WHAT I LEARNED IN BOATING SCHOOL IS...

Haha, I could 't think of something to write about so the first thing that popped into my head was good, ol' Spongebob Squarepants.

You can say what you want about this little sponge, but all the 90s kids remember this guy and have subconsciously learned lessons from him. 

The most relatable  episode to my life right now would be the episode where Spongebob had to write an essay for boating school. He procrastinated until he was up all night with writer's block. Eventually, he fell asleep and had nightmares about his his house burning down and him not being able to finish his essay. He wakes up just in time to finish his essay when he runs into school to hand his boating instructor, Miss Puff, the essay when she says, "Didn't you hear, Spongebob? We're going on a field trip instead." And Spongebob is all like . . .

This relates to me because in the past, I would stare blankly at a computer screen at one in the morning and wait for inspiration to pour out of me. Usually, it didn't. And I was like...

Anyway, my point is is that we can all learn lessons from Spongebob like: using your imagination, help out your friends, be careful when you're selling chocolate, don't procrastinate, Don't neglect your pet snail, don't be greedy, and so many more. My favorite episode of all time? BAND GEEKS!!!!

What have you learned from Spongebob?

Family Traditions...

Something really special happened to me today...

It all started when I was out by the mall using a gift card I had with my wonderful boyfriend, Zach. Since my brother lives out in Elida, I thought I would stop by to see him. When we got there, he was sitting in his living room in his pajamas playing his x-box. Comfort, of course, is a huge deal in the McCollum family, as I wear sweatpants almost every single day, haha!
Any way, we got to talking about random things: barbecue sauce, our father's crazy antics, matching camo blankets we have, and then, as usual, guns came up. He was showing me his new Mosin when he pulled out his old 20 gauge, the one our dad has bought him years ago. I never had my own shotgun because I always usual shot hand guns and revolvers, like my mom's .38 special. He started talking about his gun and handed it to me. He said,
"Well, I don't need this gun anymore, and I don't wanna sell it because dad got it for me. Do you want it? I don't have room for it and I want to keep this in the family. It's special."
My mouth dropped open. He was actually giving me his first gun! Granted, our first saddle was mine but now the old 20 gauge? It made me feel so special to have all of these old things that me and my brother once shared, mostly because I'm a very sentimental person. I'm glad we can keep these things and pass them down to our children, almost like family heirlooms.

Frack This!

Hello all:)
I'm doing my proposal on Hydraulic Fracturing, or commonly known as "fracking" in the chemical engineering world. So I thought I would give everyone a little in sight on what fracking really is.
Fracking is the process of extracting natural gases from the underground world. Geo-physicists work with chemical engineers to do this. Basically, what happens is is that they drill underground through these rock layers. Underneath these rock layers are natural gas deposits. The drilling creates underground wells which are then filled with chemicals, sand, and other materials. These materials. sometimes called slurry, pushes up the natural gas and bada-boom, bada-bing, ya got natural gas.
Fracking is done right here in the USA and right here in Ohio! It creates jobs for chemical engineers and geo-physicists and other skilled workers. It can even make other oils less expensive. It's using local petroleum and is done right here in America. And when I say America, I mean America, not north or south of it!
It is not perfect though, there are issues with ground water, but with more laboratory testing, kinks can be worked out, and all water that is being used is being recycled via a water treatment plant.

Attached is a small diagram of how it works, if you're interested. Hope everyone is doing well with their proposals!

picture source:
http://fracfocus.org/hydraulic-fracturing-process

In Class 15

I actually learned a lot in class today.

We played Jeopardy based off of two passages we had to read and the three topics of quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing. I actually read the two passages and understood the three topics, but the class today made me really understand them inside and out.

First of all, I was really proud of myself for reading and remembering the passages. I didn't really understand Burnett's essay all that well but I really enjoyed the "Annoying Ways People Use Sources" article. It got me really thinking about how to quote, what to quote, what not to quote, when to quote, when not to quote. . . it was really informative. It also helped me understand citing sources more, which was great because I was really having some trouble with that.

I walked out of the classroom feeling very accomplished because I got my first rough draft completely done AND brought it to class, I'm getting close to my blogs being done, and I did all of the readings and understood them. For a long time, I felt like I kept getting further and further behind, but I worked through Thanksgiving break and still managed to get all of my homework done. My secret is running off of very little sleep and drinking LOTS of caffeine. I won't lie, I'm getting antsy for Christmas break and catch up on sweet, precious sleep, but until then, I'm going to work my butt off and get stuff done! Today's class was so encouraging and I hope all of the rest of the classes that follow will be just as great. Until then...

I guess this is my last in class blog entry.

x.x

Burnett's essay

I think Burnett begins his proposal with these observations to prepare the readers for what they are about the read and give them some insight on what his proposal is going to be about. Though if I had more information about the differences between the state and federal parks, I would have understood this essay a lot more. If Burnett would have explained what these organizations were and what all the numbers and figure meant the readers may not have been so lost through the essay. The call to action toward the end was fuzzy. I did not understand what he was proposing, or asking that his readers do. From what I can grasp, he wants the federal parks to hand over the reins to the states because they are doing a much better job at making money and improving safety, sanitation, and the environment. This would save the government, and more importantly, the tax-payers' money. I am suddenly interested by this because I, too, am a tax-payer...
To compare the federal parks and the states parks is pretty much that the national parks are losing money and not improving and that the state parks are thriving and making tons of money.
Though this essay wasn't awful, I think the author could have explained himself and some of the numbers and terminology he used.

Other Classes

In Calculus class, we had to do a project about goals. Surprisingly, it's not a math project. Pretty much, you write down your goals and the steps to achieve them. On mine, I decided to write about a career goal, a family goal, and an educational goal.

My career goal is pretty predictable if one has read my previous blog posts. Of course, I want to become a chemical engineer and make a comfortable living. I also want to obtain a good job, hopefully at Wright Patterson Air Force Base. Even elsewhere would be okay, as long as I'm doing what I love to do. I also want to make a decent retirement and a respectable 401k.

My family goal is, well, about having a family. I know what everyone says, "Oh, you shouldn't plan on having a family and getting married. You should just let it happen." Well, my goal is to have a family and get married and have children. I'm not saying I have to obtain these things by the time I'm 25, but I do want them. I would also like to stay close with my immediate family.

My last goal, the educational one, is that I would like to get an excellent education at a good college, hopefully Wright State University. I want to strive hard for good grades and get as many scholarships as I can. That way, when I graduate high school and college, high paying jobs will want to hire me.

Now if I can only get a good grade on my final essay...

Happy Thanksgiving!

You know what.

I got on facebook Saturday morning, and I saw all the black friday posts. Oh, I had to walk ten miles and wait in line for two hours and fight for a pair if boots and a complementary tote bag!

Oh. That sounds tragic. . .

Look here shoppers, I don't feel bad for you. Half the time, the deals go on days after black friday and you don't even have to wait in a line that wraps around the entire store. In fact, YOU, dear shopper, need to think of someone else to feel bad for. THE POOR MALL WORKERS.

Whether you work in the mall or the restaurants next to the mall, I'm feeling for you because I am one of those people. I had to work black friday and it was honestly crazy. Normally at Panera, breakfast rush, lunch rush, and dinner rush are all crazy and entail a line to the door. More so on weekends. But even with all five registers open, three backers, and a barista, we still had a line all morning AND all afternoon AND all night until we were closed. And because the bakers baked double to triple the normal quota, we had a TON of stuff left over, including ten pastry rings! That is not normal!

Career Path

I have a lot of dreams.

Dreams, aside from the sleeping kind, that I'd one day like to pursue...

When I was little, I always wanted to be an artist. I would draw with my Crayola crayons and paint with water colors whatever my imagination would come up with: unicorns, mermaids, families, lions, tigers, and bears (oh my!).

Eventually, of course, that all changed and I wanted to be an astronaut because what kid doesn't? My mind changed a million times from tattoo artist to coroner to OB/GYN. My latest and greatest career choice is chemical engineering, which could change direction here at any minute too. Though those were all fun dreams and all, I always had my business dreams too. I had a bucket list, once, and sometimes I think I'd still like to follow them. Some of them being:

- Open up a women's boutique containing original creations like camo lingerie and bullet jewelry

- Opening a Cupcake Kiosk 

- Opening a bakery inspired by my grandmother

- Writing a novel about something I'm an expert on

All of these things would be cool and all, but I don't think I would have the dedication. Some things I would have the dedication to do are:

- Go to Scotland and meet up with some distant cousins

- Learn Swedish

- Go skydiving! 

- Perform original music in front of a crowd of thousands

- Discover a secret about the world that no one ever knew.

Everyone should have a bucket list like this! I'm a very goal oriented person, so I like to write things down and [attempt to] achieve them. My biggest goal, however, is living a wonderful and happy life as a chemical engineer and wearing a Wright State class ring on my finger.
Everyone should have a bucket list like this! I'm a very goal oriented person, so I like to write things down and [attempt to] achieve them. My biggest goal, however, is living a wonderful and happy life as a chemical engineer and wearing a Wright State class ring on my finger.

Keep on Dreamin' even if it Breaks your Heart.

Lessons from Fifty Shades...

I read Fifty Shades of Grey, the first one in the three part trilogy, a couple weeks ago or so, and I loved it. Though its scandalous reputation makes it feel taboo to read it in public, I read it almost every where I went because it was a total page-turner and quite the epic piece of literature. To me, it doesn't matter what a book is about, what matters is how a writer can make even the most boring plot or topic interesting. And that got me thinking...
Originally, the books were my boyfriend's mom's. She doesn't read a whole lot of novels, and because she received the books as a gift, she gave them to me. I had heard about these books. These risque books. I decided to give them a shot because, well, why not? I read Cosmo, so why would it be any different?
I read the first book in a week. No, maybe three days? I loved it. The way the author portrays the main character, Ana, is both realistic and unbelievable at the same time. I won't go into grave detail, but she is all too real when it comes to being... a girl. She is awkward and totally lovable. And Christain Grey, well he's okay too.
So back to my point about making any piece of literature a masterpiece given the right author. It gave me some hope about surviving English Comp this year. I try and try my hardest, and most of the time, I'm not enough. Maybe, just maybe, if I learn from this author, I too can make this last essay a literary work of art. You know, if I work on this essay instead of reading Fifty Shades until five in the morning. . .

Deres a tornader in my braaayne

I am about dang ol' sick and dang ol' tired of writing. Do I sound like Boomhauer from King of the Hill there?
But really, my brain is in a whirlwind of many things: emotions, due dates, assignments, grades.
I can barely keep my feet on the ground here. I'm just sinking, and I'm not even trying to complain, I'm just so stinking tired and I want to go to sleep for about a thousand years.
I used to be one of those people who didn't leave the house without a fresh face of make up and nice looking hair and a presentable outfit, but now I wear day-old make up and pajamas every where I go. I honestly look like crap.
It's like I have to transform myself every where I go, whether it's putting on some khakis and a polo for work or sweatpants and a bun for school, my clothes get thrown on the floor and I'm straight out the door. I cleaned my room today. I have tan colored carpet. Who knew?
 
I've been listening to Pistol Annies lately. Holy Crap I love them. It's this little country trio with Miranda Lambert in it. They have this song called "Lemon Drop" and it just makes me smile because it talks about owning a crappy car that you still owe money on and losing your quarters to a washing machine. Then it's all,

My life is like a lemon drop
I'm Suckin' on the bitter 
to get to the sweet part.
I know there are better days ahead...

I love it. So so much.
It's like the story of my life right now, and hey, maybe things actually will get better. Maybe.
Until then.
xx.

in class 14

Our son, Billy, has never been good with the ladies. Through high school, he never had a girlfriend and just went to prom with a group of buddies. College was the exact same way. My husbund Roy and I were beginning to think there was something he should tell us until one day he finally brought a girl to meet his parents. Alicia was a very pretty girl. She had short brown hair with streaks of blond and red, and the brightest blue eyes in the world. Best of all, she seemed very fond of Bill, and that's what parents just really want to see when they bring dates home.
Okay, so our first impressions were not so good with Alicia. Mostly, it was Roy's fault. When he asked her about her parents, she had told him she was an orphan. It would have been fine if he hadn't asked her WHY she was an orphan! How personal...
Then, Roy had the audacity to ask her if she had any children we didn't know about on Meet The Parents Take #2. She blushed and poitely said no but then asked her if she was sexually active. Oh, and if she had any STDs and if she had been tested for HIV.
Alicia stopped coming over after that.
When we called Bill a few weeks later, he told us that Alicia had dumped him because his parents, well his dad. were insane. Bill was unhappy, and it was our duty to get her back.
Now Roy isn't a very.... hearts and flowers kind of guy. But he has money, of which he does not like to spend. It was time we hit the jewelry store.
It was all I could do to stop from crying a few weeks later when Bill asked Alicia to marry him. My plan had worked! We bought her a vintage diamond and saphire ring dated from the 1920s, and lied and said it was Bill's great-grandmother's. She of course said yes and things are going more smoothly now, after a much needed apology to Alicia from Roy about his personal questions. They are getting married in May.

Other Classes

Let's face it. We all learned to use Power Point, Word, and Excel when we were in like, fifth grade.     

I always had to use either one of them for projects, like Power Point for science projects, Excel for personal finance, word for almost everything. Now that I'm taking this Introduction to Computers class, I kind of feel like it's a waste of time. The projects are time consuming and I'm not learning anything new. The whole class is pretty much,

Teacher: "Okay, now click the 'OK' button."

Me: *Click*

Teacher: "Now, does everyone see the new box on the scree-"

That ONE person in the class that drives everyone nuts: "WAIT HOLD ON I'M NOT THERE YET, MR. SHINE HELP ME."

Teacher: "You need to turn your monitor on."

One Person: "WHERE'S THAT AT."

Teacher: "How are you even in college?"

sigh.

I just feel like I could be spending time on this final project for Mrs. Piro. I have a strange feeling that this paper will be the death of me. Like I'm having sincere trouble and I'm SOS-ing everyone I know and I'm sinking. It's depressing. I wish I had more time to work on these things, but you wanna know what? I'm stinking tired. Post-Secondary is a lot more than I thought it would be. They warned me though, that I could not pull off a job and college and school and band. But guess what? I'm not giving up and I'm gonna get through it and be like, "Looks like I DID pull it off. Hmm." 

Pray for me? I'm sinking here.

in class food art

The in class videos we watched were about speed art made out of food, like cheetos and barbeque sauce. Though very fascinating, they didn't really inspire me.  My subject is on fracking, or hydraulic fracturing, which is pretty much digging up natural gas deposits out of the ground. My field that I would like to go in to is chemical engineering, so the most recent and local debatable chemical engineering topic I could find was hydraulic fracking.
The reason that the videos did not really inspire me was because the people making the videos are very good artists. They know exactly what they are doing and how exactly to do it. Being a junior in high school and a post secondary student, I don't know everything there is to know about chemical engineering. Reading the articles, I find it difficult because I don't understand half of what they are saying and it just makes the whole research process very frustrating! I'm sure that I'm the only person who feels this way, I mean, everyone else seems to have their head screwed on pretty straight with this assignment, but me, well I'm pretty clueless. It just makes me feel so dumb.
I know! I'll write about the field I'm actually in right now, Bread engineering at Panera. My proposal? Wheat enriched flour or not...?

Hopkins's essay!

Megan Hopkins proposes that TFA change its funding, first of all. She says that Districts can barely afford one teacher per classroom, let alone two; one master teacher and one resident teacher. There would need to be some way to compensate for the extra people. She also proposes that the TFA change their two-year terms to three because teachers should complete one residency year and two subsequent years on their own. She also proposes they provide incentives for the TFA members to teach longer than three years.
The ending is effective because it ends with a powerful quote that stays with the reader after he or she has read it. Hopkins's solutions could contribute to this goal by creating more teachers for the underprivileged America and making those teachers stronger teachers by tweaking the TFA's standards.
The intended audience for this proposal would be a board or committee of some kind that could change the requirements of the teachers belonging to the TFA. The essay is very formal and has a lot of statistics, so Hopkins is proposing it to a board of professionals. She also starts out the proposal with a very personal experience. She goes from a first person point of view to an academic point of view. I don't know if this is allowed but I'm sure it worked out in there somewhere, or it wouldn't be in a college textbook.
Hopkins anticipates questions by creating following head titles with topics that would follow up from her last paragraph. For example, "Possible Objections" or "Next Steps." She then answers any unheard questions about what her last paragraph was about and sums it all up nicely.

Remix Video

The videos we watched in class today are part of a seven part film about editing and remixing. In short, the videos talked about how almost everything is a copy or remix of something else. The narrarator talks about music and how a lot of songs are subconcious copies of earlier ones, like Led Zeppelin. But I mean, you can't really blame Led Zeppelin for copying other peoples' music. First of all, they were probably on too many drugs to remember whose songs are whose, and no offense, Spirit, Zeppelin did your songs better any way. I mean, c'mon, it's Led Zeppelin! And if people are blaming Led Zeppelin for the lyrics of "Stairway To Heaven" being subliminal satanic messages, then shouldn't they blame the original writers of the song first? Sorry, I'm getting off topic...
Any way, This film talks about how all pieces: songs, books, software, inventions, movies, are ALL based off of some original document. It's true, I mean if you look at Twilight, the most absurd movie ever, it got millions of box-office hits, and it was all based on a book. The Hunger Games, too, was based off of a book. Movies that aren't based off books are usually genre movies, meaning they break up into genres and subgenres until they are so specific, they are creative and "new" again.
The public domain wants each of their ideas to be protected, however creativity usually comes from a copy. But if we want more new ideas, we gotta share the love, man.

in class #10

I always felt safe living in the country. You know, no one to drive by your house in the middle of the night and shoot you if you ticked them off? The peacefulness and serenity was always nice, until my mother told me that every 23 years, a bat-like creature from Hell appears to prey on living human beings to harvest their organs. Gee, thanks for leaving that one out, Mom...
The 23 years ended when I turned 17. When the 23 year duration started to come to an abrupt end, I asked my mother more about this creature. He was called "Jeepers Creepers." During his last attack, he engulfed an entire cheer leading squad and basketball team on a bus coming home from an away game. This guy, or thing, was hungry, so I knew I had to leave town. I was gonna be smarter than all the other scary movie bimbos, so I hopped on a plane to Hawaii for a month and had the vacation of a lifetime! While the others were fearing for their lives and getting eaten alive back home, I was relaxing and drinking a fruity umbrella drink out of a coconut off the white beaches of Honolulu. An anti-climatic end? This is real life, baby, and sometimes you can have a  happy ending.

Other Classes

Does music count as another class? Well it's about to...
Music has been one of my things since I was in about fifth grade. First, I had learned flute.I hated it! Next, I tried trumpet. It still wasn't for me. So then I tried something else that my school didn't offer: guitar.
I got really good really fast. It came super easy to me, just like bass did. I took lessons from a guy named Nick George. Now, I take music theory, because I'm more advanced in my studies. Any way, after about five years of guitar,I taught myself how to play piano. Later, I taught myself how to play baritone. which is a brass instrument. I got a score of two at a solo and ensemble competition after knowing how to play baritone (or euphonium) for three months. And I didn't play something easy, I picked Vandercook!
So, okay, let's keep track of how many instruments I have learned to play: flute, trumpet, guitar, bass, baritone, euphonium, piano, tuba/sousaphone, and I even picked up some percussion along the way. You played recorder in fourth grade? That's cute.
When I went to Perry, and my band director was absent from school (He had cancer, so he got sick a lot.) I directed the high school band, and I was a sophomore. And I had to explain tonal center to some college students before... I guess you can say it's kinda my thing.