Farmer Alminac

According to the Farmer’s Almanac, Missouri should be expecting another huge snow fall next week.  The almanac was accurate with predicting the last snowpocalypse, which is a scary thought for me.  I am done with snow.  If it did not snow for another two years I would be incredibly happy and not concerned at all.  Do not get me wrong, I do enjoy the first snowfall of maybe six inches but once you have had two feet of snow you do not want to hear that it might happen again.  When I was younger hearing this news would have been amazing and I would have not been able to sleep because I was so excited, however now that I am in college I am not one to pray for the snow anymore.  It has now become more of a nuisance than anything else.  Not to mention, Missouri has already exceeded their allotted money for snow clean up.  Which can only mean that it will take even longer for them to clear the roads than it did before.   I am interested to see if the Farmer’s Almanac is correct again but I am praying that it isn’t. 

No this is not me or my car...I just found it on the internet.  However, mine did look very similar to this.

Japan's Earthquake

With an 8.9 earthquake hitting Japan we should all be sending out prayers and blessing for everyone who was affected by it.  The earthquake triggered tsunami size waves that further destroyed Japan.  This catastrophe was so intense that it carried houses away, pushed boats down roads, and injured and killed thousands of people.  The largest scare was with their nuclear power plant.  The power plant lost its cooling ability.  Japan declared a state of emergency and evacuated everyone in a 6.2 mile radius of the plant.  Everyone should keep Japan in their prayers.

Here is a link of a footage of the tsunami size waves. 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRDpTEjumdo

Article Respnse

"Writing and Teaching Writing"
by: Anne Turvey

http://proxy.mul.missouri.edu:2164/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?hid=21&sid=3870157f-1f3d-4344-8412-06147ee0f12c%40sessionmgr13&vid=2


I enjoyed this article because it is about first year teachers and the struggles that they have with teaching writing.  This is something that I am very nervous about because I know it will be a challenge to make it so every student has an opportunity learn.  She preaches about how the teachers are being hindered by curriculums and not allowing the student to express themselves as writers.  Teachers must establish a relationship with the writers and become familiar to what they feel comfortable writing about.  By doing this, teachers are also discovering what students need to work on and what they seem to have firm understandings of.  In my field they are writing about realistic fiction.  They are all having a little trouble with it but they seem to be improving each day.  The problem is that the teachers all believe that they are not having enough time to write about what they really want to.  This is preventing the children from expressing themselves.  After collaborating with all the teachers they came to the conclusion that every Friday the students will journal about what ever they want.  This seems to be a great idea.

Box Logic

Found Poem

Rejections

Important enough to take you through all the rough jobs.

God, in the dark of failure, in the pit of it, to get that…

…that bit of silliness that says writing is a lonely profession.

Something never achieved, something dreamed for, longed for, lusted for and never, never there.

Acceptance.

One day it comes.

Your life, your work, your hopes and thoughts and songs and breath…

Can you imagine?

It didn’t matter if I died right then

Where I'm From

Where I’m From

I am from the smell of a home cooked meal when I enter the house,

the laugh of my brother as we run from the dishes.

the holler from my mom as we hit the couch. 

The laugh of my dad as we clean the pots and pans.

I am from the smell of fresh cut grass as I play football.

The cheers of joy as we take the field,

The moisture of the sweat dripping down my face,

The sounds of excitement as we win the game.

I am from the smell of the morning dew as I climb my tree stand,

The grunt of a deer as it moves slowly past me,

The hoot of an owl as it lands next to me,

The scattering of a squirrel as it digs below me.

I am from the smell of wax melting in church,

The joyful music as the choir sings,

The grace of the priest as he preaches the good word,

The reverence of my father as he prays for all.

I am from the smell of hard work as I dig another hole,

The sound of a mower as I cut more grass

The clanking of silverware as I set the table,

The swishing of plastic as I sack the groceries. 

I am from parents who love me,

A brother who cares for me,

A sister who inspires me,

And a brother who looks after me.

This is where I am from,

without these I would not be me.