Laylah's English Blog

 One relationship in my life were I feel truly understood is my relationship with my boyfriend. He is so kind and caring to me and he is one of the only people in my life who are. Some things that make our relationship strong are communication, understanding, and being able to be there for each other. Some things that are similar from my relationship and Chris and Carnie's relationship is understanding. In the book, it is stated that they were the only ones who understood each other. I feel the same way with my boyfriend.  today in class we read chapter 13 I learned about Chris's sister Carnie

 Consider a situation where someone showed concern for you, even in a small way. How did you respond, and what does that reveal about you? (pg. 118) One situation where someone showed concern for me was a few months ago. I was having a really bad day, and I was hanging out with my boyfriend. I was trying to bottle my feelings up  and not think about them but I couldn't. I started crying out of nowhere. He was very worried about me and tried to see what was wrong. When I am crying, I can't talk. So when he asked me this, I couldn't respond. I have never really had anyone be there for me. He is one of the few people who has been there for me. When I had gathered myself and was ok he told me something that forever changed me. He said, "you don't have to tell me but whatever you need I'm always here. No matter the time, day, or anything". That was the first time that I have ever had someone really care for me. I don't know how to let others help me or be t...

 The film adaptation of the novel Into The Wild helps make Chris's choices more justified. The film makes Chris's journey seem easy and fun. It romanticizes his life and his escape. The film tries to make the audience feel like his journey was smart, easy, and fun.  The book on the other hand, makes the audience feel differently. The book wants the audience to see Chris's choice as reckless. The author wants the reader to understand the seriousness behind his choices; to see how he was stubborn and ignorant to the possible consequences.  Today in class we watched the film Into The Wild I gained a new perspective about Chris's journey

 As I got older, my understanding of my family had changed vastly. This shift in life changed my perspective on things a lot. As a child I knew that my family was different from others. I went to a small school, and I was one of two kids who had divorced parents. I was the only one who had four parents. This is the first time that I had started to notice these things. When I was a kid, I didn't truly understand why or what the cause was. When I got older, my step sisters reveled to me the truth behind their divorce. They told me that my mom cheated on my dad with my step dad. This was the first major shift change that I had encountered. I have had plenty more shift changes over the years that made me question how my family has made it this far. To this day, I am still learning about the harsh secrets my family continues to hide.  Today in class we did a worksheet and read chapter 11 I learned about Chris's family troubles as well. 

 Chapter _ of Into The Wild stood out the most to me. I chose this chapter because I found it really interesting to learn about the mind of McCandless. It is not your everyday occurrence when you encounter a  man like Alex. I was really fascinated to learn about why he did what he did. How he thought before and during his journey. Even in his final moments, I am eager to know his mind. I want to know what was going on inside his curious independent mind.  Today in class we took the unit test I learned about how well I retained the information about Into The Wild. 

 Success to me means getting good grades and trying to get into a college. This definition of success was not  made by me. It was made by my parents, family, and school. To my parents, if I am not successful in school than I can't be successful anywhere else. I don't agree with that statement. I believe that the school system is only beneficial to certain types of kids. Not all kids are meant and or good at school. It doesn't mean that you are unsuccessful, it just means that you have a different mind. I wish society was more accepting of this rule. I want to be good at school. My whole life I have bent over backwards, gave my all,, and kept going but it still isn't enough. That is why I don't believe that I was meant for school. I don't think I could even make it in college if I was accepted. When I tell people this, they always say "oh you're wrong" or "you're time will come" but it hasn't. In fact, it has done the opposite. I u...

 Almost everything in my life I have chosen to rely on myself instead of others. I want to be able to rely on other people, to let myself be comfortable with them, but some part of me can't let that happen. I have always been very independent, almost too independent. For my parents it was nice having one less kid to worry about, but this independence is very bitter sweet. Yes I am prepared for the world, always have been but it came with a cost. Since I rely so heavily on myself, I tend to lose friends, or not let myself get close with anyone. If I could go back and change this, I would. Yes I like being independent, but I hate feeling lonely. Looking at my phone and having no one to rely on is something I regret. Now though I have one person who I can rely on. He relies on me and I rely on him. Its a good change for once.  Today in class we read chapter 8 I learned about different people who had similar journeys as McCandless did. 

 The word Inchoate is significant to me. This word is significant to me because it means what my life is; undeveloped. All of my life, I have never had a plan. To this day I still don't have a plan and I am not sure where to begin. Nothing in my life is mapped out. For example, I don't know what I am going to do tomorrow. I don't know what I am  going to do next week. I don't have any clue as to what I am going to do when I graduate. Everything is undeveloped in my life. That is why I chose the word Inchoate.  Today in class we worked on Vocab lesson 10 I learned about a lot of new words. 

 I don't have a desired SAT score but, I do want to get a decent score. I know that I am not a good test taker. I always blank when I sit down and forgot how to do everything. I can't read and focus so tests just never go well for me. For the SAT, I am hoping that I will at least make the average. I don't have a plan for my life just yet but I will probably go to Kennesaw. I originally wanted to go to Florida or South Carolina but I can't afford those schools so I will have to stick with Georgia. I will probably end up getting my associates degree and try to figure out my plan from there.  SAT SAT

 Adjusting my schedule for the time change is never really hard for me in the spring. During the winter though, I tend to struggle. When time springs forward, I feel more productive because we have more light. I overall prefer when the days stay lit versus when they stay dark. When it is dark out, I tend to be more sleepy and lazy during the day. My work hours feel way longer, and overall I just don't enjoy it. When it is light outside, I enjoy my days more, I feel more productive, and the days don't feel as long. Today in class we read chapter 6  I learned about the 3 2 1 method

 Many different books, songs, or musicians have influenced me a lot. One example in particular was this book that I read a few years back. One day I was scrolling on my phone when I saw a couple of videos about people reading  this book called A Little Life. People were saying it was one of the best books they had ever read, so me being curious decided to check it out. When I was reading the back of the book to get an idea, it did not intrigue me. It sounded boring and random, but I decided to give it a try. It is the largest book I have ever read. As soon as I started it, I began to like it. The thinking that the main characters do and their actions have influenced me a lot. I learned a lot of life lessons from them, ones that I will try to remember for forever.  absent absent

 A few important possessions that I would keep if I had to leave everything behind would be the tree nut my boyfriend and I grabbed on our first date, my jewelry that my grandmother passed down to me, and pictures. It would be really hard for me to leave some things behind. I am not close with my family so I don't think I would struggle very much with leaving them behind. I am not really close with my friends so yes it would suck but I believe that I would get over it. My boyfriend on the other hand, I am very close to him so if I had to leave him behind I would be really upset.  absent absent

 The only time that I am able to think clearly is when I am alone. Every time that I have something happen to me, I need space to clear my head. I have always been the type of person who needs space and can't think of being around people for very long. Every time that I need to be alone, it teaches me a lot about myself. absent absent

No, I do not think that McCandless truly understood the risk that he was taking. When he had started his journey for his hike, which would take who knows how long, there is evidence showing that he was not nearly as prepared as he needed to be. He did not have any proper footing, sustainable food, proper clothing, or any survival knowledge. He went out on his hike with uncooked rice, no knowledge, and lousy shoes. When the last hitchhiker took him to the final spot, he called him out on it, and McCandless just responded that he would be fine. As we know from the front of the book however, he was not fine. He ended up dying while on his journey. Every time that McCandless was questioned, or called out on, he stood his ground and truly believed that he would survive with the few resources that he had brought.  Today in class we learned about the new novel we would be reading in class.  I learned about the main character McCandless, who went to Alaska to hike but never returned....

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