Oh, no!

Has it really been almost a month since I last updated??? So much has happened since then.

Let's see...

First, I'm published when writing about this blog on the Post Standard Teen Voices page: blog.syracuse.com/voices/

Also, I've been published at jdrampage.com - the new website for my school's online-only newspaper.

AP World History is going better now - I just got a 99 on my last quiz! I studied very very hard, and I know that it finally paid off. Yay!

I'm so sorry that I have not had a chance to check in more often. I'm doing a lot of leadership in the 5 clubs that I'm in, so it gets tough sometimes. I have a bit of homework that needs to get done all of the time, but it's worth it in the end.

My next post will be about something very special. I'd like to give a hint: tomorrow is Blog Action Day 2009 and the topic is climate change! :) I'm excited about that!

So, the Kanye West/Beyonce/Taylor Swift thing was crazy, huh? I cannot believe that Kanye would do something like that to ruin someone else's shining moment. How ignorant and self-centered can you get? Opinions?

And finally, when writing my blogging article, I noticed that another kid from my school blogs - Derek Horn. I don't know him, but his blog is really amusing, creative, and refreshingly sarcastic. Please check it out at derekhorn.blogspot.com.

Well, that's it for now. See you extra soon!

xoxo, Brianna

One week into school...

Hello world, again!

Hope you're all doing well. I was asked to write about keeping a blog for Voices, so I'm going to do that as soon as I finish this post!

So, we're one week into school now, and I'm a little booked with homework right now, so I figured I'd take a blogging break. I'm taking all Honors, one AP, and journalism and band. I'm happy that I can take personal fitness (i.e. go to the fitness center) for gym this year, because otherwise, gym+me=struggle! I've had all of my classes except for gym as of now, and I love my teachers! I seem to have a lot more work than last year, but I'm figuring things out as I go along.

Currently, I'm 29 pages into reading and annotating "Peter Pan", and 2 1/2 pages into my AP World homework. I've still got to write several other 400 word essays and such as well. Wow!

I just wanted to check in with the blog while I had the few minutes to do so!

PS - My brother was channel surfing and saw this on PBS Kids! I wish that I had this show when I was little! Adorably hip!

So:

Lots of news here! In the time since my last update, I've discovered so many cool news articles. I'll share that and some news from my life with you.

First of all, hearing Ishmael Beah speak was wonderful! We got to take a picture with him and I even got his autograph! Now I'm actually reading his book, and it's so suspenseful! It's amazing to think that he survived those events and manages to talk about them frequently. It takes a truly strong person to admit that he/she's killed someone, seen people die, and suffered.

Secondly... I discovered this wonderful website: OperationNICE.com, which highlights all of the positive things in life. It made me smile. It's a great resource for anyone who needs cheering up. :)

Also: things have been hectic, and they'll stay like that until after finals. Once I get past those, I'll be free (well, except for that summer assignment in AP World)! In the meantime, I've taken a bassoon reedmaking lesson, uh... not too much else. Awards night is tomorrow!

Now, on to the articles!

1) This article appeared in the New York Times last Thursday. It talks about teens and hugging. I'm not really sure where to stand on this, but I'll write a later post on teens and hugging, from the perspective of a teen.

2) WireTap Magazine has a very progressive, youthful take on national/international news and opinion. I really enjoy reading about young people's takes on the world!

3) Here's an article from WireTap Mag about the future of high school journalism. I'm slightly worried about this, considering that I want to take this course next year, and I'd like to go into journalism!

4) Here's two Newsweek spotlight articles on our society's focus on beauty. It's really interesting. I cannot believe how much the average diva spends on beauty... Click here and here to see the articles.

5) Here's an article criticizing Sesame Street. I couldn't believe how low it was ranked among children's shows! I grew up with it! I really enjoyed that show, although there is much controversy over the usefullness of kids' TV shows now... Let's take a look at some good old Sesame Street memories:

Cookie Monster? Healthy Food? What's Next?!?!


I would always dance around to this one... Do De Rubba Duck!


So catchy! I loved this song...


These animations were so cool!


Now that I've shared my articles, here's one more website. I recently discovered Jango.com, which is a great resource for music and internet radio. It allows you to get the songs that you like onto a single station, and it lets you skip past the songs that you don't want. :) It's really fun! I'm listening to it now!

On another note, I've been meaning to comment on Susan Boyle for awhile. In a later post!

-TTYL!

Happy May!

Well, students have basically made it through the school year, and some of them are coasting through their last months of high school! Whew! This year went pretty fast, but I sure am looking forward to summer!

I'm having a very busy week, but I'm enjoying every minute of it! I have so many wonderful people supporting me!

Anyways, actress Mia Farrow is on a 21 day hunger strike for Darfuri conflict awareness. I'm unsure what to think about it. On one hand, it's wonderful that she wants to bring awareness to the people suffering in Darfur. On the other hand, some people are saying that she has used the hunger strike as a way to gain attention. I really respect her for doing this though, as long as its for the right reasons. She seems extremely dedicated and passionate about her cause, so my attitude is: good for her.

She's blogging her experiences, so here's her videos below:

PS:

Check out FastWeb.com for some really good college resources!

Drugs???

While viewing the Voices page, I noticed an article on drugs in high schools. Consider these facts from the government:

Marijuana use across the three grades surveyed has shown a consistent decline since the mid-1990s, but appears it to have leveled off. Past-year use was reported by 10.9 percent of 8th-graders, 23.9 percent of 10th-graders, and 32.4 percent of 12th-graders.

In 2008, 15.4 percent of 12th-graders reported using a prescription drug nonmedically within the past year. This category includes amphetamines, sedatives/barbiturates, tranquilizers, and opiates other than heroin. Vicodin continues to be abused at unacceptably high levels. Many of the drugs used by 12th-graders are prescription drugs or, in the case of cough medicine, are available over the counter.

Attitudes toward substance abuse, often seen as harbingers of change in rates of use, were mostly stable. However, among 12th-graders, perceived risk of harm associated with LSD continues to decrease. Additionally, perceived harmfulness and disapproval of marijuana and inhalant use softened among 8th-graders this year.

I wonder if illicit drug use/sales/abuse in high schools are really as bad as they seem from this? One of the local schools is dealing with a drug problem that the police are involved in at this point. At our school, it doesn't seem to be as bad as the facts make it out to be. But what about other schools?

This video is absolutely amazing - made by a 14 year old!

Wow, has it really been almost a month?

I apologize for such a wait in writing another blog post! Things have been fairly packed...

There's a cold going around our school. Surprisingly, I haven't gotten sick - yet. *Knock on wood*. Check out this article on it.

School Vacation!

Yes, we're finally on break! Yes! Everyone needs some time off, don't you think?

I'm hoping to get more viewers and comments, so if you like what you see, pass it on!

Touring Ithaca College in a few days. Hopefully, I'll like what I see. It looks like a great place.

Make sure you check out the great articles on the Voices page about the risks of distracted driving - they're wonderful! Take a look here.

Other than visiting Ithaca, my plans are to relax and chill (and finish that geometry homework). Well, I'll get to the homework later.

Also, here's a great article that I'd like to share. Being a musician myself, it really spoke to me. It's called Why Music, by Dr. Tim Lautzenheiser:

Music is a science. It is exact, specific; and it demands exact acoustics. A conductor’s full score is a chart, a graph which indicates frequencies, intensities, volume changes, melody, and harmony all at once and with the most exact control of time.

Music is mathematical. It is rhythmically based on the subdivision of time into fractions which must be done instantaneously, not worked out on paper.

Music is a foreign language. Most of the terms are in Italian, German, or French; and the notation is certainly not English – but a highly developed kind of shorthand that uses symbols to represent ideas. The semantics of music is the most complete and universal language.

Music is history. Music usually reflects the environment and times of its creation, often even the country and/or racial feeling.

Music is physical education. It requires fantastic coordination of fingers, hands, arms, lip, cheek, and facial muscles, in addition to extraordinary control of the diaphragm, back, stomach, and chest muscles, which respond instantly to the sound the ear hears and the mind interprets.

Music is all these things, but most of all, Music is art. It allows a human being to take all these dry, technically boring (but difficult) techniques and use them to create emotion. That is one thing science cannot duplicate: humanism, feeling, emotion, call it what you will.

Music is taught in schools –

Not because you are expected to major in music,
Not because you are expected to play or sing all your life,
Not so you can relax,
Not so you can have fun, but
So you will be human;
So you will recognize beauty,
So you will be sensitive,
So you will be closer to an infinite beyond this world,
So you will have something to cling to,
So you will have more love, more compassion, more gentleness, more good – in short, more life.

Of what value will it be to make a prosperous living unless you know how to live?

That is why Music is Taught.

(I have no good title for this)

First of all, I do apologize for letting my blog sit idle for so long! It's been a busy week already, and I'm considering what classes I'll take next year, etc. Hopefully, things will calm down soon!

Just here to share some news links with you people... :)

This is pretty interesting - not surprisingly, less minority students are taking/passing AP exams. This directly affects me, seeing as how I'm a minority, and I do take Honors/will take AP classes. I'm one of the few minority students that will do this - Latino and African American students seem to have a harder time succeeding, perhaps because my school is predominantly white... not being racist, there. Just making an observation as a minority.

Also, here's an inspirational CNY story. It was great to read about a teen overcoming their disabilities and using their talents to their advantage.

This stuff is really interesting to me. But moving on, I'm debating about what classes to take. I'm being recommended for all Honors/AP, but I don't know if I'll have time to do this. I definitely don't want to be overwhelmed, but at the same time, I feel the pressure to look good for colleges and succeed. Tough stuff. I'll figure it out, though.

Well, nothing else to say here. Thanks for reading! Check back soon!

Even more thoughts...

As you can see, my post titles are becoming less and less creative - oh well, at least they're still coming. This is the longest that I've ever been blogging on one site!

I have very little homework, because it's the first day back from midterms. So nice not to have to work!

The weather today was supposed to be horrendous, but it turned out to be not so bad. Of course, my school district was the only one that was still open (as usual), but I got a lot out of being in school. I complained about it a lot, but then I realized that in the end, what's one day in a lifetime? Anyways, school is going great. I have a couple of really close awesome friends, and all of my teachers are great this year! :)

Hey, by the way, check out this video embodying the entire Obama campaign. It's beautiful:




or what about this? Ugh, Bush...




Why do so many ignorant people wink? Bush, Palin, cough cough.

I have a great video that I made with all of the best debate moments from Palin... I'll try to upload it...

So yes, today's theme was politics, obviously. Well, I hope you've enjoyed it!

See ya! - Brianna

More thoughts...

Here's some great essays about teenage inauguration attendees - definitely worth reading!

Midterms are over! I did fairly well on all. They were not as bad as I expected, although I still don't understand the necessity of them only in certain classes.

I'm working on making the blog more interesting without clogging it up, so thoughts would be great. I've added a music player, so comment about that... It was surprisingly easier than I'd planned for.

I'm dreading actually having to go to classes tomorrow - even though there were exams, I enjoyed having half days today and yesterday! I definitely enjoy school, but of course with high school comes the typical social awkwardness(although I still feel like I have some good friends), and the high stakes for grades - that's pressure, haha. I do cause some of it, considering the fact that I'm the freshman that's concerned with college.

Also, I finished a very peculiar book review from the New York Times: it chronicled a woman's experience in a mental hospital. The catch was, she feigned being mentally ill to experience firsthand patient conditions, so that she could write about them. Being in these facilities, she relapsed into depression, and truly needed treatment. A similar idea was done by Nellie Bly, the famous journalist, during the Industrial Revolution. Here are the two links:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/27/health/27book.html?ref=health
http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/bly/madhouse/madhouse.html

Another hot topic: teens and sex. It's being discussed on nytimes.com, which says that despite rumors of teens being wildly promiscuous, the percentage of sexually active teens has gone down. It appears that teens today are more careful about sex, but that ideals behind relationships have changed. There are "hook-ups" more often, where teens are physically intimate without having a long-term relationship. This is where "friends with benefits" falls. Those that are unwilling to commit but are interested in a physical relationship become "friends with benefits" or "hook-up". So, what do I, a real live teen, have to say about all this? Well...

It's clear that sex is on teens' minds; anyone could see that. At my school, teens have been "going out" and having relationships since 5th grade. The "popular" teens constantly switch boyfriends and girlfriends, and by this point, certain students have gone out with almost all of their friends of the opposite sex. What I don't understand is, how does one "go out" without having a car? Your parents have to give you rides, so it's technically not "going out". But that's not the point. As I was saying, teens do think constantly about sex and relationships, and some adults have caught on to this. They attempt to talk to us about this, which is extremely awkward, and they do excercises about this type of thing. My classmates and I were "polled" by our guidance counselors, to discover that we perceived the senior class as wild, party-loving, substance-abusing, non-virgins. In actuality, I know many upperclassmen that I know are not sexually active. Yes, there is a percentage of students in each grade, but for the most part, teens may talk, but do they actually do it? My guess is no.

Well, that's all for now. Ta ta!

Midterms

THEY CONSUME MY LIFE!

I won't be blogging for a few days because of them, but I'll be back ASAP!

Inauguration Day

So, yes. Today was the long-awaited day when President Elect Barack Obama took the oath of office and was sworn in as the 44th President of the United States. It was a momentous occasion for many, seeing as how Obama comes into office during such tumultuous times. I had two friends at the inauguration. I remained in Central New York, enjoying the festivities from home. Before I describe my experiences, I'd like to discuss a few things...

Firstly, I am bothered by the fact that people feel the need to identify Obama as the "First Black/African-American President". Yes, based on skin color, this is something that is new to America, but is his race truly the important thing? I'd rather refer to him as the President that brought change and hope, who happened to be PARTLY AFRICAN AND PARTLY CAUCASIAN. Yes, that's right. He's not all African American! He's biracial, just like me. So therefore, he's not our first black president... That's not a bad thing, just saying. Besides, AMERICA STILL LOVES YOU! :)

Also, did anyone else notice that the invocation prayer leader happened to be an openly anti-gay Californian pastor? Offensive???

What did you think of Obama's speech? I thought that it wasn't his best, but it wasn't his worst. He is an extremely powerful speaker, and his speeches are extremely well-written. I was very impressed with his composure and eloquence, even if he does use teleprompters...haha.

We watched this in school, in an assembly in the auditorium. I expected kids to be rude and chaotic, but actually, I was pleasantly surprised. I was overjoyed to see the entire school stand and become quiet as Barack Obama was sworn in as our 44th President. It almost brought me to tears to see so many unique individuals unite for those few moments, all because of one man.

Thanks to today, I truly have hope and faith in the future. For Obama - time to get started on those campaign promises!

See ya!
Brianna