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Caleb McCreary Public Feed

Caleb McCreary - Capstone

Posted by Caleb McCreary on Tuesday, May 11, 2021 at 12:25 pm

Two music videos, both demonstrations of original DSi animation alongside music produced by local musicians. In September I asked myself if my capstone could reflect digital editing and storytelling as they were introduced to me through the CTE program, as well as a personal mission to utilize animation in my own films. Could realistic composition be applied to a surreal idea; It was about application and practice. I did no research.

Attached below are both music videos.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjeXSDraRuY : Jeff Is Nic Sic

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Jz1qO5cM80 - Novo

Tags: west, Todd
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The Shapers podcast #3

Posted by Caleb McCreary in College English · Giknis · C Band on Friday, January 22, 2021 at 7:46 pm

Margie Castejon, Tristan Dini, Annie Chen, Vincent Cammisa, and Caleb McCreary

In our third episode, we discuss the ending to Grendel: our reactions to it’s themes and characters, and how Grendel engages with the original text it’s based on. We also speculate on John Gardner’s intent for making a prequel for ‘Beowulf’ in the first place.

Listen to our episode here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1JIGYbNqTKWevwUrzTXlAmrNcCjvUIZUK/view?usp=sharing

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Advanced Essay #1: Mule

Posted by Caleb McCreary in English 3 · Block · Y Band on Sunday, September 22, 2019 at 1:15 pm

Introduction: When drafting this essay, I wanted to portray my sickness using detail that was true to my personal experience. I’m proud of the way that I described how automatic eating tendencies become after you begin dieting. On my next paper, I want to make more of an effort to get good peer revision. I got two people to look over my paper, but I could have gotten a better paper if I reached out to more people.


I rarely visit my grandparents in West Virginia. The grueling eight-hour car drive made it difficult to reach them, but in the summer before sophomore year my family decided to drive out and stay with them for a few days. I was thrilled! I would be staying somewhere quite different than Philadelphia with family that I rarely see. Although, part of me also dreaded this visit. It had been a few months since I began my diet; and I remember shoving down any excitement I had with calculation - how would I avoid too excess calories in West Virginia? Before leaving, I had to promise myself I would not overeat and surely damage the progress I had been making. I had internalized information from the health accounts of social media and created a mental manifesto on which foods I would avoid, but truly, how I would avoid eating altogether.

It was always very quiet in West Virginia. In the gloaming hours, I would lie in bed and try to fall asleep. Distantly, I heard crickets as they spent those halcyon hours in reverie. I would eventually drift off into sleep, mildly uneasy in the fact that I was not falling asleep in my bed; I was surrounded by the sprawling Blue Ridge Mountains, and I was sleeping in a guest bedroom that was twice the size of my own, and it was very quiet. In the morning I would drink coffee with my grandparents; They would offer many sweet and tempting items for breakfast, but I would always cry indigestion and stick with the coffee.

When we returned from West Virginia, the habits that I picked up over the summer became automatic, a sort of body memory that occurred when my health tendencies took over my life. I continued downing black coffee even though it tasted like death. I took up doing sit-ups in my room.

I had almost forgotten that school was imminent by the time August was ending. I went into school on the first day with dread that was mildly pacified by how exhausted I felt, and as friends greeted me with such vibrant energy, I realized how different I must be acting compared to everyone else. I didn’t know whether or not people would comment on my weight loss and was surprised to have had many people walk up to me to make comments.

“You got so skinny! Congratulations!” Is how most people reacted if they chose to verbalize their thoughts about the change.

“Something’s different about you, did you lose weight?” One teacher said, in a manner that surely wasn’t meant to be intrusive.

I reacted to all of the comments with humility; I told most people that I had naturally shed ‘a few pounds’ from biking all around the city. It was a lie, but it felt like the easiest way to explain the change. Even though people were confronting me on my weight loss, none of their observations affected me. I was the only one who could feed into my body image. I had become immune to whatever anyone could have said about my body; I had become the mule.

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LOTF ESSAY (ENG2) "The Trials of Salem and Simon"

Posted by Caleb McCreary on Tuesday, March 26, 2019 at 7:37 am

 Caleb McCreary

                     Mrs. Pahomov + Mrs. Rhymer

                     English 2

                     March 26, 2019



How does a society behave in a state of fear? Across history, societies have reacted differently when it’s people are caught in a frenzy, and more specifically, when there is fear directed towards a group of people. Looking at humanity’s history, we often deal with fear in ways that are harmful, and thoughtless. When individuals in a society are faced with an issue, the solutions that are created are eventually regretted.


                               The character of Simon plays an essential role in Lord of the Flies, by William Golding, both on the island and beyond the events of the novel. In the novel, he works with Ralph to start creating a functional society. But, his character, and furthermore the death of his character, resembles the frenzy and eventual execution of men and women (but, mostly women) during the witch-hunts of the 16th and 17th century. In the notes of the novel, E.L. Epstein regards Simon as the ‘embryo mystic’ (207). Without a doubt, this description refers to Simon’s conversation with the Lord of the Flies (the decapitated head of the sow who was raped and murdered prior to the boys placing her head through a spear, and declaring her an offering to ‘the beast’), a figure in the novel that places the boys in a persistent state of fear. During this interaction, the Lord of the Flies names himself “...the beast.” and adds to that by saying, “Fancy thinking the beast was something you could hunt and kill!” (143). This completely shuts down the boys’ earlier assertion that the beast was an animal, or, something to be hunted. The beast is something that is intangible, at least physically, to the boys. As this conversation takes place, the boys celebrate the murder of the sow by reenacting the kill. As they chant, dance, and reenact the sow’s death, Simon stumbles out of the forest to explain what he just heard from the Lord of the Flies. The boys, still captivated by the momentary mania, charge at Simon. At this moment, the boys believed Simon to be the beast. They “screamed, struck, bit, and tore..” (153) before pushing Simon into the ocean, where he would drown, and eventually die from his injuries.


                      Early in America’s history, refugees from Europe seeking religious freedom began forming small colonies along the Northeast Coast of America. Many refugees wanted to create a Bible-based society. Towards the end of the 1600s, rumors of witchcraft began to spread in the small, puritan village of Salem, Massachusetts. (To preface the ensuing explanation of the frenzy surrounding witchcraft, it’s essential to note Pope Innocent VII’s declaration from 1485 -- “[Witchcraft] is a reality and not a myth.”) Governor Sir William Phips of Massachusetts created a justice system that could satisfy the growing accusations of witchcraft. He created the Court of Oyer and Terminer (to hear and determine) in order to allow Salem to efficiently begin the process of putting the accused individuals to trial. So, in 1692, the villagers of Salem began with Bridget Bishop, a woman who was “known around town for her dubious moral character, frequented taverns, dressed flamboyantly (by Puritan standards), and was married three times.” (History.com Editors, First Salem Witch Hanging). Although Bridget professed her innocence, she was sentenced to death by hanging. She was hanged in the June of the same year. The death of Bridget Bishop closely mirrors the death of Simon. Prior to each of their deaths, they were treated as inhuman. Simon, bearing information that contradicted the boys’, was immediately identified as the Beast. Bridget, unknowingly drawing attention to herself because of the way she presented herself and because of her relationships with men, was named a witch. Once they were each identified as something monstrous, they were murdered; For the most part, their deaths were considered justified.


               Following Simon’s murder, his friends Ralph and Piggy lament the circumstances surrounding his death: “Don’t you understand Piggy? The things we did ---” (157). Although Ralph’s guilt (and acceptance of what’s been done) seems reasonable, Piggy feels different: “Coming in out of the dark -- he hadn’t no business crawling out of the dark. He was batty! He asked for it…” (157). These contrasting reactions to what’s been done is a subtle representation with how society reflects on its own history, and more precisely, the harmful things it has done.


                                  Several months after Bridget Benson’s hanging and the deaths of eighteen more people during the Salem Witch Trials, Governor Sir William Phips of Massachusetts arrived in Salem. Upon arriving in Salem and learning of the Witch Trials, Phips “found many persons in a strange ferment of dissatisfaction . . . [and] found that the Devil had taken upon him the name and shape of several persons who were doubtless innocent.". He began to disassemble the system he created in order to efficiently deal with numerous accusations in the colony ---  He ordered the ceasing of all trials having to do with accusations concerning witchcraft. Those sentenced to death were pardoned, and the people awaiting trial were released. Even though Phips ended the system which resulted in the unjust deaths of nineteen people (which he created), he still felt guilty. This mirrors the reactions of Ralph and Piggy following the death of Simon. Even though they participated in the murder, at that moment, they believed it was the right thing to do.


       When fear consumes a society, quick solutions are created to ease everyone’s mind. In the novel, Simon is murdered by the boys because he possessed information that would’ve clashed with what was agreed upon on the island. Bridget Benson and the other victims (or, easy targets) throughout the Salem Witch Trials were executed as a quick solution to reduce the fear of witchcraft spreading throughout the colony. It’s natural to create solutions to issues, however, these solutions can often result in more harm than what was originally expected, and also divide the society based on whether the actions executed in the momentary frenzy were justified, or unnecessary.        














                Works Cited:


Salem Witch Trials Governor Sir William Phips, salem.lib.virginia.edu/people/phips.html.



“First Salem Witch Hanging.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 9 Feb. 2010, www.history.com/this-day-in-history/first-salem-witch-hanging.


“Timeline - The Salem Witch Trials.” Google Sites, sites.google.com/a/email.cpcc.edu/the-salem-witch-trials/timeline.


Lord of the Flies: A Novel. New York:, 2006. Golding, Penguin Publishing



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Marigolds - ENG2 Monologue

Posted by Caleb McCreary in English 2 · Pahomov/Rhymer · E Band on Friday, November 9, 2018 at 10:51 am
​

I remember when I was very young, and I was playing in your garden. I can vividly picture the Marigolds you were growing. They were red and orange, they were as vibrant as you were. I remember you holding me in your long arms, as I played with your dark hair. When I look at you now, I do not see her.You are not my grandmother; You have lost your beautiful hair. Who has taken your life away?


It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you.It’s my fault, really. Mom’s visited you dozens of times and I’ve come up with an excuse not to go with her every single time. I think the last time I saw you was two years ago on your birthday, right around when you began treatment. All of your hair was gone - and you were so weak.I was terrified. I remember going home and crying for hours after seeing you. I didn’t want to think about you being sick, I didn’t want to think about losing you.


I want to apologize for not writing letters to you. How do you write to someone who’s dying? Dear Grandma, how’s the chemotherapy? How much weight have you lost? How much longer do you have left to live?


Grandma, I can’t look at you. I don’t even want to think about the tubes and needles this hospital’s stuck inside of you.


God, this hospital.


It took me almost half an hour to find your room! This place is a hedge maze of diagnoses and spinal taps. This place smells like formaldehyde , and the fluorescent lights are giving me a migraine! You wanna know something? A few months ago I took the bus by myself for two hours straight to get here.I talked to that woman at the front desk who reeks of perfume --- and you know what? Before she could tell me what room you were in, I left. I took the bus back home, and thought to myself -- what was I thinking? I knew even before I left that I would end up turning back.


Is it selfish that the only reason I’ve visited you today is because you’re in a coma -- Because you have no possible way of responding? I swear, if I knew that you would get this sick I would have come earlier, I swear. It’s just hard for me. I hate seeing you like this. I can’t imagine how you must feel -- though. I bet everyone is treating you like a child. I know that’s not who you are. I know for a fact that all of these gifts in here aren’t making you any happier. I don’t know why anyone thought that teddy bears and cheap Hallmark cards would make you any better. I should’ve been here to offer you something thoughtful, even if it was just talking to you, or playing the music that you used to play for me when I was younger.


I’m sorry.


Anyway, I’ve brought you flowers. I know you can’t see them right now, but I hope that when you wake up, you’ll see them and know that I was here. They’re marigolds.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JeTjDLP-5I
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JeTjDLP-5I
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Marigolds - Caleb McCreary (MONOLOGUE)

Posted by Caleb McCreary on Thursday, November 8, 2018 at 3:14 pm
​

I remember when I was very young, and I was playing in your garden. I can vividly picture the Marigolds you were growing. They were red and orange, they were as vibrant as you were. I remember you holding me in your long arms, as I played with your dark hair. When I look at you now, I do not see her.You are not my grandmother; You have lost your beautiful hair. Who has taken your life away?


It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you.It’s my fault, really. Mom’s visited you dozens of times and I’ve come up with an excuse not to go with her every single time. I think the last time I saw you was two years ago on your birthday, right around when you began treatment. All of your hair was gone - and you were so weak.I was terrified. I remember going home and crying for hours after seeing you. I didn’t want to think about you being sick, I didn’t want to think about losing you.


I want to apologize for not writing letters to you. How do you write to someone who’s dying? Dear Grandma, how’s the chemotherapy? How much weight have you lost? How much longer do you have left to live?


Grandma, I can’t look at you. I don’t even want to think about the tubes and needles this hospital’s stuck inside of you.


God, this hospital.


It took me almost half an hour to find your room! This place is a hedge maze of diagnoses and spinal taps. This place smells like formaldehyde , and the fluorescent lights are giving me a migraine! You wanna know something? A few months ago I took the bus by myself for two hours straight to get here.I talked to that woman at the front desk who reeks of perfume --- and you know what? Before she could tell me what room you were in, I left. I took the bus back home, and thought to myself -- what was I thinking? I knew even before I left that I would end up turning back.


Is it selfish that the only reason I’ve visited you today is because you’re in a coma -- Because you have no possible way of responding? I swear, if I knew that you would get this sick I would have come earlier, I swear. It’s just hard for me. I hate seeing you like this. I can’t imagine how you must feel -- though. I bet everyone is treating you like a child. I know that’s not who you are. I know for a fact that all of these gifts in here aren’t making you any happier. I don’t know why anyone thought that teddy bears and cheap Hallmark cards would make you any better. I should’ve been here to offer you something thoughtful, even if it was just talking to you, or playing the music that you used to play for me when I was younger.


I’m sorry.


Anyway, I’ve brought you flowers. I know you can’t see them right now, but I hope that when you wake up, you’ll see them and know that I was here. They’re marigolds.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JeTjDLP-5I
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JeTjDLP-5I
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Emulating Susanna Kaysen - McCreary

Posted by Caleb McCreary in English 2 · Pahomov/Rhymer · E Band on Thursday, October 25, 2018 at 12:58 pm
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Breathe In - Systems Essay

Posted by Caleb McCreary on Friday, September 21, 2018 at 3:05 pm

I laugh in between fast breaths. My twin brother and our friends chased each other around a field fearing nothing except failure. Nothing could be worse than getting frozen in freeze tag, I thought.


As my feet hit the ground, a sudden heaviness wrapped around my ribs. Wisps of constriction began to infect my throat, and I notice that following each inhale, there is a noticeable croak. I stop running. Forget being frozen, I remember being told  ‘an asthma attack can hurt you very badly’. I reach into my back pocket, where a blue inhaler hides. By now however, all my friends are familiar with my asthma. They keep playing, my brother nods to me,


“Are you okay?” He twin-spoke, using the noiseless and lucid language that only two people on the entire planet know.


“Yes, just a second.” I reply, taking the protective cap off of the device I’ve used many, many times now. I sit cross-legged in the dirt, as I feel an invisible twine wrap around my throat. I hold the inhaler to my lips, and pump the device twice. Almost instantly, I feel medicine charge down my throat, and rip through the constriction. I inhale all the air I can, again, again, and again once more. I take a moment to stuff the inhaler back into my jeans, and I stand, catching up with my friends.


I cannot remember a point in my life where I was not carrying an inhaler. I’ve always had a weird relationship with it. When I was very young, it was something that I just carried wherever I went. Sometimes, I would pretend that it was something very special, and I was chosen to carry it. As I got older however, I became more aware that this device was made to save my own life. I was first introduced to the idea of death by asthma when watching a news segment where a woman mourns the loss of her husband, who died during an asthma attack. I remember being paralyzed with fear, and very confused. I knew having an asthma attack was dangerous, but I never imagined myself being seriously injured during one.


For a few years after that, I remember becoming aware of the fact that medicine cost money, and ultimately that inhalers weren’t cheap. Most of the time, I was afraid to check the counter built inside the inhaler, which counted how many more doses were left. If it was too low, my parents would have to buy a new one. This made me very nervous, I thought that my parents buying me an inhaler would make our family go broke. I was almost always fearing an attack, not out of fear for my own health, but out of the idea that the medicine I would always need was expensive and would be always be expensive.


After over fifteen years of living with Asthma, I’ve come to the conclusion that there are many others with the disease, and most of them live perfectly normal lives, and are able to enjoy the things they want to learn. This realization helped me grow out of the complex I grew to have, in which I believed I was a sick child who could not do things normally. Truly, you can live a normal live with Asthma, you just need to be willing to do things you’re excited for without fear. As I continue to learn more about Asthma and how it affects me, I understand my own body, and my own world better. I was intimidated by Asthma when I was younger, but as I learn more about myself, I learn how to worry less, and breathe without much worry.



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anchor printmaking (reflection and explanation)

Posted by Caleb McCreary on Tuesday, May 29, 2018 at 1:14 pm
I was assigned the element Silver, which is abbreviated to Ag on the periodic table. It's atomic number is 47. 

Upon research, I learned that Silver was used across multiple civilizations through thousands of years, up to today. It has been used for silverware, jewelry, and even on the ships of explorers (I'll get to that later). Silver is a reactive element, and is considered to be a 'malleable transition element'. 

I got the idea to make my design for silver an anchor because of how the ancient Phoenicians used it. When they first arrived to Spain by ship, they found so much silver that they needed to replace the lead in their anchors with silver. 

Making the three prints you see below took graitious trial and error. First, I needed to create the design on tracing paper. I actually went through two designs. My first design was a vertical anchor, but I decided against it. Anyway, with my final design, I transferred it to tracing paper, and after that I needed to transfer the design to the foam plate, which would allow me to print my design. It was a difficult process, but I think I did well transferring the design to the plate. 

I would make a cooler design if I could do this again. I would keep the anchor, but maybe do something cooler with it? Maybe with a pirate ship! 

I loved working with my classmates, sharing the paint, and coming up with ideas to make each others designs look cool. We helped each other make a fade in the print, get more paint out of the bottles, etc. This was my favorite art project in the semester!  
anchor1
anchor1
anchor2
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anchor3
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y&tw: what is safe sex? (reflection/conclusion)

Posted by Caleb McCreary on Friday, May 18, 2018 at 9:19 pm
​

I’ve come a long way since when my research into sexual health in our city began in February. In that first post, I breezed over how there is a sparisity of inclusive and helpful curricula explaining how to execute safe sex.  After that initial research, I started collecting information concerning how teens can be affected by the word around them, ultimately being detrimental towards their sexual health. During my original research with SLA’s Sex-Ed teacher, I learned that mental health and drug use strongly affect whether or not you practice safe sex, and furthermore get STDs. That research opened up new possibilities on how to create an agent of change, as there are many perspectives in this city, each dealing with different issues in their own world, and each possibly having different views on what safe sex is. That realization made me decide that the only way to realistically talk about Philadelphia’s teenagers, and how they think of safe sex, is to ask them. I cannot speak for all of them. So, I decided to make a short film, consisting of multiple answers to the same question: “What is safe sex?”


I wanted to create a short film because it would allow me to explain a subject in a broader way, when compared to a poster or a petition that would be created by me. A short film, presented the way I am presenting it, is what it is. It’s not open to interpretation, it’s just a number of perspectives answering a question. My experience actually creating the short film was interesting, as I thought it would be. The structure I created for the film would be a screen with the question, and then the students’ multiple answers to it. In between each question, would be facts I have collected throughout my research which connect to the theme of safe sex. I would try to make it look as visually attractive as possible, not unlike a Buzzfeed or Insider video, so that people are more inclined to keep watching, When I actually went ahead and started finding people to record answers for, there were plenty of people interested in providing a short answer. It was, though, pretty awkward for them. Most students provided a similar answer when I asked them to talk about what they think safe sex is: Use a condom so you will not get STDs. Only one student I talked to mentioned consent , and only one student talked about birth control.


If I could do this project over again, I would definitely spend more time planning the actual short film. I was faced with a bunch of possibilities for the movie, and I should have been more prepared, and I should have made the movie a few days before the due date, if not a whole week or more. I procrastinated, which ended up screwing me over towards the end, but I am glad with how it ended up.


VIDEO LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obDhDbxCBmI
ANN BIB: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1b2tMgsii_VGshl2c8VESa0NVSok9jylLz_kFTDxCXcM/edit
lionsong
lionsong
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Negative Space Cut Out Reflection

Posted by Caleb McCreary on Thursday, April 26, 2018 at 1:11 pm
NEGATIVE TREE (2)
Negative Space surrounds objects. For example, if you draw a lollipop, the lollipop is not a part of the negative space, the space surrounding the lollipop is. If a dog is standing in a field, the dog is the positive space, and the grass around it is the negative space. 

In my cutout, there was a tree standing in a field in front of the sky. In terms of space, I decided that the tree was the positive space, and the sky was the negative space. 

It helps for an artist to see in negative space in order to easily determine what the subject is, and what the background is.

It depends. If the artist wants to put emphasis on their subject, it helps to learn how to draw in negative space. Same goes if they want the background to be emphasized. But, negative space does not matter if the artist wants the whole picture to be seen. 
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The Sexual Wellbeing of Our Youth (Original Research)

Posted by Caleb McCreary on Sunday, March 18, 2018 at 8:50 pm

In my first blog post, I discussed the lack of sex education on a national level, as well as within the city of Philadelphia. I also talked about what could happen to a teenager if precautions are not taken before sex. Pregnancy, STDs, STIs, and other issues can occur when the necessary precautions are not taken before sexual activity. I talked about our country has a really high rate of teen pregnancy, and that our city has a pretty high amount of STDs. Since that initial post, I have learned much more about this topic, thanks to a primary source.


I conducted an interview to contribute to my own research. I interviewed SLA’s health teacher, Pia Martin. During our short interview, she brought up multiple excellent points that I have never even thought of. She explained that teens with depression or low self esteem were likely to engage in dangerous sexual activity. She also explained that drug use was a huge issue with teens, and said that it contributed to the STD statistics for teens. I looked into this claim, and found multiple sources that explained that drug use increased the chance of STDs.


The new information gathered from my interview added to my pre-obtained knowledge by providing great insight that could be translated to new information to cite, and widened my own perspective of the topic of safe sex among teenagers. In terms of personal opinions, I think that although it’s irresponsible to have a child or engage in sexual behavior (without protection), it’s a problem that’s bigger than the child itself, and more can and should be done to prevent it from happening. I still believe that it is essential to provide a decent sex education to ensure the safe future of teenagers. I also think that the idea that mental illness is involved with this issue brings a whole new dynamic to what needs to be done. We should also be concerned of the mental wellbeing of our teens! It should be a no-brainer, but obviously, there still needs to be change.


For my ‘agent of change’, I wish to design and distribute posters. I would ideally put them inside the school, and around the city. On the poster, I would put some scary statistic in bolded red, such as “Scary STD kills 2000 kids a second.” (something like this). This would be an interesting endeavor because not only would I have to compile information that could be useful for the poster, I would have to design the poster in such a way that would attract people walking by.





























ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY




Image result for teen smoking] Teen substance abuse can increase your chance of STDs, and even teen pregnancy;

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Safe Sex in Philadelphia (or lack thereof)

Posted by Caleb McCreary in English 1 · Giknis · D Band on Monday, February 26, 2018 at 2:25 pm
​A teenager in the United States is likely to experiment sexually at some point before adulthood. While perfectly natural and fun, if preventative measures are not taken against STDs, STIs, or pregnancies, embarrassing and possibly threatening ailments can change teenager’s life forever. There are so many things that can be done to prevent something like this from happening. I want to highlight this exact point throughout my project, and make prevention an easy thing to do.  I am interested in the subject of safe sex awareness because of the fact that if you are still in highschool, you should NOT be in a situation where you have a child, or need to deal with an unflattering illness for years on end. That is something a student should never need to worry about!

Image result for diagram
In this diagram, it is illustrated that Philadelphia has a large amount of STDs, when compared to other cities. Philly has a very high rate of both gonorrhea and chlamydia.

I have zero personal connection to this topic. The people I know that do choose to have sex usually do it safely, and make it a casual and not unusual thing. I admire this, because I feel like there is a weird stigma towards safe sex, or rather, having to worry about putting a condom on, having  a conversation, or making sure you’re ready before sex. It matters to me that this stigma is wiped away, and replaced by an enthusiasm to be safe! That being said, it is important for teenagers to realize that it is essential to take precautions and be careful before, during, and after sex.


Within the various resources I explored, I grimaced at the various statistics, stories, and other sources that ultimately paint a disgusting portrait of chlamydia, different pregnancy rates between races, and infertility. The CDC reported in 2015 that 229,715 children were born to 15-19 year old women. While actually being lower than previous years, the CDC incidentally reports that that the U.S has a “teen pregnancy rate [which is] substantially higher than other western industrialized nations”. While unwanted teen pregnancy certainly affects the individual, it’s essential to consider how the people living among this problem go through. The CDC has also reported that “teen pregnancy and childbirth accounted for at least $9.4 billion in costs to U.S. taxpayers for increased health care and foster care, increased incarceration rates among children of teen parents, and lost tax revenue because of lower educational attainment and income among teen mothers.” Pregnancy and STIs can be avoided using multiple tools and dialogue. There are multiple tools (condoms, lubricant, dental dams, etc.) that make sex between you and another person safer, and more comfortable.

Conversation and preparation before sex, albeit awkward, can make sex easier, and possibly less harmful. Many agree that even though it may be weird to talk about wearing condoms, or using other measures to prevent STDs, it is better than a possible lifetime of embarrassment from an STD.  (image gathered from this source).


To conclude,  throughout my research, my pre-obtained knowledge of the subject I decided to dive into was added on by facts I had no idea were true! Who knew that race, economic status, and other factors contribute to pregnancy statistics? Prevention is a very easy thing to accomplish with you and  sexual partner. When you take the precautions needed before sex, both you and your partners are safer as a result.

Such as the ones included in this photo, there are many ways to use birth control. Often, you can find condoms or other methods to prevent pregnancy/STDs for free in school, or outside location.


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Sex Sex in Philadelphia (or lack thereof)

Posted by Caleb McCreary on Friday, February 23, 2018 at 2:45 pm
​A teenager in the United States is likely to experiment sexually at some point before adulthood. While perfectly natural and fun, if preventative measures are not taken against STDs, STIs, or pregnancies, embarrassing and possibly threatening ailments can change teenager’s life forever. There are so many things that can be done to prevent something like this from happening. I want to highlight this exact point throughout my project, and make prevention an easy thing to do.  I am interested in the subject of safe sex awareness because of the fact that if you are still in highschool, you should NOT be in a situation where you have a child, or need to deal with an unflattering illness for years on end. That is something a student should never need to worry about!

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In this diagram, it is illustrated that Philadelphia has a large amount of STDs, when compared to other cities. Philly has a very high rate of both gonorrhea and chlamydia.

I have zero personal connection to this topic. The people I know that do choose to have sex usually do it safely, and make it a casual and not unusual thing. I admire this, because I feel like there is a weird stigma towards safe sex, or rather, having to worry about putting a condom on, having  a conversation, or making sure you’re ready before sex. It matters to me that this stigma is wiped away, and replaced by an enthusiasm to be safe! That being said, it is important for teenagers to realize that it is essential to take precautions and be careful before, during, and after sex.


Within the various resources I explored, I grimaced at the various statistics, stories, and other sources that ultimately paint a disgusting portrait of chlamydia, different pregnancy rates between races, and infertility. The CDC reported in 2015 that 229,715 children were born to 15-19 year old women. While actually being lower than previous years, the CDC incidentally reports that that the U.S has a “teen pregnancy rate [which is] substantially higher than other western industrialized nations”. While unwanted teen pregnancy certainly affects the individual, it’s essential to consider how the people living among this problem go through. The CDC has also reported that “teen pregnancy and childbirth accounted for at least $9.4 billion in costs to U.S. taxpayers for increased health care and foster care, increased incarceration rates among children of teen parents, and lost tax revenue because of lower educational attainment and income among teen mothers.” Pregnancy and STIs can be avoided using multiple tools and dialogue. There are multiple tools (condoms, lubricant, dental dams, etc.) that make sex between you and another person safer, and more comfortable.

Conversation and preparation before sex, albeit awkward, can make sex easier, and possibly less harmful. Many agree that even though it may be weird to talk about wearing condoms, or using other measures to prevent STDs, it is better than a possible lifetime of embarrassment from an STD.  (image gathered from this source).


To conclude,  throughout my research, my pre-obtained knowledge of the subject I decided to dive into was added on by facts I had no idea were true! Who knew that race, economic status, and other factors contribute to pregnancy statistics? Prevention is a very easy thing to accomplish with you and  sexual partner. When you take the precautions needed before sex, both you and your partners are safer as a result.

Such as the ones included in this photo, there are many ways to use birth control. Often, you can find condoms or other methods to prevent pregnancy/STDs for free in school, or outside location.




ANN BIB



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Macbeth's Market

Posted by Caleb McCreary in English 1 · Giknis · D Band on Thursday, January 25, 2018 at 9:52 pm

Antonia and I worked on a creative project that shows our knowledge of Macbeth by William Shakespeare. Our project was a Macbeth general store advertisement where we sold things like eggs, perfume and shoes. Essentially, we designed this project because of how many possible puns we could create involving Macbeth, and food items or appliances. We also wanted to make something that was not commonly done (such as the playbill, or video). We started off with a google document in which we listed possible products which we could easily associate with. After we had written around 15, we started designing a rough draft of the catalog. In our rough draft, we sketched what each page would look like and thought of some different puns that we could use for each product.


Like I said before, this project was designed with puns in mind. A pun that we used for example was Prince of Cucumbers instead of Prince of Cumberland. It is meant for people who have already read Macbeth. In order to thoroughly understand the catalog, it's good to read it slowly and look at the notes below each product to catch all of the details. Our catalog can also be a motivation to read the book! There are several products in our catalog that are worth mentioning, and explaining. For example, the blood red sheets are meant to be a joke about King Duncan’s death in bed. He was brutally murdered in bed. Thus, the deep red sheets represent the blood. The running shoes of Young Fleance are supposed to make sense because he ran away from the men trying to kill him. Another example were the Little Macduff eggs. This makes sense because when he was being killed, he was called an egg.


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MACBETH'S MARKET

Posted by Caleb McCreary on Thursday, January 25, 2018 at 2:01 pm
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​Our project (Antonia and I) was a Macbeth general store advertisement where we sold things like eggs, perfume and shoes. Essentially, we 
designed this project because of how many possible puns we could create involving Macbeth, and food items or appliances. We also wanted to make something that was not commonly done (such as the playbill, or video). We started off with a google document in which we listed possible products which we could easily associate with. After we had written around 15, we started designing a rough draft of the catalog. In our rough draft, we sketched what each page would look like and thought of some different puns that we could use for each product. 

Like I said before, this project was designed with puns in mind. A pun that we used for example was Prince of Cucumbers instead of Prince of Cumberland. It is meant for people who have already read Macbeth. In order to thoroughly understand the catalog, it's good to read it slowly and look at the notes below each product to catch all of the details. Our catalog can also be a motivation to read the book! There are several products in our catalog that are worth mentioning, and explaining. For example, the blood red sheets are meant to be a joke about King Duncan’s death in bed. He was brutally murdered in bed. Thus, the deep red sheets represent the blood. The running shoes of Young Fleance are supposed to make sense because he ran away from the men trying to kill him. Another example were the Little Macduff eggs. This makes sense because when he was being killed, he was called an egg.

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REMIX OF GOOGLE SLIDE

Posted by Caleb McCreary on Wednesday, December 6, 2017 at 11:22 am
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From the critique of my slide, I learned that there were a few typos on my slide. The errors had to do with tangents, and unneeded words on the slide. I made these changes, because I realized that my friends that were reviewing my slide were right

Also, the changes were needed to make the slide look more clear, and billboard-ish. I had too much text.


The research I did helped me as well, as it helped me negotiate clear space within the slide. The sources I used were the people reviewing my slide (Tyria, Matthew, Carol, and Antonia), and presentationzen.com .

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The Definition of Caleb

Posted by Caleb McCreary on Tuesday, November 28, 2017 at 6:27 pm
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Home Network - Caleb McCreary

Posted by Caleb McCreary on Friday, October 6, 2017 at 2:23 pm
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