Assignment 2-Joseph Cook

I'm now a futurist. In the next decade, there are going to be many new products, most of them Apple. A few examples are the iMicrowave; the iToilet; the iRug it will be a rug that changes based off of the weather, the temperature, or even the current political elections; the iCar; the iZoo complete with a living iHarambe. My personal favorite of the new technological devices will be the iEye, giving sight to the blind, also iEye has a nice ring to it. The most revolutionary Apple device will be the iCureForCancer. It's kinda self explanatory. I am excited to see where technology will go in the future, and hopefully at least some of my predictions will come true.

Assignment 3- Nick Joseph

Psychology, the study of how and why people behave the way they do has always fascinated me.  I find the differences in how each of our individual minds work very interesting.  One of the most interesting aspects of this is the study of right vs. wrong.  This is far more than an issue of logic, more so it is one of morals.  It is an issue of ethics.  With this being said, I do not believe in absolute good/evil.  People never get it right 100% of the time.  In addition, nobody is always evil, either.  To me, the debate of good versus evil is a constant internal battle.  Both sides make compelling arguments, but in the end it is up to you to make the right decision.  This all falls back to morals and ethics.  Generally, a "good" person is one who does the right thing most of the time, and a bad is the opposite.  Even good people are tempted to make bad decisions.  Many people would strongly consider keeping a wallet full of $4,600.  An otherwise "good" person may slip up and keep the money.  The truly moral ones would return it.  I would like to think that if placed in that situation, I would fall into the latter category. 

Assignment 2- Reagan Smith

     Technology- computers, tablets, smartphones, and iDevices have changed how we live our daily lives. In seconds, we can send a message to someone on the other side of town. Anyone with a webcam and an internet connection can video chat with someone on the opposite side of the world. Our pictures can be stored in the cloud and accessed from virtually anywhere. So overall, technology itself is a positive aspect of our lives. It is what people have chosen to do with it that causes it to have negative impacts on our society.

     Along with the convenience sending a text, iMessage, "snap", direct message, comes a risk of distraction, specifically while driving. 11 teens die every day due to texting and driving (edgarsynder.com). This doesn’t even include the numerous others that are injured and adults. 20 years ago, people were distracted while driving, but not nearly to the extent that our society can be today. Although I thankfully haven't been involved in an accident due to texting and driving, let alone any car accident, I along with many others have been impacted by texting while driving: getting stuck behind someone at a traffic light that is on their phone. And sometimes by the time you tap your horn to get them to move on, they have caused you to miss the light. 
Shame on them for impacting everyone's schedule.

Assignment 2 - Dylan Spradlin

We are in the day of age where new technology is constantly being produced and has become accepted into our culture. It is difficult for our generation to imagine how people could have lived years ago when nobody had cell phones or even washing machines. As an introspective person I always want to look ahead, and know what is going to be the next greatest invention, who knows; robots that can cook, cars that drive by themselves, an app that makes you fly (the possibilities are endless). These changes may decrease the amount of human workforce in daily jobs.
As a futurist I could see technology evolving so quickly that machines will be fully equipped to perform human tasks. This would spark changes in the amount of work us as humans would have to do. Machines may grow so powerful and efficient that human jobs would be replaced by robots twice the size and with twice the brain size as we are. Enhanced technology would greatly influence the evolution of humans, as it changes the way we behave and act.
With the number of engineers and scientists rising, innovations are acheived globally everyday. For example, the discovery of another planet--the closest to Earth has been discovered in which life may be possible in years ahead. In a couple of decades who knows what the Earth could look like, technology will permanently shape our future for generations to come.

Assignment 2- Gus Carlson

      Technology has obviously had a large impact on anyone that has lived during the past 20 years, especially those that have lived solely in the "Information Age". Mobile phones has existed for the duration of my life, and technology will only become more advanced. If I had grown up 20 years earlier, my life would be vastly different. Today there is much less pressure for face-to-face personal interaction, because anyone can interact with anyone at any time. Twenty years ago, I would spend more time actually interacting with people, being with them and communicating with them directly. Our modern era has advanced long distance communication to the point that I don't have to ever leave my house and I can be "friends" with hundreds of people. Relationships now are slightly less personal because they usually take place at least partially online, but it's not like personal relationships can't be built face-to-face nowadays. I prefer our modern time period for relationships because I can know and interact with many more people much easier than I could have 20 years ago. Even people living in a different part of the country or the world might as well be right next to you with the internet, texting, and social media. Technology has made relationships easier without taking away the face-to-face option, meaning it has overall improved social interactions.

Assignment 2-Elizabeth Ueland

In 2016 technology is very prominent in the lives of all ages and has become integral for our lives. The use of technology has greatly affected social interactions in our world and a countless number of other things. People have greatly benefited from technology and without it we would be lost. Figuratively and literally, considering the fact that Google maps wouldn't exist. Despite the many advantages technology brings to our society, it also has created a multitude of problems. Allowing people to connect without human interaction has strained this society in various ways and since starting a conversation includes sliding into someone’s DMs, we are at an all time low. Moreover, many kids are being cyber bullied through the Internet and the recent spike in teens with depression has correspondently unfolded during this advancement of technology. Overall, technology offers many benefits for us but has undoubtedly had a negative impact on society.

Technology can be frustrating for many reasons and there is nothing more infuriating than a computer that wont print a paper or an entire essay that seemed to magically disappear. Not to mention the extreme amount of pain experienced after one drops a phone, or even worse, an IPad, on their face while using their wicked technology. The Internet and phones pose a large distraction for many students and myself as it decreases productivity while attempting homework or almost anything else. But without technology, many students and especially those enrolled in the academy might not be able to finish any homework at all. Personally, I am trying to wean off of social media and relying on technology so I can work on my social skills and not waste as much time on my phone. But I do believe technology is a great asset for society and helps us tremendously. 

Assignment 2- Brianna Scott

If I was born 20 years ago, I feel that the major themes of my life would still be the same. I would have the same family, I would probably go to the same school and the same church. My relationships, however, would probably be very different. With the advances in communication, interaction has changed dramatically. 20 years ago, in order to reach a friend, you would have to call a landline. Usually homes only had one of them, so often times a parent would pick up and you would have to ask them to talk to your friends. Today, you can reach your friends in seconds. You can make plans, or ask people questions almost instantly. One downfall to this is that sometimes it can all be too much. Constant conversation is not healthy. If you feel the need to interact with someone all waking hours of the day, chances are there will be arguments. It's just what happens when you spend too much time with someone (or texting someone). If it was an option, I think I would prefer somewhere in the middle. I enjoy the luxury of talking to my friends and family in a timely manner if I want to, but I wish there was a healthy limit to that. Overall, I think that today's technology is a blessing, but only if you can learn to keep it under control.

Assignment 2 - Ethan MacGillivray

If I was born 20 years earlier, in 1980, then my life and all the relationships in it would be completely different. A lot of things that happen within my family go through technology. In 1980, my grandparents wouldn't be able to text me "good luck" before my soccer games, my mom wouldn't be able to ask me what I wanted for dinner, and my dad wouldn't be able to ask me what time I would be home. I also wouldn't be able to keep in touch with friends that don't go to my school as well as I can, or keep up with the happenings all around me through social media. I wouldn't be able to hear about sports news until the newspaper came out the next day, but with technology I have up-to-the-second score and stats for my favorite soccer leagues around the world. Growing up in the 80s and 90s would be drastically different than it is today, but I think that I much prefer growing up in this age of technology.

Assignment 2 - Benjamin Givens

The effect of technology is to make a task easier. This is the basis of engineering. This is the basis of computer science. This is the basis of invention. Technology is neither inherently good nor evil, but it can have both positive and negative effects on people personally as well as society as a whole. What we consider to be basic technologies such as refrigeration and roads weren't always basic and assumed. Obviously, the introduction of these things has improved the quality of life for those with access to them. In the same vein as roads, cars have improved positively affected all of our lives. They allow for people to visit places they couldn't have before and to take advantage of jobs and opportunities that would have been out of reach due to location before. Despite these benefits, the overuse of cars and the ability to get to places without walking has reduced our natural encouragement to exercise. With the introduction of the Information Age, this dichotomy of positive and negative has only expanded. Computing technology in phones, tablets, laptops, and desktops has served to improve our lives in ways that weren't predicted when they were created. Many people have described phones as their "second brains." Phones are extremely useful because their ability to store information is much more reliable than our own. Of course you could have carried around a pad of paper to remember information, as Getting Things Done by David Allen suggests, but phones are so much more convenient and powerful that it is easier to be efficient. However, phones have also impaired the ability for people to focus on tasks. Due to their multipurpose nature, they people are always a couple taps away from world news, a game, or a YouTube video. It is clear that technology is both a blessing and a curse.

Personally, technology has obviously helped me as provides me with tools that are extremely useful. If I want to send a message out about an upcoming meeting for Y-Club, I can easily accomplish this from my phone anywhere with Remind. Access to information both old and new has never been higher. I can read both The Wealth of Nations and the latest from The Verge about Google's new 360-degree view tour of national parks on my phone or desktop. In addition to the user side of technology, programming is much easier today than it was 20 years ago. With intellisense, free versions of Visual Studio, and vastly improved documentation and information on programming on the internet, programming even more difficult operations can be accomplished.

Of course, this does have a negative side. In school, phones have added a new dimension to classroom management that I have seen handled with various degrees of success. Even at home, focusing on homework is harder when distraction is so close. The device that has the math problems on it also has all the things I would rather be doing on it. It adds another layer of difficulty to doing the things that have to be done.

Twenty years ago, I wouldn't have access to do the things with technology that interest me. Programming on VI or Emacs with scattered documentation and very little resources available would have been incredibly frustrating. The way that I interact with my friends outside of school would be very different. Now, I hang out with my friends in a Skype call while playing games. I am able to keep up with both people at Dunbar and Henry Clay that I know and share similar interests. Physical location is irrelevant and there is always at least one person online that is around. Twenty years ago this would have been impossible. For one thing, if you had dial-up internet you couldn't have both voice communication and play online games at the same time. I obviously prefer what I have now.

Of course, predicting technology in the future will always make you look silly, as there is no way to know all the factors that will effect technological change and the individuals that will press that change. Nonetheless, I predict that self-driving cars will become the norm very quickly and that the computing power and improvement in tablets will make laptops obsolete. The introduction of improved wireless connections will vastly change the way people connect to the internet and allow for even higher levels of interconnection. Perhaps in vain, I hope that the FCC will come down with the hammer of justice on the internet providers attempting to take the benefits without the negatives of being a common carrier.

Assignment 2- Logan Gehefer

If I had grown up 20 years earlier I feel as though my life would have been extremely different. A lot of relationships I've developed today have been through texting or through social media. Since this was not a thing then, my life would be greatly altered. I feel as though I would not know as many people as I do and I would for sure be a lot more social then I am today. A lot of the things I do involve technology today. I would still have film of course but typically I rely on IMDb for new films and just news to see films coming soon that I could see myself interested in. However I would be in a hip hop paradise. A lot of my favorite music is from the 90's, and of course Tupac was still alive. So in my music preferences I would be set, although I believe once again it would be harder to hear about news for new music. A lot of the people I play basketball with I set up times to play by texting them, this of course would not be possible and I would have to go long distances to see if anyone was even there to play with. Keeping up with the NBA would be more difficult, but this was the golden age of basketball, so it would likely still be very enjoyable.Back to communication, it would still be extremely difficult to find out whats going on and to keep up with friends, so even though technology complicates life, it also makes pretty much everything much easier and better, so I'm glad I grew up in this era, as this is my preference.

Assignment 3: Come to the dark side, Rey!

The news does not shy away from stories that show the moral flaws of humanity. Read any newspaper and there is always something about the latest crime in its pages. Every so often though, we are fortunate enough to hear stories of people who still want to do the right thing. For instance, Leah Kleppinger recently found a wallet when no one else was around. When she opened it, she saw $4,600 in cash and credit cards and had every opportunity to pocket it, but instead returned it to its owner.

But just because we hear about bad things and nice things happening does that mean there is a true battle versus good and evil? Is Leah Kleppinger the epitome of good while someone who would have kept the wallet the definition of evil?

So...you're prompt for the week:

Do you believe in absolute good and evil? Is it as clear cut as Harry Potter versus Voldemort, the Sith versus the Jedi? Is there no war at all between good and evil; is there just this gray area where sometimes good people do bad things? Are good and evil even things that have to exist? Can one eliminate the other once and for all? What is evil? What is good?

Use examples when applicable, tell a story to illustrate your point, show causation - whatever you decide to say about it, explain yourself.

Your post will be due by Sunday September 4th 11:59 pm

October 16th will be the last day to make up blogs 1-8

Assignment 2- Kathleen Gibbs

Being the 21st century kid that I am, technology has been a part of my life ever since I can remember. The first place I think to go if I don't understand something is google and iPhones have been prevalent all throughout my short life. As an avid golfer and iPhone user, my phone is never far away during most rounds of golf. On one particular round last spring, I was playing with my parents and we were not playing to our potentials to say the least. I had teed off on a par 5 full of water and my ball found its way to a wonderful lie behind a tree and right in front of a lake. I had full confidence in the shot when I started to swing, but as fate would have it, my ball sailed straight into the trunk of the tree, ricocheting straight for my mom. My mother was standing straight in the rogue ball's line of destruction until my phone, stowed safely in my golf bag (I thought!), put its life on the line and took the hit so my mom didn't have to. The poor piece of technology's screen was shattered and the phone itself was bent but its valor will never be forgotten. Technology has left its positive impact on my life by saving my mother from a trip to the hospital!  

Assignment 2 - Erin Caudill

 People are often theorizing about how technology is going to change and develop over time and how exactly that will affect the world. Technology has already made life easier in many different ways, and now that it has become such a huge part of our lives we can't help but wonder what's next. Personally, I believe technology usage will continue to grow and change life as we know it (which sounds like the opening for a really bad futuristic dystopian movie, I know). Now, to clarify, I'm not theorizing that robots are going to take over the world, but I am proposing that technology will have an even larger presence in our everyday lives. Will that include artificial intelligence robots that know how to do everything that humans can do? Most likely, no. However, I think the future will look something a bit more like Back to the Future 2. Of course some of the technology in Back to the Future 2 is already being produced (video calls, tablet computers, fingerprint recognitions, etc.) but how cool would it be to have flying cars? Or technologically advanced clothing that dries instantly or shoes that tie themselves? It's difficult to theorize what new technology might be created that hasn't already been proposed by someone else, and on that note I think holographic technology will likely be perfected in the next few decades. Just think, Iron Man's holographic computer, in real life. That's not to say that all technological advances will be a huge benefit to the world, in fact technology that we have now has its issues so I can't imagine what issues future technology will cause. Perhaps it will be much easier for hackers to get top secret information. Maybe it will be harder to keep personal information private. There are truly endless possibilities when it comes to the future of technology.

Assignment 2- Emma Tucker

Technology evolves everyday. It is constantly improving, across all aspects. It feels like everyday commercials pop up about refrigerators that can tells you what to make for dinner and announcements are made about the latest technology that the next iPhone will have. In most cases this technology is extremely helpful, it allows us the ability to be able to do so many things that even fifty years ago would seem impossible, like connecting with people all over the world in a split second. However, one aspect that is typically overlooked in technology is the negative impact the ability to share every thought or feeling we have has impacted society.
   Today, the media is an omnipresent force in everybody's life. As soon as something happens, from a new celebrity relationship to a major terrorist attack, everyone knows. And then, everybody throws there opinion in. One major realm we see this happen in is the political world. The smallest move a political figure makes can be dissected on the news for days, and every one feels the need to post what they think about it to social media. This has dramatically increased tensions between political groups, religious groups, and even our social groups.
    While the ability to communicate at such a large scale is truly incredible, we can't let it control our lives like it does. We have become addicted to sharing what we feel and reading what others have to say, and more often that not it just leads to bitterness and anger. The ability to use technology in communication is extremely helpful, but if we cant learn how to use technology to communicate positively instead of completely tearing people with differing beliefs than our own down, technology is going to continue to cause a greater divide between people than it already has.

Assignment 2- Elizabeth Salamanca

As someone who has grown up with technology, from spending hours on Barbie.com to spending hours on Netflix.com, I can barely imagine my life without technology. Almost every moment of everyday would be affected without modern technology. I wouldn't wake up to the alarm on my iPhone, I wouldn't text my friends all day, I wouldn't look up videos to help me with homework, I wouldn't Skype my best friend, and I wouldn't fall asleep to the blinding glow of my computer. Communication between people would have to be more face to face, so I would spend less time alone. Most of my friendships were made face to face though, without the assistance of technology, but I think technology has certainly strengthened them. Being apart from someone over summer break would mean almost no communication with them, unless I were able to text. I definitely prefer this time period over twenty years ago. The ease at which I can receive information about almost anything never ceases to astound me, and I look forward to all the future technologies I'll see in my lifetime.

Assignment 2 - Claire Thompson

                It’s funny that this was a prompt this week, as just last Friday evening, I asked my friend, “What kind of a person would I even be if I was born several decades earlier?” She shrugged and said, “I think I would be a lot more boring.” And I would say the same would probably be true for me. We had just gotten back from CD Central, where I had just purchased my first vinyl record that was my very own, and not just one that my dad bought 30-40 years ago and kept in the basement. It was a used copy of the soundtrack of the 1980 movie Popeye, starring Shelley Duvall and Robin Williams, and I was so lucky to buy it for only $4.50 (I would put money on saying that that was probably an original pressing from 1980). I had also bought another record, which I had actually gone to CD Central with the intention of buying, called Viva! A Woman, a 1996 trip hop record by the Brooklyn-based Japanese duo Cibo Matto. There is not one single thing in common between two records--they're of completely different genres, origins, and periods of music. It makes me think that if I had grown up 20 years earlier, I would never be able to have that sort of eclecticism in my life. Without access to the internet, I wonder if I would still only be listening to the new wave albums my dad played for me when I was a child; I wonder how I would ever discover new things.  I 100% stand by the notion that variety is the spice of life—and I really have a strong contempt for under-seasoning.

The internet, if I’m being brutally honest, made me the person I am today. The internet is such an incredible vehicle for exploring new things from TV to movies to music to just about anything. In many ways, internet communities that I was a part of as a middle school student brought me out of the terrible cynicism and misanthropy a lot of 13-year-old kids fall into, something that, unfortunately, some never crawl out of. Because of that exposure to such a plethora of different types of media and people from such a young age, I think that now I find it so much easier and more enjoyable to become friends with people who are completely unlike me. Everyone I ever meet has something to offer, in terms of their knowledge and experience and interests. I think that I have made my heart tender, and I hope that that never changes.

I wouldn’t choose to live in any other decade. I mean, no matter where you are in time, the world has more to offer the older it gets. As bad as things can be around the world, I think we live in so much of a better time than in decades past. There are no more plagues that wipe out 1/3 of the world population because every single European threw their feces into the streets; fascism and totalitarianism seem to be at an all-time-low; government-enforced racial segregation is mainly gone from the world; gay marriage is, finally, legal in the US (and in a lot of other countries too); and now you can travel to another state and it doesn’t take an entire month to get there because you no longer have to go in a horse-drawn buggy. I think we’re pretty lucky. Although, I think it’s pretty safe to assume that in a few millennia, there will be people scoffing and shaking their heads in pity at the poor people of the 21^st century who had never even dreamed of being able to visit another planet for a weekend trip. But the future is uncertain—just be glad you’re alive now and not during the witch trials or the smallpox epidemic or the Crusades. Just be thankful that you’re here now; I know I am.

Maddie Klumb - Assignment 2

Technology has had a great and lasting impact on society as we know it. Because I grew up in this time period, I am used to the technology I find all around me. The use of electronic devices is second nature, as is the ability to easily resolve issues that may arise with them. Without the aid of the technology we have now, I would watch less TV and probably spend more time outside and reading. Interacting with others would involve more conversations about current events and news stories, and fewer conversations about internet videos and memes. Many of my relationships would likely remain the same, and may even be closer than they are now. Despite the good things that a decrease in technology brings, I would much prefer to live in this time period. Technology makes daily life much easier, and allows me to have a greater awareness of the world around me.

Assignment 2- Nick Joseph

It is crazy to think about what life would have been like 20 years ago, but particularly how it would have been to grow up then.  Obviously, technology has had a large impact on my childhood, as I would imagine it has for everyone else.  Quite frankly, technology in the lives of kids has always been a pretty polarizing issue.  Some people see it as a give everyone every possible advantage situation, while others see it as maintaining some of the tradition that goes along with a lack of technology.  I tend to lean more towards the latter side.  Do not get me wrong, I believe technology is extremely beneficial to our everyday lives and use it as much as the next guy.  I just believe that a childhood with limited technology pushes other values.  This was certainly true 20 years ago, when kids turned to baseball, the pool, and board games instead of video games, movies, and the internet.  In this time period, life in general was a lot simpler.  Without technology, there were surely fewer distractions and less stress.  Parents could leave their work at work and come home to their families.  They were not always accessible to anyone at any time.  I believe that this would be a great and healthy way to grow up- with limited access to the technology that our lives are so centered around today.

Assignment 1 - Benjamin Givens

Hello, my name is Benjamin Givens. I enjoy almost everything having to do with computers. In my free time I enjoy playing video games and programming. My favorite game is League of Legends and my favorite programming language is C#.net. In the future, I hope to turn this love computers, especially programming, into a career. In order to further this goal, I have been working on programs that fit my personal interest in order to learn the mathematical,  syntactical, and problem solving skills related to the field. My other interests all relate to these two activities. For instance, when I hang out with friends, I do so in video games. Instead of football or baseball, I watch esports such as the North American League Championship Series. My current programming project is creating a picture with a randomly generated scene that includes certain preset elements such as a path or trees. You can see what I have accomplished so far in the screenshot below.

Assignment 1 - Erin Caudill

  I'm Erin Caudill, as seen in the title, and I am horrible at making myself seem interesting, so this should be entertaining. This school year I hope to work harder and stay focused (keep in mind I say this every year and so far there's been no success), but I especially want to feel like I've tried my best. The past two years of high school I've felt like I could've done so much better if I had just studied a little bit more or not have ignored what seemed like pointless homework assignments. Anyways, moving on from the negative things in life, this summer went by incredibly fast because of all the things that I did. Towards the beginning of summer I went down to Florida and spent a week at Disney. I'm a little kid at heart and very few things get me more excited than a week long trip to Disney. In mid July I took a trip with my youth group to New Orleans to participate in a National Youth Gathering and it was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. I've been told that I seem to love my youth group more than my own family (which may or may not be true) and getting to spend time with them in a new city was an unforgettable experience. They've been my closest friends since I was in 3rd grade and I can't imagine a better way to spend part of my summer.
  Going off on a bit of a tangent, I absolutely love film. I struggled for a long time trying to pinpoint exactly what I want to do with my life, and I'd be lying if I said that I knew it exactly, but I do know I want to be involved in film in some sort of way. I've thought about screenwriting, directing, film editing, and countless other options (all not on camera, of course) and I love every single one. Whenever I tell people that I want to have a profession in film I get concerned looks, and maybe it is a risk to take, but I'll gladly take my chances.
  Speaking of film, what geeks me out are Christopher Nolan films. Now I'm not going to claim that I've watched all of his films, I've only seen a handful, but every one I've watched is just outstanding. In 9th grade we were able to pick a director and write an analysis essay on the specific director's style. I chose Christopher Nolan and spent hours writing and attempting to perfect an essay about how clever his choices were as a director and how his films are absolutely unbelievable. My favorite would either have to be The Prestige or Inception and I've watched both countless times.
  My favorite website is youtube.com because I've probably wasted countless hours of my life watching stupid videos instead of being productive. Lastly here's the preview for The Prestige (I highly recommend watching it if you haven't seen it)

Assignment 1- Dany Vissing

So, to start this all off, I'm Dany. I'm not a boy, just a girl with a misspelled name, I pinky promise.

Personally, all I seek to do this school year is appease myself. Out of all people, I want to make myself proud. I want to finally take initiative and be productive, not procrastinate, try my absolute best and not slack. It's not going too well since I'm starting this blog 3 hours before it's due... but I have the rest of the year to achieve my goals.

This summer was extremely impactful on my life, compared to any other I have experienced. I attend a camp out in Estill County, Kentucky. It's called Burnamwood and it's a small presbyterian camp. I'm not the most religious person, but I have my moments, which may seem shocking since I'm quite far on the Left side. I have made some memories of a lifetime there, but this summer held something more.

I think I knew that I was in for something special when during the first week (of 5) of camp, I had the honor of taking on the rare task of beating my close friend, Rachael Gilbert, with a pool noodle while she was dressed as a giant whoopee cushion. Trust me, I have proof (see below). 

We then started this new activity at camp where we could write letters to one another and we could not read them until the end of the week. Of course, there were your expected, "I love you so much," and, "You mean so much to me," notes, but when I was going through them, one stuck out. And it read, "Keep your head out of your ass." Signed by the one and only, Branham Chandler. Yes, I had to ask why he wrote such a note. 

Backstory to Bran; I've always looked up to him going to camp. When I was little I wanted to be his friend because his father was the cool Benjamin Chandler. When I was older, I wanted to be his friend because he inspired me. He did whatever his heart desired and didn't give a single care what people thought of him, and he honestly set out to make his life full of joy and happiness. I wanted to be just like that.

So when I asked him why he told me this, his answer shocked me. He said to me, "You are capable of incredible things. You are a very smart person and have the ability to rise above anything...With what you have to give, you can't afford it. You're a special person. I mean it. Don't be stupid in this life."

That woke me up. I just knew I had to make every moment count that I live, and I knew that mentality is what made him grow into a person I admired so much. 

(The picture was taken the day of his last camp, since he was graduating, and yes, I had been crying).

Finally, I had the wonderful opportunity to be a CIT for many weeks in the summer beside him and others who had helped me grow up and even find myself a little. 

CIT stands for Counselor In Training, so I got to watch after some little campers, which was a big deal, since the CITs were the coolest people in the world when we were small.

After spending a great deal of time watching over a lot of germy, awkward, smelly, rambunctious, annoying, loud, and agitating children, of course then and there I knew I wanted to work with them as a career.

But really, I adore working alongside and with children, knowing I'm helping them grow as others have helped me is an incredible feeling. They have just as much of an impact on my own life as I do on theirs. It's a feeling I always want to keep, long after I've graduated and left this camp, so I know I want to pursue a career in teaching preschoolers. I think it would be the absolute time of my life. Even if the pay is low, I'm doing what I love and not letting petty things stop me or trick me into a lifestyle I don't want to live; I'm keeping my head out of my ass.

So yes, this summer has been extremely and wonderfully impactful on my life, and has changed me immensely and for the better. It's helped me find out things about myself I would have never known to be able to fill out this blog post. I'm so grateful for the experiences I have been given.



I don't use my computer very often, normally just for school, so when I get on it's always snl.com to watch comical skits and cheer myself up through the school year.

Oh, and my super power would be the ability to stop time at my choosing.

Assignment 1- Dany Vissing

So, to start this all off, I'm Dany. I'm not a boy, just a girl with a misspelled name, I pinky promise.

Personally, all I seek to do this school year is appease myself. Out of all people, I want to make myself proud. I want to finally take initiative and be productive, not procrastinate, try my absolute best and not slack. It's not going too well since I'm starting this blog 3 hours before it's due... but I have the rest of the year to achieve my goals.

This summer was extremely impactful on my life, compared to any other I have experienced. I attend a camp out in Estill County, Kentucky. It's called Burnamwood and it's a small presbyterian camp. I'm not the most religious person, but I have my moments, which may seem shocking since I'm quite far on the Left side. I have made some memories of a lifetime there, but this summer held something more.

I think I knew that I was in for something special when during the first week (of 5) of camp, I had the honor of taking on the rare task of beating my close friend, Rachael Gilbert, with a pool noodle while she was dressed as a giant whoopee cushion. Trust me, I have proof (see below). 

We then started this new activity at camp where we could write letters to one another and we could not read them until the end of the week. Of course, there were your expected, "I love you so much," and, "You mean so much to me," notes, but when I was going through them, one stuck out. And it read, "Keep your head out of your ass." Signed by the one and only, Branham Chandler. Yes, I had to ask why he wrote such a note. 

Backstory to Bran; I've always looked up to him going to camp. When I was little I wanted to be his friend because his father was the cool Benjamin Chandler. When I was older, I wanted to be his friend because he inspired me. He did whatever his heart desired and didn't give a single care what people thought of him, and he honestly set out to make his life full of joy and happiness. I wanted to be just like that.

So when I asked him why he told me this, his answer shocked me. He said to me, "You are capable of incredible things. You are a very smart person and have the ability to rise above anything...With what you have to give, you can't afford it. You're a special person. I mean it. Don't be stupid in this life."

That woke me up. I just knew I had to make every moment count that I live, and I knew that mentality is what made him grow into a person I admired so much. 

(The picture was taken the day of his last camp, since he was graduating, and yes, I had been crying).

Finally, I had the wonderful opportunity to be a CIT for many weeks in the summer beside him and others who had helped me grow up and even find myself a little. 

CIT stands for Counselor In Training, so I got to watch after some little campers, which was a big deal, since the CITs were the coolest people in the world when we were small.

After spending a great deal of time watching over a lot of germy, awkward, smelly, rambunctious, annoying, loud, and agitating children, of course then and there I knew I wanted to work with them as a career.

But really, I adore working alongside and with children, knowing I'm helping them grow as others have helped me is an incredible feeling. They have just as much of an impact on my own life as I do on theirs. It's a feeling I always want to keep, long after I've graduated and left this camp, so I know I want to pursue a career in teaching preschoolers. I think it would be the absolute time of my life. Even if the pay is low, I'm doing what I love and not letting petty things stop me or trick me into a lifestyle I don't want to live; I'm keeping my head out of my ass.

So yes, this summer has been extremely and wonderfully impactful on my life, and has changed me immensely and for the better. It's helped me find out things about myself I would have never known to be able to fill out this blog post. I'm so grateful for the experiences I have been given.

Oh, and my super power would be the ability to stop time at my choosing.

Assignment 1 - Haley Drake

Hello! I'm Haley Drake and you'll probably go throughout the year seeing me as most teachers see me: one of those quiet, awkward girls who never participates in discussions. I'm really quiet. Like all the time. It's getting to be a bit of a problem as I get older, which is why my main goal this year is to break out of my shell a little bit and participate more than I would usually be comfortable with. While I'm not exactly a social butterfly, I was ironically loud this summer, but not in the talking kind of way. Music is probably the thing I'd say Geeks me out the most, whether it's performing (mainly violin, but a bit of guitar and piano), composition (my proudest moment this summer was finishing up writing a Hip Hop Overture), or history (I'm pretty sure I've bored my friends to death talking about obscure Renaissance composers), it's my biggest passion. Though I'm not entirely sure what I'm doing with my life, I'm pretty sure music will be involved whether I plan for it to or not. Other than that, I didn't do anything overly exciting during the summer. I did visit family in St. Simon's Island Georgia (pictured below), I was introduced to Pokemon Go, and I visited one of my favorite websites, Netflix. Stranger Things is awesome by the way - I'd definitely recommend it.

                                                                     St. Simon's pier

Assignment 1: Ethan MacGillivray

My name is Ethan MacGillivray. I have a brother who is in 7th grade at Morton Middle School, and I also live with two dogs and two cats. I have played soccer since I was 4 years old, and now play for Henry Clay and Lexington FC, which will make me miss some class time, especially during the spring. This year, I want to reach the Sweet 16 in the KHSAA State Tournament with Henry Clay and start the recruiting process in the spring. The best part of my summer was going to Cape Cod with my whole family to celebrate my grandparents' 50th anniversary. Most of my family lives in Vermont, but we are all fans of sports teams from the Boston area (Patriots, Celtics, Red Sox, Bruins, etc). If I could have a superpower, I would be able to control time, as in go anywhere in the past and future, as well as pause it, so I could do anything I wanted. One thing that geeks me out is certain bugs. especially when visiting family in Vermont, I encounter a lot of weird bugs with long legs, and that can fly, and the combination is not fair. I like to keep up with professional sports, as well as high school sports from Lexington and the rest of Kentucky, which Herald Leader covers.

Herald Leader Sports

Assignment 1- Reagan Smith

Hi, I’m Reagan Smith to most, Rea Rea the rapper to a few that I knew in 8^th grade social studies class. This was an ironic nickname though, since there are very few rap songs that I like. (I ended up getting that nickname after coming up with a rap introduction for my project group.) A personal goal that I have this year is to do my best to follow through with my platforms that I set forth when I was running for Student Council Vice President- improve communication pathways, make student voice opportunities accessible to everyone, and start a discussion about an innovative scheduling system. I will also strive to continue to get good grades and achieve my ACT goal score.

The most meaningful moment of my summer was during our last day in Hilton Head South Carolina, when a lifeguard was blowing their whistle and many people were getting out of the water. Someone had spotted a shark- a baby shark or a smaller variety. Then I saw a sting ray. We hadn’t seen dangerous marine life until that last day. It wasn’t that they weren’t there the past few days we had been there; we just hadn’t seen them. That didn’t keep me out of the water though, but it caused me to realize that it is God’s world, not mine.

My favorite website is probably Spotify, even though it is mostly app based. Spotify helped to redefine what online music looks like, and they did it pretty well. https://www.spotify.com/us/

Hilton Head- July 2016

Assignment 1: Gus Carlson

Hi. My name is Augustine Carlson, but I go by Gus. This year, my goals are to pass all of my AP tests and get credit for those classes, and to make school more enjoyable and stress less. Here at Henry Clay, I participate in Y-Club, Model UN, and on the Academic Team. Over the summer, I went to New York City for a week with my family, which was a lot of fun. It was meaningful to see how in the big city, everyone was always rushing around everywhere and freaking out. It made Lexington seem a lot more laid back and carefree. If I could have any superpower, it would be invisibility, because I think it sounds cool and I could go anywhere and do anything without anybody knowing. In my free time I enjoy reading, camping, watching movies, and listening to music. Something that geeks me out is Star Wars, definitely my favorite movie franchise of all time. I don't know if I have a favorite website, but I like TED, because I like listening to intelligent people with unique, interesting ideas. The attached picture is of Mackinac Island, a cool island in Michigan where civilian motor vehicles are not allowed.

Assignment 1: 


Hi!

My name is Ella Jensen. I have been in the GT program since 5th grade at Ashland and before that I went to Maxwell. I am an only child with three dogs who I love. I was originally born in Bennington, VT but moved to Winchester, KY when I was 2 and then moved to Lexington when I was 4; I really love Lexington but I miss the north a lot. 

This summer I went to Holland, England, and Spain for a month and a half by myself, which was amazing. I spent 2 weeks in England and Holland with a friend's family and then 4 weeks in Spain. My favourite spot was Barcelona and New Castle because of the beaches and the British accents. 

In my free time I work at two jobs, I have an internship, and I am active in 4 clubs. I work at Middle Fork Kitchen Bar downtown and highly recommend it, and Orange Leaf on Romany Road. I also intern at Saint Joseph Hospital as a nurse’s aid and pill counter. At school, I am involved in Y-Club, BETA Club, Young Dems, and History Club.

When I grow up I want to go to school in D.C or west coast and hopefully study Public Health Policy internationally with a Pre-Med concentration. If I could have any super power it would be to be able to speak every language because that would make traveling so much more fun. And my favourite website is coolmath-games.com

(This is me in Spain)

Assignment 1- Logan Gehefer

Hi, my names Logan Gehefer, and some of my friends call me Baby Drizzy as a joke since I'm a big Drake fan. I'm 6'0 and I work at Raising Canes in Hamburg. This year I would like to achieve good grades in school because my family is relatively poor and i would like to go to college. The only way I can go is by getting a scholarship so I'm hoping to get good grades to go with my ACT score. This summer vacation I didn't do anything except work and play basketball in my free time. I worked around 40 hours a week and played basketball whenever I was off. If I could have any super power I would want the power to make everything better. Life is always hard for me and my family, as well as my friends so I would want to make everything good for us and them. Either that or a shape shifter because that seems pretty cool. Most summers I spend a lot of time with my cousin, but he moved to California, so this summer I spent time with my friends Naylan, Josh, and my cousins Trayvion and Kenny. Besides that I just stayed home. The three things that really geek me out are music, film, and the NBA. David Fincher, Martin Scorsese, Stanley Kubrick and Quentin Tarantino are my personal favorite directors. My favorite films include Silence of the Lambs, Se7en, Fight Club, Shutter Island, Kill Bill, and Forrest Gump. I have an IMDb account that I use to rate every movie I see, and one day hope to have a career in film. Music is another passion of mine, and in my free time, I enjoy creating playlist. My personal favorite artist include 2pac, Drake, Kendrick Lamar, all Odd Future members, Aerosmith, Kanye West, Josh Turner, Chance the Rapper, Keith Urban, Nas, and many more. My main genre preference is rap, but honestly I listen to every genre. I spend pretty much all of my time with music in. I work with music, hoop with music, shower with music, and do pretty much everything with music. I've always wanted to be a song writer but i know its difficult to make it in that field, so I'm still figuring out what I want to do with my life. I'm also a huge NBA fan. My personal favorite teams are the Lakers, Rockets, and Timberwolves. I've always been a huge Kobe Bryant fan since I was little, but some of my other favorite retired players are Allen Iverson, Magic Johnson, Kareem, Karl Malone, and Dominique Wilkins. My favorite current players are James Harden, Andrew Wiggins, Demar DeRozan, and pretty much any former UK player. That pretty much sums me up, I'm not very interesting, but I look to prove those who doubt me in life wrong and would like to go somewhere that people would consider successful.

Favorite Website

Hi, I'm Joseph Cook. I am 6'4" and probably should do a bit more with my life. I don't really do much in my free time other than ukulele and homework. I didn't go on any vacations this summer. the most interesting thing I did was go to a high adventure scout camp with amazing facilities such as a massive zip line, skate park, and shooting range. I enjoy memes.

One thing that "Geeks me out" is Pokemon. I know a lot about them.

eelslap.com