Positive Words

1. Mi amor
2. baby
3. kiss
4. mom
5. cuddle
6. smile
7. laugh

Neutral Word

1. springy 
2. bed
3. artist
4. same
5. bowl
6. arches
7. work
8. notes
9. dishes
10. home
11. alarms clock
12. sleep
13. early
    
14. walk

 Negative Words

1. sprained
2. aching
3. coughing
4. consumption
5. wait
6. run
7. subtracting
8. woes
9. poverty
10. working class
11. blinded
12. slimy
13. heaving
14. en retard
15. toujours
16. yowls
17. drag
18. limping
19. bowlegged
20. urgent
21. crash
22. again

I've done this twice before.It reveals I'm chronically tired.Wish isn't any surprise.That I work probably too much to be as organized as I'd like to be.It also reveals that I'm always catching up.I live in a constant uphill battle.Fatigue gets to me,and makes everything feel mucho more monotonous than it really is. I also don't'leave space during my week to unwind.This creates a negative rebound effect of laziness and procrastination during my free time.I live in a vicious cycles,but that's just because I'm stressed,If you don't work you don't eat.That isn't an excuse but it's a reality for me.I think maybe I should try to work on being more positive and it might help me get through my day without feeling so run down all the time.

Springy bed that sprains my back.Trying and failing to stretch out my neck,muscles like hard petrified taffy that don't want to give.Groggy and tired,coughing,coughing,coughing like a bohemian starving artist with consumption or perhaps a cat heaving up a wet slimy ball of fur.Runny nose.Feeling for my eyes blinded by dust and haze and darkness.I find my kitten first glasses under.I cuddle Jack.Aww , mi amor.He latches both paws o to my arm and lays his head down he retracts his claws and then relaxes them as to not hurt me.Dizzy from getting up too quick I press my body's weight onto the aching arches of my feet.Sore as hell. Hunched over walking bowlegged limping.Pretending,  but not really, to be Quasi Modo wondering if he was bow legged.The animals swarm at my feet,wagging their tails or just yowling.I climb into the shower and leave the bathroom light off.The water is warm,lukewarm.I try to get out quickly cus anything less than hot is never good enough.Stupid solar water warmer!I need the water warm when it's cold!I leave begrudgingly back into the artificial light of the kitchen ,yellow and dingy and somehow too bright.Clean and chop clean and chop.Put it in a pot.Splash water over them wait for it to boil.Wait ,baby  your food isn't ready yet it still needs cooking.Soon soon !A kiss on my aged dog's head contemplate her sad sam stare and feel guilty for more than just a moment.The yowls become more urgent.Irritated .I limp into the extra room and grab fistfuls of cat food and drop them into separate bowls.Turn on the computer.Linger over facebook.Play catch up catch up so much homework soo much to do.It's getting late.Watch my mom walk out the door.Bendición!Resign to wearing the same jeans and same shirt.Hoping I look decent.Running now,Running ,running down the avenue.To the train station.Running up the escalator into the doors right on time.Running up the stairs panting to class.Droning droning wawawawawawawawawawa.Notes notes notes notes notes.When's the test?Work.Run run run .Here there.running.Smile and clean up smile and cleanup.Take the food.Would you like to leave a tip?No more food.Eat lunch.Laugh with coworker.Count the money.Check bank account.Subtract subtract subtract subtract.Something like poverty.Working class woes.Run back to class!JE SUIS LA!.Toujours en retrad,Yvonne,Toujours!Desolé,je travaille.Tea or hot chocolateDragging myself back home.Feed the animals.Clean the dishes.Wait to be fed.Crash into my bed.Awoken by alarms that never ring.Do it all over again.

'"A professional poker player seeks out an old flame after his marriage fizzles"-IMDb
Special thanks to IMDb,because without that quote there would be no way of competently explaining what this movie is about.To be honest, that quote isn't even really accurate,but it's a nice frame.See La Suerte en Tus Manos,is an erratic movie where nothing really happens.Uriel,the male protagonist,has already been divorced for quite sometime when the film begins.He's a promiscuous gambler and pathological  liar, who likes to babble about things to his doctor/therapist.The babbling helps the audience realize that he's terribly insecure,but serves no other function in the film.Gloria,the female protagonist,has just recently lost her father.The opening scene for both these characters set the scene for what is to come.Uriel partially breaks the fourth wall speaking directly to the camera and demonstrating the convenience of motel rooms.He explains how he loves the swan towels and rose petals on the bed.He loves the privacy of a room with no windows.He then wakes up in a messy bedroom next to his two children.Gloria enters the film as figure dressed in back standing over the newly dug grave of her father,along side her boyfriend.She's sad but not hysterical.She asks her boyfriend,a anal French man,if he can accompany her to an upcoming trip to Mendoza.He tries to give her excuses in French ,she gets upset and he acquiesces.A little while later,we find out because of his promiscuity and feelings inadequacy as a father he wants to get a vasectomy.His doctor warns against it and tells him he just might find the right woman.It is after he gets the vasectomy in Rosado,where he attends a poker competition that he meets Gloria fresh from the aftermath of her breakup with her boyfriend.In this scene the audience realizes that Gloria and Uriel were old flames and Uriel was heartbroken when she left him.She tells him she'd gotten sick of spending all their time in motel rooms and of his lying.They spend the night reminiscing and Gloria asks him up to his room,but nothing happens.Due to his vasectomy he's unable to have sex with Gloria;Uriel tells her that he has somewhere to go.She feels rejected and leaves.They meet again and instantly become boyfriend and girlfriend while they both try to correct the mistakes of their past.

What's wrong with the movie?The charactesr aren't likable ,they have no on screen chemistry and there isn't any coherence in the plot.Uriel is a pathological liar, who lies to Gloria the first time he meets her.He tells her he is a producer that works with her favorite band as a manager.Throughout the film we see how he can't stop lying.and gets away with it till the very end.Gloria is hard headed and brash.The subplot of her grief of her father's death is lost among the babble of sub themes that movie presents.Uriel(Jorge Drexler)and Gloria(Bertucilli) seems to wince in pain every time they have to touch each other,it looks too fabricated.Lastly,the worst part is that everything looks like a jumble of sub themes that never comes together.Love is the major theme and Judaism.The second one threw me off completely.They're are a lot of seemingly insignificant references to Judaism and they stay insignificant.After the sub themes there is momy isusses,daddy issues,lieing,parenthood,motherhood and depression and the list keeps going. All in all,watching this movie feels like trying to put together a 3,000 piece puzzle of the sky where none of the pieces seem to fit.

"The story follows a married couple, apart for a night while the husband takes a business trip with a colleague to whom he's attracted. While he's resisting temptation, his wife encounters her past love."

Like the quote states ,the movie is about a couple of newlyweds.The first scene introduces us to the couple Joanna(Kiera Knightley) and Michael( Sam Worthington) as they are about to leave their cozy loft in New York City to go to a party.They arrive at a house party hosted by one of Michael's colleagues.They go about their paces mingling and networking separately .In one instance  Joanna sees Michael speaking to a woman,Laura  ( Eva Mendez).Joanna finds,out that they are colleagues and have been working together for quite some time.Joanna suspects a mutual attraction and when the arrive from the party Joanna confronts Michael.Cornered,he admits his attraction to her but denies having done anything with her.Joanna is upset and and after forgiving him discusses her doubts and insecurities about their marriage fearing that they possible got married to young.Michael comforts her telling their reltaionship is better than ever.The next day Michael leaves for a buisness trip with Laura and Joanna runs into a past flame,"the one that got away"Alex(Guillaume Canet).Alex and Joanna run into each other.They haven't seen each other in two years.He tells her he's only in New York for one night and they agree to meet for drinks.The audience gets to look in to the nights of these newlyweds as the face temptation and let's us study the nature of infidelity.

What's great about the movie?The movie is beautifully made.Every scene makes a great picture.The actors perform spectacularly;they wear the guilt ridden faces of their characters well getting even the micro gestures down pat and the onscreen chemistry works to the plots advantage.It gives the audience insight into what is lacking between the spouses and what connects with their respective potential "temptors".The film is paced slowly as to aid the audience letting every piece of information given sink in and create a certain amount of suspense.And the whole thing is accompanied by an amazing soundtrack.But the thing that I love the most about  this film is that it gives you something to think about.What is worse?What is more of a betrayal, an emotional infidelituy or a physical one?It's a movie that kind of plucks at the heartstrings of the viewer without  being melodramatic or clichéd.In this movie, all of the pieces of this puzzle fit leaving you to admire the image it leaves behind and reflect on it.

Dear Nikkie,
Don't be a drama queen.I know it's hard right now and I know you think I don't understand,but I can assure you that I do.I know high school is hard and that the kids are worse,but chill out.There are more important things you need to bear in mind.I don't want to sound like mom,but she's right,you need to get your act together.You need to stop pouting and crying ,because all of that nonsense you concern yourself with doesn't matter.What people think of you doesn't matter.They don't pay for your bills or help you in any real way.Their opinions don't validate you so stop trying to please everybody.Start learning how to be yourself it's one of the hardest things to do but you'll be so glad you did.Yes, people do suck but you need to have people skills to get by in life.Whoever said no man is an island was right.You aren't alone so don't be push people away and don't make enemies.Stop complaining.At your age and as you get older you'll realize a lot of what happens to you isn't necessarily always in your control,but some of it is.Make yourself busy it helps you with your work ethic and it makes you feel confident.You'l never get bored if you have goals to accomplish.Speaking about goals don't be mediocre and study more.I know you get good grades but why get an 89 when you could have gotten a 100 on that test had you studied at all.Study habits are what separate the winners from the losersso go find some.Procrastination at this age will only set you up for failure.Take it from me,I know.Thank me later
Yours Truely,
Nikkie

                      

I'd been anxiously waiting for what seemed like ages.I was feeling kind of wired,like a shaken coke bottle full of nervous energy just waiting to explode.I was trying to remain calm.I was borderline hysterical.I kept wringing my hands and tapping my feet.My heart pounded in my throat and my eyes watered.I absently watched the numbers before me,poems,piano solos,violin solos and more poetry.I tried to control myself and tried going through the lyrics in my head.I found that I had forgotten them and had started to panic. Just then,one of the presenters called my name.I remember I became very singular about everything.I talked to myself.Stand up,watch the steps and don't fall.I grabbed the mic and heard the guitar.I looked around and  everyone was staring at me with curiosity . I was shaking,Then I started to sing,I could feel my hand trembling and the heaviness of the microphone in my hand.I vibrated and half expected for my voice to tremble too.I thought I'd sound like a sheep,but I didn't. My voice came out smooth,fluid and warm.I was focusing so hard on not messing up,because I had never been more petrified in my life.I kept trying to control my breathing so I could sing effectively.I looked out into the audience and my history teacher had closed his eyes and started nodding his head.I saw my friends eyes smile while they kept their faces stern as to not make me laugh.I could see everyone was listening.The song ended and then I heard the applause.The  sense of relief washed over me but stronger than that was my sense of accomplishment.I was so happy I didn't just pass out on stage,I know it sounds melodramatic but I was only sixteen and that was my first time singing on stage,

"Make the most of the Indian hemp seed,and sow it everywhere.""- George Washington.

The legalization and decriminalization of marijuana has been a topic of heated debate, in the media as of late.Not just on the news,but on the web,in blogs and social networking sites alike you can't help but get caught up in a debate  about weed.To legalize or not to legalize is the question.To decriminalize or not to,do we even really know what decriminalization is?As my generation,the Y generation,grow into maturity, many of our ranks on the verge of joining the work force ask themselves "why not"to the decriminalization and legalization of marijuana.I am one of them.

It seems to me that there is no valid reason not to legalize marijuana.It is after all preferable to decriminalizing it(but more on that later).Born in the 90's I remember the  seeing the D.A.R.E "police officers"school us on drug use and particularly "The blunt truth".In the early 2000's you couldn't flip a channel without seeing an abovetheinfluence.com commercial.So much hype and so much attention to one drug that admittedly is not physiologically addictive.What is the risk?The real risk or myth about marijuana is that although it wont make you drop out of school or make you a junkie ;it will give you a taste of a high ,a high that will cause the user to look for greater highs,usually illegal high.It is a "gateway drug".The jury maybe out on that one,but I'm not.I have yet to have met any one user of marijuana,especially in Puerto Rico,that had not prior to smoking pot had a sip of alcohol with his friends or family or smoked a cigarette.Caffeine,alcohol and tobacco are drugs too.What led to their use?There was no gateway drug.Caffeine ,alcohol and tobacco are physiological addictions.Alcohol and tobacco will make you sick.You will get some kind of heebie jeebies (A.KA. delirium tremens)if you're an alcoholic or nicotine withdrawl from cigarettes and cigars .Alcoholism destroys the addict and their loved ones.The British Medical Journal listed in the top five of the most harmful drugs to health and society.Yet alcohol is such a precious substance to people in most parts of the world aiding social interaction or social lubricants as they call them.Amid all this information it is hard to see the harm in marijuana use.Everyone knows someone who smokes weed.Anyone who smoke weed will tell you that after smoking all they're good for is some Chinese food and a couple re runs of family guy.

In addition to the marijuana being relatively harmless, in comparison to legal drugs such as alcohol and tobacco and legal narcotics,it's medicinal and natural.Marijuana has medicinal properties and the evidence that backs this is astounding,even celebrity doctor Depak Chopra agree about it's benefits.Medical marijuana is proved relieve the symptoms of epilepsy,glaucoma and cancer patients.About two months ago,my 13 year old dog was diagnosed with cancer.My dog who is like my child and best friend was going through pain.I looked up different treatments and pain management options and they all lead to one drug called Tramadol that pretty much leaves them knocked out for  most of the day with little to no appetite.I then looked for more holistic options and was surprised to find the medical marijuana has helped many a geriatric dog /cat/horse with pain.I was amazed and the results were near miraculous.There exists in the market one brand of veterinary medical marijuana called Companion Cannabis.At first I was thrilled,it was a balm to my worry about the pain of my dog until I remembered no marijuana not even medical marijuana is legal in Puerto Rico.From that moment, I've become an activist in the legalization of marijuana.It just didn't seem fair this kind of treatment should be shunned due to the negative and erroneous beliefs of the real effects of marijuana.When marijuana is legalized it will be regulated.Regulated the way alcohol and cigarettes are regulated.No minor will be able to legally consume it,as it is now and even with a decriminalized status the  production and sale of marijuana will  continue to run unchecked.People who smoke will be subjected to the treatment of common everyday criminals just because they wanted to take a toke.It is in my eyes completely  unfair.Legalization is the only answer and solution to the marijuana debate. 




    

Sentence fragments exercises

1.       C

2.       F.(The second part is a dependent adeverb clause of result)

3.       C

4.       F.(The first is a dependent, it’s a dependent adverb clause)

5.       C

6.       C

7.       F(Second part is a dependent adverb clause of concession)

8.       F(Second part is a dependent adverb clause of purpose)

9.       F(Second part is a dependent adverb clause)

10.   C

11.   F(First part is a present participle)

12.   F(Second part is a dependent adverb clause of time)

13.   F.(First part is a dependent adverb clause of concession)

14.   C

15.   F

16.   F(lacks a predicate)

Results :  15/16

Run-ons, Comma Splices, and Fused Sentences

1.       He enjoys walking through the countryside and often goes backpacking on his vacations.

2.       He often watched TV when there were only reruns on, but she preferred to read instead.

3.       They weren’t dangerous criminals; they were detectives in disguise.

4.       I didn’t know which job I wanted, because I was too confused to decide.

Results 4/4


Subject and Verb Agreement

1.       Are

2.       Is

3.       Are

4.       Is

5.       Don’t

6.       Doesn’t

7.       Is

8.       Lives

9.       Takes

10.   Want

11.   Is

12.   is

13.   knows

14.   Is

15.   Is

16.   Is

17.   Are

18.   Are

19.   Were

20.   Debates

21.   Lead

22.   Greet

23.   Are

(22/23)


Eliminating Wordiness

 

1.       Although Bradley Hall is regularly populated by students, close study of the building is seldom undertaken by them

2.       He dropped out of school because he needed to help support his family.

3.       The bus company’s new schedule will be announced in a few days.

4.       There are many ways a student can meet a foreign student

5.       It is unusual to find someone who hasn’t lied.

6.       People who disobey rules cause trouble.

7.       More than  a thousand students attended a campus rally,five were arrested for disorderly conduct and several others were charged with organizing an unauthorized  public meeting.

8.       Students believe  the most important subjects are the most useful.

9.       In the future,college freshman will realize that  they’ll need an academic  adviser.10.Our company provides opportunities for growth in aerospace technology.

11.Some people believe in capital punishment while others do not.
(8/11)
 Eliminating wordiness 2
1.       Seventy five feet below the cliff, the reefs were barely visible beneath the fog.

2.       Their car is gassed up and ready for a all night drive.

3.       Sometimes Stan runs with Blanche, a good athlete that’s on the track team

4.       The candy Taylor brought back from Europe was unlike American candy and tasted strange.

5.       Government leader claim the creation of new jobs indicate a strong economy, yet forget to mention that these new low wage jobs are replacing better ones.
4/4

Eliminating wordiness part 3
Many People enjoy murder mysteries. These people are not necessarily, murderers nor witness one or solve one. They probably just enjoy murder mysteries because it provides a way for them to escape from the monotonous and boring everyday routine. To these people the murder mystery is a realistic fantasy. It’s realistic because the characters are believable people and not pasteboard figures. It’s also realistic because the hero, the one who solves the mystery, doesn’t do it by haphazard methods or trial and error but by be exercising a high degree of reason and skill. It is absolutely essential that that those who enjoy murder mysteries have an admiration for the faculty of logic.

Murder mysteries are also fantasies. The people who read such books play a game in which certain human emotion is suspended. Pity, for example is one such human emotion. If a reader were to stop and feel pity for every victim killed ,that person would not enjoy reading a murder mystery. A devoted reader of the murder mystery however keeps in mind that the goal, which is to arrive to a conclusion using logic  the mystery to a conclusion with the use of logic and observation Whodunits hopefully hide the readers from the horrors of real life.
Prepositions

• (20/20

Last week,I read the article ""A Collegiette's Classification of UPR Men"and a counter part on women's fashion and both articles got negative feedback .You may ask why?And in all honesty I'd say  although the Collegiette's Classification of UPR Men was relatively well written grammar wise ,you kind of got the impression that the author didn't really know what they were talking about,and that goes for both articles.In my opinion,it was even really funny,but I regress.Anyway, I'm just gonna stick to what I know here,since it's the safest way to go.I'm in the humanities department, in the UPR ,and I'm gonna give you my impression of women's fashion in this department.
 
I'm not a fashion buff,but I know a trend when I see one.In fact, in Puerto Rico it's hard not to spot a trend,since everything here is so monkey see,monkey do.The images on the left are a classic example of 90's grunge wear without all the flannel and scrunchies.The trend du jour in Huma,being a complete 90's fashion revival.Flower patterns,Doc Martens,denim jackets are back.Now I'd read online that "they have the worst wardrobe, and the worst hair stylist in Earth." and the only thing I'd have to say about that is that although you might not like it 90's fashion,is back with a vengeance. Which means Huma girls are in.Fashion goes in cycles of 20 years.In this case,maybe it's because they felt like they missed out on the trends or because they were to small to pick their clothes for them.The children of the 90's are bringing back the styles they admired as kids and they're doing it even better.Love it or hate it fashion dictates it now."


El tea or the theater is the heart of the humanities department.It is literally right smack in the middle of the department.Stoners,skaters,drama kings and queens,artists,geeks and freaks all congregate there.It's an impromptu runway, a veritable fashion circus.And there always gonna be critics,but cést la vie.You don't have to love it, but if there is one thing you can notice,is that it you can tell it's the department that dedicates itself to self expression.

So I was asked to post some info on my favorite musicians,but asking an aspiring musician what their favorite is artists is pretty much impossible.So because I don't want to drown you with a plethora of bands and solo artists I only pick the three most influential artist I'm listening to right now.

The thing to judge in any jazz artist is,does the man project and does he have ideas- Miles Davis

It's hard to explain why Miles is so amazing,when many writers and musical journalists much better than I have already paid homage to the late and great trumpeter.Miles was a visionary,he was timeless,but most of all he was cool.Cool being  the essence of what's happening next of what's happening now and what was before and manifesting that into something almost tangible,not within grasp and innovative.(I heard The Birth of Cool album when I was 8.It blew my mind).He was uncompromising ,arrogant and creative and whatever he played got attention.He played with little to no vibrato,and as a composer and as a player he knew how to give music texture.Listening to Miles at an early age kind of changed my mind about jazz.My parents used to listen to a radio station called WJJZ106.1 and it was a smooth jazz radio station for the most part.I used to call smooth jazz sleepy music,it was pleasantly boring.Now I feel like listening to smooth jazz is like drinking red wine from the fridge,it loses it's texture and body and isn't as pleasurable to drink.Miles was one of many artist that opened the doors for me as a music enthusiast and aspiring musician to take a good look at the wide spectrum of diversity that jazz music has to offer.The Birth of Cool,Kind of Blue and Bitches Brew are so different.They're are really great in their own way.Miles is always relevant ,good music always is.It knows no competition and if there was ever anything anyone could learn from Miles it's how to be daring.No one, who was ever considered cool ,accomplished it by staying safe.Miles didn't care about other people's opinion,he was arrogant in his work .It's exactly that kind of attitude that makes you stick out for better or for worse.In Miles case he was a force to be reckoned with.

There is a certain delicacy in not pretending. So I can be like badmouthing the entire freaking world, telling them the truth, my truth or whatever, in their faces - and you know man It’d be fine…it’d all be alright because even though there is no sophistication or class in cursing, there is truth in being able to defend your own truth. So they’d probably be like “Winehouse is a huge mouthed wannabe diva” but I’d never let it hit me through the head or heart. I don’t use pretty words for the sake of using pretty words so I can serve them beautifully to undeserving narrow-minded idiots. I ain’t ever doing that. - Amy Winehouse

Amy Winehouse was an incredibly talented singer and songwriter.Her contralto voice complimented the rawness of her lyrics.I admire Amy because as a musician,she wasn't afraid to be herself.She created no larger than life Diva persona nor did she try to behave like the girl next door.She was merely a woman ,albeit a destructive one.Pride,lust,dysfunctional love,self destruction,addiction and anger are among the mayor themes of her songs and as the majority of her song are autobiographical we can deduce easily that they were also mayor themes in her personal life.Amy Winehouse's music is notable for her use of jazz and  do wop and motownish influences which contrast with her lyrics.This said, it breaks away from the pathetic fallacy commonly encountered in literature and music,the music that accompanys the lyrics are not always a reflection of one another.Thus ,I've always perceived that Amy knew that life like her music is indifferent to one's personal plights.I guess you could say that Amy kept it real.Her music was deeply visceral and that,to me,is what makes her so special.

"Aquellas sombras del camino azul dónde están?Yo las comparo con cipreses que vi solo en sueños,y las muñecas tan sangrantes están de llorar.Yo te amo tanto que no puedo despertarme sin amar.-Pescado Rabioso
I can't stress how much I love Pescado Rabioso.Their front man is none other than Luis Alberto Spinetta a multifaceted vsionarysinger/songwritting genius(No I'm not exaggerating.).Pescado Rabioso is an Argentian blue/hard rock band that existed in the early 70's.Their fame though short lived (the band broke up after two and a half years leaving their last album under their name be produced and performed solely by their frontman Spinetta)left their mark not only in the latin rock scene but all over. Pescado 2 was ranked  number 19 in Rolling Stones best rock albums of all time.Their sound is a interesting mix of blues,hard rock and experimental rock.Each of their albums has their own personality.When I listen to their music I feel like I'm hearing an auditory equivalent of a fusion between Salvador Dalí and Van Gogh.The imagery in their lyrics are surreal and colorful.It's like listening to an artistic masterpiece.It's one of kind ,but more over it's just plain beautiful.