Tuesday, February 19, 2008
This Wasn't It, But It'll Do in a Pinch
Definitions schmefinitions. This week,let's try something different. (No, this was not what I was originally going to post, but since just the right words are determined to remain a "secret ingredient", I am thinking that must mean that whatever brilliant and insightful bit of gibberish I was thinking about needs more time to cook). After all the AP test fun is over we are going to do a fun little project called The Quotation Festival. Details to come later, but in preparation for that, this week's blog should have you thumbing through Bartlett's--or just hitching a ride on the Google express under "Quotes"--to come up with a quote you think sums up the aspect of your character you like best. What is it? Who said it? How does it apply to your life? (350-400 words/45pts)
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First to officially comment!!! :-)
Life is simply a metaphor, is it not? I have no friggin clue because that just sounded cool. But I am doing this blog at 10 o’clock because I don’t want to do this thing tomorrow in like ten minutes. SO I stumbled upon this little metaphor of a quotation from one of my favorite former presidents, that honest one. “Character is like a tree and reputation like its shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.” I honestly don’t want to use it, but o how it’s true.
Now for my all encompassing plethora of words that truly and utterly express my deepest character. Yeah right! I can muster something pretty good, though.
Well, maybe I can’t, it’s been twenty minutes. I’m sorry Ms. Bunje but you cannot pick a quote that “sums up” your character. That’s like choosing one word for it. Perhaps you can hit near the mark, but never will you sum it completely up with a nice little equation ... never mind, with a nice little bow. I’m watching South Park now, so soon I shall have a fantastic quote.
There, I have found three quotes.
“You can preach a better sermon with your life than with your lips.”
— Oliver Goldsmith, English author (1728-1774).
“The greatest truths are the simplest, and so are the greatest men.” — J.C. Hare, English clergyman and writer (1796-1855)
“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson
A half hour of quote scavenging is not proficient to any degree of character summation, but as Shrek said, “It will do Donkey, it will do.” (I think I should have just used that quote.) Oliver Goldsmith, that devilish English author (whom I know nothing about) completely hits the mark. I try to live my life in a way that shows what my principles are. Actions speak louder than words, do they not? So J.C. Hare (English clergy man and writer, o man!) --- pause that thought…Cartman just made a freshmen eat his dead parents….sick episode, man, sick --- unpause --- so that Hare guy reminds me of Thoreau’s “Simplicity!” quote. I love that because I agree with it but still end up betraying it (hm…betray, can you betray an idea?). (O my! It’s raining frogs on South Park!) Well, some of Jesus’ quotes are quite simple, “Love you neighbor as yourself,” and it is great. And the simplest ideas took root in people’s lives and the greatest people live by them. Okay, that way rambling, but simplicity is key. And lastly, (ew lastly is stupid) … And greatest of all my quoted quotes, Emerson’s describes my all-encompassing, underlying traits of my character in which I have discovered just recently. I want to go where no one has been and do what no one has done. I want to tread over untrodden leaves and lead a revolution in some aspect of life. So I guess that’s it. Over wordy and I still have to comment on someone else’s. So since, Emily Mehler is the only one who commented, I would prefer her comment to be deleted and my comment to be in her place to officially be the first commentor on a blog and lead the path for this week. So >:-P
Ok ay, so before searching for the quote that fits me best I must first determine the aspect of my character I like best… After an hour of thinking I have not come up with anything. =/ I am not quite sure what aspect of my character I like best. It is a lot easier for me to pick out areas I would like to improve on because I know that will get the juices in my brain flowing...
Sunday morning, having nothing better to do, I started reading a book called loves me, or loves me not which just so happened to be the sequel of a book I read over the summer. Ever since I finished the book (lunch time on that same day) one quote stuck out in my mind. It said, “If you can’t accept me at my worst, you don’t deserve me at my best.” The second I read this quote I fell in love with it, I bent the tip of the page over and pulled out the neon green highlighter. This quote flaunts the confidence and carefree attitude I could never have. I guess it stood out to me because it embodies one of things I like least about my character, the lack of true confidence. Even though I have more confidence than I did last year, it is not that much. I know last year I would not have the confidence to admit one of flaws to anyone. I think I may have just realized that it is not the lack of confidence I have that made this quote shine through the black and white, but instead it is my growing confidence. I am slowly becoming less shy as I used to be while still being laid back. I feel as though that is some of the most confusion and rambling I have ever experienced in a blog.
Somehow through all of this chaos and self-contradictory I determined what I like best about my character. I am open-minded enough to look at things from many different angles. I understand that just because something makes sense one way does not mean it is the only way for it to be correct. This is especially true in AP Chem where I am constantly using things I learned in Honors Chem or earlier in the year to find an easier way to solve a problem. Raymond E. Feist, a successful writer of literary fantasy, once proposed, “Never accept the proposition that just because a solution satisfies a problem, that it must be the only solution.” (To be completely honest I have no idea who he is but because of this quote I will most likely read one of his books if I ever see his name on the shelf... but back to the blog…) This is something that is very hard for a lot of people to do. I enjoy finding more ways to do something other than how I am told to do it by a teacher or a parent. I think this is because when I find something out my own way I know why it works, whereas if I just do what someone tells me to do, I really have no clue as to why it is right, other than that is what I was told. I like having the necessary support to back-up any and all of my ideas with straight facts while accepting other ideas but not always deeming them my own. Being open minded assembled me into a stronger person, and acts a bastion for my character. I honestly would not be the same person or have the same beliefs or ideas if I were not as open minded as I am.
=D
So I went on the internet and looked through tons of quotes and only one jumped out at me. "Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans."-John Lennon. This quote is so me. If you watch me in the halls, I walk 50 mph and I completely miss the loud, obnoxious students parading around me (not that I want to see them anyway), but my point is that I speed through life and never appreciate it. For example, tomorrow night I am going to perform as Evelyn Nesbit in "Ragtime" and the whole entire time I missed the experience of being able to actually be her. I love acting and being on stage, but the way I hated those long practices and never practiced one bit shows that I am missing a great life experience. If I appreciated my part more, then I would be more excited to play her and I would feel more confident. I was "too busy" to notice that my life experience will be gone by Sunday and I did not appreciate it at all. All of my complaining sped up my life and that's how I am with all things. I literally miss life because I am busy with school or constantly hanging out with my boyfriend or friends, which I never think about how thankful I am to have. Even though this quote sort of downgrades me, I like it because I just learned so much about myself in the last five minutes. The phrase "teenagers are unappreciative" is correct. We don't appreciate life and now we are missing it right before our eyes.
I love when Gary says that he wants to do what no one else has done and I believe that he could do it. Being able to accomplish something like that is so rewarding and usually teenagers say that, but never mean it, but I have a feeling that someone like him could make a big difference to the world. Of course, Martin Luther King Jr. probably didn't expect that he would make a big difference and look what he did. If we look at the world around us, Just stand still and close our eyes, actually listen to the sounds and smells, we can learn so much and in turn we can also teach so much. Life is around us. We see it, breath it, smell it, and hear it. Only our individual selves can truly appreciate what he have and not be "too busy" to even notice everything.
After all these weeks about character and more character, I think we have found at least one major thing about our own character. I picked a few things that I like about my character and tried to find a quote that fit these things. Luckily I was successful.
“I am only one, but still, I am one. I cannot do everything but I can do something. And, because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do what I can.”
— Edward Everett Hale, American clergyman and writer (1822-1909)
This quote applies to my character because I like to be optimistic, hard working, and giving. And when you read this quote a few times it creates more and more ideas. When I first read this quote it just stood out to me. I especially like how Hale expresses himself as “I am only one” and doesn’t apply himself to everyone else. I hate comparing people to other people because everyone has their own good and bad qualities. And if everyone thought the way Hale did, then many more things would be accomplished in this world. If everyone took their tasks and completed them and didn’t refuse to work, who knows what everything would be like.
Also when I read this quote, it felt like I was reading the words as if I wrote them. I always try to do my best and always complete what I start. And if I can do something more than likely I will do it. And if I can’t I will at least try. Everything positive that someone accomplishes, including myself, does something. Nothing is pointless and even though it may seem to be, it may become everything at one time. And this just fits me and sums some of my character up.
Part of my character consists of working for a cause. And in this quote there is a cause for Hale’s work and my own work. It just puts work in a new perspective because your work can’t accomplish everything, but can help create an everything. Refusing to do what is up to you just makes a case that is pointless, but if one try’s to do their best it will never be pointless, that’s why I am the way I am. This quote also ties in to self responsibility which I believe is part of myself.
I agree with Kim when she states “I like having the necessary support to back-up any and all of my ideas with straight facts while accepting other ideas but not always deeming them my own.” I also like being open minded and following my own ways. And this is part of being ONE as Hale calls himself.
"If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put foundations under them." -Henry David Thoreau
This encompasses what I like most about myself. I love this quote which just happens to be from Walden. To me, this quote is saying that you should build your dreams in the sky, meaning far fetched and then lay the ground work or "foundation" under it to accomplish that dream. As I’m sure most of us could relate, this quote has great meaning to the hardworking students we are. This quote is one of great motivation and every time I read it, it reminds me of what my favorite part of myself is and what I should always be striving for. I love that I challenge myself with things that at times can feel overwhelming, ridiculous, challenging, and well… a nightmare. But achieving these high goals I set for myself brings me true pride and happiness. This quote reminds me of all the happiness that can come from success. For example, last year I was really excited to have endless AP class options for my junior year and seized the opportunity at taking a lot of them. My ambitious young sophomore self probably bit off more than I could chew at that point, but that didn’t mean I wasn’t up for the challenge. I love a challenge, I love pushing myself to my what I think is my breaking point and moving beyond that. So sure, the beginning of junior year was rough. Getting my time management better was probably the biggest struggle as well as understanding that from now on a night of two hours of homework would be considered a blessing. But from then I have come really far. I’ve challenged myself and proved to myself that I am, in fact, capable of taking a rigorous course load and not pulling my hair out always. So this quote not only reminds me of setting my goals high (something I like doing) but it also reminds me of the hard work that is involved in “laying that foundation” or setting the building blocks to reach those dreams.
And to comment on Kim’s blog, I completely get what she means by liking to have facts back up what she is being told, I am very much the same way. I always find myself wanting cold, hard proof that something is the way it is, I’m glad I’m not alone =]
I must agree with Gary when he said that character couldn’t be portrayed simply through a quote. Of course we all know that character consists of much more than one straightforward idea (thanks to the blog two weeks ago). This particular blog presents us with seemingly uncomplicated task, which has proven to be a bit deceiving. After an extended amount of time spent gawking at the computer screen and contemplating which quote would represent me best, I finally broke down and surrendered to the good ol’ fail-me-not “eeny meeny miny mo” method (I’m only kidding).
It was Einstein who once declared, “It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer.” I like this idea, or should I say truth. Whenever someone finds out that I’m in honors and AP courses, especially kids my age, they automatically assume that I’m some sort of super smart know-it-all. Such is certainly not the case. They possess the same amount of potential that I have. The only difference is that I persevere. I’m not one to shirk off a math problem I don’t understand, for example (sorry Bunje). It actually bothers me and I beleaguer my friends (thanks Emily and Courtney) until they clearly explain it to me. I stick to my commitment, even when the times get tough and the work gets harder. This holds true for me even in sports. I absolutely hate quitting. I could never quit track or cross-country even if I was extremely slow (which I was freshmen year). Even though I started out slow, even though I faced just as much hard work as anyone else in a situation similar to my own, I kept with it. Through those actions and that sense of dedication, improvement blossoms and success is possible. These are my “problems” and even though they don’t exactly have to do with the theory of relativity or mass-energy equivalence, they are, nonetheless, what I persisit at.
This idea goes hand in hand with a quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson; “Our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising up every time we fail.” This quality of being able to pick yourself right up after you fall, dust off your knees, and keep on walking is what separates the determined from the feeble.
Ok, so I’m looking for quotes that are somewhat close to describing my character and I come across this one, “Too many of today's children have straight teeth and crooked morals. ~Unknown high school principal”. Just think about this. How true is that? I don’t think I could count ten people who haven’t had braces and who honestly care about morals. This doesn’t apply to me, even though I’ve had braces so I guess it sort of half does, but I just thought it was a simple, clever way to portray most teenagers’ life styles. I continued my search for a quote perfect for me and think I found the closest one I could to describe me. “The best substitute for experience is being sixteen. ~Raymond Duncan”. This quote relates to me in more than just the obvious that I’m 16. It just stuck out to me like a sore thumb and immediately I began to think about my life thus far and how I’ve been living it. Then I thought about the word experience. What does it even mean? In the context of this quote it could mean anything. Hypothetically, a girl, 16 years of age is experiencing life and seeing what works for her. A boy, who is also 16, is finding out that maybe the casual lifestyle he’s been living isn’t really working for him anymore. I guess the word experience implies both good and bad situations because everyone experiences both by the age of 16. When I read this quote I thought back on the past one and a half to two years of my life. My time of being 16 is almost up, 3 months to be exact and I get my license, which is another life changing experience. Hmm, kind of ironic. Any who, I think at the age of 16 I’ve had my best experiences, both good and bad. It’s that time in my life where I’m not a kid anymore, where I’m maturing, where I’m learning everyday the person I want to grow into and become. I’m also not ready to go to college, even though the process is inching its way closer. High school, growing up, choosing a college: all of these things are an experience and really the most crucial to the rest of my life. I try to get the best out of everything that Oakcrest has to offer and I try to make the best choices. Now that I’m saying all of this, it’s kinda freaking me out. I’m not ready for college. Just a few months ago I was saying, “Oh, I have forever to deal with college!” WELL NOT REALLY! I’m going to be a senior in a few months and by then I need to know what I’m doing, not just wondering and pondering about college. I thought that I really had it hard with everything that has happened to me and the experiences I went through, but they were the bad things. Divorces and breakups are part of the experience of a 16 year old, in my case anyway, but I’ve had good ones too. I’ve probably been more fortunate than I can even realize right now. This quote is perfect. I think being 16 is the closest substitute for experience.
I just read Erin’s blog and God is she right when she says she walks 50 mph in the hallway. She forgot to mention the constant crooked path she walks, too always bumping me with her bag or running into me. But besides her speed addiction, I feel that I can relate to her quote, too. I don’t know the last time that I appreciated being here and not always worrying about homework, but then when I really think about it, it’s what I need to worry about. I still appreciate my family and friends and what happens in my life, but I think I get preoccupied once in a while. I think that’s okay though. You don’t always have to be thinking about everything you could be missing because there’s so much out there and you couldn’t possibly take advantage of all of them.
Be courteous to all, but intimate with few; and let those few be well tried before you give them your confidence. George Washington.
Well, I searched and searched. I searched some more. After two hours of searching, I finally found the quote I was looking. And good old George Washington was the person that delivered. This is the perfect quote for me.
Generally speaking, I treat people as well as or better than they treat me. I make sure to do this with everyone in which I interact. To me, this is what being courteous entails.
It takes a lot for me to lay any “confidence”, which I translate into trust. There aren’t many people that have earned my trust. Those that have earned it, though, have earned it through time and trials. These are the few people that I am really intimate with. I took intimate to mean a personal and divulging relationship. I don’t divulge this personals of my life to just anyone. There are a few people that have stood by me through different trials, and these are the people that I have my confidence in. These few I trust with just about anything.
Well, I just read Gary’s quote, and it is something pretty damn good to muster up. I disagree, though. I think this quote sums up many unseen things, and it does it pretty well. It discusses the matter of trust. The main gist of trust in this quote is that before placing your trust in a person, try that person to see how reliable he or she really is. Repeat this process many times until you are positive this person is trustworthy. Secondly, it addresses the matter of how to treat those that don’t have your confidence. Treat them with courtesy, which in my eyes means treat that person better than he or she treats you.
I find myself constantly defending myself to the people around me because I am such a proud person. Never, though, do I ever jab at someone else’s pride unless I am given good reason, through unjust treatment or some form of the sort.
So I guess this quote sums up my interactions with others pretty well.
Ok. Well I just got through typing what I thought was a good response to the blog when I stumbled upon this quote which I think is so much better, thus I am forcing myself to write a new one. "I'm not comfortable being preachy, but more people need to start spending as much time in the library as they do on the basketball court. If they took the idea that they could escape poverty through education, I think it would make a more basic and long-lasting change in the way things happen. What we need are positive, realistic goals and the willingness to work. Hard work and practical goals." -Abdul-Jabbar, Kareem. Hard work brings about many challenges that often need to be hurdled to reach your goal(s) and through perseverance and determination these goals can be accomplished. Being determined and perseverant (although some may call it stubbornness) has enabled me to do well in not only school but outside of school as well and I pride myself on these two attributes. As the time goes on I see my self becoming more determined than ever, whether it is because I now have to strive for perfection in the ever so competitive AP classes, or just the fact I want to excel in the tasks that I partake in. I agree with Emily C. when she was talking about how she like to know how things work. I too, when it comes to math and even swimming like to know why things work the way they do. I can’t just look at a math problem and be told the answer. I need to know how that answer came to be and why it is the answer. When it comes to swimming, my coach gets frustrated sometimes because I can not learn by listening. When he says “change this” or “fix that”, I usually can’t until I see another person do it correctly (even though I would usually try and just end up looking like I was drowning). But once I see how it’s done something just clicks and I get it.
My whole life I believed that quotes were a way to express a way of feeling or saying something without actually saying something. Some of them pointless, others useful and broaden the prospective of the mind. For me my quote would have to be, and this was hard because I have so many quotes to describe me and my life or something I represent but this one seems to stick out in my mind. (The funny part about all this was that I was writing down quotes I like and represent me like a few minutes before I looked at the blog. It defiantly made me smile. Well seeing that it is 11:34 at night and I am having the hardest time falling asleep, the blog could have been about anything and made me smile. But anyway back to the quote.
“Laugh your heart out,
Dance in the rain,
Cherish the memories,
Ignore the pain,
Love and learn,
Forget and forgive,
Because remember you only have one life to live”
-Unknown
This quote, yes trivial and common, probably represents me in a nutshell. I am the type of girl that has always looked at life with an open mind and lived it up to its fullest extent in most every situation. I cherish my life and the people that surround me in it and would not trade a single piece of it for the largest amount of money. My family, my friends, school, sports, boys, SHOES. How much better does that get? I have everything a girl could ever ask for and my life is on the path that I want it to be on. Yes my life does have occasional bumps and bruises but I looked at everything, think about it, write about it, and let it go. There is no point in life to hold on to things because there is always going to be something else to add to that pile until the day of a total melt down occurs. Yes I have come to that point like most people but I bounced right back and focus my mind again. One thing that I grew up with and have been taught by my parents is to not want what other people have, but hold on to and cherish the things I have. Just because some one else might have something I may want does not mean I have to have it and I really want it then I will just work for it. You know I have not always realized how good my life is until the Christmas when I was 10. My dad took me to do his annual Christmas baskets where we give food baskets to families who are having a hard time and need a little bit of help to make their Christmas as best as possible. For years I have always just gone and helped hand out the baskets to people who then took them to the needy. Then one year my dad told me that we were going to deliver a few baskets. I was so excited. Then we went. My whole thought process was shattered. Houses had windows that were simply a sheet of foam and roofs that were overlapped with tarps because the house was so beat up. Kids ran frantically around with clothes that were made for people about 5 years older than them. It was the hardest thing to see. I will never forget it. It was our last house and I wanted to go up and help bring in the baskets. I wanted to contribute and see their face when they received the basket. (Recently I had received a silver charm bracelet from my father for getting good grades.) I walked up and a little girl probably about the age of 6 maybe 7 opened the door. Her face was unforgettable when she saw the food. It was like she had never eaten before or hadn’t seen food for some while. I handed her a stuffed animal that was given with the baskets to all the little kids. As I handed it over to her, her eyes caught my bracelet and I could see the admiration in her eyes though not a word was spoken. As we were walking back to the car I looked up at my dad and though he didn’t say anything I knew he was given me the its ok, go ahead look. I ran back to the house and knocked on the door. The girl answered again but this time was eating a cookie. I slipped off the bracelet and handed it to her. The look on her face was unforgettable and made me want to give away all my toys especially the ones I had to have and played with maybe once. I felt so ungrateful that year and didn’t ask for a single thing that year. Ever since then my life is a precious gem that I hold onto and admire every single day. I am thankful that I have two loving parents, a roof over my head, people that care about me, food on my table every night, essentials to get through life, and most of all life itself.
“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” –Eleanor Roosevelt
I haven’t a clue about how this really describes me, but I thought it was a pretty good quote by browsing around on google’s search engine. ^^
Okay now…what Eleanor said had me gaze at her words in admiration, okay not really but still it’s a really nice quote in my opinion. And I have to agree with Gary that this is an impossible task to follow through, it’s like trying to find a needle in a hay stack! But any how, the more I thought about Eleanor’s quote the more I thought about my future and what really lies ahead. I don’t know about you guys but I’m a dreamer, whether it’s dreaming about a gorgeous hunk of a man to dreaming about winning a battle against my nightmares. I always wanted to be a pretty little princess when I was younger or a singer but that was all childish and all in the past now, but thinking about it, was the dreams I had younger my true steps into becoming what I am now in the present? The future holds a lot for us all and it’s a scary thought, walking into a wide open field where spectators are gleaming at you or maybe glaring at you for the dreams you have chosen. At a young age I was discouraged to dream beyond the highest mountain, I was stuck behind a little barrier that kept me from reaching even above a cherry tree. It’s not that my life is horrible to any extent, strangely I guess those barriers made me want to dream more than life itself. Knowing that everything is impossible for me to reach is a push for me to reach higher than I can ever dream. My dad always told me, “Stop dreaming and get behind the books! Dreaming is for those who don’t have a future, numbers are reality so learn it!” Haha, you can guess that my dad is a math type of person, now me? I’m horrible at math, just decent, but still horrible. But you know that saying that if you are good at math, you’re good at science? Nah, I think that’s wrong, depending on the person maybe, but I love life science. It’s like searching for an answer to a dream that use to exist until it came true! I don’t know, maybe I’m weird but that’s how I think of it. My dreams are beautiful, even my nightmares, they help me get through reality and I guess that is my character. I like day dreaming about silly things and I like believing that there is a silver lining along the clouds. And like Gary’s quote with Shrek, “That will do Donkey, that will do.” And it will, my dreams are beautiful and can bring my future to a start. And like Marsha Norman’s quote, “Dreams are illustrations from a book your soul is writing about you.” My soul is definitely writing a full Rosy story every night and it’s all about my character!
A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way and shows the way.
John C. Maxwell
I am a leader. Whether I was elected to be one by my peers or not; I am a leader. I honestly believe what I am pursuing right now in my high school career is laying down a strong foundation for what is to become a major part in my adult life. no, I’m not saying I want to be the next Hilary Clinton-I have NO desire for running America, however, I do feel there is something in me, that no matter what the situation, I have to lead in some way, shape, or form. When people look at me, whether they know me personally or not, I want them to see me as a strong person. Not like James and his guns, but mentally and characteristically. My character’s image, I would hope, would be one of having leadership ability. I am not a star athlete like Jeannie or Rachel, I don’t have the brains to be 1 and 2 in the class like Gary and Laina, I’m not exactly musically inclined like Caitlin or Courtney S., I’m definitely not organized like Christine, I most certainly am not a genius in math like Mike Galli, and I CANNOT, and yes, Bunje, I said cannot, keep random facts in my mind like Michael Townley. But I CAN lead.
This quote applies to my daily life. So far, in most cases, I have the knowledge of what needs to get done and how. With experience I am continually gaining, I am able to go the way WE (meaning whoever I am “leading” should be headed. One day, I hope to share my knowledge and experiences with others like me. I want to be able to show others what I have learned. Personally, I feel a leader is someone who never stops learning. In life there will ALWAYS be someone around who knows more than you in a certain area and you must be able to let them teach you and truly take in what they have to offer.
And I agree with Gary when he says you can’t “sum up” your character. Because yes, leadership is a HUGE part of my life and how I live and make decisions and everything but a person’s character is just so complex it’s impossible to connect all aspects into one simple group. BUT if you think you can Ms. Bunje, than congrats because that means you have quite a hold on who you are and I admire that so much!!
"So yeah, dreams are important. And I think there are more dreamers today than ever before in the history of anything... but... they're so afraid, so many of them. Afraid to lose all their 'manageable misery.' It's all just so... so... pathetic. Pathetic... and selfish. Are you seriously telling me... that you would deny the world an exquisite painting just because the cardboard firm from down the street is hiring? That you'd stay out of politics because your mates would think you a twat? That the greatest secrets of quantum physics would go forever unearthed... because Dad thinks girls are fit only for babymaking? Does that really sound good enough for you? Really? Maddening! And don't you dare tell me I'm unrealistic. I know a body's chance of sinking their claws into a dream are fairly grim. But... not to try? To settle into the gray doldrums with nary a peep?"
- Aaron Alexovich, Serenity Rose
I found the above quote about a year ago. I really long, but the ideas it contain cannot be said in one sentence, no matter how witty. I don't care who Aaron Alexovich is, and I could care less about Serenity Rose. By a quick Google, Serenity Rose seems to be a graphic novel of some sort with evil cartoonish characters similar to the Invaders Zim. However, what I do like about this quote is the style in which it is written, the stutter to it. The idea of never giving up your dreams is fairly simple, but the way this quote expands upon that idea, asking rhetorical questions that prove a point. It's brilliant. That's why I love this quote. It embodies the concept of not allowing anyone to hold you back with the concept of having goals and dreams as high as the sky.
But enough of why I like the quote, more on why this quote is me. This quote stands for every goal I have ever set in my life. It gives some sort of hope, and I quite often need hope. I want to be a computer scientist. I want to live in the city and be a part of the fast paced urban culture that exists in cities. I want to travel the world. My goals are big. For some people, graduating high school is enough for them. But that is not my case. I want to further my education and possibly consider getting my doctrine in computer science some day. Dr. Michael Henry. I like the sound of that.
Unlike the other people that have posted already, I already had a quote. It baffles me that you guys have never stumbled across a quote you like. I regularly collect quotes, from anything. What teachers say, books, magazines, aim conversation, blogs. Don't limit yourself to what Emerson or Lennon or Thoreau or Einstein or Washington or Roosevelt said. Of course, they said great things, but everyone knows them. What's better is the quote you can Google and not figure out who said it. Or the quote you can Google and discover your new favorite book or movie or any other media form.
And for that seemingly dumb reason, I appreciate Kim's quote. She stumbled upon it. She didn't Google "quotes" to find it. The unknown quotes are the best ones out there.
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I had trouble trying to decide why I shouldn't use this very long quote from a book called The Orchid Thief. The problem with it is, that the text surrounding it is completely necessary for you to understand the main idea, so here is my runner up:
If the ghost orchid was really only a phantom it was still such a bewitching one that it could seduce people to pursue it year after year and mile after miserable mile. If it was a real flower I wanted to keep coming back to Florida until I could see one. The reason was not that I love orchids. I don't even especially like orchids. What I wanted was to see this thing that people were drawn to in such a singular and powerful way. Everyone I was meeting connected to the orchid poaching had circled their lives around some great desire - Laroche had his crazy inspirations and orchid lovers had their intense devotion to their flowers and the Seminoles had their burning dedication to their history and culture - a desire that then answered questions for them about how to spend their time and their money and who their friends would be and where they would travel and what they did when they got there. It was religion. I wanted to want something as much as people wanted these plants, but it isn't part of my constitution. I think people my age are embarrassed by too much enthusiasm and believe that too much passion about anything is naive. I suppose I do have one unembarrassing passion - I want to know what it feels like to care about something passionately. That night I called Laroche and told him I had just come back from looking for ghost orchids in the Fakahatchee but that I had seen nothing but bare roots. I said I was wondering whether perhaps the only place the ghost orchid bloomed was in the imagination of people who'd walked too long in the swamp. What I didn't say was that strong feelings always make me skeptical at first. What else I didn't say was that his life seemed to be filled with things that were just like the ghost orchid - wonderful to imagine and easy to fall in love with but a little fantastic and fleeting and out of reach.
"When we are mindful of every nuance of our natural world, we finally get the picture that we are only given one dazzling moment of life here on Earth, and we must stand before that reality both humbled and elevated, subject to every law of our universe and grateful for our brief but intrinsic participation in it."
-Elizabeth Gilbert
When I read this blog, three quotes popped into my head; after reviewing the three, I decided to go with this one. I stumbled upon this quote in December while reading a blog I read every so often. I really like it because it makes me think about how small I really am. The world has existed for around four billion years or so, and will probably exist for another four to six billion years. The average life expectancy for a human being is around 80 years old. If we're really lucky, we can live until 100 or so. There's over 6 billion people on the earth right now. I'm one in over 6 billion. That's like a single drop of water in a pond, barely significant but still part of the whole.
I think this quote suits me because I want to live my life to the fullest. Like the quote says, we have only one dazzling moment of life on Earth. I want to be able to do everything I want to do, like take a class on eastern religion in college or pick a spot on the globe and go there just because I’ve never been there before or live in the city and the country in the same year just to see which one I like better. I want to dream and fulfill that dream because who knows if I’m going to get the chance to fulfill it any other time. I have big goals, like Mikey.
I feel like this quote is almost like a challenge. It’s challenging me to make sure that my time living here on Earth actually is intrinsic and has a purpose. I follow the belief that if you help one person and that person remembers what you did for them and then goes on to help someone else because of what you did, you left a mark on the world. My purpose in the world is to help people; I have known that since I was little. I’m not going to be happy stuck in an office job staring at a wall and a computer screen all day. I need to help people in some way, shape, or form. I don’t know exactly how I’m going to help people yet, but I feel that when I figure out what it will be and when I achieve it, my purpose will be validated.
As I said earlier, I thought of three quotes when I read the blog this week. So here are my numbers two and three choices:
“Aim at the sun and you might not reach it; but your arrow will fly far higher than if you had aimed at an object on a level with yourself.”
-F. Hawes
“The potential of the average person is like a huge ocean unsailed, a new continent unexplored, a world of possibilities waiting to be released and channeled toward some great good.”
-Brian Tracy
So I was hunting for a quote and I came across this quote from Benjamin Disraeli, a nineteenth century English politician, "The wisdom of the wise and the experience of the ages are perpetuated by quotations." I guess the only way it applies to my life is that it is slightly ironic, and I just wanted to share it with everyone it just seems that no matter what the subject a witty quote can always be found. Now, on to my actual quote, from American musician and composer, Frank Zappa "One of my favorite philosophical tenets is that people will agree with you only if they already agree with you. You do not change people's minds." This quote is the epitome of my approach to controversy, why bother wasting time trying to convince other people of something that they are unlikely to believe regardless of right or wrong and will most likely wind up causing a lot of completely uncalled for trouble. I admit that the quote isn’t always applicable about the belief in the best food, but for important things, it’s best to hold one’s silence. But that’s just one aspect of my personality. I agree with Gary that while a quote can be excellent about summing up a specific topic in a very pithy and witty way it’s impossible to sum up something as complex as a human being in a single quote without that quote taking up the entire blog post. I’d just like to inform you of another bit of irony I just noticed the final jeopardy question was about a quote from Benjamin Franklin, “The heart of a fool is in his mouth, but the mouth of a wise man is in his heart.”
Sophomore year we had to write our term paper on the most influential people in American history. We were all handed a sheet of paper with over 60 names of famous people who Mr. Costal perceived as influential. We were then assigned numbers that we picked out of a hat, and go figure.. I was lucky number 36. I scanned the paper and realized that most of the people I was interested in having would probably be picked after the first 20 people. I knew I was never going to get my first choice. We had a day to decide and that night I looked over the names with my mom. My mom almost immediately picked out Eleanor Roosevelt's name from the paper and told me I absolutely HAD to write my paper on her. I didn't think she was going to be all that interesting - all I knew was that she was a first lady. Somehow, I miraculously ended up with my her, and by the end of my paper I had no idea how. She was truly an amazing and influential person - who also came along with some very impacting quotes. I had quotes all throughout my paper, but the one I will always remember is the one I think can sum up my character..
“Do what you feel in your heart to be right - for you’ll be criticized anyway. You’ll be damned if you do, and damned if you don’t.”
I love this quote for so many reasons. First and foremost because that is exactly how Eleanor Roosevelt lived her life. She did exactly what she felt to be right - what would make herself and others happy. She acknowledged the fact that not everyone is always going to agree with everything you do - every action you make and every word you speak will always be controversial. There is never one thing that the entire world can agree upon. If things have to be that way, then do what makes YOU happy and don’t let others hold you back.
I have learned a ton this year. I feel as if I’ve learned from lot of mistakes made not only by me, but by others as well. I learned that it truly is hard to please everyone - and as much as you strive for perfection, you will never accomplish it. I believe that you can’t make other people happy if you can’t allow yourself to be happy, and life is easier when you’re in a good mood. Basically, I’m focusing on doing what I feel is right and enjoyable, regardless of what others feel and say.
As for someone else’s blog, I loved Hannah’s. I liked her quote - like she said, it made me realize how small I actually am compared to the great big world. It made me really want to accomplish something in my life - do something that I thought I could never do - achieve something great. Nice choice, Han.
I love quotes. Like Devon said, they’re a way of expressing what you want to say and what you feel. In eighth grade we had to go online and pick a quote that we liked and then put it next to our picture and they all got printed out on nice paper. Mine’s actually still hanging on my refrigerator. The quote I picked was, “Friendship…is not something you learn in school. But if you haven’t learned the meaning of friendship, you really haven’t learned anything.” –Muhammad Ali. At the time, it fit for me. And looking back, I realize how different my life was then than it is now.
“The farther behind I leave the past,” Isabelle Eberhardt once said, “the closer I am to forging my own character.” After skimming through pages and pages of quotes, this one made me stop for a second. I’m not sure what it was that caught my eye. I guess after moving from Brigantine and staying away from Brigantine, I tried to create a “new life.” At first, I was there every day of the week with my friends. As time went on, they changed and I guess I changed too. We drifted apart. Eventually I gave up on the amazing friendships I had had for 8 years. Things weren’t the same and it was becoming work to stay close to my friends.
These friends were the ones that truly knew me. They knew me just as well as I knew myself. After moving out to Mays Landing, I tried to forget all the bad things that had happened in my past. I figured no one here knew my family history or the things I had gone through so I mine as well not know them either. Time progressed and I realized that even Dave didn’t know stuff about me. He finally knows everything, but it took me over a year and a half to talk to him about it all.
Even though it’s not the meaning of the quote, I think it shows how guarded I am. I really know how to put up walls to keep people out. I’m working on it. I don’t want to be all secretive about my life. And this quote helped me to kind of move on and get over it.
I had already typed up a full blog answer and I realized that I did it completely wrong. Now, I hope I'm doing it remotely correct. I need to hurry this up, Lost is coming on soon.
"You miss 100 percent of the shots
you never take."
— Wayne Gretzky
This quote is probably the greatest one I've ever heard. For one, It's 100% true, and two, it somewhat describes who I am.
I usually try not to have any regrets. But unlike most people, I don't regret things that I have done. I regret things that I haven't done. Since I'm shy, I sometimes back down from things that I really want to do. Then once my chance to shine passes by, I get really mad at myself and I'm miserable all day. The only wat to succeed is to try and if don't try, you automatically fail. I guess i just thought it was better to just quit before something started rather then risk being humiliated or whatever. I don't know. I had a terrible outlook on what I wanted to do the past few years. Now, I've gotten a little better and I don't shy away as much but, I've excepted that fact that I am quiet and not really outgoing. I don't really care that I'm that way since my friends know that I'm different once you get to know me. But I digress.
I also use that quote when it comes to sports. I usually play goalie so I can't really apply this quote that often. But, when i do play in the field, I try to take as many shots as I can. Some might think that's selfish, but it's not. I'm not a selfish player and I usually have way more assists than goals. Anyway... That quote by Wayne Gretzky is one my most favorite all time. Lost is on now so I got to go.
ng the web for a quote that sums up my character the most, I found many that I liked. Not all of them entirely sum up my character but the one I chose describes one of my most important qualities of my character. Walt Disney once stated, “All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.” All of my life I have been a motivated type of person. I think this is what has helped me get to where I am now. In the beginning of the year when we made our stars, one of my bullets was to make it into the top 20. I pursued this and I have moved up and by the end of the year I am hoping to crack the top 20. I know that if I slack of or let a bad grade trip me up, I will not succeed.
I believe that courage is what will make dreams and goals become a reality. I have been in the Honors/AP system since freshman year, and I know that I wouldn’t have made it this far if I didn’t have courage. There were plenty of times where I wasn’t doing well but I still finished off well because I believed and had the courage to make a come back. This courage will help me in the future. College will bring many challenges and I will have to get past them. I can’t let them hold me back from what I want to do with my life. Nas says it best in his song “I Can.” Listen to it sometime. I believe the lyrics are very true. If people set their mind on something and work hard, they can be whatever they want to be. All it takes is a little motivation and courage. People can never tell you can’t do something in life. You can do whatever you want to (that is on the ethical side I’m talking about). I love when someone doubts that I cannot do something. This is when i do my best because I want to prove them wrong. Next year I already have a challenge like that and I’m looking forward to it.
I can agree with Megan when she states how you loose old friends. When I was little I had a group of friends. We were best friends. We hung out from 9 to 5 everyday and maybe even more. Now that we are older we don’t even talk. Things are awkward when we do. I have found new friends and I know that in the future I will meet more people. I am interested in where I will be in ten years and how my group of friends will change.
I know my character pretty good, at least for my age - an age of identity crisis - so I didn’t think finding a quote would be a problem. I was so wrong about that one. Right away I thought of a quote that I wanted to use which would point out an aspect of my character.
“Good Enough is the enemy of Excellence.” ~ Anonymous
That is a great quote, a quote everyone should live by. When I first read this quote I realized how true it is. Constantly people are selling themselves short because it’s “good enough” when instead they should be striving for excellence. Besides the fact that it is a great quote, it wasn’t my quote. Good enough is my enemy, but not always. I don’t settle for good enough when I know excellence is where I want to be. I guess I could have used this quote, but it just didn’t fit. So, I searched google for quotes to describe me, but I was unsuccessful.
In psychology class we’ve been watching the movie “Cast Away” with Tom Hanks and yesterday we finished it. One of the last quotes Hanks said was “And I know what I have to do now. I gotta keep breathing. Because tomorrow the sun will rise. Who knows what the tide could bring?” The reason I chose this quote is because I love it. I love how he referred to every new day as the tide coming in. Besides the fact that I love the quote, it really sums up my attitude toward life. Every time I face a problem and come out on the wrong side, I don’t dwell on it. I don’t sulk around convincing myself that my life sucks. Instead, I just keep going. I get over what happened because I know there is nothing I can change about it. Tomorrow is another day and you have to face it with a clean slate. This is why I chose the quote. The idea Hanks portrayed is his quote, in something I live by everyday, whether it’s a good thing or bad, but either way it’s me.
Immediately after reading this blog I had to think of my character. The problem was when you asked me this question in class I didn’t know what to say. The major problem for me was I feel like there is more than one characteristic that sums up my life. Gary said in his blog, “but you cannot pick a quote that “sums up” your character. That’s like choosing one word for it.” So, I decided to come up with several words that I felt that summed up my character and I was able to find two quotes. The first quote shows my loyalty I have with my friends and shows that I would do anything for them. My second quote shows the characteristics that I posses while I play sports and my mind set while I am in a competitive atmosphere.
“If all my friends were to jump off a bridge, I wouldn't follow. I'd be at the bottom to catch them when they fall.” – Unknown.
“If you're bribed, stand strong
If you're threatened, fight
If you're tempted, resist
If you're struck down, get up
If you lose, be noble
If you win, be gracious
If you die, be remembered
If you live, be generous
For that is the way of a champion.”
- Unknown
I believe this two quotes show the different characteristics of me during certain situations. I am loyal but I also express other qualities of perseverance, determination, and humbleness. As the first quote puts it I would catch any of my friends if they were in troubled times. The second quote describes the way I deal with different situations I could be placed in.
Mikey commented on how Kim stumbled upon her quote that she found. The unknown quotes are the best ones out there. I agree with Mikey that is the best way to find a quote that is significant. Although, the first quote I found through searching on Google, the second quote I was given by Jeannie. She thought it would suit me well. I couldn’t agree more. The second quote sums up most of the characteristics of my life.
"In helping others, we help ourselves,
for whatever good we give out completes the circle
and comes back to us."
Flora Edwards
Like most of the other AP Langers, when I first read this blog I assumed that it would be fairly easy to write. Again, like most, I was wrong. I thought about what my character was and tried to find one part of it to focus on, a part that encompasses a lot of me. This is because, like Rachel and Gary and undoubtedly a few others have mentioned, summing up character in one quote is like defining yourself in one word – it just can’t be done.
So, I chose one part of me that stands near and dear to me almost all the time, helping people. Most of the time, this refers to my friends. I do the little things for people like when someone needs a pencil, I give it to them; if no one volunteers to pass out papers, I’ll do it. I am just naturally that kind of person that I am willing to do the little things for my friends and sometimes people I don’t know.
Also, I am a great listener. I love giving advice to friends and I’m pretty sure that I’m fairly good at it because no one has told me otherwise. I may not know what it is like to be in every situation, but I can take what is going on and figure it out. I help my friends to make some sense of their life every once and a while. I really think that this is why this quote covers up most of my character. I am a helpful person. While this may only be one aspect of my character, it surely can affect other parts because being helpful finds a way to trickle into my daily life often.
The other portion of this quote is that the good we give “completes the circle and comes back to us.” This is somewhat like the idea of karma that came up frequently in one of the more recent blogs. It seems that the more you help people and are a good person, the easier it will be to give it back.
To comment on Megan’s blog, I do want to say that I really liked her choice in quote. Muhammed Ali is always a source for a good quote, and this one about friendship is sincere. However, I liked that she wrote about quotes being able to tell you things about your life and make you realize different things in your life. She said that she noticed the walls she puts up and is now trying to fix that because of quotes. I think that’s great because I, like her, looove quotes and it seems that you can always find one to match the situation or feeling that is happening to you at any given time.
Character is like theme. As Bunje says, theme can’t be explained in one word. The same goes for character. Not only can it not be explained in one word, but it also can’t be explained in one quote, as Gary and Emily Capille said. There are too many different aspects of character to explain it in one quote. One quote is only going to relate to one portion of a person’s character.
But since I have to choose a quote that fit’s the aspect I like most about myself, I would have to go with a quote from Teddy Roosevelt.
“I care not what others think of what I do, but I care very much about what I think of what I do! That is character!”
I would like to think that that’s my character. That I don’t care what other people think about what I do. I don’t like to think of others opinions when I choose to do something. I don’t let people’s opinions dictate my life like I see many people in my life do. It is my life and other’s opinions do not control it.
Now I’m not saying that I ignore everyone in my life. I do listen to everyone in my life, I just don’t let their opinions have a major effect in my choices.
Teddy Roosevelt said this quote, and that’s ironic for me. Teddy Roosevelt has always been my favorite historical figure. I admire his sternness, determination, and individualism. Theodore Roosevelt’s character is what allowed him to become a successful and popular because of his ability to allow people’s opinion’s to “bounce” off him. This characteristic is needed in any great leader, and I would like to imagine that maybe one day, I could become a great leader of an organization or company.
Before I even begin to comment, I'd just like to say how much Gary hit the nail on the head. I don't know if the reason I agree with him so unequivocally is because I'm cynical or because I'd like to believe my character is too big, too effervescent, too larger than life, to be encapsulated in an aphorism or found with a Google query, a couple clicks and buzzes to uncover my entire existence. If you had to look up something to describe my life, and the person I am, I'd like to believe you couldn't find it on Google. I'm too big of a person for that. My life is going places that can't be found in the world-weary annals of the Internet, because my life hasn't fully bloomed yet. I'm not out in the world. I'm actually in high school. Believe it or not. In case all of you haven't been told.
I've been looking for a quote all morning and I was going to take the route I usually take: picking some quote that has nothing to do with the actual prompt, or my life, and tying it in in a cynical fashion. But somewhere between the walk from AP Stats, a class I don't take, and homeroom, a class I do, it hit me. Maybe it was the hat Kristen handed me, or the fact I put it on my head backwards and refused to change it. Or it could be the fact that I realized I'm becoming more cynical by the day, feeling like Oakcrest is trapping me and turning me into a slacker, a person I REALLY don't want to be. It could have been the hat? It's an awesome hat. Fluffy, full of deer fur. Large puff on the top. Tassels. Awesome, awesome hat. This hat could probably change someone's life, if they were out in the cold and needed something to warm their head. I'm digressing. The point is, I feel like I haven't accomplished anything phenomenal lately. Like I'm settling. And that's the biggest revelation I like, just had. Just now. I don't want my life to be mundane. I want my life to be spectacular. Like fireworks. I want to change lives, I want to go places, I don't even know what I'm saying, but I want my life to be bigger than Mays Landing and Mullica Township. I want to write. Maybe this is just me musing about college. I really, really want to go to college, to a good college. I'm sitting in my Yearbook class right now, a class I usually skip because I am overwhelmed by the humdrum banality all these people around me have destined their lives to be. When I say, "I can't handle it," in reference to this class, I'm not lying. I'm not making a funny joke. I'm serious. I don't want my life to begin and end in this place, and I REALLY don't want to affix my potential to a box labeled "New Jersey." No. No. I don't want to do that.
I'm still in yearbook. I really should post because I just wrote my ending to this and it's hard-hitting, but I'm kind of in the zone and don't want to stop. I think the reason I've been so disenchanted with life lately is because it's becoming evident to me the lack of passion that animates the lives of everyone else here. Animates isn't the right word, but I'm trying to do this blog without using a thesaurus because I want to be a journalist and have my brain do that for me. But the difference between me and these people is that I am passionate, I do have a fire in my heart for something, and I feel like I attack life. Lately, I haven't been, because I've been disillusioned. I'm just like my dad, honestly. I don't know who in here knows my dad. Jo knows him very well, and the rest of you from Mullica know him in passing. But he's smart. And cynical. He is the most cynical person I know, and I'm exactly like him. He works a job where he is required to deal with idiots on the daily (I made that up. On the daily. It's made up. Don't use it in your essays, it's slang.). It makes him disillusioned, tired, and angry, and my mom doesn't understand at all. But I understand. Even more so, lately, I understand. I don't know how to fight getting world-weary sometimes, but I guess the solution is to know I'm going somewhere that isn't here, and I'm going to be a journalist and live a big ol' life, and that's that. It scares me to put that down on paper. But life is scary. I have to get used to it.
So the quote I'm picking, if I had to pick one, would be Douglas Adams' not-so-famous musing, "Life? Don't talk to me about life!" That's because I really don't want to talk about life. I want to live it.
EmBrill, what can I say. There are times when you both humble and inspire me. Trust me, you're going places,kid. In the fine words of the Doc, "Oh, the places you'll go."
Gary and everyone else eho echoed his sentiments about trying to encapsulate your entire being and soul into one pithy little addage--I know that is asking a lot--but that isn't exactly what I am asking. Probably, as I do much of the time, I am not saying it correctly though, so let me give it another go.
What I want you to do is reflect on the aspect of your character you like the MOST, your favorite, if you will, facet of you. Not your whole entire wonderful existence, just the things you admire best in yourself.
Maybe that will help? If not, let me know and I will try to say it differently.
"If at first you don't succeed, try, try again." Although this quote might sound a bit cheesy and overused, I really think that this is a simple saying that sums up my life. It was originally written as a little quip in a teacher's manual written by Thomas H. Palmer in 1840. The full quote is "Tis a lesson you should heed, try, try again. If at first you don't succeed, try, try again." (www.phrases.org) I wish everyone could take that advice or something similar, like Emily Capille and Einstein.
My life has been FULL of "try, try agains". Obviously, I am not the perfect equestrian. I have fallen off many, many times, and each time it's that quote that gets me back up. Going over a jump, Bold decided at the last minute that he didn't feel like it. After eating dirt, I "tried, tried again". Walking on a trail with my trainer, a killer deer jumped out and spooked Bold, leaving my on the ground and my trainer chasing after him. When we got back to the farm, I "tried, tried again." When cantering for the first time, I lost my balance and hit the ground. I got up and "tried, tried again." When Harry bucked me into a fence, I got back on and "tried, tried again." When Jinx just decided to stop in the middle of a canter, I scrambled back up and "tried, tried again." Starting to see my point?
Now, when I'm riding Owen (who has turned out to not be the angel I thought he was), I think of the many occasions where I hit the dirt, and tighten my grip. I'm not exactly in the mood to have to "try, try again" anymore, so I try darned hard to stay in that saddle now. If I do have the misfortune to fall off again, I will certainly get back up. It's just been nice not having to ice my bottom for a while.
Falling off and getting back on has made me somewhat of a hero around the farm. Back when I still had Bold, I was an inspirational story for students; "the girl who never gave up." It soon became apparent, however, that my story would have to come to an end or I'll break my neck on this horse. Unfortunately, people started using my decision to fuel their own, and threats to sell a horse who needn't be sold have become commonplace. It's aggravating to hear those remarks, but when I can I try to talk to these frustrated riders and tell them what old Tom Palmer told me, "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again."
-And that's what I like the most about my character.
(Is that what I was supposed to do?)
Happiness lies in the joy of achievement and the thrill of creative effort.
Franklin D. Roosevelt
There you go, a quote. I love searching for quotes, especially ones that are short in sweet. I recall back in the day during middle school when the big fad was to log on to AIM and post your favorite quotes or song lyrics in your profile and make them decorative. I constantly changed mine. One minute I’d have a Shakespeare sonnet and the next I’d have Beatles lyrics. It was certainly a time-waster, that’s for sure. Anyway, I found this blog kind of hard because there’s such a vast amount of articulate and insightful individuals in the world, alive or dead, that could produce a useful quote. I was at a loss as to who I should choose, but then settled on the simplest route: whoever pops into my head first gets a good old google search. Thus, I came upon Franklin Roosevelt.
He’s had his fair share of situations to deal with, right? Someone as tried and true as America’s great and late former president has endured many tough experiences. That is a typical reason to admire someone. Roosevelt was a trusted leader and brought the nation out of depression, helped us to recover from a startling blow after the attack on Pearl Harbor, and led us into a war in which we didn’t seem to have a place. He is no doubt a wonderful a revered man. But there is something much less complicated to admire about him. Roosevelt was amiable and friendly. Of course, I will never ever have a chance to meet him personally because he’s dead (duh), and many of his constituency never did either. But he made himself become real to the American public through his Fireside Chats on the radio. If I lived back then, I would have felt close enough to give him a hug.
That is the sole reason why I chose this particular quote. There were quite a few that were extracted from a speech here or there, or the famous “A day which will live on in infamy”. This was more concise and, as the blog insisted, applicable to my life and character. It’s obvious that I’m generally content most of the time, unless something is truly bothering me. Sometimes I wonder why. A person who is blissfully happy 24/7 may be considered a simpleton; that I am not. So what is it that makes me so sunshiny and bright? I suppose that it’s my creativity that gives me such joy. I’ve also had many personal achievements, as many others in our classes have.
I would like to respond to Emily Brill’s blog because we were discussing it earlier during our Bunje-less class today. I love the quote that she picked because, as usual, I agree with her musings on the topic. Talking about life doesn’t do much for your character and development. It’s more effective to go out and do it. Plus, why talk about something that you’re never going to understand?
“I’m not done with a woman until I have had her three ways.”
-Franklin Roosevelt
No this is not my quote, however I found it quite amusing and I hope it really grabbed all of your attention. Now with my real quote:
“Well-behaved women rarely make history.”
-L. Thatcher Ulrich
When I read this quote upon Bunje’s Quotable White Board, I was instantaneously struck with the notion of “OH! That is so true.” Simultaneously, I was also struck with a notion of “OH! That is so me!” I am not your typical woman. I do what I want and also what I feel. As I have stated in many other blogs that have been about our personality and our character, I am very impassioned person. I fight for what I believe in, even if it is not the prevailing opinion of the world.
One of my dreams is to change the world, ambiguous as that sounds. Leaving my mark on the world, in some way shape or form will let me know that my life has really meant something. In order to accomplish this, I will not conform to society’s view of how I should act. Hopefully, I can accomplish this. This coincides with Hannah’s view on saying that life is a challenge and the central part of this challenge is figuring out what our own purposes are.
Other quotes that I found interesting and applicable to my life were:
“Living in a vacuum sucks.”
-Adrienne Gusoff
And
“To avoid criticism, do nothing, say nothing and be nothing.”
-Elbert Hubbard
The first quote can describe the lives of all us APers. Countless times Bunje has said that we live in a vacuum because we have our own AP friends and just hang with them. We eat, sleep, breathe, and live in this environment and it will be a great shock when we get out into the real world where we will have to deal with all ilks of human life. The next quote I found interesting because it means that anything you do, you will be on the brunt end of some sort of criticism. So I do what I want and accept the criticism because it is a fair price to pay in exchange for being myself.
In the spirit of the quoting, I am leaving all Langers with another quote that I adore and it is:
“You do what you love, and fuck the rest.” Dwanyne Little Miss Sunshine
From one of Jim Carry’s many personas, Forrest Gump. “My momma always said, "Life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get."” I think this is one of many quotes that apply to my life. The thing about chocolate boxes is, it’s a mystery to what is inside. Life is so complicating and so easy at the same time. Things will happen that you never would have thought that would happen. Life has a certain randomness to it. You’ll be happy one minute then something so unexpected will bring you down. For example, one day me and my friends went to cape may. It took use almost five hours to get to cape may. So many things that were unexpected happened. Like we found a little shopping mall that had a GIANT one dollar store. A drive later we found this secret beach. The sand went so far out into the ocean. We found a seahorse, a bunch of hermit crabs, and a bug dead sting ray. It was awesome. My friends and I love to go out and adventure. We just keep on keeping on. We’ll try to plan a day of hanging out but not plan the events to the location we arrive at. We try to get lost, actually, so we go to place we don’t know, and if we see something we like we’ll stop. I think life is something that should be planned generally. Nothing should be specific. I like to live in randomness. By the end of the day at cape may, we decided to camp, because we saw someone with a camping box tent in the back of their pick-up-truck. By the end of the day we felt so happy and felt it was not a day a wasted. Unplanned events are definitely the best days. The quote said by forrest gump’s mother but really said by forrest gump is the truth. We all live in a world of unplanned events, sometimes you need to Spartan up and kick someone into a giant gaping hole or go on an adventure and save the world. Who know’s what I could be doing in the next 5hours, it’s life…I like to take the Spartan way out…
“The farther behind I leave the past, the closer I am to forging my own character.” ---Isabelle Eberhardt
Though you develop your character from past experiences, your character is made by what you partake in now and in the future. At one point your past was your present and what happened then makes you who you are now. I chose this quote because I do not think it only describes me and my character, but everyone.
You can not move forward in life if you are stuck in the past. You must sometimes forget the problems and heartache that was then, and make better plans for the future. In doing so you can build your character more easily, without something standing in your way. You are faced with many obstacles to build your character; you do not need the weight of your past sitting on your back.
I like her use of the word forging. To forge is to force or beat into shape. You can think of your character as a little ball of clay. Each new experience puts a little dent in that ball. After many years and many trials, your character is either a ball of lumps, or a molded beauty. It is what YOU make it. But just like clay, if you do not maintain it, it will begin to sag and loose its shape. Meaning you must be consistent with your displays of character in order to keep it alive.
I also like the quote that Erin picked. It happens too many of us that we are so focused on what we must get done and do not notice what could be done in the process. It is little things such as, I have to go upstairs to my room to get something, and I do not pick up what is on the stairs to go up because I am so focused on what I had already planned to do. It happens day after day and my mom just does not understand it. She says it is because I am little minded; I say it is because I am determined.
I have that iGoogle thing and on it I have the “Thoreau Quote of the Day”. Everyday I get a Henry David Thoreau quote. I know you’re probably wondering how my life could get any better. Every time I read one I ask myself the same question. Usually I read them and forget about them two seconds later, sorry Henry. Haha But a couple months ago I read one that really caught my attention. I even wrote it down and hung it up about my desk. (Okay, I know I’m a dork. Leave me alone.) I’m glad I did that now, because it explains a bit how I live my life.
“Our moments of inspiration are not lost though we have no particular poem to show for them; for those experiences have left an indelible impression, and we are ever and anon reminded of them.” – Henry David Thoreau
As we venture through our lives we are tested, inspired, and sometimes drug through experiences. Our responses to these experiences are what make us the people we are. Maybe you have the opportunity to lie and get away with something and you come clean. Maybe you got cut from the team and instead of giving up tried harder to make it the next year. These seemingly unimportant decisions are really the foundation to our character. We’re becoming, without even noticing, the people we will be “ever and anon”: honest or liars, perseveres or quitters. These experiences are molding or, leaving “impressions” like Thoreau says, on our character. All of these moments are not lost because we don’t have some list on our back of every decision we’ve ever made in our lives. They are with us always and shine though every second of our lives through our character.
I try to live my life with this type of idea in the back of my mind. I’m trying to make the best decisions I can because I know that I can become whatever kind of person I want to be and I’d like to be the best I can. I’m not trying to be a good person for anyone but me though. I’m not afraid of letting my parents down, or going to “Hell” if it exist. I simply want to be good, to be good. Maybe that makes it harder, maybe that makes it easier. I’m not quite sure yet. I think it’s difficult for everyone not to slip into nasty habits that compromise their integrity, no matter what their beliefs. I’m not even going to bother supporting that either...just look around at some of the people in this world. I’m trying to learn from my experiences and those of the people surrounding me by allowing them to inspire me and open my eyes to better ways of living. I’m young. I have a lot of time to screw up my life, but also have a lot of time to make it amazing. I’m doing the best I can.
Caitlin I loved that quote to when I read it in Bunje’s room! “Well-behaved women rarely make history.” It really does sum you up! You’re “intense” (I know you love when I use that word to describe you). You make yourself heard when you need to and that’s a great attribute to your personality.
Just wanted to say that Mon, I LOVE your quote. It's great. And you're not the only dork. All three of my quotes came from a "quote of the day" thing that I wrote down.
Well, I would first like to say that Christine's quote is surely a description of her character becuase I always find myself going to Christine for some kind of help, whether it be with school or life, she's always willing to give her time. BFFL =D
Now i didn't go on google looking up a quote that I thought was interesting, but i do have an interesting story about a quote someone notified me about. Many consider Mr. Hall the king of english, or at least at Oakcrest, and i didn't realize exactly why until early November. I thought about dropping AP Lang toward the end of December because I began to become overwhelmed and intimidated by the work. Now I went to Hall for advice and he quickly realized my situation. He told me to think about it and talk to him in a few days. The next day he found me in the hallway he gave me a note paper with this written on it:
"Opportunity is missed by most because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work" -Thomas Edison
This small peice of paper is what kept me in AP Lang thanks to Hall. This quote keeps me from giving up on something that looks hard or takes some work, because it may be a great or life-changing opportunity. This quote is a large part of my character and goes hand in hand with most of my beleifs about pursuit and determination.
The big secret in life is that there is no big secret. Whatever your goal, you can get there if you're willing to work.
Oprah Winfrey, O Magazine
Bunje, I remember you telling me that you hated Oprah, but this quote is pretty good. Goals, I have them, my main one is to become a dentist. After much speculation as to whether I could actually endure the pain of observing open smelly mouths all day, I have concluded that this is what I was put on this Earth to do.
"Open wide, Abre la boca." I can hear it now; I can't wait until I actually say that to a patient trusting me to fix their mouths. After 8 years of extra school, I will be 28 as a dentist. Actually, maybe 29, but by the age of 30, and age where most people aren't fully settled in a career, I will. I have the ability to get where I want to go. I can push myself as long as I know what the outcome has the potential to be.
Oprah had goals, and obviously, she's exceeded them by far. I want it to be that way with me. I want to exceed my goals. I want to be financially stable, and I also want to live very comfortably as well as my children. I realized that I like helping people, I like being creative, and I like communicating with strangers. Lol. That's a dentist. To top it all off, a wonderful salary is all included!
Since I am willing to work, I know I will get where I want to be. Most dental schools have a "quota-type" thing with accepting different genders and races. When's the last time you have met a black female dentist. That defeats the odds. Usually, there is an old white man, but I'll be a young black woman. I can't wait to obtain success. School has also been a place where this quote comes into play. Many people believe there’s some big secret to getting rich or what you want. If most people followed their dreams, they’d be where they want to be. It’s understandable that problems occur; however, I will let nothing stop me from my dreams and goals, not even children, which is why I don’t really want any, in addition to the discomfort and pain. Working towards my goals is what my entire high school career is based on.
So, Oprah isn't that bad, Bunje. She actually does have something useful to say!
The big secret in life is that there is no big secret. Whatever your goal, you can get there if you're willing to work.
Oprah Winfrey, O Magazine
Bunje, I remember you telling me that you hated Oprah, but this quote is pretty good. Goals, I have them, my main one is to become a dentist. After much speculation as to whether I could actually endure the pain of observing open smelly mouths all day, I have concluded that this is what I was put on this Earth to do.
"Open wide, Abre la boca." I can hear it now; I can't wait until I actually say that to a patient trusting me to fix their mouths. After 8 years of extra school, I will be 28 as a dentist. Actually, maybe 29, but by the age of 30, and age where most people aren't fully settled in a career, I will. I have the ability to get where I want to go. I can push myself as long as I know what the outcome has the potential to be.
Oprah had goals, and obviously, she's exceeded them by far. I want it to be that way with me. I want to exceed my goals. I want to be financially stable, and I also want to live very comfortably as well as my children. I realized that I like helping people, I like being creative, and I like communicating with strangers. Lol. That's a dentist. To top it all off, a wonderful salary is all included!
Since I am willing to work, I know I will get where I want to be. Most dental schools have a "quota-type" thing with accepting different genders and races. When's the last time you have met a black female dentist. That defeats the odds. Usually, there is an old white man, but I'll be a young black woman. I can't wait to obtain success. School has also been a place where this quote comes into play. Many people believe there’s some big secret to getting rich or what you want. If most people followed their dreams, they’d be where they want to be. It’s understandable that problems occur; however, I will let nothing stop me from my dreams and goals, not even children, which is why I don’t really want any, in addition to the discomfort and pain. Working towards my goals is what my entire high school career is based on.
So, Oprah isn't that bad, Bunje. She actually does have something useful to say!
To comment on Erin's blog, I think she is so right. but remember that you'll have another chance to play Evelin on Saturday. Engage yourself in your character, let's make the show "Ragtime" come alive! We can do it!
So today we didn't have a Snow Day. Sorry that I had to bring it up again and remind everyone, but that fact is still not sinking in, even though it's 4:22 and school has been over for awhile now. I'm a pretty optimistic person. Last night when my mom informed me of the forecast for today, I got butterflies in my stomach knowing that we could have our first Snow Day since our 8th grade year. This morning I woke up like I always do on possible Snow Days- flung the covers off of me and sprang to turn on the tv to channel 6 to watch "Oakcrest High School" pop up on the school closings list. Let me just tell you, that is one of the greatest pleasures of life, watching your school pop up on the school closings on the news, but that's another story. I looked outside and saw the world sleeping (literally, because it was only 5:10AM and all people in the right mind are still warm in bed)under a beautiful white blanket. It wasn't the kind of snow that comes from the sky in almost a rain-like fashion. No, it didn't "come" from the sky but FELL from the sky. Those tiny ice crystals were falling like sprinkles. I must have watched the school closings for at least 20 minutes before I accepted the fact that Oakcrest High School was not appearing on the list, and it took another 5 to accept that we weren't under the 2 hour delay section either. I got on the bus melancholy and depressed and barely spoke a word with Em (my best friend and bus buddie) because I was so CRUSHED (yep, Du, that's pretty much the only word for it.)When I was shuffling around school today, at least twelve people probably asked me what was wrong with me. How could they not know?! We were supposed to have a Snow Day. This was probably our last chance EVER for one because of global warming, and the evil school closers couldn't even give us this one day. In media as I was being a Talent, I sat on my stool in a little ball, not being my normal enthusiastic-self. Everyone was getting mad at me for being depressed because "I'm supposed to be the one that makes everyone laugh and lift everyones' spirits." That is a lot of pressure on a girl, let me tell you. After I thought about that for awhile, it's true that I like making sure everyone is happy and cheering up everyone on their bad days. It surprised me that I'm not allowed to have at least one bad day in my life without everyone freaking out, but that kind of makes me laugh. After walking down the halls of Oakcrest High School for a day like an emo kid, I've decided that I would much rather skip down them, like I usually do. Happiness is like a disease, and I love spreading it. :-)
"Some cause happiness wherever they go; others whenever they go."
- Oscar Wilde
To comment on a blog Caitlin, I love that quote from Little Miss Sunshine too! I was really tempted to do my quote on "I do whateva I want" - Mr. Costal, but I decided that I would try to do my blog on a more serious note since everyone thinks I'm a joke. Hahaha
thank you mon for your compliment! <3
and zander...tom hanks played forest gump. I am going to officially slap you on monday.
This is not by any means the quote I was looking for, but beings I have been searching for hours and I’m thoroughly annoyed with this blog, it will have to do.
“One of the truest tests of integrity is its blunt refusal to be compromised.”
-Chinua Achebe
Alright, this quote applies to me because one of my most dominate character traits is my uncompromising integrity. I do what it is that I believe is right, no matter what. This has gotten me into trouble with people more than once because I have said things they didn’t want to hear, but to hell with them. The truth is the truth, and perspective doesn’t change a thing; the facts are the facts, they can’t be changed. And that takes me right back to the quote, it would be easy for me to simply stain my integrity and tell people what it is they want to hear. But by refusing to compromise the truth you reinforce your integrity and that is what my quote is all about.
By no means am I saying that I never lie, because I do. Everyone lies and if they tell you they don’t well they’re liars and that it all there is to that. What I am saying is that I don’t and won’t tarnish my integrity with frequent lying or behavior I find immoral or unjust. I will tell the occasional white lie time after time, because who do they hurt? Is it hurting me or anyone else if I tell someone I like their outfit, when I really don’t, just to make someone feel a little better? An unsolicited compliment can go a long way.
Considering I’m extremely frustrated with this blog, I’m just going to wrap this up and comment on someone else’s blog. I really like Brittany’s quote, it was pretty good. I really enjoy Thoreau’s work. I would also like to thank her for reminding me to do this lovely little blog, because I surely had forgotten all about it.
I have rewritten this so many times with different quotes. I am a quote fanatic, and keep finding more that are better than the first! But anyway, I'm hoping I really do love this one the best.
"Many people die with their music still in them. Why is this so? Too often it is because they are always getting ready to live. Before they know it, time runs out." - Oliver Wendell Holmes
I'm not going to lie, I don't exactly know who this Oliver man is, but I do know this was the opening line to my favorite show One Tree Hill in one episode last year and I have loved it ever since.
This quote sums of my favorite characteristic of myself, by stating the complete opposite of me. I will never let myself die with the music still in me. I'm the classic follower of the cliché "Life is too short..." I am ready to live, and I know that. I'm sixteen, with little responsibilities and the rest of my life in front of me. Now is the time to live, to love, and to enjoy every moment of it. Well, at least it is the beginning of all that, because I won't stop. I hate seeing people go through life just waiting for that big moment when they decide to wake up and live. I create that moment every day, and this is what I love about myself. I will "live like there is no tomorrow" for the rest of my life, because that is just who I am. I hate being sad around other people, because then I know that I will just rub off on them. So, I try not to. I just smile, laugh, and joke, and soon enough I'm better, simply because I didn't keep the music inside. I chase every dream I have, because if I don’t, I realize that it was a dream lost. And if it is a dream that maybe is honestly out of reach, then I will learn that AFTER trying, and that is enough. At least I didn’t keep it inside for only me to know. Life is supposed to be shared. The song inside isn’t meant to be a secret. This is my favorite characteristic; that I don't let the happiness, dreams, and music in me die. It will be just as lively as me until the end. I let people know me, and with that they know what makes me; the song.
Also, I love the quote from Little Miss Sunshine too!! Such a good movie! But that quote is so good. Definitely a good one to live by, and even better if you can say it describes your favorite characteristic.
I know most other people talked about how much they love picking out quotes and whatnot (except Gary and Em Brill), but I don’t. I (almost) never put quotes in my aim profile and I never know what to fill in for those favorite song line, quote, etc etc. Maybe I’m just indecisive, which is definitely true and I need to work on that. I think, though, these quotes don’t mean much when it’s just one simple line. There’s no context, seemingly no thought behind it. And after reading pages of quotes, they just seem like bunches of words, strung together to make strange designs.
I’m not sure exactly what my favorite aspect of my character is, and even though we already had to define character I’m not sure what exactly mine would be in the first place. Anyway, I liked these 2 quotes and they’re things I try to keep in mind:
Our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising up every time we fail. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson
We must accept finite disappointment, but we must never lose infinite hope. ~ Martin Luther King
I always get really disappointed when things don’t go the way I want them to. Sometimes I get so frustrated with things and don’t know what the point of it is. I try to stay hopeful, and deep down I know everything is going to be ok. I know that I’ll be happy in the end, and nothing too terrible is going to happen. I guess I just get scared that because things are going right now, they won’t later and maybe they never will. But I think MLK’s quote sums that up. We’re always going to be disappointed. There’s no getting around it and we can only accept it for what it is and move on. Despite every disappointment, there’s always hope for the future. No matter what life throws at me, I just have to keep that hope and walk on fearlessly. I keep tripping up on my own faults and every thing that’s gone wrong, and that’s where Emerson comes in. Every struggle we go through and recover from is more of an accomplishment than never facing a struggle. I don’t know, but somehow I think that this is what helps me to stay hopeful. The rising up- the hardest part- is in a way what we should look forward to. That’s when we really prove our character, and we truly triumph.
The quote I have chosen to represent myself is by Gail Sheehy who said “if we don’t change, we don’t grow. If we don’t grow, we aren’t really living.” This quote incorporates the last year of my life perfectly. It means that no matter what we are going to have to change our lifes to grow. Well this past year, has been my growing point. When this year started out I was the partier and I grew up. Unlike many kids in our school I have realized that it is not always about partying, hanging out with friends, and doing whatever I want. So I decided to try and surround myself with people that can actually help me get somewhere in life. I attribute all of this to a couple people who I met this year (but one in particular) and really opened my eyes to what I was really doing instead of what I should have been doing. Since then I have really been more sense conscience of my decisions and feel like a lot better person because of it. I think that even though my change came now, that the biggest change of your life can come at any point in our life. Before this time I always thought that change in a person had to be turned on like a switch when something extreme happens, but now I believe that it can be something as simply as meeting someone you never thought you would and letting them in to influence for the better. I feel bad however for those who never get to change, either because they chose not to or the consequences for what they have done forces them not to be able to such as people who over do it and end up driving drunk and messing themselves up for the rest of their lifes. In life, there will be many opportunities you just have to figure out which ones to take. I just want to say I love how Gary has shrek, donkey, god, presidents, and South Park all in one blog and is still able to make his point clearer than mine. He is amazing.
“Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind.” Dr. Seuss
I think that this quote describes a perfect way of life, not only for me, but for everyone. It took me a while to go through all of the quotes that I have and find the one that best fits my character and personality. After some hard thinking, I realized that this Dr. Seuss quote was true to the way I live. First off, I believe that one of my best qualities is my confidence. I am always myself and I never care what anyone thinks about me, for the most part anyway. If your not my family or one of my best friends, I won't really value your opinion. I guess that can be both a good and a bad thing, but thats just the way I have and probably will always be. I'm not a rude person, and I always listen to what people have to say. Whether it affects me or not, though, that's a different story. I don't like being judged, even though I have become used to being called "preppy" or "girly-girl". These opinions, however, never did change me in any way. It is important to live the life that makes you happiest, and that is what I do. As this quote displays, people who criticize you aren't worth your time, and people who love you and care for you will accept you no matter what. It's a pretty simple quote, and a pretty self-explanitory one as well. That is how I like to live my life I suppose. I enjoy the fact that I am always confortable in my own skin and never feel the need to please others. Sure, I get insecure or nervous at times, but who doesn't? My family and best friends are the only people I need in my life, and they are the ones I know will always be there for me.
To comment on Devon's blog, I remember delivering baskets with her in eight grade, and it truly was a heartbreaking experience. I totally agree with not wanting what other people have and not taking how fortunate I am for granted. Even though I do it on occassion and sometimes forget how lucky I am, I try to tell myself everyday that there are people in this world that would give anything to be in my shoes. It helps me to understand that I should never sweat the small things and appreciate the amazing life that I have, and all of the people that make it that way.
Reading the blog I thought to myself this should be an easy one. For one because I basically live my life with quotes as my guideline and for two my Myspace is filled with them. But as I started to rummage through the tons of quotes that are scattered all over the internet I saw that it wasn’t as easy as I thought it to be. Inspirational quotes were always my favorite but I never find one that sticks out or that I can say defines me or my character.
But as I was reading my fellow classmates blogs and trying to look for a quote myself I happen to stumble upon Danny’s quote which I think is awesome and I just have to steal it and add it to my own. “I am only one, but still, I am one. I cannot do everything but I can do something. And, because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do what I can.”
— Edward Everett Hale, American clergyman and writer (1822-1909)
This quote is so true and I think it should apply to every person on planet earth if only we were able to look at things this way and not try to be someone other than who we are destine to be everybody would be satisfied and happy. There would never be that long or want for something, everybody would be more enlightened.
Okay now for my own quote.
“And in the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years.”
-Abraham Lincoln
Abe Lincoln as we all know was one of America’s best presidents and he was also an awesome writer. When I happened to stumble upon this quote from him all I could think to myself was “Wow damn this man was good” . Sometimes we tend to just live life and take it for granted we don’t say what we want to say or we don’t do what we want to do. We tend to forget that we only have one life to live. Another quote that I can tie into with this one is “Life isn’t about how many breaths you take but its about the life moments that take your breath away” The quote was found on myspace but the brilliant mind who came up with that definitely needs credit. WE JUST NEED TO LIVE LIFE PEOPLE!
As ridiculously impossible it seems to me to be able to choose A quote to sum myself up I suppose I will need some sort of predefined idea as to what I am searching for here. Since I am the type of person who is calm, patient, and try to make people smile basically ALL the time, which is not easy. However after looking through countless quotes on character and it’s development it was difficult to find the one that elaborates on what I just talked about, so I suppose this will have to do. “The best index to a person's character is how he treats people who can't do him any good, and how he treats people who can't fight back.” This quote describes me the best and is true in my opinion. I try to respect and treat everyone the same no matter how weak, strong, weird, shy, or just different they are. I don’t care if you will have no impact on my life whatsoever or that you aren’t as popular or powerful as someone else, I will still treat you the same. Every person deserves to be treated the same, and has emotions, so I feel it to be important to be polite and make people smile. So I suppose that this is the indicator of my character, thus showing that I am a good person! Even if I am mean, but in a kidding way. The person who stated this quote is Abigail Van Buren, an advice columnist. I like to go out of my to see a smile on another’s face, because it brings satisfaction to me and makes me feel good about myself. Who knows maybe I could be the reason someone’s day get a whole lot better which is something that I like to think. By showing respect and affection to everyone, everyone will in turn like you back, which just reinforces that you have a good, solid, likable character. Oh, and sorry I posted it so late, but I was at the play with a certain someone *cough* Danielle! And didnt have a chance. Love ya Bunje!
Bunje babe come on how can you ask us to pick one quote that describes ourselves. I completely agree with Gary on this one. There is no one quote that could ever completely describe Kylie Rae Brock. This is probably the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do for class because I’m a complicated person and I could probably find about one hundred quotes that have to do with my character but I came up with these two. One I found online and the other I got off that little board that has a new quote once every bazillion years. But anyway the first quote is by Gandhi and couldn’t be truer about myself and I’m sure many other people could say the same thing. This quote will apply mostly to my teenage years when I was 15, 16 seemed like the most magnificent thing in this world. Now that I’m 16 and 17 seems like It couldn’t come any sooner this probably will continue until I’m 21 anyway worrying about being older and all the things that come with growing up you can miss the thins that happening to you at this point in time in life. Sure at fifteen you seem really lame because you’re not even close to being able to do the things that an 18 year old does. But during these ages is when you do the most learning and growing you hear people all the time saying how they wish they were still younger and how they didn’t appreciate those years while they were going on. I don’t want to grow up and regret that I never took the chance to really enjoy what I had. I know I’m going to be the one extra emotional at graduation because when you think about it this is where you wanted to actually be your whole life and now your there. During this time I need to live life to the fullest and make my best better and the good times more enjoyable. With the second quote I believe whole-heartedly that it’s not what people think of you it’s about doing what makes you happy. Even though it is nice to fit in normal is boring and when it comes down to it no one remembers the normal people its all about the people who lived carefree and did what felt good in your heart.
I know that I’ve sounded like a broken record over these past few blogs, so I’m going to do my best to come up with something new and interesting. I already have a few quotes in mind that could help to sum up some of my ideals and character that I have come to know and love – without the help of Mr. Bartlett or Mr. Google.
“Don’t look back. Something might be gaining.” – This quote from Leroy “Satchel” Paige basically encompasses my thoughts from the “This I believe…” blog. I don’t want to just repeat myself, so I will briefly summarize what my ideas were. In essence, holding onto regrets merely holds you back from focusing on the present and preparing for the future. We should accept the fact that the past has passed and do our best to make good decisions in the future. This quote also alludes to running. When you turn around to see if something is behind you while you run, you slow down. So, if you continually look to the past and hold regrets, you slow yourself down from moving forward.
“Hard work pays off in the future. Laziness pays off now.” I enjoy this quote from comedian Steven Wright because it is so true. And, while I am generally a hard worker, I have grown to become lazier with my studies. I do know that my future rides on how I do in college, and the college that I attend depends on my work now in high school, but this year I’ve just felt “wiped out.” Constantly working on schoolwork my whole life has just made me want to delight in the more enjoyable sides of life, such as hanging out with friends and getting involved in different activities. This has put my schoolwork on the backburner at times and has forced me to procrastinate all too often. I definitely wish that I didn’t have to make a choice between my academic future and my social future, but life is about making these difficult choices.
I also have some favorite song lyrics from my favorite band (at the moment), Flight of the Conchords. They’re entertaining and pretty funny lyrics.
A kiss is not a contract
but it’s very nice
yes it’s very nice
Just because you’ve been exploring my mouth
Doesn't mean you get to take an expedition to the south
A kiss is not a contract
but it’s very nice
yes it’s very very nice
Just because we’ve been playing tonsil hockey
Doesn't mean you get to score the goal in my jockeys
Just because I’m in an acoustic folk band,
It doesn’t mean I only want poon-tang
I can’t go around loving everyone
I just wouldn’t get anything done
Oh because...
I'm only one man
Baby
This also summarizes a point in my life that people just won’t stop talking about. What’s the deal, Bunje? Can’t people just get off my back about it? (cough) Danielle! (cough)
P.S. - I was at the play with Pete, too. And Danielle. They would not shut up, Bunje. I had no idea what was going on in the play because half the time I was turned around telling them to whisper loudly instead of yell like baboons. But, seriously, the play was awesome. Congrats to all who were a part of it!
p.s. it's not my fault pete's blog is late miss bunj! don't listen to himmmm
And I completely agree with that "crooked tooth/crooked morals" quote in Rebecca's blog. People should spend less time focusing on their outward appearance and more time on their morals, or their inward appearance.
Bunje, it is all Danielle's fault Pete's blog is late. Don't listen to herrrrrrrrrrrr.
p.s.s.
1.JAKE your a liar, I wasn't even talking.
2.why is everyone blaming me for everything!
3.your both just jealous my blog was done first:)
Hahaha I just read Zanders blog and let me just say, "WOW!" TOM HANKS, Zander!!
So, I suppose I should apologize for getting this in so ridiculously late. I guess I could say blame my tardiness on the play, but that would be somewhat of a falsehood. The truth is every time I looked at this blog I inevitably ran a complete blank. When I look at myself I find it hard to figure out one trait that I find particularly exemplary. Don’t get me wrong: I’m not trying to be demeaning to myself, I think I’m a pretty decent human being at times, but I just find a hard time defining my greatest defining quality in my own words. To then add to that situation trying to find someone else’s words that can say it better. I quickly found myself running through all my standard favorite quotes. I quickly realized that while many of them were funny or inspiring, I couldn’t think of many that truly defined me and the things that I held important. Frankly, I had no clue what was important to me last Friday. But now its Sunday, and I’ve had some time to think. So while I apologize for not getting this into you on time Bunje, I’m sortof glad I did. Well, I’m warning you that these of sort of bizarre but I have come up with a few quotes that have really defined things in my life.
“You can’t stop the T-train!”- Paul Brower.
“Taylor has no standards or morals.” Pretty much everyone in drama.
“Dugga dugga duggadu duggadu ERIN!”- Tyrell Cooper.
“This is how they do it in the movies!”- Tyrell Cooper.
“The best thing about Krushev, is Krushchev is Bear.”- Drew Haas
“Five Minutes to hand jive”- AJ Sparks.
“My favorite film is All Dogs Go to Heaven 2.”- Rob Kramarte (Theoretically)
“It's a little uncomfortable doing love scenes in armor, but, you know, when the heat's on, the heat's on.” – Heath Ledger.
I understand that most likely your first response is WTF. But I assure you, these are all serious responses. You see these are all inside jokes, which I suppose are nowhere near as interesting for people who are outside of them. Specifically though all of these quotes come from drama. I selected each one of these not because they have a meaning that defines me, but because they each hold some of the stories that define me. It shows the way that me and my friends from drama relate to each other how important that is to me. My friends from drama were the people were the ones the ones that really helped me find some sort of sense of belonging and meaning. They helped turn me from oddity for its own sake, to a sort of madness that serves a purpose. They helped me to be myself and to discover my real voice. Now that Ragtime is over, I have acted with many of them for the last time, since the vast majority of my drama friends are currently seniors. When this year ends, they will all go there separate ways and I will be left with only a few drama friends left for next year. But I will still have these memories, these seemingly nonsensical quotes that I have used to define myself in the world of theater. I will remain hear for one final year to help keep the very nature of the comradary we have formed alive past our generation. To subvert next years Freshman over to our way of thinking. I know this may not make sense right now, but I just had to blurt out whatever was on my heart, which is often in itself some of the most confusing things out there. I suppose if I could tidy this all up, I would have no reason to need to write this out. I feel like something is just ending right now in my life, and something else is beginning. I have often been told that conservatives like me are afraid of change. I guess this is one instance where that stereotype is true. I don’t know what’s coming and it scares me. I understand this may not exactly fit what you wanted in the prompt Bunje, but I just needed to talk about this. I think I may need to write an OP on this to get some more stuff out.
Wow. Jake, nice use of Flight of the Conchords. For that you will receive one Schrute Buck.
My whole entire life I have worked for what I wanted, and labored for things I sought after. My desires were only quenched with perseverance, determination, and constant effort. Never in my life have I given up on somebody, something, and I never intend to. I see life as an opportunity, not a challenge. I was once told that a leader turns “challenges into opportunities”, and ever since I heard that I decided to run with it. Leaders are the role models of their teams, classes, companies, and departments. Leaders are not the ordinary, but the extraordinary. The only way to achieve the prefix, extra, to the word ordinary, is to work, constantly.
Our potential as human beings is profound, and in our hands to chose what to do with it. I believe that every person is destined for something great in life, but there are a select few who are destined to be great - extraordinary. However, you should never put your full reliance on the destiny, for it only becomes true if you work towards it, advancing yourself in progression after it.
For me, I know I am destined to do something great, and it is up to me to fulfill it. I have an ultimate goal for my life that I work hard for every day. I struggle, succeed, and everything in between towards this goal. For it is the most sought after thing in my life, the most constant thing in my life, the one thing that will never vary. It takes a combination of hard work to reach that goal and realize our potential.
Potential is what can be done from somebody, or what is expected from them. I am not the one who is going to come up short, failing to reach my goal. The only acceptable way to fail is to give 100% and leave nothing behind, and if you still foundered, then there is no loss in that.
I guess I am ready for life to throw whatever it wants at my, for that is who I am, I am open for the opportunity life is, and even is I dislike what is going on in my life, I will realize that you have to walk before you can run. Life is not horrible, or daunting. But it is full of potential, and in the sagacious words of Winston Churchill,
“Continuous effort - not strength or intelligence - is the key to unlocking our potential.”
Danielle, I cannot tell a lie. You would not stop talking. F'real.
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