The screams are spread over the theater room, and meanwhile, the undeniable sounds of the audience's heartbeats project terror along with transitory shock. Indeed, we are all spellbound by the actors' and actress' reactions when they encounter an extraordinary or terrible circumstance. Nonetheless, a friend of mine told me, "It is insignificant to spend any money for more than one hour just under the torture of fear." Even so, horror movies will never go extinct as long as we still celebrate Halloween. There are three distinct kinds of horror movies--thrill, gore, and suspense. All three render an impressively eerie plot that interacts realistically with the audiences' senses as an exhibition of frightening aesthetics.
When we watch thrillers, our strong feelings of excitement or displeasure can rise and surge. Such kinds of movies emphasize a tight depiction as the principle thread running through the entire story. We are usually frightened with a series of unimaginable events rather than considerable violence or blood. For example, Scream (1996) and 1408 (2007) are two typical thrilling movies. In Scream, the process of how the murderer hunts and kills victims and how the quarries elude traps and find out the clues the murderer leaves behind are the main selling point. This is a well-constructed crime story, told with speed and punch. As for 1408, it is based on a supernatural theme. The climax is a ghostly manifestation haunting a hotel room numbered 1408, where lodgers never check out after they checked in. No matter what the setting is, there must be some startling or puzzling elements to continuously attract our interest and curiosity.
The second kind of move is more unacceptable than the other two because they are filled with bloodier scenes and atrocious plots where most audiences can be thunderstruck. The well-known gore movies such as the Saw series (2004-08) and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) represent an extreme of brutal abuse as well as some eccentric behavior. It is indispensable that there is at least one insane or cold-blooded character, a human or a monster. There are accustomed to trapping and slaughtering substantial numbers of innocent sacrifices in the story. Therefore the the Motion Picture Association of America classifies most of these moves as R or NC-17. In other words, they often negatively influence children's mental and physical growth.
There is another choice of horror movies called suspense, which is for audiences that enjoy a slow and exquisite development. At the beginning, different incidents and premonitions usually happen in a specific sequence. Afterwards, all the situations become clearer and clearer with many subplots converging into the chief intrigue. At last, the astonishing and dramatic ending strikes a chord with the audience. For example, the move From Hell (2001), adapted from the real story of Jack the Ripper from the Whitechapel area of London in 1888, had a huge box-office success. Director Allen Hughes subtly formed a mysterious and gruesome atmosphere. Another movie, Sleepy Hollow (2000) is similarly comprised of a gradually revealed outrageous secret about headless corpses. In short, these kinds of movies rely on a thoughtful arrangement to bring audiences into a compelling ending.
Most people cannot resist their fascination of horror movies. Sometimes the movies can reflect our views and vent our stress. Nowadays taking advantage of special effects, horrors movies are able to be as vivid as science-fiction movies. More amazingly, the progressive make-up technique plays a key role in making us experience the horror. I am convinced that a new style of horror movies will soon prevail.
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Saturday, December 20, 2008
La Crosse Pizza Restaurants
There is no doubt that one of the most famous and delicious Italian dishes is pizza; therefore pizza has become one of the favorite meals for almost everyone. There is always a good excuse to buy or cook pizza, and the population of La Crosse is not the exception. The city of La Crosse has several options for pizza lovers. There are some places where you can buy pizza to go or some other places offer you a chance to sit and have a good time while you enjoy your favorite meal. It all depends on how much time you have or what the occasion is to find where you have to go or call to enjoy your favorite pizza. There are three options in La Crosse if you want to buy pizza. First you can go to some restaurants where you can drink a beer and have a good time while you are eating pizza. Second, you can go to the traditional and famous pizza places where you have the advantages of fast and good service. Lastly, pizza can choose to call for pizza delivery in not forty minutes or less or you can buy a pizza in less than two minutes using the drive-thru that some places offer.
If you are bored or you just want to have a good time with your friends, drink some beer, and watch sports, there are two places you can go. Eduardo's Pizza Wagon is an Italian-American restaurant where you have the chance to try real wood-fired pizzas, which makes this place different from other pizza establishments. Eduardo's offers you a great variety of pizzas, some other Italian dishes like pasta, and different kinds of drinks that will help you to have a good time. Another option with almost the same characteristics is Ebeneezer's Pizza Restaurant, which is also a wood-fired pizza place. People usually describe this place as a fancy pizza restaurant, which has a bar where you can have some good drinks. In these two places you have a good time and enjoy a good wood-fired pizza.
Pizza prices are always accessible and if you are a pizza lover but you also do not have money to go to restaurants every week, the following pizza restaurants are the solution. As any city in the United States, La Crosse has many famous pizza restaurants, all of them famous for good quality, great taste, and affordable prices. Pizza Hut, the biggest and most famous pizza name in the world is one of the options. This place usually offers a big variety of pizzas and combinations that satisfy your pizza cravings. Another big and famous world-class pizza restaurant is Dominos Pizza, which has almost the same prices as Pizza Hut and is the same kind of restaurant where the service is fast and good. You also have the chance to choose if you want to eat in or take out. These two places have almost the same price and the same characteristics but the most important is that they have a big menu where you can choose your favorite pizza or create your own with the same quality and taste that is offered anywhere on the planet.
If money and time is your problem, La Crosse offers you a solution. The city is full of college students, therefore there are a couple restaurants that offer cheap pizzas. Little Caesar's is a cheap and fast pizza place where you can find pizzas for five dollars, and they are ready to go so you do not even have to wait, just pay and go. The taste of Little Caesar's pizzas is not the best but they are still good to satisfy pizza lovers and the size is not bad. Another relatively cheap place is Jeff and Jim's where you can buy pizzas for relatively low cost. Most of the time this place has a two-for-one deal, which makes this place even better. Jeff and Jim's is one of the favorite pizza places for young people. The fact that it is located downtown and open late at night pleases the people who usually party and want to eat something before the night is over. These two places are a cheap alternative but, as we all know, cheap is not always the best.
It does not matter what the occasion is or how much you have in your pocket, La Crosse has good options for you to choose what kind of pizza to enjoy. The flavor is always going to be different and it's up to you to decide where to go. You do not have an excuse to ignore your cravings, especially if pizza is what you want.
If you are bored or you just want to have a good time with your friends, drink some beer, and watch sports, there are two places you can go. Eduardo's Pizza Wagon is an Italian-American restaurant where you have the chance to try real wood-fired pizzas, which makes this place different from other pizza establishments. Eduardo's offers you a great variety of pizzas, some other Italian dishes like pasta, and different kinds of drinks that will help you to have a good time. Another option with almost the same characteristics is Ebeneezer's Pizza Restaurant, which is also a wood-fired pizza place. People usually describe this place as a fancy pizza restaurant, which has a bar where you can have some good drinks. In these two places you have a good time and enjoy a good wood-fired pizza.
Pizza prices are always accessible and if you are a pizza lover but you also do not have money to go to restaurants every week, the following pizza restaurants are the solution. As any city in the United States, La Crosse has many famous pizza restaurants, all of them famous for good quality, great taste, and affordable prices. Pizza Hut, the biggest and most famous pizza name in the world is one of the options. This place usually offers a big variety of pizzas and combinations that satisfy your pizza cravings. Another big and famous world-class pizza restaurant is Dominos Pizza, which has almost the same prices as Pizza Hut and is the same kind of restaurant where the service is fast and good. You also have the chance to choose if you want to eat in or take out. These two places have almost the same price and the same characteristics but the most important is that they have a big menu where you can choose your favorite pizza or create your own with the same quality and taste that is offered anywhere on the planet.
If money and time is your problem, La Crosse offers you a solution. The city is full of college students, therefore there are a couple restaurants that offer cheap pizzas. Little Caesar's is a cheap and fast pizza place where you can find pizzas for five dollars, and they are ready to go so you do not even have to wait, just pay and go. The taste of Little Caesar's pizzas is not the best but they are still good to satisfy pizza lovers and the size is not bad. Another relatively cheap place is Jeff and Jim's where you can buy pizzas for relatively low cost. Most of the time this place has a two-for-one deal, which makes this place even better. Jeff and Jim's is one of the favorite pizza places for young people. The fact that it is located downtown and open late at night pleases the people who usually party and want to eat something before the night is over. These two places are a cheap alternative but, as we all know, cheap is not always the best.
It does not matter what the occasion is or how much you have in your pocket, La Crosse has good options for you to choose what kind of pizza to enjoy. The flavor is always going to be different and it's up to you to decide where to go. You do not have an excuse to ignore your cravings, especially if pizza is what you want.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
An Exploration of Hypocrites
"You may know a person's face but not his heart" is a proverb that tells us to choose friends cautiously. Given that technology creates more convenient communication than before, it shrinks the time spent in connection and also breaks the limits of distance. Nowadays, even if there is a long distance between people, they can still communicate immediately. However, a problem also comes with highly developed communication. Human behaviors become more complicated, which confuses people on whether the speaker is sincere or hypocritical. People gradually get used to keeping some words without saying them, pretending to be another person, and masking themselves with a permanent "smile," eventually becoming hypocritical. To understand hypocrites, we should know how they got that way, why they continue to be that way, and why they are like liars.
A hypocrite is the product of social development. If there is only one person in the world, he would definitely not be a hypocrite because he doesn't need to care about any judgement. If there are two people in the word, the condition changes as they may interact as friends or enemies. However, both types require some communicative skills, like cooperating or negotiating. As a result, they must hide some information and may pretend to be friendly or have some advantages to make interactions go smoothly. Furthermore, if we extend the condition to the real world, which is comprised of numerous communities, people would be more likely to have more reasons to be hypocritical. Therefore, from the aforementioned, we can infer that hypocrites are people whose behaviors may contradict their personalities in order to socialize in the community.
The motives of hypocrites are based on benefits: what they can profit from and how to prevent a loss of those benefits. First of all, being a hypocrite can bring benefits because of their reputation. A good reputation makes celebrities more popular and gives them the ability to influence the public. In addition, media companies earn money by the number of listeners, readers, or viewers. As a result, talent agencies that create idols have developed since people have been using media more often. Nonetheless, do those stars behave genuinely? Actually their appearance and performance are designed to interest the audience, and advertising is the benefit they expect. Secondly, sometimes people present themselves hypocritically in order to maintain their benefits. One of my professors told me that humans, psychologically, also have a herd mentality that follows the direction of its community because it's more difficult to survive on one's own. Thus, even if people do not agree with a collective decision, they still pretend to comply with it. A well-known instance in Asia relies on Confucianism. If your superiors or colleagues invite you to a business lunch or dinner, you cannot refuse. Once you reject them, it also means that you are not one of them, and you will have less chance to be promoted.
A hypocrite is the personification of a lie. A good example is marriage. When people fall in love, they likely are hypocrites. From many divorce cases, most of them did not actually understand their lover's personality until one day when they feel something is different or they are not as loved as much as they were as the very beginning. Nevertheless, is it true? There is always no truth but a lie since everyone wants to be successful when they are going after someone. In fact, not only lovers but also they never change because they just disguise some of their true personalities and defects. Then, only after marriage or when they have been together longer, they will find the truth. Another example is politicians. Candidates always give the public a positive image when elections are coming. Also they usually tell lies about how their perfect policies can benefit people and improve the country. However, after they are elected, most of them are busy with accumulating their wealth and preparing for the next "harvest." So they still need to wear the good politician mask and tell more lies. The more beautiful lies they tell, the more votes they earn.
Almost all people are hypocrites. If you ask people whether they are hypocritical, the answer must be no because they are hiding their mendacious face. Today, perhaps to socialize or to benefit ourselves, we have many reasons to become hypocritical. People only show their good, their strength, and their false advantages to attract others. Therefore, we should open our eyes to scrutinize every relationship and never forget that "appearances always deceive."
Not Vegetables or Meat
As a personality, cheapskates still exist in our life. When I was young, I liked to read books, so I learned what a cheapskate was. A cheapskate is a kind of selfish person who just cares about his benefit. Its meaning can be found through two famous stories and my experience.
"The Merchant of Venice" by Shakespeare tells us a story about Antonio and Shylock. Antonio borrowed money from Shylock in order to help his friends, but Shylock got angry with him. At the end, Shylock wanted Antonio to cut his meat instead of paying more money. Shylock was a cheapskate because he was unfeeling as any wild beast. He didn't have any sympathy.
In Eugenie Grandet, author Balzac created a cheapskate who only cared about money. He didn't buy meat or vegetables all year round. He treated his only daughter as a trap to collect more money. Even Grandet watched and stroked his gold coins at midnight. Grandet was a slave to money; he lost his emotions. Try to imagine a mad person who was miserable even though Grandet himself could not.
A selfish person would never care about other people's feelings. My neighbor is very rich, but actually he drives a very old car. Although he owns a big company, he is demanding of his workers. His workers live in an ugly house, and they have few benefits. What's more, he is mean to his family. I never see his wife dress in beautiful clothes. His daughter always walks to school. What only concerns him is money. He aims at money, and everything else is less important.
From my point of view, all cheapskates have a very poor quality of life. They have lots of money, but they don't enjoy their lives. Basking in family life is relaxing, but cheapskates lack the kind of happiness. In the end, they will lose everything but their money.
"The Merchant of Venice" by Shakespeare tells us a story about Antonio and Shylock. Antonio borrowed money from Shylock in order to help his friends, but Shylock got angry with him. At the end, Shylock wanted Antonio to cut his meat instead of paying more money. Shylock was a cheapskate because he was unfeeling as any wild beast. He didn't have any sympathy.
In Eugenie Grandet, author Balzac created a cheapskate who only cared about money. He didn't buy meat or vegetables all year round. He treated his only daughter as a trap to collect more money. Even Grandet watched and stroked his gold coins at midnight. Grandet was a slave to money; he lost his emotions. Try to imagine a mad person who was miserable even though Grandet himself could not.
A selfish person would never care about other people's feelings. My neighbor is very rich, but actually he drives a very old car. Although he owns a big company, he is demanding of his workers. His workers live in an ugly house, and they have few benefits. What's more, he is mean to his family. I never see his wife dress in beautiful clothes. His daughter always walks to school. What only concerns him is money. He aims at money, and everything else is less important.
From my point of view, all cheapskates have a very poor quality of life. They have lots of money, but they don't enjoy their lives. Basking in family life is relaxing, but cheapskates lack the kind of happiness. In the end, they will lose everything but their money.
Optimists
Is there anyone in the world who can be happy all the time? Optimists are the kind of people who treat danger like candy, who can comfort themselves easily when they get trapped into great sadness, and who can get over all their mental challenges. All kinds of difficulties will be a piece of cake when they meet an optimist. There are many kinds of optimists living in the world. No matter if it is fact or fiction, past or present, they decorate the world.
There is a famous Greek story about an optimist. Two frogs were caught by a snake, and they were already in its stomach. One frog was frightened to death. The other was an optimist, and he said to the coward, "Don't worry, buddy. It's a good place to live. It's warm and we have food." The coward was confused, "What are you saying? Where is the food?" "We are the food," said the optimist. The story contains irony, but there is no doubt that an optimist could treat danger like candy.
A friend of mine had a beautiful girlfriend after a lot of hard work to win her love. Unfortunately the relationship only lasted for one day. Most people would cry a river after losing such a wonderful dream, but my friend is an optimist. He said he had had an unforgettable experience in his life, and it was better than not having one at all. That's how an optimist thinks. That's how they get out of the traps of sadness.
Einstein is absolutely an optimist. A terrible fire damaged his lab where a magnitude of experiments. When others expressed their shocking exclamations about the loss of such great findings, Einstein gave them a simple smile. He admired the big fire that erased all of his mistakes and gave him a chance to make more progress. That's the great attitude of an optimist. Einstein got over his big challenge with a simple smile.
Optimists are happy all the time. They are normal people with some differences. They have wild minds. Their attitude teaches us how to treat difficulties and inspires us to improve ourselves. We may try to find optimists around us and try to feel what they think when they encounter difficulties. It is a good way to live happily.
There is a famous Greek story about an optimist. Two frogs were caught by a snake, and they were already in its stomach. One frog was frightened to death. The other was an optimist, and he said to the coward, "Don't worry, buddy. It's a good place to live. It's warm and we have food." The coward was confused, "What are you saying? Where is the food?" "We are the food," said the optimist. The story contains irony, but there is no doubt that an optimist could treat danger like candy.
A friend of mine had a beautiful girlfriend after a lot of hard work to win her love. Unfortunately the relationship only lasted for one day. Most people would cry a river after losing such a wonderful dream, but my friend is an optimist. He said he had had an unforgettable experience in his life, and it was better than not having one at all. That's how an optimist thinks. That's how they get out of the traps of sadness.
Einstein is absolutely an optimist. A terrible fire damaged his lab where a magnitude of experiments. When others expressed their shocking exclamations about the loss of such great findings, Einstein gave them a simple smile. He admired the big fire that erased all of his mistakes and gave him a chance to make more progress. That's the great attitude of an optimist. Einstein got over his big challenge with a simple smile.
Optimists are happy all the time. They are normal people with some differences. They have wild minds. Their attitude teaches us how to treat difficulties and inspires us to improve ourselves. We may try to find optimists around us and try to feel what they think when they encounter difficulties. It is a good way to live happily.
Sunday, November 9, 2008
My Major
Do you think international business is very popular in the world? Actually I think that is the main reason why I chose international business as my major. One reason is that many countries' businesses develop very fast. They need a lot of people who are good at business to help in their development. Secondly, international businesses can help people earn lots of money. Thirdly, international business can also make people think like economists.
There are many countries' businesses that are developing very fast, so they need a lot of people to join in their development. I would like to gain from that. In my hometown of Xiamen, our economy is increasing very quickly, but the government won't let the steps stop here. They still want to build more factories to help the city develop. On the other hand, now many people choose to trade with foreign companies because they could earn more money. That means people will have a better chance to develop economically if they are good at international business. Also, people could open their own business. If that is me, I will choose my business partners from other countries. For example, I believe I can make a lot of money if I could use my knowledge after a few years of practice. Third, I think international business could help me to better manage my business. If I have great knowledge about international business, I can have a hand in controlling my business in the best way possible.
International business could help people to earn lots of money. First, trade between different nations could really help people earn lots of money. Many economies are increasing quickly all over the world; international trade is unavoidable. If people are good at international business, they could earn lots of money. Second, if people are working in international companies, they could get paid well. For example, if people are working for Toyota, they could choose to work in different regional districts around the world. Someone from China like me could choose to work for the American district. Third, international business relates to stocks, in which one can make a lot of money. For example, if I am working for a company with a lot of stocks, I could use my knowledge to analyze them and know when it is good to buy and sell.
Finally, I think international business could help people think like economists. First, international business could change their thinking in different ways. People can learn that giving up something to get something later has its benefits. Second, people can develop a "special eye" on business, in which they know where they can earn more money. For example, people who are good at business know how to use their money. They usually see where they could put their money like buying real estate in a poor part of the country. Most people don't feel that it isn't profitable, but after a few years the government wants to develop that land, so it eventually becomes worth more than its cost. Also, the prices of real estate are increasing. and owners make a lot of money. Successful business men have this kind of "eye" on business; they know where to put their money.
Overall, I have given three ideas to explain why I want to major in international business. I think these days, it is a very good way to earn money. That is the reason international business is very popular, and that is why I am interested in it.
There are many countries' businesses that are developing very fast, so they need a lot of people to join in their development. I would like to gain from that. In my hometown of Xiamen, our economy is increasing very quickly, but the government won't let the steps stop here. They still want to build more factories to help the city develop. On the other hand, now many people choose to trade with foreign companies because they could earn more money. That means people will have a better chance to develop economically if they are good at international business. Also, people could open their own business. If that is me, I will choose my business partners from other countries. For example, I believe I can make a lot of money if I could use my knowledge after a few years of practice. Third, I think international business could help me to better manage my business. If I have great knowledge about international business, I can have a hand in controlling my business in the best way possible.
International business could help people to earn lots of money. First, trade between different nations could really help people earn lots of money. Many economies are increasing quickly all over the world; international trade is unavoidable. If people are good at international business, they could earn lots of money. Second, if people are working in international companies, they could get paid well. For example, if people are working for Toyota, they could choose to work in different regional districts around the world. Someone from China like me could choose to work for the American district. Third, international business relates to stocks, in which one can make a lot of money. For example, if I am working for a company with a lot of stocks, I could use my knowledge to analyze them and know when it is good to buy and sell.
Finally, I think international business could help people think like economists. First, international business could change their thinking in different ways. People can learn that giving up something to get something later has its benefits. Second, people can develop a "special eye" on business, in which they know where they can earn more money. For example, people who are good at business know how to use their money. They usually see where they could put their money like buying real estate in a poor part of the country. Most people don't feel that it isn't profitable, but after a few years the government wants to develop that land, so it eventually becomes worth more than its cost. Also, the prices of real estate are increasing. and owners make a lot of money. Successful business men have this kind of "eye" on business; they know where to put their money.
Overall, I have given three ideas to explain why I want to major in international business. I think these days, it is a very good way to earn money. That is the reason international business is very popular, and that is why I am interested in it.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Homework for Thursday
Read Chapters 39-40
On a separate sheet of paper, write your answrs to the following activities
On a separate sheet of paper, write your answrs to the following activities
- Activity on page 518
- Activity on page 519
- Activity on pages 520-521
- Activity on page 521
- Activity on page 522
Chapter 40
- Colon - Joe, Mike, Ken
- Semicolon - Khoi, Zero
- Dash - Chen, Dhara, Jack
- Parentheses - Alex, Lenin, Kai
- Hyphen - Gao, Emma, Regine
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