11/29/09- Poem 3

              Life is a box of jelly beans;

    you never know what you are going to get.

                  One day it may be

                a sweet, sweet cherry.

       Everything is going great and swell.

      Other days it may be coffee flavored:

               bland, dull, and boring.

               Worst of all, it could be

         the terrible, deceptive cinnamon.

   You start out thinking it is going to be great.

          It looks just like the good ones.

         But once it starts, things get bad.

                         FAST.

 

11/29/09- Poem 2

               There it is!

The hidden piece of cloth that will end this war.

     Quietly, discreetly, invisibly run

          to defeat the enemy.

         Closer, closer, closer...

          AHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

 

     So close, yet so far away.

These bars won't hold forever.

     They will come and free

  and end this war.  If only he knew

       the secret location.

 

    The enemy guarded that cloth

      with dear life. No one could

         get it alone. They need

              my help. If only...

      "BOYS! TIME FOR LUNCH!"

      This war will have to wait til

          after Grilled Cheese.

 

11/13/09- Poem 1

  Blue always represents my outer self-

        calm, as a pond,

        relaxed, carefree,

     always ready to help.

However, scratch the outer layering

    and you will find a roaring red-

       anger, energy, and ferocity,

         ready to be tapped into

               at anytime.

Be wary of which color today is!

 

wiki 5 20/20 - I hadn't thought about the fact that Rev. Clausing has been here your entire HS experience! Wow! You are right on target in your observations. I hadn't realized that I'd felt 'odd' about the way he presented "the world" view, but you are right... it's a certain "tone" he takes as he "speaks" for them... and it is sort of like they sound "weird" or like "demons talking" - I get your point!

10/5/09- Entry 5

     Pastor Clausing has been speaking to Lutheran High for chapels for my entire highschool career but I just now decided to critique him in terms of public speaking.  He has some pros and cons to it.  The bad first.  Whenever he is presenting the other side of a story, i.e. the non-Lutheran way, it always seems like his voice inflection puts them down.  It is like he is making fun of them or like they are not important.  It makes it seem very biased, always on the other side.  Also, everyone knows the signature gesture. While it is a lot better than a non-motion, it becomes distracting when it is overdone and overused. I remember the first few times I listened to him, that gesture was all I followed; none of the sermon.  In that sense it is bad.  Regardless, it is still a gesture.  Now on to the good.  He is not confined to the podium.  He does not rely on his notes.  When not using gestures, his hands are very relaxed and not fidgeting around.  Also, he makes sure everyone knows when the main points of his message are being presented by way of the signature gesture.

 

wiki 4 - 20/20 - He did a great job! I loved his object lesson of Superman! Good post!

10/30/09- Entry 4

     This past Sunday Pastor Hoener from O'fallon Lutheran Church preached at Immanuel.  He was not a very dynamic speaker.  By that I mean his voice had a very soft edge to it, almost kind.  Whenever he would sound forceful or "angry" it did not seem to fit his personality very well.  That aside, he was a very fluent public speaker.  I hardly ever saw him glance down at his notes.  That serves very well as he never became off track or lost.  Out of all of the speakers I've listened to/ obeserved, he used, by far, the most hand gestures.  While that may seem like it would distract the audience, it supported his points more than took away.  Every single sentance had a hand motion that occumpanied it.  In terms of how he kept the audiences attention, he did a very good job of using something that we all know to compare to his point.  He used Superman/Clark Kent. By doing that, he was able to catch the ears of the younger kids all the way to the older senior citizens.  I mean seriously, who doesn't like Superman?

 

wiki 3 - 20/20 - good job! He does have a very controlled style.

10/23/09- Entry 3

     Yesterday, Leon Jameson gave the football team a devotion following practice.  He is a very experienced speaker who know how to control himself and make his point.  When he talks, his sentances flow very smoothly.  He does not stop to remember what comes next; it just comes.  I did not hear a single filler word (such as um, uh, and, you know, like) the whole time he talked.  He was very capable of relating to the audience.  Because he had coached football at LHS a few years ago, that was very easy for him.  His voice stayed very calm throughout the message, which I am unsure about if that is positive or negative.  Staying calm means that he did not raise his voice to emphasize points, but that also means that he did not fold under pressure.  His gestures were limited throughout, although this might have simply been because he was holding a bible with his notes in one hand.  Overall, he did a very good job presenting to a group of teenage boys.

 

wiki 2 - 20/20 - good job - (also a good job helping him... you were the "object lesson!"

10/15/09- Entry 2

     Today Mr. Kuhlmann and the seniors from the football team presented chapel today.  Mr. Kuhlmann did a very good job of making eye contact, using gestures, and pacing around.  He never looked at just one section of the crowd.  He, instead, made sure that everyone was involved by moving his eyes around.  Throughout his speech he would empahsize certain points by using his hands, but not like Pastor Clausing, where it is very rigid and exact.  The gestures would flow and seem very natural.  Another way that he kept everyone listening was pacing around.  Stationary speakers tend to lose listeners because the people may drift their gaze elsewhere.  Since he moved around, people were always watching him.  His voice was not monotone, like the speaker in my previous entry.  He fluctuated his voice to emphasize certain points. 

 

wiki 1  - 20/20 - great job. Very detailed.

10/8/09- Entry 1- Public Speaking-  This past Monday a pastor from Our Savior Lutheran Church in St. Charles presented chapel at Lutheran High.  Overall, he was not a very good public speaker, in my opinion, although he did have some positives.  My main critique of him was his voice usage.  He did not project it to the crowd.  Most of the times I had to lean in to even hear what he was saying.  Also, his voice did not have very much inflection in it.  It was very monotone.  Even at times when he tried to raise it for the high point of the message, it still was uneventful.  Another critique I have of him was his posture.  His main tendency was fidgeting with something in his pocket.  The fact that I can remember that shows that it was a distraction.  Also, he frequently leaned on the podium, which is not very professional in posture.  One positive thing he did have going for him was that his topic was interesting enough to keep people listening.  His stories related to highschoolers. In fact, most of them were set when he was in highschool.

 

9/24/09- Entry 12

     Today we took the first part of first test in Symposium.  It was quite a breeze.  Most of the the vocabulary words I had already known from a variety of places.  Some were from past years in Language Arts.  Others I was able to figure out simply by using common knowledge of how stories work.  Movies always have the same elements, so it was easy in the respect that I am more well-versed in movies than books. The day before the test, we did BINGO with the vocabulary words.  It was a great way to start studying for the test.  It helped to hear the words and definitions read out loud as opposed to repeating the in your head over and over again.  I hope that we will do this again with each section and hopefully again at Thanksgiving. 

 

9/24/09- Entry 11

     I really enjoyed all of the stories that the students wrote.  Although I did not read them through thoroughly, the stories seemed to flow well with good, descriptive words.  My story was about a football team in Texas with a large dilemna.  I had some inspiration for this story.  The first was probably Varisty Blues, a football movie from over a decade ago.  I had never seen it all the way through, but I got the plot of it from the ending.  The high school football coach had been kicked off the team at the end because of bad choices concerning his players.  I had tried to write about something else, but I saw how easy it was to write about a football team during my actual season.  The ideas, images, and descriptions flowed easily.  It was quite easy to write.

 

Short Story

 

THE GAME

 

 

“JONES! IS THAT ALL YOU GOT? THAT’S THE THIRD TIME YOU’VE MISSED THAT TACKLE TODAY! GET OUT AND GIVE ME 50!”

            Sweat dripping down his nose, Brett Jones trudged off the practice field to sideline, clinching his teeth.  How in the world could he have made that tackle?  That receiver blindsided him before he even knew what was happening.  It was the corner’s fault. He should have warned him that the man was cracking on him.

 

 

Hit! One.

Hit! Two.

Hit! Three…

            The coaches had been on edge a lot lately, particularly today.  You would think that after the big come from behind win over Tucksville last Friday they would be in a better mood.  Sure, the next game is the most important one of the season, the one that decides if the team advances, but why are they all so touchy?

 

 

 Hit! Forty-eight.

Hit!  Forty-nine.

Hit!  Fifty.

 

 

“Jones! You done yet? Get over here and make sure you never miss that tackle again!” cried Coach Brown. 

 

 

Coach Brown was a legend at Jansville High.  While he was there, he set records in nearly every category, on defense and offense:  points scored, rushing yards, yards per carry, interceptions, and tackles.  His team had gone to the state championship two years, finally winning it his senior year.  His legendary 84 yard run with twelve seconds left sealed the state championship game that year.  When he returned 7 years later to coach his alma mater, the town of Jansville possessed an excitement not seen there since Brown had gone to school there.  His record over the past 22 years, 183-37, has him as a future Texas High School Hall of Fame member.

 

 

“ALL RIGHT EVERYBODY, BRING IT IN!” Coach Brown yelled.

           

            “Great practice everyone.  That’s the stuff right there that will push us through South Parston on Friday.  We’ve got a few things that we need to improve on before the game, though.  That number 33 they got is a horse:  6’2’’, 240 lbs.  Kid just runs people over like they’re children. Expect a lot of hitting tomorrow.  That’s the key to game on Friday:  tackling.  Get a break everyone.  Practice same time tomorrow.  Jones, Carlson, Smith, Jackson.  I need to talk to you guys after.”

 

 

            Relief and excitement filled the air as the players left the field.  They had been waiting for this game the whole season.  For some, this was their one last chance to make a mark for their class.  Tired and sweaty, the four remaining seniors walked over to Coach Brown while discussing the upcoming game.  Coach Brown dismissed the other coaches and waited for them to get out of earshot before speaking.  There was definitely something on his mind, and it wasn’t just the impending stress. 

            “Ok, you guys. You four have been starting since day one as freshman.  It is your team.  Your actions decide whether this team will be remembered as one of the best ever or just another team in the history of the school.  I know how it feels.  I was in the same place as you almost 30 years ago.  It’s a lot of fun.  Never forget these days.  Once they’re past, they are gone forever. 

            Now, most of you have seen the film of the other team.  They are monsters.  Their offensive line outweighs us by about 40 pounds.  That number 33 runs a 4.5 forty.  Their quarterback is getting recruited by numerous D-I schools.  We need to get an edge on them.  That is why I’m planning on giving you guys a little help.”

            At this point, he pulled a little container out of his pocket.  Brett was very unsure about where this was going.  From what he could see, it looked like the container was filled with little pills.  Brett looked at Carlson and Jackson.  They had the same confused look on their face.  Smith, however, had a stern expression.

 

 

            “Coach, is that speed???” he said.

            “You bet it is.  With their size, we are going to need this little guy to give us that little extra umph.  I’m going to tell you guys a secret that I haven’t told a living soul.  Not my coach, parents, best friend, not even my wife.  This pill was my key to success back in the day.  Do you think I set all those records on pure talent alone? Ha! Without this, I’m just a normal running back.  This has to be our little thing.  Don’t go telling your parents or anyone else on the team this.  Take this on gameday and we’re going to the playoffs.  Now get outta here and go shower.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

“How was your day honey?” Brett’s mother asked as he walked into the door of his small, rundown house.  His family had never had the luxuries that all the other boys had.  His dad worked twelve hours a day down at the steel mill just trying to make ends-meat.  His mom worked as a part time seamstress at the local clothing store.  While she was not working that, she was busy helping at a nursery for some extra money.  Brett had known for a long time that the only way he could get a college education was by getting a football scholarship.  His parents couldn’t afford to send him to college.  With college scouts and this upcoming game, Brett knew that this game was his last chance.

“Um. It was alright,” replied Brett.

“Is the team going to be ready for the game?”

Um. Maybe.”

“Come on in and have a seat for dinner.  Your father is already sitting down, nagging at me to start.”

Brett had always appreciated the food that was on the table at night.  He knew his parent were working hard to get it there.  He rarely ever complained.  Dinner discussions were always where the small family caught up with each other and talked about their problems.  Tonight, however, Brett did not say a word. 

“Brett, are you alright?  You haven’t said a word all dinner,” Mr. Jones said.

“I’m fine.”

“That’s not a fine to me.  You have hardly touched your food,” Mrs. Jones responded.

“Brett, what’s wrong?” Mr. Jones inquired.

His heart rate started racing as Brett pondered what to do next.  His coach had told him not to tell anyone anything.  As much as he didn’t want to admit it, his coach was right.  Without that pill, his team was doomed.  The other team was just too good.  And if his team lost, his college scholarship was gone forever.

“Have you ever had a problem where you had to do something dishonest to get something important?”

“Son, what’s going on?” Mr. Jones kept persisting.

“Oh, it’s nothing big,” Brett lied.  “It’s just part of an essay I’m writing.”

“Well I’m going to act like I can’t see right through that,” Mr. Jones said.  “Yes.  I have had that problem before and I was actually about your age when it happened.  I was in Physics and hadn’t been doing as well as I had wanted.  It was semester exam time and I had a 79%.  The only way I could get a “B” was if I got an 84 %.  Now this final was infamous for being the worst final in the school.  Rumor had it that half of the kids who took it ended up getting 45% or lower.  Well, the day before the test a couple of my buddies, well let’s say, “came across” a copy of the test.  Every single answer for that test was on there and they asked if I wanted to see it.  While my mind was saying yes, my heart was saying no.”

“What did you end up doing,” Brett said.

“Well, when they first came up to me I simply said that I would get back to them, but in the back of my head I knew that I wouldn’t look at it.  Turns out two hours later, the teacher noticed that one of his answer keys was missing. Students were brought in for questioning and the three guys who had it were suspended and failed that course.”

“Jeez.  How did that test end up going?”

“Well thing tends to turn out for the better when you do the right thing.  I got an 85%,” Mr. Jones replied, winking at his son.

 

 

 

 

“Men.  This is it.  The moment we have all been waiting for,” Coach Brown announced to his team.  It was Friday night.  The players were all nervously sitting in the locker room, listening to their renowned coach.   “Win this, and we are in the playoffs.  Lose, and, well, you don’t want to know.  They are big.  They’re fast.  And they are the only thing standing in our way off the playoffs.  This is a must win game.  Now get out there and show them what you’ve got!”

Jones, Carlson, Smith, and Jackson lagged until the rest of the team was out the doors.  They had reached their decision the night before and they were going to tell it to him together. 

As they walked toward Coach Brown, the locker room door opened and in walked the Athletic Director, Principal, Superintendant, and the County Sheriff.  Earlier that day, the boys had tipped off the school about the actions of their coach. 

“Coach Brown, we are going to have to ask you to come with us,” the Principal said.  “We have received some interesting information regarding your team and past glory.  Oh, the team is perfectly able to play by themselves.  You on the other hand, will not be participating in the post-game celebration.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

Brett sat on his bed, mulling over that night’s game.  14-17.  All he could think about was that last play.  All they had to do was keep the clock running for two more minutes and the game was over.  However, one fumble cost them the game.  One fumble.  Brett’s heart had dropped when he saw from the sideline the ball pop out.  His defense had done their job.  They had contained the monster running back to no touchdowns on offense.  However, that monster running back picked up the fumble and took at all the way.  How could this have happened?  Maybe he should have taken those pills… RING…. RING… RING…

“BRETT! HONEY IT’S FOR YOU!” His mother cried.

            Brett trudged over to the phone to pick it up.  He didn’t want to talk to anymore consoling friends.  It would just make it worse.

            “Hello?” Brett answered.

            “Yes, is this Brett Jones?”

            “Yes it is,” Brett replied.

            “You played a great game tonight.  You know, things don’t always go the way you want them to.  It’s your choices and responses, though, that defines who you are.”

            “I don’t mean to be rude, but who am I talking to?”

            “I’m sorry. I forgot to introduce myself.  My name is Coach Mack Brown from the University of Texas and I would like for you to come play football for me.”

 

9/16/09-  Entry 10

wiki 5 - Great job on your posts both this week and last. You have a lot of interesting ideas and I enjoy hearing them.

     One Friday Morning relfects a very sad part of our nation's history.  The fact that a scholarship is based on skin color rather than raw talent is dispicable.  The main character, though, handled it very well, better than anyone her age.  To accept what happened and move on with life that fast is wisdom well beyond her years.  Even more so is the trait of her selflessness.  She vowed to make to world she lived in an easier place to live for children like her.   Most kids these days would simply moap around and not doing anything to improve the situation.

 

9/16/09-  Entry 9

          The story The New Kid is, in my opinion, a very realistic story.  The lowest of the toem pole wanted to fit in so he made sure that someone else was at the bottom.  Marty normally wouldn't have done that, but he was so driven to fit in that he did something that he will probably regret later.  This happens all the time in high school, except maybe the beating up part.  Kids are trying to fit in all the time and will do anything to get there, even if that means doing something unnatural to them.

 

 

9/10/09-  Entry 8

     On Tuesday, President Obama presented a speech to the students of America.  He encouraged the kids to stay in school and keep working, as the drop out rates in the U.S. are high now.  Many of the schools around the nation protested about having the speech be shown in the schools.  Lutheran High was included.  After reading the speech, I saw no reason why the speech was not shown to us.  In International Affairs, Mr. Staude discussed the possibility of the concern that the people in America are too concerned with the government intervening.

 

9/10/09-  Entry 7

     Earlier this week, we read Antaeus, a story about a group of young kids who put their mind to building a garden on a rooftop.  They spent enormous amounts of their time working on this one project.  This brings back memories of when my brother, my neighbor, and I would spend time working on one thing for an entire summer.  We would build houses/forts out of blankets and chairs in our basement.  This took a good two or three days to make and would last for a week or more.  When we were finished, we were very proud, just like in the story.

 

9/2/09- Entry 6Great job on wiki 3!

     Yesterday, we received a list of the 100 Most Frequently Challenged Books of 1990-2000.  While I had only read a handful, I had heard of a great deal of them.  Some of the books on there blow my mind on why they would be on there.  Where's Waldo, for instance, seems innocent enough to me.  Why is Harry Potter on there but not The Wizard of Oz, which also contains witchcraft and wizardry in the forms of the Wizard of Oz and the Wicked Witch of the West.  Some people's arguments to get these books out of the libraries perplex me.

 

9/2/09- Entry 5

     Last week we read The Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allan Poe.  This was definitely not one of my favorites.  It was incredibly hard to read.  The sentances were longer than most paragraphs in other works.  Just because you are able to write a sentance that long does not mean that you should.Amen to that, Brian! I totally agree! By the time I would finish reading a sentance, I would forget what the beginning part said and have to read it over again.  It was very frustrating.

 

8/27/09- Entry 4

Good work on wiki 2! I enjoyed your personal link to "The Moustache!" Good for you!

Your thoughts? Is it right or wrong for Mike to do what he does to (for?) his grandma?

     I believe that what Mike did is right.  He did what he did for another person.  He was not selfish, trying to make himself feel better.  Instead, he allowed his grandman to reach a consolation with her past.  She had had a very rough past with her husband and she did not have chance to smooth things over.  With Mike playing the role of his grandpa, grandma could rest at ease.  Mike thought of someone else above himself.  That is why it was right to do what he did.

 

8/27/09- Entry 3

     This week consisted of a lot of stories that I could relate to or have a relationship to.  First off, I believe that I read Charles in my 8th grade Language Arts class.  It was easier to understand the second time around (maybe because I am older now).  In The Moustache, the main character wanted to grow out his facial hair, despite what his mom thinks.  This summer I decided to try and grow out a little bit of facial hair.  Everyone in my family was against it.  Regardless, I kept at it.  In Sixteen, the girl works on a relationship.  I am familiar with that feeling.

 

8/19/09- Entry 2

Why is violence more often seen as the "easier" answer to a conflict situation? Is it really?

     Violence is usually considered the easier way out because of how low the maturity level has to be for that response.  Most people instead of plucking up enough courage to simply confront them and talk about it, like mature adults, just decide that actions speak louder than words.  I believe that it IS the easier way out.  Fighting doesn't force you to be polite and cooperate with the person you are in disagreement with.  It just allows you to vent off steam.

 

8/19/09-Entry 1

     While the character Scratchy was technically the "antagonist" in this, he was also meant to be a rather humorous one. What did you pick up in the style and diction that Crane chose that became hints that he was trying to make Scratchy more funny than frightening?

     Scratchy seems to never have wanted to really hurt anybody.  He just wanted to have a little fun.  When he went strolling down the street and saw that no one was "out to play" he found a dog and just felt like giving it a little scare.  I do not believe he really intended to kill it.  After Scratchy discovers that Jack Potter is married is response is one that no reader could forsee.  He simply turns back around and moaps away, like a little child who discovers that his best friend can not play that day.

Good work on wk. 1 - I enjoyed reading your ideas... esp. on the violence question!