This semester in a nut shell..

This class has really helped me to become a better writer. I am not going to lie I did not like the post midterm blog topics but at the same time you have to do things that you do not like some times, and it made me a better writer. It is not easy for me to write but being able to blog instead of write paper after paper for it just to be thrown away has helped me. I feel like I have been writing for a purpose when I blog. Not only that but the projects we have done are not like every other classes projects. I love being able to have the freedom that we do in this class and it makes me want to actually improve myself and make myself a better writer because I am not forced to. It is just like reading I hate being told I have to read something but when it is my choice I actually enjoy reading. This class is definitely one that I enjoyed taking, I would actually say it was, by far, my favorite this semester. I cannot wait to continue working with the tutorials that we have been given in this class to improve my writing. I am sad that this class has to come to an end, but alas all good things must. Not only did I love having Lella as my teacher but I just loved everyone in my class. I feel like I have become close to some of them just through that class and now we are friends. I hope that I have more classes like this one my next three years of college at Lees. If I do it will make my time here much more enjoyable. Thank you Lella for everything you have done to help and teach me! It really means a lot! P.S. We still have to watch Star Wars! :)

Confused words game

When I played the game I got a perfect score which showed me that I really do not need much work with this topic. However, the game is good practice for people who may get the words confused easily. The timer adds pressure so that you have to not only think hard but you have to think fast. It trains you to be able to look at words and know the difference faster than you did before. In the long run this will be extremely helpful to anyone that plays it and is in need of help. I am glad I played just so I could get a feel of if I needed to work on this or not. It truly does imporve speed in not only getting the correct word but spelling it correctly as well. It is important when you are using these common words that you are able to spell them right because some people may think it is a completely different word opening up a totally different can of worms. All in all it is just really important to know exactly what word you are using and how it spell it. I have learned that it is not good to just try to use big words unless you truly know what they mean because if you do not then you just look stupid, and no one likes a dumb ass. There is no sense in trying to be something you are not. I am not an English major and trust me I am not affraid to tell people that.

Spelling: Common Letter Patterns

Common letter patterns are everywhere you look. It is good to know some of this patterns just so you know that they are there. It is not hard to recognize when you look at something wrote down what commonly used patterns are. However, when you are just going off memory it is a little bit harder. That is why it is good to memorize as amny of these patterns as you can. It is a lot easier to spell some words if you know there are common letter patterns in the word. If you do not know if there is a pattern there then it could really hurt you. That is the main reason that you would need to know these patterns. This tutorial helped me to see that I really do need yo work on momerizing at least some of these patterns instead of just trying to wing it. It is never good to write something unsure if you are spelling it right, unless you have spell check. The only reason I could think for someone not to want to learn these is because they think they know everything about writing, or they are just to lazy to take the time to look into what patterns are used. This is a really useful tutorial to watch and listen to, that is if you truly want help of course.

Comma Chameleon

Common Chameleon is a very easy game to play when you understand all of the places that they are supposed to go. For me it was a very easy game to play. It is another part of English that comes easy to me, but that is mainly because it was the only thing really taught to me. The game is just basically there to help with punctuation marks that most people learn in kindergarden and it is drilled into your head even as say a freshmen in college. Some people I am sure have more difficulty than others with this game but if you just take your time and look at it you will figure it out. It may take some time but it will eventually come to you.

Confused Words Tutorial

I have problems with words just for the simple fact that I am dyslexic but I try not to use that as an excuse for what I do wrong. I usually only get the to and too confused when I am writing. I do not really get confused I just have problems spelling the words correctly because of this problem. I try to work really hard on all the English I do just to make sure that I do not get the wrong word when I am using the commonly confused words. It makes it harder on me but it does not matter some things come easy to others. I am used to not being able to just write a paper so I know for me that it takes time and effort, therefore I know I have to focus to get things done. Like I said it does not come easy but to me I feel like that is what will make my writing better one day. People get words mixed up all the time so I do not feel quite as bad on this one. Most people even make up their own words half of the time and they do not even make sense. That or they throw out some random big words just to sound smarter than what they are.

Grammar Ninja

Grammar Ninja was hard for me because I was never really taught what words went had what meaning. The schools I was raised in were all about sports and not so much education. They did not teach the way they really should have. The only way I know math is because I am just good at it. English never was my strong suit. My sister would go over my work and tell me what was wrong in it and it mostly had to do with this type of stuff. I have to have one on one work in order to understand the proper parts of speech and all the grammar rules. I never was able to get that one on one time I needed so that is why this particular game was really hard for me. I hope someone got as much help from this as I did when they played it. I know now that I have to work extremely hard on this particular subject just from playing this game a few times.

Magical Capitals!!

The first grammar tutorial I played was Magical Capitals. I am usually really good with capitals because it would have to be the only thing about writing that is really common sense. Capitals is just something that comes easy for me I guess because it is like the important things. If just random words started getting capitalized I would probably have problems with them as well. This tutorial could really come in handy if a person was unsure of what is a proper noun or someone just starting out writing to know to capitalize days of the week and stuff like that. Capitalization is one of the easiest and most well know thing to correct for most people. It just comes easy and does not need a lot of explaining to understand the concept of what words need to be capitalized and what words do not.

The Dumbest Generation?? I think not..

The generation from 1980-1994 is considered by most people "The Dumbest Generation". I do not believe this just because we have better computers and more ways to learn does not make us dumb. What makes someone dumb is using all these new resources to be lazy and not have to do any work at all, or to just play video games. Not all people from this generation are lazy, and just like all the other generations there are a few. Ours may have more than most. People like to talk down about us because we have better things and it is not as hard for us to do a lot of things just because of the things that we have to use to our advantage. Honestly, I do not think that it is because our generation is dumb that we do the things we do. The things that have made us the way we are is the technology that the world keeps making. However, we could tell you how to use any phone, any computer, or use any gaming system ever made. Call that lazy and dumb if you want but I say you have to be really smart to be able to operates all of those different machines. It is not common knowledge to know all the things that we know in our generation but yet people still like to call us the dumb generation... It just does not make sense..

Google interest topic: Athletic Training

I picked Athletic Training to reflect on because it not only is my major but I love being able to have the chance to be an Athletic Trainer (AT).
The Athletic Training Education Blog goes through all the policies to becoming an AT, but it also does a lot of complaining about the way something's are being done. No, no one person should not say they are better than anyone else even if they may happen to hold true to that. It just is not the polite thing to do. However, going back and complaining about someone doing that is not the way it should be handled. Some situations are not meant to spread through any kind of social networking, including blogs. It is like when people say someone is immature and then keep bring it up just because they can. In that case you are becoming the immature person in the situation. It is not right to bring your problems with another person, or another person entirely into the picture for no reason. This blog is not about what it should be. It is about all kinds of problems that come with Athletic Training and not the good things which are good that it covers one thing, but it should cover both sides of the book. It is ridiculous to look at something you love to death and it is totally talked down about. It is not a good time.

Reflection: Hyperbole and a hlaf

Hyperbole and a half I thought I could relate to but I actually could not. I am not sure what it would feel like to wake up one day and just be depressed but I do know what it feels like to have a reason to be depressed. It is not fun to wake and not want to move but you have to. This blog I feel targets the people who suffer from depression. In the end it tells you that if you are unhappy without a cause that you should not let anyone bring you down, and anyone who tries to is just not worth all the pain that you are taking by it mentally. Depression is not something that just goes away overnight. It takes time and a lot of hard work to get yourself back to the right state of mind. Some people just do not understand how someone could be depressed, but truth is some depressed people do not know why they are depressed. Depression is sometimes a thing that you cannot control. I have learned through my depression that when you turn to God and put it in his hands it all ends up working itself out. Yes, I still have the days when I do not feel like getting out of bed and when I just want to shut the world out but you just have to keep standing strong. No matter what happens you have to know that you can overcome depression. This blog would really help the unskeptical depressed person, you know the one that just will not listen to anyone, to realize that there is a way out of all the pain and agoney you just have to put some effort in it. Most importantly you have to remember that depression does not only hurt you it hurts your family and friends alike.

Reflective: Steve, don't eat it!

Steve, don't eat it, in my opinion, was not a very good blog. It did inform you of different types of cultures eating habits, but at the same time it does this in a negative and disgusting way. It points out all the nasty things that different people and cultures my actually enjoy. When I was growing up my aunt always told me that you never say "gross" or "nasty" about someone else's eating habits because you would not like it if they said the same about you. I just feel like this blog could have been written with a little more compassion towards the targeted people who enjoy those foods. I am also aware that it tells you some of the bad things that are in the foods, and makes you aware of just how unhealthy the foods may be. However, in these blogs fast food was not incorporated. It is by far just as unhealthy as anything else that they may have mentioned. Just because it is popular, it was not mentioned though because the writer did not want to step on to many peoples toes so he/she wrote about the unpopular foods. This to me just felt like a target for these people telling them that they are strange and different just because they eat differently than most people may. To me judge someone because of what they eat is just not acceptable. Maybe it was just the way I was raised but I do not feel like this something that should have been blogged about because a lot of people can potentially read this.

One persons amusement is another persons sadness..

On August 29th, 2005 hurricane Katrina passed by New Orleans causing all kinds of irreptible damage. Six Flags, being so well known in Georgia, was destroyed at the New Orleans campus. This company brings in millions of dollars each year, however, this particular location has been abandon for over six years now. The park now only carries sadness and heartache for those who once know the enjoyment it once brought to so many people. Adults and children alike have a love for what the Six Flags parks bring to the name amusement.

After being submerged in several feet of water for many, many months there was no rush in getting the park opened again. Over 250 jobs are offered in one Six Flags location putting so many people out of a job. However, there was just no way to get it opened. The thought of trying to reopen it now is not even in the question because there is just so much work that would need to be done and it is hard to say if an event such as Katrina will happen again or not. The damage that was caused by the hurricane brought so many problems to the park. Now that the water is dried up the weeds are over growing everything in path, including roller coasters.

The park once being a up beat, lively attraction for New Orleans quickly turned into a deserted, lonely pile of metal. The only thing that still exist in the park is the rides and thr people that stop in to write a little graffiti on the walls. It is hard to believe by looking at these pictures that this park was once a park just like Six Flags over Georgia. It is sad to look at this and think about all the distruction that took place six years ago and just how many people did infact end up losing thier jobs. Maybe one day this ghost town will reopen its doors to once again bring joy and hope to a young souls mind.

http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/1nwmg2/www.lovethesepics.com/2011/05/creepy-crusty-crumbling-illegal-tour-of-abandoned-six-flags-new-orleans-75-pics

That Should Be Me...

Justin Bieber's "That Should Be Me" has t be my all time favorite song. The first time I listened to this song I was riding in the car with Laci Gronlund and I remember we listened to it a lot because she kept saying that this song fit the situation I was going through at the time. However, what most people do not realize no matter what they think about their current situation nine times out of ten this song would describe it. The time of life between college and high school is when most people find someone that means a lot to them personally and to lose that person, it does not matter how strong you are, deep down you are thinking "that should be me." It is not easy to sit back and let someone that means the world to you walk away but in the long run it could be better for both of you. I was always told in life that the people leave your life for a reason, but sometimes you just do not want to believe that. When I listen to this song it brings back so many memories. It makes me miss all the good times I used to have and long talks on the phone. This song brings back the good memories that I have experienced in my life time. High school was by far the best four years of my life. In time you learn to love and when to let go. This song shows how hard it is to move on, but in reality moving on is the best thing that could ever happen in a relationship.

It's not what you take when you leave this world behind you...

My Grandmother, Jessie Marie O'Dell, was everything a great Christian should be. The way she lived is the way many people would aspire to do so. Everyone in the city of Bristol knew who she was and that she served a great God. When she left this earth on Monday October 17th, 2011 she went to walk the streets of gold with her loving husband. My grandmother basically raised me and I still have all the great memories, from taking me wherever I wanted to go to teaching me to cook. She is everything I could ever hope to be. When things would be bad at home she was there. She would come and comfort me. My grandmother grew up ina house full of boys when her sister died, but yet she still managed to have the love and effection every grandmother should have. She tought me how to believe whole heartedly in what I believe in and stand strong no matter what anypne has to say. My grandmother was im inpiration in life. Ging through hard times or sharing laughs in the park together, she brought she much to this world that no one can replace. She will always be remembered, and no matter what I know she is with me even when her physical body is gone. She still lives in me and I know that will stay true for the rest of my life. Rest in peace Grandma, you mean the world to me...

A friendship to last a lifetime..

I was always told that the friends you make your freshmen year will be friends that last a lifetime. Sarah Lampl and Jessica McEnaney are those friends for me. I know that I can go to those girls for anything that I need help with and they will be honest with me no questions asked. They are always there for me when I need them. They are two of the most honest people I have ever met so I know that they will always be real with me. If I want to go out hey are my go to girls because they definitely know how to have a good time no matter who may be around. I can always be myself when they are around because they know the real me. They know what I am all about and they are two of the most trust worthy people that I know. I can confide in them for absolutely anything at all.

Jess is from New York but lives right here in North Carolina. She is a person that can have fun even in the most awkward of situations. She listens to anyone that needs someone to talk to and you can guarente that no one else will hear it. She loves to be there for people in their time of need. Me and her both have our share of father issuse. Knowing this I also know that if I ever need someone to talk to about what happens with my dad I can turn to her. She has always helped me out when I needed her and I know that, that is not going to change. She has to be one of my best and most trust worthy friends that I have ever had. She may be little much to handle sometimes but I love having her around because she is always so much fun and she can change everyones mood with just a few simple words.

Sarah ,also known as La Sarah, is one of the most honest people God could have put on this earth. She is from Pennsylvania and you can tell. She does not care who you are, if she has a problem with you she tells you. If she thinks what you are wearing looks bad she will tell you. If you come to her with problems she tells you how she would handle it. Having fun is one of La Sarah's favorite things to do. Se loves going out and having fun which makes it easy to be around her. However, if you cannot stand the truth than she would not be someone you would need to be with. The only time she really shows compassion for your situation is if you ask her to be light with the honesty. She will not sacrifice honesty for anything.

Friendship can be some of the best relationships a person can have. When you are with a true friend one fight can is worth every laugh. You have your ups and downs but knowing that through it all your friends are never going to leave your side makes this life worth living. You have to have people to trust and confide in. People to be totally stupid with. A best friend is someone who does not help you up when you fall but falls beside you because they are laughing so hard. A best friend is not the person you call to bail you out of jail, but the person in the cell right next to you. If you want my deffinition of a true best friend it would have to be Jessica McEnaney and Sarah Lampl.

The half way point..

At the half way point I can honestly say that I believe that blogging has helped me to get better at writing. I have not ever been the best at writing that is for sure but this class has helped me. Instead of writing long drawn out papers about a specific topic we get to write about somethings by choice and even what we were told to write were things that I could get into writing easily. I enjoy being able to make a limit myself instead of having a certain page number or word count. Not only did blogging help but doing the Prezi was also a fun experience for me to be able to learn new forms of writing and  different ways to tell people about things. Writing class has got to be, without a doubt, my favorite class this semester. We learn so much but it is not busy work it is fun work. Work that does npt even feel like it should be called real work at all. I love when professors give us the responsibility to do our own thing and actually trusts us. Some just treat us like we are all little kids still. Being in a class like this has taught me a lot about not only my peers but myself as well. I am just glad that I got the chance to be able to do the things we do.

Editing Reflection..

When editing blogs I find it to be easier just to read the blog over again and figure out your mistakes that way. It is a lot easier because you do not have to go through the whole recording process and you getthe same results from both blogs. Hearing it did help a little more but in the end it is just easier to read it to yourself because when you read it you can see what you hear when you listen to it. Of course when you read it out loud then you can get an even better judgement on the mistakes that could possibly be there. This is a good thing for bloggers to look into doing because it helps with spelling and grammer.

Favorite Video Game..

My favorite video game would have to be the old school Donkey Kong on the Gameboy. I really do not play a lot of video games so this would have to be one of my favorites out of the few I have played. This game was just about all I did when I was growing up and I loved it. If I still had that Gameboy I would most likely still play it. Me and my sister would spend hours everyday playing this game. It was most definitely one of the best games of my time growing up. It is the only game I could really get into because I was the kid that would rather be outside playing than inside playing video games. I have never been much on sitting inside on a pretty day..Or a rainy day for that matter!

The Beauty of Nature

The beauty of this earth remains oblivious to some poeple. They live their lives day by day not paying attention to all the things around them that create a better place to live. Most people just pay attention to the rough parts of the world or the man made beauty, but we have majestic views such as the one above in Brasil that not to many people even know exist. When I see pictures like this one it makes me wonder why someone would even want to destroy the world like is being done today. Before to long the human population will have destroied beautiful structures such as this one, and at what cost. We are slowly ruining this world and we have no reason to.

This image is a beautiful, remarkable creation that God has given us a chance to have in our lives. We are lucky to have a God that will create something so amazing for us to look at! Why waste time tearing it a part when we should be admiring it.

http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/2OmVG1/www.zadan.nl/pics/mount/

The Creator

The Creator has a soul like no other. A heart that lives to find new life. A Creator is someone that acts upon individuality. A Creator brings life to a dead situation. Being a Creator takes a lot of strength and courage. To be able to creat without thinkning is a talent greater than most could understand. It takes not only a good heart btu a good spirit as well. A Creator brings joy to a depressing time and can work through most things. When a Creator enters a room the vibe or situation is usually changed to fit their personality. Some of lives greatest desires are invited by the Creator. It is a tough life as a creator but someone has to do it. And what is better than speaking of a Creator is being a Creator.


Becoming a Creator is not the simplest of people to become. It usually depends on the life that you have grown up in. In my case not having my dad around through my high school and middle school years is what made me a Creator. You learn to care about the people around you ten times more when you know what it is like not to have them there. Creating a good life from something so bad is what is a key factor in becoming a Creator. Now don't get me wrong I have had a pretty good life with just me and my mom, but it would have been nice to have had my dad around. With my life I had to create a father figure from someone who didn't know where I came fro, or understand my situation full. However, in the process things started to change. After I was able to create that for myself creating things for other people and situations became easier for me. My life began to open up and I quickly learned what I am meant to do on this earth. God made my life hard for a reason. He wanted me to able to help other people create a good situation from a, pardon my french,shitty situation. Being a Creator is no simple task but it is worth every second I spend on it .

Prezi!

At first I thought Prezi was going to be hard and pointless. After working with it, however, it actually is very fun to work with. Making Prezi's are rather simple when you know what you wanna make it on. If you have the general mind set for it to be about one particular thing than once you get started it is easy to keep going with it. I like Prezi because it is another to show cool and random facts that not many people may know.

Tagxedo

Who you are..

At the end of week five of my freshmen year I have realzied that college is what makes you who you are. Life can be hard and it is not easy to know where you are going or how you will get there. You make mistakes but they make you the person you are meant to be. The Bible says God will not put more on you than you can handle, sometimes I just sit and think ,"Well, the did not have college back then." Then I remember that God still knows what we are going through and all though we makes mistakes He still loves each and everyone of us. I was told when leaving to come here that now is the time to live it up and makes mistakes. I was also told to stay strong in what I believe and do not shake on my faith. I know I have done somethings that I am sure God would not be proud of, but my faith also says when you mess up turn to God, do not run from him, and he will forgive you and stand by you. God will never leave your side unless you turn your back on him. It is hard to know what you should do or get involved in because you know your parents are not here to tell you no. What I am starting to learn is that if you have to think twice about something before doing it, it is probably best you do not do it. Life is like a roller coaster with all the ups and downs that you have to go through. You just have to know at the end of the day that no matter what you are going through God will pull you through.

Life as I know it..

If I had total control over how my life would be in ten years it would be amazing. I would be in New York just finishing up college with a doctrine degree in Athletic Training, Physical Therapy, and Message Therapy from New York University.

My next step would be getting hired to be Athletic Trainer for the New York Yankkes. It has been a dream for a while to be the athletic trainer there because they are my favorite Major League Baseball(MLB) team out there. I have been a die hard Yankees fan for as long as I can remember.

Living in uptown New York in a loft is my ideal home. In all honesty I do not want to have kids though. I would much rather adopt from inside the United States. I feel like their are so many children here that need homes and everyone keeps looking to other countries to adopt. I mean it makes you look good fr adopting but if you are only in it to look good in fornt of people you should not be adopting anyways.

After I get established for the Yankees I would take some time off and travel to Belize for a misson trip to help all the people in need through out down town Belize. Belize is know to be one of the poorest countries in the world and they have no chance of getting out of that anytime soon.

The many thing I wanted to get out of my life is to help people. The carrer I want is helping athelets, I want to help children here in the US, and I want to help a poor country like Belize so they know that someone does care and that people really do want to help out the best they can. If I could live out this lifestyle I would honestly consider myself to be one of the luckiest people in the world.

Best Movie EVER!

The best movie ever recorded in the world is Love and Basketball. This movie is the best simply because has one of the best love stories ever and it's about basketball so it is the best of both worlds. It also shows that love will happen where and when you least expect it and if you are meant to be together then you will be together no matter where your life takes. It tells story about how love can be found from grade school and last for years. It also teaches you many life long memories such as responsibilty and leadership.

What makes a good or bad blog...

When reading a blog I look for interesting stuff that will catch my eye, like the tite of the blog and the back ground the person has selected for a blog. It is not really hard to come up with a good blog for yourself but you have to think about the other people that may read your blog in the future. After reading some of the blogs from the other classes I have noticed that there are a lot of interesting people out there. Everyone comes from different backgrounds from around the nation and it is very interesting to hear their stories and see how they have lived.




After reading the other classes blogs I am still very happy with my own. It tells my story as the my peers tells theirs. No one has the same life tell so it is good to hear what everyone has to say and how everyone was raised. In saying that my blog just lets peopel know a little bit more about me and I am happy with that. My life may not be as interesting as someone else's but it is my life and I am glad I get to share my story of how I became me.

Classmate Comment Blog

In reading all of my classmates blogs I realized what everyone is interested in. It makes you feel like you have gotten to know everyone better. Even if I have not had a conversation with them I feel as though I just know so much more about them due to their interests and blogs about their lives before they came here. I enjoyed getting to know a little bit more about all of classmates from their blogs.

Video Blog

So there is this guy....

It is hard to focus when you have things on your mind. Things like the person back home when you are miles away in college, or the the boy staying right across campus. There are a million things that go through a persons mind every second of everyday. No one knows what a single person is thinking, however, I am going to share whats on my mind. They say that the last person you think about before you go to bed is the person that means the most to you. I am not going to tell you who that may be but I believe that statement is true. I cannot go to bed without thinking did they make it home okay or are they going to wake up in the morning. Our lives, as much as we hate it, can be determined by who we care about and how much we care about them. My life is not very complex it is just a lot of not very important stuff. The most complex thing I have is school and its not even that difficult for me personally. However, when you sleep with stuff on your mind you wake up with the same thing on your mind. This makes it very difficult to go on with your day. In time you get used to it, but that takes quite a bit of time. It is not just doing something to ditract you because in the end you will end up thinking about the same thing. The beest thing to do is to tell the person how you feel and get it over with. They may never talk to you again but hey at least you tried. You did what you had to do to get that person off your mind. I really wish I could take my own advise, but I cannot so I will just share and hope that it helps someone. I will work on taking my advise but it is hard to basically eat your words.

Flying squirrel

Base jumping and sky diving is known around the world however Phoenix-Fly doesthings a little different. The suits they use are made special and are baised on the flying squirrel. Sky diving has always been a dream of mine, just the feeling of being able to fly would be amazing. Adrenaline is one of the best feelings in the world to me. Just knowing that its something you should not do or that you can get in trouble for gives me a thrill. You might call me an adrenaline junky, but hey everyones got a little in them. I would love to able to base jump one day with these guys and experience such an amazing feeling.

http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/2RiKal/www.phoenix-fly.com/

My life in a blog. . .

I am Jessie O'Dell and I am from Church Hill, Tennessee. I have an older sister named Alyssa. My mom and my dad are devoricd but both in live in Bristol, Tennessee so I have to live with my best friend Ashley. I graduated from Volunteer Comprehensive High School on May 28th, 2011. I am attending Lees-McRae College and plan on attending New York University for graduate school to get my degree in Athletic Training and Physical Therapy. One day I plan to work for the New York Yankees and living in uptown New York.