English 1320

Mrs. Kelly,
I loved your class!! But these blogs are hard to catch up on.

Riverfest

Well hopefully this is my last blog, but knowing my luck this one will delete too. Is anyone going tonight? I am not a big fan of Paul Wall, but it seems like a fun thing to do. I have been studying for a couple hours and I feel like I just need to get out of my dorm. The weird thing about riverfest this year I think is the fact that it is on a wednesday and rappers are performing. Dont get me wrong I love rap, but in past years it has been country. Seems like a 180 to me. Anyways if y'all go hope you have fun!

Almost done.

I am about to give up on this blog stuff. This is now the 3rd time my blog has gotten deleted!

Posts and Blogs!

Uggggh! I am getting so annoied at all of this blog stuff. I am trying to get them all done and of course when I submitted this one it said there was an error so I am having to write it all over again. I am having a hard time getting all of these blogs and posts done. It sucks because you can tell how many comments you have made on other people blogs. Is anyone else stressing about this? I am trying to make a good grade in this class and I know its important to try and get all of these done!

School year

So my first year of college has already come and gone. I cant believe I have didnt want to go to college. This has been the most fun I have had in my whole life. When I was in highschool all I could think about was how hard college was going to be. Everyone says that you learn one way in highschool and have to come up with a new method when you get to college. After my first week in San Marcos last semester I had already fallen in love. I found a good organization to get into and I have made what I think will be friends for life and I know that sounds really lame.
When it actually comes to the school aspect like grades I think I am doing okay. Eventhough last semester went a lot smoother than this one I am still keep up with everything...or I think. Now finals are just around the corner then summer will be here. All you have to think is jus one more week!

Mothers Day

Contrary to popular belief, Mother's Day was not conceived and fine-tuned in the boardroom of Hallmark. The earliest tributes to mothers date back to the annual spring festival the Greeks dedicated to Rhea, the mother of many deities, and to the offerings ancient Romans made to their Great Mother of Gods, Cybele. Christians celebrated this festival on the fourth Sunday in Lent in honor of Mary, mother of Christ. In England this holiday was expanded to include all mothers and was called Mothering Sunday. 
In the United States, Mother's Day started nearly 150 years ago, when Anna Jarvis, an Appalachian homemaker, organized a day to raise awareness of poor health conditions in her community, a cause she believed would be best advocated by mothers. She called it "Mother's Work Day." Fifteen years later, Julia Ward Howe, a Boston poet, pacifist, suffragist, and author of the lyrics to the "Battle Hymn of the Republic," organized a day encouraging mothers to rally for peace, since she believed they bore the loss of human life more harshly than anyone else."

Memorial Day

Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation's service. There are many stories as to its actual beginnings, with over two dozen cities and towns laying claim to being the birthplace of Memorial Day. There is also evidence that organized women's groups in the South were decorating graves before the end of the Civil War: a hymn published in 1867, "Kneel Where Our Loves are Sleeping" by Nella L. Sweet carried the dedication "To The Ladies of the South who are Decorating the Graves of the Confederate Dead" (Source: Duke University's Historic American Sheet Music, 1850-1920). While Waterloo N.Y. was officially declared the birthplace of Memorial Day by President Lyndon Johnson in May 1966, it's difficult to prove conclusively the origins of the day. It is more likely that it had many separate beginnings; each of those towns and every planned or spontaneous gathering of people to honor the war dead in the 1860's tapped into the general human need to honor our dead, each contributed honorably to the growing movement that culminated in Gen Logan giving his official proclamation in 1868. It is not important who was the very first, what is important is that Memorial Day was established. Memorial Day is not about division. It is about reconciliation; it is about coming together to honor those who gave their all."

Passover

"History of Passover relates back to over 3,000 years ago, when the Jews were held as slaves by the Egyptian Pharaoh, Rameses II. Moses, who looked after the cause of the Jews, asked Pharaoh several times to release them from slavery, and warned Him that he would devastate his people by plagues. Moses inflicted 10 plagues, and after all the 9 plagues, the Pharaoh agreed to release the Jews from slavery, but quickly changed his mind. (You can read about the 10 plagues by clicking here.) After the 10th plague however, he let the Jews go. The Jews left in a hurry, owing to the fickle-mindness of the Pharaoh, and could thus only take unleavened bread with them, called Matza, which is a part of celebration even today. As expected, the Pharaoh send his army after the Jews so that they could be brought back. The jews travelled for 40 days and nights, and reached Red Sea, where they saw the emperor's army advancing towards them. In despair they asked for help from Moses, who parted the waters of Red Sea for the Jews to cross. As soon as the Jews crossed, the Red Sea regained and drowned the soldiers.Since the time of Jewish freedom from Egyptian slavery, Jews have celebrated this historical event by having a feast called the 'Seder'. The word 'Seder' means 'order' and refers to the order of historical events recalled in the Passover meal as well as the meal itself. The story of Passover is read from a book called the 'Haggadah'. While the main story of Passover is read by Jews the world over, local customs and traditions have changed over time, so that the festival has been adapted to reflect the life and routine of individual communities. This is why the festival of Passover is celebrated differently in Tunisia than in Canada.Passover is celebrated for 8 days (7 for Reform Jews), and always begins on the 15th day of the Hebrew month of Nisan."

History of April Fools Day

"The history of April Fool's Day or All Fool's Day is uncertain, but the current thinking is that it began around 1582 in France with the reform of the calendar under Charles IX. The Gregorian Calendar was introduced, and New Year's Day was moved from March 25 - April 1 (new year's week) to January 1. Communication traveled slowly in those days and some people were only informed of the change several years later. Still others, who were more rebellious refused to acknowledge the change and continued to celebrate on the last day of the former celebration, April 1. These people were labeled "fools" by the general populace, were subject to ridicule and sent on "fool errands," sent invitations to nonexistent parties and had other practical jokes played upon them. The butts of these pranks became known as a "poisson d'avril" or "April fish" because a young naive fish is easily caught. In addition, one common practice was to hook a paper fish on the back of someone as a joke. This harassment evolved over time and a custom of prank-playing continue on the first day of April. This tradition eventually spread elsewhere like to Britain and Scotland in the 18th century and was introduced to the American colonies by the English and the French. Because of this spread to other countries, April Fool's Day has taken on an international flavor with each country celebrating the holiday in its own way.In Scotland, for instance, April Fool's Day is devoted to spoofs involving the buttocks and as such is called Taily Day. The butts of these jokes are known as April 'Gowk', another name for cuckoo bird. The origins of the "Kick Me" sign can be traced back to the Scottish observance.In England, jokes are played only in the morning. Fools are called 'gobs' or 'gobby' and the victim of a joke is called a 'noodle.' It was considered back luck to play a practical joke on someone after noon.In Rome, the holiday is known as Festival of Hilaria, celebrating the resurrection of the god Attis, is on March 25 and is also referred to as "Roman Laughing Day."In Portugal, April Fool's Day falls on the Sunday and Monday before lent. In this celebration, many people throw flour at their friends.The Huli Festival is celebrated on March 31 in India. People play jokes on one another and smear colors on one another celebrating the arrival of Spring.So, no matter where you happen to be in the world on April 1, don't be surprised if April fools fall playfully upon you."

Rugby Rules

I am a little sister for the rugby team and here are some of the weird rules they have when they play.

Distinctive features common to both rugby codes (league and union) include the prolate spheroid ball and the ban on passing the ball forward, so that players can gain ground only by running with the ball or by kicking it.

Scoring in both games occurs by achieving either a try or a goal. A try (at goal) involves grounding the ball, that is, touching the ball to the ground over the goal line at the opponent's end of the field. (New rules say that you must show 'intent' as you do this.) A goal results from kicking the ball over the crossbar between the upright goal posts. Three different types of kicks at goal can score points: the goal kick after a try has been awarded (which if successful becomes a conversion); the drop kick; and thepenalty kick. The points awarded for each vary between the games.

The main differences between the two games, besides league having teams of 13 players and union of 15, involve the tackle and its aftermath:

• Union players contest possession following the tackle: depending on the situation, either a ruck or a maul occurs. League players may not contest possession after making a tackle: play is continued with a play-the-ball (AKA: "Scratch")

• In league, if the team in possession fails to score before a "set of six" tackles, it surrenders possession. Union has no six-tackle rule; a team can keep the ball for an unlimited number of tackles before scoring as long as it maintains possession and does not commit an offense.

Set pieces of the union code include the scrum, where packs of opposing players push against each other for possession, and the lineout, where parallel lines of players from each team, arranged perpendicular to the touch-line (the side line) attempt to catch the ball thrown from touch (the area behind the touch-line).

In the league code, the scrum still exists, but with greatly reduced importance. Set pieces are generally started from the play-the-ball situation which has meant that rugby league has evolved into what some perceive as a faster and more attacking game with a greater emphasis on running with the ball in hand, passing and scoring tries. Many of the rugby league positions have similar names and requirements to rugby union positions but there are no flankers in rugby league. The result of these variations have led to rugby union being considered a traditional form of rugby."

History of the Easter Egg

"The egg is nature's perfect package. It has, during the span of history, represented mystery, magic, medicine, food and omen. It is the universal symbol of Easter celebrations throughout the world and has been dyed, painted, adorned and embellished in the celebration of its special symbolism.Before the egg became closely entwined with the Christian Easter, it was honored during many rite-of-Spring festivals. The Romans, Gauls, Chinese, Egyptians and Persians all cherished the egg as a symbol of the universe. From ancient times eggs were dyed, exchanged and shown reverence.In Pagan times the egg represented the rebirth of the earth. The long, hard winter was over; the earth burst forth and was reborn just as the egg miraculously burst forth with life. The egg, therefore, was believed to have special powers. It was buried under the foundations of buildings to ward off evil; pregnant young Roman women carried an egg on their persons to foretell the sex of their unborn children; French brides stepped upon an egg before crossing the threshold of their new homes.With the advent of Chrisianity the symbolism of the egg changed to represent, not nature's rebirth, but the rebirth of man. Christians embraced the egg symbol and likened it to the tomb from which Christ rose."

Finals

Finals are coming up and this is usually a stressful time for every college student. The strange thing about this semster is that I have tests all this week and then the final next week. It seems as though that is a lot to put on a student. I think teachers should make sure there tests are spread out enough so that a student has a good amount of time to focus on tests then the final.
I dont know if this has happend to anyone else, but I feel even more stressed now. The lucky thing for me this semester is that I dont have as many finals to do. Last semester I had all 5 and this time only 3. I hope everyone does well and good luck!