Marley & Me

In recent years, here are a number of films which acted by animals, especially by puppies. Some best-sold movie such as Quill, Lassie and so on which touch lots of people's hearts.

If you feel bored, I recommend you a popular film called,"Marley and Me". It's an adaption of a best seller with the same name. It depicts the relationship between an awfully cute dog and his owners. They shared many years accompanying with each other. Not only can Marley plea them but also he can heal the owners' pain with his sensitive heart. Seeing"Mayley and Me", I cannot help laughing out loud; however, at the end of the movie, I was moved by their deep emomtions, bursting into tears . The most impressive scene to me is that he "successfully" enrage his trainer, the one who is very experienced. Although Marley may be considered to be a troublemaker, he still entertain and comfort people by his kindheart. Watching the film is an easy way to make me happy, relaxed and even let me have more courage facing with difficulity in reality.

The film reminds me of cherishing what I have as well as living in the present. Marley and Me makes people realize the tinest but is also the simplest happiness in life. No wonder there are a lot of acclaims of its delicate description. Marley may be an extremely awful dog when he break the rules of our so-called normal life; however his innpcency, trust in humans entirely touch me from the bottom of my heart.

About Fast Food

We hear about news that in order to gain more profit, many fast food restaurants give their customers some discount or do other tricks to attract them. What’s more, because buying food from fast food restaurants is so convenient and quick, and some foods are tasty that many people like to have fast food for their meals.

There is a famous film called: Super Size Me, which was released in 2004. Young filmmaker Morgan Spurlock boldly carried out an experiment with his body: for 30 days, he took his meals—breakfast, lunch and dinner, no exception, at McDonald’s. And he directed and recorded his horror story. Morgan Spurlock’s object was to prove the physical and mental effects of consuming fast food. Before beginning shooting the film, Spurlock went to see three doctors to have some examination, showing that he was a man with the healthy body and mind. But after eating hamburgers and fries (5000 calories a day) for 30 days, a tragedy came up. Let me make a list:

1. He gained 11.1 kg.
2. His knees ached for his increase of weight.
3. He got stomachache.
4. His cholesterol index number “shot up”.
5. His GOT and GPT rose.
6. His girlfriend argued with him.

This alarming information tells us: having too much fast food will ruin your health. Spurlock spend one year time trying to restore to his originally body weight but in vain. Afterwards, McDonald’s changed menu instantly, adding salads and ending super sizing meals, but did not admit to being influenced by Spurlock's film.

Moreover, fast food restaurants were confronted with a second strike. There was another movie: Fast Food Nation, which describes that fast food have the unhealthy influence on society and individuals.

But I think that we do not have to quit ourselves eating fast food, we can still have the delights of chatting and eating with friend in the fast food restaurant. What we need to remember is not having too much fast food!

Substantial Saturday

On March 28th, I joined a one-day camp related to global warming and greenhouse effect; besides, I watched a tape Let It Be, which is called 無米樂 in Chinese, in the evening. I really had a copious day though I hadn't studied any textbooks and left many thing unfinished. At the night of that day, my mind was full of speculation on the world, on the society and on the life.

After attending the camp, I learned some new conception about global warming and greenhouse effect. I realized more about the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Kyoto Protocol and the system related to them. Most of all, I got some significant view about those phenomena of this issue. For example, we can't see climate change as the only reason of those disaster happening around the world and the emission reduction of those so-called environmental-friendly country, such as Japan, is not for ethic but for responsibility of the long historical emission. Moreover, when reading the survey of this issue, we should take every aspect into consideration rather than rush to a sole simple conclusion.

In addition, after watching the tape Let It Be, my heart was full of complex feeling. I appreciated those farmers' attitude toward their hard life; I was angry about the unequal situation of farmers and I bothered with the complicated relationship among farming, industry, and business. Those farmers' situation become worse because Taiwan has joined WTO, which creates lots benefit for business. I think we should care more about farming in Taiwan; we can't just emphasize the industry and business. After all, farming is the primary machine that make Taiwan prosper; moreover, a country can't subsist safely without farming. Last but not lest, farming culture is the basic culture of Taiwan; if we lost it what will we have ?

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Martin Luther King, Jr., devoted his life to helping people who were poor, disadvantaged, and racially oppressed in U.S. He born in January 15,1929 at Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
In 1948, he graduated from Morehouse with a Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology, and he graduated with a Bachelor of Divinity degree from Crozer Theological Seminary in Chester, Pennsylvania in 1951. King then began doctoral studies in systematic theology at Boston University and received his Doctor of Philosophy on June 5, 1955.
He lead the Montgomery Bus Boycott for Rosa Parks, who was arrested for refusing to give up her seat to white people.
King won his Nobel Peace Prize in1964 for end racial segregation and racial discrimination.
He delivered a well-known speech, I Have a Dream, in Washing, D.C.
The important affairs he did are Albany movement, Birmingham campaign, organized” Poor People’s Campaign” and so on.

Nelson Mandela

Nelson Mandela became the first black president of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, among his 70s. He started his political life because of inheriting his father's position as a privy councilor in 1937. Since his education of Bachelor of Arts and Laws which is related to the liberal arts, Mandela represented political dreams of black people. In order to realize those dreams, he was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1964. Following his release from prison, because of the end of apartheid, on 11 February 1990, Mandela supported reconciliation and negotiation, and helped lead the transition towards multi-racial democracy in South Africa. Four years later, he was elected in a fully representative democratic election in South of Africa. He and F.W.de Klerk, who was the last president of apartheid-era South Africa, known for improving the end of apartheid, shared the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993.

Due days for journal entries

2nd and 3rd entries due on April 17, Friday
4th and 5th entries due on May 29, Friday
6th and 7th entires due on June 17, Wednesday

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Martin Luther King, Jr, devoted his life to helping people who were poor, disadvantaged, and racially oppressed in the United State. Moreover, he was born in January 15, 1929 and came from Atlanta, Georgia. In his early days, he skipped ninth and twelfth grade and entered college at age fifteen. He continued to get doctor's degree in 1951. King aimed at improving Afrcan American's civicl rights and he received the Nobel Prize in 1964. In addition, he delivered one of his compelling public eloquences '' I Have a Dream'' in 1963. King asked the United States to live out the true meaning of its creed : all men are created equal. He wanted to make justice a reality for all black people and advocate reforming civil rights systems. Martin Luther King, Jr affects the US significantly and the world as well. He is no doubt a remarkable individual.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Martin Luther King, Jr., Devoted his life to helping people who were poor, disadvantaged, and racially oppressed in the United States.

He was born on January 15, 1929 in Atlanta and in 1948 graduated from Morehouse with a Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology, and enrolled in Crozer Theological Seminary in Chester, Pennsylvania, from which he graduated with a Bachelor of Divinity degree in 1951. King then began doctoral studies in systematic theology at Boston University and got his Doctor of Philosophy .when he was nineteen, working as a field secretary for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) in St. Augustine, Florida in 1964. One day he was caught by five men and a woman who accused him of being a “communist and a Yankee.” When he learned of the incident, Martin Luther King was motivated and identified with the populist tradition and assigned him to organize poor whites. The heroes he honored are Gandhi and Rustin. Inspired by Gandhi's success with non-violent activism, which affected King in a profound way, deepening his understanding of non-violent resistance and his commitment to America’s struggle for civil rights. African American civil rights activist Bayard Rustin, who had studied Gandhi's teachings, counseled King to dedicate himself to the principles of non-violence, served as King's main advisor and mentor throughout his early activism, and was the main organizer of the 1963 March on Washington. Rustin's open homosexuality, support of democratic socialism, and his former ties to the Communist Party USA caused many white and African-American leaders to demand King distance himself from Rustin.

King won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964, he said in his acceptance remark, "Freedom is one thing. You have it all or you are not free". And then he continued to do his best to fight for the weakness and powerless people. At 33, he was pressing the case of civil rights with President John Kennedy. At 34, he galvanized the nation with his "I Have a Dream" speech. And at 39, he was assassinated, but he left a legacy of hope and inspiration that continues today.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Martin Luther King, Jr., devoted his life to helping people who were poor, disadvantaged, and racially oppressed in the United States. He was born on January,1929, in Atlanta, Georgia. Martin Luther was graduated from Morehouse College and a priest.

Martin Luther King, Jr. experienced segregation early in life, and the significant moment for him to campaign for racial inequality in the society was the incident that a black women was arrested because she refused to surrender her bus seat to a white passenger. After that, King delivered his inspiring speech of "I have a dream".

Martin Luther King, Jr. was awarded the 1964 Nobel Peace Prize. People give tribute to his devotion of overthrowing the inequality between black and white in America by struggling without violence.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Martin Luther King, Jr., devoted his life to helping people who were poor, disadvantaged, and racially oppressed in the United States. He was born in Atlanta Georgia, United States in 1929. He entered Morehouse College without graduating from high school and got Bachelor of Divinity at Boston University. He was motivated by Montgomery Bus Boycott, which was caused by the conflict of giving up a seat between a black woman and a white man. His hero was Abraham Lincoln. King won the Nobel Peace Prize, saying that “Freedom is one thing. You have it all or you are not free.” in 1964. He also gave a famous speech, “I Have A Dream” to inspire black people to pursue their rights.

The First Black President of South Africa

Nelson Mandela was borned in 1918.After his 20s, he had started to organize a lot of organizations to resist the contemporary South Africa government. Due to his action which was regarded by the government as armed rebellion, he was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1964. After being imprisonmened for 27 yearas, he was released by president F.W Klerk in 1990. In 1993, they both shared the Nobel Peace Prize for breaking the hence between the black and the white. One year later, Mandela became the first black president of South Africa, which made him a image of hero in black all around the world.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Martin Luther King, Jr. was born in Atlanta, Georgia in 1929. He entered Morehouse College at age fifteen without formally graduating from high school. After he graduated from Morehouse with a Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology; he also got a Bachelor of Divinity degree. Because the black people were under an unfair situation for a long time, he had wanted to solve this kind of situation. After Montgomery Bus Boycott event, Martin Luther King made up his mind to devoted his life to helping people who were poor, disadvantaged, and racially oppressed in the United States. He delivered a speech "I Have a Dream" in March on Washington, 1963. It was regarded, along with Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address and Franklin D. Roosevelt's Infamy Speech, as one of the finest speeches in the history of American oratory. The speech demanded the rights for the black people and even pushed the law that prohibited racial discrimination in employment; protection of civil rights workers from police brutality. As a result, he got a Nobel Peace Prize in 1964.

I Have a Dream

Rigoberta Menchu

Rigoberta Menchu is a Guatemalan Indian who became the spokesperson of the native people. She was born in 1959, in a small Guatemalan village of Chimel located in the northern highlands. In 1992, Rigoberta Menchu was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, because she led a campaign for social justice brought international attention to this conflict between indigenous Indians and the military government of Guatemala. Her family members were tortured and killed by the authorities because they were forcing the landowneres to give the land back to the natives. She also wrote an autobiograohy, ''I..Rigoberta Menchu''(1984), telling the world not only her own story, but also about the lives of her fellow Indians.

Journal Entry 1

The news"Dark days for Green Energy" is talking about the effect, which caused by credit crisis on green energy. After reading this article, there's something come up into my mind. It is about green energy and environmental protection.
This news talks about wind and solar power. It refers to the plant and installation which are far from me. These seldom exist in my daily life except that you'll see some wind power generators when you pass the coast of Hsin-Ju. I can't invent a widespread machine to make a good use of these renewable resources. All that I can do is to do the so-called 3R--reuse, reduce and recycle. Before I leave my desk, I would remember to turn off the lamp. In summer, I seldom turn on air-conditioner if it is not that hot. I think I'm friendly to earth except one thing--recycling. It doesn't matter when I live in Taipei. Every household, school, company and so on should do recycling because of the policy to plastic bags. Most of our trash can be well-placed. If you take a drink on hand, you don't have to worry about there's no place to recycle the container. I once had been recycling seriously. However, when I live in the dormitory of Tsing Hua now, I don't really care the details of recycling, because the recycling places are not near my room. That's the problem I faced now. To recycle thoroughly is a little bit hard to live up to in Hsin-Ju for me.

My First Journal Entries about Learning of Debate

This semester, my Listening and Speaking class is talking about English Debate instructed by Viphavee. “Debate is a formal way of expressing opinions or stance on a controversial issue.” Instead of improving solely English listening and speaking skills, I also look forward to learning more abilities, such as critical thinking, justifiable arguing, factual evidencing, being deeply knowledgeable, logical and educated person.

I have had three classes from this semester and learned about the Asian Parliament Debate format, watching the video about “Introduction to debating”. Frankly speaking, I have never participated in any debate contest, not to mention in English. It is completely a new and big challenge for me. Besides, when I search the Internet about English debate, I discover that there are a number of the videos which are debate contests by Asian university students. It astonishes me that all of them speak so fluently in such a quick speed that basically, I cannot catch up with. Sometime, I can capture some part of fragmented vocabulary inadequately, but, at the same time, ignore the meanings of whole sentences. How poor my English is that I suddenly realize.

Well goes an old saying, “Self-recognition is the largest progress.” I know that I do not have enough or perfect English skills; what I know is working hard. May myself be more and more diligent and be willing to persevere!

Giving a helping hand

"To the world,you may be one person.But to one person,you may be the world" is the proverb which I like most.In modern society,people often disguise themselves for fear that they may get hurt.Giving others help somehow become a "special thing" which require lots thinking.But I think that situation is very strange.
Last month I joined a series activiites which show of some examples of people who are in need and some people give helping hands without asking for repay.Their reason is very simple,"we have the strength to help others,why not giving the helping hands?"I wholly agreee that for I think that human beings can't live alone.You will need somebody's help one day.It's not how wealth you are but how willing you want to give.

After The Pursuit of Happyness

Last Saturday,I watched the movie ‘’ The Pursuit of Happyness’’ again. I have watched this movie several times. I think this is a good movie, and every time I watch it, there are always better understandings come into my mind.


Will Smith stars this movie which is inspired by a true story of Chris Gardner. Chris is a single father. He struggles to build a future for himself and his five-year old son. After his wife left, he raises his son on his own. But, he never gives up. Although living in a poor condition, He has a conviction that all would be well in the end. Finally, Chris’ faith lead love where it has to go. He got a practical training which there is only one will be singled out in a highly competitive workplace. Without salary, Chris cannot afford the rent. He is forced to sleep in the train station and the homeless shelter briefly. In the end, Chris pays off and become a successful investment expert and a Wall Street Legend.


There are lines in the movie that most impress me,’’ Don't ever let someone tell you, you can't do something. Not even me. You got a dream, you gotta protect it. People can't do something themselves, they wanna tell you that you can't do it. You want something? Go get it.’’


I think that this is a movie which might happen in normal people. We always look in the bright side of a great man and don’t even think about how hard they try to succeed. It is easy for us to envy and be jealous of other people. What is ‘’happyness’’ to you? I believe that this is a question worthy of pondering. I really recommend this movie to anyone who has not seen it.



In English title, happiness is spelled with a "Y" instead of a "I". I guess that it might want to emphasize ‘’happy’’.

The first journal entry

Last Sunday, my sister and I went to visit my grandparents. Because both of us are now living far from Taipei, we do not go to grandparents’ house as frequently as before. As a result, I had looked forward this day for so long. We got up early and bought lots of delicious dishes which were my grandparents’ favorite then we took a taxi to there since none of us could drive.
We enjoyed our meals very much and after lunch we gathered together in the living room chatting joyfully. I told them what happened in NTHU vividly. All of them were pleased by my funny expressions. Then I went for my handbag to take my cell phone in order to illustrate how we college students use texts in our daily lives to my old grand parents.
All of a sudden, I found out that my cell phone was missing. I looked for it every where in the house but still could not find it. It was so awful that I almost burst into tears. Finally, it came to me that I could call myself and the ringtone might help me to find out my cell phone. I dialed the phone number with trembling. To my extremely astonishment, someone who talked in a strong Taiwanese accent picked up the phone. He said, ‘’Lady, you left your cell phone on my taxi. I’m now on the way to your house. Please wait for me at the corner and I’ll get there in five minutes.’’ It dawned on me that I had left my cell phone on the taxi after sending a message to my friend.
It was unbelievable that the driver did return my cell phone to me.I was too overjoyed to said a word not only because I got the cell phone back but also because the taxi driver got me to know that there still a lot of nice people in Taiwan. After this awful experience I swore not to be forgetful anymore. Besides, I made up my mind to care more about every little thing in daily life and to help others as often as possible.

High School Musical 3 : Senior Year

Recently, I've seen the well-known serious of movie, High School Musical 3, directed by Disney, and I have some thoughts and reflection to share with you.

In the first two movies, Troy Bolton, a team captain of East High Wildcats, and Gabriella Montez, the girlfriend of Troy, always conquer the obstacles in their life together. But this time, they are going to graduate from the senior high and have their own choice for ideal universities. They hesitate, keep in silence and feel lonely when they face the fact that they may say goodbye to each other and their friends. Fortunately, their friends hold a stage performance to present the graduates’ moods and thoughts, especially their fear, anxiety and expectation of the future.

However, my focus is not on the love between Troy and Gabriella, but the friendship among all the graduates. For our freshmen, who just graduated from senior high not for a year, I think this movie could invoke the memories in our senior high. Moreover, this movie touches me because the plot is close to us. In the movie, Troy says,” East High is having friends that we'll keep for the rest of our lives. And I guess that means we really are in all this together.” I've once thought that when I left the senior high, perhaps one day my friends might leave me alone step by step with time passing. But, I find I was wrong soon. In fact, they stand beside me all the time and sometimes cheer me up when I encounter difficulties. At that moment, I do understand the sentence that Troy says and what message this movie wants to convey completely.

Twilight

Twilight is one of my favorite novels. It tells about a romance between a vampire and a humane girl. In the beginning of the story, the main character, Bella, moves from sunny Phoenix to rainy Forks to live. She is a transfer student in high school. And she is charming and sweet to her friends. However, her life begins to change since a car accident. Her biological classmate, Edward, saves her from the accident by only using his one hand to push away the truck which is going to hit Bella. It’s impossible for a human being to do so. Although Bella claimed that it is Edward that he saved her, nobody believes it. Thus, she starts to pay more attention to the handsome guy, Edward, and finds the secret of him….
I am of opinion that why the novel is so charming is not only because of its romantic plot but also it is a wonderful dream for girls. Vampire is a kind of mystery and beauty, and stories of vampire always gain attention from people. What’s more, it’s said that the outline of Twilight came from the author’s dream. As she woke up, she found that she was touched by the plot of her dream and couldn’t help but shed tears. I think when we pay money to buy our favorite romantic novel is like buying a romantic dream to fulfills our fantacy.