Black Friday!

It is hard to believe that there is actually a day called Black Friday. I had no idea what it meant, I knew that it had something to do with the Friday after Thanksgiving where everyone wakes up early and goes shopping. Do you actually know why it is called Black Friday? The meaning of Black Friday is that the retailers are turning a profit. I think that it is amazing that even with this economy and how bad it is there were still lines out the door and stores were still having such big discounts and sales. I went to Old Orchard at 7:30am and it was really crowded already. There were great deals and everyone there had at least two big bags walking around. I think that it is cool that even though the economy is down, people still have traditions of going shopping for their Christmas presents on that day and will follow through with their tradition no matter what. I was looking at the Newspaper and all the articles were talking about how much stores made during Black Friday, and the articles all made it sound like they were surprised. I know people who woke up at 4am because that's what they do every year, and wait in line for the stores to open. Even the bad economy and things going on people still need Christmas presents and still want to do what they have done all along. One thing that some one did a long time ago, has turned into an unofficial holiday that people have traditions for. Do you think that anything even such a bad economy can stop people from living out traditions?

Thanksgiving

It is funny to see what different people do on Thanksgiving day. There are the classic traditions that most people do which is the typical Thanksgiving dinner with turkey and pumpkin pie. But what about on the day and the day after. I know that in my family we play football during the day, that has been a tradition in my family since my older brother was little. I can't even imagine a Thanksgiving without football. There are so many different traditions that people do on different holidays and I personally think that it is really cool to see what different people do. Some people put up their Christmas lights and others wake up at 4 am Friday morning and go to all the sales. What are some of the traditions that your family has? What does tradition mean to you?

Our most hated President

Most people do not like our current president George W. Bush. He has the worst approval rating of any president that we have had in the history of our country. Bush's approval rating is less than 27%. We all know that when George W. Bush was first running for president against Gore, he lost the popular vote and barely won the electoral vote. If I was Bush and barely won the election the first time running, why would he think that he would win again and how did he win again, and how could he think that people would like him. If I were president and I was George W. Bush right now I would hate myself for not being the best that I could be and that I let my country down. If I were Bush right now I would be happy that my term was over and someone else was going to take over and fix my mistakes. At the same time I feel bad for Obama because now he has to go and fix all the mistakes that Bush made. I wonder what I would be thinking if I were George W. Bush and my job was over and people hated me.

What does the President do unitl January?

As many people know, Obama was elected the 44th President of the United States of America last night. I have always wondered what happens, between the time that the President is elected, and the inauguration. The Presidents inauguration ball is in January and the election is in November. It doesn't make sense to me. Especially now because of all the technology, they know that night who will be our next president. Years ago when there were no computers, I could understand why they would wait so long, because it took longer to see who was going to be the next president. I am sure that in the months of transition there is a lot of things that are going on and that both the soon to be President, and the soon to be Ex-President, are both working very hard together and apart to make sure that our country is safe. I know that there are meetings between the old President and the new President, but why wait so long to actually move into the white house?
If I was just elected president like Obama, I would not know how to feel. A President elect, has so much power and influence without technically being our president yet. What if you were just elected President and you had to wait to actually go to the white house and move in. How would you feel in those months in between. What do you do to prepare?

Who's More American?

What determines how American a person is, How do you decide? There are many different things that a person can do to show their patriotism. Multiple time this year we have talked and discussed this question in my American Studies class, and I am still without an answer. During my lifetime there are things that I could do to be more American, but I don't feel the need to have to say out loud my patriotism. I think that I am a patriotic person who supports America. I do not stand for the pledge. I sometimes will say the pledge in my seat, but that's all. I do not where an American flag. I do not have any obvious ways of being patriotic or American. I don't know if you noticed, but during Barack Obama and John McCain's campaigns and debates, they would sometimes where an American flag pin and sometimes not. I noticed that one time I was watching John McCain speak and he was not wearing a pin, but he was wearing a red, white, and blue tie. I thought that this was interesting. What if a person is in the Army or some kind of unit protecting our country, does this mean that they are more patriotic than me. What about people with an American flag on their house, I personally have one, because my Dad leaves it up all year, but does that make me more patriotic. Ever since this topic was brought up in class, I have been trying to find an answer. What exactly makes a person more patriotic and American than another person?

Weather is Crazy!

For the past four years my dad has ran the Chicago Marathon in October. Throughout those years the weather has always been drastic in both hot and cold. The first year that we went to go and watch him it was almost perfect, like 60s which is good for running and good for spectating. The next year that he ran, it was 40 degrees and pouring rain which was like sleet, and the rain was cold. I was wearing my winter coat and gloves, it was so cold. Last year when he ran it was 88 degrees which is so hot that after a certain point they had to close the marathon because it was too dangerous to run in. I was sweating and I wasn't even running, I can't imagine running 26.2 miles in that heat. Yesterday when he ran and we went downtown to watch him, it was about 78 degrees, which is hot for the runners, but not as hot for the spectators. You would think that in October the weather would be pretty consistent with fall weather. That may be true, but then the marathon is cursed. It is weird how the weather could change so much, for being the same Sunday in October every year. 

POLITICS!!!! AHHHHHHHHHHH

I am sick of politics. I think that they are really interesting and that it is an especially cool election this year, but I am so sick of everything politics. There are those people who no matter what they talk about politics is involved. I know that my Dad is very affectionate about politics. It is all he talks about especially with the election coming up. He is so biased and it isn't fair, because no one can say anything about politics especially the other party without him getting really offensive. I will be watching TV and he will come in and see that they are not being fair to both parties and he gets so mad and says that I can't watch that show anymore. I hate it. People are so opinionated which is a good thing but they are overly offensive about their opinions. While I was watching the vice presidential debate, Icouldn't make up my own opinions, because my Dad has brainwashed me to think what he thinks. He keeps saying that he wants me to make my own opinions on which candidate that I like, but if I chose his opponent then I would be wrong and he would tell me all the bad stuff about that candidate. Secretly he wants me to just chose the opponent that he likes. I am just sick of everything involving politics, I understand that politics are important, but why do people have to get so offensive. I like freedom of speech, but that doesn't mean that you have to be so biased that you cant even listen to the other side.