How have experiences impact decisions and decisions impact life?

The places I’ve been and the things I have been told have all effected my actions because I act from what I have learned and I have learned by experience. Decisions also impact my life a great deal because what I do now indirectly affects the rest of my life by closing opportunities or keeping life’s’ doors wide open. Chris Mccandless decision to seek purity and independence in solitude killed him and changed his whole life and his family’s life. The Narrator’s actions were kind of effected by black history and societal structure at the time. Che’s experiences impacted his decision to join the Communist Revolution and later he was responsible for mass murder (which heavily impacted his life because he was forced out of Cuba and known for his bad actions). Amir’s neglectful relationship with his father and jealousy of Hassan impacted his motive and decision to drive Hassan and Ali away, which ultimately changed his life forever because he is still guilty about it and he is still trying to atone for his actions.

Best Advice

I was sitting on the bus, listening to the loud hum of the vehicle and its passengers. Two women behind me complaining about their misbehaved children. "All they do is bicker and whine and talk back! They don't know how much I do for them and I am never enough for them." I remember the sadness that is welling inside of me and my eyes begin to fog with tears. I look out the window to choke it back and see a beautiful sunny day in perfectly broken Los Angeles. I turn to my best friend sitting next to me and we look into each others eyes, and i know she feels my pain, she feels my tears. She says," the most beautiful thing I've seen is your eyes when they cry" and I realized that the most exquisite emotion and experience is one that is both sad and real at the same time. Something that is so sad that it is so beautiful. Two different emotions intertwined to make one strong emotion. This idea is what inspires me and stimulates me to make art and live my life in an honest, raw way.

Independent Reading Check-In 2

The chapter I just finished in my book was really good. It was about Bourdain's trip to Las Vegas and I really enjoyed his insights about how hollow and falsely idealistic Vegas is. His food reviews were detailed and I was truly interested and excited about reading them. The chapter I am on now, "Are you a Crip or a Blood?" is entertaining but a bit confusing on what he thinks of each "gang". Sometimes his writing is really interesting and stimulating, but other times his big words and lengthy descriptions are repetitive and can be confusing. I also think his transitions are elementary.I feel like he is a good review writer (his descriptions are so detailed - I love this element) but as an author he is just OK. Maybe I'm just not interested in non-fiction writing - I don't know. I have a feeling that I will get a little tired of his writing style by the end of the book. I hope Mr. Bourdain's book will show me otherwise!

RAFT- Argentina

Myself to Che in a cartoon about people encountered in Argentina

Independent Reading Book

I chose Anthony Bourdain's second book, The Nasty Bits which is about his travels around the world tasting food. It is nonfiction writing and this connects to my passion of cooking because I love to travel and similar to Mr. Bourdain, I would like to taste really unique foods of the world. I love cooking and being stimulated by interesting food. I also aspire to relate cooking or nutrition into my career - maybe I will become a chef or a nutritionist, I'm not sure. Also, I am really interested in learning about and understanding different cultures and social inequality and I think that Anthony Bourdain's travels definitely investigate the relation of food and culture.
An independent reading project that I am considering is writing an essay about how food relates to culture.

Road Trip

I would like to take a road trip with two close friends and drive through Southern America to Mexico. Starting in Blue Bell, PA stopping in Baltimore then Asheville NC, Chattanooga TN, Memphis TN, Jackson MS, New Orleans LA, Beaumont TX, Houston TX, Austin TX, Monterrey, Mexico! Guadalajara, Cuidad de, Oaxaca.
This trip will take about a month and a half. Spending time with people we meet, eating food, enjoy each location for what it is, reading, writing, conversing, swimming in lakes, walking along mountains, I really want to take this trip

It's hard to know when a book will be good or not. I question how I choose books at the bookstore already! I judge covers and ask people that I respect whether or not they have heard of the book. I don't like cheesy covers and I wish that book covers didn't have so many pictures on them. I usually look for books that I have heard of and during my search I find new books that I have never seen and if i like the cover I sit down and start reading. If I want to continue reading, I will buy the book!