Procrastination is speccially notorius in academic situations, where students are required to meet deadlines for assignments and tests in an environment full of events and activities, often more atractive for them. A procrastinator student is often remarkably optimistic about his ability to complete a task on a tight deadline; this is usually accompanied by expressions of reassurance that everything is under control. (Therefore, there is no need to start.) For example, he may estimate that a paper will take only few hours to write; he has fifteen days; there is plenty of time; no need to start. Based on a false sense of security, time passes. At some point, he crosses over an imaginary starting time and suddenly realizes, there isn’t enough time to do the work it suppose to be done by then. Often, procrastinators have the erroneous feeling that “I only work well under pressure.” Actually, at this point they are making progress only because they haven’t any choice. Their backs are against the wall and there are no alternatives.

According to the Student Academic Services of California Polytechnic State University, there are four simple reasons for procrastination: http://sas.calpoly.edu/asc/ssl/procrastination.html

1. Difficult – the task seems hard to do; we naturally tend to avoid difficult things in favor of those which seem easy to us.
2. Time-consuming – the task will take large blocks of time, and large blocks of time are unavailable until the weekend.
3. Lack of knowledge or skills – no one wants to make mistakes, so wait until you learn how before you start.
4. Fears – everyone will know how you screwed up.

For someone who wants to avoid all those situations, just simple”Do everything opposite” (they recommend), and add “Tell yourself: this isn’t so hard, it won’t take long, and I am sure that I know how to do it, or that I can learn while I’m doing it. And no one else really cares because they are all so busy with their own problems”. http://sas.calpoly.edu/asc/ssl/procrastination.html

So, the next time we have to make other assignment, write a paper or study for an exam, just think about it, and try to use a tool that may help you to follow and finish all the task you have to do, use an agenda and keep on track all what you write on it.

For many people, Black Friday, the Friday following Thanksgiving Day, which is the beginning of the traditional Christmas shopping season, is becoming a tradition. Even though black Friday is not an official holiday, many employees have the day off as part of the Thanksgiving holiday, and have the opportunity to go shopping; that is why retailers often decorate for the Christmas and holiday season weeks beforehand.

It is becoming a tradition for some families to enjoy start the Christmas shopping list taking advantage of retailers bargain offers. Many retailers open extremely early, with most of the retailers typically opening at 5 A.M. or even earlier; and in many cities it is not uncommon to see shoppers lined up for hours before stores with big sales open. Shoppers like to enjoy thinking the good deals they going to have. It doesn’t care how long they have to wait in front of the door of the store until the expected open hour arrives. Once inside the stores, shoppers often rush and grab, as many stores have only a few of the big-draw items. For some particularly popular items, some people shop at these sales in order to get deep discounts on items they can then resell, typically online.

That is why, some other people consider Black Friday as a way of exploitation, because they consider Retailers unfairly offer some items on sale, that maybe attracts more shoppers, but then once in the store, customers look some other items that maybe they aren’t on sale some times items more expensive than the regular price but people choose to buy any way. Doing so (they say) retailers are mistreated shoppers, because the only one they do is make all kind of publicity, like creating the Black Friday to catch more customers and get more profits.  

On the other hand, retailers make employment for more people in this season, because they going to need more employees to attend more customers, and that’s a good benefit for the entire economy. Besides, people love to go shopping; love to buy something for their loved ones. Especially they enjoy go shopping on Black Friday. For them is like to live an adventure; and always they have the option whether to go or not, and whether to buy or not; and, that can’t be consider a bad thing or any kind of exploitation.

So, when you think in the Black Friday, what do you think? is this a tradition or is kind of exploitation?

The answer could be easy; it depends on the lens through which you look.

I chose that theme because I consider is a big issue in the entire world. According to World Health Organization, there are some countries where more than 20 % of their population are obese. In the United States has been increasingly cited as a major health issue in recent decades. While many industrialized countries have experienced similar increases, obesity rates in the United States are among the highest in the world with 64% of adults being overweight or obese, and 26% are obese. Estimates of the number of obese American adults have been rising steadily, from 19.4% in 1997, 24.5% in 2004 to 26.6% in 2007. That is why I chose to include two maps representing the distribution of the obesity as a global problem and also in the United States. Also I am showig the formula used to determine the degree of obesity of a person and a picture that specifies the degrees of overweight and obesity that may occur to somebody.

The problem of childhood obesity in the United States has grown considerably in recent years. Between 16 and 33 percent of children and adolescents are obese.  Unhealthy weight gain due to poor diet and lack of exercise is responsible for many diseases, so I added some pictures of obese children and how a poor diet leads to medical problems, that’s why I added some photos depicting the importance of changing habits and weight control; plus some photos that show healthy and balanced diet, and the importance to start in childhood to get these good habits, as well as regular exercise, for weight control.

Regarding to music,I chose a tune called “losing weight”, from the album “the pleasure of get fit”, which includes exciting music for fitness  routines. I chose this tune because as I said earlier, the main purpose of my presentation is make an invitation to realize the importance of controlling our weight.

And last but not least, I use a  picture where two hands appear with chains broken, and in between of those broken chains, a hamburger. With this I wanted to do an invitation to break the chains of bad eating habits which lead to serious health problems, followed by a picture of a man simulating a hanging with some sausages and a small inscription saying that the obesity is suicide.

 Maybe is because I am an inmigrant in this Country, I grew up in a very diferent place with diferent  traditions, the country I come from (Mexico) is not a warrier people, (Mexico had his last war in 1910 ( almost 100 years ago) and it was a civil war). Maybe because of that, I think diferent; when I think in a war it is always something far away from me, and something that I don´t want to experience myself or anyone I love.

 So, eventhough I love to live here in The U.S., when I hear about Veterans Day, I have mixed feelings about it. I mean, I can uderstand the courage and the breavery of all the soldiers who had die, and for those who are willing to die for a cause. But I can’t understand why they were deployed to places like Korea, Vietnam or Iraq. Why?, just to kill people or being killed? why in first place, someone took the decision to send those soldiers to combat in a war far away from The United States? why U.S had to intervene in a war in Korea or Vietnam?

 Also, I can understand the anger and frustration when Osama Bin Laden and his followers attack the Twin Towers and the Pentagon, I can understand that fealings, because If somone come into my home and try to destroy it, obviusly I want to capture him and look for him until I can find him and try he pay for what he have been doing to my home. So, I can understand the action and decision to seek and pursue Osama bin Laden, to find him and make him pay for his crimes, he and all his followers, I can understand that. But,  I wonder, why attack Iraq? why engage Iraq in a bloody and costly war that has resulted in the deaths of so many American soldiers?

 How can I honor a Vietnam or Iraq veteran, and not feel sorry for all those people who have lost loved ones in a senseless war?

 How can I honor a Veteran, without thinking that there are ( or there were) many people suffering insecurity, anger, pain, hunger, because they don’t know what to do or where else going because their own land, their own country is (or were) in a middle of a war for a long time?

 How can I honor a Veteran without thinking that if somebody weren’t took the decision to send troops to Vietnam or Iraq, maybe, there weren´t so many dead soldiers, so many widows, orphans, parents and /or siblings who can not spend Christmas with their loved ones, because they are already gone?

 So, for those brave soldiers who combat in a war, thank you and all my respect for being so brave and do something I can´t do. And, for those who have lost a loved one in a senseless war, I wish you a speedy recovery from their great loss,

 What Veterans Day means to me?… some mixed feelings.

 When we watch TV news or documentaries about the Iraqi war, we can see almost always, the perspective of the U.S. government and /or the U.S. troops. Inevitably, news reporters tell us about how our soldiers are dealing with that situation; but no matter what is the new issue or where were exactly inside Iraq, there is always news about a combat or bomb attack , stressing the number of soldiers were died or injured and show us images and interviews of soldiers and U.S. government representatives. And that’s fine, because after all, to the American people, the main thing they want is knowing about their brothers, husbands, children or relatives who are maybe at some detachment in the area, and obviously they want to know about them and what is really happening.

 On the other hand, Iraq in Fragments is a picture that presents post-war Iraq country in three acts with three different perspectives, the movie shows  perspectives from the Sunnis, Shiites, and Kurds, each representing a part of a fractured nation but always, emphasizing the point of view of Iraqi people and how religion and ethnicity is involved in it. Visually, the movie shows images of a country in ruins, close-ups of people’s eyes, and other impact images like the rotor of a helicopter comparing with the blades of a ceiling fan; or many hands put like a pray or begging. But director’s clear intention of using children’s faces let the audience to get involved in his point of view. For instance when the boy says that his country was “beautiful…the bridges, the river, there were fish. Now there’s nothing.” That phrase in a voice of a kid connects immediately the audience with the Iraqi people’s perspective, where mainly Iraqi people think Americans are there for the oil, not to help them; they obviously have mixed feelings because they didn’t want Sadam Houssein, but they don’t want war and uncertainty American occupation either.

 Both sides, TV American news and movie documentary like Iraq in fragments, represent both sides of a story, every one tell us their own point of view; but both stress the horror, uncertainty, injustice, and pain of a war. But only those who have been there, only those who had suffer from the war, can tell us the truth; only from the eye of a witness, we can see the harsh reality.

For those of you that do not know, Hawaii is the only state of The USA made up entirely of islands. It is located on an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States. The state encompasses nearly the entire volcanic Hawaiian Island chain, which comprises hundreds of islands spread over 1,500 miles (2,400 km). At the southeastern end of the archipelago, there are eight “main islands” (from the northwest to southeast) Niihau, Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Lānai, Kahoolawe, Maui, and Hawaii. The last is by far the largest, and is often called the “Big Island” or “Big Isle” to avoid confusion with the state as a whole. This archipelago is physiographically and ethnologically part of the Polynesian subregion of Oceania. .(Hawaii.gov  http://www.ehawaii.gov/dakine/search.html?tag=visiting )

Being an archipelago, Hawaii offers many advantages for my proposal, because we can send every special visitor (reed patient) different island depending of their condition. For example, we can send cancer visitors to Kahoolawe Island; people suffering from heart and coronary disease to Molokai Island; and those with respiratory diseases to Kauai Island, etc.

Just remember that Hawaii have hundreds of islands, perfect for hundreds different diseases, where the special visitors can enjoy a luau, the sea, the sunset, fishing, canoeing, surfing, swimming, golfing, and of course, the weather, where the lowest temperatures fluctuating between 64 and 67 degrees and the highest between 85 and 87 degrees.

Those kinds of things, make Hawaii the perfect place to spend an extended “vacation”; and there is always the the possibility that relatives of our special extended visitors can go to visit them, that would attract other kind of tourists, which would help the state’s economic growth.

About people with incurable diseases, there are two options I propose. One, to choose a specific island for them, where they can spend the rest of their lives lying under a palm tree with a cocktail beside them, watching dancing a beautiful local girl, reading an interesting book, or simply enjoying the beach, feeling the warm of the sun on their skin, while a fresh ocean water sucks the sand from between their toes… until they have passed away. Two, send them to the northern part of Alaska, where they can be naturally cryogenic and can wait until there is a cure for their specific illness.

Just think about it, and you will see my proposal is cheaper, and more enjoyable for every body. So, for all these people worried about their health condition and how to get rid of it , I just can say, don’t worry, pack your luggage, take a plane, and start to enjoy the smell of the fresh air, the sapphire seas, the emerald valleys, the halos of rainbow arches. and…  Aloha!

For those of you that do not know, Hawaii is the only state of The USA made up entirely of islands. It is located on an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States. The state encompasses nearly the entire volcanic Hawaiian Island chain, which comprises hundreds of islands spread over 1,500 miles (2,400 km). At the southeastern end of the archipelago, there are eight “main islands” (from the northwest to southeast) Niihau, Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Lānai, Kahoolawe, Maui, and Hawaii. The last is by far the largest, and is often called the “Big Island” or “Big Isle” to avoid confusion with the state as a whole. This archipelago is physiographically and ethnologically part of the Polynesian subregion of Oceania. .(Hawaii.gov  http://www.ehawaii.gov/dakine/search.html?tag=visiting )

Being an archipelago, Hawaii offers many advantages for my proposal, because we can send every sick people to different island depending of their condition. For example, we can send cancer patients to Kahoolawe Island; patients suffering from heart and coronary disease to Molokai Island; and patients with respiratory diseases to Kauai Island, etc.

Just remember that Hawaii have hundreds of islands, perfect for hundreds different diseases, where the patients can enjoy the sea, the sunset, fishing, canoeing, surfing, swimming, and of course, the weather, where the lowest temperatures fluctuating between 64 and 67 degrees and the highest between 85 and 87 degrees.

Those kinds of things, make Hawaii the perfect place to spend an extended “vacation”; and there is always the the possibility that relatives of patients can go to visit them, that would attract other kind of tourists, which would help the state’s economic growth.

About patients with incurable diseases, there are two options I propose for them. One, To choose an island to send them until die, or, send them to the northern part of Alaska, where they can be naturally cryogenic and can wait until there is a cure for their specific illness.

Just think about it, and you will see my proposal is cheaper, and more enjoyable for every body. So, for all these people worried about their health insurance …Welcome to Hawaii!

This is called, writer’s block, “a condition associated with writing, in which an author loses the ability to produce new work.” [1].It happens all the time, almost every one who wants to write something, has suffered from writer’s block occasionally. It can be a letter, a report, a paper or a novel. This condition can vary in intensity. It can be temporary or trivial, when just lasts a few minutes or maybe hours; or it can be extreme, when some writers are unable to work for years. Some factors that influence this condition occurs, can be:  physical illness, depression, problems with a relationship, economical- financial problems; or even the pressure produced by the work itself.

When this happens, every thing but writing seems to be more interesting, almost instantly you are attracted to do something else, like eat, drink, talk by phone or watch TV (even if there is a program you’ve never seen on TV, or you do not like it at all).  But, time is running, and you have work to do. It is in that situation, when you may feel remorse, frustration, confusion; even angry because this is happening to you, after all, you are a responsible person.

How can you avoid or get rid of it? Certainly, there is no perfect recipe for this, but here are some tips that may help you to start writing:

1. Find your thesis, what is the main idea you want to express? You may start thinking what you want to say. Take your time, you may also be able to do something else, meanwhile you are thinking about your writing. It can be when you are driving your car, brushing your teeth or even eating. Just spend some time thinking about that, believe me, this is time well invested.
2. When you already have some ideas, write some sentences about it, and then, pick one you like most. That’s your thesis.
3. After that, don’t’ discharge the ideas you already think of. Instead, write a brief outline with some ideas you would like to include in your paper, and help you to support your thesis. At first, not necessarily have to be in order, just write them all. Then, make a sequence and arrangement with them.
4. Think in your conclusion, how you want to finish your work? Think in the last words you are going to use, in order to emphasize what you meant in your thesis.

Although every one who wants to write, may suffer from writer’s block. Think that it is just a matter of time, use the tips from above, and continue writing.

But always there are some people, who help to present the situation and give continuity to the show. These persons are the hosts, every one with his or her own style, but all different. Here are some examples:

The experts

These are hosts with some kind of expertise in a specific area, whose duty is to give some advice or guidance to the people with a specific problem; could be personal, economical – financial or just a home improvement. In this classification, we can find hosts like Super Nanny, Dr Phil, or Ask this old House.

The judges in court

They are very similar to the experts, but with the particularity that they can decide and say who’s right, and may give some kind of sanction in a court show. In this case we can find hosts like Judge Joe Brown or Judge Judy.

The judges in a contest

There are some reality contest shows, where the participant has to do something in order to be elected as a good candidate to win. In this kind of shows there are people who have to hear, see and/or taste what every contestant do; and decide which one of them are the best to win the contest. Usually there are three judges in every show, and most of the time they are the same during the entire season. This kind of judges we can find in shows like American Idol, Americans got talent, or The Apprentice.

The helpers (the fairy godmothers)

These are hosts who help the participant in a specific situation, to have an extreme transformation. It can be in his or her personal appearance, or in their house, room or office. Usually they have some expertise in the area they going to help, but they need other people to help them in the completion of the extreme transformation, this type of host we can find in shows like Extreme Makeover, Extreme Makeover Home Edition, Design on a dime, etc.

The coordinators

The main duty for this kind of hosts is to give sequence to the show. Usually there is a contest, where they explain the rules to the participants, and give the audience a brief resume about how the contest is doing, who is doing what and how. They are near to the participants, but they can’t give an opinion or make a choice for anyone. We can find a coordinator in shows like Fear Factor, The Survivor, The Amazing Race, or The Big Brother.

There are a lot of new reality shows and new styles to present different situations,  some of them, are so popular, that according to Wikipedia,   “In April 2008, the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences announced it will give its very first Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Host for a Reality Show or Reality Competition” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reality_television. That is because of the great success they have; and I think that no matter what kind of reality show, and no matter the style of the host, The New Kids in Town are here to stay.

 The experts

These are host with some kind of expertise in a specific area, whose duty is to give some advice or guidance to the people with a specific problem, could be personal, economical – financial or just a home improvement, in these classification we can find the host like Supper Nanny, Dr Phil, or Ask this old House.

 The judges in court

They are very similar to the experts but with the particularity that they can decide and say who’s right and may give some kind of sanction in a court show, in these case we can find host like judge Joe Brown or judge Judy

 The judges in a concourse

There are some reality contest shows where the participant has to do something in order to be elected as a good candidate to win the contest, in these kind of shows there are persons that has to hear, see and/or taste what every contestant do, and decide which one of them are the best to win the contest, there use to be three judges in every show and most of the time are the same during the entire season. This kind of judges we can find in shows like American Idol, Americans got talent, or The Apprentice.

 The helpers (the fairy godmothers)

These are host who accompanied by other people, helps the person and/or his or her family in a specific situation to have an extreme transformation, either way in his or her own person or in their houses or rooms or offices, usually they have some expertise in the area they going to help, but they need other persons to help them in the completion of the extreme transformation, this type of host we can find in shows like Extreme Makeover, Extreme Makeover Home Edition, Design on a dime, etc.

 The coordinators

The main duty of the host of this kind of shows is to give sequence to the show; most of the time is a contest, where they explain the rules to the participants and give to the audience a brief resume about how the contest is doing, who is doing what and how, they are near to the participants but they cant give an opinion or make a choice about anyone. We can find this kind of host in shows like, Fear Factor, The Survivor, The Amazing Race, or The Big Brother.

There are a lot of new programs and new styles to present different situations,  some of them, having so much rating, that according to Wikipedia,   “In April 2008, the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences announced it will give its very first Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Host for a Reality Show or Reality Competition” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reality_television That is because of the great success they have, and I think that no matter what kind of program,  and no matter the style of the host,  The New Kids in Town are here to stay.