We started with one of our favorite romantic comedies, Bridesmaids, and decided to change the genre to the style of Wes Anderson’s directing. The scene we chose was during one of the main character’s bridal shower where they begin by sitting and watching Lillian open her presents. From here, the scene escalates because her best friend, Annie, can no longer hold in her anger about Helen, another bridesmaid, trying to steal Lillian from her. This scene is done well by the setting, props, facial expressions, tone, and pace. Wes Anderson has a very different style of comedy, so there were many areas we were able to change.

Firstly, we researched Anderson’s style which involves scenes that are filmed using a wide shot and they are also always symmetrical which plays to his aesthetics. Our redone scenes were from a distance to make it more of a wide shot, and we kept the people centered and mostly symmetrical while filming at eye level, another tool he uses. Anderson is also known for higher saturated scenes, so we used backgrounds that were bright and high in color. In one section, we have a bright blue background to demonstrate how Anderson uses such bright, pastel coloring. We also filmed in front of windows to get a natural and bright lighting, again similar to his directing style.

The Taming of The Bridesmaid

In the Taming of the Shrew Petruchio is a suitor to Katherine, he looks at her as just a symbol of money and wealth. While, in the movie Bridesmaids, there is Annie a young woman who lost her business due to the recession, who is in a relationship with Ted, a young and rich guy but they aren’t dating. Ted just wants the relationship to be a mutual no strings attached sexual relationship while Annie wants more than to be just a sexual partner. Annie later meets Officer Rhodes, a young police officer who got her out of a ticket, he flirts with her, they have sex and she leaves him, he seems to be really hurt by that. The relationship between Petruchio and Katherine and Annie and her two men is about the symbol of the relationship and what comes with it. Annie and Petruchio both want relationships but want them for different reasons. Annie on one end wants to be exclusive with Ted while Ted just see’s her for sex. Petruchio just see’s Katherine for the wealth of her family. Both the film and the movie reflects the belief that people only get into relationships if the status is right for them.

"And yet I’ll promise thee she shall be rich, and very rich"

(Act 1, Scene 2, Lines 60-65)

In this scene Petruchio was telling Hortensio that he needed to find a wife. Hortensio said that he could find a women that was really rich but probably not too much of a good person. This shows that wealth is a more important factor than how someone acts, in fact it was the only factor in Petruchio finding a wife with the help of Hortensio.

In the movie Bridesmaids, Annie’s at a diner with her best friend Lillian having a hilarious breakfast. Lillian asks Annie what she did the night before and what she did, seemingly embarrassed to sleep with Ted. Lillian responds by saying “I know you say he’s cute and all that stuff, but he makes you feel like shit, you know, you’re a total catch and any guy would be psyched to be your man. You should just make room for someone who’s nice to you.”From this, it can be said that for a successful relationship, a person should be nice to another person who they want to have a relationship with. I guess what they have isn’t considered a traditional relationship but just sex partners, Annie responds by saying “You know what he’s honest, he told me that we are what we are and we’re just having fun.”

“I come to wive it wealthily in Padua; If wealthily, then happily in Padua.”

( Act 1 Scene 2, line 75-77)

This is the part in scene one where Petruchio responds to Hortensio when he says that he could find a woman who was really rich but not too nice. What Petruchio is saying is that if the lay isn’t nice that’s okay, her wealth covers up for that.

I contrasted the scene from the Taming of the Shrew with the scene in Bridesmaids where Ted picks Annie up from her car accident. In this scene Annie get into a car accident with her really crappy car after her fight with her best friend and has no way to get home, so she calls really rich Ted to pick her up. Ted pulls up in his $100,000 Porsche. While in the car home Ted asked Annie to have sex with him, she got really frustrated and asked to get out, he asked why she said “Because I would rather get murdered out here than spend the next half-an-hour with you.” This doesn’t show happiness, this doesn’t show a couple that's happy even though wealth is surrounding them. In the end of this scene Annie gets out of the car and never see Ted again, as she left he screamed “You are no longer my number three”.

Both the play and the movie both depict relationships that start of really bad, based off the concept. The relationships in both the play and the film show’s what people would do for status, Annie wants to be the girlfriend of this really wealthy man, but that’s not what he wants. Petruchio want’s a relationship with Katherine but she doesn’t. In the end both relationships differ, some people realize that relationship are best for them while others find out it was wrong all along.

I remember walking into Saxbys Rittenhouse Square in August of 2015 looking for a job. I was 15 years old at the time. I walked in and said “Hey I see you have a job opening are you hiring can I get an application?”

I was nervous as hell. The guy look at me with a huge smile and told me

“Really man apply online, they are really looking for people.”

He showed me the website and told me good luck. I asked for his name he said “Quran”. I didn’t fill out the application at that moment but decided to hit up every store on South 20th street till South and once I got to South I hit up every store on South till Front street. After getting to front and South I made my way back to the Rittenhouse Square area and sat in the park. There I filled out my application for Saxbys. I got a call back from aurelina a few days later and did a phone interview. It was the only place that called me back out of the dozens of businesses I had been to.  I than was asked to come into Headquarter for a face to face interview.

Getting Ready. My first job interview. I wake up a nervous anxious wreck. My interview wasn’t until the afternoon at 1pm. The whole day I’m pacing back and forth in my room wondering what are they going to ask. What if I get the job and hate it? What If I don’t get the job? What if they look at me like I’m a joke? I’m just 15 years old. I don’t really need a job I want a job. All of these things made me even more anxious. It was getting closer to game time so I took a nice warm shower. I decided to wear my royal blue dress pants. Hey that reminds me I need to look for them. I also wore my sky blue buttoned up shirt with a royal blue tie. I was looking what my grandmother would say “casket sharp”. I began making my way to Saxbys Headquarters.

Interview Time

Upon arrival I was greeted by the security guard who cracked some awful jokes. I made my way to the elevators then up I went to suite 310. I walked out of the elevator and was greeted again but this time by the most beautiful glass wall with a really nice medallion. After admiring the glass wall I walked through a  glass door and past a few offices with glass walls and doors. I was finally in the main space which was so bright and had huge ceiling and huge windows. Holy Shit this place is beautiful. I stood for few seconds a little confused at what to do until some guy came up to me and asked “Hey how can I help you?” “Umm Umm I’m here for an interview”. Shoot I just said umm twice I’m ruining my chances. “Okay great you can sit right over here can I get you drink?” I decided on a water to calm myself down a little. Me wanting to leave an impression I came about 15 minutes early. Within those 15 minutes I was able to really observe the space and and the people. One person stood out to me in particular. It was this really tall guy who was really put together. I knew I saw him before but didn’t know where I knew him from. After about five minutes of thinking It clicked I saw him at my school. It was finally interview time. The interview started off great. We got to the part where they asked

“So what do you like to do outside of school” I responded

“I like photography and hanging out with friends.”

All I could think was wow that's the most ridiculous answer. To vague. To basic but it’s very true. Also the fact that I was 15 gave me less points and then that answer would leave me looking like any other person who applied for this job. Other than that one incident in my head, the interview went great. The nerve wracking part was finally over

“Thank you so much for coming Kaamil we’ll contact you if we offer you a position”

“Okay thank you for your time”

I felt with all my heart I didn’t get the job. I left wondering “How do I tell people I didn’t get the job.”

It's September 4th around 4:30pm and I just satisfied my stomach with a greasy slice of Fairmount Pizza. The only thing on my mind is I didn’t get the job. As I walked out of the shop my phone began ringing.

“Hello”

“Hi this is Aurelina from Saxbys Coffee, I’m calling to offer you a position with Saxbys”

“Yes of course”

“Okay, can you come in to fill out paperwork tomorrow”

“Yes”

Training and Shadow Shifts

I began training a few days after filling out paperwork. I trained with Lauren.  A really nice tall women who made training super fun! I trained with a group of adults who I thought I wouldn’t fit in at all. I don’t remember much of my training other than that I was really quiet because I was the youngest and it was really cool to learn something new. What I do remember is my shadow shift. My shadow shifts were really fun but super nerve wracking. It’s going to be  my first time in a real cafe with real humans paying real money for a really good drink. What if I mess up. Turns out the shadow shift wasn’t bad at all. I shadowed this really really tall guy at Rittenhouse cafe. At first I was really intimidated but he made the shift super fun and easy. But now it’s time to go to the real cafe and work for real. My gaming practice is over.

WORK

I began working at the Upenn cafe in November of 2015.. I sat at this long table with all of my co-workers for a team meeting and a chance to meet everyone. Even though we were all new I still felt odd. I was still the youngest. But at the end of the table was the really tall guy from my shadow shift Reed. He was my manager. From the November till June Reed was my manager he currently works at HQ. Reed encouraged me to always do my best and has made me much more of a professional and so has Heather a former co worker who works at HQ now. After months of being just a barista I was promoted to be a team lead. As in someone who manages a  shift and make sure the cafe stays active and can remain active when I leave. So at the young age of 16 I’m basically in charge of running a cafe for a couple of hours which doesn’t seem that hard but is really stressful. For example If something at the cafe happens like a crazy person comes in and threatens to kill someone I have to deal with the issue. If we run out of something I have to deal with the issue. If someone doesn’t show up I have to pull more weight or ask someone to come in. This all when I’m still the youngest person working in the cafe. I still have to get people to warm up to me and to respect me as a team lead even though I’m super young it just takes time.

INTERNING

When I worked under Reed we would take long walks after work and talk about our future. When I told him I needed to do an internship he encouraged me to do an internship at our headquarters. I didn't think it was possible due to no other high schoolers ever interning there. I emailed Nick Bayer the CEO of Saxbys about an internship and he hooked me up with Allie. Allie has been my go to person for everything interesting and has created a really cool job where I get to have a peek into everyone's job. From Marketing and Social Media to HR. I’ve been able to create skills and gain knowledge from adults who work. Being able to use my own skills and applying them to my internship has been the most difficult. I never know if my skills are good enough. I’‘m only in high school these people are legit adults I’m working with. Every single event and job that I’ve done I’ve been the youngest. From parties like the Inc.5000 party where adults get super dressed up and have a great night to our Holiday christmas party I’m still this young little guy that’s surrounded by adults and has really only worked with adults.

THE SWITCH

There's a huge change from coming to school and going to work. On one end I have people arguing over crap and on the other end I have people talking about rent. I sometimes feel like an adult trapped in the life a teenager. I don’t have much in common with teenagers other than the fact that I go to school and live with my parents. I always think about all the things I’ve been able to do and the trust Saxbys has given me to not only be a team lead but to intern at HQ and give me responsibilities the normal teenager doesn’t have. When I come to school I think of how much my life is going to change. I see my future in all of my coworkers. I think of all the things they have taught me and all the things I am gonna have to do and I thank them for giving me the biggest head start. As I continue to grow and the world continues to change through my eyes I think of everyone who has given me a professional balance and the best head start in life. Thank you so much and let’s continue to make life better.

Animated television has been a staple in households with children for decades. Cartoons  are known to teach children positivity but it's probably doing the opposite. In recent years shows like Family Guy and American Dad have taken cartoons from being innocent to being a delinquents favorite show. Animated TV shows opens young people’s minds to violence and negative behavior. However, when adults see the animated format they assume that it is automatically acceptable for children to watch.   

Shows like Family Guy and American Dad are shows that are animated but are not made for children. They have content about sex, drugs and other vulgar things, yet it’s watched heavily by young people because it’s animated and funny. According to the site USA Today and Nielsen Media research, Family Guy ranks at number 5 for the most watched show for people between the ages of 2-11. Among teens it's ranked as the second most watched television show. For the viewers it was made for, adults, it's ranked at no.18 for adults 18-49 and no.118 for adults 50 and over. When criticized by the parent groups, the executive producer says, “I think it's absolutely for adults, I don't let my kids watch it. They're 8 and 6. We're doing a show for us (the 14 writers). Most are over 30, a few over 40, but we all remember what we found funny.” Children are being exposed to things some people say they shouldn’t be exposed to. Because the show is animated and put on during the day, parents are being tricked into thinking it's okay to watch.

For people who think these shows are harmless, there is proof that they can impact behavior. In an article published by the Animation World Network (ANW), Dr. Ruebert gives cases in which children’s brains were altered by animation. One example was when a boy, by the name of Dickie Johnson, decided to take his family yacht on a spin in the lake. The boy crashed the yacht destroying the family dock. According to Dickie’s mother, after seeing The Mouse in theatres Dickie has became a “hellion” and wouldn’t stop torturing the family’s cat. The family sued Walt Disney for the corruption of a minor and inciting mischief. While on the stand, Dickie said, “I thought if a lowly, common mouse could drive a boat, surely I could too.”  This case proves that children are influenced to do things that they see on television, like Dickie, which takes over the child's mind and make things look fun.

The family of a boy by the name Devin Grimm sued Walt Disney, Fox, MGM, Warner Bros. and Universal for the mental abuse of their son. According to Devin Grimm's parents, between the ages of 2 and 17 Devin watched close to 21,000 hours of animation which eventually drove him to become a lunatic. In elementary school Devin developed split personality disorder,  where Devin would tie girls to tables and come back to save them after changing his leotards. Devin refused to take his cape off. Throughout his teen years Devin’s need for animation became so crazy he began stealing from video stores, until eventually he was banned. After he was banned from every store in town Devin came up with a plan to rob a store, which went wrong and caused an explosion. Devin was arrested and while going to trial was deemed unfit due to his obsession with animation. Devin was influenced by cartoons to do so many bad things that eventually led to him going to jail in his teens and becoming mentally unstable forever.

These examples show how and why animation affects young people. These young boys watched so much animation, that they thought they could do the things the characters did. Children are very curious and learn from what they see and know. Animation is not the same for every kid, but actually a unique experience for each one. Some children watch animation as a child and grow into healthy human beings who can look back and tell which tv show was there favorite and why. Some children grow into humans who need a little extra help because they're stuck in an animated world. The danger lies in the hands of the parents and what they expose their children to.

WORKS CITED

Dr. Ruebert Saturnine III. "The Adverse Effects of Cartoons on the Minds of Our Children."

Animation World Network, 1 April 2004. Web. 26 Sept. 2016.

Christopher, By. "Fox’s Family Guy: For Children?" N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Sept. 2016.

Books are a great tool for entertainment and understanding. Books answer lots of great questions that make people think really hard about. The big question I thought of after reading William Goldings’s Lord of The Flies was  who’s more savage adults or children? A reader of Lord of the Flies would choose children, because in the novel they were killers and robbers. Are children actually like that in real life? From robberies, stabbings and rape, to even various slayings, one would ultimately think that adults are the savages. Lets face it, adults and children can both be savage, but, adults have  furtherly developed brains, which in turn, allows them to know the difference between right and wrong, unlike children.

In the book Lord Of the Flies, the children who are stuck on an island started rituals. These rituals allowed them to have something in common, something they could all fall back on. In some of the rituals the children would scream some crazy things that may make the reader think of them as savages. Like a tribe, some of the characters had rituals. One of the rituals was a chant that said “Kill the beast! Cut his throat! Spill his blood!”(186). This quotes comes from children who are under the age of 12 and are scared of a beast. These children also are in a situation where they are on there own and trying to survive on an island. Researchers have found that the brain isn’t fully developed until around the age of 25. If these children are under 12 they aren’t half way through brain development so they don’t know right from wrong as much as an average adult.

On December 14, 2012 The second deadliest mass shooting by a single person in America occurred. Twenty year old Adam Peter Lanza killed 27 people including his mother. According to investigators Lanza killed his mother at their Newtown,CT home then drove to Sandy Hook Elementary School where he killed six members of the staff and 20 students all of which were under the age of 8.  According to The Guardian“Adam Lanza, the 20-year-old who convulsed America when he shot dead 20 young children and six of their adult carers at Sandy Hook elementary school in Connecticut last December, was obsessed with mass murders in the run-up to his meticulously-planned attack and kept photocopies of newspaper articles on shootings of children dating back to 1891.” This show that Adam Lanza was nothing but a savage and he knew what he was doing. He had an understanding of what was going to happen and what he wanted to do. Adults aren’t oblivious to the actions of themselves. This shows that adults plan things and try to see how they are going to carry things out. Therefore they are more aware.

In Lord of the Flies some of the characters became more like a family. All together like a family was Ralph, Roger, Jack, Piggy, Simon and a few others. They were each other's shoulder to lean on and together worked to survive. The horrible decision of one person changed it all. “The rock struck Piggy a glancing blow from chin to knee: the conch exploded into a thousand white fragments and ceased to exist. Piggy, saying nothing, with no time for even a grunt, traveled through the air sideways from the rock, turning over as he went. Piggy fell 40 feet and landed on his back across the the square red rock in the sea. His head opened and stuff came out and turned red. Piggy's arms and legs twitched a bit, like a pigs after it has been killed”(181). This quote was a turning point in the book. This was when Jack and Ralph were fighting and Roger threw a rock. This makes children look like cold hearted savages. This shows that children don’t think as much as adults because their brains aren’t fully developed. Roger probably didn’t think or want to kill Piggy, he probably just wanted to give a warning.

There could be many factors into why adults do outrageous things. No matter the factors it still can be considered savage. One common factor in barbaric activity is mental illness. According to the New York Times “Medical experts at Yale University had called for drastic measures to help Adam Lanza in the years before he shot and killed 26 people at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., but those calls “went largely unheeded” by his mother, who was also shot to death”.  It also says “based on a comprehensive examination of the medical and school histories of Mr. Lanza, 20, found he was “completely untreated in the years before the shooting” for psychiatric and physical ailments like anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorder, and was also deprived of recommended services and drugs.” These quotes show that there’s a reason why adults may be more savage. It shows that mental illness is a factor in why adults are more savage. The mental illness could have been caused by boys mother in which over time made him more of a savage but he knew what he was doing. Adam is also more savage because he could have made the decision to get medication himself. By the age of twenty years old in the U.S. a person is allowed to make medical decisions by themselves. There is no excuse for someone to not get on meditation if the person’s doctor recommend it to them.

As it turns out adults have furtherly developed brains, which in turn, allows them to know the difference between right and wrong, unlike children. In Lord of the Flies things that were said were uncivilized and people were killed. These were children whose brains were not in far development to completely understand what they were doing. In the 2012 shooting death of 26 people, shooter Adam Lanza knew what he was doing. Adam planned it all out and knew what he was going to the school to do. What people can get out of this is that many factors play a role in being a savage, but brain development makes people more and less of a savage.

Work Cited: Golding William. Lord of the Flies. New York: Perigee 2006

Work Cited: Pilkington, Ed. "Sandy Hook Report – Shooter Adam Lanza Was Obsessed with Mass Murder." N.p., 25 Nov. 2013. Web. 7 Apr. 2016.

Good Evening Idiot Prostitutes. Look at me, I’m Taylor Hunt, you know who I am but allow me to reintroduce myself. I drive a Rolls. Royce that is. It’s a hot pink and no I don’t drive everyday, but I do have car service pick me up. And please don’t you ever disrespect me by saying it’s an Uber.

Why did you look at me like that? I am not driving in that widely popular car service, that's where you get diseases, and um by the way I’m widely popular also. You may be popular in two or three months but I’ll always be the Regina George of this group.

My father is filthy rich. He’s a billionaire, You know him, Jonathan Hunt the person that developed most of your houses. I don’t want or need for anything. Oh and I’m also dating the hottest football player on campus Mike Sergiano. Yup thats right number 13. He’s my man and if any of you sluts have something to say to him, you must go to me first. Oh yeah by the way I was crowned prom queen twice. And No I wasn’t left back, I was asked to prom my sophomore year. Any questions?

My mom, what do you mean who’s my mom? Ugh okay, oh god….. My mother is Grace Helen. I don’t talk about her because I haven't talked to her in two years. She was who I looked up to, who I wanted to be and in an instant she was gone. No, she’s not dead but from the feeling I have inside she is. It was not her fault and I know she didn’t want it to be like this but it was him. (voice cracks, starts to tear up)

Him, the guy that I never admired, but the one who takes care of me. It was chaos, it was fear, it was trouble, it was pain. I hated to see the dark red marks on her back. But at least she got away. I always wanted her to be safe but now….. I’m stuck with the fear of never seeing her again. Her beautiful face, the glisten in her eyes, the pretty white smile, it was just a show. It hid the pain than sat forever (big pause, deep breath) love. I’m scared of it, It’s hard to see that love isn’t a slap in the face or a black eye, but it’s compassion, affection and kindness. Mike, I’m sorry that you love me and I never say it back, It’s just…..I was never showed what true love is. The Rolls, the hair, the makeup, it doesn’t solve anything. Well wait I do like my Rolls though. But what does money buy you….Nothing that has true value.

All my life I have been blamed for everyone's problem, without anyone ever asking if I was okay. There was one time in the third grade when I yelled at this girl for bumping into me. I wasn’t mad at her it was the day after I saw my mom and dad get into a physical altercation for the first time. I was traumatized, I was mad, but no one would know because no one asked. All they cared was that the girl I yelled at was okay. I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t know if I should tell someone because I didn’t want to break up the family, but I regret it. I could've stopped the war. (Crying)

So please don’t ever ask me about my mom or you will not have the honor to be one of my little minions.

“Hey, how are you what are you doing today?” That's how I talk to my elders, but when I talk to my cousins I say “yo what you doin?”  This is just how different the conversation between my elders and young people are, yet they mean the same thing

The language I use is one of the biggest parts of my identity. It might not change what my thought process is or what I really mean but when it comes to communication it means a lot. I have to have a switch when it comes to language use. I talk to everyone differently, I talk to my family differently than I  talk to my friends and my teachers and I talk to my teachers differently than I talk to my boss or a business man/women.

When it comes to my family I talk to my parents, grandparent, aunts and uncles differently than I talk to my cousins. If I talk to my parents and older adults in my family in a bad tone or in a unmannerly fashion it's gonna make me look like a bad child but I don’t go to heavy on speaking proper, I try to speak proper while also using some slang terms that the adults would get. When I talk to my cousins, we have more of a friendly conversation. The conversations are still a little proper but I don’t care at all about my grammar. I don’t because I know they won’t judge me or really care if I didn’t say something correctly.

One time I was talking to my grandmother at a family gathering and I realized how much I articulated and said yes or no.

“Did you have a great day at school?”

“Yes”.

“What did you do today?”

“Today we learned about catalyst in bio-chem class, so that was fun, and I also hung out with friends after school because I did not have Students Run practice”

At the same family event one of my cousins, Ana who’s more intelligent and in college asked me about school and the way I answered was completely different than when my grandmother asked me even though she was in college, she’s still my cousin.

“Did you have fun in school today?”

“Yeah, it was ard.”

“What did you do today?”

“Well ummm, I learned about this thing called catalyst and I ain’t run today so it was okay, oh yeah and I hung out with some peeps”

This was interesting to me. Why did I switch the way I said things? I knew I wanted to be respectful to my grandparents and live up to what I thought were their expectations. I talked to my cousin in that way just so I could fit in. Yeah fit in. All of my cousins speak Black English and I’m the only one who don’t. I often stay silent just because the properness in my voice would break the conversation or at least that’s what I thought would happen. There have been times where my own family called me out and said “Why do you sound white?”, that question shattered me. It made me feel like an outsider, like I was doing it wrong. I never answer to that question, I just smile to hide what’s really going on inside.

“Can I get a caramel macchiato with almond milk”

“Yes sir”

“You don’t have to call me sir, we’re in the same business and I’m no better than you, plus it makes me sound old”

“You sure?”

“Of course dude, your such a well mannered kid”

I recently starting working at a coffee shop called Saxbys. When talking to my boss I try to say yes sir as a sign of respect to someone of a higher level. My boss doesn’t really like it or neither does he care that I call him sir. He thinks it’s really old fashion and makes him seem old. This made me question if words like sir and mam were just slang words. Sir and mam aren’t used in my generation as often.  Some people misunderstand what slang words are. Most people usually think they’re uneducated words that people make up and they become words that lots of people use.

This was by far my favorite project that I've done all year. Not only was this my favorite project of the year but one of the most stressful. When doing a project like this there are gonna be many major glows and grows and I had just a few.

My first blog post was very exciting to write but I was also nervous about say the same thing over and over again. When doing the research I had to look at different accredited resources that gave me great information. The problem I had with this is that most of the websites said the same thing over and over again. So it took a lot of research for me to get to 500 words in that blog post. I wish I could go back and go more into detail about different types of childhood cancer and which ones are curable and not curable.

My blog post number two was definitely the most exciting. My interview was one of the best things I've done so far in my life. I was finally able to show someone that they weren't forgotten about by the teenage community. When going into this interview I thought it would be very sad, but it turned out to be a really good teenage conversation. The person I interviewed was very down to earth and funny. This interview showed met that life is too short to walk around sad and mopey and to live each and every day like it's your last.

Since my last few blog post a lot has happened. Let me give you a refreshment on my last two blogs. So in my first blog post I talked about why I chose to do my project on pediatric cancer and the scary statistics that affect teens our age each day. In my second blog post I talked about my interview with a cancer patient.

Currently there is a full month dedicated to pediatric cancer awareness. It's September. In September of 2014 President Barack Obama proclaimed September, the month to honor and support those who have or have had cancer. The President also signed the Gabriella Miller Kids First Research Act earlier in 2014 that gives ten years for cancer research. I think this was a huge deal for everyone connected with pediatric cancer and in the medical field. I think it's a huge step in research, because it gives ten years of research that could potentially find a cure to a disease that has killed so many people over a long period of time. I think it also shows people who have untreatable cancer that they weren't forgotten about.

A really huge part of the pediatric cancer awareness is the Alex Lemonade Foundation. Alex was a girl from Manchester, Connecticut who was diagnosed with neuroblastoma just before she turned one years old. At the age of five Alex started a lemonade stand with her brother to raise money for children with cancer. Every year she and her family held an annual lemonade stand fundraiser. At the age of eight Alex sadly died at her home in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania with her family by her side. Since the opening of her stand the Alex Lemonade Stand Foundation has raised over 100 million dollars. I think this foundation shows people with cancer that they can do anything in life and too never give up. Alex never gave up and fought for other people even though she was struggling.

For my agent of change I decided to do care packages. This was not my first idea. My initial plan was to create cards for cancer patients and take them to the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). I was really looking forward to doing this but after a few phone calls and emails I was told I couldn't do that  due to CHOP's sanitation policy which was understandable. So with only a week left to turn this project in my teacher and I decided on a care package. At first I was hesitant about it because I didn't know how I was actually changing something, but with only a week left I went with it.

Who could I give this too? The first person to come to my head was Aliya, the girl I interview in my second blog. The other person was a senior at my school who I heard about but had not met named Matt.

Unfortunately, I was unable to give the care package to Aliya but I will as soon as I'm able to, but I was able to give Matt his. It took me two days to find Matt, but during that time I was so anxious to see his reaction. When I handed Matt his care package which I wrapped with brown paper he was also very nervous. Matt was so nervous he got his friend to open the package. When his friend opened it Matt was so surprised and shocked, it was amazing. A few minutes later Matt sent me an email and thank me.

For my Passion, Information and Change project I chose pediatric cancer. In my first blog post I talked about why I chose to pursue childhood cancer. I also talked about the scary statistics that unfortunately pierce the hearts of children, teens and their family every single day.

For my original research I decided to do an interview. When I recieved my project I knew exactly what I wanted to do for my original research. That was to interview the student at SLA Beeber who I introduced you to in my first blog post. I didn't want to Direct Message her but after a few emails and phone calls I was able to schedule an interview for the following Friday.

All week I was so eager to meet someone who had gone through so much. The Thursday before the interview I was preparing my questions and thinking of what I should say and what I shouldn't; I was scared the conversation would be very emotional so I had disclaimers.

It was finally interview day and I decided to leave school early so I could get to the interview on time. When I got to the Starbucks on the campus of Saint Joseph's University I was scared the girl I was meeting was going to be in bad spirits.

As I sat and waited for the girl to enter the Starbucks I looked at some videos of other people interviewing cancer patients then, about two minutes into my first video the young lady by the name of Aliya Rouine walked into the door.

When Aliya came over to me and hugged me she said ¨oh this is awkward¨. A huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders. She was smiling and laughing with me and her friend, whom she had brought for support. She was a normal teenager.

Aliya story starts in late December 2014 when she became very ill but didn't know what it was, so she went to the doctor to go get it checked out. The doctor thought she had the flu until a few weeks later she began to have trouble breathing and went to the hospital where they told her she had pneumonia. Since pneumonia is a symptom of Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (A.L.L) they tested her for it. Sadly the results came back positive.

Aliya just like anyone who was told they had cancer said she was really scared. One thing that stuck with me was that she was more happy she knew what was making her sick. For me, I wouldn't want to know that something inside me can take over my body.

I was very interested in how she changed and the people around her. Aliya said the people around her have become nicer to her. She said people she don't even know say hello to her because ¨maybe they feel bad¨. She also told me that her family has become closer. Not only have her family become closer but her family and friends have been very supportive.

Since she was diagnosed she said she became more grateful and sympathetic towards people and what they are going through. I asked Aliya what she thought about people who take things for granted and she said ¨ they need to think harder about what they are thankful for because you're life can change in an instant¨.

Over 35,000 children are currently being treated for cancer, sadly 25% of those children will die. Thankfully, Aliya's form of cancer is treatable. Aliya will be finished with her chemotherapy in October but will have to take a pill everyday for the next few years. Researchers have been on a great road to curing A.L.L, they have raised survival rates from 4 percent 50 years ago to 94 percent today.

Cancer not only affects you, but it affects your family emotionally and financially. Families are usually financially depleted.

This interview made me learn that people who are sick are just like everyone else. I learned to not take things for granted and to cherish every single moment because no matter how old you are your life can change in an instant.

To listen to my Full Interview Click Here!

To see My Annotated Bibliography Click Here!

Pediatric Cancer. Those two words have been the worst fears families have had and continue to have across the world. Doing a topic on cancer was something I already had in mind, but when I learned of two cases of cancer on the same day, I knew it was my calling to do a project on pediatric cancer. One case that I heard about was during school when someone told me pop star Taylor Swift, mother was diagnosed. The case that made me definite about choosing pediatric cancer was when I found out a freshman student at SLA Beeber had cancer. I was scrolling through my feed on Instagram and I saw a picture of a girl who took a selfie and captioned it ¨first bald selfie¨.  I began to look through her photos and I realized a girl my age who attends SLA sister had cancer. This hit so close to home. This topic interest me because there are so many teens including me who take things for granted. I want to show that people who are just like us are fighting a fight they didn’t choose and are in a worse situation than us.

No matter who you are, no matter how much money you have you can’t dodge the bullet of cancer. Every year an estimated 263,000 cases of cancer affects children under the age of twenty.  From 1970 to 2011 the amounts of deaths from childhood cancer has decreased 67%, which is really important but there are so many more steps we need to take to cure childhood cancer completely. About 250 children lose their lives to cancer every single day. The scariest fact of them all is that childhood cancer is the leading cause of death by disease and the number two cause of death overall in the United States.  These number makes me scared but It just reminds me how fortunate I am to live each and every day without the fear of dying. This topic is also important because it affects everyone that’s involved with the person and you can become someone involved with someone with cancer.

Samuel Dennis, Kaamil Jones, Jelani McFadden

Senorita Manuel

Español 1

06 February 2015

SLA: La Escuela De Maravillas

¡Hola! ¡Bienvenidos a nuestra escuela, SLA! Mi nombre es Samuel. Yo soy del primer año en SLA. Yo estoy aquí con Kaamil Jones y Jelani McFadden. Te presento mis amigos y la familia de SLA. SLA es una escuela magnet en Filadelfia. Tenemos una experiencia con nuestras propias computadoras para aprender. Nuestra escuela está situada cerca de la tienda en la calle y a Trader Joe's. Nuestra escuela es algo grande. Nosotros tenemos 465 estudiantes y 20 profesores en la escuela. Nuestra escuela era fundar en el año 2006 por nuestro director, Señor Lehmann. ¡Aquí que las escaleras siempre están llenas! Tenemos veinte profesores en nuestra escuela. Ellos son tremendamente compasivo! ¡Tenemos un la variedad! ¡Tenemos futbol, último disco volador, pista y campo, baloncesto. ¡Lo que quieras, lo tenemos!

Hola, Mi Nombre es Kaamil Jones, a estudiante en SLA! Nosotros tener muchas clases. Nosotros tener Bioquímica, Matemáticas, inglés, español y drama. En bioquímica nosotros hacemos experimentos. nosotros disecar pigs. ¡Que lástima! mi ingles profesora es Amal Giknis, Enseña muy bien. en inglés leemos libros. Leemos, To Kill A Mockingbird y Macbeth. Mi Matemáticas profesora es señorita Thompson. Es bastante estricta.

Los profesores de SLA son chéveres, interesantes y divertidos. Sin embargo son exigentes. Enseñan muy bien. Por ejemplo, el Sr. Kay enseña inglés. Es fantástico - sociable y deportista. Su clase es tranquila. El Sr. Block enseña historia. Es muy inteligente. Es de Nueva York. Y la Srta. Sessa enseña bioquímica. Los fines de semana le gusta ir a fiestas, escuchar música y cantar. Los estudiantes de SLA son trabajadores, encantadores y creativos. Hacemos proyectos divertidos. Trabajamos duro pero lo pasamos bien en nuestras clases. ¡Qué chévere!

• Mi nombre es Kaamil Jones, mí apodo es KJ. Soy Africano Americano soy de filadelfia, Me gusta cantar y bailar.

• nombre es Christian. Te gusta cantar y música y surfear la red. Es mi mejor amigo.  Christian es latino y de decendencia eurpea.

• ellas son nombre Ella y Emily. Emily el pelo café claro.  Ella los ojos pardos.  ella encanta platicar con amigos.  Emily encanta estar de vago.

• Mi amigos muy loco pero tremendamente chévere.

I think net neutrality is important for teens to know because we are the future. I think the internet is becoming more and more futuristic. I think we are gonna be the ones affected by what happens with Net Neutrality. I also think we should know about this because its about equality and thats a big part of life and a huge topic.

Net neutrality is really important because if net neutrality wasn’t a thing we would all be treated unfairly. The ISPs would be able to scheme us teens and have us pay more for services. By them doing this it would make online communicating much harder. This a problem because us teen do most of our communicating online. Communicating online has just become a way of life.

Teens should know about net neutrality because if we didn’t our future would be completely controlled by companies. Our world would be controlled by companies because technology and the internet is what we all depend on. Teens especially like me should know about net neutrality because thats online is where I turn in and do almost all my work. So that means net neutrality affects my education.

http://www.savetheinternet.com/net-neutrality

http://www.theopeninter.net/

https://www.ocf.berkeley.edu/~raylin/whatisnetneutrality.htm

I made this slide look like this because I wanted it to look really simple. When doing this I thought about Apple, the company. I looked at their ads and saw how simple it was and how they had simple colors like black, white and grey with a pop of color. Also from reading the articles and thinking about the IKEA ads It was just simple and focus around the pictures instead of the words.

Hola, Me llamo es Mark Zuckerberg. Tengo treinta y tres años. Soy de White Plains, NY pero vivo en Palo Alto, California.

Me gusta (mucho) jugar con mi teléfono. Soy súper inteligente. Me algo famoso.

Me gusta Facebook. Soy creativo. Soy algo serio en trabajar. Me gusta (mucho) dinero. Soy billionare. Soy más o menos alto.