The Burning of the Brightness

I actually thought this was a good book. It was kind of weird how everything happened in the end, with the Fake TV scene, the fight with the Mechanical Hound, Ecclesiastes, and the introduction of Granger. IT was a pretty neat plot and I'm looking forward to discussing the book in class.

Coming of Age

When people say "coming of age", what exactly do they mean?

Some people define it as when a teenager finally displays the maturity of an adult. Others say it's when the time finally comes of a great inheritance. Well, me, I say it's finally turning 18!

It seems like such a long time when your birthday is at the end of the year. Your friends are turning 18 left and right, and you suddenly feel like the little kid of the bunch. They can sign their own cell phone contracts, open up checking accounts, apply for credit cards, and are able to acquire a normal drivers' license (not the juniors' license, where you can't drive past 12am).
They're able to apply for better, higher-paying jobs, and pretty much date anybody they want, and nobody can say a thing about it. Parents give them more freedom and leeway to do whatever they want, including late night parties, staying out later, and the privilege of having boyfriend-girlfriend visits. But next Saturday, I'll have it all.

I took the liberty to purchase a couple of things for myself for my own little "coming-of-age" party, where I'll be spending the day with me, myself, and I. And though I know it'll take me a minute to get used to saying I'm eighteen, I say it loud and proud! Though, I know I still have 6 more days =).

Bring on the Boots!

So I went shopping with my friend yesterday down at Arundel Mills Mall, and while we were browsing a shoe store (solely for her; I don't really care much for shoes), I came across a stunning pair of boots. Now, these weren't just any ol' boots; they were brown, with little rusty gold studs on them, and had a very moderate heel. The stitching wound in curls and patterns, and I couldn't walk away. Nothing too fancy about them, except that they were perfect. My very own cowboy boots! Or, cowgirl, for that matter.

I had seen a couple of friends of mine catching on to the new trend, but I couldn't for the life of me find a pair that I liked; a pair that wouldn't necessarily make me look like I just walked right off the ranch, with not a "too-plastic-looking" leather exterior, and without a heel that would make me feel 8 feet tall. As a matter of fact, me and some other buds were talking about a friend's pair of cowboy boots and how we'd love to get some. One guy in particular, was questioning whether we thought it was weird that he wanted some for himself.

I was so excited to show my shopping buddy, but to my surprise, she just looked at me and laughed. She asked, "Are you serious, Nikki? I think you'll regret buying them when you get home. I think you just feel happy about being out of the York Galleria." So wrong she was!! I was ecstatic walking up to the register, swiping my card, and walking out of the store with the huge bag in hand. When I got home, I showed my boots off to my mom, and she didn't hesitate to stick her foot in them to check for a fit for future reference. I love my boots!

Love

Love
Musiq Soulchild


Love...
There's so many things I've got to tell you...
But I'm afraid I don't know how
'Cuz there's a possibility that you'll look at me differently...
Love...
Ever since the first moment I spoke your name...
From then on I knew, that by you
Bein' in my life things were destined to change,

'Cuz Love... So many people use your name in vain.
Love... Those who have faith in you sometimes go astray.
Love... Through all the ups and downs, and joys and hurts.
Love... For better of worse, I still will choose you first.

Many days I've longed for you, wantin' you,
Hopin' the chance to get to know you,
Longin' for your kiss... for your touch...
Many nights I cried from the things you do...
Feel like I could die from the thought of losin' you,
I know that you're real,
With no doubts, and no fears, and no questions...

Love... So many people use your name in vain.
Love... Those who have faith in you sometimes go astray.
Love... Through all the ups and downs, and joys and hurts.
Love... For better or worse, I still will choose you first.

At first you didn't mean that much to me, No...
But I now I know you're all I need.
The world looks so brand new to me...
Now that I found love...
Everyday I live for you, yeah
And everything that I do I do it for you.
What I say is what I feel, so believe it's true...
You got to know i'm true...

Love... So many people use your name in vain.
Love... Those who have faith in you sometimes go astray.
Love... through all the ups and downs, and joys and hurts.
Love... for better or worse I still will choose you first. =)

MARRIED...AT 17?

Yeah, so I understand that in some cultures, having an arranged marriage is mandatory, and getting married during your teenage years is a sign of good luck. In older times, while you were a young lady, your parents paired you with the man who would promise you(and the family, somtimes) the most fortune and stability, while it didn't matter at all if the man was 15 or more years older than you. Which brings me to my purpose of writing: I'm estatic that I live in a free country where the idea of an arranged marriage is far out the door.



After I was dismissed from church today, I found myself talking with the mother of one of my friends, who had very recently tied the knot with a guy that she's known for a little over a year. She had just turned 18 years old. In the talks with my friend, she explained to me that from the moment that they had seen each other, they knew they had to have one another. From then on, they were together; the families of both had approved each other's choice, and before you know it, her knight-in-shining-armor had got down on one knee and asked to have her hand in marriage. An apartment for the two had been bought an paid for in full before the wedding even took place. They seemed to be a match made in heaven, a page right out of a book of fairytales.



I flicked through the camera her mother gave to me, filled with pictures of a wedding from heaven. Her dress was gorgeous and his tux was Hugo Boss. But as I flipped from picture to picture, I coudn't ignore a peculiar sensation tossing and turning in the pit of stomach. Though it would be natural to be a tad bit jealous of how beautiful she looked and how handsome he was, recongnized the feeling as fear. She was just one of the few young people who was affiliated with my church, and all the others had already gotten married and left. All of a sudden, I felt an invisible pressure to get married pressing upon me.

Truth is, I know that I'm nowhere near ready for that level of committment. It's wonderful to daydream about big white dresses, thousands of flowers, gorgeous venues, best friends that would be your maids and matrons of honor. It may even ease the mind to believe that my current BF and I would actually make it to the alter. But being completely honest with myself, I know marriage is the farthest thing from my mind. I enjoy the perks of being a young woman able to date whoever I please without any permanent bondage to them. I am in no way downing teenagers who choose to get married early, I simply do not think it's for everyone, let alone, myself. I do believe it takes a great of thought and consideration from ANYONE contemplating marriage. As for me, I think I'll put myself first, and make sure I accomplish all of my goals that have to do with only before I give myself to someone else. Because, in marriage, you give up the "I's" for an "us". And I'm just not to keen on doing that at the moment.

Kisses aren't Contracts

Can somebody please tell me how society has taken such a sacred commodity and transformed it into such a casual, cliche' saying, that I find that it has little to no significance or meaning anymore? Three words that once made the world go 'round, the four letter word that warmed everyone's heart, now used so loosely that it's now the equivalent of breathing or blinking.

Love is a special bond that is shared between living things. It used to mean so much more than buying a gift (just because you have extra cash), or engaging in sexual intercourse (there happends to be nothing better to do). It meant having the utmost respect, the purest desire, and the most genuine care for a person or thing. So, now we must live in a world where, if we want to protect ourselves, we are required to take an extra look at a person, make a stricter evaluation of someone's personality before we give them ourselves.

Marriage these days is no longer about love, and that statement is supported by many premises. Teenagers are rushing into marriages after only weeks of knowing someone, sometimes out of wedlock, and sometimes for no logical reason at all. I do not believe that you could know enough about a person that would cause you to want to marry them in just 2 weeks. Marriage is alson being used as a substitution for "naturalization", or citizenship into the country, which is ridiculous! And though I totally understand why, in these present economic times, people would marry for the money, I disagree with the concept entirely. Making sure your family and yourself stay afloat is a must, and marrying someone wealthier may be exceptionally appealing. But where does LOVE play into these reasons anywhere?

People are getting harder and harder to trust. So be careful of what and whol you put your trust into, and who you share your love with. Kisses aren't contracts, presents aren't promises, love doesn't mean leaning, and company doesn't mean security.

The Hearth and the Salamander

When I opened this book, the first sentence took me completely off guard. I read the line a few more times until I was sure that what I read was correct. "It was a pleasure to burn." You couldn't imagine how many things were already flying thru my had at the moment. I continued on, and found myself trying to make my mind understand that the firemen I was reading about didn't put out fires, or save people from burning buildings, no. No, on the contrary, they started the fires, and were immensely frustrated when a person happened to still be on the premises, in a attempt to save their precious books, which seem to be the single motive of the terrible fires; it seemed to complicate their sanity when a building wasn't empty, make them feel guilty in a small way that was easy to ignore on all other accounts.

It took me so long to actually understand that Montag had met and was talking to a strange girl rather than an ex-girlfriend or something, someone who may be stalking him. I analyzed every word that she said. She spoke of times of peace. Then, the scene switches to Montag in his home, finding that his wife had OD on some sort of pills. I was so confused!! It was really disconcerting to me, how he described somehow already knowing that he would kick that little silver bottle. And it started to get interesting to me, these series of events: how he would always see the girl, the near-attack by The Hound, the conversation he had with his fellow firemen about how things used to be.

I really do like this book. It is exactly the nonsense that I would read(as my mom would say after reading the first page). I look forward to reading the rest of the book. Cheer up Elvis!

The York Fair Has Arrived

FINALLY!!

One of York County's most anticipated events of the year has finally arrived!! Thousands of people who reside in one of PA's biggest counties all find their way down to the York Fair to enjoy not only the rides and entertainment, but of course, the delicious FOOD!

I, for one, only attend the York Fair because of the food. There is no way, in a million years, that I'd be caught dead or alive on a portable amusement ride. I understand that those rides must undergo heavy, strict inspections everyday, but that's still not enough security for me. the The fact that I live less than two blocks from the fairgrounds and can walk past the gates and see absolutely nothing there not even a week later freaks me out. On the other hand, the food is to die for!! Deep fried Oreo Cookies, Snicker Bars and Twinkies... Elephant Ears, Turkey Legs, Amazing Onions... I would die of gluttony.

Stanley Fish Is On My Side!

I totally agree with what Mr. Fish had to say about students and their inability to use correct grammar, syntax, and sentence strucutre in their writing assignments. Me being a stickler for grammar myself, it annoys me to no end when I find myself reading a paper where there are so many grammatical errors that I lose complete focus on the original topic of the paper. Instead, I find myself making corrections in my head and not bothering to consider what the actual purpose of the assignment was. Call me shallow, but, hey, who wants to read a paper defiled with broken engligh, internet slang, and street ebonics. While the content of any essay may be just as important as the quality of the paper, bad composition takes away greatly from what could be an excellent piece of literary work.

NEW-MOON-A-MANIA!!

If Michael Joseph Jackson was the biggest one-man-movement that has graced the earth since I can't even remember... then the TWILIGHT phenomenon must single-handedly be the BIGGEST movie/book movement of the decade at the moment.

The Twilight Saga has gotten us all bedeviled with vampires and infatuated with the undead. Stephenie Meyer's dynamic 4-part series has become a inescapable obsession, a satisfying scratch to that itch that we hardly even recognized was there. Though the series was slow to fame, its anonymity quickly disappeared as word of this fang-ridden love story snowballed parallel to anticipation of the paired indie film, eventually landing a copy of Twilight in every bitten teenager's (and elder person's) hands. The movie collected a whopping total gross of $191,465,414, and its follow-up, New Moon, is predicted to more than double that.

The Twilight sequel is subsequently the cause behind billions of Google searches on subjects like "New Moon news, New Moon pics, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner" etc. Contests such as the "Teen Vogue Win A Trip to the New Moon Premiere" are giving the legions of fans more to obsess over, as the site offers fans the chance to enter everyday for chance to win an all-expenses-paid trip to the premiere of the most anticipated movie of the fall. Hey, and I'm definitely signed up. With its star-studded cast, New Moon is sure not to be a disappointment.


Only 79 days left!!

The King of Pop... Drifts On?

You could call it the "heart attack felt 'round the world". Millions of fans worldwide found themselves beyond words after hearing the news that Michael Jackson, the "King of Pop", had died of cardiac arrest on June 25, 2009. News that declared that the man who was so much of a hero to more people than he might have realized had just breathed his last breath, leaving an innumerable amout of people feeling as though they had lost a part of their very own soul.

Many people, however, refuse to believe that he's really left us for good.

Not even six months after the sudden death of the beloved Michael, several eccentric rumors have surfaced, including sightings of the late pop icon's image in trees, car hoods (haha!), and the most bizarre so far, a spook-tacular drifting shadow floating about Neverland that many people have come to believe is Jackson's very own ghost. There has even been a picture taken during Jackson's immense memorial service that has found its way to the Interenet, depicting a ghostly image of what seems to be(get this) a fully-clothed Michael Jackson floating above his elaborately decorated casket, complete with his signature glove and all!

Now, I have to admit (me being the gullible person I am), when I first saw the video of the shadow moving across the room, I was immediately convinced that it was Michael Jackson's ghost, until one friend of mine explained it could have easily been a shadow of someone walking past a window outside. I also was initially freaked out when I came across the image of Jackson floating above his casket, until another one of my friends hastily pointed out the concert-ready get-up and signature silver glove on Michael's ghostly hand. So, given these obvious factors contributing to these pretend paranormal phenomenons, let us reassured that Michael Jackson is not haunting us, but is in fact resting in a better place.

Posted below is the video... CHECK IT OUT!

What Is Good Writing?

Nickole A Friend

English 101

25 August 2009

What Is The Definition of Good Writing?

How do you define “Good Writing”?

Good writing is defined by a wide variety of things. A good writer displays a sense of organization, adhering one specific topic and focus point of which the passage is about. A good writer knows how to grasp the attention of his or her audience, while provoking thoughts and appealing to the emotions of his or her readers, whether by using detailed imagery or expressive words. A good writer also never forgets to use correct punctuation, and always remembers to use correct grammar. A piece of good writing exhibits a fluent flow of words, phrases, and sentences, and clearly announces the individual style of the writer.