Response to "Starry Night"

      This poem is one very interesting perspective of the way the actually painting makes her feel. She basically says that on this night of 11 stars I want to die. She feels that the background is one dark place but on this night there is hope for everyone as the stars are out and that she wants to  die with some hope in her life. Of course, Anne Sexton has nothing to do with the Starry Night by Vincent Van Gogh. This town seems to be almost ruled by someone in her opinion and the painting also gives off that vibe.
      She really wants the reader to almost share her perspective on life almost. The language she uses is very peculiar as she writes how the long black thing on the left side is like the belly of the dragon. The ending is also odd as she seems to interpret from the Starry Night that Vincent is just locked in their forever. No belly, no cry.

Observing the Mona Lisa

      This painting is one of the most famous in the world. There are millions of different interpretations on this painting but here's mine.
      She seems to be happy but at the same time very sad about something. Her eyes are elsewhere but her mouth has a mysterious smile is right at Leonardo Da Vinci. The background is extremely dull and doesn't have much color. At the same time the background seems to be very going and there's a road that never end at the bottom. There seems to be forests why in the distance maybe symbolizing hope of some sort.
     This painting has this sort of a gloomy day scenario. She wants to be happy and is trying to act like she's happy but she can't get in a good mood. The trees seem to be her only hope and the sky and most of the backdrop are her current feelings and unhappiness. Her smile is a sign that she isn't happy for some reason but that is not easy to determine why as no one knows who she was.
     This painting seems to be about a woman who is going through a certain rough period of her life and wants to stay happy about it but just can't. Her smile is so bittersweet that it makes you think that she wants to enjoy life more but those opportunities are privileges she doesn't have. This piece of art is extremely mysterious and there are millions of ways to think and feel about this.

Author's Note

     Originally I was going to write a story about bullying in and out of school. Then I realized that bullies bully because they're insecure about themselves and their current living situation. One reason for insecurity is the current state of our country. Bullies could be living with their parents struggling to put food on the table or unemployed and unable to pay the monthly mortgage or rent. Of course not all bullies do what they do just because they feel insecure.
     On another note about the topic surrounding the story, homelessness is a major issue in the U.S and around the world. In NYC especially there a lot of unsheltered citizens living on the streets or in the subways. In NYC, there are approximately 3,111 according to an annual study conducted by volunteers all around NYC. That number is up 34% from last year or 783 people.
      Being surrounded by all these people in a city of 8 million, I decided to compose this book based on my encounters with my dad with a homeless man at the 7th Avenue Train Stop in Brooklyn. My dad never brought food because the man was never always there, but gave him a buck or two and asked how he was doing and how he felt. Things like this can make the world a better place for everyone.

http://sks.sirs.com/cgi-bin/hst-article-display?id=S44-4241-0-8708&artno=0000308898&type=ART&shfilter=U&key=Cyberbullying&title=Is%20Your%20Child%20a%20Victim%20of%20Cyberbullying%3F&res=Y&ren=N&gov=N&lnk=N&ic=N

     Cyberbullying is an enormous issue in the U.S and around the world. Bullying has been around now for generations, but now due to the rise of cell phones and social networking sites bullies have found new ways to harass their victims. According to Sameer Hinduja, of the Cyberbullying Research Center, 1/5 of children in the U.S between 11 and 18 have been cyberbullied. Another 1/5 have admitted to cyberbullying someone else.
  Cyberbullying is defined as a constant inflicting of harm against someone by cell phone, distributing photos meant to harm, or posting something negatively of someone of a group of people. The principal at Hilton Head Island Middle School, which has had many incidents over the past years says that most bullying now occurs away from school due to the Internet. The ability to be anonymous on sites like FormSpring has made it so people can get bullied constantly with the bully not being exposed to any punishment. This must STOP!!     

Research Assignment #1: Iraq War

     From the moment Mission Accomplished was announced Iraq has been chaotic. Thousands of soldiers, hundreds of thousands of civilians dead. Now that President Obama has began troop withdrawals and peace talks have slowly begun, there might possibly be peace in sight. According to Rachelle Marshall, writer of the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, there is no peace in sight.
     http://sks.sirs.com/cgi-bin/hst-article-display?id=S44-4241-0-9308&artno=0000308556&type=ART&shfilter=U&key=Iraq%20War%20%282003-%20%29&title=Peace%20Talks%20and%20Troop%20Withdrawals%2C%20But%20No%20Peace%20in%20Sight&res=Y&ren=N&gov=N&lnk=N&ic=N  

      The American soldiers left in Iraq are supposedly meant to be trainers to the Iraqi soldiers. American soldiers believe that they will be in Iraq for many years to come. America's imprint in Iraqi affairs will be there for a long. Combat soldiers are still positioned in bases in Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait that all border Iraq. 
     Also peace in Iraq still hasn't been restored. Things in Iraq were not very peaceful in the first place but but it should be a obligation for the Iraqi people. Sadaam Hussein, the former dictator of Iraq, was only able to maintain some sort of peace due to the torturing of thousands of civilians. Operation Iraqi Freedom, started by ex-President George Bush, officially ended Aug 31, but peace between the main religious groups, the Sunnis and Shites has yet to happen. The water is polluted, sanitation is hazardous, and insurgents are still killing innocent civilians. Car bombs are still going off daily around the country. 

     I'm not saying that leaving Iraq was the wrong move, but the problem is why we entered. 

Evan Wadongo

     In rural Kenya there is a shortage of electricity. Evan Wadongo, 23, knows how poor these people are. They have to use most of their money on firewood and coal to light up their houses just enough to make the house lighter than dim. Knowing this, Evan created a LED solar powered lamp. Growing up around a emphasis on on education with his dad being a High School teacher he studied with the lighting of coal and firewood and wound up with eyesight problems. He believes that the money that these families save on coal and firewood could be used to buy food and at the same time reduce poverty in Kenya. He is providing these lanterns for FREE!!!
       Wadongo estimates that he has distributed about 10,000 lanterns. Now when Evan walks into a village the people greet him with celebration and song. Evan changes to the world have gotten him nominated for CNN Hero of the Year. VOTE FOR EVAN!!

Social Awarness Project #2

     The wrath was short
     His grip has shrunk
     A party once near extinct has risen back
     A nation reshaped
     Two years of no progress
     A party once mighty now retreating and regrouping
     Change was promised and little has happened
     Now in a time of distress recession a new party looks to change the nation.