Essay for Student Sucess ...enjoy..?

LeeAnn Schaefer

February 21, 2010

Personal Accountability Essay

Life as it Goes

            In life there events that occur that force you to refocus your energy and reorganize your priorities.  Whether these events are tragic or beautiful they make us take a look at what we have been doing with this life we are given. We look at what we really want from ourselves and we question if what we are doing is working to achieve those goals. If we can eliminate the process of having and extreme event occurring, forcing us to evaluate our actions we can, in turn, succeed in achieving our goals. To achieve our goals we must clearly state what our goals are, identify ways in which our lives are working or not working toward achieving our goals, and improve our methods if they are not working toward the achievement of our goals.

            After self-reflection I have identified that my main goal in life is to be an amazing wife and mother. Many things that I do now would not seem to correlate to being a wife or mother but after thinking hard about it I realized that my lifestyle now has a huge impact on my future and my children and husband’s future. If I make the necessary lifestyle changes now I will be able to continue that lifestyle when I am a mother and will be able to pass it along to my children.  The changes I will make include: doing something active (i.e. run, walk, crunches, etc.) at least 3 days out of the week, keep a clean living environment everyday, and drink at least one glass of milk, juice or water a day and eat at least a fruit or vegetable each day. These changes will help morph my day to day life into a healthier lifestyle.  One goal in particular that I have made that does not correlate with my physical health is that I will continue to knit or crochet everyday and will consistently work to improve my skills in knitting and crocheting.  This is something that I believe fits into the mold of an amazing mother and will also help with my emotional health by taking time out of my schedule to relax and do something I enjoy.

            When I managed my time I noticed that though I wished to do all of these things, they did not happen.  By analyzing my time schedule I found that I would focus more on my school work than on preparing a meal or taking the dogs for a walk. I worked obsessively for hours at a time with my studies.  Though this accomplishes my goal of graduating and having a career, this obsessive behavior with my studies prevented me from maintaining a healthy lifestyle, and thus, being an amazing mother and wife. Another thing that I noticed is that when I finish with my studies I do not pick up my room (so as to have a clean environment), instead I will immediately reward myself with knitting or crocheting. Though this is one of my goals it is something that I need to limit more in order to achieve my other goals as well.

            In order to fix these issues I can use some simple fixes.  One way to fix this is by using the time during my long study sessions that my attention wanders slightly to pick things up around my room or make my bed instead of surfing the web or facebook. Another solution would be to make my healthy lifestyle a habit by setting fixed times for when I go for a run on Tuesdays or when I begin to make my lunch on Saturdays (and every other day).  By ensuring that I have the time ‘booked’ I will not replace it with my obsessive studying on accident. My knitting and crocheting are the easiest part of my new lifestyle change because I enjoy it and, in a sense, need it.  By only allowing myself to knit or crochet when my room is clean, if I ate properly and if I did some physical activity that day my goals to be a wonderful, amazing mother and wife are more in reach.

            Though I knew that I had a goal to be an amazing mother and wife, I did not know that it was my main goal. By re-evaluating my life and what I wished to change about myself I was able to see with clarity my true desires. With these simple changes in my everyday life I will be able to easily obtain my hearts deepest desire, one day at a time.

Finals ='( bahhhhh

So...it's that time of the semester...the dreaded...FINALS!!!!!!!!!

gah. I have two finals on Tuesday (tomorrow) and an essay due and two finals on Thursday.
on top of that... appppearently NAU gets snow days so their finals for today and tomorrow are cancled or postponed or whatever...not fair!!!!

But....it is raining here! and it is absolutely beautiful!!! I love this weather, even if I am freezing my buttocks off!



So tomorrow is my Microbiology practical (final)!!! Wish me good luck!
I LOVE this class and am thinking of getting a degree in microbiology too...but we'll see what happens! =D

Essay 3

Here is my final product for my third essay. Hope you enjoy...but I understand if you don't! =)
Essay 4 is a research essay... ='(

LeeAnn Schaefer
ENG 218- Essay 3
November 13, 2009

That Kind of Guy

Shakespeare creates an interest in his plays through the characters he uses. He does this by creating characters that his audience can relate to because their personalities and values match those of actual people they know or can easily imagine knowing. Three character types that are seen fairly often in Shakespearean plays are the “good guys”, the superstitious, and the betrayers of trust.
One type of character that Shakespeare uses in his plays is the “good guys”. Like some people in this world, Shakespeare has characters in his play that are generally innocent in their motives and are genuinely nice guys. In Julius Caesar the “good guy” is Antony and is Julius Caesar’s best friend. He is devoted and admiring of Julius Caesar but is not jealous of Caesar’s fame. This character is one the audience can either relate to a best friend it knows or to qualities it admires and would look for in the search for a best friend. King Henry V had a variety of good guys but the one that is easiest to admire is the boy. After his master died, the boy accompanied Bardolph, Nim and Pistol to the war in France. During the course of the war Shakespeare shows the audience that Bardolph, Nim and Pistol are cowardly thieves. The boy says, “As young as I am, I have observed these three swashers. I am boy to them all three, but all they three, though they would serve me, could not be man to me, for indeed three such antics do no amount to a man…I must leave them and seek some better service; their villainy goes against my weak stomach, and therefore I must cast it up.” (3.2.29-30; 3.2.51-53). Despite his lack of age this boy knows that what these three men are doing is untrustworthy and wrong chooses to not take part in such acts. Instead of being influenced by them he realizes that he needs to separate himself from these kind of people. People are constantly judged or evaluated based on their morality and choices that they make. Here Shakespeare gives the audience two completely different types of characters but characters that are very common in every day life. Every person knows a “good guy” or a “bad guy” and therefore can relate to these characters.
Another characteristic found in Shakespeare’s characters as well as people in real life is being superstitious. Superstition, whether believing it is bad luck to have a black cat cross in front of them or that believing if something goes wrong it is God’s will, is a common trait in many people. Shakespeare shows this trait in Julius Caesar, through Julius Caesar himself. Caesar’s superstitious beliefs are seen clearly when he tells Antony, “Forget not in your speed, Antonius, To touch Calphurnia, for our elders say The barren, touched in this holy chase, Shake off their sterile curse.” (Act 1 Scene 2) Here we see that Caesar, in hopes of ending his wife’s sterility he uses remedies that people recommend to him, even if it is not proven to work. On the other hand, in King Henry V, Shakespeare shows the audience that King Henry uses religion and religious law to justify his course of action. Henry wants to go to war with France to claim what he believes is his birthright. He seeks assurances from the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Bishop of Ely if he does have a right to claim this birthright and if it is God’s will or not. He relies on God’s help before the war and when Henry has victory over France he says “Yes, Captain, but with this acknowledgement, That God fought for us.” (4.8.120-121) He believes that it was not his men, or a good strategy that won the war, but God and his power. Many people, not only throughout the ages, but even today as well, believe that things happen because of luck or because God made it so. By adding these qualities to characters, Shakespeare makes them unique and more human, thus allowing the audience to relate to them.
A very common character that Shakespeare puts in his plays is someone who betrays the trust of another. In Julius Caesar, Cassius uses his influence and power of words to manipulate Brutus’s thoughts and turn him against Caesar. By doing this Cassius betrays the trust of not only Brutus but Caesar as well. He also, indirectly, betrays the trust of the people who voted him into power as a politician and believed that he was a good person of moral and was trustworthy. Brutus was manipulated by Cassius into believing that the only way to save the republic was to kill Caesar and by not only planning the assassination but taking part in it as well, Brutus betrayed Caesar’s trust of him. Caesar’s realization that Brutus has betrayed him comes in the famous line, “Et tu Bruté?” (3.1.84) In King Henry V, Nim, Pistol and Bardolph use their power of being on the winning side to steal and harass those they have conquered, thus betraying the trust associated with power and the trust of Henry, who is against such actions and expects much better conduct from his men. Though in King Henry V, the most substantial betray of trust is seen through the actions of Scroop, Cambridge and Grey. These three men were personal friends of the King. Despite this they chose to be traitors to his cause and him personally. They accepted the payment of gold for the lives and wellbeing of their fellow Englishmen as well as their king and friend. Though not literally, most if not all people have felt like they have been “stabbed in the back” by someone close. That betrayal is something that is not easily forgotten and evokes strong feeling when thought about. Shakespeare uses this to his advantage when writing plays by creating many betrayals over many different things, whether it be money, friendship, power or love.
By using characters like the “good guys,” the superstitious and those who betray others trust, Shakespeare creates a way for the audience to relate to the play he has written. He makes characters that can be easily seen as people and because of this, can be relatable and interesting to the audience. Because he could draw the audience into the story and allow it relate to the characters he created and their feelings, Shakespeare was not only successful in his day but in the present day as well.

Work Cited

Crowther, John, ed. “No Fear Henry V.” SparkNotes.com. SparkNotes LLC. 2004. Web.
10 Nov. 2009.
Crowther, John, ed. “No Fear Julius Caesar.” SparkNotes.com. SparkNotes LLC. 2005.
Web. 10 Nov. 2009.
Shakespeare, William edited by Craik, T. W. “King Henry V.” The Arden Shakespeare,
London. 1995.

Just an update

A new perspective..

Concentrate on the fact that:
1. I have a boyfriend
2. My relationship with him can progress
3. He is devoted to me and is faithful
4. He loves me and I love him
5. We have a wonderful, rewarding, and mutually beneficial relationship
6. We know how to communicate our feelings-despite distance, anger (during fights), and my stupid stubbornness
7. We will be married and have a family together
8. He puts up with me...somehow :P



maybe this will help me...realizing how lucky I am...duhh





On another note...
~knitting is going well with the beanie-making progress...I'm at about 5" :) (out of 9")

~School is stressful...but I'm doing good in it :)

~Micro is going good but lab is a lot of work at the moment...we have a midterm next Tuesday...we also have a test in the lecture class on Thursday. I am not yet prepared for it but I am definitely ahead of many others.

~Chemistry is just a mess sometimes...lately. lol I'm not really close to ready for the chemistry test next thursday but I will be working with Jenny today to learn and practice balancing equations and so on. I'll also be going to a review session on Monday before work...bah. But it should help.

~English is going fine, I just need to write out my rough draft. I annotated my passage and have a thesis and rough outline already so it shouldn't be too difficult.

~Latin...haven't had a chance to work on it yet this week. I think it will be more of a weekend thing especially during busy weeks. bah!



Well..that's pretty much it..nothing interesting really =P