Slam Poetry 321

3 things that you are looking forward to learning, developing or using in your poetry over the course of our slam workshops.

1. I want to learn more about the lines and timing in a slam poem. For example, do slam poems have stanzas?

2. I wanted to find out some stuff about rhyming vs non-rhyming poems. Are there ways to incorporate a mixture of rhyming parts and non-rhyming parts in the same poem?

3. Do you have to perform it for it to be considered a spoken word or slam poem? If so, what type of poem would it be if you just wrote it and didn't perform?

2 things that Beth Anne or Greg reinforced that we have already been doing in class, or you have already been doing in your own writing.

1. I thought it was really cool that Greg mentioned that literally anything written is poetry. I've never thought about it in that way but it completely makes sense.

2. I loved how Beth Anne used body language and acting to really add to her poetry. It makes you feel more connected as she performs and helps you to understand what she is saying.

1 poem that you wrote yesterday

I didn't finnish the poem or anything but ths is what I have so far:

Laptop

Laptops clicking open to expose a world of viruses, facebook, pornography. A world of mystery and fear that somehow sucks you in and clutches you into a hug. A hug that seems welcoming yet will come back to haunt you when you least expect it.

All life would close if all laptops closed. We, the human race have become dependent on our laptops. They are the drug of social updates and the life around us that we are too afraid to step into, so instread we open our laptops.

If it were to crash, our homework, our knowledge, our lives would crash. But hey, do we have a choice?

Assignment #10 Mystery History Maker

My Mystery History match was David McTaggart.

1. Were you able to identify your history maker using the clues provided?

Yes, I was. David McTaggart protested against abuse of the Antarctic and the whaling industry. He also dropped out of High School to pursue activism because that's what he believed in. (I don't plan on dropping out but | think it's cool that he stood up for his beliefs.)

2. What do you have in common with this person?

His birthday is only 2 weeks before mine. He started greenpeace and I'm also an environmentalist. We are both Canadian. He retired to live on an olive farm and olives are my favourite food.

3. Why is this person historically significant in Canada?

David McTaggart is historically significant to Canada because he was a Canadian environmentalist who played a key role in Greenpeace Inernational.

Original assignment

Museum of Civilization

Mystery History Maker

More info on David McTaggart

Assignment #14 (Reading Buddies Poem)

This is the poem that I made with my reading buddy Maxine.

Here in the ghetto there is no light

Waiting for sunshine, you're always in fright

Still on children's faces you see delight

If only their futures could be so bright

They try to escape but the guards keep them in

A scream creeps out as they break through

But you know the dream wont come true

The fence will always win.

Professor Scott Reflection

Hey Folks,

Here's a video of my Professor Scott Reflection. You might have to crank your volume up, but maybe not, it really depends on your speakers. Just let the video start and then you can determine your volume level.

If you're having problems with the video it pretty much says this:

(3) What did you learn?

I learned that the width of train tracks were decided because they matched it to the width of distance between a horse's hind legs.

I learned that before they had a good method of transportation it took around 36 hours to get from Montreal to Quebec City.

I learned that a large source of communication in the 19th century was through Shakespeare plays.

(1) What technology interested you?

The telegraph/morse code interested me because it was like the old method of texting.

(3)How did it impact society?

It impacted society because they had a quick way to send messages from far distances (they didn't have phones back then.)

It was much faster than typing so it really came in handy for people.

It was a new and exciting was of communicating.

(2) What questions do you have?

I was wondering if the school, Colonel By was named for Colonel John By (the man that made the Rideau canal.)

I heard Professor Scott mention the word "Dorchester" and I was wondering what is has to do with History because the building I live in is called "The Dorchester."

(1) Tie into a big History idea.

This ties into History is a collection of stories because before they had all this technology people learned things from stories and what they read.

Asignment #12: AWESOME

This is a response to Assignment #12: Awesome.

Before I get into my post I'd just like to say, Miss Pollock, this is AWESOME! I think this is my favourite assignment so far.

I know this is a bit late so that's why I'm using my PD day to catch up on any homework that is overdue as well as homework due on Monday.

Part 1- Awesome things from 1000 Awesome things
#365- Getting dressed out of the dryer/ laundry basket
I can really relate to this becuase up untill recently I had all of my clothes (or at least the ones that I actually wear) in a duffle bag. I used to just get dressed right out of the duffle bag and at the end of the day throw my dirty clothes on my floor. On Friday I would take all the clothes off my floor and do a load of laundry. After that I put all my clean clothes back in the duffle bag and bring them to whatever house I was going to that Friday (becuase I live one week with my Dad and the next week with my Mom). Then the whole cycle would begin again that week. Last week my parents introduced this magical thing to me, it's called...HANGING UP YOUR CLOTHES! So no more awesome getting dressed out of a bag or me.

#401- The sound of dry leaves blowing across a parking lot
Okay, so I'm going to change this one a little bit to, stepping on crunchy looking leaves. In October (before I moved) I walked home after school, it took about half an hour and I just had to walk straight the entire way. You'd imagine that I would get pretty bored walking for half an hour with nobody to keep me company (I live further than most people from school). One day I decided to challenge myself and I didn't let myself take a step without stepping on a leaf. I pretended that every leaf I stepped on saved a life and every step I took that wasn't on a leaf didn't save a life. I know it probably sounds stupid but it was actually really fun and surprisingly I suceeded! I guess that's proof that there are a lot of leaves. Another time when I was walking home I thought that the guy behind me was following me so I wanted to walk relly quickly. I sang a rap in my head (I believe it was Mockingbird by Eminem) and took 1 step per syllable but singing it at it's regular fast speed. It was pretty cool how fast it forced me to walk and I got home a lot earlier than usual.

#414 Driving home from a long trip and getting all your radio stations back
I can relate to this and I still joke about it with my family. In the summer of 2009 (when I was 11/12) my Mom, sister and I went on a roadtrip across Canada and the northern States. We drove the entire way and in the small towns that we drove through there was usually only one radio station with a mix of songs and genres so this is kind of how it went:

(Classic Rock song comes on) Mom: Yes! Finnaly Some good music.
Me: Yawn...
(Lady Gaga song comes on) Sarah and Me: Oh, I love this song!
Mom: There's so much crap on the radio now and days.
(Some rap song comes on) Sarah and Mom: Eww, turn it off!
Me: Hey, I like this beat!

The worst of it was in Montana and Wyoming when there was nothing but 24/7 country music on the radio and in restaurants. We stopped at Pizza Hut and there was this super twangy country song that went something like, "She's a fire Cracker!"
We were so relieved to get back into Ottawa and have all our good radio stations back!

I was inspired by this assignment and decided to make my own list of awesome things, I'm no where near 1000 and I lost a page of awesome things but here's my list of the simple but awesome things in life:

1. Reaching into a bag of M&M's and pulling out more than one stuck together
2. Closing the dishwasher with your foot
3. Cooking a meal and having everything times to be done at the same time
4. Pulling a push door/pushing a pull door
5. Turing the TV/radio on just as your favourite show/song comes on
6. Finding out the name of that song you kept hearing
7. Pinching yourself and then realizing you're NOT dreaming
8. Walking into a store and finding exactly what you were looking for
9. Sitting in your warm house with hot chocolate watching the snow outside
10. Laughing so hard you cry
11. Crying so hard you laugh
12. Correcting your teacher
13. When the google logo changes because it's a holiday
14. Watching a movie on TV that you own and wouldn't normally be watching
15. Wearing something two days in a row without washing it
16. Telling secrets to random people but not telling your best friends
17. When your friend says word and you know exactly what their talking about and burst out laughing
18. Singing out loud in public places
19. Pretending you're the girl kissing the hot guy in the movie
20. Cuddling with your pillow or a big stuffed animal
21. The snooze button
22. Someones face just before they sneeze
23. Writing a row of !'s and getting a 1 at the end!!!!!!!!!!1
24. The crackling sound that rice krispies make when you pour milk into them
25. laughing at someones laugh
26. Inside jokes
27. Reading an entire book at Chapters and without having to buy it
28. Superstitions
29. When your cat walks on your keyboard
30. Hold/elavator music

#17 (on my list) - When your friend says one word and you know exactly what they mean and burst out laughing

This happened to me the other day. My best friend, Zoe was blowing her nose and I said, "Remember" and she knew exactly what I was talking about and stated laughing. It was something that happened in grade 4 or 5 when we were outside and I really needed a kleenex to blow my nose. Zoe told me that her Dad told her when they were camping that you can just snort out of nose and then kind of wipe your nose. So I decided to try that but it didn't work out so well because I was just sitting there with snot hanging out of my nose. Sorry for making it all gross and graphic but between Zoe and I, it's pretty funny.

Okay, so that's my awesome post. I hope you enjoyed it!

Cheers,

Mega-Awesome Hannah

Assignment #11: Letters of Remembrance

This is a response to Assignment 11 on Ms. Pollock's blog.









Dear Father,

I hope all of you are doing well back at home. I'm afraid I can't say the same for myself. I hate the feeling of the sun melting through my heavy uniform, we don't get much shower time so sometimes I have to go to bed in a pool of my own sweat. The nights here are freezing so many people are getting very sick from the crazy temperature drop. There is a lot of air pollution and a shortage of fresh drinking water.



The worst thing that has happened was the passing of my friend, Tim. When we first arrived in a Afghanistan most of the guys underestimated me because I'm a girl. They soon realized how tough I can be but Tim was nice to me and helpful from the beginning. I finally understand what you mean about creeping around a corner and never knowing if you will meet a bullet. I have been luckier than you were though, no major injuries, yet that is.


We don't get much time to eat either and the food is nothing like what what I'm used to at home. I didn't realize how much I would miss Mom's blueberry pancakes! When we do have appetizing food the horrible stench of body odor and rotting bodies takes over and I lose my appetite. I can't believe that I ever wanted to lose weight in high school, now all I want to do is eat and gain all the weight I have lost from not being able to eat.


It is just sinking in that I am here to kill people. I can't bear hearing it in those words, just knowing that I might be taking the life of someone's child, parent, girlfriend, boyfriend, wife, husband, friend, sister, brother, chills me deep down inside. I feel like a terrible person and the only thing that gets me through is knowing that I am doing a good thing for my country and all of Canada's citizens.


I feel like my days are numbered. I either come back or I don't, and that's all there is to it. So please Dad, pray that I will come back, I feel a huge sense of accomplishment but I know that I have a whole life waiting for me back home. Mom says that since you've come back from war you haven't been the same. I realise that I may not be the same Fi that I was before the war but this was something I was meant to do.


Send all my love to Mom, Billy, Amanda, Grandma Josie and baby Riley. It's your love and support that keep me going and give me strength to pull through all the hard times. Tell Mom not to cry, I'll be home soon so don't give up on me or lose faith in me.


I realise that this may not arrive for a while but please write back.


Love,



your daughter,



Fiona

How am I creative?

Ms. Pollock asked us to make a blog post telling everyone how we're creative. Click HERE for more details. I immediately got really excited because anyone who knows me knows that I'm a creative person. After my momentary happy dance (I'm so kidding, it takes a lot more than homework for me to burst into a happy dance) I realised it wouldn't be as easy as I thought. I really wanted to dig deep and tell people what really makes Hannah creative, what makes me Hannah. This is what I came up with:

First thing you should know is there are two Hannah's. No, I am not schizophrenic. What I mean is my creativity reflects through my introvert side (the part of me that's quiet, secretive, observant) and my extrovert side (the part of me that's outgoing, open, bubbly). My main two passions at the moment are my fashion passion (hey, that rhymes!) and my writing passion (that's how I know how to make rhymes). When it comes to writing I'm completely an introvert, I write about things that are bundled up deep down inside me (things I'm not even aware of), I'm very secretive (you should be surprised I'm even sharing this blog post), I pour everything out that I would never even come close to saying out loud. Paper is like my second brain, and my pen--that really is mightier than the sword--has a life of it's own and is transferring words from my brain (the real one in my head) to the paper aka Brain #2. I also just realised that I have a tendency to use WAY too many parenthesis.

My favourite thing to write is raps. People probably don't see me as the rapper type of gal but really, I'm the female Eminem. Speaking of Eminem, he is actually a HUGE inspiration to me. I think he's an amazing writer and rapper and I like the fact that he doesn't give people the wrong idea about rap because he raps about life and not just girls, sex, drugs, money, ect. Another inspiration I have when it comes to writing is television. People say that you should write about things you've experienced, but it's not really fun to write about my bus ride home or how I got dressed in the morning. Since I am like the biggest couch potato ever I experience a lot of TV, thus being my main inspiration for writing. I watch a lot of talk shows, dramas, and reality shows so I see what other people go through and how life can really suck sometimes. I don't write about happy things; when I'm happy I want to be doing happy things like dancing or singing but writing is what I do to control my unhappy emotions. So don't be scared if you notice that a lot of the stuff I write deals with death and other depressing topics, they are not personal but rather about other people, many of which are made up for television. My lastest rap which I just finished this morning (I'm still not happy with the ending but this post is due tomorrow so I don't have time to change it) is about a girl with an eating disorder. You kind of have to read it fast and possibly out loud for it to sound good and rhyme properly but that's what sucks about not being a complete extrovert and just recording myself rapping it. Here it is:

If only she knew -Hannah Z. Shapiro

She promises it will be her last slice of cake, society is making her want to look fake, like a barbie doll, she wont even go to the mall, for fear that she might not be extra-small. She's really quite light but she'll fight into jeans three sizes too small, 'cause they gotta be zero-zero and skin tight. She don't wanna be a hero, just America's Next Top Model eatin' nothin' but celery and diet pepsi by the bottle. She thinks skippin' out on food will make her skinny and she'll catch the eye of that dude who only dates the little mini cheerleaders, 'cause he's insecure and needs to keep his reputation. In his imagination he sees himself and her together, forever but she never even speaks they got open hearts and closed beaks. If only she knew, if only she knew. And now she's not eatin', losing her hair and turning green, if only she knew, if only she knew. She fainted twice in the night, somehow it ain't right, if only she knew, if only she knew. Good thing the 90's are coming back in 'cause she needs her baggy hoodies to hide every inch of her skin. She thinks it's no big deal till she's on life support and it's real. That boy, he didn't even need a phone call in the night to put him in a state of fright. She's laying on a hospital bed, her face all flushed and red. Taking his hand she assures him that with help she can stand, but she's hanging on to life like a puppet tied to strings so he holds her in his arms and his heart stings as her breaths grow shorter and he opens up his beak to speak but he's too late, he'll never know if it was it fate. If only she knew, if only she knew.

Somewhere in the middle it changes tempo because I wrote a lot of it in a short amount of time and then I took a break and I finished it this morning at seven o'clock. Since the clocks switched I'm not sure if it was 6, 7 or 8 but regardless I was quite tired.

Like I said another passion of mine is Fashion but I'll get into that later.

My more extrovert creativity is singing, dancing and acting. I've always loved singing and acting and I've only gotten into dancing recently but I absolutely LOVE dancing! Over the summer I received a bursary--which is pretty much like a scholarship--to a musical theatre workshop. At the end of the workshop we put on a musical called the "goddess." The part I played in it had little acting, quite a bit of singing and a lot of dancing. I had to dance in every musical number and it was really hard to remember all the choreography especially since I had to sing at the same time. Even though it was a hard and stressful two weeks it was one of the most exciting and inspiring experiences of my life and I made friends that I will never forget. Here are two numbers from "The Goddess."

This one was the opening number, I'm the one who is in the middle at the beginning. I walk down to the microphone and I sing the first verse...solo! The quality kind of sucks because it was filmed on a blackberry. So here is "Long ago and Far Away" :

The video upload doesn't work so you'll have to click HERE to watch it.

The second one is sung by Jupiter played by Katie (who is by the way an AMAZING actress and proof that people with autism are just the same as every one else.) I'm hard to point out but I'm in black and towards the left for most of the time.

Click HERE to view "I'm gonna come back."

The Goddess is a rock and roll comedy musical set in the 50's. It follows gods and goddesses and mortals. It's the story about what happened when Cupid (a god) was the victim of his own arrows and fell in love with Psyche (a mortal) all while Bacchus (another god[dess]) came down to earth as a rock and roll superstar, thus starting one of the worlds most popular genres of music.

This is a drawing someone made of the writers/directors Andrea and Alan:

This is a picture of the Zephyrs: Charlotte, Farrah, Jillian, Emma and Me:

This is a picture from another production of the goddess that I wasn't in. This is from the cutest scene EVER where cupid sings to Psyche as she dies in is arms:

This is our Cupid aka Caleb and Psyche aka Rachel (unfortunately there is no cute picture from that scene)

I will never forget The Goddess and all the great people I met: Emma, Charlotte, Farrah, Jillian, Catherine, Megan M, Megan O, Caleb, Rachel, Kyna, Katie, Oliver, Cara, Stephanie, Rihanna, Haley, Jane, Corey, Andrea and Alan.

Now I will get onto the Fashion Passion! Isn't that just so fun to say? I wasn't always super into fashion but once I started watching Project Runway, reading Vogue and seeing all the fabulous outfits Lady Gaga would shock people with I was hooked. I think knowing how to sew really helps me with fashion. When I was about 8 my step-mom Shelley taught me how to sew and I made myself a little kilt! After that I really got into making Sock Monkeys, because they are super cute and really fun to make. From there I started checking out a lot of fashion books and magazines, I watched fashion television and made a lot of fashion sketches. I also go on this website called polyvore.com where you can make fashion sets and collections. I'm currently working on a collection--on polyvore and just making sketches--inspired by Adam on Degrassi (TV inspiration again) that tells the story of an FTM transgender. It's so cool that you can tell a whole story through clothing! Here is a set that someone made on polyvore just as an example so you can see what polyvore is. I believe that people that shouldn't dress to impress they should dress to express. That's why I really love Lady Gaga's sense of style because her personality shines through what she wears and she doesn't care what others think of her fashion. People wear clothing but people are fashion. Fashion is expression, fashion is people, fashion is art. I don't have much money to buy Fashionable clothes so I kind of improvise but I'm a fashion designer, not a model. If you watch So You Think You Can Dance it's kind of like the dancers are the models and the choreographers are the Fashion the designers. There's SYTYCD, Project Runway and America's Next Top Model, but where's Next Top Choreographer? That was just a show I always wish they had. Like I need more TV shows?

Like I said before dance is super hard but I love it! I'm taking a contemporary dance class at the moment and everyone else in it is older and more experienced but I think that's good because it pushes me to become a better dancer. I never though I could express myself so much through dance and sometimes while I'm dancing it's so hard that I feel like giving up but afterwards I feel amazing and really glad that I stuck to it. Right now in my class we are working on dances for the songs Viva La Vida and Bleeding Love and they are looking fantastic!

In Dance both sides of me come out but mainly my extrovert side and in fashion it's pretty much a combination of the two.

That pretty much concludes my Creativity post. I hope you enjoyed reading it!

-Hannah (both sides)

World of Work

Hello, next week the grade 8's from my school are going to a field trip called world of work. Ms. Pollock want's us to create a blog post about it. Click HERE to view the assignment. The main sectors that they are focusing on are Construction Sector, Design and Manufactoring Sector, Service Sector, Information and Technology Sector, Transportation Sector. The one that appeals to me most is the Service sector because I wouldn't mind having a career in most of the listed careers, especially Fashion Technology. In the Service Sector three jobs that appeal to me are Fashion Technology, Hairstyling, and Aesthetics. I also would like cooking and baking but I'm a really picky eater and I have lots of problems digesting certain food so that wouldn't be my first choice. The sector that appeals to me the second most is the Infromation and Technology sector, some jobs from that are; Electronics, 2D and 3D character computer animation, and Graphic design (I used to want to be a graphic designer!) I have zero interest in the Transportation sector but some of the careers in that field are Aircraft maitanence, Heavy equiptment service (which sound dead boring to me, no offence) and autobody repair, which doesn't sound too bad but still isn't really my style. The manufactoring sector includes careers such as; Robotics (which looks really cool and impressive but isn't something I'd have the patience to learn), Machanical CADD and Precision Machining. The empolyment Sector sounds alright but from what I've read it's a little bit confusing. It includes Job Interview, Workplace safety and Prepared Speech, those seem like things that would be good to know but not actual jobs themselves. There are a few things that I would like to learn on the field trip and some questions I would like to ask. I want to know what the difference in salary is based on going to university and getting a job, going to collage and getting a job or going straight to work after high school. I was wondering if they think it is better to get a more realistic job that you still enjoy or follow your heart and get a career that you dream of having but that is hard to suceed in. If you had the option, would it be better to go to a collage/university where you live or outside of your city? If you plan out your high school courses based on what you might want to do post-secondary education and then after high school change your mind completely would you be fine in whatever field, or are you pretty much out of luck? I change my mind alot about what I want to do as a career, but I have a few recurring one's at the moment. Back in my second question I asked if it would be better to follow your heart and try to get your dream job or settle for something realistic that I'd still enjoy. My dream job is a Fashion Designer and my realistic career is a junior high teacher like Ms. Pollock! I remember when Ms. Pollock told us that to her, being a teacher is the best job she could ever ask for becuase she gets to teach and make a difference in our lives. That really inspired me, and I like to plan things out (like stuff to teach) and Ms. Pollock teaches subjects I would like to teach like English, Art and Drama...possibly History. I'm not sure exactly what you would have to take for those careers, University, Collage, ect. but I would work towards my goal and try my hardest to suceed. The reason behind the picture at the beginning is I've already changed my mind about what I want to do and I will probably change my mind again tomorrow. I can never just stick to one idea, so who knows what my future has in store for me?

References: skillscanada.com

-Hannah

The Trevor Project

Hey Bloggers, Hannah here.

So tomorrow I'm really looking forward to wearing purple to support LGBTQ youth and in memory of those who sadly took their own lives due to homophobic bullying. I know my friend Melissa is also wearing purple and I encourage everyone else to do the same. The Trevor Project is a great orginization that helps to save the lives of people everywhere. I feel really strongly about this and I want to start fundraising for The Trevor Project. You might think of fundraising as boring charity work but look, the word "fun" is in fundraising. I'm looking for fun ways to help out and if you are interested in joining me in this or have any ideas for ways to help you can comment on my blog or send me an email at: wackyhannah@hotmail.com. You can also go to my blogs homepage and click on the SocialVibe gadget to support the Trevor Project without spending a penny. Thank you to everyone who took the time and effort to read my post, comment, email and wear purple on October 20th.

Love you all,

-Hannah

Island Man

Island Man

Here are the 10 most important words (In my opinion):

Morning

an island man wakes up

to the sound of blue surf

in his head

the steady breaking and wombing

wild seabirds

and fishermen pushing out to sea

the sun surfacing defiantly

from the east

of his small emerald island

.

He always comes back

groggily groggily

comes back to sands

of a grey metallic soar

to a surge of wheels

to dull North Circular roar

muffling muffling

his crumpled pillow waves

island man heaves himself

another London day

I would most like to wake up in a modern decor loft apartment in Manhatten. New York is by far my favourtie city, I love the people, the food, the fashion, the broadway! I wouldn't want to live in New York--big city crime stuff kind of freaks me out--but waking up their and being able to visit the city for a little while would be brill. I would also want to wake up in New York City so I could visit my relatives who live there (they are SO lucky!)

So that's my Island Man post, I hope you enjoyed it!

ps. My computer wasn't really cooperating with the embedding of photo's so I had to put them at the top and it was only embedding certain picture's so I had to put up different one's than I planned to. Oh well, things happen. Toodles Bloggers!

Khaleefa

Sunday October 17/10 Hannah S.
R8A
4 Specific things that you enjoyed about Khaleefa's presentation.

1. I enjoyed how he was open with us and just talked about his life because it made it really relaxing and chill.
2. I really liked how he compared the difference between poetry and rap and the process of writing both of them.
3. He did a great job at answering everyone's questions thoroughly and to the best of his ability.
4. I really liked the "Don't Look" poem that he wrote, especially the stanza about the girl with the eating disorder because I recently wrote a similar rap! I also like how he compared the boy and girl to a moth and butterfly because it made me have a new appreciation for them.

3 Things that Khaleefa did or spoke about that you can use to help inspire and develop your own poetry.

1. He mentioned that syllables are really important when you write an rap and to pay attention to how many are in a line. I started doing that and my raps and poems are really getting better!
2. I liked when he said that he doesn't use a thesaurus when he writes because neither do I, I always found it better to just use your own words. I do, however use a dictionary and Google to find the meaning of words like he does.
3. I want to start showing my writing to more people and stop being as secretive because he said that it's just better to put it out there, and that's the best way to get better.
2 Questions you have for Khaleefa.

1. If you were not writing what do you think you'd be doing as a career?
2. What advice do you have for writers that are scared or embarrassed to show their work to others?

1 A one sentence summary of why Khaleefa is a good role model for youth.
1. Khaleefa is a good role model for others because he's just one of many examples of people who followed their dream and succeeded, he's an inspiration to many budding writers and artist in general. He is definitely a role model to me!

By: Hannah Z. S.

Shoes (Empathy Post)

It's easy to walk in your own shoes, they're your size, your colour, you've already broken them in. People are used to seeing you in your own shoes, they're suited to you, they're you. You've decided to take off your shoes, try to walk in someone else's. In those shoes is where you realize how hard it can be to walk. People might stare at you because of your shoes; they're the wrong size and because of that you get blisters. Not everyone will like the colour of your shoes because they're different than the colour of their own shoes. Have empathy for those who have to walk in different shoes just because of the size or colour, have empathy for those who don't have shoes to walk in.

Note: I know this is a very strange piece of writing, it's open to many different interpretations.

-Hannah

It gets Better...

I think that the conversation we had in class today was extremely important. I know at Fielding we have assembalies and teachers telling us all the time that we shouldn't be bullying people but they never really go in to the depth of how serious the matter is. We NEED to understand how much words can hurt, how deep they hurt when they stab us. People always talk about the need to stop being prejudice to people of a different race, religion, gender, ability but rarely does sexual orientation come up. Homophobia is the main source of bullying I see going on, "That's so gay" and "You're such a F**" are used so much in the daily lives of most youth and we need to put a stop to that. I see people being called gay and they usually blow it off but I know deep down it hurts. Not because they don't like that people are calling them gay but that people are saying in an insulting way. Gay is NOT a synonym for stupid. What if who you are was used against you, as an insult? That's so Muslim, that's so 13 year old, that's so Japanese. I mean seriously? Being murdered becuase you're gay is heartbreaking but taking your own life because you can stand to be tormented every single day. Now that's just not right. Those people could have grown up to find a cure for cancer or AIDS, they could become Prime Minister, or win the nobel peace prize. Last year people came up to me asking if I was Jewish, Bisexual or "Emo", but seriously, who the hell cares? Would you think of me any differently, is is really that important? As some of you might know I'm auditioning for Canterbury in January. One of the requirements is to write a poem, I was going to write a poem about how a lot of people diss our generation but they're forgeting who raised and we're really not that bad. Then I though about it and realized that yes, we are good people, be can do great things and turn this world around but nobody's perfect. Drawing a Nazi sign on a locker--which I witnessed--could be the start of a second Haulocaust. So instead I am writing about this very issue; Suicide. I wrote a rap a little while ago and then wrote another one after watching Dr. Phil the other day. The first one is pretty much done and the second one is still in the process of being written. Here they are:
Rap number 1 (not really related but I'm trying to connect it with rap number 2)

You open up your drawer to make yourself bleed,
And then hide it under wristbands so no one can see,
You show a cut here and there just to show that you're scared,
But people think it's just a papercut, they think it's just an accident,
But you know that it's your fears that you can't show through simple tears,
Ya, Your caught underwater and you're struggling to breathe,
But you just keep sinking deeper and deeper into your blood,
But what's blood and what's tears, just ways to cover up your fears?
You're just one big mess trying to hide under your dress,
Or better yet your fears, that trigger the tears.

Here's rap number 2 (the one I wrote after Dr. Phil)

A child takes their life almost every day,
Open up their facebook page to see "I hate you 'cause your gay."
Hey kid your life is worth it, just see the light through the tunnel.
It's okay to make a puddle when your eyes become rainclouds,
Because the puddles will dry, don't be ashamed when you cry,
Just know you're hurting more than yourself when you die.
Your life is yours, you owe nothing to no one,
Just be yourself and your haters wont mind.
It's gonna hurt when you fall from Heaven , becuase death can wait,
No one lives forever but life can be great.
Live, love, laugh may not always be true,
But it sure as hell is better than cry, hate, die.
I like the sound of his voice but I'm afraid I don't agree,
The good shouldn't die young,
They should make history.

Okay, so that's all I have for now. It's not done but the last line will probably be "Just know it gets better."

I hope you enjoyed my opinion piece and raps.

-Hannah

3, 2, 1

This is my 3, 2, 1 Student of the Month Reflection:

3 things that I think would have helped to improve our presentation

1. I think we could have done better in the pronunciation and enunciation department (say that 3 times fast!)

2. Although it flowed pretty well, we could have been a little more rehearsed so it wasn't as "thrown together."

3. We could have taken a hint from Shakespearean actors and used the "3 quarter rule" so our backs weren't turned to the audience.


2 things that I think went really well

1. The whole element of sleeping and having empathy dreams worked well to tie everything together.

2. There were small hints of humor in some of the skits that made the audience laugh and kept them entertained.


1 Piece of advice I have for students performing in the future

1. Practice, practice, practice! You know what they say "practice makes perfect" and if you do happen to make a mistake just go along with it, work it! Nobody will know.

-Hannah

Assignment #3 - Behind your Name

Welcome readers.
This is my second blog assignment, Behind your Name.

So as you know, my name is Hannah. There are many spellings of my name, all with different meanings. The way I spell it; Hannah is from the Hebrew name Channah, which means "favor" or "grace". Spelled without the "h" at the end my name is a short form of "Johanna" and is German, Polish or Scandinavian. My favourite meaning of Hannah is used with the spelling, Hana and is Japanese for "Blossom."

The reason I decided to include the whole meaning stuff before what I thought about my name is because I already knew the meanings of my name so my impressions wont change. Before I started this assignment I had mixed views on my name. I'm one of those people who doesn't like when other people are the same as me, weather it be music taste, clothing or their name so I do wish I had a name that was less common. In the year I was born Hannah was the the eighth most popular name, by 2000 it was second most popular after Emily, it is now ranked at number seven.

I do think my name is cool though. I mean come on, it's a palindrome! How many people can say that? Ava, Otto, Anna, Aya, Eve, Bob, that's about it. I don't really mind being called Hannah Banana (and you don't even have to use a British accent!) but please, do not call me Hannah Montana! Most of the time I'd say I quite like my name though, it seems suited to me and I can't picture myself with any other name.

My middle name Zoe, means life in Greek. The cool thing about my middle name is that it's my best friend's first name and her parents were going to name her Hannah! My mom named my sister Sarah Anne and she picked out my first name but she couldn't come up with a middle name for me so she let my dad pick it out. I REALLY like my middle name, it's a really cool, funky, artsy sort of name that is definitively suited to me. Another funny thing about the name Zoe is I had a gold fish when I was little and I named it Zoe because it meant life and I wanted it to live a long time. The gold fish lived over a year which is really long for a gold fish. A lot of people seem to be embarrassed by their middle name and don't tell people, I'm not like that, I even have my middle name on my Facebook. I have empathy for those out there who don't have middle names, because it ROCKS!

My last name, Shapiro means Sapphire and is the Yiddish name for a city in Germany. The name Shapiro is connected with the Issachar tribe, according to the Torah they are decedents of some dude named Issachar so maybe I am too! All I really know about the Shapiro side of my history is that my Grandpa's (on my dad's side) parents immigrated from Russia and Poland to Brooklyn, New York. My Grandpa moved to Montreal to peruse his career in photography and the rest on the Shapiro's stayed in New York. I just recently connected with my relatives on my Trip to New York City last March and they are such cool people! I'm really excited to learn about the Transcontinental Railway because my Mom's side of the family were connected with that.

Here is the Shapiro family crest, I found out this by researching; In the Torah sheep represent being protected. Sheep are connected with the Issachar tribe so that explains why there is one on the Shapiro crest.

My mom's last name, Toye is generally an old English name but in my family Toye was changed from the Chinese name Choy when my great-grandfather moved to Canada. The closest thing I could find to the name Choy was the name Choi and is now the fourth most common Korean surname after Kim, Lee and Park. The meaning of the name Choi is mountain.

After piecing all of that together I think my name (Gracious, Blossom, Life, Sapphire, Mountain) does suit me. Blossom, Mountain and Sapphire seem like symbolic items and they relate to nature. The meaning of my middle name rocks because I think living life to it's fullest and enjoying every bit of it is super important. I like to consider myself gracious, I'm not sure if everyone does but one time I posted as my facebook status "Describe me in one word" and someone said "compassionate." I looked up the word gracious on dictionary.com and the third meaning was: of a merciful and compassionate nature so there you go.

If I could give myself a new name it would be Mercedes Belladonna.
Mercedes because 1. It's the name of a glee character and 2. Mercedes are my favourite cars (I'm literally obsessed with them that whenever I see one I point it out to everyone by saying "Mercedes" out loud.)
Belladonna because before the Middle Ages women put a poison called Belladonna in their eyes to make them appear bigger, them they realized that it caused blindness over time. They also used Belladonna on the tips of arrows in the Middle Ages. I just thought that was a cool, historical piece of evidence.

So that's about all I'm going to write because this post is getting out of control, I may write another post on a fictional characters name but it wont be nearly as long.

Thanks for reading,
-Hannah

Welcome Post

Hello readers, welcome to my blog.
My name is Hannah.
I am super stoked about this new blogging stuff we're doing in class. I'm a very artsy person, I play guitar, bass, djembai and ukulele. I write, dance, sing and act. I may seem like a jeans and t-shirt kind of girl but one day I will be a world famous Fashion Designer! I'm a TV addict, my favourite shows are Glee, 90210, Degrassi, So You Think You Can Dance, Project Runway and Will and Grace. I also LOVE music, I listen to every genre of music but my favourite bands/singers are Lady Gaga, Eminem, Paramore, Adam Lambert, Owl City and The Vitamin String Quartet. Depending on how well you know me you me you probably think I'm either shy and quiet or Loud, Hyper and Outgoing. The people who pick the second one are the ones who are right. So that's all for now!
Bye bloggers.

-Hannah :)