Narrative Essay
There are not too many things that were life changing for me. One thing that did change my life was having surgery on my foot. I was a pretty good soccer player up too freshman year. While practicing with the varsity team in the summer that I was becoming a freshman I noticed sharp pains in my right foot that I never realized before.
Because I was trying to make varsity I didn’t show that I was hurt. I kept practicing hard during those two a days soccer practices. What hurt me the most was the morning, hour and a half, running drills. We did not even touch a soccer ball; it was long distance running with a few sprints in between. By working as hard as I did I made the varsity team here at Maine East, along with one other freshman. But the whole season I played in pain.
After starting winter track my foot pain became unbearable. Every step I took hurt even when I was walking. My mom took me to see an orthopedic doctor after my first week of practice. After running some x-rays and mri’s my doctor concluded that I had three shattered bones, and torn tendons. He said that I would need surgery. I was really taking it hard because I did not want to miss my upcoming indoor soccer season with my club team.
After discussing it with my parents we decided that I should wait until summer time to have surgery. I ended playing goalie for my team in indoor soccer, but did not play in the spring my freshman year.
Surgery really affected my life a few months after I had it done. From a skinny and athletic 125lb freshman I came to school as 175lb sophomore. Because I laid on my family room couch for six weeks eating taco bell and smoking hookah I had gained fifty pounds.
Now that I have four rods in my foot, a few metal anchors, and some screws I still can’t play soccer. Even running for more than five minutes will make my foot hurt pretty bad. And the scar never fully healed, so I will always have a recollection of this surgey.
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Book Review
Milkweed: by Jerry Spinelli
Milkweed, by Jerry Spinelli, is a novel set during the time period of World War II. The main character is a homeless boy who lives in the streets of Warsaw with no recollection of his past. He has no idea what age he is, what his name is, or who his parents ever were. After stealing food from a woman on the street one day he is chased down by an older boy. Once the older boy catches up to him, he congratulates him for being so fast. His name was Uri. Uri ends up being an orphan also. He takes the little homeless boy to his friends who are also homeless. In order to live, they have set up a house like feeling in an abandoned barn. They eat and drink by stealing. They also gave the homeless boy a name of Misha. At first they called him Stupid, but Uri finally stood up for him.
After living with the boys for quite some time, Misha runs off one day to steal food and ends up seeing a girl that catches his eye. Her name is Janina. At the same time this is happening WWII is just beginning. Having no idea what religion he is, Misha ends up not caring about who is going to war.
I have to be honest; this was a very good book up to this point, at least to me. The way I can judge if a book is well written or not, from my perspective, is if I can’t put it down. The more I want to read a book the better it is, and believe me I don’t read too many so this one must have been good.
After the start of the war, food becomes harder and harder to get because many of the Jews are being taken away. It also becomes harder because there are fewer people in town so store owners are able to watch their stores much easier. After seeing Janina and her family being taken away by Nazi’s, he goes with them. He ends up living in the ghetto with her family.
After finding out about a hole under a fence Misha ends up sneaking out of the ghetto every night to come back the next morning with food for Janina and her family.
As you can see I really enjoyed this book and if you want to find out what happens to everyone in the ghetto you better read Milkweed, by Jerry Spinelli.
Milkweed, by Jerry Spinelli, is a novel set during the time period of World War II. The main character is a homeless boy who lives in the streets of Warsaw with no recollection of his past. He has no idea what age he is, what his name is, or who his parents ever were. After stealing food from a woman on the street one day he is chased down by an older boy. Once the older boy catches up to him, he congratulates him for being so fast. His name was Uri. Uri ends up being an orphan also. He takes the little homeless boy to his friends who are also homeless. In order to live, they have set up a house like feeling in an abandoned barn. They eat and drink by stealing. They also gave the homeless boy a name of Misha. At first they called him Stupid, but Uri finally stood up for him.
After living with the boys for quite some time, Misha runs off one day to steal food and ends up seeing a girl that catches his eye. Her name is Janina. At the same time this is happening WWII is just beginning. Having no idea what religion he is, Misha ends up not caring about who is going to war.
I have to be honest; this was a very good book up to this point, at least to me. The way I can judge if a book is well written or not, from my perspective, is if I can’t put it down. The more I want to read a book the better it is, and believe me I don’t read too many so this one must have been good.
After the start of the war, food becomes harder and harder to get because many of the Jews are being taken away. It also becomes harder because there are fewer people in town so store owners are able to watch their stores much easier. After seeing Janina and her family being taken away by Nazi’s, he goes with them. He ends up living in the ghetto with her family.
After finding out about a hole under a fence Misha ends up sneaking out of the ghetto every night to come back the next morning with food for Janina and her family.
As you can see I really enjoyed this book and if you want to find out what happens to everyone in the ghetto you better read Milkweed, by Jerry Spinelli.
Class Review
Review of Senior Composition
It is very difficult for me to write this essay, for I was only in my Senior Composition class about two out of five days per week. Most of my class time was spent in the Maine East computer lab (I never went to the classroom because I would just fall asleep anyway). I also learned quite a few things from our teacher Mr. Hessert. He is a very wise and intelligent man. I also believe that the way he ran and organized the class was very effective.
I learned many things in this class. One thing that I was never familiar with was blogging. I had no idea there was a world just for people to go online and express their feelings or stories. After about a month into class I was introduced to various blogs and how to start my own. I stumbled along the way but Mr. Hessert was there to help me. He helped me put up hyperlinks in my blogs, put up pictures, and even come up with good blog ideas to write about.
After doing these blogs I became very good at thinking of topics to write about. I learned that choosing topics on what you like makes writing more fun and interesting at the same time.
Eighth period Senior Composition with Mr. Hessert was, honestly, one of my favorite classes ever. Not that I was taking advantage of the class rules but Mr. Hessert was very lenient with all of his students. For example, if for one day I did not come to class I would not be written up as truant the next day. I believe this is very effective because forcing a student to come to class does not give them a better chance of passing the class or learning more than if they weren’t in class.
Mr. Hessert is a very good teacher. He has been there for every student when they needed help. No matter how late I was turning in a paper or blog, he would proof read it and tell me how he thought about it.
If there was anything that could have been different about the class it should be to not use the Evergreen books. I believe they were a waste of time and money (but who knows since I never turned one assignment in).
As you can tell I really enjoyed Senior Composition with Mr. Hessert. I encourage anyone who is thinking about taking this class with him to enroll now.
It is very difficult for me to write this essay, for I was only in my Senior Composition class about two out of five days per week. Most of my class time was spent in the Maine East computer lab (I never went to the classroom because I would just fall asleep anyway). I also learned quite a few things from our teacher Mr. Hessert. He is a very wise and intelligent man. I also believe that the way he ran and organized the class was very effective.
I learned many things in this class. One thing that I was never familiar with was blogging. I had no idea there was a world just for people to go online and express their feelings or stories. After about a month into class I was introduced to various blogs and how to start my own. I stumbled along the way but Mr. Hessert was there to help me. He helped me put up hyperlinks in my blogs, put up pictures, and even come up with good blog ideas to write about.
After doing these blogs I became very good at thinking of topics to write about. I learned that choosing topics on what you like makes writing more fun and interesting at the same time.
Eighth period Senior Composition with Mr. Hessert was, honestly, one of my favorite classes ever. Not that I was taking advantage of the class rules but Mr. Hessert was very lenient with all of his students. For example, if for one day I did not come to class I would not be written up as truant the next day. I believe this is very effective because forcing a student to come to class does not give them a better chance of passing the class or learning more than if they weren’t in class.
Mr. Hessert is a very good teacher. He has been there for every student when they needed help. No matter how late I was turning in a paper or blog, he would proof read it and tell me how he thought about it.
If there was anything that could have been different about the class it should be to not use the Evergreen books. I believe they were a waste of time and money (but who knows since I never turned one assignment in).
As you can tell I really enjoyed Senior Composition with Mr. Hessert. I encourage anyone who is thinking about taking this class with him to enroll now.
Descriptive Essay
Description Essay
A garage may be a boring place to some but for me it is a relaxing place. Although it is my father’s garage he has gave me one half of it. There are many things on my half of the garage, such as: my air compressor, toolboxes, cabinets, and many other things.
If you were to walk out of my garage door that leads into the garage and turned to the left the first thing you would see is my vise. It is a four inch standard vise with a rotating base. It is blue in color with metal finish handles. It is bolted on a custom stand which is mounted to the floor. If you took one more step you would be head on with my bench grinder. It is a six inch dual grinder. One side is for grinding metals, while the other side is for stripping paint and rust off of metal. It is also mounted to the floor on a special stand.
Another step forward would lead to my air compressor set up. I have two fifteen gallon air compressors hooked up in parallel. They are both black, with cast iron motors. They both have output ratings of 4.2 scfm (standard cubic feet per minute) at 90 psi (pounds per square inch), which totals them together at 8.4 scfm at 90 psi. They are connected by copper lines, which resist moisture better than standard air hose. There is also a “tee” in the lines which connects them to my hose reel. The hose reel has a red cover with a black retractable fifty foot hose which is topped of with a quick connector for changing my air tools fast and easy.
After turning right, would be my toolboxes. My first one is my Harbor Freight Tool Box. It is red in color with chrome handles. It is four feet wide by three and a half feet tall. It also has thirteen extremely large drawers which are split down the middle. The top drawer which goes all the way across is full of heavy duty things like: pry bars, hammers, knifes, picks, chisels, drill bits, and pipe wrenches. Starting on the left side going down would be my quarter inch socket drawer. All of my ¼ in sockets, ratchets, and drivers are in this drawer. I also keep my screwdrivers in there. Under that drawer would be my 3/8 in drive socket drawer. I keep all of my 3/8 in drive sockets, ratchets, extensions, and adaptors in that drawer. Then there is my ½ drive drawer, wrench drawer, specialty wrench drawer, and electrical drawer. On the right side going down would be my pliers drawer, locking pliers drawer, air tool accessories drawer, impact gun/air ratchet drawer, my air hammer and sander drawer, and last but not least my specialty tools, such as: pullers, pickle forks, etc.
I also have a Craftsman tool box, next to the Harbor Freight one, which is about five feet tall but only two and a half feet wide. It is black with silver handles and houses most of my power tools. Things like drills, saws, and grinders are kept in there. Above the tool boxes are cabinets. They are old wooden cabinets that are painted white but they do the job. I keep things like: car parts, bondo, spray cans of all kinds, and many other things up there.
Next to the storage section would be a floor cabinet that I keep my oil pans and drips pans in. I also keep my jack stands in there. And one step over you would see my jacks sitting on the floor. One is a bright orange which is a bigger jack that I use for lifting my jeep, while the other one is used for lower cars because of its low profile stance.
At the very end of my side of the garage would be some ladders, pipes, scrap metal, some 2x4’s, and a hand truck. As you can see I have a very full “half garage”. Somehow I can manage to fit two cars, all of my stuff, and my dad’s things in a two and a half car garage. In case you have forgotten what order things were in I drew a little map.
A garage may be a boring place to some but for me it is a relaxing place. Although it is my father’s garage he has gave me one half of it. There are many things on my half of the garage, such as: my air compressor, toolboxes, cabinets, and many other things.
If you were to walk out of my garage door that leads into the garage and turned to the left the first thing you would see is my vise. It is a four inch standard vise with a rotating base. It is blue in color with metal finish handles. It is bolted on a custom stand which is mounted to the floor. If you took one more step you would be head on with my bench grinder. It is a six inch dual grinder. One side is for grinding metals, while the other side is for stripping paint and rust off of metal. It is also mounted to the floor on a special stand.
Another step forward would lead to my air compressor set up. I have two fifteen gallon air compressors hooked up in parallel. They are both black, with cast iron motors. They both have output ratings of 4.2 scfm (standard cubic feet per minute) at 90 psi (pounds per square inch), which totals them together at 8.4 scfm at 90 psi. They are connected by copper lines, which resist moisture better than standard air hose. There is also a “tee” in the lines which connects them to my hose reel. The hose reel has a red cover with a black retractable fifty foot hose which is topped of with a quick connector for changing my air tools fast and easy.
After turning right, would be my toolboxes. My first one is my Harbor Freight Tool Box. It is red in color with chrome handles. It is four feet wide by three and a half feet tall. It also has thirteen extremely large drawers which are split down the middle. The top drawer which goes all the way across is full of heavy duty things like: pry bars, hammers, knifes, picks, chisels, drill bits, and pipe wrenches. Starting on the left side going down would be my quarter inch socket drawer. All of my ¼ in sockets, ratchets, and drivers are in this drawer. I also keep my screwdrivers in there. Under that drawer would be my 3/8 in drive socket drawer. I keep all of my 3/8 in drive sockets, ratchets, extensions, and adaptors in that drawer. Then there is my ½ drive drawer, wrench drawer, specialty wrench drawer, and electrical drawer. On the right side going down would be my pliers drawer, locking pliers drawer, air tool accessories drawer, impact gun/air ratchet drawer, my air hammer and sander drawer, and last but not least my specialty tools, such as: pullers, pickle forks, etc.
I also have a Craftsman tool box, next to the Harbor Freight one, which is about five feet tall but only two and a half feet wide. It is black with silver handles and houses most of my power tools. Things like drills, saws, and grinders are kept in there. Above the tool boxes are cabinets. They are old wooden cabinets that are painted white but they do the job. I keep things like: car parts, bondo, spray cans of all kinds, and many other things up there.
Next to the storage section would be a floor cabinet that I keep my oil pans and drips pans in. I also keep my jack stands in there. And one step over you would see my jacks sitting on the floor. One is a bright orange which is a bigger jack that I use for lifting my jeep, while the other one is used for lower cars because of its low profile stance.
At the very end of my side of the garage would be some ladders, pipes, scrap metal, some 2x4’s, and a hand truck. As you can see I have a very full “half garage”. Somehow I can manage to fit two cars, all of my stuff, and my dad’s things in a two and a half car garage. In case you have forgotten what order things were in I drew a little map.
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Definition Essay
NASCAR’s
There are many different types of race cars. There are Indy Cars, Drag Cars, Gt Cars, Rally Cars, and last but not least NASCAR Cars. The most common and most seen race car in the U.S would be the NASCAR Cars. NASCAR which stands for National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is the most well known and most profitable motorsports company in the United States.
There are many different things that make a NASCAR vehicle an actual NASCAR vehicle. First of all, the term Stock Car in NASCAR comes from early forms of racing where all cars that competed had to have the stock body of an actual production car. This is not true in modern times because of the oil crisis that occurred in the 1970’s which led to production cars having to use smaller engines and thus would not allow stock cars to use high performance engines, which in turn lifted the ruling to allow them to use high performance engines, limited to 5.8 liters.
Stock cars that compete in NASCAR are under very strict regulations. They are checked before and after every race to make sure all competing cars are within standards. Every car is checked for: angle and size of the spoiler, weight, ride height, and use of high speed restrictor plates. Every car’s body lines and shapes are made from templates. To ensure teams don’t change the shape of the vehicles body NASCAR has templates of every team’s car and checks the bodies after every race to ensure that no team has altered the body of their vehicle.
To get more in depth about NASCAR regulated stock cars we will start with the engines. All cars must use a: cam in block, pushrod type engine. Unlike most modern cars today where the camshaft is located over the valves, these engines uses a camshaft in the engine block that pushes actual pushrods that open and closes the valves. All cars must also use a carburetor instead of today’s fuel injected engines.
The bodies of the cars must also fall under exact NASCAR specs. All cars must have special seats which protect the shoulders and rib cage during crashes. All cars must also have roof flaps which help prevent cars from flipping over after going sideways. Every vehicle is also custom built with a full internal roll cage which gives the car full structural support in an accident.
As you can see there a lot of rules and regulation that must be met when constructing a stock car to compete in NASCAR events. The engine, body, and drive train must all pass rigorous tests by NASCAR officials.
There are many different types of race cars. There are Indy Cars, Drag Cars, Gt Cars, Rally Cars, and last but not least NASCAR Cars. The most common and most seen race car in the U.S would be the NASCAR Cars. NASCAR which stands for National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is the most well known and most profitable motorsports company in the United States.
There are many different things that make a NASCAR vehicle an actual NASCAR vehicle. First of all, the term Stock Car in NASCAR comes from early forms of racing where all cars that competed had to have the stock body of an actual production car. This is not true in modern times because of the oil crisis that occurred in the 1970’s which led to production cars having to use smaller engines and thus would not allow stock cars to use high performance engines, which in turn lifted the ruling to allow them to use high performance engines, limited to 5.8 liters.
Stock cars that compete in NASCAR are under very strict regulations. They are checked before and after every race to make sure all competing cars are within standards. Every car is checked for: angle and size of the spoiler, weight, ride height, and use of high speed restrictor plates. Every car’s body lines and shapes are made from templates. To ensure teams don’t change the shape of the vehicles body NASCAR has templates of every team’s car and checks the bodies after every race to ensure that no team has altered the body of their vehicle.
To get more in depth about NASCAR regulated stock cars we will start with the engines. All cars must use a: cam in block, pushrod type engine. Unlike most modern cars today where the camshaft is located over the valves, these engines uses a camshaft in the engine block that pushes actual pushrods that open and closes the valves. All cars must also use a carburetor instead of today’s fuel injected engines.
The bodies of the cars must also fall under exact NASCAR specs. All cars must have special seats which protect the shoulders and rib cage during crashes. All cars must also have roof flaps which help prevent cars from flipping over after going sideways. Every vehicle is also custom built with a full internal roll cage which gives the car full structural support in an accident.
As you can see there a lot of rules and regulation that must be met when constructing a stock car to compete in NASCAR events. The engine, body, and drive train must all pass rigorous tests by NASCAR officials.
Friday, May 9, 2008
Blogging
Blogging
I was newly introduced to the world of “blogging” about two months ago. At first I thought it was a joke. I thought people with no lives who sat on a computer screen all day were the people who wrote blogs. Wow! I was wrong.
I found out that there is a completely different world on the internet for people to share there feelings and experiences. But blogging is more than that. Many families and friends who are separated by thousands of miles use blogs to communicate and post pictures of each other.
There are also many different types of blogs. Some are focused by genre; such as: education, travel, and political. Some blogs are focused specifically on education. Schools and classrooms use them to post homework assignments and class information. The most common type of blog would be a personal blog. This type of blog is a blog where people go to express something they have done or something they have experienced. Generally speaking, you are free to put whatever you want on a blog. If you want to review a movie, then go for it. If you want to explain how to build a table, then go for it. Just remember it has to be readable for people.
I was newly introduced to the world of “blogging” about two months ago. At first I thought it was a joke. I thought people with no lives who sat on a computer screen all day were the people who wrote blogs. Wow! I was wrong.
I found out that there is a completely different world on the internet for people to share there feelings and experiences. But blogging is more than that. Many families and friends who are separated by thousands of miles use blogs to communicate and post pictures of each other.
There are also many different types of blogs. Some are focused by genre; such as: education, travel, and political. Some blogs are focused specifically on education. Schools and classrooms use them to post homework assignments and class information. The most common type of blog would be a personal blog. This type of blog is a blog where people go to express something they have done or something they have experienced. Generally speaking, you are free to put whatever you want on a blog. If you want to review a movie, then go for it. If you want to explain how to build a table, then go for it. Just remember it has to be readable for people.
Thursday, May 8, 2008
How to Get The Best Gas Mileage
How to Get the Best Gas Mileage
With gas prices hitting $4 per gallon for regular, everyone wants to know how to get the best gas mileage possible for their current vehicle. There are a few things you can do that won’t cost you any money at all.
You can improve your gas mileage by around 3.3 percent by keeping your tires inflated to the proper pressure. Under-inflated tires can lower gas mileage by 0.4 percent for every 1 psi drop in pressure of all four tires. Properly inflated tires are safer and also last longer. Also, just because a tire looks low on air does not mean it is. Always use a tire pressure gauge to check and then inflate or deflate accordingly. http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/driveHabits.shtml
Second, take any unnecessary weight out of your vehicle. The more weight you have in your vehicle means the engine has to work harder to move the entire car. An extra 100 pounds in your vehicle could reduce your miles per gallon by up to 2%
One low cost thing that can really help your gas mileage is your air filter. A clogged or dirty air filter can decrease performance and gas mileage by up to ten percent and an air filter usually doesn’t cost more than ten or fifteen dollars.
One thing that you can always control though is your driving habits. Aggressive driving wastes gas. It can lower your gas mileage by 33 percent at highway speeds and by 5 percent around town. For every 5mph over 60mph you are paying about an extra 30cents per gallon for gas.
The last thing you can do to keep your car running right and getting the best gas mileage is fixing any problems with your vehicle. For example, a faulty oxygen sensor can reduce your gas mileage by up to forty percent. That is huge and most sensors only cost about forty to sixty bucks.
(O2 Sensor)
Drive safe, drive smart, less weight, and a healthy car are the key components to getting the best gas mileage possible.
With gas prices hitting $4 per gallon for regular, everyone wants to know how to get the best gas mileage possible for their current vehicle. There are a few things you can do that won’t cost you any money at all.
You can improve your gas mileage by around 3.3 percent by keeping your tires inflated to the proper pressure. Under-inflated tires can lower gas mileage by 0.4 percent for every 1 psi drop in pressure of all four tires. Properly inflated tires are safer and also last longer. Also, just because a tire looks low on air does not mean it is. Always use a tire pressure gauge to check and then inflate or deflate accordingly. http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/driveHabits.shtml
Second, take any unnecessary weight out of your vehicle. The more weight you have in your vehicle means the engine has to work harder to move the entire car. An extra 100 pounds in your vehicle could reduce your miles per gallon by up to 2%
One low cost thing that can really help your gas mileage is your air filter. A clogged or dirty air filter can decrease performance and gas mileage by up to ten percent and an air filter usually doesn’t cost more than ten or fifteen dollars.
One thing that you can always control though is your driving habits. Aggressive driving wastes gas. It can lower your gas mileage by 33 percent at highway speeds and by 5 percent around town. For every 5mph over 60mph you are paying about an extra 30cents per gallon for gas.
The last thing you can do to keep your car running right and getting the best gas mileage is fixing any problems with your vehicle. For example, a faulty oxygen sensor can reduce your gas mileage by up to forty percent. That is huge and most sensors only cost about forty to sixty bucks.
(O2 Sensor)Drive safe, drive smart, less weight, and a healthy car are the key components to getting the best gas mileage possible.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)