"Don't Ask, Don't Tell"

The "don't ask, don't tell" policy was repealed.
Homosexuals may now serve in the military
without keeping their sexual preference a secret. 

I did my research paper over the "don't ask, don't tell" policy. This policy was says that you can serve in the military as long as the people don't know that you are a homosexual. This policy also states that the people can not ask you if you are a homosexual or not. If anyone finds out that you are a homosexual then they have to right to discharge you from the military.

I enjoyed writing this paper a lot. For one it was a topic that I found interesting. I learned a lot about it. I thought that it was challenging to write but it taught us a lot. I really liked how we had to state the counter argument. It gets us to look at another perspective of the issue.

If I were to do some things differently I would. I would make sure I knew exactly what I was going to write about. Looking for information with just the topic "DONT ASK DONT TELL" is pretty broad. I also wish that I would of found a little more information or quotes to use in my paper. Other then that I don't think that I would do much more different. I like my paper and think that I make a good argument in it.

Christmas (:

I LOVE CHRISTMAS. (: I love everything about it, from putting up the tree, cuddling up next to the fireplace with a cup of hot chocolate, to the expressions on your families face when they open a present. The best part about Christmas? CHRISTMAS MUSIC. <3 Christmas a amazing. Yeah, it is a stressful time because you have to have enough money to get presents and everything. But that is not what Christmas is about. I think that Christmas should be about spending time with your family. It should be about enjoying everyone company. Christmas should not be about who gets the most expensive present or complaining about not getting what you want. I would be perfectly fine without getting a single present.

Some people out there don't get 1 thing for Christmas. They would be happy just to have a stable home. Somewhere they can call home. Those people would be extremely happy to get 1 present for Christmas and wouldn't complain if they didn't.

This year I didn't ask for 1 present. I don't want anything. I just want to spend time with my family. I want everyone to be together and be happy. After my mom almost died it made me rethink everything. If my mom were to die what would I remember about her? It wouldn't be what presents she got me, or how much money she spent on me. It would be all the smiles we shared. It would be playing twister on Christmas with my brother and my sister. So this year don't worry about the presents you get or the presents you don;t get. Just be happy that you are with your family.

Feared or Loved?

In my college prep class we were talking about a quote for a essay we read, "The Prince." To sum the quote up it asked one simple question, Is it better to be feared or loved? I can see it in both aspects. I mean if people fear you they are going to do what you want them to do for the sake of not wanting to deal with the consequences. They are going to do it because they feel like they HAVE to, not because they WANT to. If people love you they are going to do what you want them to do because..... well they will want to do it. They will want to do what is going to make you happy.
Also if you are loved and not feared i think that you will gain a lot more respect from them. I mean if you fear someone you don't have respect for them. You do what they want you to do because they want you to do it. If you love someone you have the up most respect for that person. You are going to do what they want you to do because it will make them happy and you know that it is the right thing to do.
Don't get me wrong to be loved has its downfalls too. If you are loved then you have to worry about messing up. You have to worry about upsetting the ones that love you. By making 1 wrong decision you can loose everyone that loves you.
I honestly think that if you fear someone that you will never be able to gain any kind of respect for them but if you were to loose the ones that love you then you can always get them back.

What Makes Me Happy. (:

So I have not had a very good week. I just started basketball and have been having some problems with my friend. So when I got home after a long practice I was so excited to see that my sister's car was in driveway. I hurried up and got my stuff out of my car and went inside.

Before I opened  the door I was met by my nephew.

"Hi Nina" he says with a huge smile on his face. 

"Look," as he pointed to his popsicle. Nobody else was in the house. I picked him up and instantly started to cry. It is crazy how a simple "Hi Nina," can make everything seem better. What is more crazy is how close you can be with someone that can't barely talk. 

I didn't want him to go home but he had to. He started to cry when I told him he had to put his shoes on. He kept saying "Nina go bye bye." But I had school the next day so I knew I couldn't. So after you my sister and nephews left I talked to my mom and she told me that I could go and spend the night with them. I got my stuff together and went to my sisters. When i got there my nephew was still crying because he wanted me to stay with him. When i opened the door he started to laugh and ran over and gave me a hug. I gave him a bath, we colored, and played with his Woody and Buzz dolls. Then I tucked him into bed and read him a story. 

I guess I'm just trying to say that sometimes when things are not going your way. Or you are having a bad day. You have to step back and realize the things that truly make you happy. 

Basketball

This is my senior year. This means my last time to play high school sports. Sports are my life. I do them not  because my parents want me to, or to be involved, but I do them because I have a passion for it. I love everything about it. From the practices where you think you are going to die because you just ran 5 suicides, to playing your last game.

I just had my first day of basketball practice. Not only is it my senior year but I am the only senior that went out and we have a new coach. I didn't want a new coach. I wanted to have to same coach from freshmen year to senior year but there is nothing that I can do about it now. I just have to accept the new coach and do my best. His coaching style is EXTREMELY different then our old coach. That is good and that is bad.
This year is going to be way different. More intense, and a lot more is going to be expected out of all of us. This new coach is going to have higher expectations. Not saying that our old coach didn't want us to succeed but there is just something different about this new coach.
Being the only senior out means I have to be more of a leader. I feel a lot of pressure but that is good for me. I will have to push myself and be the best that I can be. I have to show everyone that there is a reason, other then because I'm a senior, that I am playing.
This years basketball is going to be different. But it is up to me to choose wither it is going to be different in a positive way. Or if it is going going to be different in a negative way.

Senior Night

I didn't think that it was going to be as hard as it was. As they announce my name I walk out the doors hug my team mates and get the gifts that they gave me. Then I go over and hug my coach. My stomach drops. My heart is racing. And now I am crying in front of a crowd of people. I am not crying because this is my last game of volleyball I have. But because of all the memories and how close I have become. I try to hold back the tears but they keep coming out. I look down at a picture that was given to me so that people won't see me cry. But I know that they can tell that I am.
After they announce all of us I pull it together. I know I have a long night of volleyball I have to get focused on. We are playing a team that had already beat us once this year. Us senior girls are determined not to let that happen again. Game one comes along and we don't do so good. We lost. But we knew we are better then they are so we all stay positive. Game two. WE DOMINATE. We are all one cloud nine. Our energy is up and we know we have this in the bag. Game three and four. We win. They were good games and I am proud we won.
When we get in the locker room I am full of every kind of emotion you can think of. I am happy we won, sad it was our last home game, kinda upset that I struggled that game, and super excited because I had the game winning hit. We all come together after coach is done talking to bring it in. We yell at the top of our long who we are and who we are proud to be DOGS.

What Would you Do?

So I am really debating if I should write about this or not. But I have decided that i should. This is a very touchy subject. I'm going to talk about abortions.
In College Prep class i read an essay about this. It talked about a clinic that was only for abortions. It really made me think. Is it okay to have abortions? The answer may be different from person to person. Some people may so no because religion, or family background. Some people may have no problems with it. Me personally.... well I'm undecided. I think that there are circumstances that are okay for a women to get one. For example, if a 14 year old girl gets raped and gets pregnant then i believe that it is okay. I mean after all it wasn't her choice to have sex. What i don't agree with is women that use it as a form of birth control. They just have sex, get pregnant, and have abortions. This is not right at all. If you are having sex then be safe about it. Use a condom or get on birth control. Don't just go get abortions for no reason. You are taking an innocent life away.
I also think it is okay for a women to get an abortion if the baby or the mother is at risk of death because of the pregnancy. Me.. well i don't think that i would ever get one. Even if my life were at risk. I don't think that i could do it. I could not take a little innocent life away.
Some of you may disagree with me and that is fine. Everyone has there own opinions about it. It just makes you think. What would you do if you were in that situation? But in the end it is the women's choice and she is going to do what she thinks is best for her and the baby.