Spanglish

     Spanglish by Janice Castro, Dan Cook, and Cristina Garcia, is a passage about the merge of Spanish as a language into the English language. The result is the new age way of speaking in Spanish-speaking areas. It is Spanglish. It is the combination of English words and Spanish words. It has become ingrained into the culture of Spanish-speaking communities and is vital to the advertisement industry.
     Spanish-speaking Americans hold an estimated 134 billion dollars worth of spending power. The power is being tapped by advertisers by incorporating Spanglish into their scripts. Spanglish represents English and Spanish influences and reflects where Spanish-speaking Americans are located. Spanglish is digging its way into American culture by appearing on billboards and by being presented on the radio. Los Angeles and Miami are both hot spots for this clash of culture. Taxi drivers and pedestrians alike can both be found speaking this blend of culture. Essentially, moving to those cities are like signing up for Spanish 101. You eventually learn some Spanish words by living in highly Hispanic populated areas. The same goes for a Spanish-speaking person moving to Miami or Los Angeles. Their course list would have English 101 included some where on the list. Spanglish is useful when trying to shorten lengthy Spanish phrases. These shorten Spanglish phrases only encourage the use of Spanish to the 19 million Hispanics in America.
     I think Spanglish is a big part of the proof that America is a melting pot. It shows our ability to accept and incorporate other cultures. It's a learning experience for anyone moving near Hispanic communities. It's good for us to acknowledge other languages and to support strictly Spanish-speaking Americans by creating a mixed language. It's also really smart of advertisers to incorporate this mixed language in their ads to tap into this multi-billion dollar spending power. They are unknowingly teaching people a little bit of Spanish and English which is important to the expansion of our nation. Our incorporation of Spanish into our society shows how supportive Americans are of Hispanic influences.

This Battle Will Not Be Lost

     In the short story,"This Battle Will Not Be Lost" written by Sandi Millwood,"Sept. 8, "2008 the author recalls her ordeal with her three year old's battle with cancer that strengthened her faith and changed her outlook on life and how she viewed time with her loved ones.
   The mother in this story recalls the first day that she found out her daughter had cancer.  The doctor told her that her daughter had a grapefruit sized tumor on her lung.  At that moment the mother decided that she would never give up this fight.  For the next four years, her beloved little girl had to undergo treatment and take medications that made her sick.  This story was touching as it reminded me of one of my best friends and her two year battle with cancer that she unfortunatly lost.  Through-out her battle she continued to inspire others with her bravery and determination.  She fought til the end.  I remember getting a text from her that said that she was still in the hospital.  My friend Donna and I immediatly drove to see her.  She looked like a little girl laying in the bed.  It was hard for me to fight back the tears because I knew when I saw her that she was dying. Two days later I received a phone call from her husband.  She had passed away.  So I could relate to what the author was writing.
     I thinks the author shared her experience with us because she wants us to realize that the time we have with our loved ones is very precious.  We should never take the time we have with our family and loved ones for granted. I also believe that the author realized that almost all of her readers have been affected by cancer whether it is personally or through someone we know and love, and that we should never give up.

A Man in the Woods

A Man in the Woods was written by Andre White. This short story was written about a small community known as “Bankhead Village.” Eight homeless men live within this community. The men are very sharing, respectful and friendly to all who come near their community. The author and his sister are familiar with the area and decide to bring food to the men that will last them for a couple of days.

            The main character in the story was James. James was a short man who always smiled, wore a dark purple coat and baggy pants. As soon as the author called his name, he remembered who he was and also noticed he cut his hair. James yelled to let the others know that the author had bought food for them. He lived in a hut that was full of trash bags and old garbage. The condition James and the other men lived in was harsh. Overall, James was a generous man who made sure everyone in his community was taking care of without expecting anything in return.

            Andrew White wants the reader to be drawn in and visualize the observation he made while visiting the men in the camp. To me this was a great story. While reading, I stayed attentive and I could picture the things he talked about. I felt the character James was so sweet. He appreciated the author for coming down. To see how strong he was for his community showed a lot about him.

The Garbage Man

The Garbage Man  was written by Sharon Curtin. This short story is about the author’s experience with an old man in his neighborhood. The Garbage Man goes around the neighborhood digging for scraps of food in garbage cans. He uses these scraps to feed his chickens. In turn for using people’s garbage cans, he pays the recipient in eggs.

            The main character wastes his time trying to find something that isn’t there. He learned from his father that the old man had been here since World War One. The main character spends his time trying to find out if the man is rich and if he is just trying not to look like it or if he has some other secret that will be revealed once he gains the trust of looking at the man and keeping his look to himself. He devises a plan along with his sister and some friends to hide in a trash can to get a glimpse of the man when he looks in. This plan leads him to scaring the man and in turn scaring himself into running to his tree house. He claims that the man had a regularly old face and that nothing was unusual.

            The Garbage Man explores the concept of looking for something that isn’t there. I personally think the author should have minded his own business and should have just left the situation alone. The man had nothing to hide and there was nothing to find.

            Sharon Curtin wants the reader to refrain from judging people or from looking into something that has no mystery. The kids in this book were always harassing and bothering the old man and that is something that is wrong to do. This is why the main character cries in the end. He cries partly because of what he did and because the man was so weathered and beaten.