Firework Scare

Dominic Konja

Writing 150

Rinke

March 11, 2012

Firework Scare

It was a hot July day before the Independence Day. Being about nine years old the simple things in life seem to be much more complicated than they really are. Not only was I a confused nine year old to start off with, but I had access to things I probably should not have and an instigating brother who tempted me to do wild things. I remember it clearly; my mom was leaving my brother and I alone with a garage full of seemingly harmless fireworks. Everyone knows, if you put the wrong things in the wrong hands bad things are bound to happen. I still see the damage caused by that day to this day.

            My mom was in a rush to go to the grocery store and urged my brother and I to not mess with the fireworks that were in the house. Of course, being immature kids we were tempted and eventually started shooting many of them off. Bottle rockets, fountains, and sparklers were the main types of fireworks used. I remember it like it was yesterday. We had shot off a bottle rocket and it flew and exploded into a tree. Because there were no immediate affects we assumed that everything was fine. Little did we know that what was about to happen could have potentially burned down the whole house. Bordering the side of my neighbor’s house and my house is a row of twenty fairly large trees.

            When the bottle rocket exploded in the tree apparently it started a minor spark in the tree. The minor spark led to an expansion of flames. Eventually the whole tree was on fire and I had no idea. I had left my house to go to my next-door neighbor’s house. I heard the words “DOMINIC, GET HERE NOW!” and I immediately knew there was a problem. Once I saw the huge tree on fire I was in panic mode. Being two kids alone at home we did not know how to handle the situation. I was asking repetitively whether I should call the police of not. My brother replied with a no each time. He eventually somehow put out the fire with our garden hose. It was remarkable but the result was two burnt down trees that made our backyard fairly ugly.

            If I could go back I would have had made sure I listened to my mother. I will never forget the anger my mother had that day she came back from the grocery store. I still cannot believe that my brother and I had burnt down two nice trees. Every time I see them to this day I can’t help but to think how stupid and pointless our firework moment was. I would make sure to have convinced my brother that it was a bad choice overall and that we should respect our mother’s word.

            We all make mistakes. It is only human. I grew up fairly happy my whole life and this is just one of the little things I would have changed because of how pointless and potentially dangerous it was. If we had the brains we have now when we were kids there would be much less mistakes and problems occurring.

Advertisement Redesign Reflection

1.  1.   I felt fairly confident when going into this assignment. I thought that I had a great advertisement for the redesign.

2.     2.I looked through many ads and thought of ways I could change it. If there were not many ways to change the ad I would not choose it.

3.     3.I was reading a Sports Illustrated magazine when I saw the ad and it really appealed to me. I thought it would be great for the project.

4.     4.My biggest challenge for the advertisement was how to change it to make it appeal to a completely different audience. It was somewhat tough.

a.     I overcame it by thinking opposite for every feature on the ad. Such as the weather, people, motto, etc.

5.     5.I liked the outcome I had of the assignment. After reading through my finished product I thought it was cool how changing an ad can make it appeal to such different people.

6.     6.I learned that certain features appeal to certain people. For example, fast racecars and motorcycles appeal more to men than women.

7.     7.I truly do not believe there is much I would change. I was really happy with the overall outcome. 

Weekly Respone

Quote 2 Response

I completely agree with the statement that: “Online blogs directed at peer exhibit fewer typographical and factual errors, less plagiarism, and generally better, more elegant and persuasive prose than classroom assignments by the same writers”.  In my opinion this statement shows all the major positive impacts online blogging can have for a student and for the classroom overall. It states that when people blog they tend to make less minor mistakes, such as grammar, spelling, and misplaced words. It also states that there is less plagiarism. I believe that students mainly copy other students when they are in the classroom more than when they are on the computer. I believe that because when students look around to see the progress of their peers and they are moving along faster than them with the work they feel a sense of pressure and will do whatever they can to catch up with the other students. I feel that there is no rush when students are writing things on the computer at home. I can also say that it is highly more probable that when students blog it is a lot more persuasive because they have so many online tools such as Google, and Wikipedia that can really get their ideas going. It is also a lot less boring for the audience/reader to read an article on the computer rather than in text. Due to the digital literacy of this generation I feel that more assignments will be held online and on the computer the more we progress in time and technology and it will be more efficient for both the instructor and student in every way possible.

Timeline

Timeline

·      Starting in pre school I was always more into counting things than writing.

·      From first to fifth grade I excelled in all subjects in school, but writing was never at the top of my favorites list.

·      In sixth and seventh grade my English teachers didn’t do their jobs too well which somewhat pushed me further away from writing and reading.

·      For high school I was sent to a private catholic school; something I was not used to at all.

·      The teachers at my high school showed me a whole different aspect on life, reading, and writing. I can remember at least one significant book from each grade in high school.

·      The first book I can recall actually reading was Lord of the Flies. It was such a fascinating story for me at that point of age because there were a bunch of kids stranded on an island with no idea for survival, so when they were faced with tough decisions I was shocked at the choices they made.

·      The second book that really spoke to me was Fist, Stick, Knife, Gun. It was an amazing non-fiction story on a child growing up in the ghetto and how brutal and merciless it is out there. It was the first story that actually grabbed my attention as a reader.

·      Junior year we read The Catcher in the Rye, The Assassination Bureau, and One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. The one that appealed to me most was One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. The movie was so absolutely bizarre and really pulled me in as a reader. The coolest part was watching the movie after and seeing the story unfold as a reader and also as a movie audience.

·      Senior year was a life-changing year for my writing skills and levels. My teacher, Mr. Don Ambrose, taught me things about reading, writing, and grammar that I never knew. Reading The Kite Runner really changed my opinion of perspectives on war and peoples lives. It was a story of two children living in Kabul, Pakistan facing problems with the Taliban, Shia/Sunni discrimination, and family issues. My reading and writing turned out to be exceptionally better than before.

·      I am now a freshman in college and currently enrolled in this class. I can already tell my writing and reading will excel in this course. 

First Blog-Communication Skills

No matter what career you choose in life, communication and writing skills are essential. As of right now my major is biology. The field of biology and learning so much about the body interest me in many aspects. If I want to enter medical school I know I am going to be looked at and interviewed by many schools. Writing an essay on why you believe you belong in med school is also a requirement. If I cannot correctly word my thoughts and put things in correct order on the essay I write, I am going to look much less intelligent than those who can do so. Communication skills in the biomedical field are very important to have. Usually biomedical students eventually become doctors, specialist, nurses, or at least assistants. It is very important to have good communication skills with patients that you will have to interact with every single day. Good grammar, writing, and speech are things we must carry along with us no matter what we choose to do in our lives. The better vocabulary and speech one has they are perceived as being more intelligent. Having these key skills can lead to more than just a good career. These skills can make it possible to engage in everyday conversations with people whom you would never think you would speak to before. I feel there are many fields in writing I need to improve in. I think I am not so good at grammar, knowing where punctuation needs to be, and citing sources. If I were to improve in these fields it would make my writings much more clear to readers and it would give them a better understanding of what I am writing about. I know as a freshman I have a long way to go, but I believe through enough practice I can achieve what I am aiming for. Having better writing skills can majorly help me. I really hope to learn a lot throughout this course.