Quarter 4 post 5

today as i was reading Dance Dance Dance i decided i had to blog. From where i left off, a lot have things have changed, Steve and the girl, who we now know as "snow" had some bonding time at the airport since there was a massive delay due to the snowstorm. When they get to Tokyo , snow does not want to leave so they go driving, and at the end of their outing, snow tells him that she also saw the sheep man and leaves. the next morning Steve calls some guy from high school's agent and aasks to see him ( he is an actor), because he saw Kiki in a movie with him and he wanted to find out about her whereabouts ( forgot to put that in in the last post. They go out to eat and Gotanda (actor guy) tells him that she is untraceable.

i think that these chapters were actally fun to read, because for the first time it is not just non-stop drinking and sex, and you get to know the characters much better. i also like these chapters because the book is making sense and it isnt just decribing things there is actually talking. i think that snow will talk to steve about the sheep man and uncover some of the mysteries ( by the way snow and steve did listen to lots of music and he did not dance!!!). i also think that steve will still try to find Kiki because he is a little obsessive and maybe because she will help solve some mystery. Finally i would like to say i actually enjoyed reading this time.

Quarter 4 Post 4

today as i was reading dance dance dance i decided that i have to blog. Since the las tile i blogged the book has really changed, , although it starts with steve ( the main character)  talking to the sheep man. but as the story progresses steve is told to Dance whenever music is being played, he does this the first night and after that it pretty much stops. then steve goes to the bar and drinks a bit, and finally is ready to leave the dolphin hotel. Steve cannot leave right away however, because there is a terrible snowstorm. his receptionist friend asks him to take a thirteen year old girl to her home because her mother ( a famous photographer) left her on accident, he agrees and they go to the airport.

i think that the point of the previous chapters were either completly pointless or they are going to affect the rest of the book because the sheep man talked to steve for like three chapters and it got really anoying. i also think that the steve's alchoholism will be his downfall in the end because it has become a serious problem in my opinion, or maybe i just dont drink and cannot grasp the concept. Finally i think that the plane ride with the girl will prove to be helpful to steve in one way or another, because he really needs it, especially the drinking.

Quarter 4 Post 3

So after I read today I decided I have to blog. In the book nothing new has happened, except for the fact that he meets this guy that is dressed in a sheep suit that s falling apart in an abandoned hotel floor. Besides this there is really some pointless talking occurs between the sheep guy and the main character ( who I have decided to name Steve). The talking is about the hotel and how the sheep guy has been waiting for Steve to return to the hotel. 
 I think that these chapters are very odd because they do not involve any drinking or sexual orientated messages or fantasies. I also think this is odd because there is some guy dressed up in a ragged sheep suit and the book now takes place in a pitch black abandoned hotel floor. I think that the author choose this because he wanted to have a change of scenery, and he also wanted to add some mysticism, or what I think, the author could be a little on the crazy side. I also think that the book is really confusing, it goes in chronological order but it does not make any sense ( to me at least) and the author is getting me mad because he has still not given the main character a name so I have decided to call him Steve because its really annoying to have several characters without names. Right now I wish I did not choose this book because it is illogical and makes little to no sense.

Quarter 4 post 2

As I was reading dance dance dance I decided I had to blog. Since the last time I read, the main character has called his ex-partner (who also has no name)and asked him to look into the hotel. He looks into the hotel and finds out stuff like it was bought by a corporation and they agreed to keep the old hotel name : the dolphin hotel. After that the main character drinks a lot and talks about sex ( what else is new in this book?), but is soon in the same situation as the receptionist on a completely dark floor.

I think that the main character calling his ex- partner is showing that he knows how to get what he want s if he really wants it. I also think that the author chose an annoying way of naming the characters, no name at all, it makes all the characters seem really disjointed and un-whole as people in the books. Another thing in the novel that I do not like is the author’s character development, the author constantly brings up these random “fantasies “ in the main characters head, that really distract from the story that is already going on. I think that the fantasies make the person just forget what happens because they are so long and drawn out. One last thing about the book thus far is the reoccurring elevator dark floor story, as the story goes on I think it will be more detailed but as of right now its vague and boring.

Quarter 4 post 1

The book I am reading, dance dance dance by: Haruki Murakami is so far a great book. The book is about this guy that does odd jobs in writing, mainly for magazines and newspaper articles. His life seems pretty boring, but he keeps talking about this old run down hotel he once stayed at with his ex girlfriend. As the novel progresses the main character (Who apparently does not have a name) drinks A LOT ( I think he is an alcoholic), and he goes to the new hotel built in the same location as the old hotel, with the same name. he meets this receptionist who is curious about the old hotel and they go out.

I think that the main character not having a name makes this novel more mysterious, since it is a mystery, I also think it adds to his drinking (literally every page talks about the alcoholic beverage he drinks) . The main mystery of the book is the hotel and the mysterious disappearance of his ex girlfriend which is made obvious when he clearly states that “Kiki is the key” (pg 14 Murakami) I thinks that it could develop more and ultimately be a very good plot….. but there are still many confusing things about it so I will have to wait and see… one other interesting thing Is how into detail the Author/main character get into detail about the main characters sex life and how he is pretty much a man whore who sleeps around (and drinks A LOT). I thinks that this novel will continue to grow on me and hope to continue reading it.

quarter four book.

for fourth quarter, i am going to be reading Dance Dance Dance by: Haruki Murakami. i decided to read the book because it  is from the same author as the book that that one guy read that one day for the reading minute. i also chose to read the book because it has a very intersting summary on the back of the book. One las reason i chose to read this book is because the woman who works at barnes and nobles tols me that she loved this book.that is why im going to read Dance dance dance

quarter three post thirteen

as i was reading purple hibiscus i decided i have to blog to pass english. todays blog is about war, which purple hibiscus is filled with. in the book the lives of everyone are changed when the war is brought up, and you can see how everyone is affected soon after. Kambili becomes more outgoing, and so does her brother Raja, the mother is not enthuesiastic and she seems kinda of sad but she also has to say good bye to her kids so who could blame her, and papa is indifferent, he acts emotional when he has to say good bye to his kids but i think deep down he really does not care. Also in the book Aunty Ifeoma has to take on more people but she seems happy to help. i think that a war draws out the true emotions and colors of a person i also think that a war makes people come closer together, but not always in a posative way, a character i never talk about , amaka has hated Kambili ever since she moved into her aunts house. i hoped you enjoyed reading.

quarter three post twelve

as i was reading purple hibiscus i decided it was time to blog. this post is about imperialism. i n the book there is war and the people are scared because people are trying to take back power from the rich and Kambili and her brother must leave. i think that this shows that wars gain less then they leave behind and that Kambili will forever be different because of this. the book is very interesting and it always seems to amaze me by how the similarities of the book relate to the similarities of my own mothers life. i think that this book is very good and i hope to continue to read it. i also think that the book should be made into a movie so people can understand the hardships that are face so that you can be happy. that you for reading i hope you enjoyed.

quarter three post eleven

today as i was reading purple hibiscus i decided i had to do another blog post. this blog is about a global issue. the global issue that i am going to talk about that occurs in the book is war. in the book Kambili and her brother raja are forced to leave the war torn area were they live and move to their aunts house, they have to move because they cannot stay with their parents. i think that this shows that with a war no one knows what will happen and ultimatly it ends up hurting more than it helps. but on the other side of things the war has given Kambili a side to be more open with her upbeat aunt and her large extended family and not spend so much time alone, the war gives her a chance to open up and find out who she really is and what she is really about. so i guess war is something that is good and bad, it tears families apart and it gives people a chance at a new life.

quarter three post ten

today i decided to blog like crazy so i dont fail english. today i read the book purple hibiscus and it is really getting good . the blog for today is about holidays, and in the book they talk about easter. in the book they talk about how important christianity is to nigerians and about easter in general ( kinda sounds like post things fall apart). Well they say how impdortant that the palm leaves are and how important family is and so on and so forth, later in the chapter "papa" is in a fit of rage and her attacks the mother and raja. i think that this chapter contradicts what is going on and what the whole purrpose of easter seems like in this chapter, it almost made me want to stop reading the book, but its really good so i cant stop. i hope you enjoyed reading.

quarter three post nine

so as i was reading an article i decided that i really needed to post for my blog or i will fail english, the article is about bollywood and the theatres in mumbai. the article is about how people go to mumbai and they never go to the theatres and basically just stay home. i i think that this is very interesting because according to the article people have many chances to go see a quality film in bollywod, but they choose not to. i would definitly want to go to a quality film in mumbai if i had the chance. i also think that it is very cool that there are so many genres of films that are in the bollywood films, its like a different film for each day of the year. well if i had the chance to see a bollywood film i would , but i just have to blog like crazy.

new york times. "catch a bollywood blockbuster". new york times. 2009. march 22 2009. <http://travel.nytimes.com/frommers/travel/guides/asia/india/mumbai/frm_mumbai_3476020023.html>.

quarter three post eight

time for a new blog post. As i was reading purple hibiscus, i decided to do another blog post. this post is about culture. the book in my opinion is full of culture from the foods which are native to nigeria, to the strong christian backround and family togetherness, which i am also used to. it seems like on every page that is read there is some relation to family and or food, most of the time its just the whole family eating a nigerian soup or stew, or its just the family outing to church, the culture seems to be based on food and family. But lets not forget about religion, in the book they always talk about church and how god will help or not help youm, which i think makes religion a big part of the nigerian culture. this book is very good and i hope to continue to read it as long as it syays entertaining.

quarter three post seven

today as i was reading purple hibiscus, fir the first time in a long time, i decided to blog. the post is about change, and a lot has changed in kambili's life. in the novel Kambili is used to being A "perfect child" because of the harsh expectations of her father, but this all changes when Kambili and Raja (her brother) leave home because of the military coup. After they leave their home with their father and mother and begin to live with their aunt life changes drastically. One living with the aunt Kambili and her brother are molre free in the sense that they are no longer reserved and distant but they become more outgoing and happy. this book definitly shows change and it is in a viewpoint that all readers can understand and i hope that the book will continue to stay entertaining.

quarter three post six

so as i continued to read purple hibiscus, i found that the book is applicable for the sixth post on hope. it all starts when kambili and her family are back from church and raja (her brother ) is disobeidient and misses church and disobeys his father. this leads to Papa throwing his prayer book and shattering the glass shelving unit that holds mama's ballerinas. hope plays into this when kimbili hopes that her angered father will calm down, which he eventually does. this was an effective set up to start and end the chapter, this made me want to keep reading and i really enjoyed it. Another time that hope is shown is when kimbili hopes that her family will become happy (in general) again, because they are kind of in a falling out.

quarter three post five.

as i continued purple hibiscus i noticed that almost every page has something related to the christian religion. on the very first page of the book, that you can actually read, the family is getting back from church. I think think that this shows how religious that nigerians are, and considering my mom is nigerian i believe that this book is pretty spot on with the religious perspective. the book has many times where it points out that something is happening in their lives that includes church, like the first chapter which is all about the church that they go to .  in a way i think that this book is too focused on religion and i would like to see it distance itself a little more instead of going on like a broken record like church, but considering i enjoy reading this im content with the book. 

quarter three post four

today i began to read a book that, i had hear from my mother was a good book. the book i am reading is called purple hibiscus by chimamanda ngozi adichie. in the book gender roles have been shown in the first few pages. the females in the family are the people who do not clean and do not work, while the males are the backbone of the family who work hard to keep everything togeter. So far what i have noticed in this book is that family is very important and that evbryone shows repect to their elders, except for raja, who is in trouble. one other thing that i nothiced while reading is that women in the nigerian culture hold the family like a glue, they deal with both emotional and economic problems like all mothers do. im going to continue to read this book, because its great..... so far.

adichie, chimamanda ngozi. purple hibiscus. new york:anchor books, 2003

quarter three post three

today i read two articles about facebook and the impact on the american culture. they both talk about how people are becoming closer to each other and sometimes finding out more about others than they actually knew when they talked in person. While i personally go on facebook and so do my brothers, my family/ close knit nigerian family culture would rather talk then do things on the internet. No one in my close family on my mothers side has a facebook account, mainly because they would rather hear the voice of a person than  have to read messages and "poke" each other, its just not there nature. One reson that i think that my mom's side of the family is so close, is because they make time for each other, instead of trying to avoid each other, and they actually talk it out. Honestley i think that everyone would be happier if they spent more time with their families.

davis, lisa. "does facebook replace face time or enhance it?"time.18 january 2009. 8 febuary 2009. <http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1871627,00.html>

and 

suddath, claire. "25 things i didnt want to know about you" time. 5 febuary 2009. 8 febuary 2009. <http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1877187,00.html>

quarter three post two

today, i read an article called "Justice Ginsburg Has Surgery for Cancer."

This article is about Justice Ginsburg, the only woman on the supreme court, having surgery for early pancreatic cancer. Ginsburg is seventy five years old and is now at a memorial center in new york and is most likely going to stay there for a few weeks.

Pancreatic cancer is probably one of the worst cancers you can get. It is very rare, and very difficult to survive. And to have it as a seventy five year old woman, must be difficult. Not only does Ginsburg have to overcome the traumatizing moment when she learned of this deadly cancer in her body, but she has to deal with everything coming up. Like, what happens if the surgery didn't work? Are they going to try again? I can't even imagine how complicated her life must be right now. To know that something is killing you inside must be terrible. Hopefully the surgery worked.


want to read the whole article?

quarter three post one, natural disasters

Today I read an article on the effects of hurricane Katrina, one of the greatest hurricanes in our nation’s history. The article is about what the title says, "effects of hurricane Katrina", which is more than meets the eye. First I think that this needed to happen sooner than later (the hurricane) because i think that it taught us that we have more to worry about than a war that can’t be won, and involving ourselves in things that don’t concern us. Secondly i think that is just shows how fast that the US will respond in a case like this, I mean people are still living in trailers and its three and a half years later, so what i can say is STEP IT UP! Lastly I think that the effects of the hurricane shows that no matter how protected you are, you really don’t know until you are still there or not. Read the article here.

quarter two post fifteen

today i read a poem called "Police: Man sold teen daughter into marriage for cash, beer, meat."

it's basically about what it says. a man from california sold his 14 year old daughter to and 18 year old man for $16,000 and provide him with 160 cases of beer, 100 cases of soda, 50 cases of Gatorade, two cases of wine, and six cases of meat. but called the police when the man did not follow through.

is this a joke? is that all your daughter is worth to you? i mean, honestly, that's the most ridiculous thing i've ever heard. and after he didn't get his money, he tried to get his daughter back. do you think she's going to want to stay with you after you tried to sell her into marriage? honestly, i think that this man should definitely be punished for what he does because i'm pretty sure it's illegal to sell a human being.

quarter two post fourteen

today i read an article called "Great panda in China bites third victim."

it's about this famous panda, named Gu Gu that bit a father that had accidentally fallen into his pen. the father was throwing a panda doll back and forth with his son when he fell in while the toy fell. as soon as the panda saw him, he attacked. biting his left leg before moving to his right. the man said "The panda didn't let go until it chewed up my leg and its mouth was dripping with my blood." this is the third victim that Gu Gu has bitten, but since it is an endangered animal, they are not planning to put her to sleep.

i think this is ridiculous. i mean, i thought pandas were very gentle. for some reason, it never occurred to me that they were bears. i thought they were sweet. but that's something that everyone seems to think. it's amazing how wrong people can be. i'm pretty sure i'll be staying out of panda pens from now on. ;)


http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/01/09/panda.attack/index.html

quarter two post thirteen

today i read an article about two journalists that have just been freed in Somalia. These two journalists, Colin Freeman and Jose Cendon, were kidnapped on november 26 while visiting the city of Bosasso to report of pirate activity. Two Somali journalists were also said to be kidnapped, but that is just a rumor.

i think this is completely outrageous. not that they were released, but the fact that they were kidnapped in the first place!!! i mean, i think that they were taken by a few pirates because somebody obviously didn't like what they were reporting about, if that makes any sense. which TOTALLY goes against the whole freedom of speech thing.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/africa/01/04/somalia.journalists.freed/index.html

quarter two post twelve

Today I read an article about a man who lives his life according to the way he thinks that Jesus would . after reading “A Year of Living Biblically," by A.J. Jacobs, he decided to live a year of his own life as Jesus would have. I think that this is ridiculous for two things. If Jesus was the child of “God” how can someone live up to the child of “God” when you yourself are only human. And my second reason is how is this going to help you in anyway by mimicking an idol. If you mimic someone you are just a “clone” of that person, I think that all people should be the person that they are, the individual that they choose to be they shouldn’t have to copy the life of a person that was said to be great, but try to be their own person. read the article and see the video here

quarter two post eleven

Today I read an article that I personally think is just idiotic and sad. The article is about a man that killed his son, because he was ordered to pay child support. In the article the man said that he had to choose between killing the mother of the child, or the child, to avoid paying child support. In my opinion this is stupidity on a new level. First off if you don’t want a child you have to look after, use a condom. Secondly if killing your son is the only way out you have problems, because you could just pay child support for the kid and never see him, and never have a guilty conscious for killing a 2 year old child. And lastly if you are going to kill someone think of the consequences, if you kill him you go to jail if you don’t you pay child support. Read the article here!