English Reflection

I learned a lot this year from English 15.  At first I did not like sharing my work to my peers--well i still don’t. But throughout this semester I learned that through our peers they can give you positive feedback or rip it apart. I still may be shy for speaking my mind during class... but more open then the beginning of the year.

I feel that my writing also has progressed throughout this semester. My first paper-I thought it was wonderfully written until I received the grade and read it for a second time. I had a problem with word choice, transitioning, organization, and I decided that I really loved commas. So throughout the semester I worked with my writing. For example, I would write all my thoughts, then write a draft, and then not look at it for a couple days. After a couple days are over I then would reread it before I would submit it for peer review. This helped develop my ideas and everything. Also by going to office hours helped me get my ideas down on paper and focus on my flaws.

After this class I will still be working to try to become a better writer. I will know how to write a decent paper and I know by going back and reviewing it I can even develop a stronger thesis, stronger sentences, and powerful words. I really enjoyed this class throughout this semester.

comments

Here are my blog comments:

http://english015harrisonwostein.blogspot.com/2012/02/swimming.html#comment-form

http://english015harrisonwostein.blogspot.com/2012/01/first-post.html#comment-form

http://jillianlynch.blogspot.com/2012/02/when-i-tell-people-where-im-from-most.html#comment-form

http://jillianlynch.blogspot.com/2012/01/i-went-penn-state-crazy.html#comment-form

http://jillianlynch.blogspot.com/2012/01/welcome-to-penn-state.html#comment-form

http://chrisandfitness.blogspot.com/2012/01/first-blog.html#comment-form

http://tmatusiewicz.blogspot.com/2012/04/onion.html?showComment=1335102044896#c2222682962089430422

http://tmatusiewicz.blogspot.com/2012/02/there-are-many-requirements-in.html#comment-form

http://tmatusiewicz.blogspot.com/2012/03/english-reflection.html?showComment=1335102158060#c7825302324909536292

http://english015harrisonwostein.blogspot.com/2012/04/example-of-good-writing.html?showComment=1335102337614#c6115583566386254674

http://english015harrisonwostein.blogspot.com/2012/03/warm-weather.html?showComment=1335102462226#c6563085071861406923

http://jillianlynch.blogspot.com/2012/03/what-is-great-writing.html?showComment=1335102627289#c8388058919335650357

Nasty things in your Grocery’s!

What do these things all have in common: mold, maggots, animal excrement, or hormones? The answer is they all can be found in your daily grocery list! Legally the FDA let’s this happen... GROSS. This can result in food illness like food poisoning and etc.

After reading various news articles I find it extremely disgusting the things our food can be made of. What is wrong with just simple beef or vegetables, why do manufacturing companies need to add, for example, cochineal beetles to our ice cream, yogurt, cakes, cookies as a form of red dye. Believe it or not this example is actually healthier to eat then synthetic dyes! But what about mold?! Who wants to eat such a thing. According to the FDA they are willing to allow up to 60% of canned and frozen blackberries and raspberries to contain mold! Therefore to stay safe always try to eat fresh! This is guaranteeing that you will not get sick.

Stumbling upon a yahoo health article it actually stated in some raspberry flavorings they use beaver anal glands to increase the flavor! Gross! Therefore if you are dying to eat some nice raspberry pie or cake, why don’t you stick with your homemade kind-just to be safe! And if Wendy’s is your favorite place to eat-skip the chili. For in their chili you can find the remains of sand. This is to keep it from solidifying and lasting longer over the heat!

Extra hormones can also be given to the animals for more milk production and so they can become bigger for meat. Therefore animal feed hormone run-off can lead to our fruit and vegetables contaminating everything we eat. Therefore if you are uneasy with eating these hormones try to go organic as much as possible or by eating locally. Go to your local farmer’s market to eat their produce-it is guarantied fresh!

Popular Essay!

The only two magazines in which I enjoy reading are Women’s Health and Runner’s World. Sometimes I know exactly what the magazines are going to consist of but I still cannot wait for next months issue. Women’s Health magazine consists of basically all that it says on the cover. It applies to the women and talks about their health. There are bright colors, flashy font sizes, and catchy tittles, which grab any readers’ attention. The cover depicts (usually a celeb) which basically all modern day women would love to be. They are usually beautiful and very toned. The format has women health (makeup, workout gear, healthy food) adds flowing through the following format: an editorial, question & answer, the daily SCOOP with the world, a style and beauty lab, eating healthy section, healthy medication, way to loose weight, love portion, and usually ending with clothes no women would wear. The writing from the authors is usually informative but laid back-not like a professor, more like a smart friend.

On the other hand Runner’s World has in my opinion a wider audience. It can appeal to both men and women, which are physically active. Depending on who is on the cover will determine how eager I am to read the latest issue. For me, if there is professional runners that will make me stop what I am doing to dive into the magazine or a woman with really good abs (who doesn’t want rock hard abs?). The ads are usually more funny because there are all about running. Seriously, the latest shoes, the newest running technology clothing, or some crazy pill to help you lose weight (never know what that is in there). The format is similar to Women’s Health in that it starts with an editorial, then Q & A, then the Personal Best (pretty much the daily Scoop but for runners-like what to eat when you have a stomach ach on mile 9…), then articles about running authors or about a professional athlete, my favorite part gear (the September issue when they come out with new shoes- I am in pure happiness), the place to run! I could probably recite you the order in which everything comes in, this magazine to me is sometimes my Bible. The text is plan and the pictures are thrilling. Every single one of them makes you want to run, buy the product, or with the cool angles of food-make you want to try the food before you run. The tone of the articles can either be educational or humorous, depending on the seriousness of the article. Sometimes they are so funny I read them over and over and other times when I feel so enlightened I tell my whole track team of what I learned from my last issue.

Both magazines educate me and are filled with my favorite interests: nutrition and physical activity! Also both are filled with colors and wonderful photos. 

Fiddleheads

Today I had recently visited a new spot to dine. With an extra bonus, it even accepts lion cash. The place: Fiddleheads! The owners of Irvings own the restaurant. The place has unique soups and very tasty salads. If you don’t want to pick one of their wonderful handcrafted salads, you can always make your own.

Making a salad can be challenging. But by following these simple steps you can make yourself a healthy salad. This will also ensure you to help look good in your bathing suit during the warm State College weather and summer months.

Step one is to choose your lettuce. “Darker it is, the more nutrients,” by the following of that simple rule you will have a nutrient packed salad from the start. My favorite leaves are spinach but mixed greens also do some justice.

Next you choose your protein! This can be chicken, shrimp, tuna or steak. Other delicious and nutritious protein items are tofu, chick peas, kidney beans or other delicious legumes. Nuts also add protein, plus the bonus of crunch. And if you don’t like those options, a chopped egg can also be your source of protein.

Next fill your plate with about 2/3 full of fresh fruit and vegetables. Fiddleheads is a neat place because on their welcome in sign it states where they receive their produce from. You can add grapes, tomatoes, peppers, apples, pears, carrots, etc.

Lastly is your dressing. Go easy on the dressing because nobody needs excess fat or a dressing overload to make your salad go from healthy to oozing with fat. Olive oil or balsamic are perfect dressings to make your salad satisfying and tasty.

By these simple tips everybody can create a healthy salad. All you need is the $1.50 side of bread to balance the meal with simple carbohydrates.  And if dessert is what you are questioning, no need to walk down the street to kiwi or Happy Valley Freeze (my favorite) just have their homemade gelato. Which is actually healthier than ice cream. 

Good Writing

Recently I just started reading The Happiness Project and after many depression days in college from family, track, and school it really helped me try to always look for the bright side of life.

Sometimes the lines are silly like this: “One of the best ways to make yourself happy is to make other people happy. One of the best ways to make other people happy is to be happy yourself.” However, it made me want to continue reading due to the situation I am in. 

Also I really liked this line, “When I find myself focusing overmuch on the anticipated future happiness of arriving at a certain goal, I remind myself to 'Enjoy now'. If I can enjoy the present, I don't need to count on the happiness that is (or isn't) waiting for me in the future".” 

English Reflection

When confronted with someone approaching death, a question on everyone’s mind is “how much time is left?” Usually a difficult question to answer but is a question some may need to feel comforted and ready to accept death.

After an elder loved one behaves abnormally, gets more and more confused, or suffers from a serious illness; death is sure to come knocking on their doorstep. However, I never got that.

I called my grandmother on a Sunday afternoon, like any other day. I was talking to her about be upcoming trip to Seattle, Washington and asking about my cousins. She told me she had various upcoming appointments and had to rush to Khol’s to get my cousin’s birthday present. I told her I love her and to my reassurance she said love you too. 

The next couple days seemed like a blur. I found out that following afternoon that my grandmother recently experienced a small stroke. Gram overcame a stroke already in her life and my parents reassured me that she was fine. That weekend I called my grandma in Seattle. I told her the exciting bike paths we ran on, the coffee shops we ate at, and the beautiful scenery. Sadly, my grandma never had been there before. In response, I told her, to not worry and I take her there that summer if she wanted to and I will even bike with her. Pull her in a sidecar because I know she could no longer bike.

Then a bomb exploded. Three on Friday my dad called that a friend was picking me up. I was confused, in not knowing why. After an endless scream it was because my best friend died. My grandma.

Why do people die? And when they do, aren’t the loved ones supposed to be prepared? Aren’t they supposed to stay up all night in the hospital and get told by the doctor that they won’t make it? Why did this happen when my parents reassured me, grandma is okay?   

English Assignment

My English assignment this week was to find a logical fallacy and write about it. I found an example of hasty generalizations from the Old Navy t-shirt commercial.

The link to commercial: http://www.youtube.com/user/oldnavy?v=fTWTl-6qSSE

Hasty generalizations are conclusions based on insufficient or inappropriately qualified evidence. The examples from the commercial include “Greatest Tee of all Time made from the greatest T.” There is even a “real doctor” stating he has seen tremendous improvement from clients wearing the t-shirt. These comments in the commercial are very generalizing and draw meaningful conditions.

Forget the hassling through airport security or the heavy traffic of people. The toughest part of the endless waiting at an airport is eating. I was handed this problem this past weekend when my team and I traveled to Nebraska to Big 10s! It was hard to eat a healthy and nutritious meal after the endless fast food restaurants appearing at every corner. It is no wonder America is called the fast food nation. For the convenience of the on-the-go cuisine emerging at every gate, having a delayed flight, and ending up being stuck in Minnesota for 5 hours, the fast food seemed to be the only option. However portion control is key to stay fit and healthy. This can be hard after a two-hour flight only receiving a puny bag of peanuts or pack of 10 mini pretzels.

 But portion control can be accomplished. Just follow some simple steps like choosing milk or water instead of pop and milkshakes. Pop and milkshakes are full of empty calories while milk and water are full of nutrients and keep you full. If a meal is what you are in need of choose one of these options:

·      Grilled Chicken

·      Fruit and yogurt

·      A hearty salad

·      A baked potato

·      A deli sandwich made with whole grain bread

·      Grilled fish

·      Nuts

·      Bottled water

·      Veggies

You can also bring your own!!! The good food you take on your travels can be as healthy as you want. Just make sure it fits in your carry-on luggage and passes through security regulations. Solid foods are always safe to go through like nuts, fruit, vegetables, granola bars, and sandwiches. Foods which consist of gel-like substances will not pass expectations.

            By following these simple tips, eating will become a breeze while waiting all day in an airport. Just remember portion control, skip empty calorie products, and eat a balanced meal. 

Mount Nittany

On the Penn State’s 10 Things You Should Do Before You Graduate, it states you should climb Mount Nittany. Mount Nittany is not only a Penn State landmark; it is a total of 9 miles of volunteer-maintained hiking trails. Alumnus, local residents, and students can hike the Mountain for healthy fun. It is found Lemont, PA off route 26, on a dirt path.

There are 2+ trails; two included are the blue trail and the white trail. Named perfectly for Penn State. The blue trail is around a 4.6 loop and the white trail is a 3.5 loop.   The hike itself is intermediate level and reaches 650-elevation gain.

Hiking up Mount Nittany is beautiful but can also be done for quality exercising. Hiking burns calories, reduces bad cholesterol, chances of depression decrease, and overall keeps a person calm and content. From first hand experience, hiking creates joyfulness for being outdoors. I love seeing wildlife and I usually hike with my younger cousins.

In addition to exercising, the climb can be sociable. Bring your friends for lasting memories and take a camera to record the event. The friends, family, or loved ones hiking with you would love to see the pictures in years down the road of the fun everyone shared on that beautiful day.

For the climb bring lots of water. Hydration is key for your body’s muscles- no matter the physical movement your body is performing. Also you can bring a healthy homemade trail-mix to quench your hunger on the trail. These snacks will be nutritious and delicious for any activity, but perfect for the climb.

A sample of a healthy recipe is adding all or some:

▪   raw almonds

▪   raw peanuts

▪   raw sunflower seeds (already shelled)

▪   raw macadamia nuts

▪   raw pecans

▪   raw Brazil nuts

▪   raw cashews

▪   raisins (I like both black and gold)

▪   * craisins

▪   dried apples

▪   dried apricots

▪   * dried pineapple chunks

▪   * dried bananas

▪   and Cheerios (or any other cereal for some extra crunch)