Dom ! <3 :)
Just a simple blog, full of WONDERFUL things! :)
War Hawks 101
Feb 25th
I would use this image to show the results in the War Hawks decision to go to war.
The Call to Freedom textbook gives us little information on the War Hawks of 1812. Why is that? I personally believe that the War Hawks played a HUGE roll in the War of 1812. I think the book does an okay job telling us about it. I think that they could of included more, because the War Hawks were the reason the war even started! They should get a little more then just two short paragraphs in this book! The book left out that all of the War Hawks were young men; this could have meant something! Younger people usually have a different perspective then older people. I believe that this impacted the decision in going to war, so this should have definitely gone in the book. If I was able to change this then I would probably put more information referring to the decision of going to war. If I was the editor of the book, then like I said before I would add a little more information and I would also add some pictures! Pictures just seem to make everything better! They catch peoples attentions, and they also give u a better understanding of what your reading. They give you a better understanding because you don’t have to struggle to get that visual image in your mind of what people looked like in 1812. Now I’m going to be honest here; not all middle schoolers like to read! That means you would have to make the text books more interesting, right? Well in order to make it more interesting, I would try to draw the readers in with questions, and emotions instead of just flat out saying the information with nothing else to it.
Link to picture: http://www.flickr.com/photos/axle81401/4880898328/in/pool-90935994@N00
In the Slammer!!!
Feb 2nd
How can you shut down a prison? What are you suppose to do with all the prisoners? Do you leave them there? Do you take them to a different prison? Or do you set them free? You might be asking, “What prison is she talking about?” Well, I’m talking about Old New-Gate Prison. One of many reasons this prison might intrigued someone from New England (particulary Connecticut), is because it’s located in East Grandby, Connecticut! Now, it actually closed in the 19th century, but there is still a lot of history behind it, which is why it was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1976.
This prison wasn’t always a prison, you know! It started out as a copper mine in 1705, and was one of the first commercial mines in the British Colonies. But the mines ended in the 1750s because they weren’t making much money.
In 1773 the copper mines became a prison. It’s actually Connecticut’s first prisons! The first prisoner was sent there December 22, 1773, but he escaped 18 days later! There were many successful escapes and many unsucessful ones from New Gate. The record for most escapes out of the prison was made by Richard Steele. He escaped three times! At one point in time there were as much as 125 prisoners. A lot of them had to sleep underground in the mines because there was no room in the cells above. Burgulars, horse thieves, counterfeiters, forgers, and even Loyalist from the Revolutionary War were sent there! Women started being sent there in 1824. There were only four women sent there. There names were Rachel Heddy,Therza Mansfield, Juli Ann Burr, and Comfort Sperry.
Rachel Heddy was sent there in 1824 for 6 months for breaking in and stealing. Therza Mansfield was sent there was sent there in 1825, and was sentenced for life for murdering her husband. Her death sentence never took place, but no one knows why! Juli Ann Burr came to Old New Gate in 1826 and stayed there for 2 years for adultery. Comfort Sperry was also sent there for adultery, but she was sentenced 3 years, in the year of 1827. This makes me wonder why Comfort Sperry was there longer than Juli Ann Burr…they were there for the same crime, so shouldn’t they serve the same time?
The prison was closed in 1827 because it cost to much to keep running. They tried to make into a copper mine again, but their attempts failed.
Today, the prison is a major tourist attraction in the United States. Many people say that the prison and mines are very creepy. They confess of taking pictures and “seeing” other figures in them. Some believe that it’s haunted and said they feel like something’s always watching them while they were taking a tour of the place.
So there you see it! Some of the history of Old New-Gate prison did take place in the 19th century! Four women were sent to the first prison in Connecticut! To me this is very surprising because I know that during those times, women were expected to be very polite, delicate young ladies, not commit crimes! What do you think?
Decisions, Decisions!
Jan 30th
When Thomas Jefferson was President of these United States, he decided that he wanted to buy New Orleans from France. He wanted to buy it without any war being made, so he sent Robert Livingston to France to try and buy it. Not only did France offer them New Orleans, but they also offered them the whole Louisiana Territory! France offered to sell it for fifteen million dollars! The United States was allowed to spend ten million dollars, but they still agreed because that was a great deal! There were a couple problems though. One of them was that Thomas Jefferson did not believe that the Constitution allowed him to buy it.
Jefferson was a strict constructionists. He thought that Congress should be allowed to exercise only a few implied powers so that the government would stay small. While buying the Louisiana Territory, he was going against his beliefs because by being a strict constructionist he did not believe that the government should be used to organize banks, build roads, and invest in other things that would be of use to the United States. There were opponents and supporters of the Louisiana Purchase. The supporters said that the fifteen million dollar price tag was a really good deal, and the Louisiana Territory would double the size of the United States. But some of the opponents worried that the purchase was unconstitutional, and did not know if it was proper to give citizenship to the foreigners.
Even though Thomas Jefferson does seem like a hypocrite for going against what he believes in; I still think he showed great leadership. I think leaders should do whatever they think is right, and not follow what others believe in, unless they also believe in it. Jefferson was staying true to himself by buying the Louisiana Territory. He did it, and he didn’t let anyone stop him just because he was a strict constructionist. I also think that to show leadership, you must also show bravery. It was very brave of him to buy it, knowing that people were going to judge him because he went against his original beliefs. I think that he didn’t properly interpret the Elastic Clause. The Elastic Clause is a statement in the Constitution that allows Congress to pass all laws that are necessary. Buying the Louisiana Territory was not necessary for the United States to do, but it still was a good decision because if it wasn’t purchased, then our whole country would be extremely different today!
This whole scenario reminds me of a time when I was shopping at the mall actually! France offered the United States the whole Louisiana Territory for just fifteen million dollars! That was a great deal! Well one time, I went to the mall specifically for just a little bit of makeup. I went to a makeup store called MAC, and the sales person offered me a lot of makeup for a really good price! Even though I didn’t need all that makeup, I got it anyways because the price of it was great! This relates to Thomas Jefferson and the Louisiana Purchase because at first he only wanted to buy New Orleans, but once France offered him the whole territory for a good price, he took it! My connection can help me get a better understanding of Jefferson’s decision because in a way it’s like I was in his shoes with the decision of purchasing something. I know how he felt while buying it because even though my situation wasn’t as dramatic as his was; they are still almost the same!
Link to picture: http://www.flickr.com/photos/arthur_chapman/4018415202/
Are You The Leader?
Jan 28th
Dale, doing is daily rap!...Don't worry I got this picture from the camp website! Haha
Do you know anyone that is a leader? Well i sure do! I’m sure both you and I know many leaders. This perticular person stands out on the “leader board” for me. He takes control of situations, he’s independent and doesn’t seem to let anybody control him, and he also has that kind of personality that makes you want to follow him! His name’s Dale, and he’s one of my many counselors at the camp I’ve been going to every summer since I was 7 years old…Mountain Mist!
Dale takes control of lots of situations, like when there’s a “dilema” going on with some campers, and he’s also my village directer, so he has to makes all of the ideas that we do! When I say he’s independent, I mean he’s VERY independent! He really doesn’t care what people think about him, which is why people always like to be around him. I think that’s not a nessisary attribute that a leader needs, but it definitely contributes! …Do you know when someone just brings out that vibe of leadership? Well that’s exactly what Dale has! Well, I guess he brings in that kind of vibe because he knows what he’s doing around the camp! For instance, if their was a new kid at camp, they would sometimes follow Dale if they didn’t know what they were doing! Dale’s one of my favorite counselors and I think he’s a great leader, and does a great job at doing what he does! If you had the chance to meet him you definitely wouldn’t regret it!
<3-dom-<3
Link to the picture:http: //www.meridenymca.org/Content/Photo_Gallery.asp#bn-photocenter-1-1-2042911747/56400/1/139651/
Leaders Made.
Jan 28th
“Do leaders make great history? Or does history make great leaders?”
There have been many leaders that were apart of history, but the real question is how they exactly became leaders. That is what that quote up there means!
I personally think that great leaders make history. I believe this because in order to be a leader you would obviously need confidence or bravery, and whether you can make history depends on that level of confidence and bravery! Anyone can be a great leader, whether its leading a conversation, or just having people follow you! It’s that simple! But can they lead people in for instance, war. War is no doubt apart of history! The people who join it are very brave! You can’t just take a random leader from say one of the “clicks” in school, and tell them to lead the people of the army into war! Like I said before, it depends on their level of confidence and bravery. A great leader who made history was Martin Luther King Jr. He had the confidence in himself to say what he thought, and the bravery to say it in front of all of the people! He was obviously a destined leader before that happend since he planned the whole thing out. People only started following him after they heard what he had to say! Anyone can do this! All it takes it some…confidence and bravery!
I’m not saying that I do not believe that history makes leaders though! The two subjects are very pertinent, and it was hard to decide which one to believe in the most, because they both make sense! Each one can happen at anytime. I just think that great leaders make history more often then history makes great leaders.
<3-dom-<3
Link to the picture:http://www.flickr.com/photos/nostri-imago/2873277818/in/photostream/
Stressed.Out!
Jan 19th
Last week my teacher Mr. Bogush assigned us a project having to do with the XYZ Affair. Not everybody got the XYZ Affair, but that’s the subject my group members and I had to work on. The project is about significant objects. We had to make a story incoorperating the XYZ Affair, and a significant object. Seems like fun, making up your own story, huh? Well in my situation, it wasn’t at all a pleasant expierence! 
At first we had come up with this fabulous idea to use a shoe buckle as the object, and work the story around that one thing. So far so good! We had our story made, and we were all set to go, except…the person who said they were going to bring in the shoe buckle didn’t even have one after all! I was steeming when I found this out because we wasted our time writing the whole story! That person could’ve flat out said, “I don’t have a shoe buckle”, instead of saying, “Oh yeah! I have a shoe buckle!” But luckily that person had the idea to change the story, and to base it around a button that fell off of John Adam’s coat. Sounds like everything’s okay, right? Wrong!!! The button that one of my group members brought in didn’t look realistic, so we couldn’t use it! That person said that they can find a button that looks realistic, but thank goodness I brought one just in case because the first thing they said to me when I came in the room was, “Please tell me you have a button!” Even though I did, it still made me upset because that person proved to me that they can’t be trustworthy. …One thing that I do like about this project is that we get to actually sell the objects, and the money is going to an orginization called Clinique Monique! Right nowI also like how as an introduction to this project, we got to bring in our own significant object to show everybody. This was really special because as sad as it may sound, everyone likes talking about themselves, and that gave us a chance to tell our own stories!
<3-dom-<3
*Link to picture* http://www.flickr.com/photos/tzofia/270800047/
Follow the Leader.
Jan 12th
What makes a leader, a leader? What makes them so special, and why does everyone follow them? To me a leader is just a regular person, they do not have to be wise, but one thing that a leader must have is bravery. A leader shouldn’t care what others think of them, they should just “go with the flow” not let anyone bother them. Confidence, and bravery are definitatly a “must have” in order to be a leader. I think that this is simply why people follow leaders. They see someone do something that they would never think to do, and then they automatically admire that person a little. I think that leaders can be made or born! If you give someone the confidence one needs to lead, then they absolutely can! It just takes a bit of courage, confidence, and bravery. Some people are just born like this-and good for them; but I think it better when someone comes out of their shell, and starts to lead! Now, I wouldn’t call myself a “true” leader, but there come my times where I lead and others follow, and then there are also times where I follow and others lead. Every summer I go to a camp named Mountain Mist. We do a lot of cooperative activities that take a lot of thinking. One day we were doing one of those activities and I took a stand and came up with a solution to the problem we had to solve. Automatically people started referring back to me on what to do, and when to do it, this made me the leader! I felt proud and more confident knowing that I had made myself useful, and known! There are a lot of times that I follow someone, and I can’t really name a specific time I was a follower; but I happen to follow other people a lot when I don’t know what I’m doing, or don’t know where I’m going. I use them as a guide. I don’t consider myself a leader, but I also don’t consider myself as a follower because I am on and off with both roles. I think that part of the reason I’m not a “full-time” leader is because I get a little self-consious when it comes to big crowds, or people I don’t know. I think the only way to overcome that is to do the opposite of what I’m usually like! To be a leader you must face your fears, and think about today not tomarrow!
Febuary 17, 2020
Jan 6th
What is Febuary 17, 2020 all about anyway? Well I’ll tell you! That’s the year I will be turning 23, I will probably still be in college. The date for the thing I am going to do is perfect because I would be old enough, and there is always a vacation during Febuary. You’re probably wondering what this thing is that I will be doing. It’s always been my dream to go on an African safari,
< and that's exactly what I'm going to do on Febuary 17, 2020. While I'm there I will observe lots of animals and even people who live in Africa!
I will also try to help out a tribe or two that are there by giving them things that they need such as, mosquito nets. I am for sure that I will go on this trip, whether its at Febuary 17, 2020 or not! When I have a goal or dream I stick to them until they actually happen!
<3-dom-<3
Links to the photos:
Elephants
African Tribe
How can a Bracelet be “Special”
Jan 5th
So you’re probably wondering how a bracelet can be special. Well I have a bracelet that is VERY special to me, and if I ever lost it I would be very very upset. I got this bracelet for my 13th birthday, and I was so excited when I opened it up! It was a charm bracelet. The reason my charm bracelet is special to me is because the charms represent something about me, and the places I have been! Each charm has a story to it so it makes the bracelet very interesting. Right now, I only have 9 charms on it, but I hope to get more, as more things happen to me thorughout life! I will never lose this bracelet because it says on my wrists at all times except when I go to bed! I cherish it, and will keep it forever! …Some of the charms may seem interesting to you. The most interesting charms that I think are on my bracelet are the Alligator and the Sting Rey. The Alligator represents the park I went to, when I went on vacation in Florida. There was an Alligator park, and you could go canoeing while they were in the water! It was so scary, but one of the best expierences of my life! The Sting Rey represents my trip to the Caymen Islands when I went on a cruise. I got to swim with them! I was so scared at first, but I learned a lot of things like the Sting Reys won’t sting you unless you frighten them, so you just have to be very calm! Those two things happened a LONG time ago, but I bet you I will remember them for the rest of my life, and I have the charm bracelet to prove it!
<3-dom-<3
Do what ever you want!
Dec 19th
If you were apart of the Untied States Goverment, would you want to make decisions morally, or only be able to make choices on what the Constitution says? This is called having a loose construction and a strict construction. I personally would rather have a loose construction because what if you were going through a situation in court, and you couldn’t figure out what to do because there was no rule made for it? You would obviously have to do what you believe in most! While making the Constitution, George Washington and Alexander Hamilton debated on whether to have a strict construction or s loose construction of the Constitution. Hamilton wanted a loose construction and Washington wanted it to be strict. In the end, the Constitution, called the “elastic clause”, was made in a loose construction. So if it weren’t for Alexander Hamilton going over the Constitution with George Washington, we all might be in a different situation right now! Think about it!
<3-dom-<3
Link to the photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/xtheowl/3992546509/
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