Book of the Month

The Noticer by Andy Andrews is by far the best book of the month.  Have you ever contemplated the secret to success, healthy marriage, and a good long life filled with people you love?  Well what if there was a secret to anything you ever wanted?  Well there is, and Andy Andrews fills you in on the secrets to life.  An old man Jones, he refuses to be called anything but that, takes a poor homeless man and tells him how to succeed.  Within a few years the poor homeless man turns into a wealthy happily married business man.  Jones transforms a relationship heading for divorce into a healthy one.  The secrets you come across in this book can be applied to your daily life and help you become happier.  This book should be recommended for mature ages because younger audiences could lose interest.  The secret to life is right at your fingertips.

http://workfromhomesuccesszone.com/self-improvement/the-noticer-by-andy-andrews-book-review/

Colors of Death

Sarah 

Mrs. Zurkowski/Greens

October 27, 2010

Colors of Death

In “The Masque of the Red Death” the color white is used to symbolize a stage of life.  White is the fifth room to the west in Poe’s story. The rooms in this story represent the stages of life going from east to west, just like the sun is born in the east and dies in the west.  They are separated by sharp turns so you cannot see more than one room at once, just like you cannot see your future.   White represents the ages 50-70.  Which are the ages leading up to death.  These ages almost are anticipating death’s arrival because it is coming, but they are not ages full of pain because there is still a little bit of youth left. 

White symbolizes these ages because it is plain, the fun and adventurous time of one’s life is over.  White could also mean aging in the sense that life is being drained out, just as color is drained out of white.  White also symbolizes the knowledge and wisdom gained throughout the years.  As people get older their hair starts to turn white which is another way white can be related to old age.  White is a perfect color to represent old age.  Midnight ecause midnight represents death the color white would be closer to midnight on the ‘ebony clock’.  White is in between the colors orange, the partying ages consisting of mid-life crisis, and violet, the ages next to death that consist of pain and suffering.  These ages fit around white; because, orange is to happy and carefree to fit the personality of a sixty year old, but violet is too painful and full of suffering to be within the ages of 50-70. 

White relates to my life because I know many elderly people and people in their late fifties who are in the white stage of life.  They have done so much in their life and now there is not much they can do anymore, life is drained out of them.  They already had their fun partying days and went through their mid-life crisis.  All of their vast experiences in life have left them with a certain knowledge and wisdom that people in every other stage lack.  This wisdom makes some people excited for the white stage, but what those people do not realize is how much they are going to miss the days when they had nothing but fun.  I am in no rush to grow up, but the wisdom that comes with old age will be nice.  I am sure I will look back and wish that I knew everything then that I know now.  Older people are great to go to for advice because they have been through so many life experiences and can give you great advice, plus I am sure they would love to relive memories through you.  When you are older you wish you were young and when you are young you wish you were older.  I’m in no rush to grow up.  

http://edaa.in/Members/edea/our-old-age-people/

O Henry

http://hornbillunleashed.wordpress.com/2009/06/27/2128/

Sarah P

Mrs. Zurkowski/Greens

11/8/2010

·         Real name was William Sydney Porter.

·         Was born on September 11, 1862 and died on June 5, 1910.

·         His stories were known for their wit, wordplay, warm characterization and endings with a twist.

·         He wrote the most around 1902 when he moved to New York, he wrote 381 stories while there, a story a week.

·         He was a heavy drinker which greatly affected his health and caused him to have an earlier death.

·         He was greatly known for surprise endings.

·         People refer to surprising endings as an “O. Henry ending”

·         Some of his most famous stories are: “The Gift of the Magi”, “The Ransom of Red Chief”, “The Cop and the Anthem”, and “A Retrieved Reformation”.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O._Henry

Poe's Web Search

Sarah

Mrs. Zurkoswki/Greens

November 5, 2010

http://www.examiner.com/literature-in-national/baltimore-evermore-edgar-allan-poe-relatives-choose-home-city-for-writer-s-remains

 Poe was born on January 19, 1809 in Boston, and he died on October 7, 1849.

Poe’s influence was the many deaths in his family.

Poe’s death was possibly caused by: suicide, murder, cholera, rabies, or the flu.

The state of Virginia was Poe’s home.

Even though Poe was born in Boston, Baltimore truly defines the beginning and end of his life.

West Point Military Academy expelled Poe.

Poe married Virginia Clemm before she was even 14!

Virginia was too young to marry someone who was 27 years old.

“Murders in Rue Morgue” was the first detective story.

The “Tell Tale Heart” and “Black Cat” was written in January 1845.

The Edgar Allan Poe Museum Website

The Edgar Allan Poe Society of Baltimore WebsiteThe Knowing Poe Website
I've read many of Poe's poems, but few of his stories.  I love is poetry.  M<y favorite poem by him is Annabelle Lee.

Second Quarter!!!!!

     I finally reached the second quarter!  This unit is working on short stories!  I love Edgar Allen Poe and Shakespeare so I'm really looking forward to this semester.  Last quarter went well and I'm hoping to make this one even better.  I'm striving for good grades!  Here is a picture of my friends and me as highschool students!