shadows814 -- Blogmeister

Reading through California's history in our social studies book has presented our class with many examples of discrimination. For example, Chinese immigrants came to California in the 1850's looking for a better lifetime by working in the railroad to get money. Although, they were given the most dangerous jobs, and were never thanked for their work. Even after the railroad was finished, the Chinese were mistreated and called "aliens". There were many other stories of discrimination in our state's history, like the "Okies", the gold rush, and internment camps. All of these make me almost ashamed to be a Californian, but I am not because I will try my best not to repeat the mistakes that our people have made in the past.

We have our unique perspectives because of many different things. One of these things is our past experiences, which I think have a lot of influence on the decisions that we make in the present. For example, the Japanese would have the point of view that life was bad in California after they had the experience of the internment, but the Caucasians wouldn’t look at things the same way because they didn’t have to suffer like the Japanese. Another way that we might gain our multiple perspectives is from our knowledge. For instance, one could think that a place like Westminster Woods was great, but after learning about the astonishing wildlife that had to be destroyed to make space for the camps, might change their mind completely or partially. We may also get our multiple perspectives from the people that influence us. For example, if someone were to live in a neat and tidy house with a family that was convinced that it would be terrible to make a mess, the person would have the same point of view. This makes sense because we also get our perspectives from our surroundings as well, and that person’s house was neat and tidy. This idea would also work if someone were to live on a street where the neighbors brought sweets for holidays and “just because”. That person’s point of view would be that neighbors were always very polite and friendly because in their environment, that was true. There are so many different ways that we acquire our multiple points of view.
I think that a person with a multitude of unique points of view would have a commendable personality. This is because they would be able to look at things differently and possibly how others would since they could see things through another’s eyes. This would generate fewer arguments and wars, creating a peaceful environment. When someone sees things with diverse perspectives, they can generate more ways to interpret books and, in some books, that could lead to learning even more lifelong lessons than the author intended. Overall, I think that it is a great idea for a single person to have multiple perspectives.
If everybody had the same perspective, the world would be different depending on what the point of view was. For example, we would be environmentally friendly if everybody thought that a lot of our actions led to problems in nature because we would try to make changes for the best. But we could also have the point of view that the world was fine as it is which would make life repetitive yet peaceful. It would be peaceful because everyone would agree about the government’s choices and power, yet repetitive because nothing would have to change. No matter what, the world would definitely not be the same without multiple perspectives, so I find them very important.
I think that multiple perspectives are great. Multiple perspectives may have some downsides, like wars or arguments, but they also result in creativity and inventions that other people would have thought were impossible to accomplish. Different points of view on a problem can also generate better ways to solve the predicament. Multiple perspectives on discrimination have sent situations of racism to the court make changes for the best. For example, Mary Tape, a woman of China that came to America, went to court to possibly get the chance to send her daughter to school. All because of her different perspective about racism not only Mary Tape’s daughter but all of the other Chinese children in California at the time were educated in schools made only for their race. This decision still held traces of discrimination, but at least the Chinese children were taught like everyone else. I think that having different perspectives is a requirement to have an acceptable lifestyle.

After going to Old Sacramento for a day, I heard a lot of stories, from vigilantes to plagues. One of these is about a riverboat being turned into a prison for a small amount of time. It is filled with twists and turns of plot and setting, but overall occurs in the town that was full of chaos at the time. Because of the gold rush, a lot of people came to Sacramento for some color. The sailors of the riverboats that were used to get there, however, did not always tend to their boats after arrival. People would start to scrap the boats to make houses, hotels, or anything else needed because of the growing population. But, of course, the sailors were too busy living their new life in California to notice. All of this was very good for the economy, even if it did sometimes eventually annoy the sailors. In 1855, someone had the great idea to turn the La Grange riverboat into a floating prison. Knowing that just putting the prisoners on the boat wouldn’t be enough, it was decided that they would each wear an anchor on their leg so any attempts in swimming back to land would result in drowning. This seemed like a great idea at the time, and the matter was put to rest. All had turned out very well with the boat until it was betrayed by gravity and began to sink during a storm. The people of Old Sacramento were not going to let the prisoners die at any rate, so they were saved, but the fate of the La Grange lay at the bottom of the river. The boat was there for a while until it was raised and turned into scrap. The wood gained by this was used to make furniture during the wood shortage in Sacramento in the 1850s. We weren’t able to connect with the East at the time, which caused a lot of problems like this, but how this was fixed is a whole other story. To this day, the restored Delta King, another riverboat, sits in the docks of the rebuilt or restored town of Old Sacramento, just like the La Grange once did, along with so many other wonders of the city that was once full of chaos, but is now toured by people of all ages.

After going to Westminster Woods for a week, our class had a great time. Here are some of the poems I wrote about our once in a lifetime experience.

Tide Pools

People scurrying around, trying to catch a glimpse of every discovery
The waves crashing against rocks, creating mountains of water
Elated when I discover a rock crab between the algae covered boulders Salt that has accumulated in the Pacific for many years
The shell of a hermit crab that lays in my palm

Waterfall
Like a national monument, kept for its beauty and grace
Like Mother Nature’s garden for absolute peace
Like a miracle that appeared in the making of this world
Like all other nature parted to make a picture frame for this brisk wonder
Like a river that decided to do a favor for the world and become as beautiful as can be
Like a quick dip of refreshment for nature Like a water supply for animals that is marvelous as well

Redwood
Towering, gigantic, strong
Redwood

Cabin
Cozy, warm, pleasant
Cabin

At home, I have many pets. I have a dog named Rufus, two fish tanks(nearly full of guppies), and two guinea pigs named Crystal and Cupcake. I love all of my pets dearly. My dog has brown, medium length hair. His tail is very fluffy and soft. Although Rufus is not trained (sit,speak, lie down), he is a very pleasant dog and he never bites. This is because my baby brother isn't a very good owner (he pulls hair, sits on the dog,etc)and Rufus is used to many different kinds of 'abuse'. My guinea pig is named Crystal, and Cupcake belongs to my younger sister. Crystal is mostly white with black and red spots. I have many fish and I cannot describe them all to you. Those are all of the different kinds of pets that I have.

Marden Dahlstedt, author of The Terrible Wave, uses very descriptive writing in her book. She makes many readers feel as if they are really in that particular setting. You should be able to find traces of this amazing technique in the quotes that are supplied to you. When Megan Maxwell, the main character of the book, is hit by the wave while in the attic of her house, Dahlstedt writes about this event in a very descriptive way. On page 22, it reads, “At first all she could see was a sinister black mist. It rolled toward the house like billowing smoke.” At this point, the wave had been making its way toward the Maxwell’s mansion. I find it rather intriguing how Marden Dahlstedt chooses to describe the wave as mist and smoke. This was a very descriptive part of the story. As the story goes on, Megan finds herself riding the wave on a sodden mattress. On page 25, Dahlstedt gives the reader a good idea what this would be like. “Before she could get her bearings, something heavy crashed into the side of her precariously balanced mattress. It tilted with a sickening lurch . . .” The story continues with a few sentences. “Gasping, Megan saw that it had been the great dark bulk of a horse, slack and floating on its side, it’s large, soft eyes staring sightlessly into the rain. The trunk of a giant tree came rushing past, its roots waving above the water like a hundred searching fingers. It snagged the horse’s body, and together they spun off in the rushing current, the horse bobbing up and down like a grotesque toy.” I would think that you, as well as I, think that this part of The Terrible Wave is extremely fascinating and horrific. The thought of actually seeing this event with your own eyes is simply scary! Again, Marden Dahlstedt catches her readers in a trance. As I read this, I could see this particular scene in my mind, as scary as it is. These are the kind of things I like about her unique style of writing. Later on, still stuck on the mattress, Megan finds a building, filled with many men and women of all ages. Among these many people is a young man who wishes to save Megan from her sodden mattress and bring her on board. As he gets on to the poor girl’s mattress, Dahlstedt`s writing is as follows on page 31: “Megan felt an enormous lurch shake at one side of her mattress raft. She gave a sharp cry and turned around. A wet, dark head appeared, sleek as a seal, and then the sizable body followed. Working his way on his stomach like a snake, he inched his way to the center of the mattress. It was the boy from the building!” As readers, we know that the boy, who is later introduced as Brian, is extremely wet. What I like about this is that Dahlstedt expresses this fact by calling him a seal. These are the kind of things I take note of and comment about in books. Knowing what some actual writers do in their books can improve my choice of words in many writing assignments yet to come. After Brian makes his way onto the mattress, the building he was in was destroyed by railroad car. Brian and Megan had to find something else to ride the wave with before the mattress sank. Finally, they spotted an upside down wagon. Once they were pulled on board by a frail old man, Dahlstedt uses a very descriptive choice of words: “ . . .The pile of debris beneath their mattress had broken up, and they saw the whole thing dissolve slowly and sink into the darkening water without a sound.” Dahlstedt is a very descriptive writer and I think that this is definitely a worthy example of that. Marden Dahlstedt uses extremely descriptive writing in her book, The Terrible Wave. She manages to take readers of all ages into Johnstown and send them into the middle of nowhere riding a wave on a mattress with Megan Maxwell. As you read this book, you will swear that Dahlstedt was actually there to see what happened on that horrible day in 1889. In other words, anyone who reads this book will recognize and admire the magic in the words written by Marden Dahlstedt.

There were many different events that have happened in California`s history, and many are very important. I think that the most important part of California`s history I have learned about is the War with Mexico, which happened in order to gain California for the United States. I think that the war was an important part of California`s history. If it had not happened, California would have never become part of the United States. We would all be under the control of Mexico. We would all speak Spanish, which we obviously aren`t right now. Everything would be different. There were also various events that happened in California`s history that created a big change in making California what it is today. I think that the event in California`s history that created the most change are the explorers that came to California in the 1500s, either on accident or on purpose. I think that the explorers caused the most change. It caused our state to become known to both England and Spain. When the explorers came to California they made maps that later helped and encouraged people to make missions in California. The missions later caused change too, but they never would have happened if not for the explorers. The explorers caused a lot of change. So far this year, we have been reviewing a lot of California`s history. We have reviewed many things that are important to California`s history. We have learned about things that have caused change in vast amounts. I think that the most important part of California`s history is the War with Mexico, which happened in order to make California part of the United States. I think that the part of California`s history that caused the most change are the explorers. The were both a very important part of California`s history.

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