Tattoos and Piercings

The first time my body was ever pierced was on my ears which is a common piercing to have. (Not only common for girls but for boys as well.) I got them pierced when I was in about the third or fourth grade. I wanted to get my ears pierced because every time I would walk into any sort of store the jewelry was always the first thing that caught my eye. I loved sorting through all the different sorts of earrings from the simple shiny studs to the long dangling outrageous ones. I can remember the first time I changed my earrings I nearly threw up and fainted. The idea of something going through one point in my skin and coming out at another made me pale as a ghost.
However my fear of changing my earrings quickly vanished and I was ready to get my ears pierced a second time. I wanted more holes in my ear because I have so many earrings that I can change them every day and have a different pair probably for two years straight. I absolutely love earrings and I love wearing them. So why not have two more holes to put them in?
I also recently got my cartilage at the top of my right ear pierced. I decided to do this because my friend who is also named Kayla and I wanted to have matching piercings to show our friendship. We did it on the same night one right after the other so that we could always be reminded of each other.
The other two piercings I have on my body I would say I got them in order to further decorate myself. My belly button was always a prime piercing spot in my eyes and I was always mesmerized when I saw older girls with theirs done. It took me months to convince my parents to let me. I begged and begged and finally won my case with the argument that it wasn't a tattoo and if they didn't like it I could take it out. Finally my mom took me to get my belly button pierced. I felt more mature and excited when I could look in the mirror and see a shiny ring hanging from my navel. I'm not sure exactly why but it made me feel complete. It made me feel more like me.
When I got my nose done I was 18 and didn't have to ask my parents this time. I like the shape of my nose and I thought a nice little nose ring would compliment it perfectly. Plus I really wanted to see how my parents would react when I came home with it. My dad thought he was really funny when he flicked it.
I don't have any tattoos yet but I intend to get some. I want to get a butterfly because it reminds me of my grandma. A few of my cousins also have butterfly tattoos commemorating her. It has sentimental value and so I know I will always love it forever. When I do get tattoos they will have important meaning and it won't be something I just picked off the wall of the tattoo parlor. I've always liked tattoos especially when they're on boys.
Some people in the world are against altering your body in any way. I think that what someones body looks like should be left up to that person. If you prefer an all natural type of beauty then more power to you. If you're like me and enjoy piercings or tattoos and even find them attractive than I support that as well. As long as what your doing with your body makes you feel beautiful then does it really matter what anyone else thinks anyways?

McCain's Speech

McCain began his speech by thanking those who helped him through his campaign. He gave support to President Bush and the war. He does not believe that our government should make any major changes. He supports Mr. Bush and the white house. After that, he spent more time talking about his running mate. I think that it’s interesting that we are 15 minutes into McCain’s speech and he still has not spoken about any issues or what he is going to do to make this country better.

Now that he is finally speaking about what he’s going to do he claims to veto big spending companies who waste our money and use it for things that we don’t need. He says he wants to continue the war so those who died will not have died in vain. He also spoke about education. He wants to better the public school system by getting rid of the bad teachers and putting the power in the hands of the parents and students. As for those who lost their jobs and are failing in this economy, John McCain says you can count on him and the government to find you a new one that will last.

John McCain added effect to his speech by sharing his personal story of his time as a prisoner of war in Vietnam. While this is a very noble story and it proves that McCain loves his country, it does not have much relevance to his ability to make the right decisions as president. More time of McCain’s speech was spent talking about the Bush family, his family and himself than time spent on issues that need attention in our country. McCain’s speech did not address our country’s issues. It seems that McCain can only put down Obama instead of proving himself better.

Beauty in the Eyes of Society

In today's society we are constantly presented with ads, commercials, magazines, and even entire television shows that are dedicated to our bodies. Every single aspect of our bodies: weight, make up, clothes, etc. is discussed. Unfortunately in present day society these things have become more than just ads or commercials that are background noise, they have become lifestyles and addictions.
Celebrities have become more than entertainers to America. They have become a daily hobby. The more weight they seem to loose and the more babies they have the more we begin to see these same actions among average people. Girls will starve themselves to death just to have a body like Christina Aguleria's. Not only that but pregnancy rates among teens are climbing and I think it's not just a coincidence that all the celebrities seem to be having a baby boom as well.
The media has given us an image of what beauty is. It has also given us magazines, books, pills, creams, exercise plans and diets so that we too can have that beauty. Susan Bordo does an amazing job of presenting how the media shapes our opinions and views. I think she made several good points that showed the media for what it truly is: brainwashing. Instead of finding beauty within ourselves we look to botox, surgery, make up, or diets. It has made us believe that if he look like the person in their ad then we will be beautiful and wanted.
Weather it's through television or magazines, books or diet commercials I believe that we will always hear how to make ourselves more beautiful. Maybe one day society can be beautiful without the help of any product.

Obama's Speech

Senator Obama gave his speech accepting his nomination for Presidency last Thursday. I believe that the audience he was speaking to was middle class Americans. His speech was aimed at tax cuts, better education for young Americans, and health care. All of these are appealing issues to the middle class people. He often compared himself to the middle class, conveying that he is not just a rich man that had an easy life. He shared his own personal life story to show that was not unlike many of the people who are voting for him. The purpose of his speech was to give insight to what he would do if he became president. To add effect to his speech he touched on important issues such as the war, job opportunities, and creating new jobs geared towards more efficient energy development. He wants to higher the standards in schools. These issues are on any average Americans mind and Obama wanted to prove that he is going to address these issues promptly.
Obama encourages us to look towards the future instead of the past. He believes that now is a time for change in Washington. He supports people in America such as small business owners, working families, teachers, police men and women, and firefighters. He promises to help the people who have lost their jobs and need health care by tax cuts and by supporting the companies who do not ship their work overseas. He says he will go through the federal budget and eliminate the unused programs. Obama made his point by appealing to the people he wanted to vote for him. (The middle class) Knowing health care is a leading issue he says he will provide affordable and access able health care for all Americans. Obama gave a well delivered speech that appealed to all his voters.

Educational Texts

There are millions upon millions of different types of texts in the world, each of them conveying their own message. You see text everywhere from the time you wake up in the morning until the time you go to sleep at night. Some texts advertise, some express opinions, and some give you directions. There is a difference, however, between educational text and text used for something else.
One text that would obviously be educational is text books. When you take a class in high school or college there is almost always a text book that the class uses. This form of text is educational because it is helps students learn more from that class. A second example of educational text would be street signs. If you drive then you read street signs everyday. How much can you really learn from a street sign? Well you can learn the correct directions to go. Without street signs all of the connecting streets would be unorganized making traveling a much more difficult thing to do.
There are also forms of text that are not educational. When you read the brand of someone's clothing on their shirt you do learn what type of clothing they wear, but it's hardly educational. A second form of text that really isn't educational is text messaging on cell phones. This form of text is usually used to communicate with family or friends. While you may learn new things when you read a particular text message you are technically learning that from the person who sent you the message, not the actual text message itself.
There is an abundance of text in the world and a majority of it may be educational, but there is some text that is not.