Kevin's Blog

Have you ever seen something and thought it was the coolest thing ever. Maybe you wanted to write about it or tell your friends. These kinds of things happen to me all the time. On Friday, Kathleen Benner Duble, an author, visited our school. She talked about where she got ideas for her books and gave advice on where to find inspiration. I see and hear a lot of things that I would like to write about and always try to incorporate them into my writing when possible.

You Don’t Know Me – This title was inspired from several cases of me overhearing these two kids in my homeroom talking about one of their friends on Xbox live who always said this phrase. Also by those witness protection t-shirts that say “You don’t know me.”

“Clone, go make my bed” – This topic was inspired by a book I read. The book was actually “Fang” by James Patterson. The book is all about genetic engineering and experimenting with DNA and such so I felt that it was a worthy topic to write my thoughts on.

Techno-Communication: The World of Today – I came upon the idea for this post because when I was trying to think of something to write about, I checked my email (I’m a big procrastinator) and suddenly the idea hit me. I would write about how technology affects how we communicate.

The Call of Spring – This post was mainly inspired by a project we did in 6th grade, the Signs of Spring project. We would have a booklet and every week, we would have to write down one sign of spring we see. This went on for about one and a half months. I will never forget that project, mainly because I despised it.

Better Safe Than Sorry - My parents have told me this phrase an innumerable amount of times. Mainly because I like to take a lot of risks. Thinking back on those experiences, I decided that this would be a suitable title.

Ray’s Barbershop – This post was inspired by a picture I had seen on google images (this one). I tried to describe everything in the room to the best of my ability. I’m not sure where the idea of a barbershop came to me, it just happened.

Vacation Is A Necessity - This post was inspired by my winter vacation. It is about how the winter vactation should remain in place and not be taken away.

Taking advice is generally a good idea. Especially if it is from someone more experienced than you. Following advice helps us grow and become better at things. Last Friday, we had Kathleen Benner Duble visit our school. She has written many books and is an accomplished, experienced writer. She is the author of The Sacrifice which is a book we read earlier in the year. She came to our school to give advice and tips on writing, how to find inspiration for writing, as well as ideas.

At the assembly, she made some important main points. One of her points was that if you are looking for an idea for writing, try writing about things you have a personal experience with. Another points she made was that every family has a story to tell. She said that you may think your family is boring, but if you ask your relatives, chances are they will have some interesting stories to tell. For example, she wrote about her sister who was a tanker jet pilot. She also said to write about things around you. For example, she went to this place where there was an old iron factory. She thought this was interesting and unique and included it in a story of hers. She had many other things to say, but these were mostly the main points of her presentation.

How are these points important for a writer or student? First of all, if the person is stuck and out of ideas, they can follow her advice and talk to their family. They will most likely find something interesting to write about. If they need something to write about, they can also observe things around them and write about that. For example, one day I saw this rusted car in the woods that looked as if it had been in a tornado , I decided to incorporate it into my short story we wrote earlier this year. If you follow her advice, you should be easily able to find a good topic to write about and your writing will most likely improve in quality.

Everybody has traits that make them who they are. These traits play a major role in the decisions we make. In The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier, one of the important characters is Archie Costello. Archie is like a sculptor, except that instead of manipulating materials, he manipulates people. Archie is the kingpin of a secret school group called The Vigils. The books displays many times that Archie is very cunning and very intelligent. On page 223, it says “And the kid had fallen for it, hook, line and sinker, although the conversation had gone back and forth for a while. Archie had been patient. Patience always payed off. And he had won, of course.” Also on page 223, it says “I can con anybody. I am Archie.” Archie also has a bit of arrogance in him. In the previous quote, it says “And he had won, of course.” Archie is also creative. Archie makes assignments for people in the school to do. For one particular assignment, he told a boy to unscrew all the screws in the furniture in a classroom. It takes a clever, creative mind to come up with something like that. Archie is cunning, intelligent, creative, clever, and a bit arrogant.

Archie’s character traits play a major role in the decisions he makes. Throughout most of the story, Archie blackmails Emile Janza with an embarrassing photo which never actually existed. This was probably because of his cunning and creative behavior. At the end of the book, Archie sets up a fight between Emile Janza and Jerry Renault. Archie knew that Jerry couldn’t back down from the fight. This displays his intelligence and cunning. Archie’s character traits greatly influence the decisions he makes in the story.

You know that kid who never does his homework assignments, or maybe he insists on doing the opposite of what his teachers or parents tell him? You know who I’m talking about. But why do they do it? Many people suspect that it is because they crave power. But really, it is more about attention than anything else. In my opinion, people defy authority primarily to get attention.

Upon asking many of my peers about this topic, I was given many different answers. Kayla said “Sometimes. Some kids who have bad families who don’t pay attention to them might defy authority so people will give them attention.” Linus said “Some kids do it because they don’t care and other do it because they want attention.” Jake said “Yes because it makes them seem like they don’t follow any rules and so they can fit in with the cool crowd.” Kayla and Linus had similar ideas and Jake had also had a similar idea that they did it to fit in and be in the cool, popular crowd. Many people have similar thought about this topic.

In my opinion, it is true that people defy authority to primarily get attention. If you’re protesting something, attention is one of the main things you want and can help you very much in your cause. There are a lot of people who will do almost anything for attention, and defying authority is a fairly easy way to get that attention. They are like addicts, they will do whatever they need to get what they want. You may never know why they need attention. Maybe their family doesn’t pay attention to them or it is just in their nature. People mainly defy authority to get attention.

Think of a person you are close to, perhaps your best friend or relative. Now think about how much you actually know that person. Many people are surprised about how much they don’t know. Well, of course you wouldn’t know everything about their life because that’s borderline stalker-ish and quite creepy to be honest. Can you ever really know another person? In the story, Star Food by Ethan Canin, the main character, Dade, concludes that you can never really know another person through an experience with a poverty-stricken woman. Personally, I happen to agree with Dade on this matter.

In the story, Dade is a boy who works at his dad’s grocery store. He notices an old, poor woman stealing food from the store. This happens another two times and Dade doesn’t do anything. The reason why he doesn’t do anything about it is like an unsolved mystery, nobody, even Dade,  knows why.On the last page of the story, it says “When I thought of this and the woman I was sad. It seemed you could never really know another person. I felt alone in the world, in the way that makes me aware of sound and temperature, as if I had just left a movie theater and stepped into an alley where light rain was falling, and the wind was cool, and, from somewhere, other people’s voices could be heard.” Dade’s experience with the woman leads him to believe that you can never really know a person because even though there was some sort of connection between them, he never got the time to explore it, and when the time came, she disappeared into a crowd of people.

In my opinion, you can never really know a person. Sure, you can become good friends with them and know a lot about their life, but there are still many things you don’t know about them. You can trust somebody, but you never really know for sure if they trust you. You can think you know somebody really well, but they may turn around and do something very unexpected. “You can never really know someone completely. That’s why it’s the most terrifying thing in the world, really—taking someone on faith, hoping they’ll take you on faith too. It’s such a precarious balance, It’s a wonder we do it at all. And yet..” — Libba Bray. You can never completely know someone.

Seeking independence is normal for everyone. Most of this happens when people are teenagers. Your parents may tell you to do one thing and you do another for the sake of defying them and being independent. But is it necessary for teenagers to defy their parents in order to grow up? Personally, I believe that it is necessary to a certain extent.

While thinking about his topic, I sought the opinion of my mom. Her opinion was that it is not neceassary because she believes that you can still grow up and become independent without defying your parents. She then proceeded to tell me about how when she was a kid that she wouldn’t dare defy her dad because she was afraid of him. She told me about how her and her siblings would neaten everything up before he came home from work and they wouldn’t question him if he told them to do something. My mom didn’t defy her parents and she turned out to be an independent, hard-working woman.

In my opinion, it is necessary for a teenager to defy their parents in order to grow up to a certain extent. It is like sunlight, a bit is good, but too much can be a bad thing. If you are a teen seeking independence, defying your parents is a simple step to becoming more independent and growing up. However, if you defy your parents just out of spite, it just makes you seem immature which is the opposite of what you want if you’re looking to grow up. If you plan on growing up to become a successful adult, it is a good idea to start to do things on your own and maybe start making your own decisions, decisions that your parents may or not agree with. Is it necessary for a teenager to defy their parents to grow up to a certain extent.

Is there such a thing a being too nice? Like you’re so nice that it is a bad thing? Do you know anybody who is just too nice. In the story, The Griffin and The Minor Canon by Frank  Stockton, one of the characters, the Minor Canon, is like a math problem in which you are multiplying two negatives, they’re always positive. In the story, you can see innumerable ways how the Minor Canon is so uncomplaining, self-sacrificing, and nice. Personally, I admire him for this for various reasons.

There are many examples of how the Minor Canon is so uncomplaining and self-sacrificing in the story. On page 3, there is a paragraph that describes the Minor Canon which reads “He was a young man of a kind disposition, and very anxious to do good to the people of the town. Apart from his duties in the church, where he conducted services every weekday, he visited the sick and the poor, counseled and assisted persons who were in trouble, and taught a school composed entirely of the bad children in the town whom nobody else would have anything do do.” On page 3, it says “Whenever the people waned something difficult done for them, they always went to the Minor Canon.” The Minor Canon also protected the statue of the Griffin when all the townspeople wanted to tear it  down. Possibly the most generous, self-sacrificing act he did was that he went out into the wilds where he was nearly sure to die, in order to free the town of the Griffin’s presence. On page 10, it says “The more he thought about it, the more clear it became to his mind that it was his duty to go away and thus free the town from the presence of the Griffin.” As you can see, the Minor Canon was a very generous, uncomplaining, self-sacrificing person.

I admire the Minor Canon for being so kind, uncomplaining, and self-sacrificing. Anyone who can be any one of these things every day of their life, is truly someone to admire. The Minor Canon took a great amount of time out of his schedule in order to hold church services every weekday, visit the sick and poor, counsel and assist people who were in need of help, and teach a school. I cannot perceive that he had any time for himself for he was spending all his time helping other people. I do not believe that the Minor Canon is too self-sacrificing or too uncomplaining because it is just the way he wants to live his life. If somebody want to be very nice, self-sacrificing, and uncomplaining, then let them be. It’s their decision.

Why do you have the friends you do? Is it because you’re complete opposites? No, it is because you have something in common with them. It’s just a general rule of thumb, you usually don’t become friends with people you have nothing in common with. In the story, The Griffin and the Minor Canon by Frank R. Stockton, there is a Griffin who becomes friends with a Minor Canon (Canon = member of the clergy of a church). The relationship between them was like that of a teacher to a professor, they had similair characteristics, but one (the Minor Canon, professor) was more experienced. These two seemingly very different beings are able to get along because of the characteristics they had in common.

A major thing they had in common was that they were both very kind. On page 3, there is a lengthy passage that describes the Minor Canon which reads “He was a young man of a kind disposition, and very anxious to do good to the people of the town. Apart from his duties in the church, where he conducted services every weekday, he visited the sick and the poor, counseled and assisted persons who were in trouble, and taught a school composed entirely of the bad children in the town whom nobody else would have anything do do.” On page 10, it reads “The griffin now thought that he ought to visit the sick and the poor; and he began to go about town for this purpose.” These two passages explain that they were both generous beings and had common beliefs when it came to helping out and being nice. On page 12, it shows evidence that the Griffin thought that the Minor Canon was kind when he said “‘In fact there was only one creature in the whole place whom I could have any appetite, and that was the Minor Canon, who has gone away. He was brave and good and honest, and I think I should have relished him.” Although this is a weird passage because the Griffin is talking about eating the Minor Canon, it shows that the Griffin thought he was a kind, brave man because the Griffin said that he would only think about eating the Minor Canon because he was so kind and honest.

Another reason why they were able to get along is because they were both very self-sacrificing. Alluding to the previous quote about all the things the Minor Canon did, the Minor Canon took a great amount of time out of his schedule in order to hold church services every weekday, visit the sick and poor, counsel and assist people who were in need of help, and teach a school. I cannot perceive that he had any time for himself. In page 10, it reads “The more he thought, the more clear it became to his mind that it was his duty to go away and thus free the town from the presence of the Griffin.” This is even another reason how the Minor Canon was self-sacrificing. One example of the griffin being self-sacrificing was on page 7, where it says “The Griffin would accompany him on his visits to the sick and the poor, and would often look into the windows of the schoolhouse where the Minor Canon was teaching the unruly scholars.” Another example is on page 11 when the Griffin says ” ‘It is a pity about the school. I think I will teach it myself until he returns.” In this quote, the Griffin decides to teach the school the Minor Canon taught before he was sent away. The Minor Canon and Griffin were both self-sacrificing, which helped them get along throughout the story.

Imagine a world where cloning is possible. Or where humans were immune to almost every disease and pathogen. Maybe even a world where humans have wings. Sounds like something out of a Sci-Fi movie, right? Well, All of these could very well be a reality with genetic engineering. What is genetic engineering? Genetic engineering is the manipulation of genes. Genetic engineering is like piloting a jet plane with blindfolds on… with only your left hand, very hard and complicated. Reading ‘Fang‘ , a part of the Maximum Ride Series by James Patterson, inspired me to write about this interesting, peculiar topic. Reason being, the characters in the story are human-avian hybrids.

Although there have been many advances in the genetic engineering field in the past twenty years, there is still a great deal that remains to be discovered. The completion of the sequencing of the human genome has created a wealth of possibilities for genetic researchers. The first genetically engineered medicine was synthetic human insulin which was developed in 1982. In 1987, the FDA approved the first genetically engineered vaccine for humans which was for hepatitis B. Since these early uses of genetic engineering, it has grown substantially.  Thanks to genetic engineering, scientists can now create crops that are resistant to insects, resistant to disease and drought, take less time to grow, and to have a better nutritional value. Genetic engineering has helped us in many ways.

What about genetic engineering on humans? There has not been a lot of experimentation on humans for obvious reasons. Most testing is done on animals first, which is part of why this is a very controversial topic. Genetic engineering on humans could make us immune to genetic diseases. It is even said that it could be used to change physical appearance, metabolism, and even improve intelligence and memory, but for now, these uses are limited to sci-fi. Cloning could be a problem though, we wouldn’t want a company like Skynet (from the Terminator) building an army on clones. Genetic engineering opens up a lot of possibilities for humans.