Assignment 20 - TD

How to make chicken Tikka Masala

First you need the rice, plain old Jasmine rice will do the job. Rinse the rice in cold water through with that metal thing that's kind of like a net with the holes in it. Put the rice in a pot along with 3 cardamom pods along with two whole star anise and some salt and pepper. It is important to remember that you put these spices before you put any water in it. Fill the pot with 1 part rice to 1.5 part water. What that means is that the water should be above the rice half of much as there is rice. Cold water, not hot. Shake needed to make sure the rice is flat and even. Place a lid on top of the pot and heat your stove to the highest setting to bring the water to a boil as soon as possible. After it starts boiling, quickly turn the heat down and let the rice simmer for about nine minutes give or take a minute or two depending on the heat of your stove. Remove the cardamom pods and star anise which should have floated up to the top.

Now onto the actual Tikka Masala. Fry sliced onions, jalapeño and ginger. Not finely sliced, just into the strips for the onion and octagons for the ginger. Do not fry for too long as to not make your onions mushy. Add chili powder, garam masala, turmeric, and brown sugar while you fry. Stir in tomato puree and chopped tomatoes. Blitz the whole spice mixture in a mixer to whatever consistency of your liking. Cut blocks of chicken pieces and simply put a little salt on the chicken. Fry the chicken pieces in the same pan that you previously had the spice mixture in. Pour the blended mixture after the chicken pieces have fried and add some curry leaves. Cover the pan and let it simmer. Finally, stir in some yogurt and roughly cut coriander in. You put the Tikka Masala in with the rice, don't have your rice and Tikka Masala in seperate bowls. That's just wrong.
Voilà, you are done.

Assignment 18- Sadie Marsh

 The number one item on my high school bucket list is to keep everything together. Unfortunately, grades and test scores are very important for college admittance.

 The number one item on my college bucket list is to stay in touch with friends. Just because we will be going to different schools doesn’t mean that we cannot stay in touch.

The number one item on my life long bucket list is to make an impact on at least one person and inspire them that doing what they love is all they need to be happy. We live in a world where we are taught that the more money you make the more successful you are, and the more successful you are the happier you are. I hate that this is what we are teaching children, and my goal is to get one child to see that happiness does not come from money, but that it comes from doing what you love.

Assignment 18: Buckets and Buckets - Jake Tucker

1. The most important thing for me to accomplish before I get out of high school is to earn the grades to graduate me from high school. This sounds basic, but it is really my main goal at the moment. Getting this education is apparently going to set me up for success in college and eventually the real world.

2. The most important goal on my college bucket list is to be able to take time for myself and not have to stress about life as much. I see this happening in college due to the lack of responsibility and the relaxed environment of college in general. These aspects allow one to enjoy themselves for a typical 3-6 year period without a career or family to worry about.

3. The most important thing on my bucket list to do before I die is to have fun throughout my life. Life typically sucks, no matter who you are, and being able to find joy in life is hard. I want to be one of the few people to actually achieve this goal of a joyful life.

Assignment 20: How to...

Hide not your talents, they for use were made. What's a sundial in the shade?
--Benjamin Franklin

Ben makes a good point. For this week, put your gifts and skills on display by developing a "how-to." Choose something that you have a level of expertise in and explain step by step how it is done.

No repeats though! If two people are both really talented at making ice and one beats the other to the post on "How to make ice..." then, second person - you need to reflect upon your other talents.

So, stop standing in the shade and astound us!

Oh, this can be a video blog that you create.

Minimum of 150 words - due Sunday, February 12th at 11:59 pm

March 26th is the last day to make up blogs 20-22

Assignment 19 - Caitlin Southworth

Honestly, I don’t think any one piece of advice has really stuck with me; there’s the obvious ones like be nice to people, try to make your day good, live your life, help others, and so on and so forth, but those are also kind of common sense. If someone has told me advice that was amazing or noteworthy- I probably forgot it or it’s so ingrained into what I do day to day that I don’t remember someone suggesting I do it. A lot of the advice I do get is short term. Definitely right now I’ll get or ask for advice for college- this won’t stick with me forever though, only for the next few years. I think a lot of the good advice that’s given is a little common sense, but it’s a little harder to always figure out and notice them- it takes someone to mention it before you realize. Overall though, I think this biggest advice anyone can take is to be nice- classic advice you’ve been told since you were little.

Assignment 17 - TD

I have decided to compare Howl's Moving Castle and Spirited Away by Academy award winning director Hayao Miyazaki. The two films are by the same director so it will be obvious to see the similarities. They are both of the animated film genre and carry similar atmospheres. The mood surrounding both films is one of wistfulness and tranquility. Thus both films leave you nostalgic and slightly homesick. The art style is the exact same as they are both animated by Hayao Miyazaki. Miyazaki refuses to bend to new-fangled technology, for every single movie he creates he draws everything first, alone, and then animates it through computers. Howl's Moving Castle has a more complex plot than Spirited Away and is harder to fully grasp. Though that is not saying Howl's Moving Castle is better than Spirited Away. The music for Howl's Moving Castle is more grand while Spirited Away's music is more "personal". I find that both movies ebb and flow like a wave, and start similarly. You start slowly and are soon swept up into the films and ride the wave along with it.

Assignment 19 - TD

The one line that has made me rethink my life was not advice given to me, but a lyric in a song. In J. Cole's song "Dollar and a Dream III" he states "You logged off because I'm online, small talk from small minds. I wanna buy the mall but there ain't shit in this small town."

I used to live in the Arlington/D.C. area in poverty and the most amazing piece of architecture to me was not neither the Lincoln Memorial nor the Washington Monument. To me it was always the Ballston Mall. It was particularly impressive to me because it was so massive and half the surface area of the walls are made of glass. The line related to me because it gave me the motivation to be the kind of person that can buy Ballston Mall. Prior to hearing this line, I had been unmotivated, doing well in school but still very uninterested in the future. I was bogged down by the small minds that surrounded me and was starting to become like them. This line made me realize that I cannot bother myself with those kinds of people. As Eleanor Roosevelt said "Great minds discuss ideas. Average minds discuss events. Small minds discuss people." I made me realize that do not desire to be a small person. I do not desire to be an average person. It made me want to become great and rise above my circumstances. I do not literally desire to buy Ballston Mall, but I want to leave my past life behind and be an influential person that I could do as such.

Assignment 19- Nicole Loy

While I have many people who try to advise me, whether asked to or not, there are very few individuals whose advise I respect. One individual who often offers sound advice is my mom. She has often told me to treat others with respect, even if you do not like them or you disagree with them, yet still maintain your stance. This advice has come in handy numerous times. I feel that respect is rarely given anymore, but I feel that it is integral to maintaining working relationships and achieving success in life. While some may say “why should I give my respect right away to someone I don’t know or to someone just because they are older than me,” I believe that everyone deserves respect, no matter the circumstances. How can you expect to maintain decorum and learn from others without it? Everyone is a human being and should be treated as such. We all obtain the capacity to feel. Following this advice has greatly affected me, as I try to follow it in all of my interactions. I truly believe it has bettered my relationships and allowed people to have more empathy for me when I am struggling. Often teachers and employers are more willing to be understanding towards someone who has always shown them respect than to someone who is constantly rude and disrespectful. I also feel that it is extremely valuable in friendships and romantic relationships. How can you be friends with someone or have a relationship if you do not treat them with the same respect that you wish to have? My mother’s advice has, in my opinion, aided me in my quest to becoming a better person. I hope to always follow this advice, even when it is most difficult to do so.

Assignment 18- Joonyoung Park

Before I finish high school- 

1. Get accepted to a good school with a scholarship. This is very important to me because the main purpose of high school is to prepare you for college. Getting a scholarship is very important to me because I am the oldest of two and getting a scholarship would financially help my parents because they wouldn't have to pay for my tuition and I wouldn't have to worry about student loans.

2. Get a 34 on the ACT and a 1500 on the SAT

3. Go to Prom with Kate Upton or Blake Lively

Before I finish college- 

1. Get a good career. This is very important because the main purpose of college is to get you ready for a good career and make money. 

2. Travel the country with friends on breaks.

3. Go to a lot of parties and have lots of fun

Before I die-

1. Travel the world. This has always been a dream of mine to travel the world. I wanna especially visit parts of Europe and Australia. 

2. Extreme things bungee jump, skydive, cliff diving

3. Have a hot wife

4. Have 2 children who will inherit a lot of money

Assignment 19- Annie Varner

Annie Varner
APEng- 1st Hr

Assignment 19

Some of the best advice I've ever received was given to me by those older than me.  Time and time again I am so impressed by my elders the wisdom they hold and are willing to share.  My own grandfather is a man I wish I could say shares with me his many tokens of wisdom.  As much as I wish this to be true, the one grandfather I have left I hardly get to see.  Of course my parents share with me their own knowledge; I was taught to follow the Golden Rule from a very young age, and it was repeated to me in different forms in church and school as well.  "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you".  "Treat your neighbors how you would want them to treat you".  I've known this since kindergarden.   But perhaps some of the best life-long advice is given to someone when they are in a heightened state of emotion- fear, anger, sadness, joy, surprise, etc-- and sometimes not even by people older than us.

When my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2012, I was babysitting my neighbor's 6 year old son.  Across the street, these neighbors just a year before had suffered a similar tragedy.  The son had already suffered what was I was just about to feel for the next 2 years of my life.  When I got the call from my sister, I couldn't hold back the tears, even in the midst of reading Chase his bedtime story.  13-year old Annie was weeping under Chase's dinosaur covers for what felt like forever, just until he gathered enough courage to ask me what was wrong.  I told him what had happened, but the only thing I remember him saying was, "what's the point in crying? what's crying gonna to do?"  His words in that moment were some of the most comforting words I heard the the whole time my mom was recovering.  Chase's words inspire me to not wallow on the negatives and that life always goes on.  I made sure to hug my mom extra tight that night, and sure enough, she became a cancer survivor who taught me incredible advice as well.

Assignment 17- Joonyoung Park

I watched La La Land mainly because everyone was saying it was an amazing movie and because it won numerous awards. Emma Stone's character, Mia, an aspiring actress, meets Ryan Gosling's character, Sebastian, a jazz fanatic with the hopes of saving jazz by opening his own jazz club. The story revolves around these two striving to achieve their dreams. However in the process, the two of them realize that they must travel down different paths and become distant from each other. 5 years later, when Mia returns home, one would think that she would be with Sebastian but she ends up marrying another man and having a child with him. On a night out Mia and her husband hear great music coming out of a club and enter only to find that it is Sebastian's club. Overall I thought this was a great movie with great songs to back it up. And even though the two main characters didn't end up together, I liked it because it was a more realistic ending and wasn't cliche like many hoped for.

Blog 19- Safal Dumre

I was listening to Drake and he hits me with this line

“Oh well, guess you lose some and win some. Long as the outcome is income”

I was awed at not only his lyrical wit but at the depth of his wisdom. The line really made me think. There are plenty of situations where people overreact or they can’t handle the results of something. They make the situation a lot worse than is really necessary. They don’t realize that “you lose some and win some.” They don’t realize that you can’t win it all, that sometimes you have to lose. The important thing to do is keep your eye on the bigger picture. For drake his bigger picture is wealth, but it doesn’t have to be the same for everyone. The bigger picture to focus on is unique to everyone, but everyone should have one. Drake has taught me a lot over the years, but this line really hit home. I don’t focus on the little things anymore because I understand that I will “lose some and win some” but it doesn’t matter as long as the “outcome is income”. You know I want it all, and then some. 

Blog 18 -Safal Dumre

High School

1.       -Graduate with a scholarship somewhere- High school for me is just the step before college. So the main goal I have to finish by the end of my high school career is to get into a good college. I also want to get a full ride so my parents don’t have to pay for it. It would take a burden off them since I am the youngest so after me, they don’t have to worry. It would also be nice not to have student loans when I am finished with college.

2.       -Get a car

College

1.       Graduate and get a job- Since college is over it would be time to start the next part of my life and that’s to get a job. I haven’t really decided for sure what I want to be yet, but whatever it is, I want to get started on that right after college.

2.      - Learn Spanish near fluency

3.      - Study abroad

4.      - Get my name on something important

Living

1.       Travel the world- coming from Nepal it amazes me how different things are here. It’s like living in a completely different world. That idea that there are so many things that I haven’t experienced drives me to travel. I want to leave this world having experienced as much of it as possible.

2.     -  Sky Dive/ Bungee Jump/ other crazy stuff

3.     -  Save a life

4.      - Run a marathon

Assignment 18 Daryn Smith

1. Before I graduate high school, I would like to be able to speak conversational Spanish pretty fluently and have a basic knowledge of conversational Hebrew. As I am currently in Spanish four, I'd say this is a relatively reasonable goal or priority to have. However, my Hebrew skills are far worse than I'd like them to be, so I am going to have to find a way to fix that next year. It amazes me how much language connects people and I feel that the ability to speak multiple connections brings you so many opportunities and experiences that you wouldn't otherwise have. Spanish is becoming more and more common in America, and the ability to speak it can come in handy in many situations. I want to learn Hebrew partly to understand the kids I babysit but also because I have a connection to the language as a Jew.

2. My number one priority before I graduate college is to have befriended or become acquainted with someone from at least half the states and each continent except Antarctica. The experiences people have from different areas of the world, even of the country, are enlightening to learn about and understand. Such experiences can also give me an idea of where I want to live when I settle down somewhere, or if I want to settle down somewhere. I also think that bringing people together from different areas of the world in a casual setting can create unity that no law or treaty can come close to.

3. Before I die, I want to have traveled to every continent except Antarctica- it's too lonely there. I'm not sure how feasible this is mainly because of money, but it is something I have always wanted to do. Some of the places I am most eager to visit are Israel, Poland, France, and Japan. Israel because of its religious significance, Poland because my grandparents both lived there, and France and Japan because they are just cool. This goal of mine again goes back to the desire for knowledge of various experiences and situations. Different cultures interest me and experiencing them first hand would be wonderful.

Assignment 18- Nicole Loy

High School:

1.     Get accepted into at least one of my top colleges- This is my number one item, as I feel that the college you go to has a big impact on your future. In order to be the successful lawyer living in New York, I feel that I must attend one of my top colleges. I also want to see all of my hard work in high school pay off and prove to my family that I am just as intelligent as my cousins.

2.     Go on a fun and memorable trip with my friends

3.     Attend GSP

4.     Maintain a 4.0 GPA

5.     Make it into the top level at my Dance Studio in all genres

6.     Learn how to manage my time more efficiently

7.     Learn to stress less

College:

1.     Become fluent in a new language

2.     Experience a semester abroad

3.     Travel to Europe with my friend, Danica- My grandparents have always promoted the benefits of traveling abroad to me. They have even ensured that I will be able to do this when I am in college. I feel that traveling is important because every time I have visited a new country, I have gained a new perspective on the world around me. My best friend and I have always had the dream to travel across Europe together, and I want to make that dream a reality.

4.     Pick up a new activity

5.     Take some fun, new exercise classes

6.     Take a class that purely interests me

Life:

1.     Get accepted into my top choice of law school

2.     Become successful in my career

3.     Travel out of the country as often as possible

4.     Move to New York

5.     Have a successful marriage- Every single person in my family has ended up divorcing their significant other. While I know that you can survive through a divorce and you don’t have to be married to be happy, I would still like to be the first one to make a marriage last. To be honest I don’t really believe in the concept of marriage (I believe in partnerships), but I have always felt that it is a goal that would be nice to achieve.

6.     Own a nice apartment

7.     Be happy

Assignment 18- Annie Varner

Annie Varner
APEng- 1st Hr

Assignment 18

1.  Before I graduate high school, I'd like to become as fluent in a language (or languages) as I can.  Knowing more than one language to me is something that is very important, and I've only began to see that until recently.  As I know it, the United States is straying from emphasizing the importance of teaching our children anything other than English.  But to me, it allows one to communicate and interact with a whole new set of individuals in another part of the world, and it offers much more knowledge than just the language itself.  Learning the culture of another group of people is a humbling and bettering experience that not just those students in Europe should have to do during their lifetime.

2.  Before I graduate college, the number one item on my bucket list is to meet people who I want to know for the rest of my life.  I truly believe that the only way we can experience life to its fullest potential is to share that experience with those around us.  Although I have great friends and relationships in high school, I would love to expand my social circle and meet other great people in college as well.  A stable, reliable group of close friends is what is at the top of my bucket list before I graduate college, as well as a list of other bucket list items that I hope to share with these people.

3.  Before I die, the number one item on my bucket list is to make a valuable impact on the world around me.  I understand that my mere existence is physically altering the world in some small way, but I would love to create a change that is felt by humans years after my death.  That sounds vague and cliche, and it definitely is, but knowing that you interfered on someone else's life in a positive way is one of the best feelings in the world.   Maybe that is why I love when people laugh so much.  Maybe my impact will simply be making those around me feel good, maybe it will be finding the cure for cancer.  This goal on my bucket list will grow and change as I grow and change myself, but I have no doubt that it will remain the highest goal on my bucket list until I die.


Clearance The Angel: "Strange, isn't it? Each man's life touches so many other lives.  When he isn't around he leaves an awful hole, doesn't he?"
- It's a Wonderful Life (1946)

Assignment 17: Horray for Hollywood- Amanda Byerman

Here is my review of La La Land:

https://www.rottentomatoes.com/user/id/975973080/ratings

Assignment 19: plastics

Most of the advice we receive in our lives is unsolicited and quite frankly inane.  However, every once in a while we get a real gem and changes our trajectory.  What is the one piece of advice given to you that has stuck?  Explain its effect on your life.


Minimum of 150 words - due Sunday, January 29th at 11:59 pm

February 12th is the last day to make up blogs 17-19

assignment 17 - zachary langdon

I, quite embarrassingly, was unable to create a rotten tomatoes account, thus I shall post my reviews natively. 

Sherlock season 4

The first two episodes of the latest in the long-winded, long-awaited BBC series have felt, in hindsight, a bit off. The path of this season, as I write this before the finally, is understandable in its ununderstandability. The series begins as the last left off, with Moriarty back. Somehow. This is promptly dealt with, as Sherlock says he must wait for the next act, effectively ignoring the event, never yet visited again. Sherlock then goes on solving entertaining crimes with some spliced in John and Mary and baby mini-scenes. The first episode deals with Mary’s past coming back to her, Sherlock solving it (ish), and then hubrisly "killing" her. The next episode logically follows this in what would be a predictable "must save john from grief because there’s still another episode after this" except that it's so disjointed that it's rather hard to comprehend, especially the first half. There are great twists, gags, and revelations, which I thoroughly enjoyed. My issue is the complete ignorance of the end of the last season. Sherlock has always put the series plot second, and has done so successfully for 3 fantastic seasons. But it worked then because it focused on great cases and built from nothing to madness over the season. here it started with madness and then ignored it, making the smaller episode stories seem more trivial. I can’t make any conclusions without the finale, and it promises to be a great one, but episode two felt great in pieces, but awkward as a whole. It followed a series of events, rather than an escalating arc or nice isolated cases. It is marred by Mary’s death, distracting from the supposed arc of Moriarty, which kicks off a logical chain of events that are entertaining, but feel random in a season that was defined in the end of season 3 and the in-between homage-ish movie. Here’s to hoping it’s madness for a cause (looking at you Lost).

Assignment 18 - Caitlin Southworth

High School

1. Get accepted into a good college (preferably Wash. U.): This is basically the ultimate goal of high school, to prepare you for college, plus a college education is usually essential for a good life today, and I would like a good life. Getting accepted into college also means that high school is almost over and I am closer to something I wanna do. My goal is to get accepted into Wash U. because I really like the school and they have a top program for occupational therapy.

2. Do something cool with my mentoring project

College

1. Get accepted into grad school for occupational therapy: This is a really important goal because without it, I can never become an occupational therapist, which is ultimately my biggest goal in life. Wash U. is a top school for occupational therapy (top 5 in the nation) and graduating from there will provide me with the skills and qualifications I need to land a good job.

2. Study abroad

3. Have fun

4. Learn some interesting stuff

Life

1. Work as an occupational therapist: This is a big goal for my life because it’s what I want to do for the rest of my life after college. It will provide me with good money that I can live well off of and will be something that I think I would enjoy.

2. Hike a mountain

3. Stay connected with my friends

4. Visit Africa and one of their wildlife reserves

5. Live in a completely solar (or eco friendly) powered house (this would be pretty cool, but is highly unlikely)

Assignment 17 - Caitlin Southworth

A review on Moana- rotten tomatoes was being rotten

Beautiful- that's exactly what this movie is. The animation is amazing and definitely shows the beauty of Polynesian islands. The realm of monsters was well designed and shown for not being a real place (like the islands). It was great to see a Disney movie that really took to heart a different culture than that of white people. It was likewise refreshing to see a movie where most of the cast was not white, they put effort into casting people of similar/ same culture of that shown in the movie (yay!!). The plot empowered Moana and created a strong, independent female character that more movies need to have. Honestly, it was a great movie for all ages and introduced you to a culture many people don’t know that much about. The music is spectacular and cohesive, like everything in the movie. I would definitely recommend this movie to anyone and would definitely watch it again.

Assignment 18-Tyree

The director I chose to watch was Eli Roth and I've previously seen the movies "knock knock," and the "hostel" series. These two movies are horror/thriller but have a comical aspect to them. Knock knock and hostel, as well as many other of Eli Roth's films contain mild nudity. Hostel is about a group of friends that were invited to a hostel while on a trip, it involves comedy, thrills, and horror. Knock knock is about a married man who's wife and two kids had left on a trip over the weekend. They had led him onto having an affair; I won't spoil the rest of the story though. Overall I like him as a director because he can make a horror movie and add comedy without taking away from the story and it makes for a good combo, even though the are complete opposites. If you haven't seen these movies or a movie by Eli Roth I'd recommend him although I wouldn't consider him a prestigious writer.

Assignment 17- Daryn Smith

My account logged me out and the new one wouldn't create but here is my review:

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, although one of eight movies in the Harry Potter series, stands alone as a masterpiece by itself. Throwing in a mix of humor, romance, and the fight between good and evil, this film ties it all together brilliantly and keeps the audience engaged. The low lighting throughout the movie emphasizes the darkness of the time as a result of Lord Voldemort's return to power and the chaos that insued as a result. The variation between calm scenes and intense scenes leaves the viewer relaxed yet still interested, an important aspect of any film. As Draco prepares for his mysterious task, we see tensions escalate and such tensions are illustrated through the darker music played as the movie progresses. The mood of the film is always shown through the music, something I believe adds significantly to the connection with the movie and the viewer. The way it ended is perhaps the best part. A tragic death forces the viewer and characters to face the reality of the tough times ahead without their wisest mentor. It touches a soft spot in the viewer and leaves the wanting to know more about what will happen next. Overall, this movie wraps a lot of wonderful things into one ball of happiness and humor and awesome.

Assignment 17- Annie Varner

Annie Varner
APEng- 1st Hr

Assignment 17

I couldn't figure out where to find my review once I posted it, but here it is:

La La Land
I don't usually like to call anything perfect, but this movie got as close to perfect as I imagine a movie can.  With a wowing 93 percent on rotten tomatoes, it is no surprise the movie delivers its much-anticipated glory.  Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone (both beautiful actors and humans) sing and dance their way through the struggles of individualism and reality, crafting a contrasting mood between light-hearted musicality and life-long fulfillment.  Wikipedia calls it a "romantic musical comedy-drama film", and although that may sound like an over-the-top chick flick, Damien Chazelle's La La Land is a mature and thoughtful piece underneath the musical aspects.  The movie opens with a scene of people sitting in traffic, but quickly evolves into an upbeat musical number, complete with signing, and rhythm and beat but also conveying a message.  Chazelle's artistic approach was truly exposed in this movie and it made for an engaging and exciting plot.  The plot follows the aspiring actress and musician through their love adventure in LA and never fails to lose your attention from start to finish.  The vibrant use of color and cinematography is also apparent in the film.  Mia (Emma Stone)'s dresses continued to amaze me and the settings within the movie captured the essence of life in Hollywood very well.  I would definitely recommend this movie and its soundtrack, too.

Assignment 17- Nicole Loy

https://www.rottentomatoes.com/user/id/975946925/ratings

blog 17- Safal Dumre

https://www.rottentomatoes.com/user/id/922891106/ratings

La la Land was a very unique movie in that it had several musical numbers that helped move the plot along. It could be compared to the musical numbers that accompany most Bollywood films. The movie is an aspiring actress and a piano player who dreams of opening his own jazz club. The movie follows their path toward realizing their individual dreams and in the process, they grow apart. The characters choose to be happy by achieving their own goals and aspirations even if they can’t be together while doing so. The movie makes you laugh, think, and maybe even cry. It really puts you in your feels. The ending was outstanding in that it wasn’t the usual expected happy ending. The two main characters didn’t end up together. They chose individual happiness instead of happiness in each other and it was ok. There is this idea that you have to have love to be happy and this movie challenges that. The characters end up satisfied, fulfilled. Overall I would highly recommend seeing it in theaters, well worth it.

Assignment 17: Ellie Phillips

Rotten Tomatoes was acting rotten today. I tried numerous times to make an account to post a review, but it froze every time. Rather than linking my review, I’ll just provide it here:

The Big Short, a 2015 movie focusing on the economic crisis of 2008, had a star cast consisting of Ryan Gosling, Christian Bale, Brad Pitt, and my personal favorite, Steve Carell. Three stories formed throughout the movie all following the same plot: short the housing market. The complex workings of the economy and their even more complex terms were well explained. Having celebrities simplify the whole issues in unique settings allowed for comic relief and solid explanations. The discovery of a doomed market and the unknowing victims, literally all citizens of the world, played an emotional contrast, as snippets of life from around the globe played every so often in the film. Each cast member perfectly fits their role and demonstrates the unique personalities of the stock market. The film was not soft in it’s delivery of reality, as it left every viewer feeling angry and betrayed by the big banks. The Big Short hits a daunting topic, but remains entertaining through its comedic moments and fascinating truth. ⅘ stars.

Assignment 18 - TD

High School:
1. Get into my top 3 choices for college - Honestly, I have no other future plans than this. If this does not pan out I am going to be a homeless bum that never became a doctor. In order to get into med school and become a doctor I must get into college. Going into a top college will increase my chances.
2. Get really good at Star Craft
3. Not get into any more fights
4. Meditate regularly

College:
1. Graduate and get into med school - I will become a doctor so I have to graduate with good standing. There is nothing else that I have considered or that I can do. Everything must go into this desire.
2. Study abroad
3. Still make money while in college
4. Enjoy college life

Life:
1. Make a hell of a lot of money - I grew up in poverty so it is very important to be rich for me. I want to be able to provide for my family who has taken care of me. Money not only for my own happiness but also for the people I care about.
2. Don't live in the United States
3. Read a lot more
4. Become able to just relax and play video games after a certain point

Assignment 18- Saurav Khadka

High School:
1) Graduate and go to one of my top colleges- This is my top priority in high school as it is the goal of high school, academically and primarily. The function of a school is to provide education and help prepare you for the next level, therefore if I graduate this shows that I have accomplished this. But being a student who is always seeking higher achievements, it is important that I also go to one of my top colleges to further my elite education.
2) Go to prom with Ms. Moberg
3) Go to Bonaroo
4) Stay tight with my friends
5) Get into a twitter fight

College:
1) Explore and travel surrounding areas of college heavily- Before I finish college, I want to make sure I have thoroughly explored all areas around the campus, the state, and hopefully taken further trips across the country with some of the closest friends I will have in life, which are supposedly made in college. Traveling and exploring are very important hobbies of mine and with the opportunities to do so more than ever before in college, I want to take full advantage.
2) Study Abroad
3) Graduate among the top of my class
4) Party hard
5) Get in a real fight

Life:
1) Have a job that pays over 100 thousand dollars- I have lots of desires and wishes that I would like to accomplish throughout my life. However, almost all of them are impossible without money, therefore my first and most important item on my bucket list needs to be a constant, stable, and plentiful source of income. I want to make sure I am making over 100 thousand dollars to insure that I am never in trouble with money and can instead vest it into funding many of my future adventures and missions.
2) Travel over 70 countries and as many places as possible
3) Have a hot wife
4) Help fund the economic growth of Nepal
5) Become UN Secretary General

Assignment 18: Buckets and Buckets - Matthew Logsdon

Welcome to your first blog prompt for 2016! Yay!

A bucket list is a list of everything you want to accomplish before you kick the bucket. That doesn't mean you can't have such a list for specific aspects of your life as well.


To begin the year, generate your own bucket lists - one for high school, one for college, and one for life. Then, write about the priority on each list.

1. What is the number one item on your bucket list before you finish high school?
2. What is the number one item on your bucket list before you finish college?
3. What is the number one item on your bucket list before you finish living?

(This blog is inspired by Axel Liimatta - former academy teacher - my friend and former colleague that inspires me to live every day more fully)

Minimum of 150 words - due Sunday, January 15th  at 11:59 pm

February 12th is the last day to make up blogs 17-19