My Adventure.

If I was put in Chris’s shoes and was able to go off like him, I would choose to go somewhere warm all year around.  I would also go some place that had people around me, and not an isolated area like Chris did on his trip.  I also think when I would leave I would tell people where I was going and not just run away, because by telling people where I am going would be a good idea, so that way if I got lost or hurt and did not come back when I was planned to then my family and friends would know where to find me, and they would not be as worried as Chris’s family and friends were.  I think the place I would choose to “run away” to would be some place either Mexico or some place in South America.  I have been to Mexico and I absolutly loved it there and that would be the place I would want to run off to and live.  It has beautiful plants and animals, and there are always people around.  I do not think I would choose to go live in the rural part of Mexico, because it would be unsafe and I would be afraid that I would run out of food and water, and I would not beable to get anymore and then I would starve to death or die because of dyhdration.  I am not one to live on the edge like Chris did.  I like to know that I can do something a little edged but still know that I will have help right there if I need it.

I guess I would say that I like to hear stories, like Chris’s, about how someone has done something extremely crazy and either came out of it ok, or the other way around.  I do not think that I could run away and never talk to anyone or see anyone for months and months, so if I was to run away I would make sure that I was surrounded by a bunch of people, I would have plenty of food and water, and I was some place that was warm all year around.

Into the Wild&Zine

My opinion of Chris in, Into the Wild, is that I do not think he is selfish, but I actually think the oppisite of that, I think he is unselfish.  I think he does have comitment problems, but I do not think that makes him a selfish person.  I do not think that just because he leaves after a couple days or a couple weeks he is selfish.  I think he puts people before himself and I think the care he has about the people he meets is more that one would care if they knew that person for months.  For example, like when is parents wanted to buy him a new car and he did not want her to spend money on that because he was grateful for what he had and he did not think he needed a brand new car to make him happy.  Some people take that as him being rude or ungrateful, but I see it as someone who knows that no matter how expensive something might be, it is not going to make you happy unless you are happy with yourself.  Also when he left he gave all his money that he had to a charity to fight hunger, he did not have to do that.  He could of just burned all the money but instead he used it in a way to help others, which is another way that shows he is unselfish and he puts others before himself.  Another way he shows how much he cares about others is when he does leave.  Even though he leaves only after a couple days after arriving to his destination, he never leaves without saying goodbye.  Even if it is not face to face goodbyes, he still says goodbye by writing a note.  Also when he leaves he continues to stay in touch with the people who either gave him a ride to a place, let him stay with them, or just gave him money or food in order to survive.  Doing that shows that he is unselfish because he could of just said bye and that would of been the last those people had ever heard of him, but instead he makes an effort to keep them update with his life and all the new experiences he has had while traveling around.  I also thnk he is very smart because for most of us, if we were to go live out in the wild with no contact with society we would go crazy, but yet he does not and he gets to the point where he likes being alone, which is unquie because most all of us need to stay in contact with society in order to stay sane.  Another reason I think he is very smart is because of the way he is able to have some recolection of what month it is, which I find is pretty amazing.  Also the fact that he keeps a journal and takes self portraits of where he has been or what new experience he has had.  Doing all those dfferent items helps show that Chris is a smart boy and is not selfish at all and even though he is doing something crazy I have a feeling he knows that he is getting himself into even if he does not know the outcome of what will happen.

I have a few ideas on what I want to write my zine about but the one sample zine I read that I found very interesting was the one that was all about the different tattoos on the peoples knuckles and the background stories on those.  I have a lot of different friends that have tattoos and for some of them I have asked why they got those tattoos or if they were just a spurr of the moment type of thing, and for most of them they said they had a story behind why they got those tattoos.  I am thinking about asking different people why they got their tattoos and taking pictures of their tattoos and then writing their story down.  I am not going to only stick to the knuckles like the guy did in his zine, but I am going to find people with tattoos on different parts of their bodies.  I think tattoos are unique because they are a way to keep a memory with you forever and a way for people to kinda of somewhat share that memory with you even if they were not part of forming that memory.  I also found the zine about the different recipes and the different stories to go along with that recipe very interesting.  My family has a lot of family recipes and there are different stories or traditions that go along with that certain recipe, so I would find it interesting to find out the different recipes in my family and have one of my family members tell me a funny story to go along with that recipe, or that fits in with it.

The King of Kongs

As I read the two different articles on Billy Mitchell and Steve Wiebe, it helped me get a better understanding for the characters.  For example, the article on Steve Wiebe talked about whether or not he cheated at Donkey Kong in his garage the first time he reached over a million points.  The article talked about how Billy Mitchell had been a top scorere for different video games such as, Donkey Kong and Pac-Man, which the documentary did not inform us of.  The article also stated  that Mitchell like to get his points, in Donkey Kong, by jumping barrels, while Wiebe got most of his points by using the hammer.  Along with giving us background information on the different characters, the article on Billy Mitchellsalso talked about what exactly Brian Kuhl and Perry Rodgers did when  they showed up to the Wiebe’s house unannounced.  The articles states, not only did the Brian and Perry check out Wiebe’s Donkey Kong machine, but Wiebe and Kuhl also played a friendly game of Donkey Kong.  Later on in the article it goes to say that Wiebe’s game board was not a correct board and so therefore his score did not count because Twin Galxey saw it as cheating.  Not putting that little information, like how Wiebe and Kuhl played a friendly game of Donkey Kong, in the documentary changes the whole view on what exactly happened.  No having that information in the documentary also makes it seem as though Kuhl and Rodgers “broke” into the Wiebe’s house.  Not only did the directors leave some vital information out on certain segments, but they also some-what portrayed characters to look a certain way.  For example, the directors portray Scott Wiebe to be a down-to-earth character. That everything he does, he fails and then he loses all hope.  He is also portrayed as being a family guy.  He is the father of two and all throughout the documentary it shows him playing Donkey Kong in his garage with his son sitting behind him or his daughter.  On the other hand Billy Mitchell is portrayed as being egotistical and the villian.  Different parts throughout the documentary it shows Mitchell saying rude, stuck-up comments to either the directors or Scott, but one piece of information the directors did not put in the movie was when Wiebe and Mitchell actually played a game of Donkey Kong together.  According to the articles on Billy Mitchell and Scott Wiebe, they both said the two of them played a friendly game of  Donkey Kong with each other at the Classic Gaming Expo, but in the documentary all the directors showed was how Billy never showed up to any of the competitions to face off against Wiebe.  MTV also states that Mitchell had not played Donkey Kong in half a year, which was also left out in the documentary.  Leaving information out like that changes how a character is view.  I guarntee if the directors would of put that little bit of information in the documentary then Billy Mitchell’s view would of changed and he would may not of been seen so much as the villian.  Reading these two different articles has not changed my views on the different characters, it has only given me more insight on how the characters really are.  I still believe Steve Wiebe accomplished the world record in his garage.  I also think the two different referees said he “cheated” because they both were good friends on Mitchell and they did not want a “nobody” be the one who beat Mitchell’s score.  Althoug these two different articles do not change my view on the characters, I now have a better, indepth understanding on the Scott Wiebe and Billy Mitchell.

Film Blog.

I would not say that I am all that into movies.  I do not go to the movies very often and when I do go, it is because my mom or a friend really really wants to see the movie that is showing.  I usually just wait until the movie comes out on dvd or I can rent it.  I am a fan of just about any type of movie.  I am a HUGE fan of the Saw movies, but I alos love the chick flicks.  I would not say that the Saw movies have played a huge role in my life or how I act towards people, but one movie I would say that has played a role in my life is, Doubt.  Doubt came out recently and I went to go see it over Christmas break with my family and my uncle, aunt, and cousins.  I thought it looked interesting just from the previews and so I stepped out of my shell and went and saw the movie.  The movie was good and it left you thinking in the end, which I like a lot.  It showed that you should always trust your instinct and you should not be scared to stick up for what is right or to even stick up for yourself.  I also liked the fact that is took place in a Catholic Church.  Since i am Catholic, I like to see how other Catholics act, and this movie showed that no matter what race you are or background you come from you can be what ever religion you want.  Since i did not go to a Catholic school, I have always wondered what attending a Catholic school is like.  Watching Doubt changed my views on what attending a
Catholic school was like.  I always thought that the teachers were very strict and old, but in Doubt, one teacher was very strict but the other teachers were not.  Also not all the teachers were old.  The main character was a teacher and she was a young woman.  Watching Dount has just proved that you should not push your instincts away and that you should listen to what your gut feeling is telling you.

Along with Doubt I would also have to say that Dirty Dancing has also taught me a few item,even though it is my favorite movie of all time.  i think that movie shows, that you never know if you are good at something unless you give it one try.  I used to be very shy and I would not do anything because I thought I would be bad at it.  I watched this movie and saw how Baby wanted to dance but thought she was bad at it, but she idid it anyway and found out she was good, so iI did the same as her but I tried soccer, and I found out i was good at it.  So I think movies play a huge roll in how a person acts and it helps them become a bigger person.

Tattoos are like memories.

If  I had to get a tatoo, I would most likely get a religious tattoo.  Being Roman Catholic has played a huge role in my life.  I have based my values, morals, and every action based off my religion.  I would not say I am very religious, but I do try to make it to church every Sunday, if possible.  So, if  I had to choose to get a tattoo I would get it of the Virgin Mary.  I chose her because she is the one who gave birth to Jesus and if it was not for her then we would not be where we are today.  She went through so much and sacraficed so much for us.  I would put the tattoo on the my lower hip so that way I could hide it if I needed to, but if I wanted to show it off I could do that too.

Summary, Paraphrasing, and Quoting.

Summary:  Roger Sipher says that standarized test scores are decling because there is a group of students who do wish to be at school but have too because of the mandatory-attendance laws, which are laws forcing students to go to school even if they do not want to be there.  His solution to this problem, is to get rid of the mandatory-attendance laws and to allow students who want to be at school and get an education to come.  He says that ending these law will provide six different improvements, which are that school is a serious place, students who do not want to be there will no longer pollute the school system, grades will improve, public esteem will rise, elementary schools will change for the better, and the cost for compulsory education will disappear, in the public school system.

Paraphrasing:  Roger Sipher ends his essay by saying that school is for education and having the mandatory-attendance laws has allowed the system to fail at what was the main goal of education.

Quoting: Roger Sipher states that one of the solutions of getting rid of mandatory-attendance laws would be that “the cost of  enforcing compulsory education would be eliminated.” (Page 1)

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