Hailey Oppelt, Captivated by Cultures

 

Hailey Oppelt, an SPSCC running-start student, pursues independence and is captivated by cultures around the world.  In hope of finding a well-paying position in her long-term passion Oppelt strives to discover the customs of cultures.

 

As a child Oppelt went through stages of different cultural interests.  At 10 years old she recited facts of the Aztec culture at dinner. Eventually Ancient Egypt became her newfound dinner topic.  Recently she’s been interested in China’s leap to a socialist government.

 

She is currently working towards an AA with an intercultural emphasis. The birth and transformation of cultures intrigues Oppelt.

 

Her college career will open the door to finding out for herself civilization’s diversity, according to Oppelt.  She plans on attending Jacksonville of Intercultural Studies at the University of Washington.

 

Unsure of which job to pursue, Oppelt hopes it is one that feeds her passion as well as her wallet.  To discover a well-paying career within the International Studies field is “a pie in the sky dream,” said Oppelt.

 

She hopes to have a family someday in which she can support without the income of a husband.  According to Oppelt she plans on being independent and in order to do that she has to find a job that pays enough but one that she also enjoys doing.

 

“I have an interest in all things that don’t make money,” said Oppelt.

 

Literature, writing, reading, and social movements, although very fascinating to her, don’t provide the stable income Oppelt hopes for.

 

Oppelt’s motivation lies within her times of “utter happiness” when she realizes the opportunities that life has to offer.

 

“You just end up craving more of those moments,” said Oppelt.

 

In pursuit of those moments Oppelt enrolled in the running-start program.  According to Oppelt, getting a head start in college will assist her in her goals of independence.

 

“I’ve decided to take my education into my own hands,” said Oppelt.

 

Attending SPSCC, Oppelt has felt as if she can self-govern her school schedule and her self.  High school can be “smothering” in comparison to SPSCC’s “laid back” environment, said Oppelt.

 

According to Oppelt she aspires to be like her father.  Oppelt’s dad is a “driven, intelligent, and hard working” and according to Oppelt, her role model.

 

South Puget Sound Community College Gas Poll

In Washington unleaded gasoline prices have increased by 21 cents a gallon in the past month to $3.88, according to the government’s Energy Information Administration, EIA. In the past year, the price of regular gasoline have increased 84 cents said EIA.

A survey done by South Puget Sound Community College journalism students found that raising gas prices are affecting their choices on transportation.

Of the SPSCC students surveyed, 61 percent say they have been impacted by the rise in gas prices. The commute from home to SPSCC for the students varied from 1 mile to 50 miles.

Less than half, 47 percent, of the SPSCC students polled said they were aware the college provided free bus fare. Of those, 45 percent said they rode the bus

Others avoided gasoline prices by carpooling or driving less, 31 percent carpooled and 61 percent drove less. Only 4 percent said they walked to school.

Two SPSCC students Patricia and Kristine describe their means of transportation. Living 11.6 miles from campus Patricia said she carpools and buses to school. Kristine, however, said she’d rather pay money instead of time. A two hour bus ride from Lacey to campus wouldn’t be worth for the $50 needed to fill her gas tank, according to Kristine.

Many don’t have the opportunity to choose money over time like Kristine does especially when gasoline prices are on the rise.

A nationwide average gas price of $3.77 per gallon was the result of a 100 thousand gas station survey according to The New York Times

Gas had gone past the $3 mark in December 2011 for the first time since November 2008. Gas prices increased to $4.12 per gallon in 2008, according to GasBuddy.com.

Circle K, a gasoline station located on Trosper Road in Tumwater, sells the cheapest gasoline at $3.88 per gallon in the area, according to AAA. The Shell located on Capitol Boulevard sells the most expensive gasoline at $4.08 per gallon.

Americans could be paying $5 per gallon of gasoline in 2012, said previous Shell Oil president, John Hofmeister

The current gasoline prices are already affecting 41 percent of the student’s food budget. Sharla, an SPSCC student, said that she had to alter her budget due to the raise in gas. Although her commute from Tumwater to SPSCC is short, driving has taken its toll on her.

Reading Reviews

I finished “The Book Thief,” by Markus Zusak

I thought it would be a good idea to finish a book that I started a long time ago.  I was given “The Book Thief,” for my birthday, last summer, from my Aunt Carole.  She told me that it was a great book and I had promised her I would read it.  Almost a year later I did read it and I’m glad I did.

The book was about a German girl named Liesel, who was given up for adoption during Hitler’s reign.  She went through many heartbreaking and also wonderful things.  Zusak’s style of writing is very unique and he decided to have death be the narrator.

The book was wonderful but very difficult to get into, at least for me.  That’s why it took me song long to read it.  But once I decided to just read it, I enjoyed it a lot.

I love reading, something I almost forgot.  It’s been so long since I’ve read for pleasure.  I’m usually busy reading materials for school.

I also forgot how relaxing reading can be.  It’s so great how a book can just swallow you into a completely different world.  That’s why I chose this outside exhibit to be spiritual.

It’s almost like meditating.  When I read I forget my worries.  I found myself crying and laughing with Liesel, Max, and Rudy.  One moment I could be wrapped up in a make belief world and then instantly come back to my reality.

I suppose it’s as if I’m just leaving the world behind while I read.  Of course not with all readings you can do this but the ones with fantasy you can completely.

I used to complain that I didn’t have time to read, that I was too tired to begin a book, but it’s just the opposite.  It’s a break form the concept of time and it can grasp you from weariness.

I’ve already begun another book, although I’m having a difficult time to get into it as well, it’s called “The Road,” a book I’ve been putting off reading as well.

I want to continue reading.  I love escaping for awhile.  It’s so much fun.  Where the pains aren’t truly there, but you can still feel hurt, but only for a moment.  That’s what’s great about stories.

I’d like to begin a reading list where I just have a numbers of books to read.  I’d enjoy that because I’d always have something else to look forward to.

Discovering Local Talent

I went to  hear a local band called Camp Wisdom and see a play called Eurydice.

Eurydice at the Evergreen State College. By Sarah Ruhl and directed by Miller Pyke.

Although I really enjoy plays and spending time with friends I hardly get a chance to do so.  Life is so fast-paced lately that I can’t catch up.  I spend most of my time working, doing school work, or taking a breath.

When I was invited to go to a free showing at Evergreen with a couple of friends. I felt almost guilty agreeing with homework hanging over my head. However it was Saturday night and I decided that I deserved to enjoy to go out.

My friends and I chose to see the band that played before the show as well.  I learned of a new local folk band called Camp Wisdom.  It was a lot of fun.  The band was very entertaining.  They certainly seemed like hillbillies too with their mannerisms and outfits.  They were great sounding too! It made me really happy tha t there are local young people who dedicate time to something that’s so wonderful.

The night was filled with talent and inspiration to me.  The director of Eurydice was a young woman who studies at Evergreen.  The night that I attended the play was the last showing of her first ever directing.

To begin with it seemed as if the play was going to be somewhat cheesy but after the first scene I was on the edge of my seat.  By the end of it I was in tears.  The play was very good, the actors were great, and it was apparent a lot of time and energy was spent from the whole entire cast, including the director.

After such a wonderful night it made me wonder what all I was missing out in the community.  I’ve been so exhausted lately that I haven’t wanted to go out and have fun.

I don’t think I’ll be going out every weekend but I’ll definitely be keeping my eye out for interesting things going on around town.  If I feel like I can spare the time then I will, without feeling guilty this time.

Girl or Boy? As Fertility Technology Advances, So Does an Ethical Debate

Girl or Boy?

by Denise Grady

This article puts into question what’s right and what’s wrong? Is it okay to choose the sex of your baby? Does that fall within ethical guidelines? Find out my views on Denise Grady’s article on reproductive technology. 

Girl or Boy? As Fertility Technology Advances, So Does an Ethical Debate Article

 

I cannot identify with people who dream of having a child of a specific gender.  This idea is completely foreign to me.  May it be my age or just who I am as an individual my vision of a child is beautiful but not a fantasy that contains the child’s identity down to a T.

I think that what’s so magical about having a child is the unexpected person.  A child that you call your own but is not your own self.

I’ve heard time and again how amazing it is for a parent to see their child as if they were looking down at themselves when they were young.   The excitement of how certain features of a parent are intertwined with the other creates a miraculous entity as if there were two in one.

The problem lies within that very fact that two are not in one.  There is a third person, there is a unique entity and there is an individual apart from their parents.

The individuality that I speak of is precious and fragile.  I believe the role of a parent is to create a space that feeds this fragility until it becomes strong within itself, until it can grasp the world without the world grasping it.

This is the problem; children aren’t given such opportunities to find out exactly whom they are.  They don’t get the chance to see what sets them apart from everyone else. They are supposed to jump with their eyes closed.  The media tells the child to be one way, while parents tell them to be the other. Their friends chase certain paths and tell them to follow. Parents aren’t being part of the solution to their children’s difficulties in deciding which way to run and which way to run from.

As a teenager I’ve had incredible struggles with finding the “right” path.  My mother, the person who raised me, tried her best as a single parent to answer my questions of where to go.  The only dilemma was I wasn’t asking her how to live my life or spend my time.

I was asking my mother to share with me her life.  I wanted to know her ups and downs as a child.  Why she chose to walk along the paths she did.  Why she regretted certain ones and why she treasured others.  I wanted to know how she got through sadness and how she celebrated joys. I wanted to know what the answers were for her, not the answers for me.

This world is built up of differences that are threaded with similarities.  It is hated by people and loved by others.  It’s broken with the pains of those weeping and then mended with the warmth of those standing.

As of May 21, 2011 at 4:18 PM there were 6 billion 966 million 147 thousand and 280 people in the world according to Worldometer, a site of world statistics.  According to VistaWide, an online language resource, there are 6 thousand 9 hundred and 12 different languages spoken currently throughout the world according to VistaWide, an online language resource.  In fact, the number of ethnic groups, societies, and cultures is unknown.

The uniqueness of individuals disappears when parents begin picking and choosing for their children.  An artist whose dad wants to send them to Law school, a mathematician whose mother wants them to take over the family business—these natural gifts, these natural characteristics are their own and no one can take that away from them.

Now deciding whether or not their child is female or male can be done.  I think it’s extremely controlling.  Being at a place where you’d be unhappy if you had a girl vs. a boy to the point that you will spend so much money to decide on the gender is wrong.  I don’t think parents who have the vision of how their child is going to look or be will ever be content with their child.

The vision of how your child is going to look and act is unrealistic to a huge degree and will back fire.  The son or daughter will end up disappointing the parent at some point if they ever feed their drive to be themselves.

I also find the want to change a child’s gender unethical because once you change or deny them of their ‘uniqueness’ you kill a part of them; you kill the best part of them.

I think parents need to realize and be content with knowing that they will always be a part of their child, whether it is big or small.  Just like nothing can take the child’s individual person away, no one can take away the pieces of knowledge and genes you give him or her—unless you so choose.

Parents have power and unfortunately this power is often abused.  They have the power to destroy dreams and irreplaceable characteristics.  But most importantly they have the power to nourish dreams and irreplaceable characteristics.

Scents and Sensibility

Can you smell who you're meant to be with? Find out by clicking the above picture.

Scents and Sensibility

 

by: Elizabeth Svoboda

An article about finding “the right one” and how societies perfumes and colognes may be preventing incompatibility. Read the article attached to the photo and then take a look at my thoughts and comments.  

At the beginning of this article it discusses how both sexes are attracted to scent.  “Men who bury their noses into their wives’ hair and women who can’t stop sniffing their boyfriends’ t-shits.” It then further contradicts itself by discussing the women’s attracting to smell. I was left wondering if the attraction to the persons’ smell is always reciprocated.

Why does the article say that the closer in common the male and female MHC alleles are, the less attracted the woman is going to be, therefore increasing the number of sexual partners out side of the relationship?

When it says, “if a man and woman had 50 percent of their MHC alleles in common, the woman has a 50 percent chance of sleeping with another man behind her partner’s back.” Sure the article points out that woman are more sensitive to smell’s than men, but the article still say’s that men choose their mates by scent too. Why is the man not likely to cheat if the MHC alleles are close?

When I read about how oral contraceptives changes a man’s sexual appeal to them, I was curious why it discussed earlier how some woman would marry men they weren’t attracted to when off the pill, yet the man were attracted to them when they were on the pill.  The woman can supposedly choose someone closely related to her MHC alleles and be attracted to that person and marry them.  The man was obviously attracted to her and most likely was attracted to her scent, yet they weren’t compatible? He chose someone who, by this article, wasn’t really supposed to smell attractive to him.

I wish they suggested what other birth control alternatives woman could use without interfering with choosing nature’s way of finding compatible mates.  I feel somewhat cheated that I could have been sending off unconscious signals to men without knowing it. Maybe oral contraceptives can perhaps ensure commitment to a degree instead of increasing the likelihood of divorce.  The less attracted men are to you, the less temptations in the way, therefore the less likely you are to cheat: just a thought.

The Skinny Sweepstakes

This is a photoshopped image. She is not truly that thin.

The Skinny Sweeptstakes

by: Hara Estroff Marano

The pictures link to ‘The Skinny Sweepstakes’ article.  This is my review of the article.

It’s sad that today’s media is influencing people to make bad decisions towards their health. It’s leading people to see this “perfect” body image and make us feel as if we need to look the same. This isn’t the first time I’ve heard of such a sad thing and unfortunately I don’t think it will be the last.

I don’t think teenagers realize that the girls seen on vogue magazine are probably extremely unhealthy and unhappy because they don’t really take care of themselves. I wish schools, parents, and adults all around made it clear to children and one another that self-image is not a perfect image and there’s no such thing.

Competing to be more beautiful is a result of a) low self-esteem and b) the consistent comparing being done. Everyone compares people but we mostly compare ourselves to those people. The standards that the media holds above societies’ head are impossible. But don’t think there’s a reason behind such unattainable standards: they want woman to continue buying the products and reading the magazine. In their view the only way to do that is if the goal they put out can’t be reached. That’s why there’s always something “better” and “newer” coming out everyday.

I don’t think the congregation of woman at school is the issue I think it comes down to the media and what’s being placed in our heads; the effects of the media on both men and women. Men think men should look one because television tells them so and vice versa.

The Perils of Higher Education

The Perils of Higher Education:

by Steven Kotler

Since it’s finals time and students are going to be welcoming a new school year I thought I’d introduce an article that discusses the consequences to some of the decisions college students make.  The pictures link to the real article but the following are my comments and review of the topics covered.

Sleep deprivation 

I know that I have pulled all nighters in order to get a research paper written and complete work.

From learning in a Human Development class that sleep helps with memory and gives you a higher chance on doing better on tests I never pull all nighters the day before a test.  I do however when I have writings and other homework.

Finals week is terrible: I believe that it gives a definite overload to the brain and there’s just no way that the majority of students are being positively affected and learning what they should be and what they pay for.

Unhealthy eating

Alzheimer’s and trans fat: damages ability to remember

Alcohol use

The neurons born after binge drinking, once fully developed, didn’t work properly and produced less to: 1,400 compared to 2,500 new brain cells.

Smoking

Sure there are exceptions ie. Improving mental focus, spatial memory, emotional memory and auditory memory but I still think the bad outweighs the good.

State-dependence is just one issue to smoking as well all know.  With smoking comes health issues and so forth.

For those that even consider using these smoking “positives” I suggest you take a look at the ingredients that you inhale into your body.

Second hand smoke:

“Cigarette smoke contains over 4,000 chemicals, including 43 known cancer-causing (carcinogenic) compounds and 400 other toxins. Smoke containing nicotine is inhaled into the lungs, and the nicotine reaches your brain in just six seconds. Nicotine in small doses acts as a stimulant to the brain. In large doses, it’s a depressant, inhibiting the flow of signals between nerve cells. In even larger doses, it’s a lethal poison, affecting the heart, blood vessels, and hormones. Nicotine in the bloodstream acts to make the smoker feel calm.”

Ingredients: Tar, benzene leads to benzene leukemia, Carbon monoxide=lethal gas, arsenic=used as a pesticide on tobacco, you inhale it into your lungs and then becomes a build up…etc.

Dear Students,

I will sign off with some words of wisdom that this article has encouraged.  One thing every person should remember is MODERATION is key!

Get your sleep and prepare, do not procrastinate.

Noah Lundquist, A face within SPSCC

 “I want to change the world,” said Noah Lundquist a student of the South Puget Sound Community College.

With “grandiose” dreams and “practical” pursuits, Lundquist hopes to find his place in this world. Obtaining a life of writing novels, touring in bands, acting and teaching English in Japan would be ideal for Lundquist.

After SPSCC, Lundquist’s next objective is to attend Evergreen.  There he would like to study Sociology and Writing.

Throughout his day Lundquist juggles studying, work, reading, and writing.  Working 20 hours a week and being a full-time student, Lundquist stays positive.

“I’m constantly convincing those around me that the sky is not actually falling,” said Lundquist.

He views his optimism as strength. He believes that people should focus on what’s going good in their life.

What Lundquist calls “life” many would call tragedy. Growing up in Tacoma, Lundquist developed a different perspective towards city’s violence. A man was shot in an alley behind his home.  His brother was also involved in a gang. He said that people just “learned to live around it.”

When Lundquist didn’t want to live around it anymore he took a bus to Portland, Oregon to visit friends.  It was there that he experienced homelessness for the first time.

From Portland he hitchhiked to San Francisco, California where he visited shows and hung out friends.  He then traveled back to Washington and has now found himself going to school at South Puget Sound Community College.

Lundquist viewed his time on the streets as “self-inflicting.” “I essentially had an eject button whenever I want it,” said Lundquist.

He experienced the effects of society’s views on homelessness. Lundquist saw the materialistic side of the public much clearer.  According to Lundquist, if you didn’t have money and a job you are looked down upon.

 

Revising Leads

SPSCC Student Senate: Repeal the Blood Ban

My Journalism class was assigned to choose an article from The Sounds News, SPSCC campus newspaper in which I am editor-in-training, and rewrite the lead. Writing leads can be the most challenging to write.  Understanding what is necessary to place into the lead is important.

Leads need to have the who, the what, the where, the when, the why and the how.  It has to catch the readers attention and what better way to do that by telling them the NEWS!

The article I decided to re-edit was Student Senate: Repeal the Blood Ban written by Melodie Reece, a staff member of The Sounds News.  I believe the article contains a lot of great information but the organization and use of the inverted pyramid should have been put more into play when Reece wrote her article.

I highly suggest reading the article that I have linked above through thesoundsnews.com.  See for yourself the different approaches and why I chose my lead.

Student Senate: Repeal the Blood Ban; Re-edited by Annelise Tuttle

South Puget Sound Community College’s Queer-Straight Alliance club petitions a proposal to ban the FDA law that prohibits homosexual men from donating blood.   The law was put into place due to the high HIV/AID diagnoses occurring in the gay community.

Matthew Shrader, SPSCC senator for administrative affairs, notified the student senate of the current law that “politely rejected” him in winter of 2010.  It was the first time Shrader had heard of the law and was appaled, he said.

“I know plenty of heterosexuals who don’t practice safe sex, and plenty of gay men that do,” said Shrader.