Question #1:Is there something wrong with me?My dreams usually come true. It's nothing like predicting a death or anything, but I'll just have a glimpse of something seemingly random, like a bottle of perfume spilling and someone screaming. It won't make any sense until a couple weeks later I go to the mall to Sephora or something and a kid knocks down the same perfume in my dream in the same setting and his mom starts screaming at him, Just random stupid stuff. After it happened multiple times I looked up Deja vu and assumed it was something like that. But over the past year or so it's gotten more frequent and the situations less irrelevant. I sometimes made decisions off of what I dreamed, not logic. I started getting confused because deja vu once in a while is normal. But I'd have it like every week. So I started writing down my dreams to prove to myself it wasn't just some stupid deja vu...and I've recently convinced myself that yes, in fact I am seeing things in my dreams that come to reality. I should probably ignore it because it's nothing huge, but it freaks me out a lot. It's unnatural. What prompted me to write this is that a while back I had a glimpse of a poem about grandparents. And now this kid recently died and I checked out his 'memory page' on facebook and the poem's there...he apparently wrote it and his parents found it when cleaning out his stuff or something and posted it there. I'm confused...it's so weird. This probably doesn't sound like a big deal, but it's something unexplainable for me. I don't like it.Question #2:Another moment of my parents making me feel rlly socially awkward?One of my deepest insecurities is appearing as socially awkward. There are so many memories I have of feeling socially awkward around my parents. And when I've brought them up they tell me I'm making up stuff in my mind.I'm deathly afraid to listen t my music out loud. My Mom has told me My dad is like "I don't understand how he can possibly like this music? Its terrible" and my mom and my entire family has had tons of negative attitude towards my music for a long time. And its not like I'm blasting the latest number 1 hit off this weeks chart. I don't think you'll hear most guy teens blasting both Annie Get Your Gun or Britney Spears. So I'm really nervous about listening to music out loud. I remember I wanted to show my grandmother an episode of a show with Barbra Streisand cuz I thought she would like it. My grandmother then turned to my sister and rolled her eyes. I felt so stupid, so socially off. I was so ashamed that I apparently wasn't on the social standard. Well anyways, what prompted me to write this question is I recently wasted a lot of ink to create a picture collage on my wall. Well, I even measured everything out so the wall would be covered perfectly. I didn't get to finish it all in one sitting. And before I even finished it my parents were pissed at me for using so much Ink. So I've been gradually finishing it with some magazine cut outs that fit the "mathematical" design. So since I haven't been able to finish the wall with magazine cut outs, I wanted to print stuff. But this time I went to my parents and was like "Can I pay you $2 to print out ONE page of pictures." And my Mom is just like "You have like 80 pictures on the wall! And money is tight! We have like no grocery money! We don't need you to waste any more money printing stuff out!"(Now...if I was paying her, how is she losing any money?) I felt so stupid. I felt like I looked like an autistic kid who didn't understand what was enough and that "my" stupid music pictures aren't important Question #3:HELP! My wife is in love with a man shes never met through the internet.?I need help. Please!My wife of 19 yrs and I play a massive multi-player online roleplaying game. We've played for 2 years. We sit in different rooms in the house and hang out with different people in the online game world as our playing styles are very different (she likes to joke around; socalize, I'm more serious). One of her online friends (known to me and whom I liked as he was similiar to me) and her have grown closer to the point of saying they love each other. My wife has traded a few pics with this man who is in a struggling marriage of his own. He has 2 kids, we have 4. My marriage has been going through tough times with her deteriorating morale in running her own business, our bankruptsy and her feelings of me not pullng my weight around the house. I was fired from my job a few years back for misconduct and since then times have been really rough. We both use the game as a way to escape into a fun world and forget our problems for a few hours. She had this past summer, decided to start living for herself, putting her needs to the top and so many years of really putting everyone elses needs first. Her and this online guy have talked most nights through the game for the past 4 mos, and now she has just told me shes in love with this guy (2 states away) and he loves her. Her heart and head are conflicted and shes wavering, thinking perhaps this man came into her life to start the next 20 years of renewed happiness (She constantly says he understands her and says exactly what she needs to hear). She and him have cybered (typed sex to one another through the game chat) and written fantasy stories to one another having sex. Shes talked of writing a novel with him. All of this has been known to me but I though it was just for fun, not for real emotions being shared. With the stress in her head they talked on the phone for the first time last night and he stated he will not be a homewrecker but does plan to leave his wife and only after that should they meet. (Hes been miserable for many mos.) My wife had installed skype, much to my dread which allowed them to see one another as they talked. I have removed it today from the computer which he and I agreed was best. All of us are in pain. I want my wife back. I plan to get her best friend involved hoping for some sanity and understanding. As it standsnow , the guy in the game will do whatever wy wife wants from him. He wants her but of course has to reveal this to his wife (his wife and he have not had sex in 9 mos.) and get through leaving her. My wife is torn, ripped in half, feeling trapped in our 19 yr marriage with all our problems. She has noticed me trying more. (why not? Too little too late?) During the last 4 mos our sex life had increased by 40% which I now feel was prompted by thoughts of him. It has now stopped for 10 days now. She doesnt want to be intimate with me. Partly for not wanting to think of him while with me? She has never been an affectionate one, but now has pulled away not wanting my affections which is killing me. Shes thinking seperation, feeling the need to explore this attractive option (I have much family in the area while hers is in the state between us and the online friend). The holidays are coming. My question to you in this dire situation is what can I do to save my marriage? We still play this game nightly, although it just pains me to know while im adventuring solo they are together (this is just how its been). I expect them to group up and talk while I'm in the other room wondering. I feel like I could suggest alternatives to the game but she will think I am delibertly trying to put a wedge between them which is denying her a chance at greater happiness. She feels she needs to explore that option which leaves me in an affectionateless marriage living day to day. Do I continue to act like nothings wrong and let her go her own way? Do i try and persuade her back? Involve other family members? Do I contact the guy pissed off and hurt like I am? I want to cool this infatuation. I don't want her pining away. Shes as upset as well that this happened, to genuinely have such strong feelings for this man. I can see this going for many months without resolution. I do hope the fireworks between them cool off. What can I do?? When we first started playing the game 2 years ago it was her who thought it was all i wanted to do. Now, it is her thing to do and I enjoy the game as well but now its more about having a way to talk to him. I will stop and see if she feels differently. It is her escape from the troubles facing her. I am faced with backing off to see if that gets her to come around to me but I don't want her to think my backing off is me caring less. We've talked and cried a lot through this. Shes very open and honest. Thank you for advice. Part of the equation is she wants to see where this could lead. Her thinking is it might just lead to greener pastures. We're taking it a day at a time but I do need to confront this guy. Question #4:writing prompt? just to get going?ugh! I've been trying for a long time to come up with a new idea for a book. (like, it's gotten bad. i stayed up all night trying to think of something)So I don't want a full idea or anything, just something to get me started! I prefer something fantasy (if you mention vampires or werewolves, i will throw something at you. not even kidding.) Thanks! sammy, i just threw a mayo-filled balloon at you. congrats :) hannah- not terrible! Question #5:UC Application Essay Help?Plz help...i need some advice on what to write about as i am having a mental block lol.Prompt #1:Describe the world you come from — for example, your family, community or school — and tell us how your world has shaped your dreams and aspirations. For this one, i was thinking of writing about my family and/or church (can i write about both) because i feel that they have both influenced me equally in what i want out of life. (My dream is to obtain a Ph.D in astrophysics and study the universe and collaborate with top scientists around the world). However, i don't know how it ties in to my "world" because both my mother and father never graduated college (i decided what my goals were on my own at an early age). Also, church really didn't influence my love for science, although recently after watching a series at church called "The Truth Project," in which they used science to help prove the existence of God, i decided that i would be one of the few scientists that would maintain faith in Christianity and prove it to other skeptical scientists. One last thing that can be my "world" is my baseball team from which i have learned the value of teamwork, an essential quality for success in my career. Prompt #2: Tell us about a personal quality, talent, accomplishment, contribution or experience that is important to you. What about this quality or accomplishment makes you proud and how does it relate to the person you are For this one, i was thinking of writing about my quintessential "quality" that is curiosity, as it is responsible for my love of science and makes me want to know why and how the universe operates. I also have other talents (artist, good public speaker, baseball player, good at math/science etc.) and want to know if i can write about them or at least mention them in this part of the essay. One accomplishment that i am particularly proud of is my performance at the school-wide speech contest in 8th grade, in which i "out-spoke" every other competitor (at least 50-60 kids) and won the overall title. (Not to brag, but my high school doesn't have a speech contest or i probably would have won that too lol). Should i write about this, or just mention it? Thank you for your time in reading and answering my question. Any suggestions would be appreciated! Question #6:UC Prompt #1 essay topic...?Describe the world you come from — for example, your family, community or school — and tell us how your world has shaped your dreams and aspirations.I was thinking about writing how my grandma has helped shape who I am today. She was abused and then an acolohic and survived both. She was a single mom raising 2 young kids on her own. I want to write about how she has been through so much in her life and I admire how she has survived and become the strong independentwoman she is today. Also that she always has great advice for anything that I ask her and she has also helped me figure out that I want to be a therapist and major in physcology. Is this okay? or no? Question #7:Please look at my Stanford Supplement Essay--The prompt is to describe an intellectual experience (epiphany)?Thank you for your comments“Which of the following is recyclable, hazardous, or waste?” I write this question on a UNO chemistry room chalkboard and turn to face my Aim for the Stars science class of sixteen middle school students. “Styrofoam?” I ask, hoping someone had listened during our field trip that morning. Jacob excitedly raises his hand. I hear this reassuring response—“It’s recyclable, but we can’t recycle that here can we?” I ask, “Where can we recycle Styrofoam?” “At the recycling center we just visited!” I nod and continue to list substances from antifreeze to wax, unaware of the venues of education I would experience that summer. Two weeks of preparing, 24 flight hours, and four days up Mt. Kilimanjaro later, I step into a dimly lit tent. I greet my guide Frank, and fill a tin cup with hot water. I stir the peppermint in, reminiscing back to Omaha and my students. We both sip in silence for a while, until Frank stands up. “What is education like in America?” I tell Frank of my school, my interest in the sciences, and of the students I taught and learned from. “Hmm,” Frank grins, “do you like biology?” “It’s definitely my favorite, Frank.” Frank ponders aloud “Ok, there’s a famous gland in your abdomen.” He gestures frantically “It’s like…you see a lion then jump over a huge brick wall!” “The adrenal gland!” We are exhilarated at this sudden mutual understanding, a barrier broken between two different worlds. A grin of reassurance would illuminate his face every time I’d answer some of his enlightening trivia. By the end of the evening we were full of more thought than of the food sitting before us. Bidding Frank goodnight, I walked out of the tent beneath the starlit sky and realized—from teaching kids in Omaha to learning from Tanzania—knowledge is most powerful when shared. Question #8:help on uc essay topic!!!?im not too sure what to write about so i came up with several... please help me decide which one to pick of if all of them are bad? or if anyone can give me any ideas or suggestions?For Prompt #1 (freshman applicants) Describe the world you come from — for example, your family, community or school — and tell us how your world has shaped your dreams and aspirations. I was wondering if i should tell of how yearly our school goes on a spring tour to different countries and my sophmore year i went to china. before going to china i was a spoiled brat and didn't care for others but myself but after going to china i realized how life is hard there and not as easy as it is for me.. there are many poor people who cannot eat and some are not even able to read or write. That after coming back from my trip i decided tochange. how i would cook and serve for homeless shelter often and tutor kids and for Prompt #2 (all applicants) Tell us about a personal quality, talent, accomplishment, contribution or experience that is important to you. What about this quality or accomplishment makes you proud and how does it relate to the person you are? should i tell about how i lost 20 pounds. before i had no self confidence, was shy,etc but after i lost weight i learned to be more confident, anything is possible, to reach for my boal or how i played the piano ever sicne i was a child. most asians play the piano and how competetive it was but it teached me to have confidence in front of new people i meet or judges, etc and discipline, and to try your best or how i help out the community alot? shows me there are lots of needy people out there Question #9:I have a very strained relationship with my ex husband, and I need advice about it.?We split up in 2003, when our kids were 3 and 5 years old. They have lived with me since then, except for every other weekend visitation when they stay with their dad. He has made decisions about the kids that I don't agree with, but I feel like my hands are tied and there's not really anything I can do about it unless I want to make things really nasty between us (and end up putting the kids in the middle of our disagreements).Examples: Has decided the kids will be vaccinated for the flu, and informed me that if I don't take them for the flu shots that he is going to while they're staying with him for the weekend. Our son is autistic, and with all the controversy about the possibility of the flu shot contributing to autism, I've decided that I don't want to have them vaccinated. He enrolled them in Lutheran religious education classes for Sunday mornings when they stay with him. The kids are both baptized Catholic, and attend Catholic mass (although not very often, it's still VERY different from Lutheran service). 2 years ago, he and his wife had a stillborn baby when she was 7 months pregnant. They take the kids to the cemetery to 'visit their sister'. They never attended the actual funeral. It's almost like they're forcing the kids to go through the grieving process with them, even though they were never really involved with the pregnancy (except to see her pregnant every other weekend when they'd visit their dad). Now my daughter fantasy plays with the dead sister she's never known or even met. He took it upon himself to give a very explicit birds and bees talk with the kids when they were 7 and 9, prompting my 7 year old daughter to write her dad a letter stating 'have lots of sexxxs so Kimberly (his wife) can have a new baby in her tummy'. When I became upset when I found out, his response was a condescending chuckle, and said 'you can't protect them forever'. He has on NUMEROUS occasions allowed my 11 year old son to sit in the front seat of his vehicle, even just 10 days after having emergency brain surgery for meningitis... because 'he likes to ride in the front seat', AND so that his wife can sit in the back seat with the baby they now have, because she's worried the baby will 'urp' and choke on it. The drive is about 50 miles, mostly interstate with traffic moving about 75 mph. He swears a lot, even using the 'f' word... and has told the kids he's just 'had a potty mouth since he was N*****'s age' (my son). Has bought them and allowed them to play rated 'M' video games. Doesn't require them to wear helmets when they bike ride or skate board in the street. I could go on and on... he's very passive aggressive toward me still. If he finds out something bothers me, it only encourages him to do something even more. I don't know what to do... Also, I was the one who suggested divorce. I moved myself and both kids to an apartment, and it was the 3 of us that had to start all over... he just moved in with his gf (now his wife) in her home. I guess yes, there may be some bitterness on my part about how hard it was for me to walk away, when he didn't have to struggle or be responsible for anything but himself. It was me that fought the school district to get help for my son, when his dad denied his autism (telling me that our son just needed to 'be pushed' more). I was the one sleepless at night when the kids were sick, or when I didn't know for the life of me where money would come from to buy groceries... because he was fired from yet ANOTHER job and couldn't pay child support (he is all caught up now, though). I left because he was very emotionally abusive. I gave him an ultimatum to either seek help (either us together or on his own) for his abusive tendencies, or that I was leaving. I left. Question #10:Help needs advice on teacher's aide (Special ed) interview coming up!?These were the questions asked during the inverview and the answers l gave. Please give some advice so l can improve for next time.1. What do you do if you saw a teacher did something that was against your "philosophy" to a student? I would ask the teacher privately about the situation and how she handled it, so next time l will know what to do if the same thing happened to me. If it was a behavior problems, I will ask her what kind of discipline methods is best because child has different respones when it comes to discipline. If it was child abuse, l would report it. 2. What type of environment you work best in? l work best in a structural environment in which that is a routine and schedule to follow everyday. Everyone staff is on the same page when it comes to behavior reinforcment, classroom rules/expections.So,students will get the best educaton possible. 3.What's your strength? I have a lot of patient, l can sit with a student until he understands a problem. I am willing to step out of my comfort zone, for example, telling a silly story in funny voices in order for the student to understand the concept. I will try different tactics to help him understand like role play or doing it step by step. I am also a team player, I will offer my help to another staff even it's not my duties. I will see this as a learning experience, it may even help me in the future. 4. What's the most frustrated part about working in special ed? The hardest part is that you don't see results right away especially kids w/ autism. You need to wait and have a lot patient. It doesn't mean you're not doing a good job, but the learning process just takes time. 5. Our school is very culturally diverse, do you work well in this situation? Yes, l have been working as a sub for 1 year and l 've work with different teachers/staff with different personalities. This kind of exposure makes me adopt to the situation very quickly, and l enjoy working with diverse group of people and l've learned a lot from it. 6.How would you help a shy student make friends? In the classroom, l would observe which student he/she feels comfortable with, or he/she is more talkative toward. In recess l would bring a toy, l would ask the 2 including myself, to play together. I will leave them when l see they're at ease with one another. 7. What do you do if a student threw a tantrum? I will give him/her a choice first, so they will feel they have the freedom to make their own decisions. If that is not working, I will ask them to a quiet corner, seperate him from the other kids, and tell him to calm down. When he joins the group, l will explain to him that this kind of behavior is not OK. If it was an autistic student, l will phsyically prompt them to do the acceptable activity,so he will know what's right and wrong. 8. How would you approach speech therapy with autism students? I was not prepared for that question. IT sounds a bit advance for aide position. I will also ask opened end it question such as,"what did you do this weekend?So, they couldn't give one word answers. One thing I realize is that communication isn't only via speech. So use her way of communicating eg pictures, writing (not very likely in kindergarten but possible for some words), signs etc and use that to work with her, use those strategies in conjunction with speech.I know signifigant amount of Autistic children who never talk. So if she is pointing to the cookie,I will prompt her to give me the picture or use the sign for cookie and then if this is done successfully give I will her the cookie. and praise her. That are the answers l gave, please give me some tips on refining them. Much appreciated. Thanks. Question #11:Attention HonestLiving!?Hi! You posted a question not long ago that was deleted, but I spent quite a bit of time answering it. I won't repost the question, but you don't allow either iming or email, and I wanted to clear up your question for you - I honestly don't know how sincere you were about wanting to reason through what you asked, but here is my response (edited to make doubly sure the individual in question cannot be traced from this post). Also - for everyone else, there is a question at the end of this, because it did prompt one in my head :)1 - Based on a randomly selected question on puppies, it appears. I chose it because there were many responses to it, and most were intelligently formed. I like to think that's pretty average :) The number of lines in the responses was: 2,1,2,4,2,4,1,2,3,3,4,1,3,3,1,2,3,2,3,2,3,3,1,3,11,1,2. Averages to 2.6 lines...rounded up for the sake of this point to 3. "...(edited out because it's not contextual here)... All right...now to the numbers. I love numbers. So first...10 minutes a question?!?!? If we assume she is typical in other ways (while we're making assumptions about her typicality), then her responses are usually a maximum of three lines long (see source 1) which takes all of about 45 seconds to type: I just timed it. I did not type particularly fast or slow and fixed mistakes along the way (see source 2). For the sake of this argument, let's average that her answers take 1 minute to type and write and a total of a minute to read the question, skim the other responses (though I realize most people don't do this), and hit "answer". So we have an average of 2 minutes a question now. She has spent less than 27,000 minutes working on questions. Easier to understand: 450 hours...a mere 1.36 hours a day (at 330 days for 11 months, roughly). In 330 days there are 7,920 hours total...450ths of that amounts to about 5% of her time answering questions. And agreed, this does not take into account that she probably reads other questions without responding...let's say she spends 2 hours a day on Yahoo answers. IF she works 40 hours a week at a job that allows her access to the internet...it's perfectly reasonable that she could be doing her answering at work...And not all jobs require you to be doing something at all times. Chances are high she has a secretarial position, in which case her job is mostly to just exist and wait for work to come. Two hours over the course of a day? Entirely possible. I have that kind of time at -my- job and I'm working most of my day. When does she watch her kids? I'd say there is plenty of time to do so. And you I'd guess do not have even one kid...if you did you'd remember that the chances that she gets 8 hours of sleep is pretty minimal ;) I answer questions while I'm folding laundry and cooking...multi-tasking is something mommies tend to do well. Should she be reported? For what? For managing her time well enough to enjoy Yahoo Answers? I'd say no. Is she a typical liberal? To be honest, she's probably a typical American - she's not doing anything absurd or taking advantage of anything more than she needs. Sources: 1 - Based on a randomly selected question on puppies, it appears. I chose it because there were many responses to it, and most were intelligently formed. I like to think that's pretty average :) The number of lines in the responses was: 2,1,2,4,2,4,1,2,3,3,4,1,3,3,1,2,3,2,3,2,3,3,1,3,11,1,2. Averages to 2.6 lines...rounded up for the sake of this point to 3. 2 - For those curious, this is what I typed: I like balloons because they are round and if I look at the maximum capabilities of the explosives, then I can assume that the cat also likes the explosives and I like explosives too. So there. Rainbows and ponies. ************************* QUESTION: How much time, in hours per day, should a parent spend with their child or children? Should a certain amount of time spent be mandatory? What would be the pros and cons? Added: Bash: Ha ha - I really really wanted to post a reply to his statements because they just didn't seem fair...and I felt that my response might have cleared up some questions for people who might have been on the edge about your situation. I'm a proponent for the underdog :) I"m glad you responded :) Question #12:What does you guys think of my creative writing story?Prompt is about someone that gets too involved in their work/job that it becomes bad. Wow, if anyone reads i'll be extremely happy because it's extremely long. I added southern flare, supposed to be humorous. Tell me what you think. 10th grade, "super short fiction"It is the month of November in Iowa. Temperatures have dropped from 48 to 30 degrees farenheight this afternoon. And it’s only getting colder. I’m confined in empty space. No house, no job, no- I’ve got me four walls and a toilet. A room, er- cell so empty it crowded itself with thoughts and feelings that were long gone even forgotten. Well, I’ve got time to kill. Nineteen years to kill. I bet you’re asking why. Well it’s an interesting story actually. I remember it like it was yesterday. Yeah, I had a home- and a family too. Our home was decorated so gaudily for the holidays that maybe it shoulda been in a housing magazine. I was nothin’ but a young feller. Didn’t know nothin’ but how to play stick racket ball with the neighbor’s kid and bake pumpkin pie with my Mama. It was a snowy evening just like today in the suburbs right in this very state, good ol’ Iowa. We kept our windows locked but shades the shades were open so we can watch the snowflakes dance and tumble down the glass of our windows. My sister asked me if I wanted to help her back some hot chocolate. I flashed her a smile and nodded. I couldn’t even fathom anything I love more than sipping on some liquid form of nature’s greatest invention- the cocoa bean. That’s all the mattered. My mama was lettin’ me light the stove. I was especially excited that evening because I had just learned how to light it. And what do I do? I make the stupidest dog-gon mistake I could. I dropped the match. I yelped like a wounded dog. Without thinking I got as far away from the fire as possible by running down to the cellar and slamming the door. I would have thought that within a few minutes my Papa would have thrown the fire blanket on it and everything would be alright, but boy was I wrong. The fire was burning brightly; I could view through the cracks below the cellar door. Its devilish claws were tearing down our home, and casting a mournful red glow on my family’s faces. I left my family sufferin’, that’s what I did. The kitchen that we’ve eaten in for as long as I can remember was being condensed to heaps of ashes. Their muffled shrieks are heard but I wasn’t sure what to do. Moments after mustering enough courage behind the door, I open the cellar door back up only to see a room full of hazy smoke. My family isn’t there. That’s the day I lost everything. Also the day I knew what I wanted to do with my life. I couldn’t let something like that happen to myself, or anyone else ever again. At the age, I decided I wanted to be a firefighter. And that’s just what I did. I went to a fire fightin’ school, graduated at the top of my class, had a coat with VELTKAMP across the back, and I even got to ride down a pole. What a thrilling experience! I would really define that as a highpoint in my life, I had my whole future ahead of me. Just as you folks do. I was rescuing little kiddies and their parents left and right from burning buildings. The first time I actually felt like a real hero. Lloyd Martin Veltkamp was a real hero. There came a time in my career where days, weeks, months went by and sittin’ in a fire station become blasé. Then the idea came to me, like a lightning bolt hittin’ Ben Franklin’s kite! If I set a small fire, we’d actually have some work to do. But as time went by, my idea got the best of me. I was addicted to the flame, the excitement, the putting out of the fire, I couldn’t stop the addiction was too much. The excitement of not getting caught as well as the thrill of putting out the fire got the better of my character. Then I started making mistakes, I was leaving behind clues that eventually got me caught. And here I am, serving a twenty seven year sentence without the hope of parole. The real kicker of it all is the whole reason that got me into puttin’ out fire was the senseless death o’ my beloved family. Ironically, I’m sitting here doin’ time for accidently killin’ someone else’s beloved family. © wow. i actually didn't think it was that good. :| thankyou all, wow. i actually didn't think it was that good. :| thankyou all, Question #13:Need help with my High School entry essay?I need help responding to this prompt:"The Twentieth Century brought an explosion of discoveries and inventions in math, science, and technology. Choose one such discovery or invention, identify it, and name the people responsible. Then explain how this discovery or invention has influenced your life. Limit your response to one typed page." I don't want to do the computer, internet, or television (they're just too general, and the high school is just looking for ways to cut people, and come on, a kid writing about television?) I would do the radio, but I can't think of any ways that I could start that essay out or any ways it has influenced me (it has had a big impact on my life though, just not enough has happened with it yet to write about it). I will accept made-up stories or some other topics (that would be nice). MAKE SURE IT WAS ACTUALLY INVENTED IN THE 1900s! Question #14:How would you rate my essay. 10 points for answering!?I'm in eighth grade and I am taking a high school language arts class. We had to do a quick writing sample of a persuasive essay to hand into the teacher. The teacher is really cool and just wants a little base that will only count as a homework grade. He also lets us re-write it as many times as we want to get a better grade. However, I just want to see what kind of first impression I am going to make so I want you guys to just check out this essay and tell me what you think. The prompt that we wrote it on is that a superintendent of a school district wanted to make students more prepared for a test (the GEPA) so he added Saturday sessions from 8am-10am. Write a letter to him to tell why you are for or against this decision. So heres my letter:Your recent decision to hold mandatory Saturday classes to better prepare students for the GEPA test is wrong. While it may seem like mindless decision, there are several extreme flaws when you scratch the surface. Before we all jump to conclusions and send out memos I ask you to seriously reevaluate your solution for these lacking test results. Now, with all due respect, I will present reasons why these Saturday classes will do more harm than good. First off, picture this scenario in your mind for a moment. You are an eighth grade student that just finished a rough school week. Do you think that you would want to attend some course early Saturday morning? And as a result of this underlying resentment, the students are flat out going to get nothing out of these classes. They are going to be moaning and groaning the whole entire session without learning a thing. These classes will be about as much use a single little swimmy when you are drowning in the ocean. The students will not benefit from them in the least bit. Furthermore, I can assure that these instruction periods are not going to be free. Because my mother is a teacher, I know for a fact that a teacher is not going to wake up early on a Saturday morning and teach a bunch of miserable kids out of the goodness of their heart. And because of this, these instruction periods are going to be a big hit money wise on the school district. With all these troubled school districts we hear about on the news and elsewhere, we cannot just throw money with our eyes closed at a program that is setting itself up to fail. That would not be smart at all. Finally, these instruction periods will not make a world of difference. A teacher once told me this, “A student can set themselves up to fail as early as the first day of school”. So I ask of you, why would be waste time of these periods of instruction when students seal their own fate on these tests? It would be totally irrational to say that these classes will make or break the students on the GEPA. What will make or break them is their regular daily instruction, the meat and potatoes if you will. So why on earth should we assume that our meat and potatoes won’t do the job? The plain hard facts are that these classes on Saturdays won’t really make a difference. In conclusion, these Saturday sessions should not happen. I can tell you that the cons certainly outweigh the pros in this situation. They cannot and will not be of much good to the student body whatsoever. They will merely be a single little swimmy in a rough, rough ocean. Sincerely, A concerned student Question #15:Can a physician issue "doctor's orders" to his patient to stop driving? If so, what is the legal effect?My wife was recently diagnosed with multiple scleroses (M.S.). She was having coordination problems and getting into many car accidents -- with our three young children in the car. I thought she was just exhausted from or distracted by the children; also, she is from rural Pennsylvania and we live in Philadelphia, so I figured she simply was not used to driving in the city. But her constant accidents and other coordination problems prompted her to see our family doctor who referred her to a specialist at a local hospital who gave her an MRI and found lesions on her brain. She was treated at the hospital for a week just last month, and released home. Mystifyingly, she has continued to drive, despite my desire that she *not* drive, and, not suprisingly, has repeatedly gotten into *more* car accidents resulting from her lack of coordination and "blackout spells" -- *with the kids in the car,* even after promising me she would stop driving. When I discovered she drove *again* his weekend with the children in the car and without my knowing, I was furious. When I confronted her about it, she was unrepentent about having driven, so I drove the car away, parking it in another neighborhood, and immediately called the specialist who treated her at the hospital, but couldn't reach him. I then e-mailed him, figuring he probably had a palm-pilot and would get the e-mail quickly. I explained the situation and, to his credit, he responded *within 10 minutes* with "I can report her to the DOT" (his short response seemed to confirm that he received my email on a personal assistant device). I'm not sure if he meant the Pennsylvania DOT or the U.S. DOT, but I figured I figured he meant the former. Also, about a half hour later, the doctor contacted me again via email, asking me for my wife's driver's license number, which I provided him.I figured if he actually was going to report her to the Department of Transportation (US or PA), he wouldn't have been able to do so until today, given the holiday weekend, so I had not bothered him again all weekend, but I wanted to get in contact with him again today. I was wondering what "I can report her to the DOT" means from a practical standpoint...whether, In other words, she is now under doctors' orders to cease and desist from operating a motor vehicle, whether "reporting her to the Department of Transportation" somehow acquires the State's imprimatur on his orders to this effect, whether it is now *illegal* for her to drive (akin to driving without a license), wthether this constitutes a suspension of her driving privileges, and so on. Also, whatever it means, I wondered how long this state of affairs lasts and whether I can get some documentation of this, either from the DOT or from the doctor documenting his orders that my wife is not permitted to operate a motor vehicle. So, I just emailed him again and asked him, and he responded, "Physicians can only report medical data to the department. We have no authority about licensing." Am I correct in interpreting his answer as meaning that there is no such thing as "doctor's orders to stop driving"? Is he really powerless in this regard? Can he not write some letter that I can show my wife and the State deeming her unfit to drive? If not, then what happens after he contacts the DOT? What does *that* mean? What does the DOT do in this regard, if anything? Can the DOT revoke my wife's license as a result of the medical data he provides? Do I need to contact anyone in the DOT and request this? Any insight would be greatly appreciated. EDIT: To "rejectedsoul," how *dare* you imply that I have been remiss in any way! I HAVE taken the car keys, all of them, but she apparently had yet another which she kept hidden and, despite my demands and attempts to locate it, she continues to keep it hidden. I have VEHEMENTLY DEMANDED that she stop driving, but, as I *said*, if you had *bothered* to read the details of my question, that I have taken steps to physically prevent her from driving; to wit: taking the keys and hiding the car. I also have a "club" which I intend to put on the car. She may have hidden a car key from me, but *I* have both keys to the "club," so she won't be able to operate the vehicle. Nevertheless, I want to get some *official* prohibition of her driving, either from her doctor or the state, hence my question. To CatLaw: Thank you for your thoughtful response. No, I'm honestly not sure WHAT to do in the long term. But for now, I'd like to emphasize that my wife is EXPERIENCING BLACK OUT SPELLS BEHIND THE WHEEL OF THE CAR. So, yes, I think taking steps to force her to "sit nicely" in the house might be appropriate for now under these extreme circumstances. I understand that your answer, sympathetic as it is to my wife's position, stems in part from your experience with family members with M.S. who are, as you put it, "leading close to normal lives"; that does NOT aptly describe my wife at this time. I think, and the community seems overwhelmingly to agree with me, that my wife should NOT be driving right now. SHE should be able to see that too, but for whatever reason, she is NOT acting responsibly. Thus, I must take ANY measures to ensure the safety of my three young children, whose welfare comes FAR before any concerns of inconvenience to my wife or her loss of "independendence." To CatLaw: Thank you for your thoughtful response. No, I'm honestly not sure WHAT to do in the long term. But for now, I'd like to emphasize that my wife is EXPERIENCING BLACK OUT SPELLS BEHIND THE WHEEL OF THE CAR. So, yes, I think taking steps to force her to "sit nicely" in the house might be appropriate for now under these extreme circumstances. I understand that your answer, sympathetic as it is to my wife's position, stems in part from your experience with family members with M.S. who are, as you put it, "leading close to normal lives"; that does NOT aptly describe my wife at this time. I think, and the community seems overwhelmingly to agree with me, that my wife should NOT be driving right now. SHE should be able to see that too, but for whatever reason, she is NOT acting responsibly. Thus, I must take ANY measures to ensure the safety of my three young children, whose welfare comes FAR before any concerns of inconvenience to my wife or her loss of "independendence." Question #16:Day:227 Just 4 day left for Obama speech to school kids. If it's not indoctrination, why do they call it?"HELP THE PRESIDENT"Why not "STAY IN SCHOOL" or "LEARN TO EARN" or "GET THE SKILLS TO PAY THE BILLS"? Click Here "The backlash prompted the Education Department to revise one of its ideas for classroom activities that could accompany Obama’s speech. The agency suggested on its Web site earlier this week, that students in pre-kindergarten through sixth grade “write letters to themselves about what they can do to HELP THE PRESIDENT.” Question #17:Help. What would you do if you were an adult for a day?My 7th grade sister is writing a report if she was an adult for a day. Its a really hard prompt. Can you give me any suggestions. PS the parents and teachers have to be kids (and you have to write about their day too.)Question #18:Frustrating Family Situation, advice needed?I have an older brother (35) who has always been distant emotionally. He has a wife (39), a daughter (15), son (11), and another daughter, my godchild (4). He will never make the effort to reach out to me (or anyone in my family) unless something bad happens; then he's always there. (It's not often this happens fortunately) He has some issues to say the least.I live a 5 hour drive from them currently; have lived as far apart as Atlanta to NJ from them. Overall I have not lived in the same state since I was about 16; I am now 31. I have made a big point of being there, traveling, for all big events to support them and little ones like kids school plays and such, sending random gifts and letters, so that I can instill a real relationship with their children. I have no extended family and despite my brother and my crappy relationship, family means a lot to me (I have another brother who could win Brother of the Year award...he is the best person on this earth and we have a fantastic relationship.) When I visit, they often let me stay with them and are very warm, loving people - but they can't seem to literally pick up a phone ever, send a letter or card, even respond to my emails - so the 1x to 4x/year in between my visits, I can't help but feel quite hurt. They have never visited me anywhere I have lived, or come to any of my shows; I'm a professional musician/singer/actor regardless of free ticket offers or even if the shows are an hour drive away from them. They do not support me in any way. My husband I struggle with money - it's a hard field, and I am OFTEN juggling a bunch of low paying jobs 7 days a week, making my hours 40-70/week...and making it very hard to visit "just for fun" - especially as they are, again, a 5 hour drive away. Sister-in-law doesn't work, has never worked since the first child. Of course the kids are all off from school in the summer. Their oldest daughter, 15, has an email she regularly checks that is private to her Mom and Dad. She will email me really only when prompted by her parents to say thank you for a big gift and it's always without any substance. She is the one through the years I made the biggest effort with, sending cards, visiting, being there for her school plays, trying to always be there for her. I do know that the kids really enjoy spending time with me and I am confused why it doesn't go beyond my sparse visits. Currently I am six months pregnant with my first baby - we waited a long time to plan this and it's a very big deal to us. Both brothers have finished having their families, I am the only sister/daughter. I have heard once from them, a very warm "congratulations, we are all so happy for you" email. They ignored my offers to join my baby website (weekly inputs - it's actually a very cool site, not boring at all - with audio clips of the heartbeat, video, weekly entries, etc) and of course don't care about my professional music website either. I emailed the oldest daughter and said, hi, I miss you, how is school going, what are you up to, do you have any plays again this summer, do you have a summer job bla bla bla? Light and easy. I don't put pressure on her...but I do feel that at 15, she should have the sense to write back if I meant anything to her. I was raised to always respond...I was raised to value relationships and not to be rude. But now at 15, isn't this in her hands, shouldn't she do this without prompting by her parents?? After all of my free tickets offers have again gone ignored this summer and my pregnancy ignored as well, I received a phone message yesterday from the sister in law saying that she thought I "just knew" that my oldest niece was in play (how in the world would I know this since she knows she hasn't told me?) and wanted to invite me in case we could attend in 9 days, as all the cousins (have no relationship with) and their kids (whom I've never met) were attending, and she wanted to see how I was feeling with the pregnancy. I feel so stung and hurt. They don't care about my career, completely child-friendly shows by the way and sometimes even FOR children, ignore my emails and attempts to have a relationship, and my niece couldn't even write me back herself and tell me about her summer. (they live in East Bumble, so she does not have a busy social life, is home doing nothing if not in school/school play) I am especially sad that my oldest niece is not the least bit interested...in me having a baby, in being a cousin... My brother had her when I was 16. I flew to New Mexico to visit and meet her. I've always made effort like this. I am a fun, good aunt, and the kids definitely love being around me and I cherish them. My brother always shakes his head when we're together and says "they really love you." And yet, when my then 3 or 4 yr old godchild niece was crying uncontrollably as I slept downstairs with my husband and she wanted to join us on the blow-up mattress, instead of "bothering (!!?)" us and telling us her request which we would have HAPPILY abided, they consoled her for hours till she fell asleep. How to deal with? I am so hurt and don't want to call her back but this would hurt our relationship further. This is not a family I can have a "heart to heart" with, they put up very large barriers and I feel isolate themselves. This blood is thicker than water thing is really growing old. There is only so much I can keep giving with crickets chirping in the background. Please help... Question #19:Plz look at my response to SAT Writing prompt?I am becoming a sophomore and I am terribly worried about my lack of writing skills. I literally suck at writing lolHow should I improve my writing skills? Here is an example of a response to a SAT Writing prompt I'd written earlier. I wrote this in 25 minutes and its just terrible.. Prompt: Is perfection sth to be admired or sought after?? My response: Perfection is a quality mankind has yet to obtain. However, a pursuit of perfection is what develops and escalates humanity into a better condition or state. At least two occasions prove this statement to be true. First off, in the book "Isaac's storm" by Erik Larson, the protagonist, Isaac, a meteorologist, is eager of becoming the best man of his job. Isaac has pride for himself, and believes he is the best weather forecaster in the nation. However, he still strives to become "perfect." When a deadly hurrican strikes Galveston in 1900, Isaac saves more than 6000 people thanks to his perfectionism. Because Isaac wants to become "perfect," he always examines the sky in the morning and seeks for any abnormalities. Another example is when my friend Bonju, achieved her goal because of her perfectionism. Bonju had always dreamt of becoming a lawyer, and it could be achieved only if her grades were perfect. Going to law school in Korea is very competetive, so she had to study every second she had. Her ideal of perfectionism was becoming the smartes kid in our school, and she was highly motivated by her natural desire of becoming a lawyer. She was an over-achiever and met up to her goals. Eventually, she graduated as the valedictorian in school and went to the school she wanted to go. It is apparent that pursuit of perfection will bring you positive outcomes. In conclusion, perfection is definitely worth being admired and sought after. Like Isaac Cline or my close friend Bonju, pursuit of perfecton will bring positive results. Question #20:POLL: are you very bored?Well here is some things to do! :Are You Bored? Try These Things:Act like a spy / secret agent for the day Act like you just met your friend for the first time Act profound Ad lib Add some strawberries to your ice cream Adopt strange mannerisms Alphabetize the food in your fridge Announce your candidacy for President. Annoy total strangers Apply for a unicorn hunting license Appreciate everything Archive the Internet to 3.5" floppy disks (low density of course) Arrest yourself Ask a question nobody can answer Ask embarrassing questions Ask for seconds Ask people how to pronounce their name Ask people if they want to see your “belly button treasure” Ask people if they’ve seen your head Ask stupid questions. Ask the person in front of you to marry you. Ask why At the bottom of escalators yell “MY SHOELACE!” Attract lightning Award yourself a Nobel Peace Prize Baby oil the floor Backstroke your way to class Bake the world’s biggest doughnut hole Balance a pencil on your nose Balance a pillow on your head Balance your checkbook Bark at people in the grocery store Bark at your dog Bark at your parents Be a leaf and leave Be a loan shark Be a lone shark Be a monk...for a day Be a no-name Be a non-being Be a REALLY cautious driver Be a side affect. Be a smart blonde Be a spy Be a square root. Be a superstar Be amazing Be blue Be blunt Be Buddha Be cherubic. Be cold Be cute Be envious Be halfway Be hot Be immobile Be in the wrong place at the right time. Be jealous Be lazy Be legendary Be lord of the flies Be negative Be nervous Be neutral Be one of those people that yell “SHH!” (Even though they ADD to the noise) Be positive Be really annoying to everybody Be sharp Be smart Be somebody else Be someone special Be stupid for a day Be thankful for clocks Be unique, just like everyone else Beam yourself up Become a band nerd Become a go-to kinda man Become a hermit on your front lawn (works best if you live on a main road!) Become a paparazzi for your friends, follow them around with a camera Become a party animal Become a tic-tac addict Become an expert on something nobody cares about Befriend flies Behold the truth Bite every other nail Bite your pinkie Blast hip-hop music through town Blink a lot Blow bubbles Blow bubbles with bubble gum Blow on a beer bottle Blow on a blade of grass Blow spit bubbles Blow up a balloon until it pops Boil ice cream Boldly go where no man has gone before Bother a sibling, profusely Bounce a potato Braid your dog's hair Break into a friend's house and clean it Break some rules Bring a Furby to school Bring dog treats to the park and meet 25 new dogs Bronze your sister Brush your teeth Buff your cat Build a house out of toothpicks Build a house with ice cubes Build a model of the Eiffel Tower out of Belgian waffles Build a pyramid Build a tree house in the middle of a field Burp the Happy Birthday song Bury your father’s car Buy something from an infomercial Call a wrong number and talk to whoever answers. Call an insurance company and try to insure your stuffed animal. Call toll free numbers and make friends with the operators Call yourself an Indian giver Calmly have a nervous breakdown Can you out-shame these people? Carpet your ceiling Carry a briefcase with you and offer people phony legal advice Carry a tune...drop it, see if it breaks Carve your boyfriend\girlfriend\crushes’ initials in a marshmallow Catch a cold Catch a falling star Challenge the neighbor kid to duel Change your hand writing style Change your mind Change your name...daily Chase your friend or family member around the sofa Check out the weather forecast for other parts of the world. Check under chairs for chewing gum Check your email from a DOS command prompt Chew ice Chew on a lollipop stick Chew on pen caps Chew on your arm until someone notices. Chew your lip Churn some butter. Claim you are late for a date with the white rabbit Clean and polish your belly button Clean your room (*gasp*) Climb the walls Clone yourself Collect hotel keys Complain about your nose hurting Conceive a brand new language. Confess to a crime that you didn't commit. Confess to a crime...that didn't happen Construct a shrine for the queen of the spud peoples Construct tiny makeshift parachutes for hamsters Convert various currencies to other various currencies here Count all the stars in the sky Count to a 100,000 Count your teeth with your tongue Crack your knuckles Crank up some music Crawl around the room humming the music from Mission Impossible. Create random equations Cross your toes Crumble Crumple Crush pop cans with croquet mallets Cut out photos and paste them on Popsicle sticks and have a puppet show Cut your fingernails/toenails Dance around your living room naked Dance 'til you drop Dare to be stupid Day dream Debate politics with a pet ** Powered by Yahoo Answers Click link above for correct copyright license. |
Questions |