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Over the last week, I have created a Facebook account for my character.  I have uploaded pictures that detail her life, added interests and personality information and created an academic profile.  Currently, she has 13 friends, but I hope to increase that number by publicizing through my own Facebook.  There is ongoing conversations on her page, and she is becoming a living, breathing entity.  

My next step is to create a Twitter account for her, which will allow me to schedule my tweets for the actual action of the story.  Since it happens within the course of a few hours, this all needs to be set ahead of time, using socialoomph.com (hopefully). I originally planned for the climax to occur on April 11th, but may choose to move that up, so it fits into the third quarter.  

The process is in its beginning stages. I have created a tumblr account chuckandcrew.tumblr.com for my character. I am in the process of creating a couple other tumblrs that intertwine with my character to show its realistic view. I am going to use this as my only tool since twitter is now not needed in the works of what I am doing. I believe I can accomplish alot with tumblr since it has alot more items and tools to work toward.​

​Mongolia vs. Israel website

Mongolia is a fairly undeveloped country, where 25% of the population live as nomadic herders.  It suffers from a variety of environmental problems, given their desert climate, such as drought, desertification, soil erosion and forest fires.  The country also has very low clean water resources.  Israel is also a desert climate that suffers from water scarcity and pollution, although both issues are being thoroughly addressed with desalinization plants and environmental policy.  

Mongolia is a fairly neutral country that attempts to maintain friendly ties with most developed countries in Asia, Europe as well as the United States. The only hostility is within the country between Mongolians and Chinese workers.  Israel, on the other hand, has hostilities surrounding it. It has no trade partners in the Middle East, but compensates for this by trading with the U.S. and EU.  It's strongest enemies are Palestine, Iran and Syria. 

This five-point framework was very straight forward.  The topics were clear and easy to research and provided a thorough overview of each country.  I began this project with reading each country's profile on the CIA Factbook.  This provided a general understanding of the issues that plague each country.  I then searched for news articles and scholarly publications about specific topics.  I chose to present my information in the form of a website.  I figured this would allow me to include visual components as well as create lengthy pieces of writing, which I am most comfortable doing. I am very pleased with the final product.

If I could change one thing about my website, I would include a more visual representation of the 5-point framework.  I used colors, but it would have been great to include a sliding scale image.

As I researched the issues that my countries faced, I realized how closely related my countries were.  Although they are located in completely different parts of the world, they both face a water crisis and desertification.  The world is truly one society that faces many common problems.  It is our responsibility to work together through globalization to protect it. 

Woke up, stumbled out of bed, and got dressed in black pants, boots and the sweater he bought me. I brushed my teeth and hair and did my makeup half halfheartedly because it would be running down my face later anyway. We all left to go to my grandmom's, while there I drained a can of Pepsi because I'd need the caffeine today. I sat in the room full of people draped in black until the limo came. Then I jumped in the truck with my stepdad and little brother and made my way to the funeral home, he was exactly how we had left him last night; face stuffed with cotton, makeup everywhere, cold and hard. They made it look like he was smiling, but it wasn't his smile. The room seemed to grow smaller in the hour we all sat there, maybe 20 of us all together. We took turns going up in groups, holding his cold hands and each other's warm ones. Tears broke through everyone's blank masks, sobs ripped up the throats of the more emotional people. Everyone there held each other close while the priest spoke words of kindness before leaving to prepare for the mass we were holding at ten for anyone that happened to show up.
We all watched as they closed the casket; cue more tears and sobs, long hugs and gripped hands keeping us all connected to one another even when we were farther apart. My cousin, Patrick, and I grabbed a ton of tissues before we followed the casket out to the front where our marked cars sat, we climbed in and made our way to the church. Inside we were surrounded by statues of saints and mock-up scenery of a desert that Jesus walked through for forty days before being crucified. His casket stood in the middle of the aisle before the alter, a white sheet laid over it with golden crosses embroidered in it and a crucifix lying where his head was against the white pillow inside. I walked by to the altar to read from "The Prophet Isaiah" and again to go back to my seat to watch and listen to the rest of the mass. When the mass had ended I followed the casket back out of the church and watched as the funeral home director placed a flag over him.
We then went to the cemetery; the memorial for veterans, he fought in Korea. We sat there waiting for what seemed like hours and then followed a National Guard soldier to a small place with a white sheet overhead. We barely felt the cold wind bite at our faces as rifles rang out, every bullet piercing the heart of every one gathered there. We listened with hot tears making tracks down our faces as a soldier played Taps and a flag was presented to my grandmother. And then we left, leaving a little piece of ourselves there within a casket, within him.

https://docs.google.com/a/scienceleadership.org/document/d/1gsv_-9hM9NmUKJRx4-BU3SsVtA7QU9xZh5wINcoSack/edit?hl=en#​

Never Made a List Before But Here We Go. 

1. Dress colors
2. Budgets 
3. Dress style  
4. Prom tickets 
5. Budgets
6. Dress. 
7. Shoes. 
8. Hair. 
9. Make- up.
10. Budgets
11. Accessories. 
12. Jewelry
13. After prom 
14. Hotels
15. Beach house  
16. Budgets 
17. Friends 

With my benchmark I am doing pretty good. I have decided to do my benchmark using Twitter as my tool.  I have posted my first post for my two characters.  I hope to make a least one post a day for the characters.  Until around Friday post from the story will not be seen.  Only post where the character talks about her day, or says a positive note.

She threatens to leave all the time. 
I never really react. 
I honestly expect it. 
Wish for it. 
Then maybe there would be peace
For once. 
She threatened to leave last night. 
Packed a bag. 
And left. 
I didn't really react. 
I expected it. 
Wished for it the moment before. 
Hoping for peace
For once. 
Unsurprisingly she came back. 
I knew she would. 
She's too predictable. 
But one day
She'll actually go away
And I doubt I'll react 
Unexpect it
Unwish it 
But there probably won't be any peace 
For a while

This week will be kind of crazy for me when it comes to school because I'm so behind on work plus benchmarks. That PSU trip kind of pushed me back some. Its time to get to work.

I don't know who to blame or direct my annoyed tone at. My Student Aid Report for Penn State was utterly disrespectful. The Office of Financial Aid didn't feel that I was eligible for a work study. I didn't qualify for any scholarships, and though I was offered most of the federal pell grant, I was only offered a few grand in federal loans. My financial aid package would cover less than 1/3 of my freshman tuition. Now, it's not entirely FAFSA's fault. However they decipher information is their own process. But it's still confusing. I live in a house with four brothers and 2 sisters. Two unemployed parents. There are some underlying factors of income, but even still. Where in the equation does it seem that I can afford to pay for two thirds of my education? 

I don't think I'm gonna party much in college. Maybe it's a fun place to be when you're drunk, but a 110 degree room with stereos blasting the same songs twice just isn't my scene. Once they get a.c and start playing songs I know, I'll be there most definitely. 

I'm tired of the laziness. It takes but 5 minutes to log in and write a few sentences. I'm changing this around today.  

My Link: Middle east- Libya 

 Im am going to be posting parts of my story soon on tumblr , or maybe twitter i have not figured that out yet but Im far in the process. the time line and blueprint of my story is already created . I am having a hard time figuring out how to end it . I am not good at creating conclusions. Especially ones that are not true. I don't even like to fantasize and so....how will I do this? hmm. 

Well, I have to finish polishing my story; and today I'm going to create a Facebook for my character and start to add friends to it.  I'm still trying to understand what this benchmark is actually is accomplishing but.. whatevs. Hopefully people actually read it. 

This past weekend I visited Penn State Main for a achievers program. I had the best time of my life!!!! 

Mr. Reddy used to be in a Fraternity, he used to step.

Hotel party part two, this weekend.

On Saturday night I got robbed.

"​There comes a time in you life, when you want to kick back. Straw hat on the porch when you're old perhaps. Wanna gather thoughts, have a cold one. And brag to your grandkids on how life is golden."

 She was young. Six and a half to be exact. She had been seeing them for 3 years now. Today would be her first seeing in two weeks. Her sister gripped her hand tightly as the train approached. When the door opened she spotted. It was more real than the rest. It's cheekbones were high and sagged. It's hands were frail and the veins that protruded reminded her of a spiderweb. She stood directly in front of it, still with sister in hand. She stood there for a moment until the train began to move. She slowly raised her hand to the empty seat and stroked it's face. It smiled so lovingly and warm, it reminded her of Nana. A single tear rolled down her cheek and her sister looked at her questioningly. 
"She's so beautiful" she said, hand still held in the air
"Who"
She didn't answer. She couldn't answer. She didn't know who it was, she only knew that she was there for a reason. Only she didn't yet know for what...

(Let me know if there should be a continuation, I just made this up on the spot when I was on the train and I saw a little girl hug this old lady and her sister or some older person was with her.) 

All of my characters have their twitter accounts and have started tweeting. I still need to finish up the timeline itself but over all it's going pretty well.

I'm in the beginning of the story were the sister (unknowingly) is giving Phillis and Henry the 15,000 dollars (I didn't get the chance to add this piece into the story itself so the project kinda gives it away. sorry :/)