Cochlear Implants

Cochlear implants raise many controversial issues in today’s society. After thinking over what I would do if I had a child that was born deaf, I decided that I would give my child the implant. Many people may not agree with this choice, but I believe it would be the best for the child in today’s world.                  One of the reasons I think that these would be more beneficial to a child than just a hearing aid or no help at all is because in the world today the deaf community is becoming less and less prominent. It would be hard to find quality education for children who need to be signed to. Heather’s parents had to move cities just to find a school that would accommodate her deafness. Not every family is able to relocate to find a deaf school. The implant gives the child the opportunity to live like every other child, but still embrace deafness.  I also feel like they would not fit in with the community. Not many people know how to sign, and the few that do, are scattered. I believe it would be hard to communicate with those who do not know sign language. I still believe, however, that a child who is born deaf should be taught sign language. This will help to keep the deaf community alive. Deaf people who chose not to get the implant don’t want their community of deaf people to go extinct. They want to know why hearing people have a problem with people being deaf. I don’t think that people necessarily have a problem with people who are deaf, I just think that the world is changing and today’s lifestyle doesn’t accommodate for deafness as well as it did in the past.

 I would also want to give my child every opportunity that he or she could ever want. It is sometimes not reasonable to have an interpreter by your side for every action done at your job. The economy is tight today, and employers are looking to hire the least amount of people possible. Hiring a deaf person would most likely mean hiring an interpreter for that person as well. However, then the company would have to pay two people instead of one. I am not saying that employers would always discriminate against the deaf. I just think that it would be more of a hassle, and people today want to go the easy route.

If I were to implant my child I would have a few criteria that I would follow. First, I would implant them at a young age so that they have the best chance of speaking. It is also easier to learn language at a younger age. The deaf community, however, is worried that kids with speech only focus on speaking, not signing. I can see where they are coming from. I personally find that to be true. It is hard to learn how to speak and sign at the same time. The brain will get confused. That is why I propose that you implant the child at a young age and let their speech develop nicely. Then, when they have mastered having the implant, teach them sign language to let them know what kind of community they are also a part of. Teach them about the condition that they were born with. That way the language of signing can be kept alive, and those who are against the implant can still feel like they can function normally.

I can fully understand where the people of the deaf culture are coming from. I, too, would be offended if my child was born deaf, like me, and wanted to get the implant. I would wonder if I wasn’t good enough for him or her. I would also be offended that hearing people would think that I couldn’t find work that was suitable for me. I understand all of their concerns. However, I feel like for a child to be born deaf in today’s world, he or she would struggle. He or she would struggle socially as well as academically. I would certainly consider leaving my child deaf in we lived in a different world. There are just too many people going to implants that sign language is becoming less known and harder to come by. With these reasons in mind, I would choose to have my child implanted. 

Fears: life controllers?

Most fears come from traumatic experiences, or painful memories that live inside your head forever. Mine, however, doesn’t. My fear is just there sitting inside my head. This fear is burglars. I fear the people and the act of burglary. This fear wakes me up at night and looms over my head. I’m scared that I will wake up one night to someone lurking over my bed waiting to kill me. I know this is gruesome and disturbing, but I cannot erase this image from my head.

This fear overtakes my life every single day and makes me do things I am not proud of. I do not fear people coming into steal my things or damage our property. I fear for the safety and well-being of my family. At night sometimes my mind wanders to unpleasant thoughts, and I have to force myself to think of calming things such as beaches, my friends, and cupcakes. Often I psyche myself out by “hearing” noises around my house. Creaks and moans, thumps and bumps that really turn out to be nothing but make me spend an extra five minutes calming myself down. I know that this is not normal for kids my age; some might even say it is a childish fear, but so far 18 years has not been enough time for me to conquer this fear.

Though I am embarrassed to admit this fear, I am even more embarrassed to share how this fear has made its way into my daily life. Sometimes at night I jolt awake in the middle of a deep slumber and have to walk downstairs to make sure the front door is locked. Every time I walk into the bathroom, I have to check behind the shower curtain to make sure no one is hiding behind it. I check under my bed before I crawl in it at night, and I must, no if ands or buts, sleep with my closet doors open. These are places I have scoped out to be good hide-outs for burglars. I try to put myself in their shoes and think, if I were in this house where would I hide? Though I have not yet decided what I would if I actually found somebody hiding in one of these places. I have thought long and hard, but in the heat of the moment I would probably end up just screaming and running as fast as I could to God knows where. I am not proud that I have to do these daily “rituals”, if you would. They take over my life, and I hope one day I can find a way to cure my problems. I have no excuse, no explanation, and no story that goes along with this fear. It is just there, and I have to live it with. 

Wikileaks

I do not agree with the website or idea of Wikileaks. I believe that Mr. Assange has not created a good website and it can possibly be dangerous to society. I also think that it sends the wrong message to the people of our world.

 

The main reason I do not agree with this website is because it could potentially endanger citizens of our country or others. This information is kept secret for a reason and is not meant to be shared with the public. Mr. Assange brought up the point in the video that some people pay other’s to keep information a secret. He took that to mean that the information was bad for the country not to know, and that is all the more reason to uncover it. However, he never talked about the other view point. Maybe the information could bad for the country only if it is leaked out, and that is why we have to pay people to keep it a secret. Authorities with a better knowledge of the situation have put their best judgment into the decision not to share the classified information with citizens. There could be pieces of information that could put a certain group of people, or the whole country for that matter, in serious danger. Even if it wouldn’t put our country’s people in danger, it could certainly put citizens of another country in jeopardy. Mr. Assange talked about how secure his website is supposed to be, but you can never really be sure something is 100% secret. You are supposed to be able to post on this website anonymously. What if somebody found out that you shared a secret about their country? They could then come attack that person when really, that person thought they were doing something good for their country. In my opinion, Mr. Assange is overstepping his rights and being nosey in others’ business.

 

One specific example that caught my attention was the text messages of officials from the 9/11 attacks. Over half a million texts were released that were sent the morning of the attacks. Most of them did not share any information regarding the event. For that reason, I do not understand the need to post these texts. If they have nothing to do with the event itself, what is the point on publishing them? This event is a very sore spot in many Americans hearts’ because numerous people lost loved ones fighting to save others on that day. This is just an invasion of personal privacy for these people. They are trying to get on with their lives, and then Mr. Assange goes and publishes personal messages sent that morning. I can sort of understand putting messages out there that give people a better understanding of what happened at the sight of the attacks that day and exactly how hard our first responders worked to save every single person involved in this devastating event. What I cannot understand is why Mr. Assange thinks it should be other peoples’ business to know if their children packed a lunch that day. There is absolutely no benefit to our country by knowing if little Bobby remembered to grab his coat that morning. This information is out there for everybody in the world to see and could very easily get back to the people it is about. If I was a victim of this type of hacking, I would personally feel violated.

 

I guess I can sort of understand Mr. Assange’s reasoning behind this website; however, I feel like there are many more negative effects than benefits. First off, this information was classified for a reason in the first place so let’s keep it that way. The risk of endangering people carries a heavier consequence than the benefit gained from knowing the information. I believe Mr. Assange is just being nosey and this is really none of his business. If he wanted to be part of all the action, he should get a government job. He is sending the message that it is okay for people to spy on others.

 

Tuesdays With Morrie

For my Ap Composition book I chose to read Tuesdays With Morrie. I was excited to finally read this book after having seen the movie in middle school. I knew this book would open up many new emotions with me; however, I was taken back by how touching this book turned out to be.

Tuesdays With Morrie shares the story of a college sociology professor named Morrie Schwartz who developed a deep friendship with student Mitch Albom. During Albom’s years at Brandeis University, he and Schwartz had a unique bond with each other. After Albom graduated college, he lost touch with his old college professor buddy. His dreams of becoming a pianist were soon refilled by his job as a newspaper columnist. Sixteen years after lasting seeing his old professor friend, Albom stumbled upon a Nightline interview with Schwartz. He quickly learned of Schwartz’s battle with Lou Gehrig’s disease (ALS). Albom gave his old friend a call, and sure enough Schwartz still remembered his former student.

Albom felt unsure about seeing Schwartz for the first time since college graduation. He quickly found how easily it was to pick up right where he and Schwartz had left off. Albom’s visits become weekly (Tuesdays) due to a newspaper strike that lands him unemployed for a period of time. One of the reasons I enjoyed reading this book was the life lessons packed on every page. Since Schwartz was a sociology professor, his views on issues differ from those of us who have never stopped to actually think about life. Albom has gotten caught up in his job and has forgotten what it means to live. He spends his days knee deep in writing and interviews, so his life has gotten away from him. Schwartz is able to reel him back down to earth with some of the topics Albom has requested to talk about. Death, aging, love, and forgiveness only start to cover the topics he chose to discuss with Schwartz during his last few weeks.

Schwartz continually went back to one piece of advice he gave Albom on the day Albom asked him about how one can be prepared for death. He said that, “The truth is…once you learn how to die, you learn how to live.” He spend the next few weeks teaching Albom what it means to live your last few moments of life. Schwartz has accepted that his death is fast approaching. He tells Albom that he must know how to die before he will know how to live. What he means by that is you have to be aware that one day you will lose everyone and everything that is close to you. He hopes that this will prompt the urge to value and appreciate those things that we have for only a limited time. This was my favorite piece of advice out of this book. It is one thing for somebody to tell you to appreciate life, but it is another to read a book about a man dying, who has accepted the fact that he won’t be there in a few months, and having him show you just how precious life can be.

Overall I enjoyed reading every word of this book down to the last tearful goodbye. As hard as it is to think about dying, I think people could benefit from reading this book. Schwartz puts a different spin on everyday ideas and turns them into words you will never forget. I believe I could read this book again and still learn new lessons in life. Tuesdays With Morrie not only tells the tale of a man dying, it also shares the story of a man finding a new life. 

A Vindiction of the Rights of Women

When I first realized we would be reading about women’s rights I was excited; however, this essay did not live up to the standards I set for it. I do admit Mary Wollstonecraft made some very good points: points that would go unnoticed in our modern world. Maybe back in the 1700’s when this essay was written people could have appreciated its beauty from Wollstonecraft’s style of writing. Her essays are overflowing with rich vocabulary. It was almost too much at times. I had to stop and look up words, which made me frustrated. On top of the style of writing that required me to read some passages more than twice, the intricate wording was a lot for me to handle.

            This piece is being read by youthful women who are educating themselves by reading a piece about a woman who thinks females should not just be pretty and have a fondness for dress, but that they should educate themselves for a better position in life and for self-worth. I can really relate to the message that Wollstonecraft is trying to send because I try to strive to educate myself and be independent. In today’s world, women are being pushed to get a good education and put themselves out there in the work force. When this piece of writing was written 400 years ago things were the other way around. Women were pushed to not speak their mind and just do what they have been taught to do. “Men, indeed, appear to me to act in a very unphilosophical manner when they try to secure the good conduct of women by attempting to keep them always in a state of childhood.” I interpret that line to mean two things. One point being that they like women to stay young and not grow up to explore different possibilities. The other point being that men like to rule, and they want women to have minimal power.

            Other prominent voices in this essay included the ones of Rousseau and Dr. Gregory. From what I gathered from this essay, they share similar views on topic of women and power. They both believe men should rule and women should be inferior. It is hard to wrap my mind around people having that opinion because of the way we are taught to think now.

            Another strong message I picked up from this essay was that boys were required to learn, while girls used to do it as a secondary. “In the present state of society, a little learning is required to support the character of a gentleman; and boys are obliged to submit to a few years of discipline. But in the education of women, the cultivation of the understanding is always subordinate to the acquirement of some corporeal accomplishment…” Those sentences state that boys have no way around learning, and learning for girls always comes after other things.

            I would be very offended reading this back when it was written. I have always been taught that I need to set my goals high and strive to reach them. It would be very different for me to not be able to learn. Even though I did not enjoy Wollstonecraft’s style of writing, I found this essay eye opening. It showed me that I should not take learning for granted, and that I should appreciate that I have the opportunity to learn. 

Is Google Making Us Stupid?

 From the perspective of Nicholas Carr, Google has contributed to the change in reading styles we have seen in young adults.  Carr quoted that even though, “the web has been a godsend to me as a writer,” he feels as if, “someone or something as been tinkering with my brain.” This article really opened my eyes to how much young people rely on the Internet, and how this is changing the way we read.

I did not have as many difficulties reading this essay as the others we have read. I think one of the reasons it was less difficult was because I was interested in the topic we were reading about. When you get an article that doesn’t interest you the slightest bit, it is much easier to get distracted. It is funny that that thought came to my mind because that is what this article is all about: how the Internet, or Net, is “chipping away at the capacity for concentration and contemplation.” I was fascinated to read that some writers, like Scott Karp, confess that he has “stopped reading books altogether.” I guess it is hard for me to wrap my mind around the fact that our minds are changing the way we read articles and books. The essay explains how people are not taking their time when they read anymore. They tend to skim it and scan over the article as a whole rather than focusing on the details that lie within. As hard as it is to admit, I have to say I think I have fallen victim to this. Not that this is an excuse for it, but teenagers seem to be getting busier and busier. It is sometimes easier to just get the big picture of the article and not focus so much on the little details. Websites have contributed to this change in reading style as well. Most websites have links you can click on that take us to another site and then another site. Five clicks later and the next thing you know you are looking up new cell phones instead of reading about Shakespeare.

Another reason I found this article easier to read was the lack of challenging words. When I came upon a word I did not know, it was usually easy for me to use context clues to figure out what it meant. There were two lines that really caught my attention in this article. The first line is talking about how we don’t explore articles as deep as we once did. “Once I was a scuba diver in the sea of words. Now I zip along the surface like a guy on a Jet Ski.” For me, those two lines really sum up this article nicely. The other fact that really surprised me, but now that I think about it is very true, is that newspapers and magazines are shortening their article to keep readers attention. They are now competing with the Internet for people’s attention.

Total Eclipse

Annie Dillard has clearly spent time and effort learning how to paint pictures in people’s heads. The vivid words she chooses creates that mental picture that only veteran writers can achieve. The whole time she was describing how a total eclipse looks and feels I felt like I was there with her. Even though I have never seen what one looks like, I am confident that I could now explain one to a friend. I also appreciated that Dillard added details that weren’t always necessary but that brought a more real-life-feeling to the essay. Take for example when she was describing the clown. The clown had nothing to do with the essay about eclipses, but by Dillard adding that detail, I could tell she cared about her writing. She was so moved by her experience with the total eclipse that she wanted to share every little detail to make us feel like we were there with her. Dillard snuck some metaphors in her writing that made good connections to things I could relate to. “The high way threaded south into the valley...” was one line that certainly painted a clearer picture in my mind. I have driven through mountains with roads winding down them. The roads weave down the side of the mountains like a spider web.

One of the paragraphs that I was most impressed with was when Dillard described how her husband looked during the eclipse. Her vision of him being “light-years away” and stating that it felt like “we had all started down a chute of time” boggled my mind. It takes a creative mind to compare two completely different objects like an eclipse and a time chute.

I did have some troubles reading this blog. Dillard writes with such a unique style that sometimes her words lose me. There was one paragraph about mushrooms that I did not fully understand; however, it was just another one of those details that only added life to the story, so I was able to grasp the rest of the story.

Overall I enjoyed reading Dillard’s work. Her style of writing varies from my usual readings, and I enjoyed that. She took a very short event and made it into a short story. By adding details that accentuated the experience, Dillard kept readers entertained.  

Updike and Sontag

After reading Updike’s essay on the horrendous events of 9/11, I was left with sorrow I have not felt since the first time learning about these events. To hear him describe what it was like to be up close and personal when the planes hit and the towers fell was so real that I couldn’t fathom being there with them. Only the people at the scene know the true catastrophe that occurred. It is one thing to watch those events unfold on television, but one gets a completely different view when at the scene. Updike used such vivid phrases and words to paint an everlasting picture in my mind. The line that caught my attention the most was when Updike described the sights of the World Trade Centers, “It seemed, at that first glance, more curious than horrendous: smoke speckled with bits of paper curled into the cloudless sky, and strange inky rivulets ran down the giant structure’s vertically corrugated surface.” This line is riddled with descriptive words that only add to the jaw-dropping experience. I liked that Updike talked about how Americans have to pick up the pieces and move on from this tragedy. This was a positive note to end on, and it left me with a new sense of hope for our country.

When I finished reading Sontag’s essay I did not have the same feeling of sorrow and hope that I did after reading Updike’s. Sontag rattled about, “The public is not being asked to bear much of the burden of reality.” To me, this was not fair to families who lost loved ones on that tragic day. It would not be right to say that they did not take enough burden by only losing a member of their family. This declaration, paired with the statement that our democracy and public office say they can manipulate us, put a double bash on a country that already has its plate full. I think that America knows our government is not flawless, but now is not the time to try and perfect it. I hope no one who lost a loved one in these terrible events has to read this essay and feel even worse about how little they can do for our country. Even though I did not agree with the message Sontag was trying to send, I did admire her writing style. She fills sentences with rich word choice that add to the anger portrayed in this essay. 

All About Me

As many people probably know, my main hobby, or as some call it a "job," is babysitting. Almost every weekend I have at least one family that I babysit for. I enjoy this job very much because it allows me to play with children and get paid for it! There is no better feeling than seeing a kid's face light up when you walk into the room. I love helping them with projects and teaching them new things. I also work at the Angie O'Donnell Aquatic Center. My jobs there include assistant manager and WSI ( Wisconsin Swimming Instructor). Some of my duties include teaching swimming lessons, training new staff, and overseeing daily activities. I love this job because it allows me to work with a variety of children and abilities. I love watching the kids go from being scared to enter the water to being able to swim on their own. It is a truly rewarding job.

Along with the many jobs that I juggle, I am also one of the managers for the Varsity Girls Volleyball. This will be my second year doing this, and I look forward to the season. I am not the most coordinated person so being a manager allows me to still enjoy the sport without making a complete fool out of myself.

When I get a rare moment of free time, I can usually be found lounging in our hammock out back reading a good book. The peace and tranquility allows me to unwind from the days activities and let my mind wander. Some of my favorite authors include Nicholas Sparks and Jodi Picoult. Another one of my interests is music. Country is usually what plays from my iPod, but other genres have made their way on to it as well. Music helps calm me down, and it can express feelings I can't.

I was fortunate enough to be able to travel with my French class to Paris over this summer. There were twelve kids in total along with two chaperones. We went to all of the famous monuments and attractions. My favorite would have to be the Palace of Versailles. I was blown away by how large it was and the architecture of it. Paris is an amazing city. All of the buildings are very old, yet they are still in pristine condition. One of my favorite things about the beauty of the city was that every window had iron rods with a basket of flowers. Simple things like that seem ordinary to some are extraordinary to others. I would recommend this as a place for travel in a heart beat. Along with my travels to Paris, my family is venturing to Canada this summer to see my cousins. We will take in some Canadian sights and then make our way to Niagara Falls. I am very excited for this trip.

I am looking into nursing as my career. Both of my parents are in the medical field, so I get to see the rewards they recieve everyday. It hurts me to see kids suffering, and that is why I want to help. I hope to one day become a Neonatal Intensive Care nurse. I prefer small colleges over large ones. Right now I am looking at Edgewood College. They offer an outstanding nursing program and the small atmosphere that I like. I look forward to my journey in life, and where I will some day end up.