother gone.  They reportedly got in an arguement about food, the details of which were not given.  After their spat, the 13 year old boy got up and shot and killed his 6 year old brother, and shot and wounded his 16 year old brother.  He then took the handgun and turned it on himself, committing suicide.  The 16 year old brother was hurt, but able to call 911 and get help. 


 It is devastaing to think that this family will have to deal with the loss of their two youngest brothers.  However, I was completely shocked that all of this tradegy stemmed from what seems to be a simple argument.  It makes me wonder what messege society is conveying to young minds.  Why do we think that it is ok after an argument to go and shoot your brothers? I know it very well might have come from a deeper problem, but it is still very disheartening to me that a 13 year-olds first reaction is to grab a gun and kill everyone.  I hope that this isn't some idea that he got from media, because if so, I think something really must be changed.  Media influences so much of what people do, but if it is harming others I think it has gone too far. 

Monday, March 23, 2015

Craigslist Killers

Recently I have seen two articles on CNN that talk about how people who responded to an ad on Craiglist have suddently gone missing and died or been seriously injured.  Just the other day, 7 month pregnant, Michelle Wilkins responded to an ad for baby clothes.  She went over there and was stabbed in the stomach and had her fetus ripped out.  She lost her unborn baby and almost  her own life.

Wilkinss was bleeding profusely but still was able to call the police.  She was able to tell them the location of where she was and the dispatcher stayed on the phone until the police found her.  This arguably saved her life.  She is in critical but stable condition and is improving each day.

Dynel Lane, 34, a former nurse aide, is being held on $2 million bail while prosecutors weigh charges against her, including murder. Lane is accused of stabbing Wilkins and removing a female fetus. The murder charge would reportedly depend on whether the fetus was old enough to have lived outside of her mother's body.

I find it very creepy and unsettling that all this innocent, pregnant woman was trying to do was buy clothes for her unborn baby.  It makes me sad that society has become so untrustworthy.  Technology has opened a world of amazing things, but also a door to have something as horrible as this stabbing happen. 

Sunday, March 22, 2015

March Madness

March Madness seems to be all people are talking about. From the moment that Notre Dame and Northeastern tipped the ball on Thursday millions of eyes have been glued to screens watching their favorite college teams play in this crazy tournament.  According to the NCAA, 181 million viewers tune in throughout the tournament across television, online and out-of-home platforms.  Every single boy in my class had his Ipad out "working" while really they pulled up the games.  Every time a teacher would come around, they would quickly click back to the actual work or just close the Ipad. 

My favorite part of the madness is all the upsets that occur.  Every year in this crazy tournament you can count on an upset.  This year, tons of people's brackets were busted when number 1 seed, Villanova, lost to number 8 seed, NC State.  On the very first day ,Thursday saw a record 5 one-point games:
  • NC State 66, LSU 65
  • UAB 60, Iowa St. 59
  • Georgia St. 57, Baylor 56
  • UCLA 60, SMU 59
  • Cincinnati 66, Purdue 65 (in overtime)
I am excited to see who will come out number one. Hopefully there will be many more action packed, exciting and upset-filled games.
Predictions?

Wednesday, March 18, 2015

What Could You Be Arrested For?

Today I was just looking around on the Internet and found an article on CNN that said that "A New Zealand bar manager and two Burmese colleagues were sentenced to two and a half years in jail in a Yangon court on Tuesday."  What was their crime? It was posting a picture of a Buddha wearing headphones on Facebook, in order to promote an event.  The article mentions a bunch of other strange incidents you can get arrested for in foreign countries.  Which got me thinking.  What strange laws could you be arrested for in the United States?
Upon a little research I found a few websites and some laws jumped out at me the most.  
This first one confuses me a little, because then wouldn't Halloween be illegal?
2. Students may not hold hands at school. 
I thought this was weird, too because I feel like the police would have to come for a lot of kids at my high school.  However, apparently the reasoning behind it is because it is a "gateway" to sexual activities.  Weird.
3. It is a felony to steal more than $1000 of grease
Why would anyone ever need or steal $1000 worth of grease?


There are some pretty funky laws in our legal system and it can be pretty amusing to see what you could get in trouble for.  What's do you think is the weirdest law?



Sunday, March 15, 2015

How Well Do You Know The Girl Next To You?

This past week I had the delightful pleasure of learning that my fellow classmate was not only extremely smart, but equally as talented in the arts.  A classmate that I have sat behind the whole year and who I talk to on the daily. I had no idea that she was such a phenomenal ukulele player and had the most beautiful voice to accompany the music.

We were lucky enough that she played for our class, and then I went home with her melodies stuck in my head and proceeded to stalk her on YouTube. I included a short three minute clip of her singing a cover of Bruno Mars' Count On Me.  I truly was so blown away by her singing and it really got be thinking about how I have seen her every day since the start of the school year and how until this past Friday I had never known she was so talented.  It made me think about how you think you can know someone, and then they come out and surprise you.  Learning about my classmates hidden talent made me really want to spend more time getting to know the people around me.  You never know what amazing things people can surprise you with.

You can "count on me" to be at all of her concerts when she is famous!

Friday, February 27, 2015

Do You Know How To Use A Typewriter?

The other day, my grandma sent me a link to this very amusing video. It is a quick 7 minute and 52 second video that really got me thinking.  It is about how kids react to a typewriter.  They show the kids the typewriter, ask them if they know what it is and then proceed to ask them to use it.  It is amazing to watch because it makes me think about how much technology has developed.

If I were in these kids place, I would not know how to use it.  You always here a parent or a grandparent use the phrase, "You guys have it so easy, in my day..." fill in the blank.  I think that it is incredible that we have discovered these technological advances that make it possible to say that we have it so easy now-a-days.  My favorite part of the video is at 7:09 when the boy says, "and I'm gonna be 80 and be like, "Back in my day, we only had Ipads"  

I think it is mind-boggling and yet so amazing that technology continues to grow and advance that we are going to think that using an Ipad was hard.  I'm just intrigued to see what becomes the next "typewriter" and what becomes the new "Ipad."

Wednesday, February 18, 2015

Deaths in Threes

It seems to me like death always comes in threes.  This past weekend my parents took turns taking care of me and flying out to go to funerals.   My dad's friend just passed as well as my very good family friend's grandfather.  To complete the trifecta, my mom's friend was going on his daily walk, healthy as ever, and his heart just gave out on him.  Death is so sudden and can be so unexpected, but it can also be a long battle and time for someone to let go.  In times of terrible loss it is amazing to see how people come together.

You never want to see a friend suffering.  One of the hardest battles to fight is cancer.  You have to think that sometimes when someone has been struggling for so long that it is good for them not to have to fight anymore.  My family friend's grandpa had been struggling for a very long time against lung cancer.  I was curious so I decided to look into lung cancer.

Lung Cancer is cancer that forms in tissues of the lung, usually in the cells lining air passages.  It is the second most common type of cancer, aside from skin cancer, for both men and women.  Lung cancer accounts for about 27% of all cancer deaths and is by far the leading cause of cancer death among both men and women. Each year, more people die of lung cancer than of colon, breast, and prostate cancers combined.

Seeing as so many men and women can get lung cancer from smoking, I am hopeful we can lower the number of smokers, thus reducing people's risk of getting lung cancer. If risking your life and having your lungs look like the image down below isn't enough motive, I don't know what will work.


Thursday, January 29, 2015

Coining Phrases

As I was parousing the news this morning I came across something that shocked me.  Famous country and pop singer, Taylor Swift, has trademarked many lines from her songs.  Swift has taken out several trademarks for phrases like "Party Like It's 1989," "This Sick Beat," "Cause We Never Go Out of Style." It is interesting to me that she would do something like this.  These lines have become very popular sayings in everyday use, and some people might say that she is being a stickler about it and just trying to make as much money as possible. 

However, upon a little research about Swift trademarking the lyrics, I have seen a different perspective.  "This is arguably less about her wanting to boil every single thing she does down to a “revenue stream” and more about a pre-emptive strike against callously opportunistic third parties who might want to make money off her without either her involvement or her say so." I agree, I think that these lines are so widely known and so commonly used that people will see this as an opportunity to make money off of her hard work.  Americans tend to see an opporutnity and snatch it up and try to build an empire with it.  The American Dream to work hard enough and be able to make your way to the top.

Still, parts of me wonder why she would trademark the phrases? I am wondering if companies will try to make money off of these phrases if they have to pay to print them in the first place?  Is it worth it? 

Thursday, January 8, 2015

NYC Finally Joining the Tech Age

For about 4 or 5 years now, I have always been able to bring in my laptop, or iPad or phone to school and not have to worry about it being confiscated.  At my elementary school we had a program called BYOD; Bring Your Own Device.  My teachers have encouraged me to bring in technology so that I can make the most of my learning experience by having many more resources available at the tip of my fingers. Even now, every single student in my high school is required to have an iPad. I was absolutely shocked when I saw in the Chicago Tribune today that New York City is just joining this phenomenon.

Mayor Bill de Blasio is lifting a longtime ban, set in place by former Mayor Michael Bloomberg, to allow students to bring technology, more specifically, phones, into school.  This policy is to go into effect March, 2.  Before this, students like Jessica Flores, had to pay $1 a day to store their phones in a local store or a van to make sure that it wouldn't be taken.  Over the course of a school year that can really add up, and seems to be a waste of money.  It baffled me that when technology is such an integral part of my learning, and learning all around the country, that this is just now a policy in New York City.  It is so much easier to find information in moments on an iPad or phone and can help greatly with learning.  It seems that American culture really is shifting to a more technological learning process and New York City is just now jumping on that bandwagon.

Do you think that technology is a good thing to be able to have at school? Or do you think Mayor Bloomberg was right to have it banned?
Students All With iPads To Help With Learning

Sunday, January 4, 2015

They Create Monsters in Here

About two weeks ago, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that the city will no longer house minors in solitary confinement.  There is an ongoing argument about whether putting minors in solitary is "cruel and counterproductive." People argue that if they are shut away and treated that poorly as minors, they will end up acting more violently as they get older. This is what they create in here, monsters,” one inmate said. “You can’t conduct yourself like a human being when they treat you like an animal.” If inmates are being treated like "animals" then that is all they know.  It gives them no chance to rehabilitate.  Perhaps if the jails concentrated on a method of rehabilitation and teaching the inmates, especially the minors, how to get a fresh start, "monsters" would not be created.  The adolescent years are key in shaping the person to who they will become. If we treat the minor inmates like animals and in such a cruel manner, that is how they will act.  
De Blasio Speaking with Young Inmates at Rikers Island

Mayor de Blasio said, “It’s our moral responsibility as humans not to create a situation where so many people have to experience so many difficult things,”  We are all human.  Despite our worst errors, we should all have a chance to learn from our mistakes and improve.  Minors have the rest of their lives ahead of them, if we can teach them by example, perhaps if and when they are released from jail, they won't turn to "monstrous" ways.  By eliminating a harsh treatment of minors, perhaps we are taking our moral responsibilities as humans and making things just a little easier. 

"A Population That Never Was"

A Shot from Helfman's "Historical Correction"
Picture of a White Nobleman
What photographer, Maxine Helfman, aims to do with her photographs are to make people think.  Most recently, a series of her work, "Historical Correction" which she has been shooting since 2012, has received an outcry of attention due to all the racial discrimination being brought up.  What Helfman is photographing are Flemish-style portraits, using only black models.  She is putting people of color in a style that historically was of the European elite. The models wear the same expressions and style of clothing that a 17th -century nobleman or woman would wear.

You see in these wonderful pictures they are wearing the expressions of which a nobleman would pose for a portrait to be taken or painted.  I put in a picture of a white nobleman to compare. You can see how similar the expressions and clothing are to that of which the model is posing for. They both have hard looking stares and are wearing all black with white collars.  

"Helfman wanted to create historical documentation of a population that never was." Although she is very careful to be respectful, be it another artist, or an expert for another cultural point of view. 

""I never want to create something that's tongue-in-cheek because that defeats the purpose," she said. "It's disrespectful to the (statement) I'm trying to make."

She is making people think about her work which is coming into big discussion as events like Ferguson continue to pop up.  Racial discrimination is a very relevant topic and Helfman's goal is just to get people to think, not to step on anyone's toes, but just think, and then rethink.  

"WOW! You're so tan!"

As we will be coming back from winter break in a matter of hours, I already know what I am going to see as I walk through the halls of my high school.  Almost every girl who went to a warm vacation spot over the nice two-week break, is going to be wearing some kind of shirt or dress that shows off their "amazing" tan lines.
Studies have shown that people think tanner skin is more attractive and even healthier looking.  Yes, the sun does provide people with that good vitamin D that we all need, but people really can overdue it.  As I know my friends and peers do, they sit in a chair by a pool, or sit on a beach for hours on end, letting the Sun's UV rays burn into them.  Of course they know the risks for skin cancer yet people are willing to take that risk, just to look tan.  Because they like looking nice coming back from a vacation, many people then want to be tan all year round, when you know for sure they wouldn't be laying out. "Sunless tanning products, spray-on tans, and cosmetic bronzers totaling $516 million annually, not to mention the indoor tanning industry and low-dose sunblocks marketed as "tanning creams." People go to such extremes just so they can look "good."

The odd thing is, tanned skin has truly changed meanings in the eyes of the public.  Having tanned skin used to mean that you were working class person who had to do labor outside.  However, that all changed with the Industrial Revolution when the working class got moved indoors into factories and then only the upper class could afford to go on elaborate vacations to warm, paradise.  It is so interesting to see what Americans value as important now.  To show your friends that you had a great time and a "successful" trip, you come back tan.  It is funny how the perception of being tan has changed and how years ago it was considered a lesser thing to be darker.  Now it seems that the tanner you are, the better.  

A Legend Dies

At the astonishing age of 104, Luise Rainer passed away December 30 of pneumonia.  She was an icon who will always be remembered as the first star to win back-to-back Oscars.  The first Oscar she won was for a reportedly "wrenching performance" in "The Great Ziegfeld" (1936) which was followed a year later by her award winning acting in "The Good Earth" (1937.)  She was only 28 at the time.  She is not your typical Hollywood star who loved the lime light and took any role she was offered. On the contrary, she turned her back on Hollywood.  Rainer wanted to be cast in the "meaty" roles that had meaning.  In an interview she said, "I hated Hollywood.  That's why I turned my back on it." She truly was a very talented actress and said she could not enjoy her awards because she felt like it wasn't fair. "The awards meant nothing because I considered the acting was just a gift. They made my life so difficult, so clamorous."  She quit her job and turned her back on Hollywood at the peak of her career so that she could fulfill the "roles" of being a wife and a mother.   
Luise Rainer With Her Two Oscars

She moved all around and although she was not American born, I think she showed some amazing American characteristics.  She didn't let anyone tell her what to do.  When she was unhappy with her marriage she made the decision and got out of it.  She would not take the lesser roles and stayed strong with her conviction.  I think that doing what you believe in and trying to excel at it, is a strong American value and she portrayed it.  She was an amazingly talented woman who lived her life the way she wanted.  She will truly be missed. 

Miracles Come From Tragedy

Friday evening brought tragedy to the Gutzler family as the twin engine aircraft their father was flying crashed and everyone on board passed away, except for the youngest passenger. 7 year-old Sailor Gutzler was the lone survivor in this horrific accident.  Bruised, scratched, with broken bones and bleeding she trudged three quarters of a mile through Kentucky's January weather in Florida attire until she knocked on the door of Larry Wilkins.  Sailor Gutzler told Wilkins that she had been in a plane crash and both her mom and dad were dead.  Also on the plane had been her 9 year-old sister and her 14 year-old cousin.
Investigators Trying To Determine The Cause of the Crash
Her father, Marty Gutzler, had been flying since he was 16 and had logged about 4,000 hours, and taught as a flight instructor.   The family was flying from Key West, to Nashville, IL, and according to family, he had made the trip "many, many times" At 5:55pm Marty had made a distress call, and then lost contact with the air traffic controllers. They were less than 10 miles from the airport they would have stopped at to get help.  About 40 minutes after Air control lost contact, the Kentucky Police received a call from Wilkins with the news of Sailor being alive.  She had used survival skills, taught to her by her father, to light a branch from the burning plane so she could light up her path to find help.

Their home town is devastated, but from all of this, we can truly see how amazing her story is.  This is nothing short of a miracle that a 7 year-old could have found her way out of such a tragic situation.  Wilkins called 911 right away and cleaned her up.  It is truly reassuring to know that in light of a horrible situation, there were people out there who helped out and helped this amazing little girl.