Friendship

Friendships are built over time. Some strong, some weak, some long, some short, some loyal and some horrible. What makes a friendship is all up to you. You are the one in charger of whether to continue or end a friendship. So let me tell you a story, a story of my friend, Mariana.

As a 4th grader who spent her whole life in a preforming arts academy, a new public school environment was very new and fun. During my first week of this brand new school, I met these girls named Mariana and Sabrina. We were the three musketeers! We did everything together. Since I was new to the environment, it was very shocking for me to hear many cuss words and adult language running out of the mouths of my friends. I immediately had a disgust feeling toward my new friends, however, continued on. Sabrina and I had discussed this foul language issue and decided we no longer wanted to be part of this group of friends. We then ended the relationship.

Once 5th grade came along, Sabrina and I were separated and Mariana and I were in the same class. At first, I thought this was a nightmare, due to the fact that I had no other friends then Sabrina, however things turned out great. I realized that Sabrina wasn't my REAL friend, she only hung out with me because she had no one else. Mariana, who knew I no longer wanted to pursue a friendship with her, was kind and welcoming to me even though she knew my dislikes. That was a true friend. After the next couple months, Mariana and I were the best of friends and no one could separate us. In the next few years following, Mariana and I had absolutely no classes together, which was horrible. Then I moved school and we never got to see each other after.  However we continued to stick together and stay friends for a long time. To this day, 7 years later, we are still friends.

Since we parted ways, we kept in touch and never lost that friendship we had. But one day, I got a text, a very difficult text for me to completely understand at that moment. I found out that my dearest friend had a very bad heart condition, which I never knew about, and needed heart surgery. In my mind I thought about all the horrible possibilities that might happen but also the great things that will happen if this surgery went well. My mind was full of mixed emotions and I didn't know what to do or think. All I knew was that I needed to pray for her and stay positive. Late at night I would think back to the awesome memories we had which overruled the bad ones by far. Then, I realized something. No matter what happens in life, you must treasure the moments you have with people, because one day they may not be able to be there to make more. So treasure the moments you have with the people you love, I know I will. Good luck on Monday, Mariana, stay strong. We love you.

Baby Ollie

Missy Lanning, a daily vlogger, vlogs with her husband Bryan Lanning about their life. Their channel on YouTube , DailyBumps, document their ups and downs in life (aka Bumps) which includes their son Oliver and dog, Karma. However, what most new viewers don't know is that Missy lost two children before having her miracle Oliver. This was due to a Uterine Septum which leads high risks of pregnancy loss.

A Uterine Septum is wall of tissue that divides a woman's uterus in half, often causing miscarriages.
Most Uterine Septum's are the entire length of the uterus and cut straight down, as if it were to make two triangles instead of one. Most women who have this condition were born with it. In most cases during development, two uteri come together to join, however, fail to completely unite. One good side to a Uterine Septum is that it gives off no other side effects or symptoms other then being difficult to conceive(although to some this is a big deal).

Although not all women who have uterine Septum's receive treatment, some woman prefer to get surgery done to cut out the wall tissue in order for the them to have a full uterus. Like the case with Missy after having Oliver. In fact, Missy found out that she had a Uterine Septum after she delivered Oliver, by C-Section. On the day Oliver was born, Missy had started kick counts around 10 am that morning and never felt the baby move for hours. Of course with her history of Miscarriages and Stillbirths she immediately rushed to the hospital. From that point she never felt Oliver kick again. However, once he was delivered, the doctors gave him a breathing mask and made a extremely odd discover. Oliver was growing on the left side of Missy's uterus while the placenta that carried him was on the right. Odd Right? Today, Missy and Bryan happily live in SoCal with their blessing Oliver and family.

Vlogging

Vlogging, a form of blogging that involves video and audio content, seems harmless. Many people and families upload their vlogs onto internet sites such as YouTube, for family members and friends to see. But what happens when that video gets over one million views? No longer are the people watching your home videos your family members or friends. Some people, like many famous YouTubers, enjoy making videos of their life and family and posting them on the internet for millions to see. Some Daily Vloggers even quit their jobs in order to keep up with the vlogging and some even consider it as their job and obligation. YouTube actually gives out plaques to people who hit subscription milestones such as 100,000 subscribers or even 1,000,000 subscribers. What's so wrong with letting millions of people watch what you do everyday? Its not like they know where you live right? Wrong...

Many YouTubers that do daily vlogs post their vlogs a day after recording. Although the time difference may feel safe for them, people can easily track them down. In the vlogs they will show where they go on a daily basis, what stores they shop at, what city they live in and what places they take their kids to play. This is a very dangerous risk vloggers are willing to take.

Famous Vlogger and founder of now Disney owned Maker Studios,  Shay Carl, has been vlogging his family everyday for over 5 years. With over 2000 vlogs, it is easily a stalkers paradise. Without any information other than the vlogs, I was able to find out many things. Shay Carl Butler and his wife Colette Butler have 5 children, Gavin Butler , Avia Butler , Emmi Lou Butler, Brock Butler, and Daxton Butler. They live in the mountains of Idaho near Pocatello. Shay Carl has 3 siblings Casey, Carlie, and Logan. Casey, who also does daily vlogs, has a wife, Kaylie and they have 3 children, Braliee, Gage, and Winston. Casey and Shay are neighbors. Carlie, who vlogs as well, has a son named Cooper who goes back and forth from Carlie's house to Carlie's-ex . Carlie also is dating Steve who is Shays friend. Logan, who just graduated high school last year, vlogs as well, and attends Utah state and visits Idaho to visit his girlfriend Morgan. With this information the Butler family and the Butler kids are an easy target for ransoms.

Another vlogger family is a little more discrete about what they put on the vlogs however is still very open. Benji and Judy vlog their family and children, Julianna, Kiera, and Miya. They live in seattle and often shop at the same organic stores once a week. Another family , Ellie and Jared, just celebrated their son Jackson's first birthday and is expecting again around summertime. Ellie and Jared are YouTube friends with the Butlers and they even appear in some of each others vlogs. Another family, April and Justin have a son named Liam who is 8 months old. They live in the Bay Area of California and visit the Mitsuwa in San Jose.

All this information was gathered by watching about a year of the ShayCarl Family and about 6 months of the other families. Such private information is openly shared to over 6,000,000 suscribers combined. Vlogging is great however information such as birthdates, full names, location and leisure sites shouldn't be openly revealed to the billions of people who watch YouTube.

Oh no...

          Around May 2014, I have had serious nausea and reflex symptoms. My mother took me to my primary pediatrician after noticing my extreme weight lose. He asked me my symptoms and declared that I had an acid reflex problem and I was soon put on the new medication Nexum. Since then, I had lost more weight and the symptoms began to change and I was never fully cured of my temporary reflex. I couldn't go out longer than a couple hours without getting sick and I wouldn't be able to laugh without feeling like something was going to come back up. I had acquired strange balance issued and it was time to get a full workup. My doctor issued a blood test, urine test, optometry visit, head and neck visit, gastroenterology visit, ultra sound,  vision field test, and an audiology visit. The most important was the gastroenterology visit.

          When seeing the gastroenterologist, I explained my issues such as difficultly swallowing and eating less then I should. She issued many testes such as a endoscopy and a MRI. One of my biggest fears is to have an endoscopy, due to the fact that Id be gagging.

          An endoscopy is a procedure where a small camera is put in the mouth of the patient down the throat and esophagus into the stomach and down to the beginning of the small intestine. Of course I was extremely terrified by the sounds of the procedure but I was "well taken care of" and the doctor reassured me that I would be under general anesthesia. During the procedure, she would take cell sized samples of my stomach and throat to test for any diseases such as cancer of celiac ( a wheat and gluten disease) which may lead to some bleeding, which is usually unlikely. My fear was somewhat at ease however I know I will be shaking on the day of the procedure. Hopefully, this procedure will find the cause of my nausea and I will soon be cured.  I know will the love and care from family and friends, I will be fine.

The Horror of Black Friday

                  For weeks and weeks before Thanksgiving, the average person hears up to 3 Black Friday Sales commercials either on the radio, TV , or even in the newspaper. This is ridiculous. People trample over each other, get into fights, and steal for their Black Friday items. Every year, new incidences come up on the news about how someone was arrested or how someone was in a serious injury. But is it really worth it?
                    Since 1924, the traditional "seasonal holiday shopping" was sparked after many American families ate their Thanksgiving meal and watched the famous Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. According to BlackFriday.Com, the term "black" came from the reference "to stores moving from the “red” to the “black,” back when accounting records were kept by hand, and red ink indicated a loss, and black a profit". Ever since then, store owners witnessed the beauty of Black Friday and began to bring up sale commercials weeks before Thanksgiving.
                    The "traditional" way to open the stores on Black Friday is at Mid-night after Thanksgiving day, however, many stores have realized the other side of the crazy teenagers and customers, the mothers.Mothers of young children generally don't have time to go out at midnight just to catch the sales, so stores such as JCPenny , BedBath&Beyond, and Target open up early around 8pm. Their slogan as "why wait until midnight" to attract those who have work the next morning, babysitters who cant stay past 10 and people who honestly don't want to wait until midnight in the cold.
                    Black Friday isn't just a tradition in The US, Canada also has a "Black Friday which they call "Boxing Day". Boxing day, however, is the day after Christmas instead of Thanksgiving. There are pros and cons to this date because many people go black Friday shopping in order to buy presents for people to give on Christmas but why trample over people in greed right after you name the 10 things you're grateful for? The pros and cons with after Christmas are the great sales for unwanted items that can be used in the future however, you can not buy them for that years Christmas to give away.
                   There is nothing wrong with going black Friday shopping but I think people should be more considerate of what they buy and how they get it. For example, after dinner and saying your thanks, go to the store to buy clothes and gifts for others, not for yourself.

Since I was a little girl, I have been fascinated with the works of Hayao Miyazaki, a famous Japanese film director, animator, producer, and screenwriter. Miyazaki’s works were first introduced to me by my mother. She would show the Japanese tapes of the 1988 hit, Totoro, I was in love. My grandmother also introduced a picture book called Kiki’s Delivery Service, based on the film. Since then, many other films have been produced, including my favorite, Spirited Away. Spirited Away is about a girl who crosses a mysterious tunnel with her parents and over time must learn how to believe in herself in order to turn her parents back to humans. Miyazaki’s works have greatly influenced many people around the globe.

Hayao Miyazaki was born on January 5th, 1941 in a town called Akebono-cho in Bunkyō, Japan. His love for anime was sparked in his third year in junior high, by the anime film The Tale of the White Serpent, written by Taiji Yabushita. His first hit film was in The Castle of Cagliostro, in 1979, Miyazaki was 38 at the time. Since then, he has directed many more movies including Castle in the Sky, Ponyo, and Howls Moving Castle.

By far, the anime movie Princess Mononoke , is the biggest movie in Hayao Miyazaki’s career. Princess Mononoke was released 1997 when he was 56 years old. A boy named Ashitaka is fighting for his village when a boar-god disguised as a demon gives Ashitaka a demon mark on his arm. He later finds out that mark will soon kill him if he doesn’t find a cure. On the search for a cure, Ashitaka arrives in a forest filled with animal gods and watches as his village is constantly being destroyed. San, a girl raised by wolf gods communicates with spirits to help Mono bring down these villages however, Ashitaki tries to bring peace and co-exist with the creatures.

Unfortunatly, with Miyazaki’s older age and declining health, his last film was released in 2013 called The Wind Rises. Many people, including myself, cherish this last film as a gift of his works. Luckily, his son, Goro Miyazaki has decided to take over his father’s business. I cannot wait to see the films he produces in the future!

Sand

          "We are going to learn about sand for the next couple weeks!" Mr. Pearson exclaimed. In my head I thought, "Oh this should be... interesting", sand was not a topic that interested me. I kept thinking, "What's so interesting about sand?" , the thought ran through my mind for days. On the first day of the sand lessons, we walked into class where there was a big bucket of sand. He said "grab a bag of sand!" and we all followed his directions and obtained bags of sands. He gave us about 5 to 10 minutes to "play" with the sand and observe its features. We were told to read our first text, number one of seven. It was a PDF on a report of the different types of sand in the Huangshan mountains of China and how the sand had originally got there. The report on sand was a drag. It was not interesting, however it did provide interesting facts and information.

           As we moved further into the lesson, sand became interesting. "How can sand become interesting?" one might ask, well the answer is simple, perspective. We discussed what contributed to different perspectives and how people saw sand. The author of Sand: A Journey through Science and the Imagination, Michael Welland, argued that sand is no longer a mere object, but one that has come alive and shaped the environment and who humans now are. He referenced the time period where armies would put sand in balloons to maintain a certain altitude for the balloon and the bomb would be inside it. Thus, connecting sand and human actions.

            Our last couple readings all have been about the art and beauty of sand. John C.Van Dyke, a historian and naturalist, discusses the figural state of the desserts and its inhabitants through an artistic yet scientific lens and point of view. He argues that the desert is not what it seems; there is much more than what someone can witness with their bare eyes. He shatters the claims that the dessert is dead by comparing the liveliness of the city and desert, claiming that they are identical. The Mandala, a Hindu or Buddhist graphic symbol of the universe, is claimed to be a very spiritual and important piece of art which can consist of thousands of grains of different colored sand. Sand can be used and viewed in many different ways.

              Sand can be viewed as a boring piece of land or it can be viewed as a majestic living thing. Sand helped me realize the other things in life that I considered boring to now be lively and beautiful . Its all about ones perspective.