Advantages and Disvantages of E-mail

E-mail is one of today's most utilized forms of communication; it has many advantages ; first of all it's very convenient, in addition it saves time and finally it makes it very easy to stay in touch.

It's convenient; specially, because e-mails may be sent any time of day or night , likewise you don't have to worry about interrupting someone when you send email. It helps you save time because it arrives inmediately and you can distribute information quickly to many people for the time it takes to email one person. Also it makes it easy to stay in touch, since you can write to your friends easily and it's the cheapest way to communicate.

On the other hand, despite being very helpful and full of advantages , e-mails also have some disadvantages; for one thing it's less personal, another reason is that it's easy to make a mistake and last of all you need equipment in order to send an e-mail.
It's less personal because you can't see the person's face or reaction when reading the e-mail, you have to be careful with humor or sarcasm, since it's easy for someone to take your message the wrong way. Another disadvantage is the fact that it's very easy to make a mistake like sending messages to the wrong person or sending private/ confidential information, another disadvantage is the need for equipment in order to send the e-mail you need either a fast computer or a smartphone and both of these can be quite expensive; there's also a need for an internet connection, nowadays it's very common o have wi-fi signal in most places but sometimes when you need it the most an internet connection is not available.

About "Segunda Mitad del Noveno" by Ruben Blades

So, the idea was to write our opinion about the song " Segunda Mitad del Noveno" by Ruben Blades. I listened to the song and read along with the lyrics; I ended up really liking this song!

This song by Ruben Blades, in my opinion , is made to express and tell the world of a situation that is very common in latin american countries , representing it with an analogy of something as dear to the latin culture as it is baseball, it's the sport that represents us and is very close to our hearts.

He speaks about a very sad yet true reality; when things come to their most important moment, when everything is to be decided people find themselves doing nothing, he refers to it as the bottom of the ninth inning at a baseball game when everyone is filled with expectation and hope even though they know that the game is basically decided ; also about how there is a lot of noise and excitement but no actions take place, this is something we can easily relate to our day to day life in Venezuela ; regarding the ongoing revolution there are lots of people who say they want to stop it and how we shouldn't be forced to live under the ruling of someone who fails at satisfying the countries' needs , but when push comes to shove no one does anything against it, we are left at the mercy of only one man who has taken all of the power to himself and people are just too afraid to go against it or they do it purely out of their own interest, not considering the future of the nation as a whole.

He speaks of how in times when there is need for people to wake up and stand up for what they believe in and what they want there is no one to follow, there are no leaders since anyone who had any real potential has left, and the youth nowadays are not strong in terms of will or mentality , and are not willing to take any actions in order to defend their ideals

He speaks about the feelings of the general population by dividing them into the bases of a baseball field, and how there is fear in first base, hunger in second, and rage in the third; these are all feelings experienced by the people here in Venezuela, there is fear in living everyday life , based on the high levels of insecurity and uncertainty, there's also fear in such simple things as making a living, no one knows where the economy is going or what can happen to any businesses or the company you work at from one moment to the next; we also experience hunger, with the economy getting worse everyday and poverty levels reaching new heights, added to the fact that even if you do have the acquisitive power it takes to feed you and your family there is no certain way of knowing you will be able to find everything you want or need ; last but not least when describing the feelings around the baseball field he speaks of anger ; anger wich we feel when we see how such a beautiful country with so much to give has become such a disaster; rage that is felt by the sense of impotence that there is nothing to be done in order to save something you love.

He later refers to the term "play ball" the phrase used by the umpire to signal the beginning of the game , in order to point the fact that it's all just getting started and we should take our stance and not leave our ideals aside, since " things are starting to get good" ; but then again he calls out for those heroes who are long gone , and knows they won't be coming back.

To summarize even though it's not my favorite type or genre of music I really grew to like the song , it made realize and think about the place I'm living in, and even though the lyrics might make you sad, somehow the simple yet honest vocals and background music do give a feeling of hope, humor and joy ; very representative of the latin culture.

Overcoming hardship / The 3 part paragraph

This post is about identifying the parts of a paragraph and composing one of our own, the subject is related to overcoming hardship, difficulties and obstacles in general.

First we have a paragraph given by the teacher to identify the 3 parts of a paragraph, the topic sentence, the supporting sentences and the closing sentence.

Hellen Keller said; “Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of overcoming it.” This can be seen all around us. Many people have faced great obstacles in their lives but have found ways to overcome and actually benefit from these obstacles. For example, Greg Barton, the 1984, 1988, and 1992 U.S Olympic medalist in kayaking, was born with a serious disability. He had club feet, his toes pointed inward, and as a result, he could not walk easily. Even after a series of operations, he still had limited mobility. Even so, Greg was never defeated. First, he taught himself to walk, and even to run .Then, he competed on his high school running team. He knew, though, he would never become an Olympic runner, so he looked for other sports that he could play. Happily, he discovered kayaking, a perfect sport for him because it required minimal leg and foot muscles. Using his upper body strength, he was able to master the sport. Finally, after many years of training and perseverance, Greg made the 1984 Olympic team. He says of his accomplishments, “Each step of the road has been made easier by looking just as far as necessary – yet not beyond that.” In short, even though that road was paved with obstacles, he was able to overcome them and achieve the impossible

TOPIC SENTENCE

“Hellen Keller said; “Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of overcoming it.” This can be seen all around us. Many people have faced great obstacles in their lives but have found ways to overcome and actually benefit from these obstacles.”

SUPPORTING SENTENCES

Developing details

What is (was) the person famous for?

He had limited mobility. But even so, he taught himself to walk, and even to run and finally, after many years of training and perseverance he made the Olympic team and became an Olympic medalist in kayaking.

What did this person achieve?

He was an Olympic athlete and medalist despite having a physical disability

What did this person have to overcome? How did he or she overcome them?

He had club feet, his toes pointed inward, and as a result, he could not walk easily. Even after a series of operations, he still had limited mobility. And as a result could never be an Olympic runner

To overcome it he discovered kayaking, a perfect sport for him because it required minimal leg and foot muscles. Using his upper body strength, he was able to master the sport. And after many years of training and perseverance he became an Olympic athlete.

What personal characteristics helped this person overcome his or her obstacles?

His perseverance and willpower

CONCLUDING SENTENCE

“In short, even though that road was paved with obstacles, he was able to overcome them and achieve the impossible”

Also here's a biographical paragraph I composed on my own

Matthew Stepanek , suffered from a hereditary disease called dysautonomic mitochondrial myopathy, a rare form of muscular dystrophy. He was an American poet and advocate, who had six books of poetry and one book of essays all reach The New York Times bestsellers list. He became a well-respected peace advocate and motivational speaker. First of all, Stepanek started writing poems at the age of 3, and published 5 books in his short lifetime .In addition before he passed away in June 2004, he had written thousands of poems, dozens of essays and short stories, and presented a bound anthology of his writing to the Library of Congress. He received many awards for his writing, including the Melinda A. Lawrence International Book Award in 1999 for “Most Inspirational Work.” Furthermore, despite his muscular dystrophy he was a bestselling author before the age of 14. Last of all, he also became the Muscular Dystrophy Association National Goodwill Ambassador, due to his national high profile because of his poetry and related appearances on The Oprah Winfrey Show, Larry King Live, and Good Morning America. He was a very optimistic, intelligent and outgoing person who wanted to share with the world his vision of life as a gift and how it should always be celebrated.

“. . .we must remember to play after every storm and to celebrate the gift of life as we have it, or else life becomes a task, rather than a gift. We must always listen to the song in our heart, and share that song with others.”- Matthew Stepanek

Persona Poems

Andrea...
creative, proactive, funny, responsible
friend of Valeria
who loves movies, music and travelling
who is afraid of insects, failure and cruises
who wants to see a Champions league final and a MUSE concert
resident of the world
... Moreno

Making simple sentences about a simple topic

We have picked a simple object in this case fruits , and made simple sentences about them , here is my pick!!

Cherry

SHORT IDEAS:
Red and pretty.
Used to decorate.
Very small but sweet.

SIMPLE SENTENCES:
Cherries are red and pretty.
They are used to decorate cakes and sweets.
Cherries are very small but very sweet at the same time.

And a short paragraph:

People like cherries for many different reasons, some of them being ; that they are small and sweet, are very easy to use and look pretty when decorating a dessert or a drink, and because they have a delicious taste. They are fleshy and contain a single seed; there are different kinds of cherries like the wild cherry and the sour cherry, they are also believed to contain antioxidants, and some types of cherry trees are often given an ornamental use . For these and many other reasons most people like cherries.

The Writing Process

Here I post the small presentation we were asked to prepare by our teacher about the different stages of the writing process. This presentation is about editing :

The Writing Process