Dear Classmates,

            This is a very odd night. The next time that I will be doing homework on a school night I will be in a state very far from here. It is a sad time because I must move past the bubble that has raised me. However, there is a touch of excitement in the air because we are all opening a new chapter of our lives. I have enjoyed my 12 years in this community very dearly and I could not possibly dream of a better place to spend my childhood. I have been so fortunate to spend my school career with 152 of you. We have grown together, learned together, been challenged together, and now we must all split apart. I just wanted to let you all know how much I have enjoyed my time in the Chagrin Falls School District. I have made friendships that I am sure will last a lifetime. There is a definitely a reason that Chagrin Falls gets highly rated by US News and World Report. And in all honesty, Ms. Serensky I think you deserve a lot of credit for that. One of the reasons your class is so unique is because you are willing to put in just as much work as we do. In my opinion, that is why you are able to achieve such great results with your students. You build a level of respect from the very first week. And although we act like we all do our work because we are scared of you. I think really we are scared of disappointing you. We know how much time you willingly invest in our education and we absolutely hate seeing you upset with us. Why else would somebody write a 30 page datasheet? Also, I think that we will not truly understand how valuable our two years have been with you until we are in the middle of our college career. You have truly taught us how to learn and how to think. And for me, you have taken me from someone who absolutely hated writing, to someone who secretly looks forward to crafting a well-written essay. Thank you very much to all of you my fellow classmates, and thank you so much Ms. Serensky. You have all made this an unforgettable high school experience for me. 

Farewell :'(

Dear my fellow classmates,

            It has been quite an honor to have the opportunity to learn from you and learn with you for the past two years. If you reflect on the progress we have all made as not only writers, but also as thinkers it is truly remarkable. We have had the good fortune to be guided by a revered and esteemed commander who although military like in her orders, always keeps our best interest in mind. She has pushed us all and challenged us in ways that we never expected. But of course, this has only made us grow stronger as individuals and as a group. We have all had our arguments in class discussions but it is a testament to the character of each of us that we can all remain on friendly terms outside the classroom. Someone once said that you will learn more from your peers than you do from your teacher and I think they may have actually been onto something. It has been a very unique experience these past two years being surrounded by so many intelligent people. I have enjoyed tossing ideas out into the discussion and having people either affirm my beliefs or absolutely tear them to shreds. Ms Serensky once told us that she does not want to teach college because she thinks that the senior year English class is truly a special gathering. I think she is exactly right, we have all grown up together in this small town and now we all have become prepared to move out into the real world. I hope that you all will not forget the foundation that we have built together and I look forward to reminiscing on our time in AP English over the many years to come.

Sincerely,

Thomas Donley

I hope this is not how you feel about us leaving.

You Have To Do It

Top Ten Reasons You're Decision Should Be SO Easy!

10.  You would never get to hear stories about Aunt Bobbie.
9. Ms. Serensky will forever remain as the intimidating teacher at the end of the third floor and you will always walk in fear when you pass her room.
8. You could try to formulate your own dream team.
7. You will be able to sit and laugh when you go on college visits and students complain about their English class. True story: I met a freshman at a prestigious school and he was all worked up because the day before his English teacher tested him on why the publication date of the novel they were reading was significant. This is one of the easiest questions ever!
6. You will always dread having to write papers and do analysis writing of any kind. When I was a sophomore I absolutely hated it, but no longer.
5. Your name will not come up on a google search because you will not have a blog registered to you.
4. You will never experience the joy of pulling an all nighter to work on a data sheet.
3. You will never fully understand the concept of practice makes perfect. It is true.
2. You will be scared to death of college English because you will never have the experience of working like you are in a college class. And you will never be able to be taught by someone infinitely more intelligent than you are.
1. You will feel like you never really challenged yourself in English and you will have a sense of regret when it comes time to leave on senior project. English is useful in every type of profession.

Literary Analysis of the patients medical history

Peering Over My Shoulder

McMurphy:  ‘“Chief, I’ll be d***** if I ever saw anything so slow!”’ (Kesey 249)

Jack:  ‘“Oh that is nonsense; you are always talking nonsense.”’ (Wilde 42)

Maxine:  “Imagine opening your eyes and seeing something like that first thing in the

                 morning.”’ (Lahiri 128)

McMurphy:  ‘“You know—that old clock up there puts me in mind of the targets at the target range at Fort Riley.”’ (Kesey 104)

Maxine:  ‘“That’s one way of putting it.”’ (Lahiri 135)

Jack:  ‘“May I ask then what you would advise…to do?”’ (Wilde 14)

McMurphy:  ‘“Can’t you even ease down the volume?”’ (Kesey 105)

Jack:  ‘“Well, I don’t see how I could possibly manage to do that.”’ (Wilde 15)

McMurphy:  ‘“do you want to know what I think? I think you are being very selfish.”’ (Kesey 106)

Jack:  ‘“Well, I won’t argue the matter. You always want to argue about things.”’ (Wilde 15)

McMurphy:  [looking at my essay] ‘“Is it a workable idea?”’ (Kesey 111)

Jack:  ‘“Nothing!”’ (Wilde 17)

McMurphy:  ‘“I’m rather enthused about it myself”’ (Kesey 111).

Jack:  ‘“My dear fellow, the sooner you give up that nonsense the better.”’ (Wilde 42)

McMurphy:  ‘“But I tried, though…didn’t I?”’ (Kesey 125)

Maxine:  ‘“Why on earth would they mind?”’ (Lahiri 129)

Jack:  [readdressing my essay] ‘“It pains me very much to have to speak frankly to you… but the fact is that I do not approve at all”’ (Wilde 48).

McMurphy:  ‘“Y’Know I was beginnin’ to think we might never get down to it.”’ (Kesey 273)

Jack:  ‘“I fear there can be no possible doubt about the matter.”’ (Wilde 48)

How I will feel during the AP test!

The Birth of a New Series

How can you not enjoy a tale of two worlds in which the parents battle with the children over endless societal and cultural issues? Well, I do not know because my favorite book this year is The Namesake. The Namesake unfortunately got a little bit of a bad reputation among our classes but after a little reflection I realized how much I actually enjoyed the book. First of all, the book is set in the fairly modern era so as a teenager currently, I can relate to some of the issues in the world that occur during the life of Gogol. Also, it was fun to see Gogol get accepted to Yale and then live the life that so many of us young people want to live in downtown New York City (at least for some of our younger years). The number of immigrants to the United States increases every year so I appreciated the perspective from one of these families. I now have a greater understanding for the difficulties and challenges they must face as they adapt to a new lifestyle as a family in a completely foreign country. I cannot fathom what it would be like to flatly have to tell someone, ‘“We have no relatives in this country”’ (79). I look forward to spending time with my family and I cannot imagine the feeling of loneliness and emptiness I would experience if an entire ocean separated us. Also, I never really thought much about the inevitable rift between parents and children as a result of the willingness of certain family members to assimilate into society at different speeds. I really enjoyed following the plot even though it was a little sad at times, especially when Gogol would realize, “He cannot remember the last time he and his father had spoken” (177). Jhumpa Lahiri includes several complex symbols and themes throughout the book and although it seems boring, I actually secretly kind of like to follow these hidden meanings and see how they progress throughout a book. Of course I could not forget the drama that Lahiri writes about when Gogol’s wife Moushumi cheats on him. I think we all took pleasure in ripping Moushumi to pieces as “she wonders if she is the only woman in her family ever to have betrayed her husband, to have been unfaithful” (266). We all criticized the characters in The Namesake extensively and this was very humorous and entertaining. It is not nearly as fun to talk about how much we like characters like in The Importance of Being Earnest because people do not express such strong emotions. However, when we hate characters, the discussions are so much more spirited and lively and because we grew very frustrated with almost everyone in the book, every class was interesting and animated. And honestly, maybe the reason that I liked The Namesake the most was because it was the start of the "Dear Journal" comments by Ms. Serensky. If I am not mistaken, I believe the "Dear Journal" series started with something like this, “Dear Journal, I will never be good enough. All I do is work for this woman and all she does is criticize me.” I may not necessarily have written this in my journal but I would tend to agree with what the quote is saying. Well, all in all, The Namesake was a well-written book with a plot that I actually enjoyed, complex characters we could all ridicule, and a host of symbols and metaphors. 

Searching for the Thrill of It

            

10.       Defeating Mr. Brownlow in a political argument over the advantages to a privatized health care system. Of course he would never admit to this but ask the members of my class who had the more logical and legitimate points in the discussion. This feat is a rarity because when someone can choose when both parties of an argument may talk, winning can be rather difficult. This victory came after a slump of mine in the class so after I won, I was, “back as loud and full of brass and swagger as ever” (Kesey 107).

9.         Ms. Serensky recognized the Dream Team as an actual entity. I cannot recall the exact date when this took place but as soon as Ms. Serensky actually started to refer to Alex, John, Sam, and me as the Dream Team, I knew we had actually accomplished something special. I figured that when the Dream Team was mentioned she would retort with, “They are hardly considered a thing,” but fortunately I was wrong (Wilde 52).

8.         Achieving an 8+ on the AP English semester exam my junior year. At this stage in my literary career As were only dreamed of because they were never actually within reach. Then somehow on the biggest test of the year (aside from the AP test) I pulled out the best grade imaginable at the time. After getting the test back I told my fellow students, ‘“In a few days you’ll get the hang of it”’ (Lahiri 32).

7.         Being able to write with confidence and without hesitation. This actually occurred for me in the months leading up to the AP test my junior year. I always hated writing and it is for this reason that I value the moment when writing turned from a chore to just another task that I could accomplish without stress or frustration. Finally, writing was no longer “a perpetual wait, a constant burden a continuous feeling out of sorts” (Lahiri 49).

6.         Induction into Cum Laude. This was a very proud moment for me because I was recognized with the top twenty percent of my class for achieving a high GPA throughout my high school career. This accomplishment was especially significant because it was the culmination of several years of fairly hard work. While we were at the ceremony that night I started to think about how, “one must be serious about something, if one wants to have amusement in life,” and I happen to be serious about my education because this brings me amusement as you will read about shortly (Wilde 40).

5.         Springfest 2010. During springfest 2010 I was fortunate enough to be called up on stage several times and the reason this moment ranks at number five is because I was very proud to accept several awards in front of the school. One award in particular sticks out because when I got up on stage a certain someone, who may or may not be in the Dream Team, thought they deserved the award instead of me and they looked at me “with a look of the clearest hate I ever saw” (Kesey 99). This hate made me even more proud of my accomplishment.

4.         35 on the ACT with a 36 in math and science. I’m not sure how much explanation this one needs. Not to be too cocky, but I believe the numbers speak for themselves so I’ll let you do the math. I remember the painful anticipation of waiting to access my test scores: “There’s nothing worse. It makes you sick, it saps every bit of strength you got” (Kesey 60). But, let me tell you, that strength comes back awfully quickly when you see a 35 on the computer screen.

3.         National Merit Finalist. This was a very big accomplishment for Alex, Sara, and me because of the wonderful privileges we were given after we were recognized. NOT! We did not get any privileges for this except maybe a picture or two in the newspaper and a little time on the signboard, which I must say helped make this one of my more thrilling experiences. Also, it was a nice thing, “for it to be typed on applications to five Ivy League colleges” (Lahiri 99).

2.         Never getting a B on my transcript…yet. Well, once again this thrill speaks for itself. Unfortunately although it is thrilling now, it was not so thrilling while I was accomplishing this (that might be a slight exaggeration). But I definitely get a little satisfaction from knowing that I have not earned a B yet in any of my classes. Although people like Mr. Maas have outright told me they are trying to do everything they can to give me a B, I respond by calmly speaking to my transcript, “nothing that [he] can possibly do can alter my eternal devotion to you” (Wilde 17).

1.         Deciding to go to Duke University for my undergraduate education. All kidding aside, college is a very exciting time because of the learning opportunities available. I find it very thrilling to be surrounded by many incredibly intelligent students at Duke (like in AP English) where I feel confident that I can further my education and quench my intellectual vitality. Also, I look forward to the many exciting years of national championships and meeting new people from all over the country and the world. This is a truly thrilling endeavor and I owe a big thank you to the many teachers who have made this experience possible for me especially you Ms. Serensky. Often times you give me a hard time for my choice of clothing and to that I simply respond, “If I am occasionally a little over-dressed, I make up for it by being immensely over-educated” (Wilde 30).

Duke Chapel

The Recurring Theme of Patriotism

My favorite poem from this year was a very easy choice for me. Just by looking at the current title and background of my blog, you should be able to guess it already; it is “Lady Freedom Among Us” by Rita Dove. My love for this poem started with the very first time I saw a picture of the statue named Lady Freedom on a handout from Ms. Serensky. Immediately I thought that Lady Freedom was “the most cultivated of ladies, and the very picture of respectability” (Wilde 50). The speaker in the poem targets people with unenthusiastic and negative views of America to emphasize that the right to freedom and democracy makes the United States one of the greatest nations on earth. The speaker wants people who take freedom lightly to remember the struggles our country has endured to preserve freedom. It is no secret that I am a very patriotic person so it should come as no surprise that I loved reading a poem about the positives of America. And although Lady Freedom’s gaze has seen some blemishes in American history, like the civil rights conflict with Martin Luther King Jr., Dove wants Americans to never forget that freedom makes us one of the greatest countries on earth. And it is this freedom that is exactly what she, Lady Freedom, represents. Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are inalienable rights that Lady Freedom protects while standing atop the Capitol. These are the type of pillars that nations will continue to survive with forever, and currently, “Few girls of the present day have any really solid qualities, any of the qualities that last, and improve with time,” but Lady Freedom clearly possesses both (Wilde 47). Dove continues to urge Americans to thank the government for its success in preserving democracy and freedom for over 234 years. People all over the world willingly fight for democracy every day, especially within the last several months in Northern Africa. However, we have been fortunate enough to be afforded this privilege since the signing of the Constitution in 1787 and, “this is a matter of no small importance to me,” and I surely hope it is not a matter of small importance to you either (Wilde 51). I am very sorry to do this to you, but I must analyze my favorite two lines from the poem, “she has fitted her hair under a hand-me-down cap/ and spruced it up with feathers and stars” (Dove 12-13). Dove uses the “hand-me-down cap” as a synecdoche for Britain and since hand-me-downs have a negative connotation, Dove suggests that maybe America does not deserve the praise they receive for gaining freedom from England. However, Dove juxtaposes the positive diction like “spruced it up” with the “hand-me-down cap” in order to convey that America exists as much more that a mere “hand-me-down.” In fact, America exists as a free and independent country. Essentially, when Britain wanted to be our brother, America responded with, “I have no brother, I never had a brother, and I don’t intend to have a brother” (Wilde 48). America stood up to Britain and assertively took the stage as a new world power. Also in Dove’s original quote, she uses the “feathers” as a symbol for the bald eagle and the “stars” to represent the flag of the United States. Both the bald eagle and the American flag create a sense of patriotism from Americans. The feeling of patriotism, which I love so much, allows Dove to create a positive and jovial tone and assert that America exists as far more than a mere “hand-me-down,” America rules as a SUPERPOWER.

Lady Freedom on top of the Capitol Building

Field Trip

Dear Journal,

            Today I took a most lovely trip to the gorgeous theater district in Cleveland, Ohio with my AP English 12 class. This was a day I had been looking forward to ever since the calendar for November came out several weeks ago. This morning we went to our first period classes and then met in Sands Community room to leave for our special fieldtrip to see Othello. Upon walking into the room I could feel the knowledge circulating throughout among the many studious and intellectual conversations. After being introduced to the legendary Mr. Serensky, I boarded the school bus with several friends and the three other members of the Dream Team. Of course in our typical spirit of competition, we could not simply pass the time on the way downtown with friendly chitchat. Instead, we used iPods to play games of hangman. As you can imagine dearest journal, the games quickly became more and more intense and the trash talking picked up as well. I know, trash talking may seem like a bit of an anomaly from the Dream Team, but I think in games that require some education and intelligence, a little bit of mockery or downright insulting comes with the territory. Well, as the ride continued, John challenged me to face him and there was a lot riding on the game because I really wanted to beat him and then rub it in his face. I picked a special word that is fairly long but only has one vowel (I cannot reveal some of my better words to even you journal). So as the story goes, he had three blanks left, but only one guess. I won after he guessed the letter J. After winning the game I began to let him hear about it and then this next moment sticks out in my memory so clearly, it is as if I am currently visualizing it, “Please stop, he says, mouthing the words. And then suddenly there is silence” (Lahiri 92). The silence was then filled with laughter because I thought his feeble attempt at peace was extremely humorous. After a few more uneventful games, our bus arrived downtown. We took a very nice group picture in front of some random red fence near the theater. When we entered the theater I was very surprised because it had a small and intimate feel to it. In typical Chagrin fashion, we sat in the boxes of the balcony where we had more freedom because we could move our chairs around and arrange ourselves as we pleased. I really enjoyed the play because it not only helped clarify some of the more confusing or unspoken scenes, but also because it was very cool to hear the actors recite many of the same lines that I had memorized for my data sheet. At times, I felt like I knew the exact words that were coming out of the actors’ mouths. The audience was extremely well behaved, especially for a group of high school kids. I could only hope that maybe someone from a well-known national newspaper was in attendance to praise us in his own article. Well, after the long but interesting show, we boarded the buses again to return to Chagrin Falls High School. Ms. Serensky had a special afternoon planned for us because we all stayed in Sands to discuss the play (take detailed notes) and then eventually have lunch. I would expect nothing less from Ms. Serensky than having to complete a detailed packet for homework about the many relations or discrepancies between the novel and play. As we were diligently discussing, everyone was beginning to grow tired and antsy because it was approaching two o’clock and we had not eaten at all yet. We were promised pizza and many other snacks but it seemed like the pizza maybe would not come before the eighth period bell. After some encouragement from students, Ms. Serensky called up Zeppes to find out the status of our pizza. She spoke directly yet calmly to the phone operator, ‘“I have something very particular to ask you. Much depends on your reply”’ (Wilde 43). Luckily, the pizza showed up soon after. I must attribute the speedy deliver to the stern and demanding voice of Ms. Serensky. I was feeling absolutely famished so when I finally got some pizza, sun chips, and sprite in me, “I was getting so’s I could see some good in the life around me…I was feeling better than I’d remembered feeling since I was a kid” (Kesey 256). The perfect day was capped off with feast of food and I left school feeling very satisfied.

Othello the play

An Interesting Date

 Conversation between Dr. Chasuble and Maxine Ratliff

Chasuble: ‘“And how are we this morning?”’ (22)

           

Maxine: Pretty good how about you dear?

Chasuble: ‘“Very sad indeed”’ (26).

Maxine: Why on earth is that?

           

Chasuble: Well of course because I have to go to your parents’ house for lunch this afternoon. I just want it to be you and me.

Maxine: ‘“I suppose you’ve never been subjected to someone’s parents on the first date before”’ (135).

Chasuble: Listen, ‘“I have preached at harvest celebrations, christenings, confirmations on days of humiliation and festal days,”’ but lunch with the parents of a girl as adorable as you makes me quite nervous to say the least (27).

Maxine: ‘“Come on…I’ll show you the house”’ (131).

Chasuble: ‘“What seem to us bitter trials are often blessings in disguise,”’ so let’s drive on over there (28).

[Upon arriving at the house of Maxine and her parents]

Maxine: ‘“I should probably warn you that I live with my parents”’ (129).

Chasuble: ‘“You need have no apprehensions,”’ I will not judge you because of that (28).

Maxine: Also, I forgot to tell you that ‘“There’s plenty of wine in the trunk of the car”’ (145).

Chasuble: ‘“These are very joyful tidings”’ (28). But I’m gonna get real weird with it. Will your parents mind?

Maxine: ‘“Why on earth would they mind?”’ (129)

Chasuble: I mean real weird. Is that still gonna be okay?

Maxine: I think it’s a good thing I drove. I’ll just take you home if you start to embarrass yourself.

[Later that night]

Maxine: I’ve been doing some thinking recently and I think I have decided that I want to adopt a child. Things here in this giant house with my parents are getting a little boring.

Chasuble: ‘“But have you any grave doubts on the subject?”’ (27)

Maxine: ‘“You’ve never had a dog, have you?”’ (135)

Chasuble: Why on earth are you comparing a dog to a child. That just does not seem proper Max.

Maxine: I’m sorry I just meant that I would enjoy the companionship.

Chasuble: ‘“But is there any particular infant in whom you are interested?”’ (27)

Maxine: ‘“You should stay with me”’ tonight and we can discuss this matter (139).

Chasuble: ‘“My Child! My Child!”’ I failed to mention earlier that I am a married man. I had no idea that you would start talk about adopting a child with me on our first date. I just wanted to find a girlfriend because my wife is out of town so frequently.

Maxine: First of all, do not ever call me child.

Chasuble: ‘“But is a man not equally attractive when married?”’ (26)

Maxine: No, of course not. Look it was nice meeting you. What was your first name again?

[Exit Chasuble as Maxine slams the front door behind him]

Maxine (on right)

The Art of Bunburying

Dear Journal,

I could not be happier that today Ms. Serensky’s AP English class made me the focus of their class discussion after reading Act 1 of The Importance of Being Earnest. It was nearly the best day I ever had because they were all condemning me for my sneakiness and craftiness. They thought that they were ridiculing me but in reality, I took it as a compliment. I love to be described as mysterious, devious, and suspicious especially when it comes to my creative use of my dear friend Bunbury. The class was in disbelief that an innocent Englishman like me would do something so immoral as to ‘“invent an invaluable permanent invalid called bunburry, in order that I may be able to go down into the country whenever I choose”’ (6). I could not stop laughing to myself when I heard Sam Schiferl exclaim, “it is despicable that a gentleman like Algernon would deceive his friends and family by exploiting the vulnerability of invalids.” Alex Hurtuk then added that he was very upset that I would ever do anything other than, “tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.” However, this cunning maneuver allows me to so easily escape the company of in-laws who I do not want to dine with. It makes perfect sense and it is quite a genius idea if I do say so myself. Bunbury will become even more valuable after marriage because, ‘“a man who marries without knowing Bunbury has a very tedious time of it”’ (7). This was the other thing I saw very humorous in the class discussion—the willingness to criticize me for my cynicism towards love and marriage. It is extremely odd that a bunch of seventeen and eighteen year-old students would criticize an experienced lover such as myself on a topic that they have no real experience with. This only contributed to the fact that this was the best day I could ever have because I enjoyed watching the students make idealistic and ignorant claims about falling in love and making a definite proposal. As the ridiculing of my clever use of Bunbury dwindled, the class shifted to slamming Lady Bracknell, and let me tell you, ‘“I love hearing my relations abused”’ (15). In fact, it is really ‘“The only thing that makes me put up with them at all”’ (15). The end to a perfect day was finished off as I observed a pack of hyenas all acting like savages and going in for the kill on my closest relatives.
Sincerely,
Algy

Alex Hurtuk

Sam Schiferl (with other students in the background

Ashima Ganguli Interview - Tiger Times

Interview Transcript with Ashima

Me: Ashima Ganguli, thank you so much for joining me today for this interview. I really appreciate your time.

Ashima: Oh Thomas, it is quite an honor son.

Me: Well then, lets get right to it. Last year in AP English, you expressed some concern about raising a child in a country that was so foreign to you. Were you ever able to get over these concerns?

Ashima: You are correct as a future mother who has just moved from India I am deeply concerned. In fact, ‘“I am terrified to raise a child in a country where we are related to no one”’ (6). I have started to gain more Bengali friends in America, but friends are just not the same as family. Without my mother and father nearby it will be difficult to ever really move past my concerns of raising children in a country that is so far from my homeland and from where my parents once lived.

Me: Indian culture differs in many ways from American culture so how has it been difficult participating in a class where all of the other 21 students were all Americans?

Ashima: Obviously this was extremely difficult for me. I tried to teach them about my heritage but many times they seemed to rebel against us. It was almost as if they denied my Bengali viewpoints not because they did not like the Bengali customs, but because they wanted to defy me, like many other teenagers.  

Me: So as you stated many times last year in discussions, you plan to have kids soon after graduating from high school. How will you handle the issue of teaching them Bengali or American customs and traditions?

Ashima: Thomas, I have been asked this question many times in the past year because many students seem to be interested. The question is best answered with a little vision that I sometimes dream about in my head. Repeatedly I see this dream of going to the ocean with my husband and young son. And as my son ventures out on the rocks with my husband I call out, “‘He’s too little,… He’s too little to go so far”’ (186). The reason this story illustrates my approach to the assimilation of my future children is because the ocean symbolizes the American culture that they will want to assimilate into. Also, my own lack of enthusiasm to allow this future son to journey into the ocean demonstrates my reluctance to allow him to assimilate into American culture. Does this answer the question Mr. Donley?

Me: Very much so Mrs. Ganguli. Next I would like to know whom you turned to in times of desperation last year because we all experienced it. It is truly grueling at times.

Ashima: Well I really did not have many close friends here in America. Often times I would write to my relatives in India because as you already know, I ‘“have no relatives in this country”’ (79). I really relied on my good friend Joeseph Sitzwohl and I turned to him with all of my problems. But I did not start to trust him until many months after we met because my first impression was that he was a unique intellectual type person. But as we both grew closer I learned I could really confide in Joe.

Me: That brings me to another question I would like to ask. How did you handle Joe leaving AP Eglish?

Ashima: As I just said, his decision to leave was very hard on me because I did not have anyone else I was so close to.

Me: But you should not be angry with him. He just wanted some time to work on some of his songs that he has recently produced. He has a whole album and all of the songs are quite good if you have not heard any of them yet.

Ashima: Do not try to tell me how I should feel about my friend’s behavior. You know Thomas, you are a bold reporter to make a statement like that.

Me: You can blame my AP English class. This year they have imbedded in me the willingness to quickly criticize others. I am terribly sorry.

Ashima: Just do not let it happen again.

Me: I do not mean to be rude, but you did have other classmates.

Ashima: I was not finished yet Mr. Donley.

Me: Well actually, I am finished because that is all of the time I have today. Thank you very much for meeting me today and this will appear on Monday in the Tiger Times as the feature story.

Ashima: Great, I am looking forward to it. 

Ashima's Senior Picture

College?

How are we supposed to decide where we want to spend the next four years? As the third quarter comes to a close and we only have one quarter left in high school, I am now beginning to worry about where I will go to college. First of all, I would like to say that I am grateful to even have a choice to make because this obviously means that I have been accepted to more than one school. But it is a very stressful decision because there are so many factors in the decision making process. How much does each school cost? Who will give you the most money? Is it a city campus or rural campus? How prestigious is it? Will you fit in with the student body there? Will you be able to have fun and enjoy yourself while you are not studying? Are you comfortable being ____ miles from home? Do they have sports teams that you can cheer for? This past weekend I went on a college visit and I stayed with a current student overnight. It was a great experience and I was able to get an inside look into what life was like at this particular University. But the difficult thing was that I was only there for twenty-three hours. So essentially, I am supposed to decide if I want to go to this school based on what I read on the internet and a twenty-three hour stay on campus. Many of you already know what this process is like and May 1^st is not a day I am looking forward to because at that time I will need to make a final decision and put a deposit down on my tuition. Now hopefully, I will receive a little bit of good news on April 1^st and I will be accepted to a few more colleges. This then means that I will hear from some schools on April 1^st and then I will have one month to evaluate the schools I have been accepted to and then make a final decision. So in that one-month time span I will have to visit a few more schools and spend twenty-three hours on campus to see how I fit into the different colleges. The point is, that there is very little time to decide my future and I do not even know how to make this decision. Should I line up the colleges and make lists of pros and cons? I do not know what will end up happening, but I can assure you that this will be the topic of many late night journal entries. However, like a typical Chagrin kid would, I have wrapped myself up in this issue too much and I have lost sight of the big picture. We all forget that we are extremely lucky to have the ability to make a decision between different four-year colleges and have the ability to pay for it in some way shape or form. So although we all get bent out of shape about this decision (except people like John and Jimmy who have gone Early-Decision…lucky!), we must take a step back and realize what it is we are really complaining about because I am the best example in this case of losing sight of the big picture.

I hope my college classes are like this!

Egyptians Hate America, Yet Some Have Died In An Effort To Be Like Us

With the current events that have transpired in Northern Africa, I feel the need to let out my frustration with the people in Egypt. As many of you probably know, the countries of Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt have all rebelled against their established leaders. In Tunisia, president Ben Ali fled from the country and the prime minister resigned fairly recently as they conceded victory to the protesters. In Libya, many citizens have developed a rebel force to try to force Moammar Gaddafi out of power. Unfortunately, he has killed thousands of people, ordered air force strikes on his own nation, and instructed troops to shoot protesters, all in his own country. Although the excitement of the Tahrir Square uprisings in Egypt have faded from the major news networks, the sentiments from the people still bother me. Mubarek resigned as the leader after days of tumultuous riots in the center of Cairo. During the riots, the Egyptian people and other reporters from the Arab world were very critical of the United States meddling in the affairs of other nations, like Egypt. As someone who is very patriotic, I was very affected by the negative portrayal of the United States in the news. Many Egyptians were mad at the United States because they accused us of supporting Mubarek financially. And they are actually right because we have supported Mubarek financially since 1979. Every year Mubarak has received $1.3 billion in the form of military aid from the United States. And according to lists of arms sales notifications compiled by the Pentagon's Defense Security Assistance Agency, in the last decade alone, the Department of Defense has brokered over 11 billion dollars in US arms offers to Egypt and Mubarek’s regime. We also bribe Mubarek to demonstrate support for Israel in the Middle East. We do this because for the past 30 years, Egypt has not only been a crucial United States partner in the Middle East, but the country has been a linchpin in our government’s strategy for a future Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement. This bribe is taken from the 1.3 billion dollars that we paid him annually. So, I cannot defend the United States in the accusations of supporting Mubarek with money. But I can criticize the hypocrisy of the Egyptian people. Anderson Cooper and other western reporters have been attacked in Cairo because the mobs feel anger toward them because they represent America and other western countries. Also, as I mentioned earlier, the Egyptians have conveyed their contempt toward the United States because we funnel money to Mubarek. This is fine if someone wants to hate America, not everyone will agree with us and what we stand for—freedom and the protection of democracy and humanitarian rights. But, I find it extremely ironic that the people of Egypt criticize us, ridicule us, express their hatred for us, while what they did by staging protests against Mubarek was try to become more like us. Their passionate protests and the people’s dedication to the fight against Mubarek were all in an effort to be more like America. The people want to have democratic elections that are not rigged, like we have in America. The people do not want a leader who can stay in power for 40 years and therefore become very corrupt, like we have prevented against in America. So essentially what I am trying to say is, do not try to portray America so negatively if you are literally willing to die in an effort to make your country more like the United States of America. 

Protesters in Tahrir Square

Mob of Protesters in Cairo

Collective Bargaining Agreement (No...Not Bill 5)

While working on an assignment for business law, I began to compare the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) in the National Football League (NFL) to our relationship as students to our teachers and administrators. For those of you who may not know, the CBA is the agreement that the player’s union signs with owners of the NFL to ensure that they will be treated fairly. The CBA is currently being re-negotiated and there are several divisive issues between the two sides and because the two sides disagree on so many issues, there is the possibility that a CBA that satisfies both sides cannot be crafted. The absence of a CBA would then prevent the next NFL season from taking place. The NFL generates more revenue than other sports league in the world, so the idea of losing an entire year of profits for the players and owners has become an issue of importance in the sports world. Each year, the NFL earns approximately 8.5 billion dollars from advertising, ticket sales, and TV networks.

For the sake of this comparison, we will consider the students at Chagrin Falls High School to be the player’s union and we will consider the teachers and administrators to be the owners in the NFL. The major issue in the NFL is how to divide the profits between the players and the owners. Of course, like all human beings, both sides feel they deserve more than the majority of the revenue. The money involved in the NFL is like the distribution of grades in high school. Students always want to get an A and they feel they deserve an A in most cases. Teachers, however, cannot give A’s out to every single student. Instead, teachers must keep some of the A’s to themselves because otherwise an A would not mean nearly as much if everyone gets one. Another issue with the NFL is that the owners want the players to play an 18 game season (which would be 2 more games than the current 16 game season). This is similar to how Ted Strickland wanted to make the students go to school for 20 more days each year. I am actually in favor of this movement from the NFL and from the state of Ohio because first, I want to see more football, and second, I think students need to go to school more and become more educated. Granted, it is easier for me to say this because I will not be in school after this June. The third major issue with the NFL CBA is the rookie salary cap, which would limit how much money a rookie can make when he first comes into the league. Currently, rookies are coming in to the league and signing contracts worth five or ten times as much as the veteran players and the rookies have not yet proven themselves at the professional level. In almost all other jobs, salary increases with performance and experience. The comparison to a rookie salary cap is a cap on the amount of homework we are given each night. As a rookie, or a seventh grader, we would have a cap of say, 2 hours of homework each night. Then as we move up grades, that cap increases and eventually as seniors, we have no cap on the amount of homework we can be given. I have seen some articles that present evidence that students become too worn out with school if they are given to much homework at an early age. The last thing we want to do as a society is burn out our children before they get to college or graduate school. However, it is a very difficult situation because we also want to make sure that children are being thoroughly educated from a young age. What are your thoughts on this issue? Or any of the other topics presented? I hope you learned a little bit about the CBA in the NFL that occupies so much time on ESPN and many other sports channels.

Roger Goodell (Commisioner of NFL)         DeMaurice Smith (Head of Player's Union)

Paper v. Data Sheet (A Case for Chief Justice Roberts)

Less time, more thinking, NO A

The Nine Billion Dollar Business

In the hours leading up to the biggest sports event of the year in the United States, I had watched too much analysis of the two teams. Tom Jackson and Cris Carter were being more thorough than Truman Capote describing the characters of In Cold Blood. The analysts on ESPN had talked for hours and even broke down the game film from a meeting between the Steelers and Packers from two years ago. This is why when I switched the channel to FOX, I was thrilled to see a short video segment about the Declaration of Independence. Not only was this a nice rest from the breakdown of the two opposing organizations, but also, as a patriot, I was obviously very anxious. As the self-proclaimed conservative media outlet in America, FOX prides itself on being labeled as devout patriots. For this reason, I was not shocked to see FOX attempt to portray themselves as a station that simply loves America. Although it was a bit ironic since this video piece followed Bill O’Reilly’s rude and obnoxious treatment of President Obama. However, for those of you who were not glued to the television for over seven hours on Sunday, the video clip starts out with General Colin Powell and Roger Goodell, the commissioner of the National Football League, praising the brave men who drafted the Declaration of Independence. The two men commended the fifty-six revolutionaries who fought for the inherent rights of man at a time when doing so could get them killed by the red coats. They described the Declaration as the document that defied the monarchy and pledged that the pursuit of happiness is endowed to every man. Just based from the background of my blog, you can imagine how I was feeling while watching this video. As the video continues, it shows different NFL players, coaches, and legends reading the exact words of the Declaration. Soldiers, impoverished young children, or some other type of patriotic backdrop surrounds the different celebrities while they read. As the video continued, I forced everyone around me to quiet down and stop talking so that I could fully enjoy this piece. It ends up that the NFL and FOX dedicate the video to the men and women who have made the ultimate sacrifice for this great nation. This video rallied the patriotic fervor inside of me as I readied myself to watch the big game. However, I find it a little funny that FOX and the NFL ran this video in the half hour before kick-off because it seems to be an attempt to just give themselves some positive publicity before the public gets upset at the inordinate amounts of money spent on the super bowl and especially the commercials. Whatever the reasoning may be, I was happy that the television station wanted to remind people why they should feel proud to be an American. Maybe you thought it was cheesy? But personally, I like the attempt to remind viewers why America is so great.

Roger Goodell

Colin Powell

One commercial in particular from the super bowl really made a lasting impression on me. The Chrysler commercial that features Detroit and Eminem was just as inspiring as the video about the Declaration of Independence. The two-minute commercial begins with different camera shots around the city of Detroit. To highlight the fact that Chrysler is produced within our own borders, the masculine narrator states, “Now we’re from America” at the same time Eminem is riding in the drivers seat of this sleek new Chrysler coupe and his motivational beat of “Lose Yourself” is playing in the background while he has a look of poise and determination with one hand nonchalantly hanging over the top of the steering wheel. The commercial ends dramatically with a black screen and the words, “Imported From Detroit.” I loved this commercial because it again inspires a feeling of patriotism and a sense of pride about America. I thought it was worth every Benjamin to put in on the air. Super bowl commercials cost three million dollars for thirty seconds so if you do the math, that means Chrylser paid twelve million dollars to air this commercial. Do you think that this is absolutely ridiculous? I think it is simply capitalism at its finest but let me know what you think about the cost of the super bowl or the Declaration of Independence video, or Eminem’s commercial.

Eminem

The Upper Class Character

Amsterdam is an exciting book to read for me because of the place in society that the author chooses to put each character. I am not trying to sound like I enjoy reading books about upper class people because as a student from Chagrin I think I can relate to them better. No, that is not true at all. The reason that I really enjoy reading about these characters is because they are in a position of more significance in society than any of the other characters in the books we have discussed in our junior and senior years and it is exciting to read about such well-known people. These are people that we are largely unfamiliar with, but we always read about or watch on the news. It is intriguing to get an inside look at some of their lives and behavior, at least from the perspective of Ian McEwan. The reason that I can more easily relate to these characters is because the book is set in the past ten to twelve years (at least so far). It is much easier to understand the culture and social atmosphere of England in the year 2000 than it is to try to relate to the environment of the Deep South during the times of slavery. I understand that because I can more easily relate to this book, it actually probably is not as beneficial to read because I do not learn about the inner workings of a time period I am unfamiliar with. But, it does make it more fun to read. I would like to go back to the previous statement that the characters are in position of more significance than any of our other novels we have read as a class. Everyone’s definition of significance is different, for Carolyn it might be whoever can hug the most trees, for me it might be whoever can improve the education of American children. But for the purpose of this blog, we will consider characters in a novel significant if they are well known in their country and if their lives can immediately impact thousands of others. In the novels (excluding plays) that we have read and thoroughly discussed in class, we have not been exposed to characters like we see in Amsterdam.

Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl – We learn about the life of a slave woman as she escapes from the American South.

Into the Wild – Although we see small doses of an upper-middle class life, the novel predominantly focuses on Chris McCandless’s isolation from society.

Angela’s Ashes – We learn about the poverty and squalor of the lower classes of Ireland in the fairly recent past.

In Cold Blood – We look at a murder of a family that is relatively insignificant by two murderers who are largely unknown.

The Namesake – This is the first book where we get to read from the perspective of an upper-middle class lifestyle. But still, these characters are not nearly as significant in the United States as the characters in Amsterdam.

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest – Obviously the characters here are not significant people in America because they are patients in an insane asylum and have failed in the real world.

In Amsterdam the author focuses on five main characters, at least thus far.

Vernon – The editor of a popular newspaper in England.

George – A wealthy businessman with connections in all of the social circles of the elite people in the United Kingdom.

Clive – An extremely famous composer that has Yo-Yo Ma and Jimi Hendrix stay in his house.

Molly – A famous woman who was high in the ranks of the popular magazine, Vogue.

Garmony – The foreign secretary for England and a potential candidate for the Prime Minister position.

Clearly, we have not been exposed to characters like we see in Amsterdam so I find it very refreshing and exciting to read this book about a new realm. Of course, this book will probably end in sadness, just like all of the other ones, but at least I will enjoy learning about this new type of character.

How do you feel about this new breed of character?

Yo-Yo Ma

Jimi Hendrix

New Cause for Gogol's Denial of India

Most days before I start my homework, I use my computer to watch the episode of “The Daily Show” with Jon Stewart that aired the night before. I like watching Jon Stewart primarily because of his pro-America stance on global issues but also because of his comedic presentation of the recent news. Coincidentally, last night an author named Anand Giridharadas was Stewart’s guest on the show. This author was born in Shaker Heights, Ohio and currently works as a columnist for The New York Times. Giridharadas is the son of two first-generation immigrants from India and consequently, he lived a life similar to Gogol as a younger child.  In the interview Giridharadas explains how he tried to ignore his Indian heritage during his years before college because he wanted to try to fit in with everyone else around him. He said that he grew up hating India because he perceived it as a stagnant and stifling country. I found this very interesting because this was an aspect we never really examined with Gogol. We always talked about how Gogol rejected Indian culture because he wanted to fit in in America or because he wanted to rebel against his parents. However, we never really thought that Gogol could be ashamed of the country his parents were born in. Maybe, Gogol was not ashamed of India, but he grew up at nearly the same time as Giridharadas so the possibility is definitely there. Giridharadas explained that as a child he thought that “India was a place that he would rather not be from” because he did not want to be associated with the caste system that India was famous for. To his parents’ dismay, he moved to Bombay after college, in 2003, to work as a consultant for McKinsey & Company. After some time working as a consultant for local governments and other businesses, he completed a four-and-a-half-year tour reporting from India for The New York Times. Jon Stewart humorously asked him why he decided to move back to India after his parents had worked desperately hard to try to get out of there. Giridharadas responded by explaining how during college he began to accept his Indian heritage and he took great interest in learning about the modern development of Indian culture. Within the last ten years, India has grown as a country and now the people there are beginning to disregard the caste system that has always been in place. His parents were a little upset when he did not follow the life plan they had laid out for him, like Gogol’s parents were, because “they came here to live the American dream, their son was the embodiment of the American dream, and the American dream was still alive, but it was just alive in India.” While in India he learned a lot about the Indian caste system. And just a brief explanation for anyone unfamiliar with the idea: in a caste system, a person’s position in society does not depend on what he or she has accomplished, how smart he or she is, or how hard he or she works. The only thing that determines the class in society that someone belongs to is their family name. While watching the interview the pervasive class of AP English of course crossed my mind and I could not help but wonder whether this tainted perception that Giridharadas had of India during his younger years was something that Gogol experienced as well.

Jon Stewart

Anand Giridharadas