This reading had an effect on me that I did not expect at first. I have read many pieces about the attacks on September 11th, but none touched me as much as John Updike's. His personal recollection of the attacks, and his first person account, are similar to many other's accounts of that horrendous day. But his last three paragraphs really touched me. I had never before read an article that found a bright side to that day.
When thinking about 9/11, my thoughts always tend to drift in the direction that Susan Sontag's beliefs have. I blame the government for the reactions that followed that day, forever living in infamy, and before I had read Updike's article, I would have agreed fully with Sontag. Politicians rarely feel the need to tell the public the whole truth. This can be good in some cases, but with the attacks, the public needed to know the whole story. America needed action, not reassurance.
My previous views were altered, even if only slightly, by Updike's recollection. It made me think about the attacks in a different way than I had before, and that is a good thing. Reading Sontag's article was one of those things that gets my blood pressure up. I agree with everything she wrote about and it made me want to go take action if the politicians can't do it themselves.
Friday, July 20, 2012
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
About Me
I am a very ambitious and determined individual. Attempting to partake in every event and activity is just my nature. Although I have tried everything from football to entrepreneurship, I am trying to limit my involvement from as many things as I can to just a few. Currently the three hobbies that take up most of my time are cars, music, and Boy Scouts.
My true love is my car, I have told many people this and they look at me funny, but it is true. Anyone who has met me has also met my car. I love the problem solving that goes along with driving an 18 year old car with 212,000 miles that my family bought in 1994 right off the lot. To a normal person the extra time required to go the one and half miles to school every morning is enough to drive anyone insane. But it is different for me, I really enjoy cranking away on the engine or reworking the suspension. The breakdowns are the fun part; they are frustrating, humiliating, and time consuming, but they allow me to test my skills as an automotive technician. Although my favorite car is my own, I also enjoy just about every car made before OBDII was introduced, so long as I could see myself driving it. Rat rods, hot rods, muscle cars, true classics, and every other car that draws attention driving down the road.
Besides cars I have had another passion throughout my whole life: music. Many people would say this is a passion of theirs as well; however, I don't think they understand what it means to be truly passionate about music. When I was four years old, my father made me start piano lessons, and made me continue them until I was eight. By that time I had found a love for the piano and so I didn't stop there. I sought out an instructor, who would then go on to instruct me until I was 14. By that time I was a better pianist than he, and he just went away. I was self taught for a couple of years and in the meantime I took up the drum set. I have been taking private lessons on set for three years now and at the school of music where I take lessons I met a new piano teacher. I have been taking lessons from her for about two years. I hope to continue my music career, and with all the instruments I play it shouldn't be all that hard. I play: piano, drum set, trumpet, synth, and a little bit of guitar.
As if those two hobbies weren't enough to take up all of my time, I am also active in Troop 53 here in McFarland. I have been a Scout for 5 years and I will soon reach the rank of Eagle. My favorite part of Scouting is the places it takes me. I just returned last Sunday from a backpacking trip on Isle Royale. We spent 7 days and 6 nights on the island, and backpacked a total of 66 miles. I was away from home for 10 days due to the drive up and back taking 8 and a half hours each way. That was my second favorite trip so far as a Scout, and sadly it will be my last big trip as a Scout because I am aging out in February. My favorite trip was in 2009. We traveled to Philmont Scout Ranch in Cimarron New Mexico for a backpacking trip. In a total of two weeks away from home we spend 10 days on the trail, and backpacked roughly 109 miles. We also climbed the second tallest mountain in the Rockies (Baldy Mountain) at 12,441 feet above sea level.
My plans for the future are very complex. I am planning on going to UW Madison and dual majoring in mechanical engineering and piano performance. I am going to become an Assistant Scout Master in our troop and stay active in Troop 53 for as long as possible until I have to move on and find another troop. I am also planning on rebuilding my car and turning it into a hot rod/bandit race car starting soon and continuing for the next five to seven years. I will definitely stay busy as my life progresses, far in the future I plan on working as an automotive engineer and performing piano on the side.
I am looking forward to my senior year of high school, I just got my acceptance letter from UW Madison as a special student so I will have lots to keep me busy as always. AP Comp has been a class I have wanted to take for a long time and I hope it lives up to my expectations.
My true love is my car, I have told many people this and they look at me funny, but it is true. Anyone who has met me has also met my car. I love the problem solving that goes along with driving an 18 year old car with 212,000 miles that my family bought in 1994 right off the lot. To a normal person the extra time required to go the one and half miles to school every morning is enough to drive anyone insane. But it is different for me, I really enjoy cranking away on the engine or reworking the suspension. The breakdowns are the fun part; they are frustrating, humiliating, and time consuming, but they allow me to test my skills as an automotive technician. Although my favorite car is my own, I also enjoy just about every car made before OBDII was introduced, so long as I could see myself driving it. Rat rods, hot rods, muscle cars, true classics, and every other car that draws attention driving down the road.
Besides cars I have had another passion throughout my whole life: music. Many people would say this is a passion of theirs as well; however, I don't think they understand what it means to be truly passionate about music. When I was four years old, my father made me start piano lessons, and made me continue them until I was eight. By that time I had found a love for the piano and so I didn't stop there. I sought out an instructor, who would then go on to instruct me until I was 14. By that time I was a better pianist than he, and he just went away. I was self taught for a couple of years and in the meantime I took up the drum set. I have been taking private lessons on set for three years now and at the school of music where I take lessons I met a new piano teacher. I have been taking lessons from her for about two years. I hope to continue my music career, and with all the instruments I play it shouldn't be all that hard. I play: piano, drum set, trumpet, synth, and a little bit of guitar.
As if those two hobbies weren't enough to take up all of my time, I am also active in Troop 53 here in McFarland. I have been a Scout for 5 years and I will soon reach the rank of Eagle. My favorite part of Scouting is the places it takes me. I just returned last Sunday from a backpacking trip on Isle Royale. We spent 7 days and 6 nights on the island, and backpacked a total of 66 miles. I was away from home for 10 days due to the drive up and back taking 8 and a half hours each way. That was my second favorite trip so far as a Scout, and sadly it will be my last big trip as a Scout because I am aging out in February. My favorite trip was in 2009. We traveled to Philmont Scout Ranch in Cimarron New Mexico for a backpacking trip. In a total of two weeks away from home we spend 10 days on the trail, and backpacked roughly 109 miles. We also climbed the second tallest mountain in the Rockies (Baldy Mountain) at 12,441 feet above sea level.
My plans for the future are very complex. I am planning on going to UW Madison and dual majoring in mechanical engineering and piano performance. I am going to become an Assistant Scout Master in our troop and stay active in Troop 53 for as long as possible until I have to move on and find another troop. I am also planning on rebuilding my car and turning it into a hot rod/bandit race car starting soon and continuing for the next five to seven years. I will definitely stay busy as my life progresses, far in the future I plan on working as an automotive engineer and performing piano on the side.
I am looking forward to my senior year of high school, I just got my acceptance letter from UW Madison as a special student so I will have lots to keep me busy as always. AP Comp has been a class I have wanted to take for a long time and I hope it lives up to my expectations.
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