I Want To Go To...

Australia!!!

To visit Uluru...

This rock is a sandstone formation in central Austrailia. It is called Uluru by the aboriginal people the Pitjantatjara. It is a sacred place of Aboriginal creation mythology and walking on top of it is offensive to the aboriginal people. Ayer's Rock is unique because it appears to change color during different times of the day and year as the light hits it differently, especially at sunset when it glows red.

... to experience the best snorekeling in the world at the Great Barier Reef... is the largest reef in the world.

It is made up of 2,900 smaller reefs and 900 islands. It runs for 1,600 miles in the Coral Sea off the coast of Queensland Australia. It is the largest structure made by living organisms and can be seen from outer space. The snorkeling is world class. It has 30 species of dolphin/whales/and porpoises, 6 species of sea turtles, 15 species of seagrass, 125 species of sharks/stingrays/chimeara, 5000 species of mollusc, 400 coral species, and 1,500 species of fish.

... the see Australia's marsupials the Koalas and Kangaroos...

They are on protected habitats, but you can see them on Koala refuges and in parks which are wilderness preserves of their natural habitat.

...to see a choral performance in the Sydney Opera House...

The Sydney Opera house is a perfoming arts center designed by Danish designer Jorn Utzon. Presentations include operas, ochestral and choral concerts, meetings, lectures, ballets, and other performances. It house 1,500 performances a year attended by 1.2 million people.

I'M READY TO GO!!!

reflection 5/8

School's wrapping up and it's only getting crazier! It's easy to stress and it's hard not to. There are so many projects and final assignments to finish up before exams. I auditioned for next year's choirs yesterday. I was verrrry nervous (as was everyone else), but overall I am very content with what I did. I did very well on the cut (especially considering the toll allergies have taken on my voice. Two days before I couldn't even sing). I completely bombed sight-reading. I sang three of twelve notes correctly D: but spoke the rhythms on all the rest. Each note is worth two points, one point for pitch and one point for rhythym so hopefully I got some credit. Despite my horrible sight-reading run through I am very satisfied with how I did and now I'm anxiously waiting for finals week when we get the results back.

Word of the day... I lost my main homework binder which really sucks. I'm hoping it turns up because as the name implies I have some kinda important stuff in there ;) Me and my mommy are leaving for Waco tonight to go up to Waco. We're celebrating mother's day as well as my grandma's birthday. I'm ready for an amazing weekend. I plan on renting Julia & Julia to watch with my mommy and make her day kinda special :]

Reflection 4/24

I'm happy to write that I have had quite a lovely weekend so far! Life has been so crazy and so hectic. Because of this I have greatly enjoyed my slow paced day. I got to sleep in until eleven and then I ate lunch with my grandmother. After that my mom and I went shopping and got some insanely delicious limeade. We came back home and I did my toes. I don't know how to describe the color besides charcoal with a shimmer. Lets just say it looks nice. I've watched a couple episodes of Reba and now its time to hit some homework and clean the house. We have family coming in from out of town so the house needs to be in ship-shape. It's quite a task let me tell you. Areas of our house deserve avalanche warning signs, but after my day of relaxation I am ready to rise to the occasion :]

There's TOO Many Of Them!!

What is overpopulation? It is a condition. A habitat is considered overpopulated when an organism's number exceed the carrying capacity of the area. Often the term is used in reference to the human population and its environment- the Earth. But more than population density, overpopulation is directly related to the country's ability to feed its inhabitants as well as meet their other basic needs. The first picture below is a pie chart of the percantages of the Earth's surface covered by water, used for agriculture, under conservation, "intact", and used for human habitation. Note how little of Earth's land is dedicated to providing a place for humans to live. The map below that shows the population density of the Earth by country. Darker colors are areas with a higher density of people. Notice that three of the most heavily populated countries are China, India, and Japan.

In 1979 China's Communist Party implemented a "one-child policy" which is still in place today. It states that families in urban areas are allowed to have one child, while families in rural areas (which is about 80% of the population) are allowed to have two. Families that violate the rule could be forced to have an abortion as well as being financially penalized. On the other hand, families with only one child are given better child care and housing as well as cash bonuses. In the 1950's fertility rates averaged about five children per woman compared to the two children per woman today. Implications include favoritism of boys. This is a traditional preference, which under the "one-child policy" has led to the murder of many baby girls and a continuously growing gender imbalance in the country's continuously growing population.

India's family planning policy went into affect in the 1950's. India was the first country to create such a policy. Since then, the population of India has more than doubled, but the fertility rated has dropped by about 40%. This campaign is based on a change in attitude. It encourages the advancement of women economically, academically, and socially. The idea is that independent women are more likely to have smaller families. The nation tried to focus on sterilization, only to hinder woman's acceptance of family planning.

Japan's solution is unlike the two previous. Rather than the focus being on reducing its population, Japan has solved its problem through a high economic growth rate which they have sustained over the past several decades.

Lowering the population of a country is a difficult task. Obviously you can't become cannibalistic and start eating people. Also, you can't tell people that they can't have children simply because that is unfair and not right. So if I had to develop my own solution to overpopulation I would do so through education. The people need to understand the problem and they have to have a want to change it. Informing people about birth control as well as the benefits of smaller families coupled with individuals' motivation to do their part in helping their country is ultimately the best way to limit population growth. I would not impose a rule on the number of children a family can have. I feel that that would cause the people to be angry at their government when really the best thing to do is to give the population the right mindset. It's almost a matter of persuasion in that the task is convincing the people of your country that their efforts are in the best interest of themselves and their nation. Ultimately that's the most efficient way of handling overpopulation in my opinion.

Time Capsule

The concept of time capsules are the craziest thing ever. Whoever thought up the idea was genius. You always see them in movies and you always dream of what you would put in it. If i had to put one generational thing in a time capsule i would choose to do

CONVERSE SNEAKERS!!!

You may be asking how is this from my generation? I understand that Converse has been around since the 1940's. Even though converse have been around for such a long time a new aspect is the increasing (and continual increasing) of variety in design and color. This is something which came about in my generation. This new change, i feel, has become one of the defining characteristics of my generation. Almost everyone has a pair of converse sneakers whether low top or high top. Those who don't SHOULD!

You can buy crazy patterns. I own a pair that are made from a zebra striped fabric. Someone I know has hot pink with black zig zag stripes. another friend has neon blue and green double lace ups and yet another friend has knee high converse. The kid next to me in Teen Lead has bright red converse and my friends little sister has black to satisfy the black shoes required for the dress code at her private school. Personally, I think it's safe to say that converse sneakers are one of many ways individuals of my generation can express themselves.

I would create a custom pair through the converse website (you can follow the link to the website and customize your own!). This is another wonderful reason why it's a generational example. It showcases the technology we have and the ability we have to customize a pair our own shoes while sitting at home on our couch. My custom converse would be blue and gold (Anderson colors) with 2010 written along the side.

This would be my pick for the time capsule because it captures a glance at my school and the style of my generation.

Reflection!

It's been a really rough past month, but I'm hanging in there. I'm actually AHEAD on my homework which is a major first and it feels really good. (with exception of this blog which I'm doing for a late grade... ironic ;]) Yes this was the one thing I forgot to do.

I've been consumed with homework lately. But this weekend I have something fun to look forward too! My youth group is participating in World Vision's 30 hour famine. It's pretty much what it sounds like. We're not going to eat for 30 hours to raise money for starving children (through donation collections). But during those 30 hours (besides sleeping) we're going to serve soup at the soup kitchen and collect canned goods for the Capital Area Food Bank. It's an amazing weekend and there'll be plenty of time to hang with my friends. I'm so looking forward to it... I for sure NEED IT!!! ;D

Favorite Region :]

World Geography is a fun class, mostly because we learn about different cultures. To me at least, learning about something so foreign and unfamiliar is intriguing because for other human beings it is all they know. The food, the clothing, and the music which look so strange or bizarre to us is the normal to other people. It's funny to think that they think the same thing about our culture, in that its just as strange and unfamiliar.

I really enjoyed the unit on Latin America and South America because I love the spanish language and consequently the Spanish culture intrigues me greatly. But I'm going to have to say that my all time favorite unit so far has been the one on South-Asia.

When my dad got out of high school he took a trip around the world. All he had with him was himself and his backpack. He traveled by plane, train, and most often bus. These took him everywhere. It sounds like a scary concept to me, but he says that if he could do it again he would leave tomorrow without any thought.

He always tells me stories about all that he's seen and done. His travels have given him such insight into the cultures and the customs of so many different people in the world. Often he would stay with local families that would take him in until he would be ready to move on. He has such an amazing collection of memories and rich experiences that he will always carry with him.

I've heard more stories about Nepal than any other country. He says it's his favorite place out of all the places he's visited. My dad is also a photographer, not professionally, but as a hobby or something that he enjoys. Before we remodeled the house, we had a series of pictures hanging in the living room from his trip. And one of them was from Kathmandu. It was of Nepalese monks dressed in orange robes walking barefoot throught the streets. Ever since I've been a little kid has captivated me and the culture of this region has interested me.

I've always been wowed by the Himalaya Mountains because I've seen majestic photos that capture the range's beauty. I've always wanted to go see them with my own eyes. I've always liked that this little country of Nepal that so many people know so little about has this huge well known geographical feature to claim as their's.

I found it interesting that the culture is so greatly impacted by this feature such as the history of the sherpa people and their lifestyles.

I really enjoyed this unit because I got to learn about the culture I knew so little about. I've always heard about the monks, the temples, the curries, and finally learning about all of that and so much more was very enjoyable for me.

It was fun to learn the similarities and differences between this counrty's culture and the others that are also in South-Asia.

Below is a link to a photo gallery of Nepal so you can appreciate the culture of these people too...

http://www.molon.de/galleries/Nepal/