Art Project 2nd quarter: The Imaginary Garden

    The tittle of my art work is "The Imaginary Garden" because its a picture of my imaginary garden brought to life. When I was younger my mom bought be a Vara Braley lunch bag, and it had all these weird looking flowers. So when i would go to sleep I'd have these dream of me being stuck in this strange gardn. Were every flower was bigger that I, everything was colorful and bright. This imaginary garden of mines had soon become  a relaxing place for me so when ever i would have to go to the doctors to get a needle or when I watched a scary movie and could sleep I'd just always think of this garden and i'd be ok. So when thinking of a art project I though to myself to make it come to life.

    When first starting on this project I drew a smaller version on white paper of what i wanted my bigger version to resemble. When I finished my rough draft,  I also consulted my teacher Marcie Hall on how my drawing could be better. She gave me a few tips adn then I was off to make the final draft. When first making my final picture I was intimdated. But then as I started drawing things started to come together.

    The medium I chose to use when bringing color to my artwork was pastels, as well as color pencils. I didn't wasn't to use paint because I put in allot of small details. And I wanted them all to be captures. I felt as though paint would overshadow them.
Screen shot 2011-01-14 at 1.03.41 PM
Screen shot 2011-01-14 at 1.03.41 PM

Lobbying for a Greener Philadelphia #5: How YOU Can Help!

For the past two quarters, I have been lobbying for a greener Philadelphia. It began with a seed being planted, if you'll pardon the pun-- the tree that had stood outside of my house since my childhood was cut down. Although it was already dead and slowly falling apart, it was the only tree on my entire block. I wanted to be able to go outside and see something organic. Was that too much to ask?

Apparently not, because soon after that tree was taken away, another was planted in its place. A live one, this time. I wanted more of these trees, so I decided to do something about it.

My lobbying research eventually lead me to Greenworks Philadelphia, a project lead by Mayor Michael Nutter calling for an exponential growth in urban trees over the next 5 years. I expanded my topic to include other green aspects of Philadelphia-- carbon footprints, natural energy supplements, etc.

I have created 4 blog posts total. Each of them serve to educate, explain, or notify the public as to the environmental situation in Philadelphia.

My final blog post is in the form of a flow chart. Through answering a few yes and no questions, it allows citizens of Philadelphia to figure out the way they can best help to green Philadelphia.

​Click here to see my (somewhat interactive) "How YOU Can Help Green Philadelphia," flowchart.

The earth, much like the human body, will only tolerate so much abuse before it gives in and dies. We will not be able to continue living here if we do not preform some much needed maintenance. Even though I am done lobbying,  I hope to continue being part of the solution rather than part of the problem.

Cyndi Lynn Sheridan; A Trip of Language Chaos

Cyndi Lynn Sheridan                                                                                                English – E

January 5, 2011

                                                A Trip of Language Chaos

 

May I have a soda please?”

“Excuse me? What would you like?”

“A soda please.”

(The cashier just gazed at me with a blank stare.)

I tried to organize my thoughts before I was embarrassed even further. I felt my cheeks turning red as if my face was burning up. Then, I thought to myself and realized that maybe the residents of Pittsburgh pronounced or had different words for certain products as compared to how residents of Philadelphia may call them. I just arrived here no more than two days ago for just a simple doctor’s appointment, and I’ve have already been faced with an obstacle involving language. Despite the fact that I was thirteen, I still had trouble grasping languages from around the world. With one more hopeful try, I asked once more but with similar words in which I was trying to portray the first time.

“May I have something to drink?”

“Oh yes, what would you like? We have ‘pop’ if that’s okay.”

Without causing more confusion, I just agreed with what the cashier said. She handed me a bottle of Coca Cola soda bottle. Exactly what I was asking for from the beginning.

“Is that all?” she asked.

“Yes, thank you.”

Walking towards the car, I hilariously shared my experience with my parents. At first, they giggled a little but then just stared at me wondering why things were so different between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh even though they are located in the same state. After explaining what just happened to me, they burst into obnoxious laughter. They tempted to make an effort and describe how certain things conflict with language, environment being one of them. For example, since I was raised in the South Philadelphia region my accent is different then most because I pronounce water by saying “wudder”. Their words of wisdom reminded me of an essay I read in which my view on language was effected.

            In the essay How to Tame a Wild Tongue by Gloria Anzaldía, the main character creates a language to suit her identity as well as the environment she lives in. The girl is experiencing difficulty deciding between speaking one language; therefore she develops a language that correlates between her personality and her opinions. Although I only speak English, sometimes I do the same exact thing depending on where I am. Also, my beliefs on language are quite similar to the author when she states, “ A language, which they can connect their identity to, one capable of communicating the realities and values are true to themselves.”

This shows that a language is spoken and used to appeal one’s characteristics as well as to portray the aspect of a person’s life. Identity clarifies the inner beauty of someone by many actions, language being one of them. This is relevant to me because when I socialize with my friends I usually say things that express how I feel and what I am all about. On occasions, I speak to authority figures with proper vocabulary and a respectful tone in order to show my appreciation, but it still shows who I am despite the community I am involved with.

            After several experiences of being in the state of embarrassment on either the words I used for something or how I pronounced something, I’ve came to realize that there are always struggles you are bound to face throughout life but you have to approach them differently. This means that everyone is unique in their own type of way especially when relating to language, so you just have to keep your head held high and overcome this obstacle without being self-conscientious about yourself. I’ve gained a large amount of knowledge by experiencing faults with my language, but now I have a clear understanding on how to connect with people from different backgrounds.   Acceptance is a main goal that you must be able to accomplish in order to actively engage within a community because then a positive attitude is being conveyed. Also, it allows people to use their language in whichever form they feel comfortable with. Clearly, language reflects upon strength, dignity, power, and beliefs because it either builds or breaks you through your identity.

Semaj Smith Second Quarter Artwork

​For our second quarter project we were given the opportunity to create whatever type of artwork we wanted to. I personally loved the idea of this because it gave me freedom to express my feelings in many different ways and show the many different sides of who I am. I decided to go with a more poetic project this quarter and express my everyday feelings in a poetry portfolio with images of myself that shows who I really am on an everyday basis. I chose to do this type of project because I know there is a secret side to me that nobody ever gets to see and I thought it would be good for everyone to take a look into my mind and see the way I really feel about the things I go through in life. This project is not fully completed yet because I have to take my time and go with my emotions when I write and I know I have more to let out so when I feel like I have shown all the sides of me that I want to show I will print all of my poetry and photos and put them in a portfolio book so that the work can be seen up close. 

If I were to do this project differently I think I would try to dig deeper into who I am and try to really get raw with my emotions. I think I was a little scared to let people into my heart and soul with my work this time so next time I would get more real with myself and come to terms with who I am before I tried to let other people know who I am. 

 
In the photos below there are just a few samples of some of the poetry I have already completed and some of the photos of myself that I edited and created to show the sides of who I am. Because my writing is so personal and close to me and how I'm feeling not all work could be uploaded but here's some of who I am I hope you enjoy what you see.



Thank You
Love Equation
Love Equation
Seven
Lipgloss
This Colored Girl
Picnik collage 1
Picnik collage 1

Lobbying Assignment Blog #5

This is my letter to Senator Scott Brown (R-MA). He is against the DREAM Act because he feels as if it is a "backdoor amnesty." With my letter I am hoping to convince him to vote for the DREAM Act. Though many students and people have tried to convince him and fail, giving up is not an option. 


Dear Senator Brown,
            My name is Caroline AbdulBaki and I am a senior at Science Leadership Academy.  This year, applying to colleges is an incredibly huge part of my life and filing for financial aid. While fighting to accomplish this overwhelming process,  I tend to ask my friends to see the kinds of steps they are taking. All or most of them would say their process is complicated, easy, and or done, but not all of them mean it. Some of my friends would not be applying to colleges or for financial aid because they are illegal immigrants. They know that financial aid will not be given at any cost, and in some situations, they are declined from going to any college.
            The DREAM Act gives these hard working students an opportunity to be leveled as an incredible student. These students that you are now depriving from college have been attending your school districts since Pre-school. They should not be punished for a mistake their parents committed and the child takes all the sufferings. . These children may not be American on paper, but they are at heart. I understand the pros and cons of the DREAM Act, however “the children are our future” should be a huge reason why you should vote for the DREAM Act. These children work hard to receive an education and achieve in life in order to help make OUR country a better place to live. It is important for those who help represent the country their entire lives to be given a chance.  They work hard to accomplish DREAMS they have had for a long time but not to be crushed by a system that limits their education. If you are not a favor of the wordingm try to change it, make it reasonable but I ask you to not take this opportunity away from these earning children.
            Take a minute and put yourself in their shoes. Put your children in their shoes imagine if they were to suffer from a mistake that you had made in your past. It is a frustrating proccess that any parent or child would be willing to fight.  We want to legalizing immigrants and why not help those who deserve it. Take a second Mr. Brown and truly think about these children by helping to make the right choice for these children.

Sincerely,
Caroline AbdulBaki