Virginia’s English 8 Blog

Poliomyelitis (polio) is a contagious, viral disease that marked by an inflammation of the nerve cells in the brain stem and spinal cord. It was first heard of in the first half of the 1900s. Nearly 30,000 cases and 3,000 deaths where reported in the United States. It was finally eliminated in the second half of the 20th century (1978-1991.) By not washing your hands after pooping could transmit the disease. Poop has an an ingestion of material which is contaminated into a virus, which is found in poop.

If you think you might have polio check the symptoms. Symptoms include three basic forms- abortive polio, nonparalytic polio, and paralytic polio. Abortive polio is the most common form of polio and is not very detectable. Symptoms for this sickness is a mild flu-infection, diarrhea, fever, and sore throat. Nonparalytic polio is more serious, symptoms include sensitivity to light and neck stiffness. Last, paralytic is a very severe form. It causes muscle paralysis, by attacking the nerves, and can result in a death.

Polio can last for less than 2 weeks but if severe it can damage the nerves and last forever. Treatment involves placing a patient “with paralysis of the breathing muscles in an iron lung.” An iron lung is a machine that pushes and pulls the chest muscles to make them function properly. In the story Rocket Boy Sonny’s father is diagnosed with the disease of polio.

What does language reveal about a person? I think that it reveals a lot of things. You can take my likes and dislikes for example and learn a lot about me- I love to laugh but I hate dumb blonde jokes. What have you learned? Think about it.

Who do I talk to? In an average day I would say I talk to at least 60-65 people, even if it wouldn’t seem like it, I am a very talkative person. But, people think i’m really shy. They just don’t know me well enough. Out of all the people I talk to I would say about 20% of them are older then me, 20% are younger than me, and 60% is my age. I would say 20% older because of all my teachers, parents, and my sister’s friends, in high school. I talk to 20% younger than me because of my little sister, all of her friends, and the 6^th and 7^th graders at Lovett.  Last, 60% because I go to school and have at least 6-7 classes a day, texting, talking on the phone, and because of all the sports I do.

What do I like to say and hear? When I talk I like to use my favorite part of speech a lot, adjectives. This is my favorite part of speech because there are so many fun words that can describe. Things like colors, names, sweet, soft, fuzzy, hairy, gross and many more. There are so many choices that you can choose from. This year I learned tons and tons of new words. Mostly from English, Spanish, Science, and Civics though. My top five favorite words I learned this year are exhilarate, nonchalant, vociferous, egregiousness, and blithe. Exhilarate is in my top five because it means to enliven or to cheer, and I love to say it, it kind of takes the breath out of you (even though it isn’t a very long word.) Nonchalant is in my top five because I like what it means and its fun to say. It means cool and confident, unconcerned. Another one of my top five favorite words is vociferous. This word is also fun to say and I like that it starts with a “v” like Virginia. Egregiousness is in my favorite five because I like the way it’s spelled and its fun to say. My last top five favorite words are blithe. This word is fun to say, I like the way it’s spelled, and I like the meaning-cheerful, lighthearted. These are my five favorite words that I learned this year, but a word that just makes me feel happy is laugh! It’s a word I think everyone should experience because everyone’s is different. Some are load, quiet, annoying, and funny. There all different! A phrase that I like to hear from a teacher is-“Good job” or -“You’ve improved” or both together-“Good job, you’ve improved.”These words put in a phrase make me feel good about myself. Especially if they are used in a class where I’m struggling. A phrase that I like to hear from my parents is-“I’m so proud of you.”I like to hear this phrase because it also makes me feel good about myself and because my parents have said it so I know that they really mean it. A phrase that is overused by me is-“Like.”I think that this word is really overused by everyone and not just me because you use it to help you explain things or elaborate on something your saying and it’s just a habit.

My favorite TV show is Gossip Girl. This show is funny, serious, disturbing, and addicting all at the same time. It is so suspenseful that I cant’ stop watching it. They have been showing reruns for a while now though because of the writer’s strike, so I’ve been sad and angry that they haven’t shown a new one- I really want to know what’s going to happen next. A favorite quote from this show is -“You know you love me. XOXO, Gossip Girl.”

Three quotes that I think are inspiration are“Never look down on anybody unless you’re helping him up. “- Jesse Jackson. This quote says a lot to me, it says that you should always be confident in yourself and others and that your all equal so treat them like you would treat yourself.“People are like stained-glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light from within.”-Elizabeth Kubler Ross. This quote says to me that you shouldn’t judge a book by it’s cover, in other words true beauty is inside so don’t judge someone by there looks. There could be more to them.My last inspirational quote is “To find what you seek in the road of life, the best proverb of all is -that which says: “Leave no stone unturned.”
- Edward Bulwer Lytton. This last quote inspires me because it says that you should always look into things it could help you in the future. 

A pearl is a hard, rounded object produced within the soft tissue of a living shelled mollusk. Pearls are formed in a mollusk when a grain of sand is captured, and layers of calcium carbonate are then formed around the grain of sand. Over time this process continues and a pearl is eventually is formed. There are two main types of pearls, freshwater and saltwater. Freshwater pearls form in different species of freshwater mussels, which live in lakes, rivers, ponds, and many other different types of freshwater sources. Saltwater pearls grow within pearl oysters, which live in tropical oceans.

Pearls are a beautiful part of our worlds natural nature. Pearls may seem that they are grown already round but they really come in different shapes. They are used frequently in our jewelry today and are vary valuable. Another distinction between types of pearls are natural and cultured. Natural pearls are formed by nature in forms of water while cultured pearls are formed by man. Cultured pearls can also be shaped when growing so it can be a specific shape while natural cannot. Pearls are amagnifisant part of nature and i think that there natural beauty should be used more often.

Just as Kino had many songs in his life, I have many songs in my life; Songs of Love- Bubbly by Colbie Caillat and Love Like This by Natasha Bedingfield (feat. Sean Kingston), Songs of Good Memories- Brown Eyed Girl by Van Morrison and I Got Sunshine by the Temptations, Song of Sadness- Concrete Angel by Martina McBride, Song of Friendship- If I could do it Again by Corey Smith, and last, my Song of Childhood- Wannabe by the Spice Girls.

My Songs of Love include Bubbly by Colbie Caillat and Love Like This by Natasha Bedingfield (feat. Sean Kingston). Bubbly is in this category and is significant to me because she tells how she feels when she is with and not with him. In the song she says “‘Cause every time I see your bubbly face I get the tingles in a silly place it starts in my toes and I crinkle my nose wherever it goes I always know that you make me smile”-  to me she’s saying that he always make her happy and she never wants to leave him. I also choose the song Love Like This by Natasha Bedingfield (feat. Sean Kingston) because in this song she says that she’d never think of  finding a someone she could love this much and how lucky she is to have found him and that every time they break up he is the only one she can think of. One of the phrases I love in this song is “You’re the only one that knows me, love it when you hold me, never find a love like this.” Both of these songs help me to appreciate why God gave us love.

My favorite songs of good memories are Brown Eyed Girl by Van Morrison and My Girl by the Temptations. These songs are both really special to me because my dad and I ,or it may be one of my sister’s, dance to this song and it’s always the same very special dance. My favorite part of the dance is when he throws them or me up into the air, but I don’t think he can throw us anymore, but it is still really special because he only does it with us. My favorite line from Brown Eyed girl is “You, my brown-eyed girl.” My favorite line from My Girl is “I don’t need any money, fortune, or fame. I’ve got all the riches baby one man can claim. I guess you’d say What can make me feel this way? My girl (my girl, my girl). Talking’ ’bout my girl (my girl).” This is my favorite line because to me it means that she is worth more than anything in the world to to him and that is probably the same way my dad feels about my mom, sisters, and I. ( More lyrics for Brown Eyed Girl at bottom of page.)

Concrete Angel by Martina McBride is my Song of Sadness because it is about a little girl who gets beaten by her mother and one day she dies and goes to heaven. I choose this song because it is probably the saddest song I have ever heard and it makes me feel so lucky to have such a loving family and this song really shows how people really are sometimes when they take drugs and lose all of there self control and emotions. Even though this does occur I feel that this does happen for a reason. That is to show all of the bad things that can happen to yourself when you become a drug addict.

The song If I Could Do It Again by Corey Smith reminds me of my friendships because it says to me that you should always have fun with your friends, fun meaning things that you will not want to regret later. My favorite part of this song is when he says “If I could do it again I would do it the same not one regret I wouldn’t change a thing, ” this to me means that you should always to things that you won’t regret.

When I was little my friend Jessica and I would always go over to each others houses after school and get dressed up like our favorite Spice Girl and watch their movie Spice World. This is why my Song of Childhood is Wannabe by Spice Girls. My favorite line in the song is “If you wanna be my lover, you gotta get with my friends, make it last forever friendship never ends.” I agree with this statement, my friends are more important and nothing can break us apart.

As stated above, Kino has songs in his life that express how he feels and I have mine. My songs of love are Bubbly by Colbie Caillat this shows why you love and Love Like This by Natasha Bedingfield this tells me how lucky im am to be able to love. Songs of Good memories includes Brown Eyed Girl by Van Morrison and My Girl by the Temptations, these songs both remind me of my dad and how much he loves my mom, sisters, and I. My song of sadness is Concrete Angel by Martina McBride this song tells me how lucky I am to have such a loving and caring family. My song of friendship If I could do it Again by Corey smith tells me that I should always have fun with my friends and that they will always be there for me. Last, my song of childhood tells me that friends are always more important and I should never let anything ruin our friendship.

Lyrics Brown Eyed Girl-

Hey, where did we go
Days when the rains came ?
Down in the hollow
Playing a new game,
Laughing and a-running, hey, hey,
Skipping and a-jumping
In the misty morning fog with
Our, our hearts a-thumping
And you, my brown-eyed girl,

You, my brown-eyed girl.
Whatever happened
To tuesday and so slow
Going down to the old mine with a
Transistor radio.
Standing in the sunlight laughing
Hide behind a rainbows wall,
Slipping and a-sliding
All along the waterfall
With you, my brown-eyed girl,
You, my brown-eyed girl.

Do you remember when we used to sing
Sha la la la la la la la la la la dee dah
Just like that
Sha la la la la la la la la la la dee dah
La dee dah.

So hard to find my way
Now that Im all on my own.
I saw you just the other day,
My, how you have grown!
Cast my memory back there, lord,
Sometime Im overcome thinking about
Making love in the green grass
Behind the stadium
With you, my brown-eyed girl,
You, my brown-eyed girl.

Do you remember when we used to sing
Sha la la la la la la la la la la dee dah
Laying in the green grass
Sha la la la la la la la la la la dee dah
Dee dah dee dah dee dah dee dah dee dah dee
Sha la la la la la la la la la la la la
Dee dah la dee dah la dee dah la
D-d-d-d-d-d-d-d-d-d…

Manners are very important in our society today. Mostly adults agree with this statement, but as a teen I say that it is not used as much as it used to be. I think that today kids and teens don’t give as much respect and/or care to adults as much as they used to. We still have cotillion and such but it isn’t that big of a deal since not a lot of people ballroom dance and wear white gloves, and fancy dresses anymore. People would rather “get into the century” and listen and dance to modern music, like hip-hop. Even though this is so people still have regular manners like “please” and “thank you.” As we read King Author I don’t think the return of all the age of chivalry should come, but maybe little things like respect women and such. As I grow older I will teach my child or children to respect there elders, say please and thank you, hold open doors, ect. ect. Basically I will teach them the kind of stuff that my parents thought me, the kind of manners that are still around today.

Historical Review- 

It was April 6, 1991, I was screaming my head off with excitement, the game was tied 42 to 42, 4:07 left. Everyone was on there feet. The ball would be flaying through the air, and someone would intercept it. Then the goalie would make an amazing save. Faces sweating, hard breathing, too excited to stop playing or watching. Lacrosse is an amazing and fun sport to watch and play.

Anecdotal-

Everyone was dead eyed staring at the plasma TV.The University of Georgia had just made an amazing play. It was Georgia v. Auburn, Georgia was now winning by 2 points. Everything was silent, until a burst of screaming came out. Auburn just won the ball back and was heading towards the goal.

Surprising Statement-

Whack! Ouch! A player was just hit by a North Carolina player. Covered in blood, the player is now lieing on the ground. Even though lacrosse may be a fun and exciting game, it can also be a  very dangerous game.

Famous person-

Kevin Finneran (to-be new legendary lacrosse player) is warming up for his new season up coming season. Ben Knight interviewed him last season and caught a few quotes from him- (question- great game tonight. Looks like you’re really fitting well up here.  Answer- “Yeah, I really had my feet under me tonight. I had some good quickness, and I feel good about that when I get my feet going well. I’ve got to keep moving around. If I stand still then the guys are tough on me defensively, so that’s what I like to bring to the table. ”

Declarative-

Lacrosse may not be the most popular sport in the world, but it is mine for many reasons. For example, just that, not many people are interested in it so I can take it all to myself, so I can grow better at it until I get recognized and become famous just in time for the sport to become really popular.

What does leadership mean to me? Leadership means to me, that you should take charge and be a good role model. If you show that you can take charge, than people will start to look up to you and follow in your path. There are many ways you can get someone to follow you.

One example, is to try different techniques, like games that will help people remember things, that way its fun and your learning. My next example is to get organized so others will too.  You can also relate things to yourself or life or just little tricks that help you remember things easier. Another example, is to start a study group. You can be the leader and show how responsible you are and can be. My last example, is you can speak up and share your ideas even if they aren’t the best, this will get people to participate more.

I hope that my short essay on what leadership means to me has got you thinking and sparks ideas into your head on how to be a better leader and take control.

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