Thursday, October 25, 2012

Example Essay

                We all hunkered down in the woods around the fire while we watched the flags. The air was bitter cold. We were all bundled up in our thickest attire, but still unprepared for the torturous weather. It was negative 40 degrees Fahrenheit, without counting the treacherous wind. That wind roar across the lake as it spit snow in our faces – daring us to walk out onto the lake. We had gone too far to turn around now. We were out here for one thing, and one thing only: fish. Once we saw a flag shoot up into the air, we ran out for our catch before the wind claimed us. Ice fishing is another outdoor activity that I love to do. Although the weather can really take a toll on you, in the end, it’s all worth it. This was one of many examples of an ice fishing story worth bragging about. Here are just a few more I would like to share. 
                One of my favorite, close-by, places to fish is at Branns Mills Pond in the Garland and Dover-Foxcroft area. It is full of small mouth bass, brook trout, pickerel, and perch. This one time that we went fishing, after we set up our traps, we went and had our fun on our four wheeler. Since we were usually the only ones out there at the time, we would start zipping up and down the lake doing donuts and skidding across the ice. Once a flag went up, we ran over to the trap, took it out, and pulled and pulled on the line. At the end of the day, we caught four small mouth bass and two brook trouts. We could only keep two, so we kept the trouts.
                Another place I loved to go fishing is this lake up near Island Falls. Island Falls is an amazing place to go during the winter; it’s where Maine got its nickname ‘Vacationland’. During this one year we went up and visited Island Falls, we spent the day at this lake. We found a cove and constructed a fire up on land. While we watched the flags, we would just sit around the fire telling stories and cooking hotdogs on sticks. All of a sudden… BAM, BAM, BAM! The flags started shooting up nearly all at the same time. Each one of us had to quickly handle one trap and then move on to another before the fish got off the hook. I ended up catching the biggest fish of the bunch. It was a 25 inch long pickerel.
                My favorite trip was the one that I mentioned earlier. It was out to Spider Lake. It took us nearly three and a half hours driving just on the back roads to the lake! A bunch of us went and rented out a lodge. The weather that year was brutal! I was just a kid, and so the weather got too much for me and I had to go back to the lodge while the other continued fishing. However, I was able to make it out at least half the time. The trip was well worth it, though. We caught a lot a fish and some pretty good sized ones, as well. It was always a treat to get back to that woodstove in the lodge and fry up some amazing fish.
                Branns Mills Pond, Spider Lake, and Island Falls are three of my top favorite places to fish at. They all have their own special memories that I will always cherish. It was always fun as a kid to finally go home and brag to my mom about the size of the fish I caught. My stepfather, at the time, would always call me the Fish Slayer – it made me feel special. There was always something about hunkering down in the woods watching over the lake that felt homely. As long as my family was with me, everything felt right.

Example Essay Intro (Revised)

               We all hunkered down in the woods around the fire while we watched the flags. The air was bitter cold. We were all bundled up in our thickest attire, but still unprepared for the torturous weather. It was negative 40 degrees Fahrenheit, without counting the treacherous wind. That wind roar across the lake as it spit snow in our faces – daring us to walk out onto the lake. We had gone too far to turn around now. We were out here for one thing, and one thing only: fish. Once we saw a flag shoot up into the air, we ran out for our catch before the wind claimed us. Ice fishing is another outdoor activity that I love to do. Although the weather can really take a toll on you, in the end, it’s all worth it. This was one of many examples of an ice fishing story worth bragging about. Here are just a few more I would like to share.  

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Example Essay Intro

               When those tires start spinning and the mud goes flying, you know you’re having a good time. With a big smile on your face, you grasp onto those ‘holy shit’ handles, and just can’t help but laugh away. As the view out the windows imminently disappears from the mud, you’re stuck wondering how much mud is actually left on the ground! Once things calm back down and everyone gets out of the vehicle, you glance at the vehicle. When you can’t tell what color the vehicle was supposed to be, you know you had a great time. However, it all depends on the vehicle you drive as to how much fun it can actually be. If you find the right mud hole and are in the right vehicle, you will have a blast. There are a few examples as to what a good mud vehicle should possess: a high enough lift, four wheel drive, and it needs to have good off-road tires.

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Graf #19 (Reaction to Timed Essay)

                I was very happy that we were given a couple topics to choose from early so that we could think about what to write. Whenever I am under a time limit for an essay, I get too stressed out to think about what to write about and will often just stare at the blank screen or paper. The timed essay was definitely a little stressful, though. After finally getting Sirus to sleep, I tried my best to crank out a well worth, five paragraph essay within the time limit. It took quite a while to figure out what I was going to write about. Then, while I was writing the essay, I had to keep erasing, writing, erasing again, and writing again. I couldn’t make up my mind. I think I was too worried about it sounding bad. However, once I saw Mr. Goldfine’s comment to my essay, I felt like all my efforts went down the drain. He said that he would accept the essay, but he is right, it was a comparison essay – not a contrast essay. I guess that I got into the essay too much that I didn’t remember to contrast what I was trying to get across to the reader. I am very, very grateful that he accepted it. However, if he needed me to rewrite it under a time limit, I am willing to do so.

Monday, October 22, 2012

Timed Contrast Essay

               Throughout the course of the week, I am always expressing three different ‘inner animals’. These three animals, although all different, are each representing two very important aspects of mine: to protect and nurture. Nobody has ever told me that I act like these animals. However, when I have time to sit, relax, and think, I remind myself of these animals. I could be hanging out with my friends and having a good time, like a dog, slyly creeping through the woods, like a cat, or consistently on guard of my baby at night, like an owl – but I’m always there to nurture and protect.
                I usually always have to be in the company of others. I enjoy being a part of a crowd and having a good time. Whether I’m just chatting, partying, or even just listening to someone else, I like to know that I’m worth someone’s attention. This is where I feel like I am a dog. Dogs like to have attention – but too much attention and I become a shy dog and try to find my escape. I am happy to be with friends and to have fun. However, when something goes arise, I become protective. Whether it’s protection of myself or my friends, I will become all bark. If the problem heightens, I will become all bite. I do not let myself or my friends get walked on. In other aspects, if a friend needs a shoulder to cry on, I am there for them. I will listen until they can no longer talk. I am there to nurture my friends or loved ones like a dog nestling in with their upset owner. I am just a big, gentle-hearted dog that is very protective of the ones they love.
                Then there are the days where I’m out in the woods on the prowl. I have my set of skills against nature’s set of skills. I slyly creep through the woods like a cat – without making a sound. I steady my breathing, watch my surroundings, and balance my weight with each step. This way, I am as quiet as a cat on their hunt. Once I find a place that seems like a good place to rest, I sit and stay for hours without making a move. I hear every sound, see every movement, and sense every wind change. When I am out in the woods, I am on high alert. I have had hunters walk by without noticing me. When someone goes with me hunting, they are shocked at how quiet I am – it’s as if I’m not even there. When I’m out in those woods, I’m as happy as a cat with catnip.
                At night, I represent an owl. As a new mother, I am on constant alert for my baby. I sleep with one eye open, making sure I am aware of every sound he makes and that he is okay. If he makes a sound while he is sleeping, I automatically wake up. Sometimes when I don’t hear him for a while, I have to get up and make sure he is okay. I can be up at almost any hour of the night. I sleep when I can, whether it’s during the day or night. I remind myself of an owl when I am sleeping. Once I hear Sirus make a noise, my eyes shoot open and I spin my head 180 degrees around towards his crib (figuratively speaking, of course). I am very protective of my child and am always on constant alert.
                I can be man’s best friend, the field’s quietest hunter, or be as alert as an owl. No matter what the situation, it all revolves back to one thing: who I am. As a new mother, I have become very protective and very nurturing; so, consequently, I have become these three ‘inner animals’. They may be all different, but they all share these two traits. I could be protecting my friends as a dog, myself as a cat, or my loved ones as an owl. At the end of the day, the only thing that matters to me is that everyone is safe and sound. That is what makes life perfect.

Thursday, October 18, 2012

Annotated Source List

"Baby: 0-12 Mos." HealthyChildren.org. American Academy of Pediatrics, 2012. Web. 10 Oct. 2012.           http://www.healthychildren.org/english/ages-stages/baby/Pages/default.aspx?nfstatus=401.
This site has lots of great information for developments of each age range for babies. It is easy and to the point, so it was easy to find the information quickly.

Biasella, Susan. "IVillage." IVillage. N.p., June 2011. Web. 10 Oct. 2012.             http://www.ivillage.com/your-babys-first-year-newborn-development/6-a-127190.
  This site has more detailed information then the previous website. It has details of    developments for every week and every month of the baby.

Loehr, Jamie, and Jen Meyers. "Part Two." The Playskool Guide to Baby's First Year: Essential                 Information, Practical Advice and Key Choices for Your Baby's First 12 Months. Naperville,                 IL: Source, 2007. 61-127. Print.
This book doesn’t have as much information of developmental stages as the websites I used. However, there are a lot more descriptive details over what can and will happen to the baby during different stages.

Revised Graf #18 (Isearch Progress Report)

                I have been doing a lot of research. Most of which has been on the internet, but I do have one book that I have looked through. Everywhere that I research, however, all have the same relative answers. This is good because I know that the information that I am getting is not faulty. There are some differences, though; but, this is because not all babies develop at the same pace. With the information that I have read, most babies reach the same developmental stages within the ranges of 0-3 months, 4-7 months, and 8-12 months. Besides reading information to get my research, I have also been sharing this developmental experience with my baby. He has been showing me more and more every day what he is capable of doing. I am learning more from him than any book or website could tell me! I gain knowledge every day about my Isearch project without even trying!

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Essay #3 (Contrast Essay)

                  A young girl, who runs through the woods getting muddy, guts the fish she caught, tends a garden, and handles the woodstove, would not associate herself with a teenager who didn’t care whether she made it to the lake or woods that week. This teenager, who uses and abuses drugs and alcohol and breaks the law - with a record to prove it, would not associate herself with a married woman with a young child. These three people have absolutely nothing in common and should never cross paths. Yet, they all belong to the same body. All along for the ride, with baggage of transformations, it’s just me, myself, and I – and boy, what a journey it has been, so far!

                There was me – the tomboy whose only interest was the outdoors. The girl who never thought about any boys, cliques, jewelry, makeup, hair styles or anything else a 12 – 13 year old girl would think about.  The majority of things that were on my mind were fishing, hunting, and camping – besides the wood splitting, woodstove tending, cooking, cleaning (indoors and outdoors), and tending the garden. I had no time for friends unless they wanted to go four wheeling, snowmobiling, or fishing. Boys stuck their nose up at me at walked away when they saw me. I mean, why wouldn’t they? I had short hair like a guy, wore glasses, was overweight, and had absolutely no girly side to me. I was undesirable and straight-up invisible to the world besides to my family – and I didn’t care.
                Then, there was my teenage self. A complete transformation from who I had originally been. I moved away from the woods, met new friends, and allowed myself to do their hobbies: drugs. I didn’t care about school, family, or my health. I was just in it for the high of the ride. I got into trouble, did things I probably shouldn’t have done, and hung out with people that were bad news. I was your stereotypical doped up teenager ‘living up’ their teenage years. I had thought that that was the only way to have fun in life. I was so caught up in the moment, that I never remembered what it was like to just sit back and relax with a fishing rod in my hands.
                Now, there is I, Mrs. Jessica Ricker – a completely transformed woman from the previous Miss Jessica Webber. My teenage years are completely behind me now, and I am 100% sober. I have a better handle on my life then I ever have before. I am full time college student and am newly married to the most amazing Marine ever! We also have the most adorable three month old baby together! Now that we are officially a military family, we are getting ready to move out of state to a Marine base once Kevin gets through all his training. My new life is finally falling into place, and I couldn’t ask for anything better!
                Those three people who wouldn’t ever find themselves associating with each other, finally came together as a whole to create who I am today. There was Me; the all too innocent 12 year old who never wanted kids. There was Myself; the bad chick who never wanted to settle down. Then there was I; the completely transformed woman with a beautiful family. They say life is a rollercoaster. Well, my rollercoaster has gone up and down and every which way, until it finally shot off the tracks and landed in the clouds. I am up on cloud nine and I am never coming down!

Revised Intro of Contrast Essay

                  A young girl, who runs through the woods getting muddy, guts the fish she caught, tends a garden, and handles the woodstove, would not associate herself with a teenager who didn’t care whether she made it to the lake or woods that week. This teenager, who uses and abuses drugs and alcohol and breaks the law - with a record to prove it, would not associate herself with a married woman with a young child. These three people have absolutely nothing in common and should never cross paths. Yet, they all belong to the same body. All along for the ride, with baggage of transformations, it’s just me, myself, and I – and boy, what a journey it has been, so far!

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Graf #18 (Isearch Progress Report)

               I have been doing a lot of research lately. I have found out that it really isn’t that hard to find information over the developmental stages of a baby. With the research that I have, I can easily relate it all to my baby. Sirus is three months old now, and everything that I have researched coincides with him. Such as, by three months of age, babies should be able to: grasp toys, lift their head up, stretch, kick, smile, enjoy being with people, recognize people, be alert, and start to gain hand-eye-coordination. I was shocked to realize that all of this is accomplished in just three months. I would have assumed that babies wouldn’t be able to really recognize people or gain hand-eye-coordination until later on in life.

                When I saw the accomplishments of babies between four and seven months, I was appalled! They start to stand without support, sit without support, roll over, explore and reach with hands, and can understand expressions of other people. Unfortunately, they get separation anxiety around this age as well, so they get upset when momma walks out of the room. I can’t believe how fast they grow up! I never would have imagined that babies would be this developed so fast! I definitely cannot wait until Sirus reaches this stage!
                By 12 months of age, they are so developed! They are crawling, walking, switching positions from sitting to standing to crawling, imitating people, and having a preference for people. They grow up so fast! It is unbelievable. Now that I know how fast Sirus is going to grow up, I hope that Kevin can be there to see him through these stages. He will be gone for another month, so hopefully after that we will stay together. Only time will tell.

Graf 2 of Contrast Essay

               There was me – the tomboy whose only interest was the outdoors. The girl who never thought about any boys, cliques, jewelry, makeup, hair styles and anything else a 12 – 13 year old girl would think about.  The majority of things that were on my mind were fishing, hunting, and camping – besides the wood splitting, woodstove tending, cooking, cleaning (indoors and outdoors), and tending the garden. I had no time for friends unless they wanted to go four wheeling, snowmobiling, or fishing. Boys stuck their nose up at me at walked away when they saw me. I mean, why wouldn’t they? I had short hair like a guy, wore glasses, was overweight, and had absolutely no girly side to me. I was undesirable and straight-up invisible to the world besides to my family – and I didn’t care.

Thursday, October 11, 2012

Intro #2 of Contrast Essay

                Me, myself, and I. Three people you would never expect to share the same body. They have all had a part in the way I looked at life. I have dramatically changed over the years.  With each growing experience and the meeting of newer people, I have had different views on life. Each year, I grew up, matured, and realized what was important and not so important in life. Then finally, I became who I proudly am today: Mrs. Jessica Germaine Ricker.

Intro #1 of Contrast Essay

                Me, myself, and I; all the same person, yet three different people. My whole life I have dramatically changed from one person to another. All the experiences and people in my life have influenced my stance on life at one point or another. Over the past five years, I have had completely different personalities and viewpoints on each and every topic. Some people would think I am a completely different person. However, I know that I, now, am a better person than my past selves, me and myself.

Monday, October 1, 2012

Essay #2 (Classification Essay)

                The morning dew glistens from the rising morning sun - signaling the start of a new day. As the sun warms the air, the dew slowly drips off the trees, and the lake slowly ‘wakes up’ as it goes from being calm to having gentle ripples. Through this liquid mirror, the fish take a quick peek above water as they collect their breakfast. At the same time, the frogs slowly soften their nighttime singing as the loons proudly share their lovely morning solo. All is quiet, except for the harmonies of nature. Upon taking a deep breath, you feel completely rejuvenated. The fresh, crisp air is so pleasurable that smiling becomes involuntary. There are no people arguing, no television, no drama, no work, no school, no nothing – just you and nature. The easygoing morning hours let you clear your mind and free it up for noteworthy thoughts. This is a lot of the reason why I love the outdoors. That is why most of my hobbies take place outside. If it is a good day, I could easily have a morning like this while doing my favorite, and stress relief, hobbies: hunting, fishing, and camping.

                Hunting; the one place that requires my complete concentration on my surroundings, myself, and my skills. People have told me that I have great hunting skills. I am incredibly quiet once I’m in the zone. As I walk towards the woods, I let my mind dump all that is bothering me behind me. Once I enter the woods, my mind is completely blank. Nobody is there to bother me about stupid questions, concerns, or lectures. I don’t have to worry about work or school. When I finally find a good spot to sit down, I make myself comfortable, and stay in the same position for hours upon hours. Then, and only then, do I allow thoughts to come across my mind. It is very relaxing to think things through while staring at the wonders of nature. When a deer finally walks in your line of vision, it is very rewarding. Deer are so elegant; whether I shoot one or not, it is still rewarding to know that you were quiet enough for a deer to come that close to you.
                Fishing gives me a different kind of stress relief. It lets me spend time with my family in a calming environment. We talk about the past – the funny, cool, and meaningful stories. We all laugh and joke around with each other. Once someone gets a bite, we are all rooting them on. I love to fish! Trying to figure out the right way to reel the right type of lure through the water for different fish is intriguing. It’s really fun to learn what makes each fish tick. When I’m reeling in one of those giant fish, I can’t help but smile and laugh the whole time. I have a blast fighting the battle with those fish!

               Finally, there is camping. Camping is also a family oriented thing. I love sitting around the fire pit telling stories under the stars while listening to the frogs sing. It is one of the greatest feelings in the world. Especially when it’s with the people you love. It’s almost as if you can feel the bond of the relationship with everyone growing. I love to be completely surrounded by the woods and a lake. I’m talking about camping with a tent – not a camper. Camping with a camper, I believe, is cheating. As long as my favorite people are with me, I could care less about electronics, gossip, news, and anything else that is at home. All you need is a cuddle buddy, family, and a bonfire.

                The only thing that is just as good as watching the sunrise, is watching the sunset. The sky illuminates with an array of oranges, yellows, and hints of red. As the shadows from the trees become longer, the crickets begin their choir as the geese flying up above let everyone know they’re about to settle down. Once in the twilight, the frogs begin their nightly chorus and, behind them, you can hear the plop….plop….plop of the fish getting their last minute meals. Looking across the lake, you see a beautifully reflected picture of the sky up above. Following the reflection, you see the sky completely extended across with bright, shining stars. Of the billions of stars, you gaze at one in particular and remember that childhood rhyme. Star light, Star bright, The first star I see tonight. I wish I may, I wish I might, Have this wish I wish tonight: For many more days like these.