Bush out, Obama in

January 20, 2009:

The National Mall was filled with more than 1 million people, ready to soak up this historical moment. Being packed shoulder-to-shoulder may have been hot, but no one paid attention because they were so focused on the ceremony, craning their necks for just one glimpse of this national hero.

Today, the first African-American president was inducted. The ceremony was filled with music, religious prayers and speeches. This monumental moment in history was watched by millions at conventions, schools and other facilities with an enthralled audience.

During the ceremony, the National Mall audience was very attentive, but when it comes to how my fellow students, only about half could comprehend how monumental today was. While not taking this seriously, these students were talking about things that didn't pertain to the inauguration, like how hot the newest sneakers are or their boy troubles. I saw this as being disrespectful and immature.

Even with this rude nature, I think that everyone is excited about the new President and the things that will change. Though I feel like Bush left Obama with a really messy situation in both Iraq and the economy, his fresh outlook on life will bring a new vision to the United States.

Blog Review

Through my time blogging, I've found this type of journalism is both good and bad. I like that it's easy to access and that it's free. Another good thing is that you can write about things without the restrictions of being in a specific section of a paper or magazine. For example, you could be a sports writer, but in a blog setting, you can expand your horizons and write about anything spanning from current events to comedic pieces.

However, this type of freedom can be ones downfall. For me, I had a lot of things I wanted to talk about, but I didn't know how I wanted to convey my ideas. Another problem with blogging is that, even though it's like your online journal, you need to a be kind of careful about what you say. You don't always have to be politically correct, but if you're not, it could potentially spark controversy.

All in all, I didn't like blogging because I think that it makes you very vulnerable and, to me, it seems like an outlet for negative energy and controversy.

True or False: You judge based on looks

January 9th, 7 AM. Wash face; brush teeth; get dressed; eat; put on make up; leave. My morning usually consists of these basic things with little to no thought behind them, but today started a little differently.

As I sat on my floor behind my door, putting on eyeliner, I started thinking about stereotypes. Do I, a girl who gets ready in the morning and puts on makeup, become clumped into the category of a "girly-girl"? A girl who seems to be, at first glance, superficial and only cares about her appearance?

The answer is yes. I've had to deal with peoples preconceived notions about me for years because I care about how I present myself. My family, my peers and even my teachers have deemed me to be something that I'm not.

During the school year, I've become accustomed to hear my teachers tell me that on the first day of school, they thought I was "too concerned about my looks" and nothing else, but they were so surprised when they saw I actually had a brain. I hate that they judge me before they get to know me, but proving them wrong feels pretty great.

But what if your a girl who wakes up in the morning, puts on the first clean shirt she sees and is off? Does that make you less of a girl compared to the made up barbie sitting next to you with their hair done, full face of make up and the newest clothes?

Not at all. Personally, I think these type of girls are respected more by adults and their peers at first glance. Girls like this seem to have a totally different focus than the "girly-girls". Instead of making sure that every hair on their head is in the perfect spot, they tend to participate in various activities, usually assumed to be school related, which leads their teachers to believe that they'll be great students and their classmates assume they always have the right answers.

But this "bookworm" sort of image can also be wrong. Girls can be super dumb and not care about their looks. Either way, both stereotypes are usually false and sometimes end up being pretty hurtful. For example, the "bookworm" may not like the "girly-girl" because she looks dumb or annoying, even though they have never spoken one word to each other. Not very good for the self esteem huh?

Though SOTA isn't full of stereotyped cliques compared to suburban schools, we still pre-judge people no matter how hard we try not to. However, I'm not saying don't judge someone, I'm saying reevaluate your opinions of people because usually, their real personality will be a pleasant surprise.

Resolutions

2009 has finally begun. With the new years here, I'm ready to implement my New Years resolutions. What are they you ask? Well, their pretty common, but I plan to stick with them even though I'll probably encounter adversity.

First off, I'm going to be nicer to people this year. Though I'm a pretty nice girl, I can always be nicer. I think it's way easier to be nice to people rather than expend all your energy being negative. Having a negative personality brings more negative things toward you which usually causes bad things to happen to you. Hence the word karma. Also, no one likes a Negative Nancy.

Second, I'm going to do better in school. Instead of going home, making a snack and then taking that ever popular after school nap, I'll do some homework and study... possibly. Hopefully not slacking off this year will help prepare me for college and the work load I'll encounter, even though i have minimal work to do.

But do resolutions ever stick? Or are they just things you say you're going to do and forget about them after January 1st? For me, I try and reach my New Years goal, but I eventually forget and don't remember until the next New Years. However, I think that this time will be different because I can really benefit from changing these certain aspects of my life and it will help me in the long run.

College Stress

As my friends around me receive letters of acceptance, I'm regretting my decision not to apply for early decision or early action at any schools. I finally found my dream school, but I'm afraid it's too late. And having people close to me stressing me out about how i should have gotten my stuff together earlier and should be working on college things instead of enjoying my life isn't helping.

Also, with college letters coming out, I'm starting to worry if my essays and applications will be good enough. I wrote about a meaningful experience, but was it meaningful enough? How am i going to compare with kids who come from prep schools that have been preparing for college with rigorous academic schedules? And what if I wanted to do sports in college. Will I be good enough compared to the kids from the boonies who play sports all day in lieu of shucking corn?

I don't know what my future holds, but I feel that wherever I go, it will prepare me to live on my own and support myself during these stressful economic times.

al-Zedi's 15 minutes of fame

December 14, 2008, Iraq.
Bush visits Iraq for a news conference and while shaking hands with the Iraqi Prime Minister, Iraqi news journalist Muntadar al-Zedi got up from the third row and threw his size 10 shoe, one after another, at the Presidents head.

While this act is dangerous, it's also extreamly disrespectful. Showing the soles of your shoes to anyone is considered an insult in Arab culture. After Saddam Hussien was overthrown, people were seen throwing shoes at his statue.

I think that al-Zedi had some pent up anger and that he thought would be released if he threw his shoes at Bush for "all the widows and orphans and all those killed in Iraq" But i think was in the right to be angry, but he should have just wrote about it. Use words, not your hands... or shoes.....

Here's the video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lW_ahxIFAPQ

Rules at School

The tardy policy here is outrageous. In fact, all the rules at SOTA are starting to spiral out of control. All of the administrators are taking their jobs way to seriously, which is good for saftey reasons, but it becomes annoying after a while. Being yelled about being so late to school when you're only one minute late is just rude.

I feel that these policies are directly targeted for Seniors. All the underclassmen come in late and nothing happens, they pass by the scanning table without a care in the world and no one says anything to them. I feel that with college application deadlines quickly approaching, the staff here needs to stop nagging us about little things like hats, food and the tardy policy.

But, the few things the administration is doing right is allowing the upper class students to leave during lunch, having a senior lounge and having the excused periods. These things are all privligaes that, i feel, the Senior class has earned by demonstrating maturity.