Environment

I live in a small suburb outside of Cleveland known as Fairview Park. There are no big environmental issues in my hometown necessarily, but there was and still is an incident in Garfield Heights which is about twenty minutes from where I live. In 2006 a shopping center was build on an old landfill. When it was first opened all was good, but upon further inspection EPA insisted all the stores needed additional venting because the old land fill was still getting rid of the methane gas. Most of the stores and restaurants decided to relocate because it wasn't a good business choice. This was a very big deal for along time, I heard about the ordeal for a few years following the incident.

Technology

I think that technology is very useful. I do not think that our current lifestyle is able to exist without technology. Technology can be harmful, in some instances, but i believe that it has much more benefit than downfalls. In our day and age everything is constantly evolving, technology is only natural to follow. Without our current technology our other modern advances probably are not possible. I do admit sometimes technology can interfere. I have been known to get very side tracked with technology. As I type I am trying to watch television and text. Technology seams to make everybody into a multi-tasker in my opinion. This could be a good thing, it can also be a bad thing. Some people say you learn more when multitasking and some say you learn less, I guess it would all depend on who you are. In schools they have had to go to extreme measures to get cell phones out of the classroom, also to ban the use of certain sites in the internet. So there are many ways to look at how technology affects out lives, but I believe that technology positively impacts my life.

Why I Am Not Going To Buy A Computer

In this essay I think that the author makes some good points in his argument about computers. I do not like the sort of pushy way he is stating them though. He makes it seam like people who use computers are doing so much harm to our environment. Though he is not only attacking the use of computers, the use of any artificial energy source. I am not sure when this essay was written but I do not think you can get by anymore without using energy. He talks about writing in the natural daylight as opposed to using lights, I think that is kind of insane.

Al Gore's "Inconvenient Truth" Movie: Fact or Hype?

I thought that this reading was well written. It was not difficult to understand, it wasn't to long and had just enough information. I am familiar with the topic of global warming but I am not very knowledgeable. Overall this article was interesting and it is a topic that is being addressed but may need more attention.

Place Portraits

We buckle in for a typical Saturday “mystery machine” journey. We come to the opening of the marina, it is a well-hidden road off the street, and it could be easily missed if you were not looking. The road slopes downward as you pass through trees; you come across many nautical houses. Next you loop around right as you come upon the entrance. To the left there is a big blue house; the owner is also the owner of the marina. Just past the house you come across the water, the docks jet out like fingers off the shore, there are many different boats attached to these docks. Our boat lies in the middle, the teal glistens off the water. Across the river is an adjacent marina, which contains bigger more magnificent boats than what lie in out little marina. Above us is a train track, each day around the same time the train races through dusting the entire place with a thin layer of soot. As you get past the docks there is a small waterfall leading into a well tucked into the side of the hill, it is overgrown. Completely taken over by foliage. As a child I uses to think there lived a mermaid in the bottom of the well. When it got stormy water would race though the falls. On the hot summer days we would set up a pool in the grassy cove between the boat and the hill. My sister and I would play for hours enjoying the summer air. The place was separate from the rest of the world when you were down there. You didn’t feel the chaos of everyday life, you felt relaxed and at ease. Time stood still when you were in the marina; the parents were worry free and could have fun. The river seamed to be a blue green in color, and the water rippled out when something hit the water or passed through. Even in the winter the marina was magnificent. Everything was a shade of white instead of its usual green and blue color. The river turned to ice and stood still even when we touched it. The daring would even ice-skate on the river, but we were not one of them. There skates would make marks in the ice where come spring there would again be ripples in their place. The marina was filled with sounds of squawking seagulls, motors running, children laughing, bottle caps being popped and the foghorns of the boats. The familiar smell of gas filled the air along with water, like when the hose is first turned on, and cooking on the grill. It is a wonderful place where you felt separated from the rest of the world and wished you could stay there for the rest of your life.

Seeing

Reading this essay reminded me of being a child. They way that Dillard wrote was somewhat scatter brained. Dillard writes on somewhat of a philosophical way, which is very different then what I am used to reading. I enjoy her writing style though, using the description of nature to get her point across. Though the whole thing was a little long and dragged out, it got its meaning across. It was hard to read at first, the way she writes is hard to get used to, but overall i like it, it was well written and i believe she reached out to hear audience. She appeals to the child within us all. Dillard points out that we take advantage of our ability to see for the most part, that we look past the little things in order to see the big picture. I cannot be completely sure of the writers thesis, but I think that it might be, "the lover can see, and the knowledgeable". Dillard is saying that the people who pay attention, like lovers, really see the whole picture for what it's worth including the little things.

Summary: Real Men Don't: Anti-Male Bias in English By: Eugene R. August

The essay "Real Men Don't: Anti-Male Bias in English" written by Eugene R. August first appeared in the University of Dayton Review winter/spring 1986-1987. This essay focuses on the exploitation and demeaning of males. August tells readers that anti-male bias are uncommon, because people commonly believe history tells of "male oppressors and female victims or rebels"(1). Also he shares the central belief among people that the world we are living in was made by man, for man and women were more or less a forethought. August unveils the thoughts of other educated people on the matter, including Walter J. Ong who tells us the way in which people learn and think is largely based on what is passed on through women. That being said the essay mentions that the use anti-male bias have been said to be "misandry, hatred of men" and "degenerates men and masculinity"(4)

August uses examples in the english language where men are being discriminated, such as in the word rape, rape is thought to be a male crime committed against females. Another example August uses taken straight form our english language are phrases like "be a man" or "real men don't". There are certain standards in which a boy or man must fit into to be considered one, is okay for a girl to be considered a "tomboy" but there is no term as accepting for a boy to be categorized as. August shares many derogatory terms males can be call for not fitting in the male standards, to which females do not typically have.

Males are also expected in a dating relationship to pick up the tab, drive and be an overall gentleman and show chivalry. In a sexual state, men are expected to make the first move and to perform or again he will be ridiculed. Also if a man marries he is expected to have a job and have the ability to support his family or more ridicule. Crime and evil are typically perceived as male. When the term suspect is used the wrongdoer is thought to be male over female. The last point August makes is that evil tends to have a masculine tendency. Most people believe that the devil is a male character, and is almost always portrayed as one.

August points out that there is a tendency to blame bad things on men, pulling all wrongs on the shoulders of men. He states there are dangers in the assumption of the common person who believes that men hold the power and women have none. The traditional male stereo-type and role limit a man, both men and women need to confront this problem and abolish it once and for all. Males and females should be thought to be one the same page and equal.