Writing is still Difficult for me!

Writing Research Papers is something very foreign to me!  I am not familiar with all the time and energy it takes to put into research paper.  Although I like the fact of seeing my immediate results. After putting all the hard work and energy into a paper its great to see your end result.  It always feel to me that a paper will never end but if I work at it slowly or rush with a last minute project. I always know I could have made a much better attempt at the project.

Writing for me is difficult!  There is many ways of improving my ways/style of writing.  This is not my favorite subject but I have to make it become something I like. I know I am not anywhere near as professional or expressive with letting my thoughts out on paper but its work in progress for me.

Being Part of a Gang Makes You a Bad Person.

I chose to right my Fallacy or something many might be very opinionated about.  Do being a participant of a gang makes you a bad person?  When you think of gangs do you think of a bunch of young thugs, doing criminal activity?  Nothing positive can come out of a bunch of gang-bangers, all they do is stand on street corners or dark alleys waiting for their next criminal act.  They wear their colors and rob old ladies.  They do not have a care in the world, they shoot innocent bystanders.  They are drug dealers so why wouldn't they be labeled as bad people?  They ruin communities and put children in harms way.

The truth of the matter is everyone are responsible for their own actions.  Some people join gangs to build and grow with a sole called family or just having that feeling of closeness.  Feeling like someone is there for you or filling the void of loneliness.  There are many reasons why people do various things but that don't make them a bad person.  Maybe some people are looking to be a part of Growth and Development more than they are looking to be a Gangster Disciple.

Does a Hoodie Make Me a Hoodlum?

I am sure by now everyone in the nation is familiar with the "Trayvon Martin" situation.  If not let me give you a small run down on the situation.  Trayvon is a 17 year old that was killed my a Neighborhood Watch  participant (George Zimmerman).  There was no gun found on Trayvon, actually the only thing that was found on the 17 yr old was a package of Skittles and a Iced Tea.  Trayvon was an average build for a 17 year old but Mr. Zimmerman thought that maybe Trayvon was acting suspicious, allow me to add that Trayvon was also on the phone with his girlfriend at the time of walking thru this neighborhood.

So far I don't see anything wrong with what the 17 year old was doing.  He did have on a hooded sweatshirt and it was dark.  Mr. Zimmerman did call the police and tell them about this suspicious guy that was in the area.  The police thanked him for the call and said they would handle it from that point.  Zimmerman continued to follow Trayvon and told dispatch that he was following him.  The police dispatch told Zimmerman that was not necessary and not to follow the boy any longer.  That was the last time anyone saw Trayvon Martin alive.

My problem with this entire scenario is, what was so intimidating about this 17 yr old boy?  Did Trayvon Martin and George Zimmerman have problems before this incident? Was it the hood on the hooded sweatshirt that made Trayvon look so suspicious/intimidating?  Was Zimmerman having a bad day or was his house broken into previously to the incident?  What made it ok for him to kill a 17 year old boy that was on a cell phone?

I am not going to play the race card and say that Trayvon got killed because he was black, with a hoodie on and that appearance can be intimidating and suspicious to others.  I will not play that card cause if I do I am subjecting myself in a range of fire.  I wear hoodies, talk on my cell phone and I am black!  Is the hoodie a suspicious look or are we giving unprepared people the authority they have not earned?  Yes this is a situation that needs to be addressed because I am not willing to be killed over a hoodie.  I am not doing anything but wearing a hooded sweatshirt so its justifiable for someone to kill me because that may be an intimidating look?  In so many ways, Trayvon Martin lives in me and that is why I can't overlook this senseless tragedy.  Although it happens in so many neighborhoods in America, how many times does this matter gets No Recognition!

Glass Castle

The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls, I feel was a very entertaining book. What I like about the book is that it allow the father to be himself.  Although he was very educated, he was not politically correct and a lot of people may have looked at him as a bad father.  The book shows him as a very unstable man and willing to uproot his family at any given time, no matter the time of night but I look at those situations much differently.  When he ran into difficult situations, he could have abandoned his family but he didn't.  He found more creative ways to deal with his hardship.

There were situations in the book about "Jeanette" asking her sisters and brother did they miss her while she was in the hospital and they let her know that she was not missed but her father made it his business to let her know that he missed her.  The Christmas situation was also very creative cause although the family didn't have much, the father chose to take each individual child outside on Christmas night and let them pick a star out of the sky.  Some people might say this was an easy way out but others (like myself) will call this a very creative act and not only is it creative but it will be a lifetime memorable moment for the kids.

If I had to suggest this book to anyone, I would ask that they go into the book with an open mind and erase any expectations.  Allow yourself to go into the book with a "Blank Canvas" mentality and let the book and its experiences fill that canvas with the colorful walks of life with no judgment.  Yes we all have our dysfunctions in life but I think the book expressed a very creative timeline and journey that the family should be proud about.

As City Slickers or small town folks, we all tend to stay in our little area and not explore to much out of our norm.  This family did a lot of moving around but in the process help the kids learn a lot about life and gave the kids an opportunity to choose different things in life by subjecting them to so much.

All and all, I really like the book and I would suggest it to anyone with an open mind and willing to give thinking outside of the "Box" a chance!