Memoir

The Most Beautiful Place In The World

I was born and raised in the city of Minneapolis. Minneapolis is very urban so I spent almost my entire childhood growing up in the city and everything it came with. The bright lights of downtown at night, the busy freeways, the Mall of America. All of these things are beautiful and great but there was a small part of my heart missing that the city just could not fill. Then I was introduced to Menogyn. Menogyn is a YMCA camp for teenagers who want to explore the wilderness with other kids like you. It is for backpacking, rock climbing and canoeing from 8 up to 50 day trips. My dad was a guide at Menogyn when he was younger, my brother went on many trips and then it was finally my turn to go on my trip. In the summer leading up to my eighth-grade year I went on an 8 day canoe trip, and the summers following I went on an 11 and a 14 day trip. Those were great trips in the Boundary Waters but the trip that I will never forget is my 21 day trip this past summer to the Quetico. The Quetico is like the Canadian Boundary Waters.

Before the trip, I was very nervous. My brother had told me many times that "it'll be the hardest trip you do. You'll be pushed a lot but it is so worth it." I was also unbelievably excited. Another reason that I was nervous was that I didn't know anyone who would be going and the group that I was going to be spending 21 days straight with were all complete strangers. The two things that I was most nervous about turned out to be two things that completely changed who I am.

Menogyn is a seven hour bus ride away from the Twin Cities. That is a long time to be on a bus with strangers. The bus was my first experience with having to open up and talk to people. For the first part of the drive up, I was very nervous to talk to the people around me. I thought that they would think I was weird or annoying, so I spent the beginning of the trip sleeping or listening to music. When you first arrive at camp everyone comes together and you find out your groups. This was the first time that I would meet the people that I was going to be spending the next 21 days straight with. Again, I was very scared that we were not all going to get along or become friends. I soon found out that all of the people on the bus, and especially the people in my group, whom I had thought were weird, were hilarious and nice. Being on that long bus ride and being thrown into a group of strangers forced me to step out of my comfort zone and to talk to these people I didn't know. It taught me that if you make no effort to get to know people, you will never find out how great they are. It also taught me that stepping out of your comfort zone can greatly pay off. 

We all had a few days in camp to get to know our groups and get prepared for our trip and then we were off to trail. Being on trail is one of my favorite things in my life. It is also one of the hardest. Everyday of the trip we canoed miles and portaged long distances. Because we were so far away from camp, we had to push very hard some days so we could keep up with our route. 

 The hardest day of the trip was the day we did the Death March. The Death March is a 2 mile long, very hard portage. It was also the thing that i was dreading. We woke up that morning with our counselor Lizzie telling us to "get up and get ready. It's Death March day!" We paddled a little bit to the portage and stopped right before starting. I kept telling myself that it was too hard and that I couldn't carry 70 pounds of pack or canoe that far. But I finally realized that I just had to buckle down and do it. There was something really cool at the end that was all of our inspiration. The Death March, although it was hard and tiring at the time, was a wake up call that I needed to push myself more. That was something that I needed to do and I had to rely on myself to do, nobody else. It taught me that we are all able to do more than we think is possible for ourselves. It also showed me that sometimes there are things you have to figure out how to do on your own, and that you can't depend on others. But also along with that, there will be people right along side you in the same situation who will encourage you and help you get through hard situations, whether they be physical, mental or emotional. 

The end of the Death March was one of the coolest things I have ever seen. It is called the Olive Jar. The Olive Jar is, as our counselor explained to us before our trip, "a jar where everyone who passes through writes a note about their trip, experiences with the wilderness or just life in general. You can read peoples notes from over 40 years ago. It will be one of the coolest parts of our trip." and it was the thing we were all looking forward to. When I was in the Quetico, we went days without seeing people and to find this Olive Jar with notes from all these people made me realize how spectacular the wilderness really is. While we were reading notes, one of the girls in my group said to me "hey Natalie, your last name is Holdahl right?" I wasn't quite sure why she was asking that but the handed me a note that she had taken out of the jar. It was my brothers note from when he did the same trip in 2007! Reading about the experiences that others felt and their connections to nature made me feel a connection with these people that I have never met before. It especially gave me a connection to my brother that nobody else can understand. Being in a place that is only experienced by a very minimal group of people makes it seem amazing and that much more special that you get to be there.

On my groups last day on trail, we did our last portage of the trip and their was a water fall at the end of it. We had seen many waterfalls on our trip already so it wasn't that big of a deal that we were going to see another one. That idea totally changed when we got there. This waterfall had a perfect rainbow going from the top of it down to the bottom. We got there at just the perfect time to see this unbelievable sight. It was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen in my life. It made me appreciate the beauty of being out there 1000% more.

My canoe trip to the Quetico last summer taught me some things that I will never forget. It taught me that hard work pays off and that pushing yourself will earn you great rewards. It also taught me to appreciate this world that we live in and how truly amazing it is. Never take anything for granted or look over anyone or anything because it might be something truly life changing. A portage can turn into a spark inside of you, a simple Olive Jar full of notes may connect you to a whole new world and something that you have seen many times before might turn out to be something that you will never be able to forget.

Editorial

Prosthetics: Disability or Advantage?
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/15/sports/othersports/15runner.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

Oscar Pistorius is a South African sprinter. In 2012, he became the first ever double amputee to compete at the Olympics. It is a controversial topic that prosthetics are giving athletes, like Pistorius, an unfair advantage against able bodied competitors. It is said that the prosthetic legs give the runners an unfair 'spring' to their step which is something that normal, human legs cannot achieve. As of now, the legs did not give Pistorius a big enough advantage to win anything in the Olympics but it is thought that prosthetics will just keep getting more advanced and will pass by the non-disabled athletes. Some even say that competitors with prosthetics should not be able to compete in the regular olympics along side 'normal' competitors. So, ultimately are prosthetics a disability or an advantage?

In the article, having prosthetics for a disability is compared to wearing special contacts to see better and to steroids. This is outrageous. Choosing to use something to enhance your performance is very different than using a prosthetic so you are able to even do that activity in the first place. Track and field's governing body, the I.A.A.F, almost kept Oscar Pistorius from competing in the Olympics by prohibiting the use of springs and wheels to help the athlete. Tests have been done that show that while wearing prosthetics, you only get back 80% of the energy produced by the leg, compared to the 240% back from a normal leg of a runner. This doesn't seem like any kind of advantage. There is no clear reason as to why Pistorius has an advantage against able bodies runners so there is not reason that he should not be able to compete. These athletes, like Pistorius, are doing using these prosthetics to be able to walk in general, not to enhance their performance. It is greatly unfair to them to say that they are being given an unfair advantage when they have a disability that they have no control over.

It is wrong to be able to keep someone from doing what they love, like running in the Olympics, just because they have a disability. There have been no reports of prosthetics giving an unfair advantage. I believe that these athletes should be able to compete with able-bodied competetors if they wish to do so. If prosthetics start becoming greatly unfair, then is the time to create another competition for them but as for no they should be able to run against anyone whom they choose. It is wrong to say they have an advantage because they are disabled.

Blog #3: Media Coverage Of Hurricane Katrina

From Newseum.org. See here for bigger picture

The Anniston Star. Anniston, Alabama. Friday, September 2, 2005.

"Death in the streets: As anarchy erupts in New Orleans, plans begin to open McClellan for refugees"

"Aftermath of Hurricane Katrina: Lootings, car-jackings and other violence"

Some language that really stood out to me in these headlines were the use of the words "anarchy", "refugees" and "looting". All of those words are very strong. Anarchy is associated with chaos due to lack of government help and that is interesting to me because the newspaper is putting out that the government is absent. As for lootings, there are other words that could be used in place of looting. The idea of looting vs searching for food is controversial. It is so hard to tell whether someone is actually looting and by using that word in a newspaper article, it makes the situation seem that much bigger. The use of the word refugees is also very controversial. Many people think that the people who left New Orleans are evacuees, but they are being called the very heavy word, refugees.

In my opinion, the article is biased, but I think that it's biased to show how bad the situation is. This article was written right around the time of the storm, near the storm, so they used words like 'anarchy' and 'refugees' because those are the loaded words that catch people's attention. They are able to show the severity of the storm with the words they chose to use for the headlines. If they would have chosen to use lighter words or just by saying that the storm was bad, it would not have made people realize the severity. I think this article could have something to do with race, but it is not super obvious. The main photo on the page is of a group of African American people and the caption under it calls them refugees and has looting in the article.

The purpose of this article is to show people who are not in the storm, just how bad it is. They want to show people the aftermath of the storm and how it is affecting the people. If someone had no prior knowledge of the hurricane or the aftermath, and they read this article, they would be very scared. The big thing is death and looting, with a picture of a man who had collapsed. It doesn't say anything about relief efforts of what good has been done already. This is what makes the article newsworthy. Stories about relief and government could seem very boring so those stories don't make the news. The writers and publishers for the newspaper want to put in something that will be interesting to outsiders, like death, so they can sell more of their product.

In some situations, I believe there could be a relationship between race and news coverage. From looking at multiple headlines, I saw that they tended to use looting and refugees for the African American people in the storm and they used searching for food and evacuees for the white people. Even if there is a relationship that i noticed in the articles, there is no way to tell whether it was on purpose or not. I think the biggest reasoning behind it is what newspapers put for their front pages and how the specific writer felt the story should be written. It is unfair to say that all of the newspapers considered race in their writing about Hurricane Katrina and used different language because of race.

Zeitoun: Interview With Character

The Girl On Her Own Agenda:
By Natalie Holdahl
It is 2004 and Kathy Zeitoun is living in New Orleans with her husband Abdulraham and their four kids. Kathy Zeitoun lives her life for her. She has never done what anyone else has told her to do and lives by her own rules. She grew up in a Christian family and in her early 20's decided that she wanted to convert to Islam. That is a big change for a young woman.

N: So Kathy, what was your life like growing up?

K: I lived the stereotypical life of a white family living in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, but we lived in very small quarters with each other. There were nine kids sharing a one story, 1,400-square-foot home.

N: How did you manage to live like that?

K: We had three kids to a room and all of us shared one bathroom. We were very crammed into our house but it made us closer as siblings. When I was younger, we would always play with the many kids in the neighborhood. My siblings are a pain at times, and some I don't even talk to. Even though we fought a lot, without them, I don't think I would have had four wonderful kids of my own. Also, my family grew up very strongly christian. We went to church every sunday, said our prayers at night and always looked to God.

N: What was the hardest part of your life growing up?

K: My school, Sherwood Middle School was very multiethnic. I was one of only a handful of white kids in the school and got picked on a lot. They would push me and laugh at me. From a young age, I was always quick to fight and argue.

N: What was your outlet from your hectic life?

K: My friend Yuko. We became friends when she was only three years old, but age never stopped us from being best friends. I would run away from home and go straight to Yuko's house. Her mother, Kameko, always took me in and kept me safe.

N: What's the best thing Yuko has ever done for you?

K: Yuko has done infinitely wonderful things for me in my life but I would have to say the most important thing she has ever done for me is to introduce me to Islam.

N: What was your conversion to Islam like?

K: It was a long, very thought out process, but it has been one of the best decisions I have ever made.

N: What first made you want to convert?

K: I was in my early twenties when Yuko first started to research it. At the time, I thought she was crazy to convert, but I trusted Yuko's decisions so I thought I would look into it. I started to read a little more about it and I had a run in with the Pastor of my church and told him about the problems I was having with Christianity. He made me get up in front of the whole church and tell that that I was thinking about Islam. They all laughed at me and thought that that was a huge mistake and they were glad I was keeping my beliefs with their God. I was so angry. That was the day I knew that becoming a Muslim was the right choice for me.

N: Why do you think your Pastor laughed at you?

K: People are very misinformed about other cultures. Some strong christian believers think that Christianity is the only allowable religion to be a part of. I bet nobody in that church that day even knew that Muslims and Christians believe in the same God!

N: What does your family think about it?

K: I don't think that any of them are against it but it just seems like they haven't fully excepted the fact that I am no longer Christian. Like it hasn't set into their mind and that if they don't believe it, that it won't be true. Whenever I go to visit my family they tell me things like "you can take that silly thing off your head now. It's just family around." and they don't understand the culture. My mom is the worst, although there are some points that she seems to be slowly accepting of it.

N: Are you happy with your life?

K: Very. It may be a little crazy at times, but I couldn't be better. I have a great husband, four wonderful kids and something to believe in.

N: Well there you have it. Even when it seems like life may be tough, it will always turn out great in the end. Thank you so much for talking with me Kathy. It was great to have you.

Blog Post #7

Evaluative Question #2: Can we trust news media?:

I believe that we are able to trust news media in a way but all news is very bias. There is no possible way to tell a news story without being bias at all. The words you use, the way you speak, bod language, layout of the story. These all have an effect on how people read or listen the story. It makes a difference on what you think the story is about or really means. "Five years ago, Fox News Channel was launched on the idea that something was wrong with news media--that somehow, somewhere bias found its way into reporting. . . . And it's not just the way you tell a story that can get in the way of the truth. It's the stories you choose to tell" -Trace Gallagher, Fox news. http://fair.org/extra-online-articles/the-most-biased-name-in-news/. "And it's not just the way you tell a story that can get in the way of the truth. It's the stories you choose to tell."That is another point that is true. There are different forms of media that tell different stories based on the beliefs of the writers, producers etc. In the same article Fox says that they are the "only unbiased network". By saying that they are the only unbiased network is bias in and of itself.

I feel that news media is very biased but not so much so that it becomes untrue. They may stretch the truth or give different stories, but they don't change things to the point when they are no longer true and are untrustworthy. The best way to get news is to get it from multiple different sources and form your own opinion about what is true based on your information. The other problem with thinking about news media being untrustworthy and bias is that we are being biased just by thinking that. Every person is biased and looks at thinks with a biased point of view so it is all personal opinion on whether or not we can trust news media. Also, if you don't trust it, where else are you going to get your news from?

Shared Inquiry

Question #1, what is the relationship between Jack and his appearance? How does this relate to consumerism?- When Jack sees one of his coworkers at the supermarket he tells Jack that he is "a different person all together" (83) because he isn't wearing the same clothing he wears to teach. When Jack goes on his shopping trip and buys a lot of new clothing, he feels like he can hide behind the clothing he buys. The more he feels that his clothing makes others see him differently, it makes him consume more and buy more products.


Question #2, on page 92, Bee says that the airplane passengers went through the whole ordeal for nothing because there was no media coverage. Do you agree with this?- I do not agree with this. I do not think that media is the biggest thing in people's lives. This is saying that nothing matters if it isn't covered for the world to see but I do not think this is correct. When people have a big event happen in their lives, especially a disaster type situation, they will always remember it in their minds. It doesn't make a difference to the person if it is broadcast. If they do, I think that all they care about is attention.

Question #3, why do you think that Jack felt that Bee was trying to pry secret information from him?-

Question #4, what do you think Jack meant when he said death is strictly a professional matter in the classroom?- I think that Jack was saying that when death is discussed in the classroom it has to be talked about is a professional sense. You cannot put personal opinions into it. When talking about death in a classroom you need to not put your emotions into it.

Question 5, jack and Babette were both married before they met each other? How do you think they feel about each others ex's?- I do not think that Jack or Babette think about each others ex's. Throughout the book so far, Jack has not really mentioned Babette's ex's so I do not think it phases him. If he were to care and think about them, we would hear about it a lot in the book because all Jack talks about is what he is thinking.

Blog Post #6

I chose to do the effects of overexposure to media. This topic caught my eye because in my daily life I am constantly exposed to great amounts of media. Whether it be watching TV, reading one of the many People magazines I get or listening to the radio, media is always around me. There isn't a day where I don't learn something new because of media. This is what I first thought of when i read the topic. When you think more deeply into the topic, there is people who have so much media in their lives, it starts to form who they are as a person. They are so affected my what other people, especially famous people, are doing that it suddenly doesn't become their lives anymore, it becomes them trying to be someone else.

When I researched over exposure to media I found many different view points on the topic. Some said media helps us learn about life, which is something not taught in school, while others said that we are having way too much media in our lives and it is affecting us negatively. One study that i found interesting way saying that too much media can hurt a child's health. "Children and teens spend about as much time with media as they do sleeping, and the overexposure could take a toll on their health." The average 8-18 year old spends over seven hours of their day engaged in some type of media. Dr. Victor Strasburger of the University of New Mexico has been studying the overexposure to media in children and has came to some interesting conclusions. He found that the exposure can make kids prone to violence, early and unprotected sexual activity, alcohol and tobacco consumption and obesity. (http://www.cbc.ca/news/health/story/2010/03/01/media-children-teens-health.html).

A survey given to teens got the opposite results. Teens in the study have said that media, especially social media, has helped them make and maintain friendships. It has also made kids feel more confident. Media is so informative in people lives. It teaches about what is going on in the world with news and magazines.

People in our society, especially teens and kids, are so consumed with media and technology that it is shaping who they are. Some media is a good thing for people but when they are exposed to too much media, it can harm them, physically, mentally and socially.