Tuesday, March 19, 2013

MAPLAN Scavenger Hunt say whaaa.?

Have you ever gone to class and opened your book for an assignment, and as you're looking for the page you need you stumble across one of those "Turn to page 336 for a secret." ? We all know there isn't going to  be a secret and we all know we're going to end up frustrated at the fact we rummaged through over 15 pages just to get to the end with a dumb little message that normally states: "Idiot, there was no secret! ;) " Then we question why the hell we just wasted 5 minutes of our lives to read a sentence we already knew there was no answer to? Somewhere in each of our brains there's this curiosity tick that drives us to pry into something when we don't fully know the answer. So what if instead of reading paragraphs and essays we replicate that tick? But this time you're not wasting 5-10 minutes to find a dead end, this time you let that tick drive you to the fullest extent until you find out whats the big secret and why it's worth your while and this time you actually learn something in the end. You find knowledge to something you never would have thought to think twice about learning, and you have fun doing it.

Amanda, Danny, Carla, Melissa, Shelby and hopefully Lissette and I hope to pull off a "Blog Scavenger Hunt" for our authors. The layout is still a little rough and we're still brainstorming on how to tie it all together. As i'm thinking about it i feel like we will have certain quotes, facts, links and traces left over our blogs and/or the internet. We may start off with a few quotes, facts, hints and clues on our blogs about the modernist we chose, then we plan to post a link to a YouTube video, poem, website or post a picture that relates to the author on our blogs or one of the members in the group to get the "Who is it?" thought process going. We will then end the post with a link to one of our group members blogs whose modernist has a relation in some way shape or form with the modernist we are doing. The last few words on the posts will be a very strong quote that will give the reader a idea on who the modernist is. As they bounce from blog to blog and search from clue to clue they will end up on a possible video (unconfirmed ) that will end the scavenger hunt and announce who the modernist is. The video should include more quotes and facts and our own opinions on the modernist.

I hope that all made sense, i was rambling quite a bit! But i promise that the deliverance of the project will be more clear and a lot more interesting than a scrambled up paragraph.

Friday, March 8, 2013

Short Story: Vocab Style

My short story is going to include Zombies, a Hospital and a divorced couple.

Anthony Hanes ex wife Jennifer suffered from constant chronic fever attacks which resulted in her hospitalization. Though he and Jennifer had been divorced for over three years, Anthony still had a deep sentimental feelings that arose within him every time he took the kids to go visit her. He longed to make things right and to continue to be with her, but she had remarried and he was a man of morality. As much as he wanted her, he would forever keep his feelings to himself.

On the 23rd of December, 2012, Anthony headed to the hospital with his daughter Amanda and his twin sons Jacob and Jason, who suffered from severe panic attacks due to a birth defect during his delivery. Jennifer had collapsed at work again from another one of her fever episodes, and even though he knew he could have done nothing to help her, he felt a tugging remorse throughout his body as though it was his fault. Upon arrival to the hospital Anthony and the kids got stuck in traffic. People were shouting and honking, screaming about how they all had places to go. Anthony caught sight of an acquaintance of his and called out to him. He explained that the traffic had suddenly come to a abrupt halt and the cops told everyone to stay inside their cars with the doors locked and to keep noise to a minimum if they see anything suspicious. Anthony felt a queasy feeling of discomfort form in the pit of his stomach as he quickly rolled up the windows and leaned back into his seat nervously.

"What happened?", his daughter asked warily. Before Anthony could answer the twins began to laugh hysterically.

"Something funny?", Anthony asked, clearly irritated. Before the twins had time to answer they were interrupted by a loud piercing scream from a few cars ahead. The twins began to move around uncomfortably and try to leave but Anthony wouldn't allow it. He knew they were bothered by the scream  because it had bothered him very much as well. To lighten the mood Anthony turned the radio on hoping it would somehow soothe the terrifying noise they had heard earlier.

"Bzzpt. . . The Apacol . . .Bzzzzpt. . . has begun. . . Bzzpt . . .unexplained. . .Bzzpt. . . phenomenon occurring . . . Bzzpt. . . world wide."  The silence in the car was intense, the kids sat in the back breathing heavily trying to conceal their feelings of panic. Jason began to breathe rapidly as his cheeks turned a bright read and his skin began to flush. Anthony tried to figure out what was wrong when Jason made an implication towards the cars windshield. Before them a grotesquely hideous creature stood just inches away from the car. Screaming coming from one corner and crying from the other. Anthony revved up the car engine and attempted to reverse the car to move away further but ended up hitting the car behind him as a result. The zombie inched closer to the car as Anthony frantically searched around for an alternative. Amanda begun scream as a slender one armed zombie pushed up against the passengers window of the car, the glass cracked slowly but the they were spreading quick. Amanda began to tug and pull at her car seat but couldn't seem to unbuckle herself underneath all of the panic. Jason begun to shake rapidly and sweat excessively due to a panic attack then fainted underneath all of the stress and fear surging through his body. The zombie on the passengers window then broke through the glass and tugged on Amanda's shirt until he was able to bite into her neck and take a chunk of flesh with him. The savage monster than came towards Jason and Jacob ripping them limb from limb. The trauma overwhelmed Anthony as he felt the last ounce of his sanity leave his body. The zombie then wrapped its arms around the collar on Anthony's shirt and pulled him to his rotting blood stained teeth, his teeth only millimeters away from his flesh. Seconds feel like hours as the zombie takes a bite out of his jugular and the world fades to black. You have died. 

That ending was a little confusing huh? Lemme spare you from my blabbing and sum it up into ten simple words. The story setting was a video game and you lost. Interesting twist? Or just a quick way to end a story? Well actually it was both, i found the ending both interesting and a quick way for me to prevent myself from scraping the entire story and turning it into a novel. Hope you enjoyed.! Please stop by again soon. (:

Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Joe College.!

So i'm not entirely sure why the title is "Joe college." Maybe it's a joke where "joe" stands for "yo" and its sayin 'YO COLLEGE.!" Bad joke? Yeah...i thought you guys might feel that way.

Aside from the bad jokes and confusion, Let's talk about college!!


What Campuses interest you?
I don't have too many colleges in mind at the moment. For now my goal is to start hancock senior year and finish as soon as possible. I feel that junior colleges not only help save money, but they help prep students for the college life and also give them a chance to see if college is right for them. Some Universities i want to transfer to are :

*USC
*Cal State Northridge/ LA/ Long Beach/Dominguez Hills
*San Jose State
*Loyola Marymount

Besides those, I'm still searching and researching colleges in California that spark interest.

What fields interest you?
If you're a frequent visitor of my blog you know that i'm still figuring myself out. As much as i'd love to have an idea on why i want to go to college and what i want to do, i don't. Whenever i begin to think of what i like or what i want to do i get overwhelmed from the hardcore searching i do to figure it out. Hobbies like cooking and dancing interest me, but i don't intend to pay money to turn them into a profession, so i plan to keep searching for a career i can pursue by receiving a college education.

What challenges and opportunities do you foresee in the process of planning life after high school?
Challenges? I'd have to say the biggest challenge i would have to overcome after high school is myself, figuring out who i am and what's my purpose. I tend to over analyze and look into things that i want to learn and in the end i find myself even more lost than before. I have no doubt i can successfully make it through my college years without any major problems, maybe a few financial troubles here and there, but for the most part ill just have to defeat myself. I feel a lot of opportunities will be coming for me after high school. New experiences and people, it might help me figure out what i want to do so i can plan out how i want to do it.


There are many questions i have about college and my future but i honestly feel that in the end i will rise transcend above even my own expectations and become something great. Hell, who knows! I just might major in the culinary arts and become the next Betty Crocker! ;-)


Thanks again for stopping by on my blog guys! It's much appreciated. 

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

I Am Langston Hughes


"We younger Negro artists now intend to express our individual dark-skinned selves without fear or shame. If white people are pleased we are glad. If they aren't, it doesn't matter. We know we are beautiful. And ugly too... If colored people are pleased we are glad. If they are not, their displeasure doesn't matter either. We build our temples for tomorrow, as strong as we know how and we stand on the top of the mountain, free within ourselves."


~Langston Hughes

I Am Langston Hughes

I am a African American poet, novelist and playwright from the Harlem Renaissance .

I am on of the important and well known writers of the Harlem Renaissance who influenced many African American poets for many generations.

I am heavily influenced by my beloved hometown Harlem.

I am a graduate of Lincoln University, Pennsylvania .

I am not afraid to be who I am.
(Hughes quoted:  "No great poet has ever been afraid of being himself")

I Am Langston Hughes



Monday, March 4, 2013

Introducing Langston Hughes

While i was getting into the research of the modernist i chose, i found five facets that stood out to me that i would like to share with you all. So sit back, relax and enjoy my marvelous list. 

Facts about Langston Hughes: 

 Hughes poetic interest began after the death of his grandmother who raised him after his parents seperated after birth and were not around enough to take care of him. Hughes then moved back in with his mother where they moved from several different cities before settling in Ohio.

I listed this fact because i feel that this struggle with his family was what brought him into poetry, though i cannot find information to verify it, if feel it inspired his earlier writing.

 Hughes was a regular contributor to his high school literary magazine and submitted to other poetry magazines regardless of the fact they would reject his work.

I found this interesting, people refused to accept and read his work but he didn't let that slow him down or hold him back. He made an effort to continue doing what he loved even if others hated it.

 He traveled to Africa, Spain and Paris to help develop his poetry.

Considering the fact i find interest in the culinary arts i feel that this is important. They say great chefs gain their greatness from the experiences they discover, normally by traveling the world. Hughes traveled various part of the world as well. Do you think this contributed to the quality of his work?

 While working as a busboy at a D.C. hotel restaurant, he met American poet Vachel Lindsay. He introduced his work to the poet and as a result he promoted Hughes poetry to a wider audience. Because of this, his poem "The Weary Blues" won first prize in Opportunity magazine and was granted a full scholarship to Lincoln University in Pennsylvania.

Funny how you never know who and where you'll run into people. Who would have thought busing tables at a hotel would be the beginning of Hughes big break?

Hughes home in Harlem became New York City Landmark status after his death in 1981 and his works are now translated and published all throughout the world.

He was raised in a time were Blacks were not considered to be equal and were once looked down upon, now his work his praised and studied all though out the globe. Now THAT is an achievement!


~That concludes my facts on Langston Hughes. Thanks for stopping by!


                                       - Jasmine Beebe  

Spring Vocabulary # 6

Chronic: constant, not getting better
Sentiment: feeling, attitude towards something
Morality: conformity to rules, moral conduct
Remorse: deep/painful regret
Defect: imperfection, shortcoming
Acquaintance: A person known to one (normally not close friends)
Sanity: The state of a sound mind/being sane.
Implication: to imply or suggest something
Alternative: Another option; two or more possibilities
Savage: fierce and cruel
Phenomenon: observable occurance