blog 8

The Right Way

               Why was it wrong? My paradigm was different. But what made it wrong? Was my haste not justified? My entire view was inverted and put on a dusty shelf. I do not necessarily want to do what everyone else is doing but did my gusto to do it make it wrong? I want to continue what I do. It makes sense to me. But does everyone eat string cheese by pulling down strips and eating it string by string? Just eating like a stick of cheese made sense, but slowing down seems to give others a more satisfying taste. 

word count: 99

Original Story

The Journey is Overrated

Steven Dakermanji

Word Count:299

            It was a normal day, only I didn’t eat the lunch that was sitting my refrigerator at home. I wanted to rush home but my neighbor that usually keeps me company was late, as usual. After waiting at the schools flagpoles for what seemed an eternity, He came strolling out as usual. A quick barrage of insults started and we quickly started walking.

            The first hurdle in our walk was the cross walk. It had just changed away from our lane, so we would have to wait the whole 3 minutes for the light to change to give us safe passage across the precarious street littered with insane teenage drivers. What would happen if it never changed? Would we be stuck, oh wait it changed lets go. The count down gave our steps purpose to get out of the walk way before the lights changed. At the other end we continued to get home, my stomach growling like a caged animal.

            The second hurdle was the forest. It had rained the night before; if we tried to cut through we might get stuck in the mud or be attacked by one of the crazy wild deer that normally inhabited the area. I bravely suggested we try to go through to cut five minutes off of our trip. The path was twisted and warped from the rain but our brave sense of adventure kept us straight. Our shoes muddy and my stomach attracting the attention of the vicious animals, we reached the edge and could see our houses. We parted ways and jogged the last few steps home.

            There I was greeted by my mother with my sandwich and snacks from my lunch. Our brave adventure had been conquered and I enjoyed the spoils of the slain villain, my hunger.

The Point: Anything and everything is complicated by hunger.

A Place to Connect with Food

During lunch, the Ida B. Wells Social Justice Lounge is packed. All 11 large tables are filled with groups of people loudly discussing the events of the day while consuming the foods that are prepared a few steps away. Students fight for open tables as soon as they become available. The popularity might just be from the lack of seating available throughout the Commons through the lunch rush but the lounge is a recessed area that has some ‘privacy’ as opposed to the open tables.

               This cannot be said during breakfast and dinner times, this area is less used, only used by a few students that are killing time. On the weeks ends, when UMBC is empty the lounge is inhabited by the groups of friends that stay the weekend and want burritos from Salsarita's.

               Overall it is a good place because of the proximity to food.             

 Group 

Steven Dakermanji 
Andrew Kelley
Jacob Miller

This I Believe

Believe in What Others Do

Word count: 295

In middle school, there was a kid in most of my classes, let’s call him Jake. I knew Jake through middle school, but never really talked to him. As we entered high school, I started studying harder and he turned to less mentionable actions, eventually getting expelled. In my sophomore year of high school, I was walking home one day with my friend and out of nowhere, Jake appeared behind me, struck the right side of my jaw, and made off with all of eleven dollars, leaving me with a broken jaw and my friend stunned.

            After a quick ride of the one tenth of a mile left to my house by a random passing motorist, I stood over my kitchen sink thing how anyone could do this to another person. After the police were called and my statement was given through shrieks of pain, I was whisked to the dentist office to try to stop my bleeding mouth from were I thought a tooth was missing, and told my jaw was broken. At this point I was left in a precarious position of either going to the emergency room or trying to see if an oral surgeon office was open. As we arrived at the oral surgeons office, we saw them walking out at the end of a work day, only to have them rush me inside to fix me, all after their normal work hours. It is actions like these or the dentist that gave me a tow hundred dollar powered toothbrush, Smoothie King giving me a hundred dollar gift card and a shirt saying that chewing is overrated when I was on a strict liquid diet, or my friend who stood by me and testified against Jake that have shown me that;

It is not the words that make you who you, but your actions when face with unusual circumstances that show your true character

Blog 4

Lunch is Anything but Mundane

               As I walk in, past the desk of wayward belongings, I head with friends to get food. The process of buying it is slowed with the crowd of perspective students and staff on lunch break. We eat the assortment of food served under the flags of the many countries with only the highest quality condiments. The sounds of a dance practice or band playing are background to our ‘pleasant’ conversation.  As we get up, I head to the store to buy the materials I need to continue with my studies and then head to my home. 

Word count 97

Blog 3

The Scarlet Accessory 

                                                                      

What sets you apart from the many? It is the flair that is added to mundane life. I choose the bright flame to dash the ordinary and illuminate the special niches. It adds a dash of color to any experience, tastefully, and shows others what the standard should be. It is always in season and never out of style but those that emulate it fall short of the experience of the real thing. There are many other brands that try to emulate it, but only one comes in the glass bottle with the number 57 on it.

word count 97