Class Time

2009-03-08T19:06:00.000-07:00

This semester is so hectic.
I don't think I have posted a single thing.
That's okay. I will get to something possibly next semester.

Library of Congress

2008-11-20T19:35:00.000-08:00

My paper for the Library of Congress is here now. It is being edited for me by my English Composition II professor Mr. Hamelin. It is 10 pages... I guess I can post what i have. The conclusion isn't amazing. If you hold out I will post the finished copy later, becasue 10 pages is a lot to read.

The Library of Congress
Amanda M. Cunningham
October 22, 2008
U. S. History I
Dr. Wallace

Probably the least discussed building historically in America is the Library of Congress. That fact is surprising because this building has such a colorful past. Today the Library is the largest library in the world, containing over 650 miles of shelving, but this was a revival from the ashes of two one room libraries which only had part time librarians. The library has gone through three major phases to get to where it is now: Preceding the first fire, preceding the second fire, and preceding construction of the Jefferson building.

The Library of Congress had a rough beginning. The first library was established on 24 April 1801 when the national government was moving from Philadelphia to Washington. John Randolph drew up an act which needed approval by Congress. On 17 November 1801, Thomas Jefferson, the only person who could possibly be credited for founding the library, donated his entire personal book collection to the library. Thomas Jefferson, to whom learning and books were of the up most importance, spent much of his life collecting books subjecting foreign languages, law, philosophy, geography and even cook books. Jefferson felt that "there is in fact no subject to which a member of Congress may not have occasion to refer.” (If you can get this quote from the book… if not get it off of the website in the “extra research”) According to Boorstin, “When Jefferson offered the young nation his personal library, which was to be the foundation of the library of Congress, it contained so many foreign –language books, including numerous “atheistical” works of Voltaire and other French revolutionaries, that some members of Congress opposed its purchase.”(1987).That donation, along with $5000 for "such books as may be necessary for the use of Congress", 740 other volumes, and three maps, was all that the first library consisted of.

After the establishment of the library, congress created a committee, headed by John Randolph which would be in charge of running and solving the problems of the library. On 26 January 26 1802 this committee created, and Jefferson approved, a role for a Librarian of Congress, who was to be chosen by the president. This committee also pointed out what the role of the library was to be, what the budget was going to be, and the regulations of the library. On 29 January 1802, Thomas Jefferson asked John James Beckley to be the librarian alongside his Clerk of House of Representatives position.

Though the committee for the library was in charge of the library's proceedings Thomas Jefferson and James Beckley were often both personally involved. Jefferson often ordered books for the library himself alongside his personal orders causing confusion when orders were being processed. Jefferson also appointed the first two librarians. Beckley often gave tours of the library to important figures when they visited the capitol. According to the Library of Congress website, Charles Wilson Peale recorded this in his diary after visiting the library in June of 1804, "We went first to the Library where Mr. Beckley received us with politeness… The Library is a spacious and handsome Room, and although lately organized, already contained a number of valuable books in the best taste of binding. “(LOC1) A colorful piece of Beckley’s history is the issues surrounding Josias Wilson King. In December of 1805, Beckley fired King from his library position. It is said that King had wanted the librarian position himself, but Beckley promised to share his salary with King. After he was fired, King prepared a memorial to Congress to complain. Beckley was exonerated of all charges. That same month, the library’s room was taken away and Beckley had to move to an old committee room. He held the librarian position until his death on 8 April 1807.

In 1812, when the library was under librarian Patrick Magruder, the library cataloged 3,076 volumes and 53 maps and charts. That same year, the United States got into a war with England, The War of 1812. This was a war that the United States should not have even been involved in. The United States was severely overpowered and attempting the impossible. The library suffered greatly because of the war. On 25 August 1814 English soldiers marched into Washington unimpeded, the US Army and government officials had fled to Virginia, and burned the capitol building. At that time, the Library was contained in a room within that building. At the very least, one third of Jefferson's original donation was torched. No longer was there a building to contain the few remaining books. To top off the fire, the librarian, Patrick Magruder, was being looked into. During a time Magruder was absent due to illness congress approved his brother, George Magruder’s filling in for the position, but after the fire, records revealed that $20,000 had gone “missing”. Magruder resigned from his position as Librarian and Clerk of the House and moved away. Magruder died on 14 December 1819, before any formal trial was put in place. The library was out of business. (LOC 4)

Fortunately, the library was able to continue after the fire. The library was apportioned a small amount of money and a new librarian, George Watterson, was hired. The dual job title of Clerk of the House and Librarian of Congress was also diminished. In order to continue the library, the government bought Thomas Jefferson’s personal library from him on 30 January 1815. His library consisted of 6,487 volumes and was purchased for $23,950. Many of the congressman who were against the original donation opposed purchasing Jefferson’s books, but the new purchase more than doubled what had been destroyed in the fire. The donation also broadened the subjects available to patrons (LOC3). The ironic thing is that many of them were opposed to Jefferson because he was intelligent. It was said that what they needed was “not intellect but character.” (Hofstnader, Richard. 1962.) The library wasn’t brought back to what it had been before the fire. For the next thirty-seven years, many of the books remained in boxes, stacked atop each other. The library truly did not have space or staff to properly manage the library. George Watterson was the sole person working for the library from 1815 until 1828. The library was overcrowded due to large increase in volumes. In December 1818 the library was moved back into the rebuilt capitol building, and spent six years in the attic of the North wing. In August 1824 the library was moved into a new larger room in the center of the capitol building. To add to the stress levels, a small fire erupted on 22 December 1827, destroying the gallery. In 1828, he was authorized to employ an assistant, which is why he was surprised when President Andrew Jackson replaced him as librarian on 28 May 1829.

A second conflagration burned the library on 24 December 1851, under John Silva Meehan. The fire, according to the Architect of the capitol, "no human forethought or vigilance could, under the circumstances, have prevented the catastrophe.” The fire was caused because of a faulty flue in the chimney. This fire burned nearly two-thirds, 55,000 volumes, of the libraries collection. Conditions were understandable though, because of the growing conflict between the North and the South it was hard for any government agencies to grow or expand. In 1857, all patenting and copyrighting duties for the country became the duty of the Library of Congress, but the library still didn’t seem to want to get off the ground.

After this second conflagration the library went through a very rough patch. Money was apportioned to the library for damages, $168,700, but this time around Thomas Jefferson was not around to save the library by donating his books. What books remained were, yet again, stacked in boxes. Abraham Lincoln did not help matters when he hired John G. Stephenson to be the librarian in 1861.The library of congress stated the following,
“The election of Abraham Lincoln as president in November 1860 meant the end of Meehan's long career as Librarian. Pearce wrote Lincoln on March 8, 1861, informing him about the Library and recommending that "no change" be made in the librarianship, trusting that the Library staff would be "safe from the influence of political partisanship which has heretofore had no influence in the republic of letters.” There is no record of a response to this letter, and on May 24, 1861, President Lincoln rewarded a political supporter, John G. Stephenson, a physician from Terre Haute, Indiana, with the job of Librarian of Congress.”
Stephenson was uninterested in the library and more interested in getting closer to what was happening in Washington. According to the Library of Congress, Spofford describes Stephenson as, “"a thorough good fellow, liberal, high-minded, & active, but with no special knowledge of books.”(LOC2) The library, again, seemed doomed for failure.

The lone productive duty Stephenson did was to hire Ainsworth Rand Spofford. Spofford truly did care about the library and is responsible for turning it into what it is today. This is thanks to Spofford. When Spofford was awarded position of librarian, 32 December 1864, the staff consisted of seven people and volumes totaled 82,000. In 1870 advances in copyright law meant that all books, pamphlets, maps, prints, photographs, and music may come into the institution free of charge. For the first time, in 1874, more volumes were added to the library via copyright than through purchase by the library staff. All copyright must still come through the library of congress today.

Spofford’s goal was to not only make the library useful for Congress, but he wanted the library to be of use to the public and for the building to be a national monument. He did not though, desire the library to be anything other than a beautiful place to hold the nations books. He did not want the library to be a place of “library activity”. One of the first actions taken was to transfer 40,000 volumes from library of the Smithsonian institution to the Library of Congress. At the time, the nation did not have an official library and Charles Coffin Jewett wanted to see that the Smithsonian library became the library of congress. His vision being, “To the public, the importance. . . of having a central depot, where all products of the American mind may be gathered, year by year, and preserved for reference, is very great. ” (Cole. 1995). He believed in a classification system that was strictly alphabetical and only included information given by the author, which differs from the Library of Congress classification system which classifies by subject. He also had very little chance of turning the Smithsonian into a national library because Smithsonian secretary Joseph Henry wanted the Smithsonian to focus mainly on science and supported the Library of Congress becoming the national library (LOC3). According to many readings subjecting Jewett, he “was relieved from his Smithsonian position due to some scandal.” (NationMaster. 2006.) Subsequently, the Library of Congress became the national library.

The time between 1876 and 1926 is commonly referred to as the American Library Movement. During this time libraries were trying to get their whole being to be enhanced. The American Library Association was founded in 1876, and librarians were attempting to “recruit” more people to the profession. One of the main goals was to receive federal and state funding for free libraries. The argument for free libraries was that the people needed to be informed. (Gunselman. 2004.) Oddly enough, the Library of Congress did not have anything to do with the American Library Movement or the American Library Association. This was mainly due to Spofford being completely consumed with attempting to get a building for the library, and partly due to Spofford not believing that the up and coming ideals for a library were right for the nation’s National library. He believed that the national library was to be something all its own. The ALA did not often support Spofford. Actually, From November 16 to December 7, 1896, when committees were being formed to make decisions about the “condition” of the library, six members of the ALA came to testify against Spofford, indirectly.

The following years (1877-1886) Spofford continued to attempt to acquire a new building for the Library of Congress. He was completely consumed with one goal. Each year, as the presidents gave their state of the union addresses, the presidents would, make a statement similar to the following,
“. . . the Senate at its last session passed a bill providing for the construction of a building for the library of congress, but it failed to become a law. The provision of suitable protection for this great collection of books and for the copyright department connected with it has become a subject of national importance and should receive prompt attention. ~Chester A. Arthur”

Arthur, Hays, and Cleveland all stated they were going to make provisions for the library, but nothing happened with construction until 1886 when the Thomas Jefferson building was begun. After eleven years of construction the library was finally completed under Librarian John Russell Young. The building const $6,180,000, slightly under the budget originally planned. Because the library had been relying on the classification Jefferson had placed on the books he donated, Young hired catalogers J.C.M. Hanson and Charles Martel to reclassify the libraries collection. The system of classification is known as the Library of Congress Classification and was developed by Herbert Putnam. The library of congress and many other libraries across the nation still use this system of classification today. Putnam would become the next librarian to a library that was steadily becoming great.

After this time, the library would only flourish, but a library is nothing without its librarians. By the time Archibald MacLeish became the ninth librarian, on 2 October 1939, the library had 6 million volumes, and the staff had grown to 1,100. In 1945, Luther Evans became the tenth librarian of Congress. He was very involved with the proceedings of the UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization) group, which is why some Congress members of the time thought he was a controversial librarian. Some believed he didn’t spend enough time at the actual library. His absences would actually create trouble for the next librarian to take his place. In 1950 S. R. Ranganathan, a librarian and mathematician form India held in high esteem, stated “The institution serving as the national library of the United States is perhaps more fortunate than its predecessors in other countries. It has the Congress as its godfather. . . This stroke of good fortune has made it perhaps the most influential of all the national libraries of the world”. In 1954, Lawrence Quincy Mumford became the eleventh librarian of congress. Mumford was the first official librarian to become the librarian of Congress. He received his Masters degree in library Science from Columbia University. Because of the distaste for the library created by Evans, Mumford had to explain every budget increase and job creation diligently to congress until they gained back trust in the library. According to the Library of Congress website,
“Mumford's librarianship was one of the most productive in the Library's history. The growth of the institution under his leadership was unprecedented. In two decades, the size of the Library's annual appropriation increased tenfold, from $9,400,000 to $96,696,000; the number of staff members nearly tripled, from 1, 564 to 4,250; and the number of items in the collections more than doubled from approximately 33 million to 74 million.”

In 1954 Daniel J. Boorstin became the twelfth librarian of Congress. He was the first librarian to swear into the position. Raising the budget for the library was Boorstin’s main goal as librarian. While he held the position the annual budget increased by $134 million. While serving as librarian, Boorstin was also a published author of seven books; including a trilogy. The thirteenth and most current librarian, James Hadley Billington, was sworn in on 14 September 1987. Billington is an extremely intelligent person. He has over 40 honorary doctoral degrees, and he is an accomplished author. He taught History at both Harvard and Princeton Universities. For the library he headed the NDL (National Digital Library) program and oversaw a major bilingual website with aid from other libraries in Russia, Brazil, Spain, France, the Netherlands, and Egypt.

Today the library is lead by James Hadley Billington who was sworn in on 14 September 1987. The library is working on creating relationships with other libraries in other countries. The library wants the members of Congress to have books available to them wherever they travel. The library has over 650 miles of shelving and receives 22,000 items for copyright daily. The library has works created in over 470 languages. The library of congress is the largest library in the world and it is still growing.

DO NOT FORGET TO CITE THAT ONE THING>>> IN BOLD IN THE PAPIER. THAT QUOTE.
Works Sited
1. Boorstin, Daniel J. Hidden History. Random House, 1987.
2. Cheryl Gunselman. Business Network. “Cornelia Marvin and Mary Frances Isom: leaders of Oregon's library movement”. 2004. BNET. Web. Retrieved 11 October 2008.
3. Cole, John Y. Copyright in the Library of Congress. “Of Copyright Men and a National Library”. Library of congress. Washington. 1995. Electronic. 23 October 2008. <http://www. copyright. gov/history/125thanniversary. pdf>
4. Hofstnader, Richard. Anti-Intellectualism in American life. 1962. Vintage Books. P. 146-147
5. Library of Congress 1. “About the librarian.” LOC. gov. Web. 22 October 2008 <http://www. loc. gov/about/librarianoffice/beckley.html>
6. Library of Congress 2. “John G. Stephenson (1828-1883)”. LOC. gov. Web. 23 October 2008. <http://www. loc. gov/about/librarianoffice/stephenson. html>
7. Library of Congress 3. “Jefferson’s Legacy: A brief history of the Library of Congress.” Web. <>
8. Library of Congress 4. “Patrick Magruder (1768-1819) “. LOC.gov. Web. 12 November 2008 <>
9. NationMaster. “Charles Coffin Jewett” 2006.

2008-11-20T19:33:00.000-08:00

This is my reflection on Sujo John. I convinced Wallace, or Wallace convinced himself, to let the class go see Sujo instead of going to class. I lovered it. And yes I spelled that lovered.

Sujo John Experience: Review
Amanda Cunningham
U.S. History
Dr. Wallace

On Thursday 30 October 2008 Sujo John visited SCC to share his story. He is an immigrant from Calcutta, India whose life, like so many others, was changed on 11 September 2001. Unlike many of us though, Sujo was one of the thousands trapped inside those buildings on that fateful day. He was in the North tower on the 81st floor at 8:45 as that plane crashed through his office. As the world around him was bursting into flames all Sujo could so was pray to God for the strength to survive and for the lives of his wife and unborn child who he believed to be in the South tower on the 53rd floor. Sujo made it out of the building alive, and through faith and prayer he made it through the dust to find his wife in the safety of a stranger’s apartment. Today, Sujo lives with his wife and two children in Lantana, Texas.
Personally, I was very excited to hear from a survivor. Similar to how I feel about meeting a WWII veteran, I have always had a desire to meet one of the thousands that was in one of those towers on 11 September 2001. I never have wanted to force myself upon someone in that way, because it is hard to know what emotions reliving traumatic events will bring about in people, so I am glad he came on his own. I was a little worried about how he would come across to nonbelievers. I know that when I get a passion for Christ in my heart it is hard to hold back, but also, coming from the other side I know that the craziness of pure spirited joy can be a turn off, and I know that his desire was to turn people in Christ’s direction, not the other way. I thin he was successful in that respect. He had good balance. I do wish the presentation was a little longer. I know that he tells this story many times over the year, but his story is almost word for word written on his website. I sort of wish it was a little different in person. This fact would explain why he sometimes came across rehearsed, even in humor. Overall, I liked his presentation a lot. It was well worth “skipping” class for!

Manhunt Book Review

2008-11-20T19:31:00.000-08:00

I wrote this fro Wallace which is why I am upset that I didn't do a very good job. I read teh book, but i didn't start the review until two days before it was due. This is strange for me, but it is what I did... Here it is. In the ink. By the way, I did adore this book.

Manhunt Review
By
Amanda Cunningham
For
Dr. Wallace
Manhunt is a gripping adventure story. The plot follows assassin John Wilkes Booth through his assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. This nonfiction story begins with his sudden plan to kill, rather than kidnap the President, and ends with what happens after the twelve day chase across the country. The beginning of the book tells a lot about the actual assassination of Lincoln. The reader is able to see the light bulb flash in Booth’s head when he notices the perfect opportunity to kill the President, then see the act take place, follow the chase, and finally see what happens to booth in the end. The bulk of the book takes an in depth look at the life of Booth and the country over the twelve days that follow the assassination. The reader can follow booth through injury and escape, victory and fear. This book is a time machine to history that just happens to be interesting enough to pull any reader into the action.

The most thrilling truth about this book is how factual it is. While speaking with the author, James L. Swanson, at a recent book fair, I discovered that he read over 800 print works to compile this text. He said that he spent so much time focused solely on this one subject that he felt as if he himself were there. For many years, he lived in a tiny apartment with only a desk a bed and his Lincoln collection. The selected readings section in this book is so limited that the author himself says that it can not be trusted as a complete bibliography. He read so many other books and original prints that it was impossible to accurately cite each one. If the reader takes a look at the “About the Author” section of the book they will find that Lawson is almost a human Lincoln Encyclopedia. He was born on Lincoln’s birthday and says that is where his passion began. He has a personal Lincoln library that includes original newspaper prints from the time of Lincoln’s assassination. He has a passion for Lincoln, and when a person has a passion for something it is safe to trust their judgment.

One of my personal favorite chapters was near the beginning when Lawson described the moments after Booth shot Lincoln. Before this book I was unaware of how mangled and hopeless Lincoln really was. When I previously heard about Lincoln’s assassination, I heard that he survived for a while after he died, but in reality he was basically dead the moment the shot took place. Lincoln was brain dead by today’s standards, but the men around him wanted to give the President a graceful death. Ironically enough, these men are the same men who ripped out a chunk of Lincoln’s brain and threw it into the street. They didn’t really help Lincoln medically in the moments following the shot. Also, if the reader pays close attention, they can see just how many people wanted to be part of the history. One woman in particular took drastic measures to be sure e her name was a part of history. She pushed her way through Ford’s Theatre and into the President’s box, in order to place his mangled head in her lap for a few seconds. Lincoln’s death was such a gripping tale that I believe it deserves a book all its own.

The book itself is full of actual quotes and documents from actual people who were experiencing the historic events. As I was reading, I was highlighting the quotes and documents throughout the text. Almost 1/3 of the book was glowing when I finished. Quotes and documents bring a reader into a scene. The historical scene comes alive through the dialog. During Chapter three, when Lawson was describing the scene in which Secretary of State William H. Seward was attacked, Lawson dug through years of documents and found actual dialog that was spoken that night in that house. Lawson dug through documents to find the only words Powell spoke during the attack, “I’m mad, I’m mad!” To have that information truly does add to the scene. I imagine a killer who pushes his way through a house to be screaming and causing a ruckus, but from this information it becomes apparent that Powel was the complete opposite. He hardly says a word during the attack and when he finally does speak it is to exclaim that he has gone insane. Was this a cry for help, or a way to get out of charges? For the days following Lincoln’s assassination, Lawson found actual telegrams sent from Edward Straton to different Generals across the country. We find out as the country found out where Booth was supposed to have been sighted, and we find out the status of the rest of the cabinet‘s livelihood. Lawson did an amazing job pulling the reader into the action of history.

Another fun aspect of this book is all the pictures Lawson included. I myself believe that there is no substitute for a good set of words, but a picture, they say, is worth a thousand words. Lawson also has a partner book which goes along with this one that includes a compilation of pictures and documents he used for Manhunt. The pictures bring the reader into the action. One picture that is especially revealing is that of Booth in his final moments behind a wall, fighting to the end, on crutches.

In most historical books the author tends to write with a somewhat bias toward some particular character or characters, but Lawson doesn’t do that. Most likely stemming from his love of the time, he speaks of each character as people, and not like an antagonist and a protagonist. The characters are not all inherently evil or good. As I was reading I felt a sense of encouragement for Booth. He killed Lincoln, because he felt like it was the right thing to do. After the assassination though, the story is really about an escape. It reminds me a lot of Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Fin. I was rooting for Booth to get out of complex situations.
I would recommend Manhunt most anybody, not only historians. If a reader is not interested in nonfiction work, the book reads like a fiction novel. For those who enjoy nonfiction work, the facts are all checked and triple checked.

The Pact Reflection: Essay Contest...

2008-11-20T19:25:00.000-08:00

I wasn't sure about posting this because it was so personal, but what the hay. I grow from my past, and my past is my past not my future. If any of this essay offends you, please know that most of the emotions come from my younger self. I understand that the feelings I went through came from a place of egotism. Which is the "The world revolves around me" mentality that is strong amongst younger adults. Note also that I said assumed a lot. I assumed the feelings of others, that does not necessarily mean that is how they felt. Please don't read this with a closed mind. It is hard to write reflection without some false senses of self and others. If you at all know what i mean. This is part of the reason I wasn't sure I wanted to post it here. I have had requests though. I am telling everyone though, read with caution and don't read too much into certain parts.

This essay won me second place in an essay contest....

Facing the Future
Amanda M. Cunningham
Reflecting on The Pact
13 November 2008

When a person grows up smart it is assumed that the person will have a pretty easy life, generally and academically, but when the same person grows up poor, in America, the challenges become prevalent. For George Jenkins, one of the authors of The Pact, and myself, the determination to achieve our goals had to out weigh the knowledge that we were smart enough to achieve our goals, but too poor to afford our goals. George and I both had to choose to live our lives in unexpected ways in order to become the adults we wanted to be. We faced similar family and social situations just to become the people our minds would desire but our economics wouldn’t allow.

George and I come from a special kind of child mold. We performed well in school and had a desire for learning. When George was told he could be anything he wanted to be he chose to become a dentist. When I was told I could be anything I wanted to be I chose to become a librarian. By the time most kids reach the age of 12 they loose their dreams of doing anything they once had a passion for. Children who grow up lower class tend to loose these dreams quicker than those who come from higher class because they often fear they will never make enough money. Human nature causes us to want to care for the people around us. Growing up, money was often the one thing our families did not have. It would have been natural for us to forget any idea of doing anything miraculous and replace it with an idea of “Money, Money, and more Money”. George’s dream came to life the first time he went to a dentist. My dream came to life the first time I smelt a book. Neither of us gave any attention to paychecks. Happiness was our number one priority.

Part of what made George and I special was our mothers. The “rocks” of our families, our mothers were single parents who worked long hours to keep food on our tables. My mother was up every day without fail to go to her job cleaning houses. George and I always had water in our faucets. We always had heat in the winter. Our mothers were also proud women. They wanted to always be self sufficient role models. When situations became tough in New Orleans, my mother packed up her home and her two young children and moved them across the country to Colorado Springs where she could make a better life for her family. After only one year of being in Colorado, my mother had purchased a car of her own and her first home for our family. My mother always encouraged my dreams. No matter what crazy idea I came up with that week my mother would tell me I was smart enough to do any of it. My mother was my encourager.
Our “brains” can sometimes get in the way of our growing. It is assumed when people always do well that they do not need to hear when those closest to them are proud. As George stated, “good grades” were just “expected”. When we did do well, no praise was offered. When parent teacher conferences came around, our mother’s didn’t go. This was usually because they knew we would do fine, academically, on our own, and frankly, they didn’t have any time. Sometimes though, this lack of action or interest from my mother would cause me to think that what I did didn’t matter. At one point, I stopped telling my mother when I did something well and started only sharing that information with my friends and teachers. My sister didn’t always do as well as I did in school, but she received a lot of attention for it. I thought that no mater how hard I tried I would never be able to do anything note worthy. At one point I even tried failing to see if my mother would pay attention to my academic life. She assumed I was still doing well and never said anything about it. Being academically intelligent can sometimes put a strain on life outside and inside of classes.

The rest of my family was often a challenge itself. Because I was “smart” my family always assumed I would become a highly paid executive, a brain surgeon or a lawyer. It was assumed that I was going to be the person in the family who made a lot of money to share with the rest of my family. I went through a phase where I tried to think of the highest paying job I could use my “brain” to get. My family would only be able to succeed if I pushed myself harder and harder to live out my purpose. My purpose was to study as much as I could to make as much money as I could. I thought that if I wasn’t a “rich” adult I would be a failure as a human being. It was also assumed that I would use my intelligence to do some kind of complicated job. When I thought jobs that didn’t require a doctorate degree, I felt like I would be “wasting my brain”, as was once stated about my desire to be a librarian. My family, though I love them dearly, didn’t always encourage happiness in forms other than money, and I had to get over that.
The people you keep in your life tend to impact your outlook a significant amount. When I hear a good outlook on life I tend to hold onto it. For example, I once heard that money was not important because more is printed everyday. That idea was so true for me that I have never let go of it. For George, people like Mrs. Johnson and Carla were in his life to support him. They always told him he was going to be able to become a dentist, but they never worried him with the money. As a child, money was always in the forefront of my life, and as I aged, I tried to surround myself with people who had a different idea of life. Looking back, my best friends’ families tend to have more money than my family, but no matter how much their families had; I noticed that they all complained about never having enough. What I took from that was the awareness of no person ever thinking they have enough money, and that money must never become the most important thing in my life. To me, happiness with life is the most important thing.

Being as I am still in my first year of college, the struggles of being an intelligent person who comes from the lower class are still prevalent. I have already considered dropping out of school because of the expense, but I keep in mind that what I learn in these classrooms can never be taken away form me. I will have the classes, and gain the intelligence, but anything else I could possibly do at this time, I would be doing for money. If I were to drop out of school to get a job, I would be submitting to money. Seeing how George overcame his struggles gives me hope for myself. He came from a lower class than I did, but the people he is helping and the life he is living makes it all worth it.

My tee shirt essay final draft

2008-10-27T05:40:00.000-07:00

I don't buy shirts.
Amanda Cunningham
English Composition II
Hamelin

When I moved from Colorado to Kentucky I knew I was in for a culture shock. I was leaving behind the big city of Colorado Springs for the tiny “red-neck” town of Springfield. The people were going from military men to farmers and the girls were going from outdoor wonder-women to Southern Bells. I knew I would gain insight into a different world and many new experiences. What I didn't know was the sheer volume of T-shirts I was going to gain. Buying T-shirts in Kentucky is unnecessary. I received free T-shirts at my high school, at my college, outside of school, and the few T-shirts I did purchase, always came at a discounted rate.
For the one year I went to Washington County High School in Springfield Kentucky I have at least nine shirts I received for zero payment. That fact amounts to one free shirt per month I was enrolled in school. My first free shirt was exciting. I had already taken not of every other student having a T-shirt that advertised the school, and I felt a little left out. Somehow I was involved in some club (I still don't know how that happened), and a part of being in the club meant that I had to sell T-shirts at a football game. Since I was selling the shirts, the advisors thought it was a good idea if I had a shirt to wear so they gave me one. I was elated. I finally had my own T-shirt from my school. That excitement would follow me through every free T-shirt I received.
My second high school shirt came from Pep Club. I was in the Pep Club, but I didn't want to purchase the shirt because the cost was too high. I don't know how I managed, bu a stranger gave me their shirt, because they said they “already had another one.” Another time, I should have predicted where my Kentucky T-shirt life was leading because I was introduced to a new Kentucky concept: the T-shirt blanket. This blanket is created when a person has acquired roughly 30 T-shirts that may be sewn together to create a blanket. Apparently many people in Kentucky have these T-shirts and were amazed that I had never even heard of the concept. I continued to go to football games and manage to be the lucky person who either caught the free shirt or was given the shirt by the neighbor who “just didn't want another T-shirt”. Over the next few months I received at least seven more free T-shirts.
I went to high school in Kentucky for my Junior year, but my senior year was spent back in Colorado. Here I received zero Tee shirts over the 10 ½ months, but as soon as I returned to Kentucky the free Tee shirt parade began again. My sister was enrolled at St. Catharine College and she decided to take me on a tour. Because I visited the college, an administrator gave me my first free Tee shirt from St. Catharine College; a long white sleeved shirt with purple lettering. I wasn't planning on applying to that college, but I did have a tee shirt. A month passed by and I decided to enroll at SCC so I returned to apply. This is when I received my second free St. Catharine College tee shirt; gray with “SCC” written across the front in gold and purple lettering. By the time my third free SCC tee shirt came to me I was looking to clarify sizing so I picked out a size smaller than I normally choose. It turns out that medium tee shirts fit me better. When it came time for my 4th free tee shirt I was prepared. I looked the giver right in the eyes, asked for a medium, and walked away. I knew that if I wore certain pants I would be able to change into my new shirt without looking strangely dressed. I now had a system. I knew I liked purple or gray shirts, and that I didn't like white, I knew I needed a medium for it to look proper, and I knew that if free shirts were going to be given out it was crucial that I show up fifteen minutes early. So far, at SCC I have received eight free shirts.
Going to school is not the only way to receive a free shirt in Kentucky. At my church, I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to be vacation bible school volunteer until the day it started so I was not able to get a tee shirt. When I inquired about the getting one I was told that there were none left. I went about my business the rest of the week, but on the last day, a woman who had hears I wanted a shirt had washed her own and brought it for me to have. Another time I went out with friends to meet some of their acquaintances. One of their acquaintances brought a trunk full of “Ditch Mitch” tee shirts to give away so, of course, I took one. Also, I went to the Harvest Festical and a band was playing music. When they were through with their second song the band asked if anyone in the audience wanted a chance to catch the single shirt they had with them. I stood in the front row with six other people and when the lead singer threw the shirt, I caught it. Another time, I was walking to raise money for Tanzania and if I sent in your registration early enough I could pick out what size shirt I wanted. I didn't have enough time, so I went to the event expecting to just miss out on the shirt this time. Kentucky had a different plan for me. When I reached the track, the directors had over ordered shirts, and everybody that wanted a shirt was able to get one. There are free shirts all over Kentucky.
When I finally do break down and purchase a tee shirt it had to be for a good cause. In high school, black out tee shirts were being sold, but I don't buy tee shirts at full price in Kentucky so I was going to go without. The tee shirts were for a particular basketball game and I wasn't even going to the game is I didn't worry too much about it. A few weeks after the game I had joined the softball team and I was in charge of selling the remaining shirts. Since it was going to help my team my sister and I both bought shirts. Another time, I purchased a tee shirt in college. Banned books week was occurring and I am a mojor supporter of books. The tee shirts were discounted, from seven dollars to six, for students who were willing to read out loud over a speaker system. I was already planning on reading out loud, I completely supported the cause, so I purchased a shirt. Even though shirts are often free in Kentucky, I will still purchase the shirts if they support a good cause.
Sometimes I buy shirts in Kentucky, but the shirts fly at you in high schools, colleges, and in life outside of school as well. People often ask me, “Why don't you buy tee shirts in Kentucky?”, and I just tell them, “Because in Kentucky, tee shirts will come free to me.” A I write this, I think about two opportunities this week where I have a chance to receive a free tee shirt. The shirts just seem to be attracted to me like a magnet.

2008-10-22T17:13:00.000-07:00

This is the "fun" paper I am working on for English class. It is the only non argument paper we are going to have to write. also, if any of you have any ideas for a topic I could write an argument paper on I would like some suggestions. This right here in red is going to be very grammatically shaky, because i am in a rush, but don't read to much into it.

TEE shirt ESSAY

When I moved from Colorado to Kentucky I knew I was in for a culture shock. I was leaving behind the big city of Colorado Springs for the tiny “red-neck” town of Springfield. The people were going from military men to farmers and the girls were going from outdoor wonder-women to Southern Bells. I knew I would gain insight into a different world and many new experiences. What I didn't know was the sheer volume of T-shirts I was going to gain. Buying T-shirts in Kentucky is unnecessary. I received free T-shirts at my high school, at my college, outside of school, and the few T-shirts I did purchase, always came at a discounted rate. For the one year I went to Washington County High School in Springfield Kentucky I have at least nine shirts I received for zero payment. That fact amounts to one free shirt per month I was enrolled in school. My first free shirt was exciting. I had already taken not of every other student having a T-shirt that advertised the school, and I felt a little left out. Somehow I was involved in some club (I still don't know how that happened), and a part of being in the club meant that I had to sell T-shirts at a football game. Since I was selling the shirts, the advisers thought it was a good idea if I had a shirt to wear so they gave me one. I was elated. I finally had my own T-shirt from my school. That excitement would follow me through every free T-shirt I received. My second high school shirt came from Pep Club. I was in the Pep Club, but I didn't want to purchase the shirt because the cost was too high. I don't know how I managed, bu a stranger gave me their shirt, because they said they “already had another one.” Another time, I should have predicted where my Kentucky T-shirt life was leading because I was introduced to a new Kentucky concept: the T-shirt blanket. This blanket is created when a person has acquired roughly 30 T-shirts that may be sewn together to create a blanket. Apparently many people in Kentucky have these T-shirts and were amazed that I had never even heard of the concept. I continued to go to football games and manage to be the lucky person who either caught the free shirt or was given the shirt by the neighbor who “just didn't want another T-shirt”. Over the next few months I received at least seven more free T-shirts.

2008-10-22T17:08:00.001-07:00

I also wanted to let you know that I received a 94 on my paper about the transsexual. My professor said it was well organized and well written. I am turning in my book review tomorrow and along with another mysticism paper. Because I had my English class cancelled for Friday, my paper about the Tee Shirts is not going to be due until Monday. That is relieving, even though it is basically done. I think I may just post what I have here in a second.

Library Of Congress

2008-10-22T17:04:00.000-07:00

I am still working on my Library of Congress papier. It is still going to be ten pages. It is due at the end of the semester. I have added to the beginning and to the end. Take it with a grain of salt.

The Library of Congress
Amanda M. Cunningham
October 22, 2008
U.S. History I
Dr. Wallace

Probably the least discussed building historically in America is the Library of Congress. That fact is surprising because this building has such a colorful past. Today the Library is the largest library in the world, containing over 650 miles of shelving, but this was a revival from the ashes of two one room libraries which only had part time librarians.

The Library of Congress had a rough beginning. The first library was established on 24 April 1801 when John Randolph drew up an act which needed approval by Congress. On 17 November 1801, Thomas Jefferson, the only person who could possibly be credited for founding the library, donated his entire personal book collection to the library. To Thomas Jefferson, learning and books were of the up most importance. Jefferson spent much of his life collecting books subjecting foreign languages, law, philosophy, geography and even cook books. He felt that "there is in fact no subject to which a member of Congress may not have occasion to refer." (If you can get this quote from the book... if not get it off of the website in the “extra research”) According to Boorstin, “When Jefferson offered the young nation his personal library, which was to be the foundation of the library of Congress, it contained so many foreign –language books, including numerous “atheistical” works of Voltaire and other French revolutionaries, that some members of Congress opposed its purchase.”(1987). The donation along with $5000 was all that the first library consisted of.

After the establishment of the library, congress created a committee, headed by John Randolph which would be in charge of running and solving the problems of the library. On 26 January 1802 this committee created a role for a Librarian of Congress, who was to be chosen by the president. This committee also pointed out what the role of the library was to be. {If you can...find out what more you can about what the role of the library is to be}. On 29 January 1802, Thomas Jefferson asked John James Beckley to be the librarian alongside his Clerk of House of Representatives position.

Though the committee for the library was in charge of the library's proceedings Thomas Jefferson and James Beckley were often both personally involved. Jefferson often ordered books for the library himself alongside his personal orders causing confusion when orders were being processed. Beckley often gave tours of the library to important figures when they visited the capitol. According to the Library of Congress website, Charles Wilson Peale recorded this in his diary after visiting the library in June of 1804, "We went first to the Library where Mr. Beckley received us with politeness… The Library is a spacious and handsome Room, and although lately organized, already contained a number of valuable books in the best taste of binding." (LOC1)
In 1812 the United States got into a war with England uncreativly named the War of 1812. This was a war that the United States should not have even been involved in. The United States was severely overpowered and attempting the impossible. The library suffered greatly because of the war. On 25 August 1814 English soldiers marched into Washington unimpeded, because the US Army and government officials had fled to Virginia, and burned the capitol building. At that time, the Library was contained in a room within that building. At the very least one third of Jefferson's original donation was torched. No longer was there a building to contain the few remaining books. The library was out of business.

Fortunately, the library was able to continue after the fire. The library was apportioned a small amount of money and a new librarian, George Watterson, was hired. In order to continue the library, the government bought Thomas Jefferson’s personal library from him on 30 January 1815. His library consisted of 6,487 volumes and was purchased for $23,950. The library wasn’t brought back to what it had been before the fire. For the next thirty-seven years, many of the books remained in boxes, stacked atop each other. The library truly did not have space or staff to properly manage the library. The library was overcrowded and to add to the stress levels, a second fire burned the library on 24 December 1851. This fire burned nearly two-thirds, 35,000 volumes, of the libraries collection. The Library of Congress didn’t seem to want to get off the ground.

After this second conflagration the library went through a very rough patch. Money was apportioned to the library for damages, $168,700, but this time around Thomas Jefferson was not around to save the library by donating his books. What books remained were, yet again, stacked in boxes. Abraham Lincoln did not help matters when he hired John G. Stephenson to be the librarian in 1861. Stephenson was uninterested in the library and more interested in getting closer to what was happening in Washington. According to the Library of Congress, Spofford describes Stephenson as, “"a thorough good fellow, liberal, high-minded, & active, but with no special knowledge of books." The library, again, seemed doomed for failure.

The single productive duty Stephenson did was to hire Ainsworth Rand Spofford. Spofford truly did care about the library and is responsible for turning it into what it is today.

Works Sited
1. Boorstin, Daniel J. Hidden History. Random House, 1987.
2. Library of Congress 1. “About the librarian.” LOC.gov. Web. 22 October 2008 <http://www.loc.gov/about/librarianoffice/beckley.html>

Hindu Mystics

2008-10-22T16:58:00.000-07:00

Here we go again. Another paper for Matt branstetter. This one is about hindu Mystics. I hope you enjoy. It is due tomorrow, so edit marks unnecessary, but if you want to comment on how I could make it better that would be acceptable. i am planning on keeping and improving all of my papers at some point. Nothing is ever perfect.

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Teachings of Hindu Mystics
Amanda Cunningham
Mysticism
Matt Branstetter
Wednesday, 22 October, 2008

Mystics in the East often teach through writing. Their poetry and stories can be wonderful sources of learning material which is valid in the eastern world as well as the west. Sometimes though, it can be hard for the average person to decipher what point the authors are trying to get across. These mystics will use flowery language and speak in parables which can be confusing to the average person. In this way, Ramakrishna and Vivekananda are two of the most insightful Hindu mystics, though their words may get lost in translation. Here we will explore some of their writings taken from the book, Teachings of Hindu Mystics edited by Andrew Harvey. A few of the most pertinent lines from “Truth is One”, “The Chameleon”, “Who Weeps for God”, “How to Live in the World”, “Worship the living God”, and “The Open Secret” will be investigated further.

In “Truth is One” Ramakrishna states that “People Worship God according to their tastes and temperaments”. One thing that Ramakrishna does show though is that all of the different “religions” are interconnected, they just do not accept this fact. Many people get caught up in their religion as the “only way” and that they worship the only “true God”, but Ramakrishna does not believe this is correct (The Hindu religion does not believe that every person needs to convert to Hinduism). Ramakrishna does believe that only one God exists, but Ramakrishna believes that God is just called by many different names and worshiped in many different ways. Ultimately “God” is called Rama, but these other “Gods” are real as well. Later Ramakrishna states that “There is only one Rama and he has a thousand names.” In the sense that water may have more than one name, calling something by a different name does not change the thing it self. This situation only causes confusion when people attempt to discuss this thing. Arguments that break out over God, Rama, Allah, etc. are unnecessary because every person is actually worshiping and arguing over the same thing. Wars have been fought and lives have been lost over the idea of a name. A name that the small mind of a human created. Rama, God, he is all of these things according to Ramakrishna.

“The Chameleon” another story by Ramakrishna is about many different men stating that they have seen an animal in a particular tree. After all the men fight over the color of the animal they decide to find the animal together to prove which man is correct. Once they reach the tree they find a man who lives at the base of the tree who states the following, “All your descriptions are true. Sometimes it appears red, sometimes yellow, and at other times blue, violet, grey, and so forth. It is a chameleon. And sometimes it has no color at all.” What Ramakrishna is expressing through this story is that God comes in many forms. No one person will be able to see God in the same way, but each experience is God. Similarly is the story of the blind men touching the elephant. Each man touches the elephant in a different spot and when asked to describe what an elephant is each has a different explanation. All three men are correct, but each is different. That is what God is. To every person he shows a different piece of himself, but God is still always the same God.

“Truth is One” and “The Chameleon” both point out that God can be many different forms, but Ramakrishna takes explaining God a step further in, “Who weeps for God”. Here he states , “The point is to love God even as the mother loves her child, the chaste wife her husband, and the worldly man his wealth.” By this Ramakrishna means that we are to put God as the center of our world. For us to place him at the number one spot in our hearts is his true desire. Similar to, as stated in the passage, a mother to her child. We are the mother and God is our child. A mother would die for her child. A mother would kill for her child. This is how our attitude should be toward God. To a worldly man his wealth is what he has to live on. Because he must worry about his physical dollar the man must always have his money on the top of his mind. So too must we place God in accordance with Ramakrishna.

In “How to Live in the World” Ramakrishna notes that we must “Live in the world like an ant.” To an ant the world is much larger. To an ant even something as simple as a trash can full of garbage may be an entire universe full of possibilities, throughout and beyond. Reading further we read that in a world full of grains of sand and sugar, the ant will choose sugar. Ramakrishna wants the people of the world to choose the “good” over the bad. Similar to the glass half full theology, we must choose the sugar of our life. Never will we be able to know or take all. We never know what tomorrow will bring. If possible we should take what we know is a better choice for our life.

Ramakrishna has placed God as everything in reference to the outside of a life, but in “Worshiping the living God” Vivekananda shows how God is placed inside of every person as well. “The moment I have realized God sitting in the temple of every human body, the moment I stand in reverence before every human being and see God in him, that moment I am free from bondage.” God created every person, therefore a piece of him is with them. For every artist, each piece of art they create has a piece of their own spirit within it. God is the artist of the human race. God is the artist of the Earth. God is the artist of the universe. These lines are saying that God is here on Earth. He is the soul of every person and therefore we must treasure what he has created. These lines also point to the truth of the Earth being a creation of God. When a person is respected, so are their creations respected. If we are to respect God we are to respect what he created. Every human's temple. Every animal's temple. The Earth's temple. God is to be respected as the highest, but be aware, he is right here on Earth with us.

Vivekananda also penned “The open Secret” in which he stated that “None can die”. Much truth is in those three words. According to this, the human body was born, but the spirit within was not. A spirit does not have a mother. A spirit does not have a father. Thus the spirit was not born and can not die. The spirit can also be synonymous with consciousness. Before the body was consciousness and after the body perishes will be consciousness. Thus, none can truly die.

We tend to look at god through the rose colored glasses we were given at Christmas by our family, friends, and community. In this world where we tend to receive instant gratification, the idea that we do not know everything rarely crosses our mind, and even if the idea did cross our mind we would not believe it could be true. Mystics like Ramakrishna and Vivekananda want us to realize that we are all a lot more connected than we think. Sometimes we fight and argue with our neighbors because we each believe we are right and the other is wrong only to discover that we were both right all along. We were just looking at the situation from with the light of a match instead of a flood lamp. God is such a huge complex idea that no one can fully grasp. If we can't even know for sure the world isn't flat two centuries ago, how can we be 100% certain that we know all there is to know about God now. If you do not know something 100% you can't properly explain something 100%. Ramakrishna and Vivekananda only want us to open our minds and be aware of the box we are lacing ourselves in.

In my personal life I like to think I can no some of God. I at least would like to know that what I do know is truth. I am reminded of the day I had a fight with a girl about an elevator.. I was certain, absolutely certain, as to which floor a certain area of the building was on. I fought with her tooth and nail only to find out later that she was correct. In the moment I was certain about the elevator, but now I know I was wrong. I regret ever fighting with her about something so silly, because there was no way, in that moment, for either of us to prove ourselves and the truth really didn't matter. Can God be thought of the same way. Ramakrishna and Vivekananda are right in that we can not, in this time, know all of what God is about. He is so grand and great that an attempt to know him completely would always fail. Because God is so great though, it is something you want to get right. The right answer is in fact important. If I get the floor wrong in a elevator I take a few seconds and choose a different floor, but where God is concerned some say the wrong answer will end in damnation. Ramakrishna and Vivekananda may live in a world where God is plenty and god is many, but what if they're wrong?

Library of Congress Research Papier

2008-10-17T12:51:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted in a while, so I decided I would get something up. This was mainly so you my loyal readers didn't think I was up to nothing important here at school. I wrote some of my ten page research paper today. It is actually a chunck out of the middle, and it is a completely unedited version, so take it with a grain of salt. I am not even going to put it in large font because it is so far from done. LTM. I will have an essay up by the end of Sunday hopefully, so if any of you weekenders want to read on that you can.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
II.History of Library (1800-1886)
The Library of Congress had a rough beginning. The first library was established on 24 April 1801when John Randolph drew up an act which needed approval by Congress. On 17 November 1801,Thomas Jefferson, the only person who could possibly be credited for founding the library, donated his entire personal book collection to the library. To Thomas Jefferson, learning and books were of the up most importance. He spent much of his life collecting book subjecting foreign languages, law, philosophy, geography and even cook books. He felt "there is in fact no subject to which a member of Congress may not have occasion to refer." (If you can get this quote from the book... if not get it off of the website in the “extra research”)This donation along with $5000 was all that the first library consisted of.
After the establishment of the library, congress created a committee, headed by John Randolph which would be in charge of running and solving the problems of the library. On 26 January 1802 this committee created a role for a Librarian of Congress who was to be chosen by the president. This committee also pointed out what the role of the library was to be.{If you can...find out what more you can about what the role of the library is to be}. On 29 January 1802, Thomas Jefferson asked John James Beckley to be the librarian alongside his Clerk of House of Representatives position.

Though the committee for the library was in charge of the library's proceedings Thomas Jefferson and James Beckley were both extremely personally involved. Jefferson often ordered books for the library himself alongside his personal orders causing confusion when orders were being processed. Beckley often gave tours of the library to important figures when they visited the capitol. According to the Library of Congress website, Charles Wilson Peale recorded this in his diary after visiting the library in June of 1804, "We went first to the Library where Mr. Beckley received us with politeness… The Library is a spacious and handsome Room, and although lately organized, already contained a a number of valuable books in the best taste of binding." (http://www.loc.gov/about/librarianoffice/beckley.html)

In 1812 the United States got into a war with England uncreativly called the War of 1812. This was a war that the United States should not have even been involved in. The United States was severely overpowered and attempting the impossible.The library suffered greatly because of the war. On 25 August 1814 English soldiers burned the capitol building. At that time, the Library was contained in a room within that building. At the very least one third of Jefferson's original donation was torched. No longer was there a building to contain few remaining books. The library was out of business.

School

2008-10-11T10:23:00.000-07:00

School is going pretty well.
Because i have been sick for the past week I haven't done as well on studying and papers. I am just going to have to make that up in the next week as I feel myself getting over this disease.

I added a class to my schedule. Tai Chi. Many of my friends are going to be in the class, and on of my friends' dad teaches the class. I was allowed to borrow another friends book, so I didn't have to pay for it. Saved me thirty-seven dollars. Thank you Doug!

Hopefully Shenanigans will take the class too. Will may be... he hasn't decided I don't think.

Today i have to write articles for the newspaper... and we rearranged our room, so I think that will help me with my Chi... or flow...or whatever. Midterms came out. I should get them tomorrow at my mom's house, so I will post them here once that happens tomorrow.

Book Review: Don't KNow Much About History

2008-10-04T07:35:00.000-07:00

Here is my book review. It is meant to be 500 words and I have 532 here. I thought it would be a lot longer, but 500 words isn't as much as I thought it would be. I liked this book... no, I LOVED this book. If you want to glance over my review and give me any advice that would be loverly... and yes, i did mean to write loverly. Let me know. It's not due for like two weeks, so whatever.

Don't Know Much About History by Kenneth C. Davis is one of a series of books written by the same author. These books are meant to take subjects normally deemed boring and liven them up, all the while being truthful with the facts. This particular book accomplishes just that. So far, in the first four chapters, intrigue, fact, and humor have all been achieved. These chapters are the history of the United States from pre-Columbus to the mid 1870's. Davis truly has created a page turner that will get the historical facts into the minds of many.

One of the great things about this book is how easy it is to use and understand. All of the subject headings are broken down into questions the readers would ask themselves. For example, if the reader doesn't know what the Articles of Confederation are, they can look in the table of Contents for the heading “What were the Articles of Confederation (p. 48). The index is very through and lists every page a particular topic appears on, so if someone wanted to know every page Thomas Jefferson was listed on, they would simply need to flip to the index, and there would be a list of all 40 pages he is mention on (p. 667). Throughout the book, the voice Davis uses is that of friends chatting over a meal, and not that of an emotionless text book. Life isn't boring and history is life, therefore history does not have to be boring, and Davis proves that
with his book.

Davis is a step above history text books, because instead of glorifying historical figures he shows them in natural light. As far as any high school student is concerned, Paul Revere is a larger than life character who rode his ride and single handedly saved the American people from defeat. In actuality, Revere was quickly captured by the British, and when leading troops against the British at Pentcost he chickened out and headed back for “safety” (p. 84). Christopher Columbus also has a smudged historical record. Not only did Columbus not “discover” America (chapter 1), but when he did come to The New World he was cruel towards his crew (p.4) and the Native Americans (p. 5). Lincoln is the hardest to accept as imperfect. Lincoln was a great man, but he was, by our accounts, a racist (p. 239). For his time he was very “honest” and liberal, but he did accept slavery in the states where it was already legal (p. 239). Our “Great American Heroes” aren't always the great people text books portray them as.

Even though this book is amazing, it is not perfect and for everybody. Some people only like to have the facts and don't like to turn historical figures into characters. Davis wanted history to be entertaining, so people who don't enjoy that will not enjoy this book. Davis also mistakingly made some of the more important areas of history into a list (for example, “Milestones in the American Revolution” p. 71) which has the same affect on people as the genealogy sections of the bible, they get skimmed over and never really read. All in all though, Don't Know Much About History is a book that everybody should read and keep on their bookselves.

I guess it still just seems short to me...

Outline for History Research Final

2008-10-04T06:34:00.000-07:00

This is what i have of the Outline for my History research paper. I chose to write about teh Library of Congress. Mainly that was because I love libraries and I adore the idea of the Library of Congress. I am very excited about this paper. I have been researching since I found out about it. Hopefull I can condense it all to 10 pages!

Thesis:
I.Introduction:
II.History of Library (1800-1886)
A.First Library (1800-1815)
i.John James Beckley (1801-1807)
ii.Start of Library
a)John Randolph's Act for Congresses
b)Thomas Jefferson's donation
Founder if ever there was one
c)First Law establishing Structure (January 16, 1802)
iii. Destruction of Library
a)War of 1812
b)fire
B.Second Library (1815-1864)
i.John G. Stephenson(1861-1864)
a)unproductive as a librarian
b)Hired Spofford
ii.Picking up the pieces after the fire
a)surviving books sold to government
b)Thomas Jefferson's books sold to government for ???
c)Andrew Jackson gives library a catalog
iii.Second (conflagration) fire
a)Insurance Claim
iv.The Weakening of the library
a)Lincoln appoints Stephenson
b)Stephenson on other things
c)Stephenson hires Spofford
C.The “Third” Library (or lack there of)
i.Ainsworth Rand Spofford (1864-1897)
a)put in place the construction for today's library
b)copyright (be sure to get the facts on this)
ii.Additions to the library
a)copyright
b)Smithsonian Donation
iii.Battle for new building
a)10 years of Pres. Mention
Hays, RB
Arthur, Chester
Cleveland, Grover
b)11 Years of building TJ building finished 1886-1897
cost $6,180,000 (cheaper than expected I believe)
III.Today's Library
A.development of LCC system
B.Billington
C.Future
IV.Conclusion

Transexual Papier (Rough Draft.)

2008-10-03T04:14:00.001-07:00

This is what i have so far. It doensn't have a good conclusion yet, and I need to work on my argument a little more, but for bones I like it. It isn't due until next Friday though, so I think I am happy with it.

A recent article in Times magazine gave me some incite on a topic I hadn't previously heard much about. In 2004 a retired Army Colonel applied and interviewed for the open position of terrorism research analyst for the Library of Congress. The initial interview went well, and soon everything seemed to be falling into place. A job offer was made and accepted. Soon though, the library found out that David John Schorer who had applied for the job was going to become Diane Jacquelyn Schorer who would do the work for the job and the offer was taken back. This was American discrimination at its finest. Just who was this man and what qualified her for the job? For an act to qualify as discrimination the pieces to a three part puzzle must all come together. Discrimination is the unfair biased judgment and treatment of a person based on one aspect of the person, and Diane should easily win the Civil liberties case.

Schroer was highly qualified for the position she interviewed for. Relation to terrorism and thus military knowledge, she was in the military for twenty-five years, and retired as a Colonel. He had over four hundred fifty parachute jumps and came highly decorated. He also was awarded the Defense Superior Medal. His personal know-how came from his personal home library which has over 16000 volumes relating to military history. For the library, this was a perfect application, so his advisors told him he had the job. Schroer had all the credentials to become the
Library of Congress' terrorism analyst; discrimination just moved in the way.

The first piece of the discrimination puzzle comes with the acceptance that Schroer is a person, even though he is a transsexual. A transsexual is a person who was born physically into the body of one gender, but they know in their hearts that they were meant to be the other gender. David was born a male, but he knows that he was meant to be a female. He spent his entire life knowing this fact, even to the point of cross dressing and taking hormones in private for many years. His life was kept secret for his military career, but soon enough the heart will always show its true colors. In 2005 he finally decided to take the steps to let his inside match his outside. Men are people, and women are people, therefore a man who becomes a woman would still be a person. The first piece of the discrimination puzzle has been solved: David, or Diane, is a person, and therefore can be discriminated against.

The second puzzle piece has to do with the unfair judgment of a person. When David had received the job offer he felt it only right to inform the library of his plans to live his life, inside and outside of work, as a female. Especially since there were many surgeries he may be having in the future to change his genitalia. To do this he took Charlotte Preece (who was in charge of hiring) to lunch at the local Chinese restaurant. When Schroer informed Preece of his plans to transfer his sex she exclaimed “Why would you want to do that?” (Cloud. 2008.) Preece thought that the transition would negatively affect Schroer's work. Saying that a man who becomes a woman isn't capable of doing a particular job is that same thing as saying a woman couldn't perform a particular job. Within twenty-four hours of their meeting, Schroer had been told that he was no longer wanted as a staff member for the library of Congress. The second piece of the discrimination puzzle is in hand because an unfair judgment has been made.

The third piece of the discrimination puzzle is the easiest to explore. After Charlotte adjusted her emotions and had a cigarette she, along with some of her co-workers, created a dialog then called Schroer to let him know that the job was no longer going to be offered. “She told him that the Library worried his transition would impair his top-secret security clearance.” He was no longer given his job opportunities based solely on his “sex”. The action has been taken against Schroer, therefore the third piece of the puzzle.

The court system has had the job of working with this case since 2005. The decision the courts had to make was if Schroer's case qualified under the Civil liberties as Sex-discrimination. On September 20, 2008, it was decided that this was indeed “sex” discrimination. The judge had this to say, “Schroer's case indeed rests on direct evidence, and compelling evidence, that the Library's hiring decision was infected by sex stereotypes.... She was well qualified for the job''(JD Unyon. 2008).The penalties for the library still have to be decided, but the right decision was made as to guilt in this case.

Works Cited.
1 John Cloud. Time. A Transsexual Vs. the Government. Retrieved October 1, 2008 http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1840754,00.html
2. JD Unyon. Last Word. Diane Schroer wins case against Library of Congress' blatant transgender discrimination. Retrieved 1 October 2008. http://www.metroweekly.com/gauge/last_word/2008/09/diane-schroer-wins-case-agains.html

English Argument Paper Transexual LOC {Research}

2008-09-26T13:23:00.000-07:00

Just to note: On my English Caesarean Section Paper I recieved a 93%.

I have my topic for my next Argument Paper in English Composition II. The Paper, I think, is due October 3, but it could very well be a week later. I am going to have to make this one really good. The actual paper I mean. The topic will have something to do with this article

Transexual Wins Lawsuit

I haven't decided if I am going to go the Transexual way or the Library of Congress way.
Who Knows. Which do you think is better?

25 september 2008

2008-09-25T09:06:00.000-07:00

What I am working on right now.

College Algebra:
Professor: Don JohnsonOn Friday, 26 September 2008 I have a test. The second of the year. I have made my notecard, and I am confident. It is over absolute value, complex numbers, radicals, and quadratics. I think I will do well.

English Composition II:
Professor: HamelinI turned in my Caesarean section Argument Paper. I guess I am in the process of thinking of a new argument topic. I think I am going to try to think of a topic that is related to the work I want to get into. I also need to think of topics for my final, which is a ten page research argument paper. I think I want that topic to have something to do with Libraries. If I can I want to mix it in with my History Research paper, adn do an argument about one of the Librarians for the Library of Congress.

Yoga: We are still doing yoga. We have advanced to tree pose.

Psychology:
Professor: Krista RumageI have test, but it isn't for a while. I need to transfer my notes from yesterdays class sometime before Monday. We are studying learning and memory.

U.S. History:
Professor: The guy I absolutly adore, Dr. Wallace, he makes my day.I have an Exam on 2 October 2008. Well, it's actualy a "mid-term". I will beed to study for that while I do my laundry. This may be a class I want note cards for. My favorite. I am also working in my research paper for the final. It is a ten page research paper and I chose to write about teh Library of Congress. I will post the outline I have soon. I had Dr. Wallace read over my outline and explain to me what was good and what needed work or to just be eliminated. I am so excited for this.

Mysticism:
Professor: Matt BranstetterI have to present my paper today and turn it in to Branstetter. I also have to edit it one final time. I am going over to the computer lab this morning to do it. As soon as the lab opens. Which is any time now. I may eat first though. Then... print print print.
That's it, all my classes

In the Works.Argument paper (No topic yet)10 Page Research Paper (Topic: Library of Congress)10 Page Research paper (Topic: Something about books and learning)Book review for "Don't Know Much About History"

Julian of Norwich (Fianal Draft)

2008-09-25T04:59:00.000-07:00

This is what my professor is getting. I hope he likes it.

21 September 2008
Mysticism:
Matt Branstetter
Julian of Norwich:
Amanda Cunningham

Mysticism is the belief that you can transcend the physicality of being in order to reach enlightenment with God. One of the most well known mystics of all time is known as Julian of Norwich. She was alive during the fourteenth century and is considered to have been the greatest English mystic ever. Here I will give you a brief biographical account of Julian, share some of her mystical experiences, and explore the impact she has had on me personally.
Julian’s greatest accomplishment was to write a book that is entitled The Revelations of Divine Love. As well as being an important contribution to the history of mysticism, it is also is considered to be the first English book written by a woman, and is available in two volumes. The first volume was written within weeks of the experience and is the more personal depiction of her experience with God. The second volume was written some twenty years later and provides a more descriptive and thought out portrayal of her Revelations.

Julian was born in 1342 and was most likely educated at a school for girls run by Benedictine nuns, as was customary of the time. Not much else is known about Julian due to lack of historical records, but we can make a lot of assumptions regarding her history. We do know that her name comes from the St. Julian church where she lived as an anchoress. There she would have spent her time praying, fasting, meditating, and mostly alone. We can assume that since she was named as a beneficiary in the wills of some of the Norwichian community members that she also did some work outside of the church. It can also be concluded that Julian still lived at home during the time of her revelations since her mother and sister were with her during her most notorious experience

As a mystic, Julian fully believes she had these experiences not only for her own good, but for the knowledge of all Christians. That is why she wrote her book. Many times throughout her short volume, Julian mentions that she does not want to have eyes on her, but on God. She wants all Christian to know that what God tells her is also meant for their benefit. . Part of Julian's way of removing herself from the glory is to remove the personal pronouns from the longer edited second volume of Revelations of Divine Love. The best way to describe her experience is to say she had an actual, personal, experience with God. She also had actual dialog “with God”, and an experience with the Devil

Julian felt that God and Jesus were the greatest of all beings. She viewed worshiping and following God as the best, most fulfilling experience any person could have. She never felt that worship was some sort of rule she had to follow. At one point in her experience, Julian describes her extreme pain and how it didn’t matter, because she felt that suffering with Jesus was better than any physical relief without him. As a mystic, Julian experienced exactly what every other mystic of her time wanted, a true personal oneness with the one true God.

Because Julian felt this way about God and Jesus, she had a desire to understand what Jesus went through; so she asked for it. She prayed for God to show her, to allow her to experience Christ’s Passion, the three wounds of the crucifixion, and for extreme sickness. Then, in the winter of her thirtieth year Julian was overcome with a sickness like no other. This was a sickness that was sure to kill her. Her family called the priest to be with her during her final hours. Nobody knew that this was a sickness Julian prayed for, an answer from Jesus.

Julian's sickness came on suddenly and was the start of her visions. For two days she suffered. On the second night she believed she was sure to die by morning. At once her lower body was paralyzed. The curator was called and Julian was placed in bed. Julian mentions at this time that she did not want to die just yet for fear of leaving behind without doing all the good she could have done for God. Julian kept her gaze upward, toward heaven, where she was going. She only agreed to look down if she had a crucifix to gaze and she kept her gaze on the crucifix. Then her second prayer was answered, she had repeated visions of Christ over the next week.

“Suddenly I saw red blood trickle down from under the garland-hot, fresh, plentiful, and lifelike- just as I thought it would have done when the garland of thorns was thrust on his blessed head. So both God and man together suffered for me. I understood clearly and with certainty that it was he who showed it to me, without intermediary; and I said, “Benedicite Dominus!” I spoke reverently, in a strong voice, and was astonished by the wonderful and marvelous fact of his being so friendly with a sinful creature living in this wretched flesh”

Julian's visions came and went, taking her on an entire journey with Jesus. Her body felt his body as he dried out from loss of blood and lack of water. She took every raspy breath with Jesus and yearned for every drop of water. She was able to look into the eyes of Mary Magdalene. Amazing enough as that was, she was even able to feel the love he had for her. Jesus endured the pain, and Julian endured the pain, but if the excruciating pain became too much for Julian to handle, Jesus was able to relieve her.

“After this our lord revealed an exalted spiritual joy which filled my soul with an abiding security; I was greatly reassured, and free of fear. This feeling was so blissful and pleasing that I was at peace, at ease and at rest. Nothing on earth could have grieved me-but this joy only lasted for a short while. Then I was overcome and left alone in such sad weariness at myself and irksomeness at my life that I scarcely had patience to live. I felt neither ease nor comfort-only hope, faith, and charity, and of these in truth but little.

However, God soon restored both comfort and rest to my soul, a joyous gladness and security so powerful that no fear or sorrow, no recurred, and then the joy and the gladness, and then the one and then the other, I suppose about twenty times. In joy I might have said, with Paul, “Nothing shall separate me from the love of Christ”; and in pain I might have said, with Peter, “Lord save me, I perish.”
This vision's purpose was to teach me the need for each soul to feel this way: sometimes to be in comfort, and other times to fail and be left alone. God wants us to now that he keeps us safe both in well and in woe, and loves us as much in the hard times as the good. For the profit of his soul, a man is sometimes left to himself, although sin is not the cause/; during this time I was not left alone because I had sinned, nor had I done anything to merit the joy. God freely gives pleasure when he chooses, and other times he leaves us in pain. Both are done for love.”

Julian, as many do, understood exactly what Jesus went through. She understood it in the way a female understands what it is like to be male. As much as she may have understood it, she wanted to know what it was like, in the same way a female would only be able to know what it is like to be male, she would have to physically experience it herself. Julian said she wanted to be there with Mary Magdalene to be able to see her face. Julian wanted to feel the pain in Jesus' body and know the extreme love in his heart. Julian was able to understand truly how it feels to be Jesus and how he’s able to do everything for us out of love.
Jesus also spoke with Julian,

“Thus our good lord answered all my questions and doubts, comforting me with these words: “I may make all things well, I can make all things well, I can make all things well, I shall make all things well; and you shall see yourself that all shall be well.” Where he says I may, I understand the father; where he says I can, I understand the son; where he says I will, I understand the holy ghost; where he says I shall, I understand the unity of the holy trinity, three persons in one truth; and where he says you shall see yourself, I understand the uniting in the uniting in the blessed trinity of all mankind who shall be saved.
With these five phrases, God will be enclosed in rest and in peace, and thus will the spiritual thirst of Christ come to an end. His ghostly thirst- his love longing- shall last until judgment day, for we who shall be saved, and who shall be Christ's joy and bliss, will remain here until that time. His thirst, the failure of his bliss, is that he does not have us in him, as wholly as he shall then have. All this was revealed in the showing of compassion, which shall cease at doomsday; until the he feels pity and compassion for us, and he longs for us. But his wisdom and his love do not suffer the end to come until best time.
And in these words, I may take all things well, I understand the great comfort of all his works that are yet to come.”

Julian understood the Trinity far better than most anybody. She understood God, Jesus, The Holy Spirit, He has all the power, and he wants to use it all for us.

Julian asked God to show her things, not out of desire for proof, but out of faith. She knew he had the power to show her anything and do anything he desired. All Julian needed was for her desire and his will to be the same. Julian held strong to her faith. God was happy and Julian survived her illness, probably coming out much better off spiritually, than any other person of her day. She had strong faith each day until her death, which didn’t come until some forty-three years later in 1416; it was her seventy-fourth year.

Julian of Norwich surprisingly has taught me a lot about my own faith. My beliefs can most closely be related to those of a Baptist-Christian, Baptists are known for their extremely deep levels of faith and devotion to God. Keeping that in mind, I believe that this mystic most likely had more faith in Jesus Christ than I do, which astonishes me. How I wish I could experience Jesus Christ's crucifixion personally. It would be a pain beyond anything I can imagine, but it would be worth it if I could just feel the pure love in his heart. Julian was privileged, and she knew it. That is why she documented her experiences in such detail, in order to bless the lives of other Christians and share her faith.

Julian mentioned not speaking of her visions to anyone and not “confessing” them to a priest because she was certain no pastor would believe her. She was right. Even though it has been almost 600 years since Julian had these mystical experiences, people today are still very skeptical of mystics. After I enrolled in this class, even I was advised to “be careful with those mystics”, but the impression I get of Julian is that she seems to be a “better Christian” than all of us. She had pure faith, and lived her life that way. Why are people so skeptical? Why are people afraid of her “visions”? What have I to fear of her? Jesus spoke directly to her so she could speak to Christians like me. Her experience was so personal that it could almost be titled “The Gospel According to Julian.” The fact that she wanted to share it with me touches my heart.

I also find that I am jealous of Julian in the same way that I am jealous of Matthew, Mark, Luke or John. In the game of telephone, , one person starts (Jesus) and they tell a story to the person sitting next to them (Julian) and then Julian has turned and told me. I then turn to the person next to me (You) and pass on the message. The game goes on until the last person re-tells the story, usually a totally different story is told at the end because human errors. So, I can experience Jesus Christ through Luke from Jesus, or through Mark from Jesus, but these five had a personal one on one experience with Jesus Christ, and that I am jealous of. Unfortunately for myself, I lack that extreme faith, and it is hard to say if I ever will have faith enough to hear a story directly from Jesus in this lifetime.

I hope that through my paper you have a new respect for mystics, mysticism, and Julian of Norwich herself. I have shared with you her history, her literature, and how she makes me feel. Julian puts an itch in my heart to know how I can reach the Lord on a more personal level, and it is my desire for you to desire the same.

Works Cited
Julian, of Norwich, b. 1343. Revelations of Divine love, translated from British Library Additional MS 37790 ; with introduction, interpretive essay, and bibliography [by] Frances Beer.

Julian of Norwich (Rough Draft) Edits welcome!! PLEASE

2008-09-21T12:19:00.000-07:00

I have a very rough draft of my Julian of Norwich paper here. It is pretty long, becuase it is meant to be 5-7 pages. It's five as of yet. Let me know what you think. Afterward I will place some of my thoughts on it thus far, because I don't want what I say now to influence how you read it. Please be harsh. Harsher edit makes for better paper.

21 September 2008
Mysticism:
Matt Branstetter
Julian of Norwichian:
Amanda Cunningham
Julian of Norwich (whose real name is unknown) was a fourteenth century mystic who put her recounts of a mystical experience into on of the best mystical books pf her time. The book is entitled The Revelations of Divine Love (which is considered to be the first English book written by a woman), and is available in two volumes. The first of the two was written within weeks of the experience and is the more personal of the two. The second was written some twenty years later and is less personal.
Julian was born in 1342 and was most likely educated at a school for girls run by Benedictine nuns, as was customary of the time. Not much else is know of Julian whose name comes from the St. Julian church where where she lived as an anchoress. There she would have spent her time praying, fasting, meditating, mostly alone. Since she was named as a beneficiary in the wills of some of the Norwichian community members, it can be assumed that she also did some work in the community. Also, it can be assumed that Julian still lived at home during the time of her revelations since her mother and sister were with her during her sick time. Julian is considered one of the greatest English mystics.
As a mystic, Julian had a Theistic experience, which is to say she had an actual, personal, experience with God. She also had actual dialog “with God”, and also and experience with the Devil. Julian fully believes she had these experiences not only for her own good, but for the knowledge of all Christians. Many times throughout her short volume, Julian mentions that she does not want to have eyes of her, but on God. She wants all Christian to know that what God tells her is also meant for their benefit. Part of Julian's way of removing herself from the glory is to remove the personal pronouns form the longer edited second volume of Revelations of Divine Love.
Julian saw Gad and Jesus as the greatest of all beings. She viewed worshiping and following God as the best most fulfilling experience any person could have, instead of some sort of rule she must follow. At one point in her experience, Julian keeps her gaze on the crucifix placed in front of her, even though looking away may relieve pain, because she knows that suffering with Jesus is better than any physical relief without him. As a mystic, Julian experienced exactly what every other mystic of that time wanted, a true personal oneness with the one true God.
In the winter of her thirty and one-half year Julian was overcome with a sickness like no other. This was a sickness that was sure to kill her. Her family called the priest to be with her during her final hours. What nobody knew was that this was a sickness Julian prayed for, an answer from Jesus. Along with an experience of Christ Passion, and three wounds, Julian asked for extreme sickness.
Julian, as many do, understood what Jesus went through. She understood it in the way a female understands what it is like to be male. As much as she may have understood it, she wanted to know what it was like, in the same way a female would only be able to know what it is like to be male, she would have to physically experience it herself. Julian said she wanted to be there with Mary Magdalene to be able to see her face. Julian wanted to feel the pain in Jesus' bod and know the extreme love in his heart.
Julian's sickness came on suddenly and was the start of her visions. For two days she suffered. On the second night she believed she was sure to die by morning. At once her lower body was paralyzed. The curator was called and Julian was placed in bed. Julian mentions at this time that she did not want to die just yet for fear of leaving behind good she could have done for God. Julian kept her gaze upward, toward heaven, where she was going. She only agreed to look down if she had a crucifix to gaze at.
Julian's second prayer was answered. Throughout her sickness she kept her gaze at the crucifix. She would have repeated visions of Christ over the next week: “Suddenly I saw red blood trickle down from under the garland-hot, fresh, plentiful, and lifelike- just as I thought it would have done when the garland of thorns was thrust on his blessed head. So both God and man together suffered for me. I understood clearly and with certainty that it was he who showed it to me, without intermediary; and I said, “Benedicite Dominus!” I spoke reverently, in a strong voice, and was astonished by the wonderful and marvelous fact of his being so friendly with a sinful creature living in this wretched flesh”
Julian's visions came and went, taking her on the entire journey with Jesus. Her body felt his body as he dried out for loss of blood and lack of water. She took every raspy breath with Jesus and yearned for every drop of water. She was able to look into the eyes of Mary Magdalene. Amazingly enough as that was, she was even able to feel the love he has for her. Jesus endured the pain, and Julian endured the pain, but if the excruciating pain became too much for Julian to handle, Jesus was able to relieve her.
“After this our lord revealed an exalted spiritual joy which filled my soul with an abiding security; I was greatly reassured, and free of fear. This feeling was so blissful and pleasing that I was at peace, at ease and at rest. Nothing on earth could have grieved me-but this joy only lasted for a short while. Then I was overcome and left alone in such sad weariness at myself and irksomeness at my life that I scarcely had patience to live. I felt neither ease nor comfort-only hope, faith, and charity, and of these in truth but little.
However, God soon restored both comfort and rest to my soul, a joyous gladness and security so powerful that no fear or sorrow, no recurred, and then the joy and the gladness, and then the one and then the other, I suppose about twenty times. In joy I might have said, with Paul, “Nothing shall separate me from the love of Christ”; and in pain I might have said, with Peter, “Lord save me, I perish.”
This vision's purpose was to teach me the need for each soul to feel this way: sometimes to be in comfort, and other times to fail and be left alone. God wants us to now that he keeps us safe both in well ans in woe, and loves us as much in the hard times as the good. For the profit of his soul, a man is sometimes left to himself, although sin is not the cause/; during this time I was not left alone because I had sinned, nor had I done anything to merit the joy. God freely gives pleasure when he chooses, and other times he leaves us in pain. Both are done for love.”
Julian always knew exactly why Jesus did anything, as we do all know. Jesus does everything to/for us out of love.
Jesus also spoke with Julian, “Thus our good lord answered all my questions and doubts, comforting me with these words: “I may make all things well, I can make all things well, I can make all things well, I shall make all things well; and you shall see yourself that all shall be well.” Where he says I may, I understand the father; where he says I can, I understand the son; where he says I will, I understand the holy ghost; where he says I shall, I understand the unity of the holy trinity, three persons in one truth; and where he says you shall see yourself, I understand the uniting in the uniting in the blessed trinity of all mankind who shall be saved.
With these five phrases, God will be enclosed in rest and in peace, and thus will the spiritual thirst of Christ come to an end. His ghostly thirst- his love longing- shall last until judgment day, for we who shall be saved, and who shall be Christ's joy and bliss, will remain here until that time. His thirst, the failure of his bliss, is that he does not have us in him, as wholly as he shall then have. All this was revealed in the showing of compassion, which shall cease at doomsday; until the he feels pity ans compassion for us, and he longs for us. But his wisdom and his love do not suffer the end to come until best time.
And in these words, I may take all things well, I understand the great comfort of all his works that are yet to come.” Julian understands the Trinity far better than most anybody. God, Jesus, The Holy Spirit, he has all the power, and he wants to use it all for us.
Julian asked God to show her things, not out of desire for proof, but out of faith. She knew he had the power to show her anything and do anything he desired. All Julian needed was for her desire and his will to be the same. Julian held strong to her faith, even through temptation from the Devil. God was happy and Julian survived her illness, probably coming out better than any other person of her day. She had strong faith each day until her death. She died some forty-three years later in 1416 at the age of seventy-four.
Julian of Norwich surprisingly has taught me a lot about my own faith. I am most closely related to a Baptist-Christian, and I believe that this mystic most likely had more faith in Jesus Christ than I do. How I wish I could experience Jesus Christ's crucification personally. It would be a pain beyond anything I can imagine, but it would be worth it if I could just feel the pure love in his heart. Julian was privileged, and she knew it.
Julian mentioned no speaking of her visions or “confessing” them to a priest because no pastor would believe her. She was right. I was advised to “be careful with those mystics”, but Julian seems to be a “better Christian” than all of us. She had pure faith, and lived her life that way. What have I to fear of her Jesus spoke directly to her so she could speak to Christians like myself. Her experience was so personal that it could almost be titled “The Gospel According to Julian.”
I am jealous of Julian in the same way that I ma jealous of Matthew, Mark, Luke or John. In the game of telephone, I can experience Jesus Christ through Luke from Jesus, or through Mark from Jesus, but these five had a personal one one one experience with Jesus Christ. I lack that extreme faith, and it is hard to say if I ever will.

--------------------------------------------

I was supposed to have 3 quotes from the actual mystic. Mr. Branstetter hinted at wanting the quotes to be long, thus the reason they are long.
I read the entire Revelations of Divine Love {Short Version}, since it was only about 100 pages. I am still not sure if I have a grasp on Julian though.
I am not sure if I have enough of my own writing in between quotes or not. I think that even 2 pages may actually be quotes.
I think a lot of my hesitation comes from not having a lot of biographical information, but there isn't a lot of biographical information out there. Considereing her real name isn't even known and much has to be assumed.
HELP ME!! LTM. It isn't my best paper ever.

Caesaerean section paper final draft

2008-09-19T14:17:00.000-07:00

Mother Nature Knows Best
By: Amanda Cunningham
For: Englih Compoition II
Professor: Mr. Hamelin

A woman runs into her pregnant friend, she asks : "How are the future mom and her baby ?" The friend answers : "I have no idea, I won't see my gynecologist before next week." More and More women are giving their natural human biology over to technology, including the rising number of women choosing to have caesarean sections. A Caesarean Section is supposed to be a last chance effort used to get a baby out of a mother if a situation has become an emergency. An emergency caesarean section situation should only arise if continuing labor would harm the baby and/or the mother. The World Health Organization states that an acceptable average for Caesarean sections is 4.5% of all births, but averages are rising. Today the caesarean section rate is 33% of all births, a steep incline from the 4.5% in 1965. Obstetrician Dr. Savage believes, "…as the developed world becomes more and more dependent on technology, there is a danger that people will cease to believe that women can give birth naturally." These rising statistics need to drop. Women having elective caesarean sections are to blame for the increases. Women believe caesareans are a safe option, but they are not aware of the risks for themselves or for their unborn child. (Savage W 1992).( Heike Emery. September 2008.)

Caesarean section is a risky way out, but the women opting for these surgeries believe it is a simple and harmless alternative to the natural way of life. Before she even met her husband and became pregnant, Euna Chung decided that all of her children were going to be delivered via caesarean section. Quoted here, “I had a fear of going through labor and ending up with an emergency C-section anyway. I know that’s rare, but I didn’t want to deal with it.” People of today think that anything in life can be sped up with technology, even birth. There are some outlandish reasons for having requested caesarean sections: unwanted pregnancies, the idea that vaginal birth is “archaic, painful, disfiguring and [a cause for] diminished sexual performance”, a caesarean is an “easy way” to deliver a baby, and even that vaginal birth isn’t natural. Women are told that the procedure won’t hurt, and they like the instant gratification of caesarean sections. Also, with the rising number of midwives and celebrities opting for Caesarean sections, the procedure is coming across as simpler and safer. One woman believed she was going in for a routine simple surgery. Her testimony proves the situation was drastically different,
“When you get into the operating room it is like you have been abducted by aliens. Everything is silver. There are bright lights everywhere. Everyone has their faces covered so all you see are these little eyes. You can't recognize anyone who you have been talking to the past few days. It's very cold. So your sort of half naked, freezing, by yourself without your husband, worried about your baby and yourself. And it was really scary for me. Definitely in comparison to vaginal birth. Much scarier.”

Another woman was forced to have a Caesarean section, and feels that her “birth rape” led her to postpartum depression. The doctors overestimated the size of the baby. She did not need to deliver. She wasn’t able to deliver naturally, and she wasn’t even allowed to hold her baby because “her insides may fall out”. Her body’s inability to function naturally caused this woman to believe she was a failure as a mother. Caesarean sections are not the in and out, safe and sound, procedure that they appear to be. (Alice Park April 2008). (Sara McAleese, 2000) (Doula Pam, 2008.)(Safe Birth, 2008.) (Larissa Hirsch, MD June 2006).
A Caesarean section comes with many unnecessary risks for the mother. One of the biggest risk factors for the mother is Post Pardon Depression. Dr. James Swain conducted research at Yale University that found hormones (specifically oxytoxin), which are released through the natural pain of labor, help form maternal instincts. Women who had caesarean sections showed signs in brain scans of postpartum depression within two to four weeks after delivery. Dr. Swain concluded, "Our results support the theory that variations in delivery conditions such as with caesarean section, which alters the neuro-hormonal experiences of childbirth, might decrease the responsiveness of the human maternal brain in the early postpartum.” Mothers who suffer from postpartum depression are less capable of caring for their newborns and themselves. Some other risk factors mothers who opt for natural child birth do not have to worry about include, wound infection, Intestinal Obstruction, increased bleeding resulting in the need for blood transfusion (6% of women who have a c-section will need a blood transfusion),extended hospital stay (women who have caesarean sections average 4 extra hospital days), emergency hysterectomy due to complications with initial surgery, extended time away from the infant, pain due to surgery which keeps the mother from breast feeding (many women report still having pain at the incision site six months after the surgery), and the extra cost associated with surgery. Death is also a huge concern for any surgery and an average of 140 women will die every year in America due to complications with Caesarean sections. There are many dangers for mother’s who opt to have unnatural births via caesarean section. (Ishpreet Bindra. September 4, 2008.) (Sara McAleese 2000)

The unborn infant in these situations are also put in jeapordy. The biggest threat for a baby is respiratory problems. When a baby comes out of the natural birth canal pressure removes contents from the lungs, and there is a natural transfer of care from the mother’s body to the infant; with caesarean section this process never occurs. Respiratory problems at birth often lead to RSV and asthma in the child's future. Other problems include premature birth (if the gestation was not measured correctly), increased need for assistance with breathing and immediate care after birth, and accidental cutting or nicking of the baby during the caesarean process (2% of babies will be cut during a caesarean). Caesarean babies are also 50% more likely to have low APGR rates when compared to vaginal deliveries (These test measure responsiveness of the child one minute and five minutes after birth). Infants are not left unharmed because the mother chose to have a Caesarean section. (APA. September 2008.) (Larissa Hirsch, MD June 2006). (Ishpreet Bindra. September 4, 2008.) (Sara McAleese 2000)
The infants aren’t safe, the mothers aren’t safe, and this surgery is not the “easy way out” people tend to assume it is. If women are going to have these elective surgeries they should at least inform themselves of the possible outcomes. One slip of the knife and a baby or mother could die. Women’s bodies were designed to handle the birthing process. It is time we put technology aside and use the best computer at our disposal, the brain. Caesarean sections were designed for emergencies, and that is where their place needs to return.

Works Sited
1. Alice Park (April 28, 2008).Womb Service. Why More Women are making caesareans their delivery of Choice. Time, 171, 65-66.
2. APA. September 2008. American Pregnancy Association. Risk of Cesarean Procedure. Retrieved 11 Se
ptember 2008. http://www.americanpregnancy.org/labornbirth/cesareanrisks.html
3. Heike Emery. September 2008. Caesarean Section. Home Page. Retrieved 10 September 2008. http://caesareansection.net/
4. Ishpreet Bindra. September 4, 2008. The med Guru. Normal Delivery =better Mother Child Bonding. Retrieved 10 September 2008. http://www.themedguru.com/articles/normal_delivery_better_mother_child_bonding-8619092.html
5. Larissa Hirsch, MD. (June 2006). Caesarean Sections. Kids Health. Retrieved 10 September 2008. http://kidshealth.org/parent/pregnancy_newborn/pregnancy/c_sections.html =
6. 'The rise in caesarean section - anxiety or science?' in: Chard T and Richards M P (eds) Obstetrics in the 1990s: Current Controversies, Blackwell Scientific Publications Ltd, Oxford.
7. Safe Birth. (15 May 2008.) “Prevent Caesarean Section.” You Tube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZy0JPtubiQ
8. Doula Pam. (10 February 2008) “Our First Childs Birth” You Tube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sy-b0JkruFY

Just to note

2008-09-19T04:22:00.001-07:00

I have to sign in more, because people are reading and leaving comments and I am just not paying any attention. I have offers for editors... well editor. My cousin, and she is pretty freakin smart, so I should have tapped into that, because my editors here are just to nice ot me about my papers. I am turning the caesarean section one in today, but i will get something up for the mysticism paper soon. It's due next Thursday, and I haven't really put pen to paper.

Mysticism- It is all about letting go of things of this Earth to reach enlightenment with God. There is a lot in there about everyone being God. Also, the mystics don't have attachments to anything. They live day to day, moment to moment. They have no emotion because they aren't attached. It is strange. I understand it, but I don't get it. They also think they have many experiences with oneness with God while they are still on this Earth.

Caesarean Section II (discussion)

2008-09-14T15:21:00.000-07:00

English Composition II
Professor: Hamelin
Assignment: Essay on a somewhat controversial topic.

As of today i have 3.25 pages written for this essay. Most likely it is in its final state. I am happy with the way it turned out. The way I wrote it was different from my norm, but I think it is the way I am going to continue.
I created a word document. At the beginning of the document I listed each source as I used it, and typed the research under each source {I want to be sure I site ALL my sources}. Then, in the middle of the document I created an outline. Proper paragraph headings were listed, and under each heading was a subheading which included which exact information I was going to use written in my own words. When it came time for me to build the essay, most of it wound up being cut and paste since I used my own words along the way. I added some filler to create a flow from one sentence to the next. When it came time to edit my paper to be sure it all made sense together I simply had to remove some unnecessary fluff, and be sure i sited every source. I have never been so pleased with a paper. Lettuce hope I get an acceptable grade!

Thus Far in school

2008-09-14T15:07:00.000-07:00

College Algebra
Professor: Don Johnson
Thus far: Seven or so quizzes worth 10 points a piece, and one exam worth 100 points. My grade was an 81%; there will be a 10 point curve. I have two purple things. Last class I earned one, but I forgot to get it.

English Composition II
Professor: Mr. Hamlin
Thus far: Five or so quizzes worth 50 points. (At the End of Semester the ten best quiz grades will be chosen.) One Paper. My paper (The one about the Mexican Border Wall) grade was 87%. That's all right. My biggest mistakes were logic and argumentation. I accept that. My next paper (The one about cesarean sections) will be better.

Yoga: I have done yoga. Also there was a pretest I didn't do amazingly on.

Psychology
Professor: Krista Rumage
Thus Far: I don't think we have turned in anything. Monday is my first exam. I am going to study with Brittany Sunday. I am confidant. I have read all the chapters.

United States History I
Professor: Wallace
Thus Far: We have had notes, and one exam. On that Exam I got an 88%. Hopefully next time I get a better grade. It may be my favorite class. I have done some research for the 10 page Research paper final. I also have read, I believe, three of the four chapters in the first book. I had better get one that paper though if I want it to turn out well.

Mysticism
Professor: Matt Branstetter
Thus Far: Possibly my most talked about class socially. We have had one exam which I received a 90% on. I think that is all we have actually turned in. Most of our grade thus far depends on participation. Which I participate in. I also have a paper due in two weeks on the Mystic Julian of Norwich.

Julian of Norwich Research I

2008-09-13T05:50:00.001-07:00

I checked out a book in the library on 11 September 2008
Title: Julian of Norwich Revelations:Motherhood of God
Author: Frances Beer

It's less than one hundread pages, so I believe I may try to read it all. Funny, in research it is often not the case that you read all of something.

I did check out her page on Wikipedia as well. Mainly just to get an idea of who she was.

Interesting finds: There is a band named after her.

Caesarean Section I (Research)

2008-09-12T11:36:00.000-07:00

Type: Persuasive Paper
Class: English Composition II
Instructor: Mr. Hamelin
Topic: Elective Caesarean Sections

Research:
--------------------------------------------------
Times Magezine Article.

Choosy Moms Choose Caesarean

by: Alice Park

-------------------------------------
YouTube Videos

Caesarean section part one and two
Creator: duniavideographer

Prevent Caesarean Section

Our First Child's Birth

American Pregnancy Association

Caesarean Section

Kids Health

The Med Guru

What I'm working on now

2008-09-12T11:04:00.000-07:00

Right now I have a few projects in the works.

I have an essay for English Composition II for Mr. Hamelin again.
.... I have to write another persuasive paper on a controversial issue. 2-3 pages
..... I am going to write about the growing number of women having elective caesarean sections.
.... I have begun research.

I have a paper for Mysticism for Matt Branstetter.
.....that'll be on a Mystic. Julian of Norwhich. 5-7 pages.

I have my final for History for Mr. Wallace.
..... it is a 10 page research paper on something historical that happened before 1877.
..... I am going ot write about the start of the library of congress.
.....I have begun research.

The Iron Guard between Two Worlds.

2008-09-12T10:34:00.000-07:00

This is going to have to be a back log post. Since it is the only paper I have turned in this year, it should be the only one I have to backlog. I wrote this paper for Mr. Hamelin's English Composition II Class. It was to be a 2-3 page persuasive paper one a somewhat controversial topic. I chose to write about the border fence being built between America and mexico. I decided apon this topic after I read an article in Times magezine. I researched mainly online. There were a few videos.

Here is my paper. My works sited are at the end.

The Iron Guard Between Two Worlds

“We don't need no border walls”. The chants of angry Mexicans and Americans can be heard along the new fence being constructed across the Mexican and American border. On October 26, 2006, Congress approved the construction of a 700 mile fence stretching between the Mexico-America international border. The new fence is currently in the construction phase. This fence will cost a sum total of $49 billion, and will cover approximately 670 miles of the 2000 mile border. Some of the fence will be built in double layer form, with heights of 12-20 feet. In the gaps along the fence the government is using a process called “virtual fence”, which uses motion detectors and cameras to alert border patrol of fence hoppers. The purpose of the fence is to keep the nearly 400,000 illegal Mexican immigrants that cross into America each year from entering American territory. The mass numbers of illegal Mexican immigrants that cross into America everyday should be a huge concern for American citizens, even so, many Americans feel that the fence is the wrong way to go about solving the immigration problems, nevertheless, in the end we need to find a humane way to deal with the problem that works with the foundations of our country.

One future-American-hopeful, may spend three-to-four days, crossing twenty-to-thirty miles of dessert, in hundred degree weather, all the while leaving eight pounds of trash; just to enter an American city, where they can fade into the shadows of the land. Once these illegal immigrants reach the cities, they take many different routs to many of the same destinations: bussed back to Mexico, living a life of secrets and lies, and/or causing American citizens billions of dollars. Since these people are illegal residents, they can not find legal jobs that require fair pay, health benefits, and paying taxes. Much of the money, an estimated 12 billion untaxed dollars each year, is sent back to families to be poured into the Mexican economy. Many of the immigrants decide to have children, because any child born on American soil is an official American citizen. These, sort of, pawn children, are used as anchors to keep their families in America. The American education and health systems are too being hurt by the illegal immigration from Mexico. It is estimated that $28,607,800,000 of taxpayers money is spent every year educating illegal immigrants and children whose parents are illegal immigrants; many of whom will never pay taxes in their lives. Illegal immigrants are the cause for $190 million {25%) of southwest border county hospitals uncompensated emergency cost. The cost of housing illegal immigrants is putting a huge strain on the American economy.

In spite of the overwhelming evidence proving that illegal immigrants are economically destroying the America, many Americans believe that the fence is a horrible “solution”. For starters, the wall not only puts a twenty-foot barrier between The United States and Mexico, the fence also puts a twenty-foot barrier between the United States and some Americans. Since, in some areas, the fence cannot be built directly on the border (building in the natural Rio Grande river may change the natural flow of the river and therefore would change the natural boundaries) the fence is being built some two miles inward the American boundary. This federal government plan calls for cutting many properties in half, putting residents on the “Mexican” side of the fence, and putting a wall in the middle of farms and University golf courses. The University of Texas: Brownsville feels that the wall in sending the wrong message to many of their Mexican students, whom legitimatly cross the border daily to take classes. The school has stood by a mission of uniting both the US and Mexico, and they feel the fence goes against their unity ideals. “UTB is trying to portray an image of bringing everybody together, but we would have this wall between us.” stated UTB student Allison Valles. The residents who are now forced to be on the “other” side of the fence fear for their property values. They believe that nobody is going to want to purchase a house “on the South side of the border wall the United States built”. The fence isn't even working as the quick fix the government wants it to work as. Residents in the areas where the fence has already been put up say that the cross bar effect of the fences construction work perfectly as a ladder when illegal immigrants want to hop the fence. Clearly the fence is not the answer to our problem.

With all this talk of “illegal immigrants”, and the “ones on the other side”, we are almost forcing ourselves to not think humanly. Illegal immigrants crossing into our borders are a “problem”, but maybe we need to work on why they are coming here in the first place. The human will to live would not send hundreds of thousands of people into the dessert to die every year, if there weren't something better in front, and worse behind them. If we were to stop placing blame on others and were to look inward at ourselves, we may find out what we are doing wrong. Some people say that the illegal job placement large American companies, like Wal-Mart and Swift Co., provide are the “money magnet” ushering Mexicans to America. We also need to look at what they are leaving behind. If we took the billions of dollars we pump into a metal fence and used it to aid the country of Mexico, possibly the amount of illegals border hopping would diminish. If their economy had some financial aid, possibly that would be the jump start their country needed. We are all humans, and sometimes, it seems, we need to put ourselves in another's shoes.

So, the illegal immigrants we have right now are hurting America and her citizens, the solution we are trying to use isn't working, and we are to self centered to find a less invasive way to solve our problems. What are we going to do? What can we do. It seems that he only thing we can ask for right now is that American citizens make themselves more aware. The problems we have are being solved by a government that wants a quick fix to band aid our problems. The people of this country need to know what is going on and do their part to be sure the world can live each day as peacefully and humane as possible.

Bibliography

Drehele, David V. (2008, June 19). The Great Wall of America. Time,

Texas Border Coalition. (2008). Our Border, Our Future. Retrieved 27 August 2008. http://www.texasbordercoalition.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=25&Itemid=41

“The Border Fence; The Wall”. Wayne Ewing. Now. PBS. 15 August 2008. http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/432/video-webex.html

USA TODAY. 25 August 2008. http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2008-06-27-texas-university- fence_n.htm?loc=interstitialskip

Wikipedia The Free Encyclopedia. (2005). Illegal Immigration to the United States. Retrieved August 20, 2008, from the World Wide Web:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illegal_immigration_to_the_United_States

Beginning

2008-09-12T10:31:00.000-07:00

I am going to write this to keep tabs on what I am doing in school.
Mainly I am going to post information about papers I am writing, and I will end with the actual paper. I will list my sources and hopefully write about some interesting topics. I aill hopefully have videos and articles to post. It is going to be an interesting four years.