p4 - Sitting Next to Madeline

Having Madeline Koelbl as my neighbor for the entire Online Publishing course has been fun. I think we have just the right balance of getting work done and having a good time whilst working at The Bulldog. Recently, we’ve discovered that we have a few things in common! While writing a similar blog about myself, Madeline asked me what my favorite color was and I replied “Red”, because that’s clearly the best color ever, with turquoise being a close second. Anyway, she proceeded to tell me that red is her favorite color as well! Great minds think alike. Madeline and I are also getting our hair done at the same place and at the same time for prom, and we didn't even plan it like that. Madeline and I do a lot of fun things together, actually. We usually try to go on coffee runs every once in a while to Goodrich Coffee and Tea or Tim Horton’s just to catch up and enjoy some delicious coffee. When not doing those exciting activities, a few of her other hobbies are running, swimming, and hanging out with friends.Another fun past time that Madeline and I like to do is watch hockey games and eat yummy snacks (like pretzels with M&Ms) at her house! Speaking of hockey, Madeline loves the Pittsburgh Penguins and Evgeni Malkin. As a matter of fact, her favorite number is 71 because that is Malkin’s jersey number! Madeline is a pretty cool person. Her favorite movie is Mean Girls, and she’s also a very big fan of every James Bond movie made. Ever. Jaws is pretty high up on her list, too. She has some pretty good taste in music as well. She likes The Black Keys, The Kooks, Third Eye Blind, and other similar bands and artists. We have some similarities there as well. I don’t think I could have asked for a better seating partner (except for when Madeline, Amber, and I all sat in a row. That was pretty awesome).

p3 - Teacher Evaluations

This article brings up an interesting point. It seems logical to base part of a teacher’s evaluation on their students test scores. However, this depends on what group of students is in the schools that these teachers are teaching at. In this case, the area focused on is New York City. This could create a problem for many teachers in that area subject to these evaluations. It’s just a fact that many schools have low attendance and graduation rates in New York City, just like any other large city across America. This could mean that many teachers will be wrongly evaluated and thus punished for things that are basically out of their control. They can’t control how often students come to class and how much they study for tests outside of school. The article talks about how teachers these days are doing the most they can interactively in class (with mostly younger students) to increase the amount of learning that goes on. At this point in time, I can’t really say whether or not I agree with the proposed evaluations on teachers. It’s so hard to say yes or no when you have a situation like this that is somewhat unfair for the teachers.

p2 - It's been fun...

Way back in September, Mr. Currin assigned us a blog in which we were asked to lay out some of the accomplishments we wanted to get done in the 2011-2012 school year. I hadn’t re-read my blog until this week, and I actually did pretty well on keeping up with my own personal goals for my last year of high school. Looking back, my first and foremost goal for the school year was to be as successful as possible in the college credit classes that I signed up to take. In an effort to prepare myself as much as possible for a future in the Paralegal Studies field, I am doing well in both Street Law and Law in Society. As far as my other college courses, I am pleased to say that I have maintained a self-fulfilling grade in AP English as well. It has taken some hard work, but definitely rewarding in the end to know that I am improving my knowledge of the English language and bettering myself overall for my future. However, there are some things I didn’t get to “check off my high school bucket list”. I wrote earlier in the year that I would have liked to take part in a winter or spring sport since I had never done one before. Sadly, I didn’t take on that adventure in these past few months. I did though play on an indoor soccer team once again this winter. Looking back on it now, this past school year as flown by. It’s true when people tell you that high school will be over before you know it. Even though I didn’t accomplish everything that I had hoped to in the beginning of the year, I still think I did a pretty stellar job.

p1 - The Telly

The only time I really watch TV is at night. When I get ready for bed at night, I usually lay in bed on my laptop, but I keep the TV on for background noise. But, occasionally, I will watch a couple shows if they interest me enough. The only shows that I really ever watch are Man vs. Food (my favorite! Except it makes me really hungry which I hate), Ghost Hunters (my brother and I watch it simultaneously in different rooms and text each other when exciting things happen. Cool, I know), and basically anything on the Bravo network. No exception, The “Real Housewives” series is kind of a guilty pleasure of mine I guess. I don’t even know why but I just find it really entertaining. I can partially blame it on my best friend, because she first introduced it to me by constantly making me watch it at her house.  There is the rare occasion where I have nothing to do at like six o’clock on a random week night, and I’ll decide to sit in the living room and watch TV. In this case, my show of choice is always either Cupcake Wars on The Food Network, or Property Virgins on HGTV. Even though I don’t watch that much TV, it seems like everyone else in my family does. They can all be easily captivated by a television for a couple hours. We have a TV in every room of the house minus the kitchen, plus a TV in our furnished basement. That means six TVs. Superfluous? Maybe. But people these days don’t even think twice about it. That number might even be on the low end for some families.

o2 - Going to College Pays Off

For me, college has never not been an option. I was taught at a very young age by my parents that it would help me significantly in the future. This article simply reaffirms my beliefs and vindicates my plan to attend college for four years. I’m going to college so I will be able to get a steady, good paying job in the work force and make enough money to support my future family. Just like the article said, there are always college critics. The people who say that college is just a scam for money and that it doesn’t really pay off in the end. I think the statistics in the article we read for this blog disproves all of those with the hard facts. A college graduate with an associate’s degree makes more money than a person invested in stocks. In my eyes, college seems like the most logical and lucrative option for my future after high school. People who say college is a waste or a scam and try to “save money” by not going to college end up with the short end of the stick anyway because they will not get as high of a paying job, and the article that accompanied this blog proves it. As for myself, I will be attending Hilbert College in the fall, and I will be majoring in Paralegal Studies. Hilbert has the best Paralegal Studies program in Western New York. I am also considering working on a degree in Court Stenography while still studying Paralegal. This would open up more job opportunities for me, especially more opportunities for “real world” work while I’m still in college. I know that a college education will pay off for me, especially because the Paralegal field has one of the highest numbers of job openings for new college graduates with decent salaries.

o4 - Daddy

My father is… in all honesty, one of my best friends. My dad and I get along so well because we have basically the same personality. I’ve always looked up to my dad (or Fash as I call him) for so many reasons; Mostly because he’s always inspired me. From a young age, my dad exposed me to so much music that he liked. This was possibly the greatest thing that he could have ever done. Now, because of that, he and I are able to bond over things like that. Sometimes we just sit in the living room listening to his IPod play through the speakers and discuss our favorite Tragically Hip songs or what drum beats he wants to try and imitate or learn. Speaking of playing the drums, I’ve always admired the talent and passion that my dad puts into his own music. I grew up being able to watch my dad and his band in the studio and just enjoy himself. Before a gig, I always say to him “let’s rock, let’s rock today” from the movie School Of Rock because we both love that movie. Music has always bonded us, and that’s why I feel so close with my dad sometimes. I admire my dad because he is never ever afraid to be himself. And it’s kind of ironic because when my friends first meet him, they’re terrified. He has a somewhat intimidating and scary look to him because of the deep voice and tattoos and stuff, but he is the total opposite. When I got a kitten a few years ago, he was so against it but he has softened right up and now he cuddles with my cat on the couch all the time. He doesn’t try and “fit in” with anything. He is who he is, and he doesn’t let anything ever come between that. It’s great talking to my dad about things because we almost always feel the same way about various topics. My dad and I both love the lyric “We’re forced to bed, but we’re free to dream” from a Tragically Hip song, and we sometimes just bring it up in conversation when it fits the topic. So bottom line, I basically love my dad with all of my heart, and this blog doesn’t even come close to covering it all.