Turkey free essay sample

Turkey BY ntm289 Abstract This paper explores the different characteristics in the economic and cultural aspects in the country of Turkey in relation to introducing a foreign business into a new country. The economic characteristics that will be assessed will be factors such as GDP per capita and GDP growth rate, Inflation and Unemployment, FDI inflows, FDI potential index, and FDI performance index, along with the countrys competitive index. There will be an explanation of how the factors mentioned above have effected the countrys economic freedom in the last 10 years and how it changed, how orruption changed in the last 10 years, and how governance changed in the last 10 years. Lastly it will explore the countrys culture relevant to running a business in Turkey such as the political, legal, social, religious, and gender based aspects along with an evaluation of the Hofstede framework for Turkey. In 2002, Turkey, along with many other countries, suffered from a global economic downturn but came out relatively un-hurt and continued through out the years to work on a more open and free economy (2013 index of). We will write a custom essay sample on Turkey or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Their largely free-market economy is driven by its industry and service sector with 25% of employment coming rom its traditional agriculture

The My Lai Massacre of the Vietnam War

The My Lai Massacre of the Vietnam War On March 16, 1968, United States Army troops murdered several hundred Vietnamese civilians at the villages of My Lai and My Khe during the Vietnam War. The victims were mostly elderly men, women and children and all non-combatants. Many were also sexually assaulted, tortured or mutilated in one of the most horrifying atrocities of the entire bloody conflict. The official death toll, according to the US government, was 347, though the Vietnamese government asserts that 504 villagers were massacred. In either case, it took months for U.S. officials to catch wind of the actual events of that day, later filing court-martials against 14 officers present during the massacre yet only convicting the second lieutenant to four months in military prison. What Went Wrong at My Lai? The My Lai Massacre took place early in the Tet Offensive, a major push by the Communist Viet Cong  - National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam  - forces to drive out the South Vietnamese government troops and the U.S. Army. In response, the U.S. Army initiated a program of attacking villages that were suspected of harboring or sympathizing with the Viet Cong. Their mandate was to burn houses, kill off livestock and spoil crops and pollute wells in order to deny food, water and shelter to the V.C. and their sympathizers. The 1st Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment, 11th Brigade of the 23rd Infantry Division, Charlie Company, had suffered almost 30 attacks via booby-trap or land mine, resulting in numerous injuries and five deaths. When Charlie Company received its orders to clear out possible V.C. sympathizers in My Lai, Colonel Oran Henderson authorized his officers to go in there aggressively, close with the enemy and wipe them out for good. Whether the soldiers were ordered to kill women and children is a subject of dispute; certainly, they were authorized to kill suspects as well as combatants but by this point in the war Charlie Company evidently suspected all Vietnamese of collaborating - even 1-year-old babies. The Massacre at My Lai When the American troops entered My Lai, they did not find any Viet Cong soldiers or weapons. Nonetheless, the platoon led by Second Lieutenant William Calley began to fire at what they claimed was an enemy position. Soon, Charlie Company was shooting indiscriminately at any person or animal that moved. Villagers who tried to surrender were shot or bayoneted. A large group of people were herded to an irrigation ditch and mowed down with automatic weapons fire. Women were gang-raped, babies shot at point-blank range and some of the corpses had C Company carved into them with bayonets. Reportedly, when one soldier refused to kill the innocents, Lt. Calley took his weapon away and used it to massacre a group of 70 to 80 villagers. After the initial slaughter, the 3rd Platoon went out to conduct a mop-up operation, which meant killing any of the victims who were still moving amongst the piles of dead. The villages were then burned to the ground. The Aftermath of My Lai: Initial reports of the so-called battle at My Lai claimed that 128 Viet Cong and 22 civilians were killed -   General Westmoreland  even congratulated Charlie Company for their work and the Stars and Stripes magazine lauded the attack. Several months later, though, soldiers who had been present at My Lai but refused to take part in the massacre began to blow the whistle on the true nature and scale of the atrocity. Privates Tom Glen and Ron Ridenhour sent letters to their commanding officers, the State Department, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and President Nixon exposing Charlie Companys deeds. In November of 1969, the news media got wind of the My Lai story. Journalist Seymour Hersh conducted extensive interviews with Lt. Calley, and the American public responded with revulsion to the details as they slowly filtered out. In November of 1970, the US Army began court-martial proceedings against 14 officers charged with participating in or covering up the My Lai Massacre. In the end, only Lt. William Calley was convicted and sentenced to life in prison for premeditated murder. Calley would serve only four and a half months in military prison, however. The My Lai Massacre is a chilling reminder of what can happen when soldiers cease to regard their opponents as human. It is one of the worst known atrocities of the war in Vietnam.

The Pepsi Challenge Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

The Pepsi Challenge - Case Study Example The case study deals with Pespi Inc. and the issues it faces with the implementation of enterprise software platform throughout the length and breadth of the organisation. The organisation faces challenges on several fronts. It confronts resistance to change - from the different business divisions, high costs of implementation and labour issues. The organisation's transition to a techno savvy business entity has not been smooth and this report aims to analyse the different incidents which that comes across. Autonomy and fragmentation are the biggest obstacles that the organisation has to resolve. Autonomy is charectised by the reluctance of the different divisions to follow suit in pursuance of a central data warehousing system -because of a variety of reasons. Fragmentation is apparent due to the different software and hardware supports on which the different sections of this huge organisation runs. The purpose of this report is to firstly identify the chief areas of concern that the organisation is facing, and secondly suggest alternatives to the top management so that these problems can be overcome. The case brief outlines the steps that the management has already taken to chalk out a path for the organisation towards becoming an IT backed system - which also includes the problems it has encountered on the way. This report aims to explore newer opportunities that could have gone unnoticed by the management. It is understood that the organisation is huge - Pepsi operates in over 200 countries and the group revenues were to the tune of 43,251 million U.S. dollars in the fiscal year of 2008 (We are Performance with Purpose - Pepsico 2008 Annual Report, 2008). So the challenges that such a company would face while implementing a different outlook towards IT would, invariably be enormous. Background The background of the report is a case brief which deals at length with Pepsi, the issues it faces with the implementation of enterprise software and the efforts that need to be taken by the company in order to overcome the situation. The organisation is faced with several challenges - it operates in a highly competitive market, which is heavily dependent on the prices of the raw material and with issues to tackle major socio - political issues across the globe. It is in this background that the company has embarked on a mission to come up with a leaner supply chain and better data warehousing. "We depend on information technology as an enabler to improve the effectiveness of our operations and to interface with our customers, as well as to maintain financial accuracy and efficiency", states the latest annual report of the company (We are Performance with Purpose - Pepsico 2008 Annual Report, 2008). Approach/ Methodology/ Theoretical Framework The case brief required a thorough analysis. It was found necessary to visit the official

Biochemistry Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Biochemistry - Case Study Example This lactate is normally takes back to liver where it would convert back into pyruvate and glucose through process of gluconeogenesis. This glucose is transferred back again muscle and the cycle is completed. In the process of reconversion of glucose six ATP molecules are consumed and hence there is net loss of 4 ATP’s in one cycle. (Â  Nelson 2005). If this whole process was to occur in muscle only, than there would be excessive loss of energy and muscle wasting just as it was seen with the patient in clinical presentation. There would be net loss of energy instead of production and lactic acid would ultimately start accumulating in the muscle causing lactic acidosis. Moreover, ATP consumption would be faster than its production, some ADP would also be converted into AMP which is ultimately lost in urine and all these are signs of chronic fatigue syndrome or mitochondrial disease. ( Sarah Myhill 2009). A hypothetical defect in pyruvate dehydrogenase or Isocitrate dehydrogenase or ÃŽ ±-Ketoglutarate dehydrogenase can prevent increase in ATP generation because these enzymes produce NADH in citric acid cycle which is equivalent to 2.5ATPs. Moreover, Succinate dehydrogenase deficiency can also cause this defect since it produces FAD which is equal to 1.5ATPs. These enzymes can greatly damage the production of ATP through. The concentration of NAD+ is maintained in body and it is reconverted and regenerated through other biochemical procedures that occur inside the cell like citric acid cycle (Nesbitt V 2011). NADH and FADH2 from citric acid cycle get used in electron transport chain and undergo oxidative phosphorylation where they use oxygen and converted ADP into ATP by using a molecule of phosphate as well. This is how citric acid products are converted into ATP. Coenzyme Q10 plays a central role in oxidative phosphorylation of cell. It has a very unique role in electron transport chain and is basically lipid soluble and maintains the proton

Lyrics in Rap Music

Lyrics in Rap Music In this essay I am going to discuss and take an in-depth look at the topic of the role and importance of the lyrics in rap music, which are often violent, sexually explicit and sexist in content. In order to understand the role these lyrics play in rap music, it is necessary to consider the musical style that goes with them and even the hip-hop culture that gave us rap music. This culture, including rap music, originated in the USA, but its appeal has become international. In the first introductory section I will analyse the terms rap music and rapper, and I will briefly discuss the origins of rap music. This section will introduce some important artists in the genre, mentioning their backgrounds and especially how they started their careers as rappers. Usually rappers begin singing in the streets, which might be a way of trying to escape from their difficult lives. Nonetheless in their lyrics they describe what could be taken as the real facts of such lives. So one question is: do their lyrics consist of violence, sex and sexism because this is an accurate reflection of the typical experiences of their own lives? What made them sing such songs? In order to be able to answer this question, I will include some simple lyrics as examples of some typical rap songs. Then, in the second part of the essay I will focus on the listeners and how rap music influences them. Overall, my intention is to discover exactly what is the significance of the lyrics in rap music within the context of this musical style as a whole. Generally the term rap refers to a street poetry, using slang language and phrases to express the singers feelings and show to the audience their point of view about life. Rap music therefore refers to the musical style in which such poetry is performed, which is very rhythmical usually without much accompaniment. The people that perform and usually also compose this poetry are rappers. The rappers in their music usually talk about the realities of their lives and their social environments; such realities include racism or the difference between male and female, violent events and feelings, and sexual attraction and activity, in other words everything that they have experienced, lived through and seen for themselves. But why is this? Why do they emphasize such aspects of their lives and not others? This relates to another question: is rap music intended as pure entertainment or is it more a music of social protest? The reason that I chose to work on this topic is that I find music in general and especially rap music really interesting. I myself play guitar and piano. For performance, I like songs with clear melody that can be easily performed and played on piano and guitar. However, I do not like mainstream pop music, which is mostly written to formulas with clichà © lyrics. Rap music is something very different, something I have never tried to perform or to explore, so in this essay I am trying to get to know it better, including its history, and also to share with readers my research. CHAPTER ONE: THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE LYRICS OF RAP MUSIC Rap music became widely known in the U.S.A. in the nineteen eighties, as a reaction against the disco music of the seventies. It was then and it remains today a predominantly black or African-American style of music, in which the lyrics are very important. This can be seen in the following summary of the history of rap: Rap evolved from African people in general and black people born in the U.S. in particular. Its origins can be traced to West Africa where tribesmen held men of words in high regard. Later when slaves were brought to the New World, the captives mixed American music with the beats they remembered from Africa. Another origin of rap is a form of Jamaican folk stories called toasts. These are narrative poems that tell stories in rhyme. Over a hundred years later, rapping was a street art. Just as doo-wop in the 1950s, rap began in inner-city schoolyards and street corners in the 1970s. Early raps were boastful tales, and put-downs directed at other rappers. This music style was slowly growing in popularity among black teens in New York City, Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia. As early as 1974 neighborhood block parties in New York featured early forms of rapping. But it wasnt until the commercial success of Rappers Delight by the Sugar Hill Gang in 1979 that major record labels took not ice of this explosive new sound. However, although the lyrics are particularly important in rap, many would say that the essence of rap is in its beat. For example, William Eric Perkins says, the foundation of rap music is the beat. The beat is the structure around which the lyrics are developed, and samples of selected phrases from previously recorded music, jingles, solos, and so on play second fiddle. In rap vernacular, those with the dope beats produce the deffest raps. Of course rap was and still is mainly a young persons type of music, and both the performers and the audience were and are youthful. Young people are often rebellious in spirit, and music is one of their main ways of expressing their rebelliousness: Rap music has stampeded through America like no other form of music since the creation of rock music in the 1960s. Like other popular styles, it has a history that is closely aligned with the rebellious attitude of its young creators; youth who rejected the contemporary music prevalent during the late 1970s (disco). However, rap is not only a rebellion against early forms of music and the lifestyles associated with them. Sometimes it is also music of social protest. At least, it is very realistic and the opposite of escapist. Mostly rap music is a means of expression. It is music of the street. In their lyrics rappers express their fears for their community, the reality of their lives, and they describe both the positive and negative sides of everyday life. Some artists come from environments that are impoverished and unhealthy, so music gives them a way of coping with reality, their violent and hard life. In this way they find a kind of shelter in their songs even though these songs describe their life and how hard it is. Thus they express their feelings through their music. Rap music differs from the other kinds of music, because of the great emphasis it puts on the words and lyrics. As said above, it is a kind of street poetry. This emphasis on words is because the songs are about real life. The rappers delivery is more like rhythmical speech than actual singing, although there is also a kind of very simple melody. The lyrics are not simple love songs, but reflect the complexity of reality. Eminem, the famous white rapper, who has had quite a hard life, is a good example of the way rappers make their actual lives the source of their songs. Shortly after he was born, his father abandoned him and until age twelve he and his mother lived in public housing. As a teenager he became interested in rap music, something that caused him to abandon school in the ninth grade and start performing with groups. The lyrics of Eminem have been criticized for being violent and offensive towards other celebrities. For example: Sometimes I just feel like my father, I hate to be bothered With all of this nonsense its constant And, Oh, its his lyrical content the song Guilty Conscience has gotten such rotten responses And all of this controversy circles me And it seems like the media immediately Points a finger at me (finger at me).. So I point one back at em, but not the index or pinkie Or the ring or the thumb, its the one you put up When you dont give a fuck, when you wont just put up With the bullshit they pull, cause they full of shit too When a dudes gettin bullied and shoots up his school And they blame it on Marilyn (on Marilyn) and the heroin Where were the parents at? And look where its at Middle America, now its a tragedy Now its so sad to see, an upper class ci-ty Havin this happenin (this happenin).. Then attack Eminem cause I rap this way (rap this way).. But Im glad cause they feed me the fuel that I need for the fire To burn and its burnin and I have returned There is a kind of aggression behind these lyrics which also allows the audience to identify with the anti-establishment attitude. They are also typical in the way they relate many different things together, including events in the news such as high school shootings, drug use, the media, middle America, and so on. Another famous rapper is a twenty-six year-old, Curtis James Jackson III, known as 50 cent. 50 cent is an American rapper who has lived a hard life. Curtis James Jackson III grew up without a father and was raised by his mother. His mother was only fifteen years old when she gave birth to him. He was born in South Jamaica. His mother who was a drug dealer died at twenty-three years old, leaving an eight year old boy who was raised by his grandparents. In early teenage he was dealing drugs, until he was arrested. He continued selling and hiding drugs, a fact that brought many problems and he was arrested a second time. However when he stopped he devoted himself to his career as a rap singer. Something that increased his popularity was his collaboration with Eminem. It is common and quite usual that rappers use violence and sexism in their lyrics. As mentioned above, violence is a means of expression of physical force either against ourselves or others and especially the weaker ones, while sexism is an attitude and belief of a person, usually male, that he is superior to or stronger that others, usually female. Sometimes a sexist attitude is communicated in lyrics that are sexually explicit. It is possible that the rapper did not deliberately intend to be sexist in the defined sense, but this is just part of his assumptions and his intention to be as realistic as possible. For example, the song called  «Candy Shop » by 50 cent is all about sexual activity and is apparently addressed to a girl, at least at the beginning, rather than to the audience itself (as in Eminems song above). However a little later the pronoun you is dropped and replaced by she as though 50 cent is now sharing his sexual experiences with his audience. Give it to me baby, nice and slow Climb on top, ride like you in the rodeo You aint never heard a sound like this before Cause I aint never put it down like this before Soon as I come through the door she get to pulling on my zipper Its like its a race who can get undressed quicker Isnt it ironic how erotic it is to watch em in thongs Had me thinking bout that ass after Im gone I touch the right spot at the right time Lights on or lights off, she like it from behind So seductive, you should see the way she wind Her hips in slow-mo on the floor when we grind As Long as she aint stopping, homie I aint stopping Dripping wet with sweat man its on and popping All my champagne campaign, bottle after bottle its on And we gon sip til every bubble in every bottle is gone Here we can easily understand the sexual innuendo. Whether it is actually sexist or not is a matter of opinion, probably the singer believes that it is just about the two sexes that want to have a bit of fun. Niggaz With Attitude (N.W.A), a five member band whose lyrics are openly violent (and refer to guns), are much more politically motivated. They have attacked even the police and FBI. Moreover the N.W.A has given to rap music its criminal image and raises the whole question of authenticity. This band has captured the essence of young black male rage. You dont really think youre gonna get away do you? We havent spotted them yet But theyre somewhere in the immediate vicinity. A 100 Miles and Runnin. MC Ren I hold the gun and You want me to kill a mutherfucker and its done in. Since Im stereotyped to kill and destruct Is one of the main reasons I dont give a fuck. Chances are usually not good Cause I freeze with my hands on a hot hood. And gettin jacked by the you-know-who. When in a black and white the capacity is two. Were not alone, were three more brothers, I mean street-brothers. Now wearin my dyes, cause Im not stupid, mutherfuckers. Theyre out to take our heads for what we said in the past. Point blank They can kizz my black azz. I didnt stutter when I said Fuck Tha Police. Cause its hard for a nigga to get peace. Now its broken and cant be fixed. Cause police and little black niggers dont mix so Now Im creepin through the fall. Runnin like a team. Well, see, I might have slayed yall. So for now pack the gun and Hold it in the air. Cause MC Ren has a 100 Miles of Runnin These lyrics express not only a lot of violence and rebelliousness, but also they use a typical kind of black slang. This is an expression of identity. As the song continues, it brings in the FBI as a way of proudly suggesting that N.W.A. is really important, or dangerous. The lyrics even comment sarcastically on how some of the enemies of black people are wearin our T-shirts! Runnin like a nigga I hate to lose. Show me on the news but I hate to be abused. I know it was a set-up. So now Im gonna get up. Even if the FBI wants me to shut up. But Ive got 10 000 niggas strong. They got everybody singin my Fuck Tha Police song. And while they treat my group like dirt, Their whole fuckin family is wearin our T-shirts. So Imma run til I cant run no more. Cause its time for MC Ren to settle the score. I got a urge to kick down doors. (The complete lyrics of this song are included in the Appendix.) This band is considered as one of the most violent bands in the decade of the eighties. Their lyrics were showing and describing a criminal life and a strong opposition to the police. Even the name of this band is openly aggressive using the N-word (which is taboo for white people) and the word attitude in a sense which means aggressive or rebellious. This allows young black people in the audience to identify strongly with the band, because it seems to represent black people standing up for themselves and asserting their power. Although this is not political in the sense that the Black Power movement was, nonetheless it is openly rebellious, and extremely realistic. CHAPTER TWO: HOW RAP AFFECTS ITS AUDIENCE Hip-hop [the term for the youth culture that includes rap music] is and will always be a culture of the African-American minority. But it has become an international language. So who are typical listeners to rap? Although rap is liked and appreciated by many people, it seems mainly intended for young black males. So do black females like it for the same kinds of reason? What about young white people (male and female)? What about older people? To what extent does the appeal of rap change from group to group? It is obviously difficult to answer these questions without carrying out wide research. However, the last question above matters because, as was seen in the last chapter, rap lyrics are important and express the experiences of rappers quite realistically, and it is possible that listeners with the same kinds of social experience will respond to rap more completely. For example, if we imagine a rich forty-five year old white woman living in St. Petersburg, the typical rap lyrics may not be so important to her as to a black eighteen year-old living in Harlem, New York. But here we have to remember an important point that was made by W. E. Perkins quoted in Chapter One: in rap, he says, The beat is the structure around which the lyrics are developed, and samples of selected phrases from previously recorded music, jingles, solos, and so on play second fiddle (see note 2, page 5 above). Probably it is this beat and also the possibilities of expressive dancing that go with it that makes ra p so widely popular. However, rap cannot be really rap without the lyrics playing a big part. So we can ask: when people choose to listen to rap music, what exactly is it that they identify with rap? Is it simply the musical style, fast rhythmical speaking with a very basic melody, or is it something else, the spirit of this kind of music? Someone who likes rap might turn on the TV and hear a rap song advertising, for example, breakfast cereal, but certainly they would not consider this to be real rap. For a song to be real rap it is not enough to imitate the musical style, but the lyrics must also be about the kinds of things that rappers sing about. These lyrics need to be realistic and unsentimental. This implies that people who are drawn to real rap are interested in the picture of life that it communicates and not just in the beat, even if they do not share that kind of life themselves. Of course they also enjoy the musical style, but this is most likely because that musical style is very effective in communicating what the lyrics say. It is also very energetic, and in performance is accompanied by a certain style of movement. Young people love to express themselves through dancing. However, dancing itself is not a socially meaningless kind of expression. Typical rap dancing is both masculine and African in spirit. Katrina Hazzard-Donald says, I was ambivalent about the hip hop phenomenon [which includes rap] until I noticed the dancing that accompanied the rapping; It was energetic, athletic, and noticeably male dominated, using a very African movement vocabularyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Like most African dance styles, these [styles] exhibit angularity, asymmetry, polyrhythmic sensitivity, derision themes, segmentation and delineation of body parts, earth-centeredness and percussive performance. Thus this kind of dancing is also an expression of the culture of the intended rap audience, young black males, not of their poverty or of crime or drug use, but their African roots. For them this dancing is a way to celebrate their identity. Other kinds of audiences can try to imitate this style of dancing but it will never mean the same thing to them, even if they really love it. What in my opinion makes rap widely popular, especially amongst young people, is its energy. For some types of audience, this energy is a kind of social rebellion. Rebellion is usually not explicit in the lyrics, but in the attitude of the performers (as the name of N.W.A, Niggas With Attitude, says). Through this, black listeners gain a sense of confidence, even power, and of pride in their identity. ANALYSIS Rap, as was said above, is part of hip hop culture. According to Katrina Hazzard-Donald, Hip hop appears at the crucial juncture of postindustrial stagnation, increased family dissolution, and a weakened struggle for black economic and political rights. Might one expect the pressures of mutually antagonistic social forces such as high unemployment, heightened job competition, and expectations of conspicuous consumption to influence both the popular expressive culture and the culture-creating apparatus of the community? I say yes. It is no coincidence that many youth of the hip hop generation have never known the relative security that some of their parents and even grandparents knew. This quotation says that the general economic and social situation affects a cultural expression like rap music. Therefore we can also assume that rap music reflects the general economic and social situation. It was shown in Chapter One that the lyrics of rap are often about violence or poverty, trouble with the police, and so on the kind of the things the rappers and their main intended audience meet in their every day lives. In Chapter Two it was seen that the style of dance is also an important part of the appeal of rap. Probably this dance style also expresses the socio-economic situation, but in a much more indirect way than the lyrics do. It can be argued that it is the rap dance style that makes rap more positive and optimistic in spirit than the lyrics on their own suggest it would be. Therefore, while it is true that rap lyrics, consisting of violence, sex and sexism, are an accurate reflection of the typical experiences of the rappers own lives, the audience experiences this realism in relation to a whole musical style that expresses energy and a sense of identity, especially African roots. It is both these elements together that make up the great appeal of rap. According to Anthony Bozza,  Hip-hop, in comparison to other African-American musical traditions blues, jazz and rock and roll has remained truest to its roots for the thirty years it has existed. It is possibly the most potent, least altered African-American cultural expression in history. Hip-hop has evolved technically, but its basic theme has survived: self-improvement with style. The earliest rap records, like those released a week ago, were about getting money, living better, having a party, having sex, defying mainstream society, and looking really good while you do ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Rap broadcast inner-city realities and established rebel stance that no hardship would keep the minorities who pioneered hip-hop from living, to the fullest, on their own terms. While this message of rap is probably strongest and most meaningful for young black people, and perhaps also for the youth of other relatively poor minority groups such as Hispanics in the USA, it is also easy to see how it makes rap music attractive to young people in general. CONCLUSION In conclusion, we have seen that violence, sexism and sexually explicit language do exist in the lyrics of rap music, and that this is part of the realistic use of inner-city realities, as Bozza calls them. However, to understand the role these lyrics play in rap music it has been necessary to understand their context, especially rap dancing and the wider hip-hop culture. In this context such lyrics are part of what Bozza calls the rebel stance. What attracts young people to rap is not the lyrics in themselves but the whole image that rap creates, as well as its sense of energy and identity.

Belonging Band of Brothers

Admat-2 by Matthew Humphreys, Band of Brothers Band of Brothers is a television series based on easy company from the 101st Airborne division, during their training and deployment to Europe throughout WW2. It follows the story of the soldiers and officers throughout the war. It is narrated throughout by Major Richard Winters from his time as a second lieutenant all the way through until he is battalion commander.It is based on a true story and shows a sense of belonging that the solders feel throughout their time together along with a sense of not belonging felt by â€Å"replacements† and also by the soldiers themselves as they think of home. It has many links with Romulus in this sense because of the challenge that migrants face to belong and also through the hardships that Romulus and Raymond face with Christina`s illness. Belonging will be shaped by the challenges faced.This can be linked to band of brothers through the greater sense of belonging felt as an individual becau se of the struggle and challenges that the group faces. Throughout the war individuals become closer because of the battles won as a group it gives them commonality to build on. For example after easy company parachute into Normandy they are ordered to go and take out artillery positions that are defended by several machine guns. These positions are targeting Utah beach and their elimination is key to success of the landings on that beach.The German strength is estimated at 50 men; however the strength of Winters Company is 13 men, none the less they are successful in the attack. This attack is still repeated at West point as an example of how to assault a fixed position, the success of this attack gained much respect from both his superior and the men that he commanded. This respect allows them to work effectively together and gain a sense of belonging through this mutual respect for each other.This allows them to continue to build on this throughout the numerous other challenges t hat they face as a battalion including the charge during operation market garden in which he led a platoon of men against two battalions of German SS and drove them back over a river inflicting heavy losses. This accumulates throughout until the men see each other as family towards the end of the war. This is also evident in Romulus my father when they first come to Australia through Romulus seeking out other Romanians, this is because they face the same challenges to belong and adapt to Australian society.They gain each other’s respect through their actions for example Romulus allows them to stay with him and they return this favour by looking after Raymond when Romulus is unable to do so. Commonality is essential to belonging; this is evident in Romulus My Father as many of the characters are faced with common experiences throughout the book from living in a rural area, to being discriminated against for being a migrant and also in dealing with a family member who has a men tal illness.This allows those who have experienced this commonality to feel a greater sense of belonging. In Romulus My Father Raymond and Romulus are brought closer together through Christina`s illness and mental instability. This is also evident in Band of Brothers as replacements are brought into Easy Company to replace wounded and killed solider they are not accepted into the company as they don`t have the commonality with the soldiers.They haven’t been in battle before and therefore are not trusted like those before them however once trust is gained through new common experiences allows them to understand and fell the same sense belonging. This is also evident as the original solider returns to the company after the Battle of Bastogne, it was the worst battle the company faced and because of this it was felt throughout the company that no else could understand what they had been through.It is also evident towards the end as a replacement is on patrol with a Normandy vete ran, the veteran deliberately forgets and calls him by the wrong name. When the replacement asks â€Å"when are we going to jump into berlin† he is meet with a replies that this is the best of the war, boots that are enclosed, a hot shower every night and a warm bed to sleep in at night and no trees exploding in your face. This shows the lack of understanding from the new solider and therefore doesn’t allow him to belong.Techniques used in Band of Brothers include recount by winters throughout the series, another technique used is emotive music and enhanced sound effects. It also uses cut away shots during the siege of Bastogne, the camera cuts from Lt. Dyke back to winters during the attack giving the impression that it is happening real time and that decisions must be made that will cost lives. Sarcasm is also used towards replacements and all of the other soldiers realise what is happening except for the replacement adding to the sense of belonging felt by the other soldiers.

Homeworks and Study Guides in English Essay

I rolled myself, patting and searching for the alarm clock with my eyes closed. When I reached it, I turned it off and got myself up to get ready for school. I barged in the bathroom with my still sleepy eyes, washing my face as I put some toothpaste in my toothbrush. Brushing my teeth, I walked in my closet to choose some outfit. After five minutes of choosing, I throw the clothes at the bed then turned to take a bath. I relax myself as I feel the tingling sensation of hot water seducing my whole body. After fifteen minutes of showering, I finally rinsed and walked out of the shower room. Opening the drawer, I got my hair dryer and make-up. I blow my hair for ten minutes then I dressed-up. Glancing at the clock and seeing that I still have time, I decided to put some light make up. After finishing my mascara, I took a step back, glancing at the mirror to take a full look at my outfit before going downstairs. Today was the first day of my senior year at Jacksonville Highschool. I was wearing a white tank top that showed my flat tummy and my piercing, a pink hollister shorts that showed my long tanned legs, and a high cut converse to finish the look. Fully contented with the outfit, I sighed, running my hands through my blonde hair as I walked out of the bathroom. I took my bag which was hanging at the side of my bed and stormed downstairs. When I finally get down, I went straight to the kitchen to grab my breakfast, which is apple and milk. Yay, the perks of being a vegetarian. I found my dad sitting peacefully with a newspaper in his hands, his eyebrows are scrunching. â€Å"Good morning dad† I greeted him, munching my apple. Silence. He didn’t greet me back because he was too preoccupied with the article he’s reading. I frowned and stop to look at the front page, which read â€Å"Boston Bombing†. Oh yeah, the latest news. I rolled my eyes, gulping my fresh milk. After I finished my breakfast, I got up, walking outside to find my mom in the garden watering her so-called â€Å"little daughters†. â€Å"Hey mom† â€Å"Good morning, honey. Have you eaten your breakfast?† â€Å"Yup, I’m finished. So where’s Anna?† I asked, looking around. Annabelle Jacobs is my best friend. She always picks me up in the morning so that we could go to school together. â€Å"Oh, she texted me this morning, she says she’ll be 5 minutes late† I rolled my eyes. I know exactly why she’s late. She always have those lame excuses telling me that her toothbrush got lost, she run out of panties, the flush won’t work, the rats ate her clothes etc. I shook my head at the sudden thought. â€Å"Okay mom.† I kissed her in the cheek. â€Å"I’ll just check on Simon first† Simon is the love of my life. He’s a puppy actually, but whatever. I run at the back, finding my shih tzu stiffing some flowers. â€Å"Heeeeeeeey Simooooon† I cooed in a sweet, girly girl voice while picking him up. I spin him around giggling while his licking my face. Gross I know. After a minute of playing around, I heard Anna’s car pulled up so I put him down and kissed him goodbye. I ran back inside to say one last goodbye to my parents then i ran towards the car as fast as I can. â€Å"Samantha!!!† Anna shouted when I got inside. I smiled at her. â€Å"Hey there! What’s up?†   Ã¢â‚¬Å"Do I look like I’ve lose some weight?† She immediately respond. I burst out laughing then I looked at her figure up and down. Annabelle, well Anna, look a lot like me. We have the same weight and height. We’re also popular in a way, but we didn’t like being the center of attention so we stay low. The only difference we have is our hair. She has brown hair while me, well I’m blonde. â€Å"Ugh, you have a perfect figure. Why do you have to work your butt out? And yes, you’ve lost some fats† â€Å"Really? Yay!† She screeched. â€Å"You see, I need to work out because I’m planning to eat a whole box of pizza later† She added. I rolled my eyes. â€Å"Yeah, right. So, what’s the plan?† â€Å"Well, I was thinking that maybe we should go shopping after school. You’ve got your credit card in you, right? She asked. â€Å"Uh yeah, sure. Meet me at my locker around four† I said, finishing the conversation. She parked the car then we walked together inside the school grounds. We made our way to our lockers since our lockers are right next to each other. I opened mine to get my history textbook, -since it’s my first class- switching it with my english. Closing my locker, I said goodbye to Anna, telling her to see me at lunch because we don’t have the same schedule for the first four classes. We waved goodbye to each other and started walking the opposite way. After a minute of walking and goofing around, I’m finally face to face with the door that leads to my first class. I took a deep breath before opening it. Just as I was turning the door knob, a boy passed quickly to get inside first, causing me to fall backwards with the rest of my stuff. â€Å"What the hell† I said in a low voice. I heard him groan in an annoyed voice, then he started walking back towards me, closing the door in the process. â€Å"Hey, no need to swear neighbor† Then it hit me. I looked up, wide eyes to see my oh-so-handsome neighbor aka the most popular boy in school, Spencer Young. You see, I’ve known him since we were young. Our mothers, both Filipina, were married to some Canadian which means we’re half filipino, half american. I also know a lot about him since our bedroom are next- well, let’s just say parallel to each other. I know that he loves switchfoot, the script and matchbox twenty because his room are full of their posters. I also know his favorite book, food and stuffs. And also when I was 14, in my sophomore year, I used to have a little crush on him ever since the first time I saw him half naked walking around his room. But that was freaking before. I got myself up, thinking of shouting at him for his rude manners. But before I do that, he spoke first. â€Å"Sorry about that† He said, pinching both of my cheeks. I was thinking of pushing him back. But I sighed, realizing that we’re already late in class. Instead, I rolled my eyes, ignoring him as I made my way inside the classroom. When we walked inside, the class went full silent at first. Then, they started whispering to each other, probably wondering why their â€Å"Queen Bee† and â€Å"Mr. Popular† are together. Yay, perks of being a popular student. â€Å"Mind explaining to me why you’re both 5 minutes late, Ms. Reynolds and Mr. Young?† Our professor, Mr. Lantican asked. Wow. I didn’t realize it took that long outside. Spencer speaks first. â€Å"Well sir, w-we bumped into each other a-at the hallway† He stuttered. â€Å"And it took 5 minutes? Well done, kids. And good job at lying. Now, as your punishment, I want you both to stay here after class and go straight to the detention room to-† â€Å"WHAT?!† I shouted, startling the whole class. I can’t believe it. I really can’t believe it. This is my first time to get a detention and I know for a fact that I didn’t deserve it. â€Å"No offense sir, but I’m a straight A student and this will greatly affect my grades.† I stopped, catching my breath. â€Å"And just so you know, I have a scheduled meeting with-† I stopped, realizing that i’m pushing the limits. â€Å"Never mind† I gave up, finding the way to my seat. Yeah, detention at the very first day of my senior high. Great right? – Spencer’s POV I stare at her from a good distance. She sits at the front row with some geeky nerds while me, well, I’m at the far left side of the back with Blake Morgan and Nathan Brooks, my bestfriends. I felt really bad that I bumped her earlier. The detention will surely drive her crazy, and it was all because of me. She always makes sure to get perfect A’s, which I couldn’t understand. It’s like she’s going to die if she gets B or lower. I look up at her again memorizing her perfect back features, hoping that I wouldn’t get caught, but i was wrong. â€Å"HOLYSHITBALLS† Blake and Nathan both hissed. â€Å"WHAT?† I said, wincing and rubbing my ears. â€Å"We can tell it dude† This time, it’s just Blake who spoke. â€Å"Ugh. What is it, again?† â€Å"You like her right? I mean, Samantha Reynolds† Nathan spat. â€Å"WHAT?! Oh no, you’re seeing it wrong man.† I spat back. â€Å"Okaaaaaaaaaay, whatever you saaaaay maaaaan† They both sang in a girly voice. I rolled my eyes. It was a misunderstanding. I, Spencer Young, will never stoop that low. Sure, she’s rich, sexy, gorgeous or to make it short, she’s miss perfect. But she’s not really my type. I don’t know though, because in some way, I find her actions weird and cute. My room is facing hers and I can see all of her actions or whatever. Her room is very neat and she always make sure that all her things are in place. She also has a very strict schedule of sleeping, waking up, exercising and eating. Not that I’m stalking her, of course. Anyway, I really don’t understand her. I feel like she’s hiding something even from her next-miss perfect bestfriend, Annabelle Jacobs. And that’s what I’m going to find out. Finally, the bell rang signaling us to our next class. I stand up, eagerly wanting to get the hell out of here before our beloved old teacher call up to me. But then again, I was wrong. â€Å"Mr. Young and Ms. Reynolds can I have a word with you two?† Mr. Lantican asked. I groaned mentally, turning back to face his old crooked face. I saw Samantha glaring at me. Man, was she sexy. I shot her an apologetic look before walking towards Mr. Lantican. â€Å"Yes, Mr. Lantican?† I asked, raising an eyebrow. He took a deep breath before answering â€Å"I want the two of you to be at the detention room at exactly four. Have I made myself clear?† â€Å"Yes sir† We both said. â€Å"Okay, the two of you may go now† He finally dismissed us. â€Å"Thank you, sir.† I said lastly to him then I got out of the classroom. Just as I started to make my way upstairs to my next class, I saw Sam alone leaning at one of the bars, smiling at me. Confused, I made my way to her. â€Å"What’s with the smiling, Sammy?† I asked. â€Å"Thank you, Spence† She suddenly said. I scrunched my eyebrows in confusion. What was that? A while ago, she was throwing fires at me by the way she glares. And now? Man, was she bipolar? â€Å"Fo-for what?† I manage to say. â€Å"I’ve said enough, Spence. I just want you to know that I’m very happy that you save me† She look at me gratefully then suddenly, she kissed my cheek, then left. I was pretty sure that my jaw hit the ground. Samantha’s POV In chemistry, which is my third class, I loiter towards the back of the room, waiting for everybody to file in their seats. Mr. Maruso has this rule that whoever you choose to sit with on the first day of class, becomes your lab partner for the entire year. Needless to say, seat selection is definitely critical. Since the sciences aren’t really my thing, I search around for someone who I think might do well with the laboratory stuffs. I must’ve been busy daydreaming; thinking about what happened earlier because when i look up, they are all paired up. Which leaves me standing awkwardly at the back with my books. Embarrassed, I scan the room until I spotted two empty chairs in front. I made my way there and I can see that my â€Å"suppose-to-be-partner† isn’t there. I wonder if he or she is just late or absent. I sighed heavily, praying in every god that he or she better have some brains or else I’ll be doomed. Five minutes later, Mr. Maruso’s disscussion of ‘safety precautions’ and ‘proper handling of equipments’ was interrupted by a student who just barged in through the room. I turn around to look at my â€Å"partner† which is†¦.. OH BLOODYHELL is that Spencer? Oh great. I forgot that we also have the same class. But really, this can’t be happening. It will be too friggin’ awkward to have him as my partner. Not to mention, FOR THE ENTIRE YEAR. You see, the moment I kissed him earlier, I immediately regret it. I was also shocked. I didn’t know what comes through my mind or what made me do that I REALLY DON’T KNOW. I guess I was just so grateful from the fact that he saved me from the ‘shopping plan’ Annabelle and I were going to have. Shoping isn’t really my thing. Especially with Annabelle. I brought all my clothes, shoes and bags online. And Anna, being Anna, you won’t like it. She was sooo shopaholic. She buys all the possible clothes and shoes she can get. One time, she runs out of money and i’m forced to let her use my credit card. Not that I’m selfish, of course. It’s just that I’m saving some of my money for my own car. Nobody knows about that except Simon. Shaking my thoughts, I look at Spencer again only to find him talking to Mr. Maruso. He was probably saying some crappy excuses or whatsoever. I saw them nodded in agreement then Spencer turned around to look for some seat. Our eyes met as he spotted the empty seat beside me. Oh bloody great. He raised his eyebrows at me, doing his famous smirk that showed his dimples. How cute. He made his way to his chair. â€Å"Hey partner, Sammy† I rolled my eyes. â€Å"Don’t call me that. It sounds gayish† He laughs in a carefree way â€Å"So does Spence† I tried to hide my smile but I couldn’t. Minutes passed and we stopped talking to scribble some notes that our professor told us to copy. As I was writing, I notice him looking down at me whilst playing with my hair. How romantic. I stopped writing. â€Å"What?!† I asked. A little annoyed. â€Å"Nothing. I was just wondering why little miss perfect is bipolar† He said coolly. I gritted my teeth. â€Å"First, I’m not little. We have exactly the same height. And second, I’m not bipolar† He raised an eyebrow â€Å"Oh really? I thought-â€Å" â€Å"Ahem† He was interrupted by a girl. We both turned our heads to see who may that be. Unsurprisingly, it’s Lilly Thompson, one of the oh-so-popular girls. â€Å"What do you want, Lilly?† I asked. This time I was really annoyed. How dare she interrupt us? â€Å"You’re flirting with my boyfriend† She hissed, faking smile. My eyes went wide and I look at Spencer. He too, has the same expression as me. Will someone please tell me what the heck is happening? â€Å"Pardon me? I don’t even know you† Spencer spat. I turned to look at Lilly, who was faking hurt. â€Å"What do you mean? We chatted on facebook last week and you ask me to be your girlfriend. Don’t you remember?† She asked in a flirtatious way. Someone give me a bucket Spencer raised an eyebrow. â€Å"Well, that isn’t me. Nathan and Blake knows my password. They’re the ones who probably ask you out. Besides, I haven’t open my account for ages. You should go and ask them.† He sighed. Lilly was close to tears. â€Å"So you mean, I don’t stand a chance to be with you?† She said in a weak voice. This time I interrupted. â€Å"You slut, will you please cut the act? Just look at him. This-† I gestured at spencer’s body. â€Å"-is the definition of perfect. And you? You’re just a whore who has nothing to do but to seek attention.† I finished. Out of the corner of my eye, I can see Spencer smiling at me. I ignore him as I gave Lilly the death glare. But this time, she looked angry as hulk â€Å"You bitch!† She shouted, causing some students to look at the three of us. â€Å"Is there a problem?† Mr. Maruso asked. I turned to answer him â€Å"Oh yeah, there’s a snake wandering around here. Poor snake, SHE probably doesn’t know where she belongs.† I fake crying, causing the whole class to errupt in laughter. I smiled proudly to myself. Good job, Samantha! At that moment, the bell finally rang. Talk about being saved by the bell. I quickly grab my things, said a quick goodbye to Spencer, then I hurried to the door to meet Annabelle at the cafeteria. When I got there, everyone at the school had already heard about the confrontation. Yeah, news travels fast in Jacksonville Highschool. I saw Anna already buying her lunch so I catch up next to her in line. â€Å"Yo anna† I said while putting a carbonara, salad and a boxed milk at my tray. â€Å"Hey there, Sam. Soooo, fighting with Lilly huh?† She asked, waggling her eyebrows. I rolled my eyes. â€Å"She made me do it† I said, finishing the conversation. After paying the bill, we made our way to our table which is located at the far side of the cafeteria. Our table is the circle one with the four silver chairs. Actually, it’s just the three of us who sits there. Me, Annabelle and our boy-bestfriend, Max Carter. We found him already sitted, stuffing sandwich in his mouth. When he notice us, he greeted us with a smile. â€Å"Yo girls! So how’s the two queen coping up?† He asked. Anna raised her eyebrows † Coping up? Haha, we’re fine.† â€Å"As always† I added, winking at him. Time passed and we’re already finished with our lunch. Max started telling us some jokes which cause Anna and I to laugh hysterically. That is until Spencer Young decided to come at our table to remind me of the detention. â€Å"I know† I said, giving him the death glare and signaling for him to leave before I pull out both of his mighty eyeballs. Thankfully, he obeyed and left. Slowly and carefully, I turn to face the now angry Anna who was looking at me with an intense glare. â€Å"I-i’m sorry, anna† I stuttered. I was looking at the floor, twiddling my fingers. I was waiting for her to shout at me but instead, she put an arm around my shoulder, looking worried. â€Å"What happened?† She asked. â€Å"You know that this is your first time getting a detention right?† I nodded. â€Å"Well, Spencer and I were late and Mr. Lantican got mad† I explained. â€Å"This is unfair† She said. â€Å"What about our shopping?†She raised an eyebrow. Great. I really expected that. I was thinking of shouting at her, telling her that she has so many freaking goddamn clothes. But instead, i come up with an idea. â€Å"Well, Max will be honored to accompany you† I said, smirking at Max. Max widened his eyes in horror. â€Å"I AM NOT GOING NEAR THE VICTORIA’S SECRET!† He shouted dramatically causing all of us to laugh again. â€Å"I guess we’ll just go shopping on friday night then† Anna said. I rolled my eyes. â€Å"Yeah, sure.† NOTE: On friday, make sure to forget my credit card at home. Spencer’s POV After lunch, i made my way to the locker room to change for the basketball practice. I flicked the combination to my locker and opened it. Just as I was grabbing my clothes, Blake came up behind me. â€Å"Spencer! You ready?† He asked. â€Å"Yeah, give me a second to change† I said, going inside the comfort room. Seconds later, I got out of the comfort room, completely dressed. I grab a bottle of cold water and started gulping. I need to stay hydrated. â€Å"So, do you like her too?† Blake suddenly asked. I scrunched my eyebrow in confusion. â€Å"What are you talking about, man? â€Å"Are the two of you going out now? He asked again, ignoring my question. I glared at him. â€Å"Who exactly are we talking about, blake?† I spat. â€Å"Uh, Lilly Thompson.† He said nervously. Huh? Who is Lilly and why are we talking about her? I don’t care about her, duh. Then it hit me. â€Å"YOU!† I shouted. â€Å"It was you who chatted her!† He rubbed the back of his neck. â€Å"Sorry, man. It’s just that-† â€Å"Let me guess† I interrupt him. â€Å"You like her. Am I right?† He nodded. â€Å"Yeah. I really liked her since we were sophomore. I know a lot about her and i know that she likes you so much. That’s the reason i used your account without permission. To be able to talk and ask her out† He finished. I sighed. â€Å"I forgive you, man. But i won’t trust you anymore. I’m going to change my password the moment i got home.† I joked, then i continue. â€Å"You shouldn’t be ashamed to ask her out, Blake. I’m sure she’ll like you† I said, finishing the conversation. â€Å"Thanks, man† He said, punching my arm lightly. We made our way to the court where Nathan was. We saw him sitting and waiting impatiently, spinning a ball in his thumb. When he saw us, he shouted. â€Å"You two! What took you so long?† He asked in an annoyed voice. I faked sigh. â€Å"Sorry, nate. We can’t take it anymore.† I replied, smiling flirtatiously to Blake. Blake just laughed while Nathan, realizing what i’m talking about, gave us a dirty look. â€Å"You’re both disgusting† He said. â€Å"But you love us† I cooed, patting his shoulders. â€Å"Come on, let’s play† Somehow, we managed to play smoothly for one and a half hour. When were finished, the three of us jogged our way back to the shower room, dying for a cold shower. When we’re finished with our cold showers, we separate ways to go to our last class. I check my schedule to find out what class am i having. French. Oh oui, mon sujet favori! Just as i was making my way, i remember something. Something that i’ve been dreading to know. I turn around, running downstairs to catch up with Blake. I saw him making his way to the registrar’s office. â€Å"Blake!† I shouted. He turned around. â€Å"Huh?† He asked, confused. I ran towards him. â€Å"I have a question† I said, panting. He laughed. â€Å"Is it that important that you have to-† â€Å"Why Lilly?† I interrupted. He looked at me, startled. â€Å"What do you mean, man?† He asked, raising an eyebrow. I sighed. â€Å"What made you like her?† I asked again. He just look at me blankly for a couple of seconds. Finally, after realizing what i meant, he let a huge sigh of relief. â€Å"Okay, fine. You see spencer, you wouldn’t just want to know the outside, aren’t you?† He asked and I nodded. Then he continue. â€Å"Think about it. For you to know the person completely, you have to also see the inner beauty. For every person in this world, there’s a reason why they’re like that. There’s a reason behind why their attitudes and personalities are like that. That’s why we should not judge first.† He said, looking at me sadly. â€Å"You know, I always thought that Lilly will be always like that. People keep saying that she’s a bitch, a slut, a whore, an attention seeker but you know what, spencer? In my eyes, i see her differently. The minute i saw her at the orphanage playing with the little kids, man, i was lovestruck. I didn’t expect that, especially from a Lilly Thompson. She’s a type of girl who would change her attitude so that people will not recognize her nor to be able to see through her. That’s what made me like her, spencer.† He finished, smiling mostly to himself. I was pretty sure that there were tears forming in my eyes. Gayish i know. â€Å"I, uh- thanks a lot, blake. And, good luck.† I stuttered, patting his back. â€Å"No worries† He shrugged. I checked my watch. Three minutes till the last bell. â€Å"Uh, spencer?† Blake called. â€Å"Yeah?† â€Å"Always remember, don’t judge the book by it’s cover. And, if you like someone, learn to love her flaws first.† He finished, then he left. Samantha’s POV I stared at the clock, counting the time in my head. â€Å"56†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"57†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"58†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"59†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"RIIIIINNNGGGG!† Shoot. I got up as fast as I could then hurried my way towards the door then down the stairs. Great, I thought to myself. It’s just a detention, Sam. Calm down. It’s just a detention†¦. just a detention†¦ Just a fuc- â€Å"SAM!† Someone shouted, taking me into realization. I stopped in my tracks to find whoever who was calling me. I saw Spencer waving at me frantically, gesturing the way to the detention room. Right. What the hell am I thinking and why am I walking the other way?! I shrieked, thinking to myself. I made my way to Spencer who was now laughing like there’s no tomorrow. Embarrassed, I tried to cover up. â€Å"Why are you laughing?† I asked, faking innocence. He stifled some laugh. â€Å"You looked a little.. lost. Do you really study here? Why are you walking the other way? You do know that the detention room is here, right? He asked, pointing to the room. â€Å"Who said that I was going there first?† I asked, keeping my face blank. â€Å"Where were you going, then?† He asked, challenging me. â€Å"To the ladies room† I said confidently, hoping he’d buy it this time. He just stared at my blankly. Then he started laughing. Harder and louder this time. â€Å"Samantha! HAHAHAHAHA! You’re f-fucking hi-hilarious! The la-dies room i-is upsta-irs!† He manage to say between laughs. My mouth formed a small ‘o’ as I realize that he was right. I was left utterly speechless and really embarrassed. I can feel my cheeks turning bright red. I look up at him and he’s still laughing. This time, with no noise coming out. â€Å"Are you done making fun of me?† I asked, raising my eyebrow. He finally stopped laughing, clutching his hard-abs stomach as he spoke. â€Å"Yeah. You didn’t tell me you’re a good comedian, Sam.† I rolled my eyes. â€Å"I know right? It’s one of my hidden talents.† â€Å"Absolutely right. By giving me a good laugh everyday, I won’t have to work out anymore.† He waggled his eyebrows at me. I smiled. This man surely made my day. Who would have thought that Mr. Spencer Young is like that? Maybe, if we hang out a long time ago, we would be bestfriends by now. And did I mention that he looked hot in his outfit? From v-neck to skinny jeans, perfect. â€Å"Are you done checking me out?† He asked, gesturing to his body. I rolled my eyes and started walking towards the detention room, worry and nervous free. As we walked inside, we realized that we’re not the only ones who got detention. We saw a girl and a boy -probably freshman- lurking around the room waiting for Mr. Lantican. At last, he came inside, holding a cup of coffee and a large notebook in his hands. We all stand up to greet him. â€Å"Good afternoon, sir.† â€Å"Good afternoon, kids.† He replied. â€Å"Now, I will group and assign you all to your works† He said, looking and flipping through the notebook. â€Å"Let’s see†¦ Luke and Miley†¦ both of you will be at the movie room to fix all the cd’s and equipments† He finally said. The two student nodded, then left. â€Å"As for you two†¦-† He said, looking at us intensely. â€Å"-I’ll be assigning you to the library to fix and rearrange some books. You may now proceed† He finished, then left. I made my way to the library with Spencer, eager to finish the task. We stormed downstairs, taking a left to the library. When I opened the door, we were surprised on how messy it was. You’ve got to be kidding me. We can’t finish this in one hour â€Å"What happened here?† Spencer asked. â€Å"I don’t know† I said, stretching. â€Å"Let’s get working.† *After one hour* â€Å"Woooooh!† I shouted, wiping my head with the back of my hand. We’ve been cleaning for an hour, throwing and stacking some books here and there. Spencer isn’t much of a help though. While I was working my butt out, rearranging some books, he thought it would be fun to just sit there and draw some silly faces on the book covers. But somehow, thankfully, we’ve managed to clean the library. When we’re contented with our work, we turned the lights off then we headed out of the school. â€Å"Uh, Spencer? I asked, realizing something. â€Å"Yeah?† He replied whilst looking at his watch. â€Å"I-uh, would you give me a lift? I mean, Anna is usually the-† â€Å"No problem, milady† He interrupted. I smiled at him. â€Å"Thanks.† As I got up to his car -which is a grey Porsche carrera gt- I pulled out my phone and saw that I have two messages coming from Anna and mom. I opened mom’s first: ‘Honey, where are you? You didn’t tell me you’re going to be late’ I immediately hit the reply button: ‘Sorry, mom. Just got detention. I’ll explain it to you later, love you.’ After sending, I read Anna’s message: ‘How’s detention with Mr. Young? ;)’ I smiled, typing: ‘We’ve been asked to clean the library. I hate to admit it, but it’s fun. Never thought Mr. Young has a great sense of humor ;)’ I hit the send button then I put my phone back in my pocket. Minutes passed and I started to feel some ‘awkwardness’ so I decided to play some music. I reached for the Switchfoot album, then pushed the CD inside. I stared at the window just as while â€Å"You† was playing. Great. I look like an emo There’s always something in the way†¦ There’s always something getting through†¦ But it’s not me, it’s you†¦ At exactly 6:00 pm, Spencer pulled up in front of my house. I thanked him and waved goodbye, then he left. I sighed heavily, thinking of the very tiring day. I pushed myself to the door and I walked inside. â€Å"Moooom?† I shouted, looking for her. â€Å"At the kitchen!† She shouted back. I made my way to the kitchen, dropping my bag at the bottom of the stairs as I walked by. â€Å"MOM!-† I immediately talk. â€Å"-I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to be late in class, I swear it won’t happen again and I just want you to know that I’ll still be getting straight A’s and also-† â€Å"Samantha! Calm down! We’re not mad, okay?† She interrupted. I scrunched my eyebrows in confusion. â€Å"Huh? Why are you not mad? You’re supposed to be shouting at me for letting you down.† I said in a weak voice, tears starting to fall. â€Å"Shhh, Samantha. Don’t ever think about that. Actually, your dad and I were happy that it happened. You’re experiencing the things you’ve never experience before. We’re so proud of you, honey.† I stopped crying then I studied her face. Was she serious? Things that I’ve never done before? That would be parties, drinking alcohol, taking drugs and†¦ sex. I stared at her in horror. â€Å"Sam, are you okay?† Mom asked, waving a hand to my face. She must have noticed that i’m not breathing. I came back into realization. â€Å"Uh yeah, mom. I’m just.. tired. I should go up and change now† I said, kissing her cheeks. I walked pass the dining room, grabbing a banana to calm myself down. I picked up my bag and jogged my way upstairs. Just as I was about to walk inside my room, my father appeared in the hallway â€Å"Your mom’s right, Sam. You should live your life the way you wanted.† He said, holding back tears. I just nodded then I locked myself inside the room.