Some of the things that i have learned this semester are, when to start a new paragraph, how to get a better thesis statement, when to punctuate, and that short sentences are ok.  I had the trouble with getting a good thesis statement that would grab the readers attention.  I chose topics that had to do with horses because that is what i know the most about and can relate things to.  My favorite piece that i wrote would be the first essay about my pony cola.  I liked this essay because it was something that i could tell a good story about and get the readers attention right away.  The essay i had the hardest with was cause and effect.  I didn’t understand what my teacher wanted in the essay at first and even when i did find out it was hard to broden the essay.  As much trouble as i did have with the computers at first i really liked comment for the peer review. This worked nice because you have multiple people reading and changing parts.  It took less time to type than it would have to write it out by hand.

I believe i developed a new understanding for any writing class because i have a better understanding for it now.  For some reason i truly believe that it was the way that steve taught the class and how he explained everything.  i thought the class was fun and i enjoyed it a lot. 

                                                                                                            3-20-07

                                                                                                            E3 rd

 Classification 

When I look at all the different people in
Duluth I relate them to the different breeds of horses.  There are many different groups but I’m going to talk about the ones that I see most of the time.

During the summer time when construction and blacktopping are going on, I see how hard the crew members are working and think of a draft horse.  They are built with muscle, hard working and always working up a sweat.  Their bodies take so mush abuse but they keep trucking along.  Underneath their appearance they are like an eighty year old man muscles all achy, bones cracking and popping as they move.  No matter how they feel they suck it up and keep going because that is what we expect of them.  By the end of the day they just want to go home, eat, and sleep.  When they do try to relax, there body just won’t let them.   This makes it hard for them to sleep because their muscles are in so much pain; it stops them from falling asleep.  I know some of this because my dad works in construction.

When I’m out in public I always see that shy out cast kind of person, they are like ponies.  They always are getting picked on, picked last to do something; fighting to show they exist and fighting to hold there own the best as they can.   When confrontation comes about they will avoid it the best they can.  When they can’t avoid a confrontation they usually just sit back and take the abuse.  Eventually of taking all the abuse they snap. After awhile some will start to fight back with all they have when in a confrontation.  Some of the others end up starting to pick on others like themselves that might be weaker just so that they can feel better about themselves. 

Then you have the American Quarter Horse they are the most average.  They deal with problems to the best of their ability so that it does not get out of hand.  They work normal jobs that don’t require a lot of labor.  For the most part they are fairly social.  They are not afraid to stand up for themselves or other people getting picked on.  These kinds of people are the most common that you see. These people can be athletic,   easy to get along with and know how to relax when needed.  They live life to the fullest and go for their goals. I would consider myself in this category.

There are many different breeds of people but over all, in my eyes, these are the main groups that I see when I go out in
Duluth.

                                                                                                            E1

                                                                                                            2-14-07

Cola 

This is the day I gained a deeper insight on life and death.

Cola was my first pony.  I started riding her when I was six years old.  I rode her everyday.  We would explore the woods, and I would never have to worry about getting lost because Cola always knew her way back  I was around Cola so much of my younger life that she became apart of me. I knew what all her actions meant as if she was talking to me like another person.

It was a sunny summer Sunday, with a nice breeze.  I went to the pasture to go get Cola for a ride, when I noticed she was acting really strange.  She didn’t have the normal sparkle in her eye.  Cola looked depressed just standing in the corner by the fence.  I just sat there with her for awhile to figure out what was wrong with her, I just could not pin point it.  I knew that she looked like she was in a lot of pain, and that something was very wrong.

I went inside to tell my mother and great grandmother what was wrong.  I had this horrible feeling in my stomach about the situation, so my mother and I went outside to look at Cola.  My mother said, “Oh she will be fine.” I just could not believe her. 

My mom made me come inside and eat some lunch.  After lunch I went back outside to be with my pony.  I found her lying on her side kicking her legs back and forth trying to get up.  She just could not get up.  I went into the barn, and grabbed her halter and lead, so I could put it on her, and try to pull her up.  I just wasn’t strong enough to do it. 

I ran up to the house and told my mom to come help me get Cola up.  So she came out and saw Cola laying there and just told me that everything was fine my pony was just sunbathing.  I yelled “NO!” that something was really wrong.  She still would not believe me.  She went back into the house while I lay next to my pony.  I tried to comfort Cola by petting her.

An hour later my mom came back out, and finally believed me that something was wrong.  My mom tried calling the vet, but there was no answer.  So my mom, and dad, and I grabbed a tarp and brought it out to the pasture, and put my pony on to it.  Then we dragged the Cola on the tarp into the barn, so that we wouldn’t have to worry about the other horses bothering her in the pasture.  Once we got her into the barn all we could do was comfort her and wait for the vet to call back.

About a half hour passed, and my mom knew it was too late for any kind of survival chance.  I was brought back into the house and told to wait with my great grandmother.  Ten minutes later I saw my uncle drive up the drive way.  I started to get worried.  My great grandma grabbed me and would not let go, she knew what was going to happen and so did I.  Five minutes later I heard a gunshot I screamed “NO!” I didn’t want to believe that my pony was just shot.  I had to go see.  I wiggled my way out of my great grandma’s grasp, and ran as fast as I could to the barn.  I looked in the stall for my pony and did not see her.  I turned around and noticed that my dad’s truck was on the other side of the barn.  I walked over to the truck with a sick feeling in my stomach.  When I got to the truck, I hopped up onto the bumper, and saw Cola in the truck bed with a bullet hole in the side of her head with blood dripping down the side of her face.  I crawled over the tail gate, and into the truck bed, and sat there crying not understanding why this had to be done.

My mom soon found me and I asked “why did she have to die?” So my mother decided to explain to me that Cola had Colic.  I asked “what is that?” My mother said “colic is where the horses’ intestines get all tangled up and they start to swell, and sometimes it is too late to do anything about, so you have to put the horse down.”  My mother also told me that if anything is ever suffering from something that can’t be helped you need to let it go, and not to be selfish.