Rating Me Crazy!

            Life is not lived unless you have seen a movie at least once in your life time. They make you laugh. They make you sad. They make you cry. They make you mad. A good movie should play with your emotions making you feel as if it were really happening. We go to movies so that we can be in a fairy tale world where guns fire, love at first sight exists, and cars fly. The movies we watch describe ourselves more than you think. Within the next two weeks 11 rated "R" movies will come out. What does that say about our subconscious minds? The higher up a rating goes the higher the net profit. Why do we have to enjoy movies with so much blood, cursing, and intimate relationships?

          There are movies that are good and not rated R. For example Jaws is rated PG and it is quite frightening. Disney movies rock socks and they aren't rated R. There are millions upon millions of movies made in the world each year. Even though more and more movies are rated R; there are still other amazing non-rated R movies in the world. You just have to find the right one that fits your personality and style. Next time you go to watch a movie think about what is going into your life and your future children’s lives because if more R rated movies become popular, the more they will make them and get rid of G, children rated movies.

SAT & ACT Scandal

          You eat breakfast and wake up full of energy. You’re even a bit jittery. You go to your designated classroom you sit in front of a computer. You upload your picture to the computer and it puts it on your ticket. The next thing you know an administrator is coming up to your desk and checking to see if you picture matches your face.  This is what could start happening in schools around the country.

          Recently 20 students were charged with cheating. Though at least 50 were involved they only had enough evidence to arrest 20. Even one male student took the test for a female. How can it be so easy to steal someone’s identity in a testing facility?

          Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice says, “These reforms close a gaping hole in standardized test security that allowed students to cheat and steal admissions offers and scholarship money from kids who play by the rules." Because of this security problem they will be taking security to new heights. This fall a student will have to bring in a picture of them to verify their identity. Not only will they be checked out at the testing site but students have to label their schools on their form. The school will also receive the picture as well as grade to verify the student goes to their school. “This back-end check will provide another opportunity for cheaters to be caught,” says Rice.  

          With these new ideas I thought why don’t you just send in your picture, but with the back up plan I think it will be very hard to cheat on these tests. This will make it fair for the honorable students to get the scholarships that elude them because of cheaters.

Google Doodles



First ever Google Doodle.



Over the years you use Google and every once in awhile you see a strange logo. You can’t help but wonder why they are there, so you hover your mouse over the picture and see it is so and so's 126th birthday. I personally love these logos and think they are so cool. As of 14 February 2011, Google had 1002 logos in their gallery. After so many images you wonder “What was the first?” 

The first Google Doodle, as they are called, was in honor of the Burning Man Festival of 1998. It was designed by Larry Page and Sergey Brin. They created it to notify users of their absence in case the servers crashed. Their intern, Dennis Hwang, has been designing Google Doodles ever since. Now they have become more extensive and entertaining.

On Friday, May 21, 2010 they created a doodle for the 30^th birthday of Pac-man. It was the first playable logo. It is an accurate recreation of the game. It contains 255 levels. On the browser the “I’m feeling lucky” button was replaced with an “Insert Coin” button. When you press it you start the game. If you press it twice you can play with two players. One player uses the arrow keys, while the other player uses the W, A, S, D keys. If you are interested in playing this awesome game you can go to http://www.google.com/doodles/30th-anniversary-of-pac-man.

On Friday, April 15, 2011, Google made their first video doodle. It recalled Charlie Chaplin and celebrated his 122^nd birthday. It was a black and white YouTube video. After it was played it lead you to the Google search engine.

            On June 9^th, 2011 Google celebrated Les Paul’s 96^th birthday. They displayed a interactive electric guitar. When you hovered your mouse over the strings it would play that string or strings. You could also record your music and send it to others. Because this logo was so popular they left it on the website an extra day. If you are interested in playing the guitar go to http://www.google.com/doodles/les-pauls-96th-birthday.
            Though they are plentiful all the logos mean something special and are fun to see. These logos are easy to recognize and just plain interesting. Hope you enjoy the Google Doodles throughout the years.

Left, Right, and Left again! (Even When in a Car?)

You hold on tight as the wheels spin you around in your little black car. It wasn't your fault but you can still see your life flash before your eyes. Observers view the crash from 3 yards away. Debris is flying from the black car; it is spinning out of control as smoke comes up from the hood. You blink a few times and realize you just witnessed a crash. It was all of the sudden. At least you weren't any closer or else you could have been hit. That is what we thought as we sat there in our car in front of the red light. The crash had been sudden but deadly. The car next to us ran the red light and ended up hitting the black car. It happened in a matter of seconds then it was all over. You could see the airbags go off and people get out of their car to help.

Accidents like this happens everyday. Each year nearly 1,000 deaths and 90,000 injuries happen because of running a red light in the nation. Between 1992 and 1998 red light crashes increased by 18%. According to the Federal Highway Administration, "96% of drivers fear being hit by a red light runner upon entering an intersection, yet 55.8% admits to running red lights.

After hearing the alarming news people usually start looking for a cure. They decided to post Red light cameras (RLC) at every intersection. This way they could take a picture of the car and get them a ticket for running the red light. They tested this camera in five different studies and found surprising results.

“The results of this study suggest that the installation of the RLC at these sites did not provide any reduction in accidents, rather there has been increases in rear end and adjacent approaches accidents.”

"After cameras were installed, rear-end crashes increased for the entire six-jurisdiction study area… After controlling for time and traffic volume at each intersection, rear-end crash rates increased by an average of 27% for the entire study area.”

“Exhibit 2 (after inserting cameras) indicates the red light running treatments have:

* Contributed to a 4.9% increase in fatal and injury rear-end collisions; and
* Contributed to a 49.9% increase in property damage only rear-end collisions.

With results like these, new ideas are still being formed. So, next time you go across the intersection go back to the old cross the road rule, "Look left, right, then left again."

When You Wish Upon A Star....

Growing up is a part of life. You actually have a gene for age development so that you can grow. Without this gene you could stay the same age. Everyone at one time in their life has been asked, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” It is a normal question that travels with you for the rest of your life. Not many people are lucky enough to fulfill their childhood dreams. Sometimes that job doesn't pay enough. Sometimes it seems too hard. A lot of young girls dreamed of being a famous singer, dancer, or actress. Some boys dreamed of being firefighters or superheroes. Why can't we be what we want to be? Why are our dreams taken from us over night? Do we aim to high or do we not try hard enough? I heard a quote once it said "Shoot for the moon and even if you miss you will land amongst the stars." If you try to reach your dreams you will lose nothing but if you don't try you will lose everything. It is common sense to at least try because there is a chance; even if it is a small chance. You could still be the one thing you have dreamed of being. So I encourage you to reach for the moon.

Moneyball or Sad Excuse?

            Last night I finally had the chance to watch the movie my sister and brother-in-law raved about. I was excited because if they think a movie is good, it must be good. As the beginning started I thought this better be good.

            Baseball is my favorite sport to watch because I understand it and it is my dad’s favorite sport, thus it is always on the T.V. There are a good amount of movies that talk about true sport stories. I found myself wondering if this movie would reach the bar of the movie The Blindside or Angles in the Outfield, but by the end of the movie I found myself wondering if that was it. There was no great climax, you could only find one memorable character (the best character was his daughter and all she did was sing a cute song), and you never picked the side you wanted to win. It left you not believing in the team or the movie. If you keep looking at the clock during a movie, you know it's bad. I kept wondering how long the movie could possibly be. If it is a bad movie an hour and twenty five minutes will suffice so you can rate it a "D" movie instead of an "F" movie. It didn't help that this movie was longer than two hours. If you cried in this movie it was because the popcorn smell was too strong. I think it is suffice to say don’t expect a great movie. Maybe if you expect a bad movie it will seem like a better.

The Mystery and the Action

      
        I recently watched Sherlock Holmes 2 and it was very interesting and completely different from the first. The theater was full of laughs and gasps. It was more of an action movie than the first because the first movie was focused on how it could have happened but the second movie was focused more on how it will happen. It was pressed more for the future than the first movie. The ending was so sad but crazy at the same time. You had a gut feeling inside of you which was true. The movie left you with a satisfied feeling at the end of the movie no matter how it was in its entirety; you left happy.

The 30th Annual Christmas in Washington

    The 30th Annual Christmas in Washington Program was on T.V Friday. I had never heard of it before but when I turned on the T.V TNT was showing it. They had amazing artists including Victoria Justice, Justin Bieber, and The Band Perry. They also had a wonderful host, Conan. At the end of the program The President came on stage with his family to give the annual presidential speech. It was a great speech but right behind him was his daughter Malia. To my surprise, during a serious moment in the speech, She makes her eyes get real big and then she starts to smile trying to keep herself from laughing. When she finally calms herself down she makes a funny face that makes her look like a monkey. The camera is immediately turned to keep from looking at her. I thought this was funny enough that you should know about it. All in all it was a marvelous program with a view laughs and a lot of surprises.

Against All Odds

     I am not a fan of football. It is confusing to me unlike baseball which is easy to understand. You are more likely to get hurt in football than you would in baseball or any other sport. This year is different. I got into the vicious game of football as our Palmetto High School Tigers went against all odds. This year I have paid attention to the close calls, the fumbles, and the interceptions. Football is more interesting when it is a close tie or an important game. This next game is very important. It is our last game before State. We play Norland Miami on Friday. If we beat them we get to go to State. Everyone is scared because they are undefeated, very strong, and fast. There are a few people who have hope for Palmetto and I am one of them. I believe that they know how difficult it is and will work harder than ever so they can make it to State. State would be an amazing game. If we make it to State we will most likely get out of school so that we can all go. It would make this year an awesome year and a year against all odds.

Twirling to Your Football Games

     Palmetto High School varsity football games are full of different styles of entertainment. The styles range from the dancing Dazzlers and the cheery cheerleaders to the Palmetto High School Marching Band and the color guard-flag team.

     The Marching Band has new stand tunes this year. Stand tunes are the songs played by the band in the stands during the game. This year they are from famous artists like the Black Eyed Peas and Lady Gaga. The band also has a new show this year based on countries around the world. They perform “Kung Fu Fighting,” “New York New York” and “Brazil” as if they were in China, New York, and Rio.

     The color guard has more than doubled in size. They gained four new members including the girl that has caught the attention of fans and bands in Manatee County, baton twirler Samantha Grutzner.

     Nathaniel Miller, sophomore from PHS says, “The baton twirler is a strong addition to the half time show. She adds an extra flare. The color guard is fun to watch, but they are all doing the same thing. The baton twirler is by herself performing amazing tricks.”

     Samantha is a senior at Palmetto High. She was at Manatee School for the Arts, but she switched schools because she wanted opportunities that she did not have at MSA.

     “It was tough moving schools in my senior year,” says Samantha. “I wanted to get involved in PHS activities that I did not have before.”

     She has been going to Bradenton Twirling Academy for 10 years. The academy participates in local, state and national events. Many competition twirlers and some competition teams travel out of state to compete in Drum Majorettes of America National Finals. The twirlers win trophies and medals in these competitions.

     Samantha says, “I started baton when I was seven. I started because I went to my neighbor’s baton rehearsal and thought it was the coolest thing ever.”

     Samantha has participated in many competitions including individual and team competitions. She has won many competitions including the National Strut Competition which she won for seven years in a row. Strut is one of the three individual routines in baton twirling. Samantha is also Majorette Princess of America for 2011. The thing that has pushed her to succeed is the feeling of accomplishment.

     Samantha says, “I enjoy the challenge and pride in accomplishing things. It feels good to catch the simplest thing. I’m like ‘Look what I caught.’ My biggest achievement was getting over the fear of hitting myself in the face.”

     Samantha changed many things for PHS this year. She worked with flaming batons which created a fun atmosphere for the football games. Also in the MPA’s, Music Performance Assessment, she helped the Color Guard come home with an “excellent” compared to the “good” they were given last year.

     This baton twirler has changed the way fans watch and enjoy the varsity football games. She enjoys what she does and appreciates your support.

http://www.bradenton.com/2011/11/14/3648591/journalism-next-palmetto-high.html

The Wicked Stage

     What is happening with the children in this society. They are completely different from how I was raised. The television is changing how they picture things. At Palmetto Charter School a first grade class was creating glue mats. These glue mats would be the thing they would see everyday as they glue their peculiar but parent loving art. They got to color their mats however they wanted to. When the mats were handed in the teacher saw the beautiful flowers the wonderful family pictures and then two strange pictures. One kid drew a helicopter with a guy firing down on the people below which were all dead. What has he been watching. In first grade I didn't know guns existed. All I knew was that girls are cooler than guys and it is fun to sing songs. Another kid drew a scene in an alley where they were having a gangster fight. What has he been learning I understand that maybe the other kid's dad might have been in the war but why gangsters. Some parents do not even care about what their kids watch. They turn on their favorite show and do not realize their kids know what is happening. If you look back on your own past you don't remember the time your whole family loved each other you remember the drama and the anger. You need to make sure you keep your kids safe. Keep them from the drama and bloody things that scar some kids lives. I know people that are scared of clowns because in their childhood a clown scared them. Kids minds are fragile. Tread carefully.

The Dash

According to Shane’s World 151,650 people die a day.  How do you remember them? On a tomb stone they always have the name of the one that died, the inscription the family leaves behind like Beloved Son and Husband, the date of birth and the date of death, but between the dates there is a dash.  I think the dash is the most important part of the grave stone. The dash stands for all the years between birth and death. What will people think of when they see the dash on your grave? Will they think you were too obnoxious or will they remember you at all? The choices you make each and every day determine the outcome of the rest of your life.  Your choices determine how people see you and how they will remember you. I live by the term your choices determine your destiny.  It tells me to think before I act.  If everyone in the world thought before they acted we would have less suicides and criminals plus the world would be upside down. You would think more about the long term effects rather than what makes you feel best at the moment. Each choice determines the rest of your life.  Will you be known as the one who’s always drunk the one who’s never trustworthy or as the best friend and one that always makes you smile? It’s hard to live your life everyday trying to be perfect so don’t.

My favorite quote is from Stephen Manes in her book Be a Perfect Person in Just Three Days it says, “Congratulations!  You're not perfect!  It's ridiculous to want to be perfect anyway.  But then, everybody's ridiculous sometimes, except perfect people.  You know what perfect is?  Perfect is not eating or drinking or talking or moving a muscle or making even the teensiest mistake.  Perfect is never doing anything wrong - which means never doing anything at all.  Perfect is boring!  So you're not perfect!  Wonderful!  Have fun!  Eat things that give you bad breath!  Trip over your own shoelaces!  Laugh!  Let somebody else laugh at you!  Perfect people never do any of those things.  All they do is sit around and sip weak tea and think about how perfect they are.  But they're really not one-hundred-percent perfect anyway.  You should see them when they get the hiccups!  Phooey!  Who needs 'em?  You can drink pickle juice and imitate gorillas and do silly dances and sing stupid songs and wear funny hats and be as imperfect as you please and still be a good person.  Good people are hard to find nowadays.  And they're a lot more fun than perfect people any day of the week.”

It may be impossible to be perfect, but when you think your choices determine your destiny you tend to be not just a good person, but a great person. How will you be remembered? What will your dash say about you?

A Catalyst For Rowing

     The Rowing team at Palmetto High was the guinea pig last year for Manatee County School District.  They were the only Manatee County School that had a rowing team.  This year Southeast has joined in on the mission to spread rowing throughout the county.  On Sunday Palmetto will be competing in the Sarasota 5000 rowing regatta in Osprey.  Southeast is unable to attend because they are waiting for their boats to come in.  Manatee and Lakewood Ranch High Schools want to start a rowing team but with the economy being as bad as it is, it is impossible to buy boats and equipment.
      Manatee High School principal, Bob Gagnon said he is hopeful that his students who are interested in rowing could participate this year with a program at Palmetto or Southeast.
     I think it is amazing that Palmetto was able to start this trend.  It is definitely going to help encourage Palmetto by competing against friends that might go to a different school in the district.  It is crazy that little Palmetto was able to start a catalyst for other schools to join in. I am excited to see Southeast and other programs grow because of Palmetto.

 

I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream for Chocolate!

     Each year people eat chocolate. You never think someone is counting how much you spend on it.  There was a survey on USA Today about the top 5 chocolatiers of the world compared to USA in 2011.  The results may shock you.

     Freia is Norway's leading chocolate manufacturer.  Freia has been offering delicious chocolate treats since 1889.  By the 1900's Freia was the named the leading Norwegian brand in sweets. Freia is one reason that Norwegian chocolate leads the chocolate industry.  In Norway each person spends 209 dollars a year on chocolate.

     One of Ireland's most loved chocolatiers is Lily O'Brien.  Lily O'Brien is named after the founder’s daughter. Mary O'Brien discovered her love for chocolate after recovering from a severe illness. 

     Mary O'Brien made it her motto that "Each and every chocolate has been created from the passion and pleasure we all share - we hope you enjoy tasting them as much as we enjoy making them for you!" Annually, each person in Ireland pays 182 dollars for chocolate. 

     Auer chocolate is widely known in Switzerland.  They started their business in 1939. Their chocolate has continued on for 5 generations.  They are striving to better themselves each year.  Switzerland is said to be the major chocolatier of the world but in the count down they come in third.  Only 172 dollars is spent on chocolate by each person in Switzerland a year.

     Green and Black's are considered one of the UK's best chocolatiers. In 1944 they launched the world's first Fair-trade Mark product.  This chocolate is an organic chocolate. People in UK each buy 150 dollars worth of chocolate a year.

     Zotter Chocolate is the Austria's best chocolate brand.  Daily Telegraph says, "It has amazing flavors, with light and creamy fillings that include balsamic caramel or lime and honey." Josef Zotter the maker of Zotter chocolates says, "We are not just part "ORGANIC" but totally, we follow the "FAIR TRADE" principles not just in part but with full conviction, and we don't just pretend to produce chocolate but have the entire production process - from "BEAN-TO-BAR" - all under one roof."  In Austria each person spends an annual amount of 112 dollars on chocolate a year.

     Hershey is the USA's most popular brand.  Hershey started in 1894 after Milton Hershey decided to add a chocolate coating to his caramels.  In 1900 the first Hershey's Milk Chocolate Bar was enjoyed by Americans.  USA is still lacking the chocolate lovers that Norway, Ireland, UK, and Austria have.  Sadly, Americans only eat 58 dollars worth of chocolate a year.  This is confusing since I always thought we were unhealthy people.  Perhaps we eat more candy than other countries around the world.

Safety over Security

            On Saturday, September 10th at around 12:30 in the morning there was a shooting at The Club Elite in Palmetto.  Twenty-two people were injured. Two people died including the bouncer and a twenty five year old.  Some believe it was a drive by where they shot everyone standing out front. The dead bodies were covering the ground to preserve evidence until about ten in the morning.  Some people believed they kept the bodies out just because they were African Americans.  When my dad got to work he said puddles of blood were surrounding the area.  This massacre has become big news in the area.  Now people in Palmetto do not feel save someone could drive by and shoot them down at any moment. 

            The case is still lacking the shooters identities but the streets have buzzed about who did it. Safety is the key issue behind finding the shooters.  People who know who did it are scared to tell officials.  They want to make sure they are safe and loved ones are safe.

            Rev. Cory Brinson of Spiritual House of Praise says, “The witnesses know that the criminals shot twenty-four people while trying to kill a few.  They would think nothing of shooting them, too.”

            I think that if I knew who it was it would be hard to stand up and say it.  I would fear for my safety.  You would have to trust the police force to protect you no matter what.  Hopefully someone will step up so that Palmetto can sleep at night.

Harmful or Harmless Homework?

         Homework is suppose to help you with your school work so that you can understand what you learned. Too much homework on the other hand is bad. If you are given too much homework you do not want to learn, you get frustrated, and it is hard to find time for other things. Teachers are suppose to allow only two hours of homework a day for high-schoolers. Some classes seem to think they are the only ones that assign homework and want to take both hours for their class. If a student goes beyond two hours of homework then their brain starts to shut down and they are not focused on the work which hinders the whole reason for homework. Many classes homework will last longer than two hours. If it hinders you to do more than two hours of homework then why do teachers want you to finish it in more than two hours.

         With the odd and even day schedule teachers are use to allowing four hours for homework instead of just two. They still need to allow time for other classes homework. It is harder for first period classes to maintain two hour homework when their other classes are given four hours. I experienced two hours of homework in only my first period class everyday for the first week of school. It was hard to keep up and now on the third week of school it is even harder to keep up.

Kung Fu Panda 2

    The lovable Po is back on a new action packed, comedic adventure.  Today I got to see Kung Fu Panda 2 and it was very funny. It had an action packed story line pulled together with some funny parts for an amazing movie the family would love. If you go to the theatre expecting a kids movie you will be disappointed it is amazing for all ages. It gave you an understanding on why Po is so different. It gives you the beginning of the story you never knew. I believe it really brought out the main characters and showed more from their past. It is a lovable sequel that will probably become a trilogy. It was definitely a success, but don't take my word for it check out what people said at http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1664708/kung-fu-panda-2-reviews.jhtml.

Oh My the Pirates got Problems!

    Today is Friday the 20th. Besides that today is the day that Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides comes out in 3D and IMAX. I know some people that are very excited to see it but before you see it you should know some problems they overcame while filming this movie.

    First of all, Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom didn't want to be in Pirates 4 because they felt that their characters were exhausted with their adventures. The writers had to write the script without them causing the writers to create new characters like the first mate played by Penelope Cruz.  Another big problem is that Penelope Cruz became pregnant during the filming. They had to make a different corset for her that was made of elastic instead of the buttons it had originally. It became difficult to film. They would have to film her from different angles not showing her baby bump. They even used her sister in a few scenes.

    These problems have been solved and I am extremely excited to see how they fixed these problems. I especially want to see if I can tell the difference between Penelope Cruz and her sister. Hopefully this film goes beyond the others; giving the Pirates ending a nice bang.

O Mothers

Mothers Day is coming. It is a day for cards and kisses, chocolate and hugs. The hardest thing in the world is to get moms something for Mother’s Day. You feel bad just giving her a note but you are as broke as a hobo so you can’t but her something so you look through the house for something. Hopefully we can both learn something about what to do for Mother’s Day.

One thing you can do is make a "What’s Happening Now" list. It is a list you make of what happened this year so she can remember this mother’s day and not forget what has happened or what she has achieved. You can put either family events like uncle Ben turned 52 or you can say a news event like the royal wedding. It helps to look back at the past and remember the happiness.

If your mom likes flowers but you don’t have the money to buy a bouquet then you could simply make flowers. You need tissue paper that is preferably her favorite color. You also need a nice tissue paper that can be used to wrap around the flowers for the wrapper. You need to simply cut out squares of the colored tissue paper and roll them up so they look like buds. The tighter you roll them the more they look like buds. If you want to make flowers just don’t roll it tightly. Attach green rolled up paper as stems to the flowers and wrap the wrapper around it for the perfect bouquet.

            I know the bouquet works out rather nice. It is a creative way that always makes moms smile. Plus, they do not die so you can always remember them. I am excited to see how the list works out. It is a very nice way to remember the laughter and tears of the year. I hope these ideas help you give your mom a nice gift that she will always remember, even if you are broke like me.

Dizzy "I'll Be Back".

The Dizzy Peacock as you know it or Dizzy has been shut down. As you might not know it has a new sign on the side of the building that says Dizzy Burgers. In my opinion it is rather dumb that it can still be called Dizzy if it reopens. A tourist might ask "Where is Dizzy Burger?" but then a Palmetto native would say, "No but I know where Dizzy Peacock is." They would say that because they are the same thing according to people from Palmetto. I definitely think that if they want to reopen they should name it something different. I know a lot of Palmetto High School students went to dizzy after school to get a sandwich or a drink. They asked each other if they wanted to go to Dizzy not if they wanted to go to Dizzy Peacock. It is going to be the same thing. They will probably have the same financial problems as Dizzy Peacock had because people will treat it like Dizzy not like some new store called Dizzy Burgers.