Dayne's Blog 2023

As I stuck my fork into the ripe yellow pineapple I could see the juices dripping off before taking a bite. Making my teeth feel sensitive from the cold, the soft & juicy pineapple exploded with sweetness as I bit into it for the first time. Eating this pineapple was like being on the beach in 90 degree weather. I was only left wanting more of the pineapple given that it left a bitter taste shortly after finishing. I want the sweet taste back.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/article/2024/aug/28/louisiana-bayou-levee-gulf?src=longreads

This is a story about a heroic man who saved his town, but wanted to be stopped by the government. Personally, I don’t really like the lead to the story because it isn’t as interesting as the title. When I initially read the title to the story, but the lead was so long and informative that it already began to bore me.

1. “We wouldn’t have a community,” said 69-year-old Windell Curole. Curole is eluding to his efforts to save his community while disobeying federal officials to do so. Had Curole surrendered to federal resistance of his plan, the Gialliano, Louisiana community could have been left is far worse condition.
2. 69-year-old Windell Curole, accompanied by others seeking refuge from Hurricane Ida, gazed out of the window of Lady of Sea Hospital as heavy wind force ripped apart surrounding buildings. Following Hurricane Ida, Curole went against the requests of federal officials to save his community. Why did the government want to stop Curole?
3. In the fall of 2021, Lady of Sea Hospital in Galliano, Louisiana was home to refugees seeking shelter from Hurricane Ida. Among those seeking refuge was 69-year-old Windell Curole who had been a lifelong resident of the area. Curole was willing to help his community even if it meant going going against government commands.

Characters, narrative structure, and themes. About? True, why or why not?

Danger on the Divide

Maggie Slepian: Maggie is the main character/storyteller. She is an over-thinker and someone who comes off as very reserved and self-conscious on this biking adventure and in general.

Matt: Matt is the biking partner of Maggie who ends up getting really sick and deciding to keep biking hundreds of miles. Matt is a professional and someone who Maggie trusted.

Andrew: Andrew is one of the Search and Rescue volunteers who arrived on the scene to help Maggie and Matt.

Ed: Ed is also a Search and Rescue volunteer who was sent to help out Maggie and Matt. Ed keeps in contact with Maggie following the incident and is able to offer Maggie some peace of mind about what happened.

The narrative structure of this story is the Martini Glass structure. The story begins with some key facts about Maggie, what she does, and the situation they are in the at the moment. After that, the story is mainly put into chronological order. There is no real twist to the story aside from them getting the help that they needed, but the Martini Glass structure is the style that Maggie used to tell this story.

This story is mainly about danger and allowing personal thoughts or self-consciousness to lead yourself and others into a dangerous situation. From this story, I think you can learn to speak up for yourself and to go with your gut feeling about situations, especially ones that can lead to danger.

I do believe this story is true. I believe this because the thought process of Maggie throughout the story is very vivid and comes off as authentic. Throughout the story Maggie admits and acknowledges that some of her actions, or lack there of, were made out of embarrassment and or shyness. I just feel like the way she takes us through all of the thoughts and emotions that she felt at the time were real and nothing was sugar-coated.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/11/us/politics/trump-debate-performance.html

Here, is and article about the presidential debate from last night in which the Trump says he had a great debate against Kamala Harris while his allies supposedly think otherwise.

1. Talk to people on campus and get their opinions of the debate
2. Ask Donald Trump why he thinks the debate was a 3 on 1
3. Speak with Kamala about how she thinks the debate went
4. Talk to some colleagues of Trump and get their opinions
5. Talk with Trump about whether his preparation played a part in his performance

I think talking to students on campus and getting their opinions of the presidential debate is the feature that I would be most likely to do because of proximity. Right now we are on a college campus and I’m sure there are a lot of students of have varying opinions about the outcome of the debate. We all know that Trump wouldn’t admit losing the debate no matter what, so I would want to see if his opinions on the debate would be in line with the majority of viewers.

A story is a narrative about people and/or events, whether fictional or true, usually including a plot. Stories are often-times told for entertainment purposes.

I feel like stories are important because they are a way to make emotional connections and to get better informed about things in a memorable way. I think stories are important to also gain a better view and understanding of other people’s experiences. Stories are entertaining, yet informative which is a great way to make a connection between the plot and the reader in a way that can also raise self-awareness and awareness for the world around us.

Personally, the types of stories that I like to read and write are those that I would describe as heartfelt drama. In the past I wrote a story on the Olympics in which the Team USA Basketball team was cheated out of a gold medal. The game was controversial and it left many people feeling upset for decades to come. I feel like these are the types of stories that I like to read and write up. I enjoy reading about sports, mainly football and basketball.

This semester I want to just put more effort into completing my stories and making sure I get the most out of this class. I don’t really enjoy writing too much, so I want to try to find ways to make writing more enjoyable when it comes to the topics I choose to write about.

Early this morning there was an abrupt explosion inside of the Mega City Mall. The explosion happened around 8:50 am which left 2 males deceased and left up to 100 people injured with non-life threatening injuries.

Mega City Mall representatives state that there is no credible evidence that the explosion was anything more than a terrible accident. The investigation of of the explosion is ongoing and they are working tirelessly to come to a conclusion about the events. As of now, the mall will continue to remain closed in order to secure the scene and assess the ‘structural integrity’ of the building. Mega City Mall is optimistic about reopening by the weekend. Mega City plans to continue assisting officials and investigators with the case. Federal law enforcement agencies will also be involved.

Upon explosion, fire rescue from Mega City, Central City, Starling City, and Astro City were all sent to the scene. Aside from smoke inhalation and fire, there have only been a handful of other injuries. All of which are non-life threatening. The explosion took place near the food court of the mall. Stores like the Frisky Cream Donut Shop, Penny Dreadful, and the movie theater all dealt a major amount of damage.

One employee from the Frisky Donut Shop who was amidst the explosion stated, “I heard screaming prior to the explosion and saw people acting like they knew something was bout to happen. I believe there to be an attacker.” Homeland Security has also teamed up with the mall to investigate any potential of this being a terrorist attack.

General Manager of Gun Land reports going airborne upon the explosion and was one of the few people who suffered an injury aside from smoke inhalation. “I was in the air looking down and I felt like I was moving in slow motion,” Nina said while describing his events from the this morning.

The mall plans wants to send their condolences to all of the victims, and family and friends of the victims of todays events. Mega City Mall prides themselves on being a safe place and are working to assure that they get to the bottom of this case. Hopefully Mega City Mall can return to being the safe place it once was for the community.

Yesterday morning one of our dearest polar bears was found deceased.

Here at Midland Zoo, we offer an exhibition of polar bears which is one of our most common exhibits. Yukon is a 9-year-old male, McKenzie is a 10-year-old female, and our eldest polar bear is Homer who was 16-years-old. Homer was loved dearly by our staff as well as the public here at Midland. “Homer was a very curious and playful polar bear and we will miss him terribly,” says zookeeper, Sara N. Getty.

Homer was found floating in the pool of the polar bear exhibit shortly following feeding. Here at Midland we pride ourselves on animal welfare and preservation of species, so we are working tirelessly to find Homer’s exact cause of death. There have been 2 other animals to pass here at the zoo within the month but these deaths are unrelated.

Here at Midland we have always taken great care of our polar bears especially. Our exhibit does all that it can to try and simulate what the life of an undomesticated polar bear would actually be like, allowing them to engage in natural behaviors. They are allowed to play in manufactured snow, dig through gravel, and hunt fish just as wild polar bears are able to. The exhibit we have for our polar bears is unique and allows them to truly thrive.

Homer will be greatly missed and we are doing everything in our power to make sure Midland is a safe environment for all of our animals.

A rivalry too toxic? Michigan, Michigan State grapple with the future

This article just goes into depth about the Michigan and Michigan State football rivalry and how a situation transpired about a week ago when they played each other. I like the lead I think it’s interesting because they make it clear that there is tension between the two teams and tease what that means for the teams in the future. Personally, this made me want to read because I’m interested about what this could mean for the rivalry of these two teams in the future.

I do believe that the article goes into a bit more detail than someone looking for a quick read would be interested in. The information given is very good and descriptive but I feel there is a more short and sweet way that the journalist could have put this together.

I like the incorporation of quotes though. Since we’ve been having to use quotes in class and that I’ve started to notice them more and have a bit more appreciation for them. I think it gives the article a juiciness to since you get first-hand accounts of what players, fans, alum, etc. have to say about the rivalry.

One thing I don’t really like or think is necessary is the writer talking about the political side of the rivalry. I think most sports fans and people interested in this rivalry don’t really care much to hear about the political side of it so personally I would leave that out and keep it football.

Overall, I think this is a well-written and descriptive article, I just think it could do without a lot of the details and written in a more concise manner in order to keep the reader interested and reading until the end.

Local college athletes weigh in on the the direction NIL monetization is sending college sports (football) and the relevancy of NIL being at a small school.

The debate that once caused numerous amounts of scandals throughout college sports has lied within one question. Should college athletes be able to be paid and profit from their name, image, and likeness? Since the beginning of college sports, athletes have demanded and fought for rights to be able to profit off themselves. The NCAA rules once prohibited players from having rights to profitability and because of that many players and coaches have been punished for gifting players things and offering them incentives under the table.

Well now, as of July 1, 2021, all NCAA and college athletes are allowed to profit from NIL and gained to access to monetize their NIL. What does this mean for the future of college sports though, and does this have an effect on small school athletes like that of Morningside University?

I talked to several either current players or alumnus of the Morningside football team and asked them to weigh in on this topic. Seth Sheppard and AP Ponder, both alumni and multi-national champions with the Mustangs sat down with me for an interview on the topic. I also got to sit down with currently active and also multi-national champion for the Mustangs, Jamal Jones.

Each of the players believe that there are positives and negatives that come with the monetization of athletes and profitability of NIL. A big positive that a couple of the players mentioned is the fact that a lot of college athletes come from poverty or low income families.

“It allows us athletes the chance take care of our families…some of us have teammates who may have kids and NIL can help those teammates to try and provide while doing what they love, playing the game of football,” responded Ponder when asked how he felt about players being able to profit from NIL. Sheppard also believes that granting players NIL monetization rewards hard work and is fair considering that the NCAA profits millions of dollars from its athletes.

From an educational standpoint, some positives were pulled from the thought of NIL deals. “I think a lot more players will stay all 4 years…this is a good thing though because it gives them a chance to actually get their degree,” Shep said. Jones also said something similar when talking about NIL in that many athletes don’t last long in the professionals. So, NIL deals may encourage players to stay in school longer while getting paid to do and also being able to graduate and use their degree if need be.

Not all thoughts about the situation are all positive though. Could NIL deals eventually cause problems with team cohesion and the egos of these high-paid and more well-known college athletes? Could NIL even possibly have an effect on youth athletes who are aware of this opportunity and want to take advantage of it?

The college sports and professional world has seen its fair share of egotistical athletes who struggle with getting along with teammates and coaches. NIL is something that the Morningside players believe could propel athletes into these types of behaviors, especially given the fact that they are still trying to make it. Individual success is the main reason the guys believe this could potentially be a concern going forward. With money being the reward for individual success, a lot of players have the potential to begin gravitating their focus towards themselves first rather than the goals and likes of the team.

“I think NIL has the potential to create tension between teammates as well as resentment and inequality due to one players success. Not just in football but in college sports all around,” Shep says, while explaining that some athletes could become overly focused on personal marketing and NIL success.

While AP believes that the impact of NIL on youth sports will be positive due to the fact that it could push athletes to become noticeable and make a name for themselves, the other guys think different. “Building up egos and demanding so much in sports from a child early on could be recipe for disaster,” Jamal said shaking his head. Jones believes that high demand from a sport early on can lead to that beginning to feel like a job and ultimately stray a child away from the sport. At the youth age playing a sport should be hobby, not necessarily a way out said Shep and Jones similarly.

As far as being at a small school like Morningside, each of the athletes agree the NIL doesn’t have much of an effect, if any on the players. “Let’s be realistic here, we were a good ass program and still are, but for an NAIA program, NIL deals are pretty much an afterthought,” Shep said. Considering that NIL has a lot to do with your following and popularity, it isn’t too common for small school athletes to have publicity like players from D1 and D2 schools have. So, without that following, how would these athletes be able to benefit a company or brand looking to sponsor a player?

Ap believes that resources and exposure are both limited at small schools which give these athletes less of an opportunity to profit from themselves. Neither does he think it would be fair for someone playing at the highest-level to be remotely making the same amount of money as a small school athlete.

Current small school athlete Jamal Jones even said, “I don’t even really follow or pay attention to much about NIL being at Morningside.”

Concerns of the effect of NIL deals at a high level may live on for a long time, but for your local small school athletes like those of the Morningside Mustangs, though shall not worry.