Welcome Vacany Blog Judges- Feel Free to Look Over My School Work.

I’ll start this essay by saying anywhere besides where I’m currently living is an upgrade. Finding an ideal apartment for me consisted of looking at an apartment. That probably won’t be a good idea when I actually have to find an apartment but in my New York shack I’m usually tucked into bed by loud garbage trucks and even louder music. It’s almost like a competition. When the garbage truck comes through at 4am, the silence there was before instantly turns into a blend of Lil Wayne and the melodic sounds of horns. Those noises are accompanied by the blissful voices of the garbage men rapping along with Lil Wayne. While the garbage truck compacts the garbage with Beethoven-like genius and timing. Needless to say I don’t get much sleep.

The apartment I found is a gated off community, something that I wish I had. It gets quite repetitive when you have to come home and people are sitting on the stoop, so you have to back up get a running start and leap over them. Asking them to move usually results in an argument and prolongs the amount of time it takes to get into the house.

The rent also had me completely astonished. Being from New York City a one bedroom, one bathroom cockroach infested place still cost about 800 dollars. It’s almost like the roaches are accounted for in the expenses. I’m sure you know about NYC rent though. The rent for this place in Atlanta, Georgia (another big city) has 3 bedrooms and 2.5 bathrooms for as low as $950.00 and as much as $2,150.00. Where I live the rent is 1,300.00 I know because I have to get into Michael Jordan's pose and leap down my stoop to the rent office and pay a woman $600 extra dollars then what she deserves.

All of this already had me, but it was kind of like a bad infomercial “Wait there’s more!” not only is it aesthetically appealing it accepts pets, has a swimming pool and Laundromats, a fitness center, garages and most importantly a dishwasher. That means no more lemon smelling hands after scrubbing at a stain on a plate only to figure out it won’t come off. It also means I don’t have to get on the New York public transportation. Which on any given day you can get robbed, groped, have a conversation with a drunken person and over pay for the below average service. There’s no way any other apartment is better than this one. It would be like comparing the Yankees to the Mets. Apartments are lovable because of all of their flaws. Mine having more than others. However the apartment in Georgia has a certain level of professionalism. It’s reliable, and at the end of the day you know you’re at top quality, your proud to say its your house. Unlike with a Mets quality house where you say "Yeah, I live here" under your breath, a bag over your face, a big red "Sucker" written over your forehead.

Thanks for spending your time to read this if you got to this point. Even if I don’t receive the scholarship hopefully this was more enjoyable than others. Here’s a picture of my current dwelling. Thanks again.

Georgia apartment: http://www.vacancy.com/georgia/atlanta-apartments/1050-lenox-park-apartments/amenities/

Chris's House:

Property Listing: http://www.vacancy.com/georgia/atlanta-apartments/1050-lenox-park-apartments/amenities/

HW 59

It seems that girls actually do care much more about what they wear to prom then females do. Like Bianca I logged into Facebook and I saw one senior’s status talking about how one of his friends was going to wear the same thing that he was wearing. Girls on the other hand had many more status’s, people talking about how they didn’t have their dresses two days before prom and after the night of prom there were status’s of people talking about how much fun they were going to have. Constant status’s and comments on walls referencing how good someone looked and how they didn’t want to ruin their dress. From the men on the other hand there are wall post of people talking about the after prom and how they had fun got drunk and went home at six in the morning from their party. I think that the status’s also show a lot more of what my cousin was talking about compared to the things that we have been learning. Prom is some form of a party, and it is not some sort of rite of passage, with all of the things that I heard about the prom it was more about having fun and making a good experience from everything.

Nothing about the couples walking into the room and the princess of the prom having everyone look at her. I feel like that is more of what people are supposed to say but on the other hand it is more of the seniors last chance to have a good time. Seniors were also talking about missing each other and how that would really be one of the last times that they were all together. It was supposed to be a celebration and I think the media has turned it into something that seems like it is this epic moment in the participant’s life where they get a life changing experience.

HW 58

Person who hasn’t been to Prom (Kammie) : I know prom is supposed to be special. It’s supposed to be a night where you get to have fun with everyone in your class for one of the last times. It’s going to be the night where a lot of people get drunk and have sex but I think the goal is to have fun. In the case of people dressing up as best as they can, I think that is because it is one of the last times that the people in your school will see you. It is going to be one of the last times you might be able to be with a boyfriend or girlfriend and I think that is the reason that people have sex and get drunk. It’s kind of like all fun that can possibly be had on that night and of course if you have a boyfriend you’re going to want to be with them. The part that I really think is supposed to be the fun part is the dancing. It is like one last night and it’s supposed to be something to remember. People do whatever they want to celebrate with those who helped them through high school life.

Person who has been to Prom (Alyssa M): Prom was the best. I wish I had done more than I did at prom. Like I dressed up and tried to look my best but that doesn’t even really matter except for the first 15 minutes because everyone takes off the heels that they walked in with. Everyone’s hair gets messed up pretty bad so the hair salon visit for 2 hours was worthless but the night was priceless. The best part for me was the after prom because at prom there are a few chaperones who actually don’t do anything. Then at the after prom there is still dancing and a lot of that stuff but it’s more like hanging out with the people you spent so much time with during school. This is where there’s a lot of the sex stuff and most of the drinking stuff, my after prom was in a hotel. Apart from all of the obvious stuff I just enjoyed telling jokes and being with these people. The night wasn’t any kind of rite of passage it was more like one of the best nights of my life.

Older person who went to Prom (Mom): My prom wasn’t the best because it is not the same as it is now. People now have an idea that prom is a big party but when I went to prom it was more like, a banquet. It eventually turned into some type of party because there was dancing but a lot of my prom there was teachers talking about the students and certain students talking. Everyone looked nice, everyone had a date, and everyone went. I would rather have the type of prom people have now though so it is more fun for us. There was a prom committee but they didn’t make it as fun as I wanted. There was prom in the school and I know now prom can be in a big space that alone is better than our prom. I would rather have a part in a huge space then in my school, the place that I hated and rarely wanted to be.

What I understand from the three different generations of prom goers and non goers is prom is supposed to be a fun moment. The two younger generations mentioned how it was going to be the last time that they were with the people in the school. I always thought dressing up was the most important part of prom because like I said in another post teenage girls look at prom dresses the same way that brides look at wedding dresses. I always thought that girls took it more serious than guys do and with the lack of getting interviews from males this could still be true, however with what Alyssa told me I feel that the main part of prom is the party. No one wants to go to a prom where they never have any fun, something like what my mom did. With looking at all the components of prom I feel like we left out the most important part which is the after party. We looked into the idea of sex and the drinking aspect of prom which I guess is considered partying. However the actual dancing and being able to be with friends made over the past 4 years for the last time is something that I think is more significant. Although Alyssa said it isn’t a rite of passage I disagree with that and maybe she didn’t notice that part of it but I think she makes a good point when she says prom isn’t what it appears to be its just fun.

Initial Thoughts on Prom

Christopher R

The most interesting thing about prom is the idea that females can’t go with other females and males can’t go with other males. From a personal experience I overheard a conversation between two people one of them a lesbian talking about prom. They were talking about how it would be the first time that she had worn a dress since she was graduating in the 8th grade and she was going with a male but she said it was just as friends. Prom seems like a romantic thing that is supposed to be some sort of date with someone in school during your last days in high school. I would think if a person was romantically attracted to a person of the same sex then they should be able to go with that person. This conversation was also between two people who go to school of the future. School of the Future has more openly homosexual people than any other community I know. I would think at any place our school would be a place where students are allowed to have a homosexual date but the tradition of a man being with a woman has affected the idea of romance which I think puts a label on who is allowed to be considered a couple at prom.

Another thing that I find interesting about prom is the way people are supposed to dress. I don’t think there is anything wrong with it but knowing that prom is supposed to be a major step in life and that it symbolizes romance, is there any reason that it’s supposed to be a dress and suit. I also find it that girl’s try harder to be the best dressed then males do. A girl could be looking at prom dresses in the 9th grade or even earlier. This is the type of thing that I would expect from a person that is preparing for their wedding. The appearance of someone at their prom is equally as important as their appearance in their wedding? They seem rather similar, a very beautiful usually expensive dress and the male in a very nice suit dressed up to impress. What a person wears to prom seems to be the only thing more important than who you are taking as a date.

o Why is it so important to be dressed in elaborate clothing during prom?

o Are there any schools known for their openness to same sex couples during prom?

o Is prom the most important event in high school?

o Should a person be allowed to attend prom if they are failing their classes?

o In what ways are prom and weddings similar?

o Does the person you take to prom represent the type of person you would want to marry?

Cemetery Visit Extra Credit

For this extra credit I went with Kevin and Jasper to both of the cemeteries near the trinity church. The thing that I found immediately most shocking was that it was a tourist spot. People are allowed to go in there as they please and although I am not sure about other cemeteries in other parts of the world I don’t think they should be a public place. For people who believe being buried in the ground is a final resting place and for the people who believe saying “rest in peace” has an actual effect on the dead making cemeteries public is some sort of invasion to this. I would imagine there would be a public cemetery and a private cemetery but for those who want to go to the cemetery and grieve, they should be allowed to do this without people like Jasper, Kevin and I going in. I only found the idea of being able to go to this cemetery okay because people who died here apparently died in the 18th century. All of the people who were close to this person at one point should most likely be dead and the tombstones were in very bad condition, so if this place was really a final resting place it should be kept better. At the same time if the people were alive I could imagine they definitely wouldn’t want me there. I was laughing at all of the tombstones which weren’t in the best condition. We walked on the grass at points, very immoral but the idea that they have been gone for so long, their bodies have rotted to the point where it would be unrecognizable. Dead over a certain amount of time lose their value.

So we walked to the cemetery and besides us there were only about 2 other groups of people there. The cemetery is right off a church along with the trinity church cemetery. The tombstones either had something written in another language or just had the name of the person who died and the amount of time they lived. The spacing of the tombstones was confusing. Some tombstones were two feet away from another tombstone. Others had a lot of room, this made me think whether or not now there is a certain amount of space most caskets take up meaning all tombstones would have the be a certain distance away. I also questioned the height of people in the 18th century when seeing that there was a tombstone being completely surrounded by others. Many of them were to the point where the name couldn’t be read anymore and the actual stone was cracked, with the other fraction lying right next to it. There was also a lot of casket like shapes made out of stone that had a top on them. Whether or not this was actually where the body was, I am not sure but these were also very close to falling over and breaking. It all made me think when a cemetery should be cleared of tombstones. People do not go here to grieve anymore they go to see what a part of New York history looks like. The tombstone couldn’t just be cracked in half. It was made of stone and near three to four inches thick. Unless someone came and broke it there was no way it could be in that condition.

Most of what I experienced in both of the cemeteries was not how I would actually experience in a cemetery that is more modern. I was the tombstone for Alexander Hamilton which had the largest most decorative headings and it was more than just a tombstone it was kind of a statue. At the same time even one of the past presidents was buried in this cemetery and the idea that the cemetery was for grieving was thrown out the window this was more for show. I think for me to have an actual experience at a cemetery. An experience where I think more critically about the bodies that are buried under my feet and the people that knew them I would have to go to a more updated cemetery. There would have to be more people who remembered this person who visited and made it a point not to forget. With a cemetery that is run down there isn’t any emotion there is just land.

Comments HW 56

TO RUBEN
http://rubenisthebest.blogspot.com/2011/05/hw-55-culminating-project-care-of-dead.html?showComment=1305691665979#c7015014601262645699

Ruben, I feel like your blog post covers the question that I had over the entire unit but in a different way then what I thought the answer would be. You made your blog about the planning of a funeral and I feel like you got a lot of evidence that helped to show the cost portion of funerals. I think there is a lot of information that you have here that you could have used in your elevator speech which could have made it better because you start to talk about funerals at the beginning then you transition to cremation and I feel like there could have been more talked about this in your speech. I think one thing you can work on is format.

Chris.

TO KEVIN
http://normalisweirdkevinw.blogspot.com/

YEAHH!!! EMBALMING. I think embalming was hyped up by Andy to be very gruesome and some sort of of miserable thing. Although it seems very violent how can you say this when the person is dead. Also it isn't always like the person doesn't know their dead body is going to be involved. It is not grave robbing and stripping the body for organs. Anyway back to this, I think you decided to right a very factual paper that gives clear alternatives and doesn't just complain about a problem. Its a paper but maybe in person you can tell me why you decided to write about this. I think this was actually pretty interesting and the best part in my opinion was the alternatives.

TO LUCAS
http://normalisweirdlucas.blogspot.com/

YEAH!!! This project didn't work out how you wanted it too as I can see through my favorite line of the post, "Denied. Ah such is fate. Despite calling ahead on Thursday around noon, and ensuring that my group could come in to view this (PUBLIC) funeral, we were stalled and filibustered into twiddling our thumbs in woeful silence in the waiting area of Mr. Benta's fine funerary facility." I think this gets a lot of emotion out without telling exactly how you felt in words. The words that you choose to use in the post creates a really fine image in my head of what you were thinking and it also gives a good image of the surroundings. I feel like this is more of a video then an actual video. I like this post.
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Comments From Protege:
Chrissss nice post maaaan. I like how we both have narratives of our experience but they are different. I thought it was interesting to see how you thought about the funeral home and how people were acting etc etc. I also like how you included dialogue because even if I wasn't there, I feel like it makes it very descriptive and easy to picture. Even though the project didn't go as planned and we didn't have a video, you did a good job writing about it..

Comments From Mentor:
Hi Chris, I guess I will first start out by talking about what I think could have been better about this post. What makes this post a bit weaker than it could be is the way you get the ideas of what you were thinking across. I feel like it is hard to distinguish what is actually happening and what you are thinking because it goes back and forth so much. But I do like the way you create the idea. The conversations that you include makes the story fun to read and I think a lot of the post is interesting but their are some things you can obviously improve on.

From Casey:Chris, I'm sorry that your project did not go very well. It was good of you to admit that it could have been more successful, and I enjoyed your detailed narrative of the various interactions at the funeral home. However, you could have analyzed the experiences you did have a bit more. For example, what do the magazine options in the home reveal about their expecations of who they will be serving? How did the behavior of the employees there compare to your expectations and what did the dialoge reveal about their goals in their daily work? The fact that the funeral director would not let you in to view the wake because it was an invasion of privacy was interesting to me; it was a unique idea that I had not before considered, yet it reveals that he was most concerned with the grieving family under his care.

From: Sophia: I liked that even though your original idea for the project didn't work out, you still got something out of the experience. Your descriptions of the funeral home were interesting, and although you didn't get to go to the wake, it still seems like you got something out of the experience.

My favorite line was: "We waited here for about fifteen minutes in that time everything was pure and clean. There was a sound of a water fall."

Care of The Dead Project

This might be another failed project attempt. Although we don't have any redeeming video we did have a complete experience and looking back on everything now I feel as if there were a lot of this that could be recorded and reported. Instead of uploading a video that might be very bad and get me a 7 on this project or lower I might as well write about everything leading up the the actual funeral and hope for a 8 or higher. Probably just an 8 because part of the assignment is to have a video or audio, but there were a few missed opportunities.

The project started with the idea to go visit a funeral because even though it was something that we all had done before it was probably the easiest thing to do. It seemed that way at least because I knew a Funeral Home that was close to my house and I know the president of the Funeral Home. At the same time I wasn't sure how far that would have gotten us considering that the president is not always their due to his Alzheimer's. This however did seem like the best idea because it was a place that I knew better than any other Funeral Home and all of the other ideas seemed less fun. We called Benta's Funeral Home at 12:20 pm during school on a Thursday. One of the members in our group, Lucas talked to a receptionist that transferred him to someone else who said it would be alright if we were to come to a wake on Saturday from 3-4pm and observed the way things were done. The project actually seemed to be going really easily compared to the Birth Unit project which was similar to this but involved no prior planning. It was done at the last minute compared to this which had been well thought out.

A piece of audio that probably should have been recorded at the moment but wasn't was the phone call between the person who picked up at Benta's Funeral Home and Lucas. It went something like this:

Lucas: "Hi my name is Christopher R, I was calling to talk to a staff member at the Funeral Home about me and a few friends coming in to view a wake for our school project. We had been learning about the care of the dead at our school and we had a project assigned on visiting a funeral or a wake and just sit in the back for a little while and view things."
Receptionist: "Well okay, Ill transfer you to someone to see what I can do, hold on one second"
THEN LUCAS HOLDS FOR MORE THAN A SECOND
Receptionist: "Hi, Alright there is going to be a public viewing on Saturday. Would you like to get a pencil to write this information down. Saturday from Three pm to Four pm, you and your friends can come between those times"

Now the thing that always messes up things for teenagers in this day and age is lateness. I live very close to the Funeral Home and for me getting to the funeral home would only take about 5 minutes walking. The other members of the group however lived many different places throughout the city and the plan to get to the funeral home 15 minutes early didn't work. In fact getting to the funeral home on time didn't work. Getting their 15 minutes late didn't work for that matter. The earliest person was Jasper and then Lucas 10 minutes later. 15 minutes before 4pm Kevin arrived. Before Lucas arrived though I spoke to the lady who was the current receptionist. That conversation should have been recorded as well and went something like this.

CHRIS: Hi my name is Chris and I was told through phone call on Thursday that me and a few of my friends would be allowed to come to the funeral home and see how care of the dead was done. I called ahead of time and they said Saturday between 3 and 4 would be a good time to come.

RECEPTIONIST: Hi, well. What school do you go to?

CHRIS: School of the Future.

RECEPTIONIST: And what are you trying to do?

CHRIS: Well I was told it would be okay if we were to just sit in the back for a few minutes and observe how a funeral was and the way people react and respond to different things during the funeral. I was just wondering if this was still true and whether we would still be allowed to do this.

RECEPTIONIST: Well I'm not sure about that because usually the answer would be no for a question like that but because you said someone did tell you this I will call the Funeral Director and we can see what he thinks about it.

So we went into a waiting room that had one woman sitting their reading a magazine. The magazine was only choices between Oprah and Essence. We waited here for about fifteen minutes in that time Kevin showed up and everything was pure and clean. Their was a sound of a water fall. Kids walking in and out of the doors, dressed up with their parents who were also dressed up. There were a few people who were dressed up in formal African dresses and everyone was in black except for one kid who seemed like he was around 3 years old who was dressed up in white. The place was very nice, the music was perfect and their was just peace. Nothing making to much noise everyone speaking in a low voice. One minute before the actual service started came the the Funeral Director.

FD: Hey, what was the problem?

CHRIS: Well we called a few days ago and we talked to someone who said it would be alright if we were to come into the funeral home and attend a wake, for our school project. They told us it would be okay if we were to come between 3-4.

FD: Well I don't think that would be possible now because this is close to the time when the service is suppose to start and that would kind of be an invasion of privacy if we let you go in there with no relation to anyone in the family. Any other day however the wake or viewing is open to anyone who wants to come in for a little while and pay some respects to the dead but the time now is close to the actual service so I'm not sure if you should actually come in. If you come back another day you can do your project with someone else.

The funeral director was more delayed then Kevin was in this whole process because we were all there close to 3:30 and it took the funeral director about 20 minutes to come down stairs with the service starting in one minute. He was actually really nice though, when he came in he patted me on the head. I'm not sure how I felt about that. He explained it to us really well and shook our hands as we left. The project like the one before it took some kind of turn for the worse but at the same time it was probably more successful.

Here is the crappy 2 minute video filmed by jasper
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knI-nnK-Asg