Fall Is Coming!

I always feel like fall is an in between season. It comes before winter when it gets really cold and after summer when its really hot, so the temperature is kind of in the middle. My favorite part about fall is getting to wear fashionable jackets. I hate having to wear huge marshmallow coats in the winter, but I like wearing sweaters and light jackets when its chilly outside. That would have to be my favorite part. I don't really like anything about fall, except when I get to buy a new jacket.

My Greatest Childhood Memory...hm...

This memory isn't very great, its actually kind of sad. But when I look back on it my brother and I cant help but laugh a little. I was about seven and my brother, Ian, was about five years old. We used to play outside with two of our neighbors. So one day we were all playing with water guns and this boy decided to throw the water gun at my brothers face. And of course he started crying and ran back to the house, which he did all the time so I thought it was no big deal. Well, it was a big deal. My mom came out ten minutes later yelling at me to come home and asking what I did to Ian. When I reluctantly came in I saw that his nose was split open and we had to call 911. An ambulance and police came and the whole neighborhood had come outside to see what happened. Ian eventually had to get stitches but he was fine. We always think its funny because at the time we thought it was a huge, giant water gun but now we remember that it was just a little toy from Mcdonalds! So its not the greatest memory, but it always sticks out in my mind.

A Challenge?

To me, a challenge is something that is harder than everything else. Certain things come easy, and other things don't. Those are challenges. A challenge is like an obstacle that you have to overcome and when you do, you feel really good about yourself. I know that is kind of a random definition, but that is what a challenge is to me.

Me As A Cartoon

If I could be any cartoon character I would be Olive Oyl from the Popeye cartoon. I think it would be fun to be her because she is always having to be rescued by Popeye. The cartoon is really cute and it looks like it would it would be fun to be in one of those old cartoons. Olive Oyl is always the damsel in distress and has to be rescued and always ends up with her man Popeye. How cute! That would be so fun if it were me! Or i would be Velma from Scooby Doo. She is so smart and always can figure out the crimes. And I totally love the orange sweater she always wears. Velma is really cool, except when she drops her glasses. But I do that too. :)

Passion

My biggest passion in life would have to be reading. I absolutely love to read. I know its kind of nerdy to say but its true! Whenever I get a book that I like, I could probably finish it in one day. But usually I don't let myself read a book too fast because I feel like I would miss part of the story. I also like to read magazines. They are cool because there is a bunch of mini stories and articles in one magazines. Maybe my passion will change as I get older and do other things, but right now I love to read.

Stay Interested From Beginning To End!

The reader must be interested in your story from the start to the finish. If they don't, then you pretty much wrote the story for nothing. An article can be really informational but if its so uninteresting that no one will read it then it does not matter. To keep to a story interesting, a journalist has to write a good lead. If it doesn't, then you lost your reader right at the beginning.

Seventh Anniversary of 9/11

Sevens years after the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, Americans are still mourning that terrible loss. That event was such a horrible tragedy in the United States and memorials are going to be at the sites where the attacks happened. On Thursday, the first memorial at the Pentagon in Washington D.C. The memorial is a very emotional place for family members of the 9/11 vicitms. Mayor Bloomberg of New York feels the building of the memorial is taking longer than he would like. He does understand that it is more important that the memorials are built right and are meaningful, but Bloomberg wants the process to speed up and set a final deadline for 2011. Both are supposed to be beautiful buildings paying tribute to those that lost their lives on that fateful day. I think it would be a very emotional experience to visit the 9/11 memorials and I feel like it is a place that most people should want to see. Even though it is taking a long time to build both, I think waiting and taking time to put effort into the memorials will have a greater reward than rushing the process. The article went into detail about what each memorial will look like and where it will be. It also had quotes from interviews with the mayor of New York and someone from the National September 11 Memorial & Museum. I think this story was very newsworthy because 9/11 is still a very important date to everyone in the country and having a memorial to help us remember is even more important. This article had very good coverage, it was unbiased and gave the information on when and where we will see a place for rememberance. This was a very nice article to read while still reminding you of the purpose behind the memorials; to make sure America never forgets.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/09/11/911.memorials/index.html

Collapsed Building Kills One, Maybe Others

In a suburb of Richmond, Virginia, a retail/residential building under construction collapsed on Wednesday afternoon. The number of people who were trapped underneath was unclear, but rescue workers found the body of construction worker Scott Giordano six hours after the building fell. Emergency crews continued to look throughout the evening for more trapped victims and brought in sound sensitive equipment to sense any movements or sounds in the huge pile of wreckage. They even asked people at the scene to be quiet in case any noises needed to be heard. No one knows the cause for the collapse or who exactly was in the building, other than a few construction crews. Rescuers are doing everything they can to find out exactly what happened. I think this is a very newsworthy story and the coverage is unbiased and the article was very informative. But the information is what is suspicious. I thought it was a little strange that they had no idea at all why this happened or how many people could be injured or killed. The building fell at noon and the first victim was not found until six hours later. You would think the emergency crews would be in a hurry to help injured people, especially if they were unsure of how many people could be hurt. I also think instead of just listening for cries for help the rescue team should try to move some of the building to actually look for anyone underneath. Some of this might have been going on, but this particular article didn't say. There were unspecific quotes from a fire chief at the scene saying that the rescuers were looking for people. Overall this was a good news article, but not exactly one of my favorites.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/09/10/national/main4437350.shtml

America's Favorite Cities

This year travelandleisure.com and CNN Headline News surveyed Americans on their favorite cities in the country. Shopping, food, culture, nightlife and cleanliness were all factors that played into what city be come out at number one. The results for 2008 were surprising and didn't follow the same patterns as last year. This year New Orleans was voted number one for the best fine dining. Las Vegas had the best singles scene and Portland, Oregon came out on top in the cleanliness category. New York is still the best city for people watching and Charleston, South Carolina kept its title as the friendliest city. I know this article isn't the best current event but its funny to read the things that people vote on. The story said Americans voted over 600,000 times in this survey. Its also nice to read what cities are known for things like dining and cleanliness. Even though it was short and did not have quotes or many facts, I liked this article. The story was lighthearted and made me smile.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/TRAVEL/09/10/afc.results/index.html?iref=24hours

Fistfight on JetBlue Airlines

Imagine sitting on a plane, just enjoying your flight to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida and a fight erupts between three grown men in the back row. That is exactly what happened on a Jetblue fight this past Saturday. According to the criminal complaint written by the FBI, Andrew Mark Thompson was on the flight with his brother and cousin. Thompson went into the bathroom to smoke a cigarette and was confronted and warned about not smoking on the airplane by the flight attendant, his brother and cousin. The complaint also said that Thompson later asked for an alcoholic beverage but could not receive one because he violated the no smoking rule. He then became very angry, cursing and yelling, and begged his brother to buy the drink for him. After his brother refused, Thompson lunged across the aisle and punched his brother in the left eye, causing it to bleed onto the aisle floor. The fight continued for 20 minutes and had to make an unexpected landing in North Carolina so the FBI could investigate and interview passengers. On Monday, Thompson was charged with assault and intimidating a flight crew in court. I really found this article intersting because it was such a dramatic scene and that usually doesnt happen on airplanes. I've flown to Ft.Lauderdale many times and its scary to think that a big fight could be going on right behind you while your still flying. The coverage of this event was good and gave all the facts in the story. The article mainly focused on the information from the FBI report, which was very informative. I liked this story and its good to get this kind of news out to people because anyone could be on a flight with crazy people like that.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/TRAVEL/09/08/flight.diverted/index.html

81 Year Old Midwife Still Working Miracles

When most people think of what they will be doing when they are 81, I bet many do not plan on still working full time. Or delivering healthy babies. Ruth Lubic is a midwife at her own clinic in Washington D.C, where the infant mortality rate is among the highest in the country. She delivers babies for low income mothers on Medicaid living in the D.C area and gives them the help they need to have healthy babies. Lubic's clinic has delivered 800 babies in eight years and have never lost a child during birth. Ruby Lubic wants to do everything she can to make the U.S infant mortality, something she calls ,"a national disgrace", decrease as much as possible. To me, it is so inspiring that she can be so caring and dedicated even at such an old age. I really appreciate Wyatt Andrews at CBS news for writing such a positve story. Many things in the news lately are depressing and negative. Its nice to see something uplifting for once. CBS always has newsworthy topics and this is one. Andrews interviewed Lubic and D.C city coucilman David Catania to show that the government is supportive of her cause. Even though this article was not a headline story, I still think it was good to have in the news to show the American people that there is hope for the country.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/09/08/eveningnews/main4428250.shtml