journal 96 feb 26th 09

opposites often exaggerate an idea

who is this gentlemen?

what is his financial/social position in society

what if the same guy was sitting by a fish pond?

what if he were surrounded by college students on a grassy knoll?

in this picture the gentlemen looks like a  homeless person.  the fact he is sitting by a wall on the street while people pass him by give this impression.  if he was sitting by a fish pond you might just this it was some old man by the pond to just spend some time outside enjoying life.  if he were surrounded by college students on a grassy knoll you might think he is a teacher, or a guest lecturer talking to the students about whatever subject he may be teaching or familiar with.

journal 95 feb 25th 09

objects and ideas only make sense in relationship to other objects or ideas

why do we see this kitten as tiny?

would it possible to make it look huge?

how?

i think we see it as tiny because that is just a common concept with baby kitties.  also with the ears being down and the eyes closed, it gives the message that the kitten was born just a short time ago.  plus with the kitten being in the palm of someone's hand gives the impression that it is tiny.

if you wanted to make the kitten look huge, you would need to place objects around it that were smaller, but could possible be big.  something to give the false impression of size.  maybe place it in a box that could be in any size but it barely fits in.  

journal 94 feb 24th 09

if you break me, i do not stop working.  if you touch me and i may be snared.  if you lose me, nothing will matter.  what am i?

the heart.

journal 93 feb 23rd 09

you are lost in the wilderness without a compass, GPS, cell phone, etc, you have lost your sense of direction, but know that there is a creek to the west of you about 10 miles.  if you can find the creek and follow it, you are sure to find people camping and fishing who can help you.

over the course of 10 miles you could veer north or south by only a few degrees and you would miss the creek.

come up with three ways that you can find north.

you may use the web if you need it to help you find the three solutions. 

one way is the sun rises in the east and sets in the west.  you could go by that to determine which direction to go. 

brush typically is thicker on the south side than the north side.  

at night find the north star!

journal 91 feb 19 09

using the four identical dice, identify how the dots are laid out on a die.  use the image beow to help you place the dots in their proper order.

1 = 4

2 = 2

3 = 3

4 = 5

5 = 1

journal 90 feb 18th 09

a person is lying dead in the middle of a field.  four feet away is a backpack the contents of which was meant to save his life, but instead was the cause of his death. he did not intentionally kill himself and nobody else harmed him.  he did not die of natural causes.  what was the man carrying in his backpack?

spoiled food or water?

real answer: parachute, failed parachute

journal 89 feb 17th 09

begin with an unmarked tub that contains a little more than 17 gallons of water.

you have a three gallon and a five gallon measuring device.  without losing any water, measure out four gallons and twelve gallons into two separate unmarked tubs.

you cannot retrieve water from the unmarked tubs once you have added it. 

first fill up the 5 gallon and dump it until the 3 gallon.  then dump the 2 remaining until tub a and the 3 gallon in tub b.  repeat this and you have your four gallon tub filled.  then fill up the 3 gallon two more times to make the twelve. 

journal 87 feb 11 09

controlling the contest of excessively violent video games is a topic currently under discussing among game developers and politicians

the question that is being ask is not "if" it should be controlled but by whom

should the game industry be externally or internally controlled by who, is a government, industry, game or parental responsibility?

what standards should be placed and how should they be enforced.

I definately do not think it should be the government that controls video games.  I would lean towards the parents and the industry.  the industry should take it upon themselves, like they have in the past, to have ratings for the games for the appropriate audiences.  I know some parents don't have the first clue what a game is when it comes out and if it'd be ok for their own kid to play it.  and that's where the parents responsibility comes in.  If they are going to allow their child to play games for an activity, they should take the time to research what their kids want and if it is appropriate.  I know personally when i have kids I will research games that i do not know anything about to make sure that they are too violent or show too much skin for the kid for what age he or she is.  

I do think the standards that are in place with the industry are good, but the parents are exercising them properly.  Parents should know if their 5 year old child should get sponge bob's fun time or grand theft auto 5.  

journal 86 feb 10th 09

abraham lincoln is credited with the saying that it is better to remain silent and have everyone that you are an idiot than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.

what i think he meant by this is really think about what you say before you say it.  most people it  seems just say whatever is on their mind and sometimes it leads to them looking foolish.  I agree with this statement because i know alot of people that tend to talk and talk but nothing that they say has any truth to it.  i don't understand why people can't admit that they don't know something or are wrong about things.  they just try to find a way to justify their words and in the end if they are wrong they look like the idiot.  

journal 85 feb 09 09

describe the image from the previous screen from memory with as much detail as you can remember.

out in the front right hand side of the picture is a little boy wearing over sized shorts and a t-shirt.  He's got his hands down in front of him crossed looking at the building behind him.

the building has a ramp in about the center that leads to a porch with a steeple looking thing on top of it.  there is another child almost at the bottom of this ramp.  to the right of this part is another steeple and a window i believe, and to the left is another steeple with what looks like bells attached to the top.  the field the first kid i described is in, looks like a field for flowers and tall grasses.  the whole picture is done in black and white.  the sky is pretty cloudy.  in the far background to the right of the picture it looks like there are houses or buildings of some sort.  

journal 84 feb 05 09

the man who is good at excuses is seldom good for anything else

samuel foote

most people that find excuses for everything, is because they don't want to do what is asked of them.  example is my finacee's brother.  he's the guitarist/vocalist for their band.  he would find every excuse why he didn't practice or didn't attend their practices.  his guitar playing really suffered due to this.  after a while they were getting to the decision to keep him or look for another person to replace him.  he finally got the hint and began to practice, he's still behind the rest of the band but he is improving.  

moral of the story, just do what you need to do and it will be easier on yourself and others in the end.

i think samuel foote what a man that had to deal with a lot of people that gave him excuses.  

journal 82 feb 3rd 09

continue the story from yesterday

hillside rehabilitation clinic $5000 may 12 1987

griggs formal wear $200.00 april 13 1990

mastson funeral home $7000 dec 20 1994

well the freemans had somewhat a setback with their child.  They got into drugs and had to send them off to rehab.  After a few years, the child recovered from their addiction and found a spouse!!  So they planned a marriage in April 1990.  Everything was going well, until in 1994 grandpa fell sick and evenutally died.  They had to have the funeral late december.  Christmas was a sad day. 

the end

journal 81 feb 02 09

In early January, the Freemans found out that Jane was pregnant with a new baby!  So they went shopping at Kids R Us to get a crib and clothes for the baby.  Later in August their bundle of joy was born.  As the years went by they were a happy little family.  They decided for their kiddo to buy them some new toys at target for their 2nd birthday.  The kids was happy as were the parents!  

the end