9/11

   I don't have that many memories of 9/11; I was over 3 thousand miles away when disaster stuck. I was still living in England at this time, having just moved there a couple weeks ago, when in the middle of the night I woke up to my parents running around the house making calls and the TV on full blast. I was too little to understand what was going on so I just sat on the couch trying to understand the images on the TV before my parents noticed me and took me back to bed. I wasn't frighten at all because I didn't know what was going on. I can't recall the images exactly, but now I feel terrified when I think of them.
   Later, in forth grade, I remember a teacher reading a book about a firetruck boat that was retired until 9/11 when it got to work again by helping put out the fires. In the end the boat was happy because it got to help people. I found this book horrifying. Who would make a children's book about a happy boat when at the same time it was telling us about 9/11? The children around me didn't seem to mind, but had they seen the newscast right when the towers crashed?
   That night, I saw an extreme home makeover about a firefighter in 9/11. They redid his house and his family's whole house. He then talked about his friend being crush under the rubble and other people he saw and couldn't save. Then two people the firefighter saved came on and hugged and thanked him again.
   I know that there were many other people dead because of 9/11 besides the firefighter's friend. So many went down that day, so many sad families dressed in black. Thats what I know about 9/11. To me, that seems like to much to know already.

Celeste, Belgium, Art

     The artisic styles in Belgium over time have moved from realizum, a basic view on life in the painting, to surrealism, a style that is anything but the norm. Some of the painters in Belgium have been considered the best in Europe, such as Memling, Ruben and Ensor. The country has very diverse ethnic groups, which means their mixed cultures show very differently on the canvas, but together are very rich and colorful.

Sources:
Art and Culture of Belgium

Celeste, France, Art

     Back in the late 19th century, a style know as Impressionism started to develop mainly in France. France unbraced this style where instead of the tradition way of dropping the color purely on to the canvas, it was mixed on the palette and on the canvas. Impressionism had the will to break 'official art' and is one of the most common painting styles in France today and is also very common in their art museums. Some of the famous Impression artists in their museums today are Monet, Renoir, Sisley, and Pissarro.
     Another style France was famous for was Merovingian, developed between the fifth and eighth century. Also, Carolingian art, which belonged to King Charles Martel.

Sources:
WebMuseum: Impressionism
France Art

Gulf Oil Spill and it's Affects on Freshwater

Oil spills affect the ecosystem and people living around it, but not always directly. When the Big Gulf Oil spill happened, huge numbers of Fish, Dolphins, and Sharks fled the oily waters and went to nearby freshwater. With all these animals coming to one place, their needs for oxygen didn’t just go away. Soon the oxygen in the water was running out, so the state of Mississippi then decided to make something called a freshwater diversion.

A freshwater diversion is when you make a diversion coming from a large body of water, in this case the Mississippi River, and make a path going from it to where ever you need the water and the nutrients and sediments it carries, in this case the nearby freshwaters. When the state made this choice, they saved the lives of all the sea creatures they brought the water to because this new water brings them air to breathe, nutrients and sediments. However, it has a negative affect on the Oyster Farmers in the area, like a man named Vujnovich.

Vujnovich and his Oysters

Vujnovich is an Oyster Farmer who’s had three quarters of his Oyster crop wiped out because of the Oil spill and the State’s freshwater diversion. The diversion has caused some salty water to get mixed in with the Mississippi River’s freshwater, which his Oysters then die from the salt. 

Dead Oysters from the Gulf

Another affect the Oil spill had was not easy to see. For instance, oil can evaporate into the air. Since humans and pretty much ever other animal on this earth breathe air, we could be breathing highly toxic fumes that could harm us all and have a negative affect on the ecosystem. Many people in the Gulf area have reported that it smells like oil there and they could be breathing it.

The BP oil spill has also effected what we eat, like seafood dishes such as shrimp, fish, and other ocean-life that we diet on. Some restaurants have been serving people seafood at super-high prices. People in Louisiana have been suffering headaches, nausea, throwing up, and other health effects of oil on humans.

Sources for Blog:

http://www.mvn.usace.army.mil/prj/caernarvon/caernarvon.htm

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704720004575377503611992306.html

http://www.nola.com/news/gulf-oil-spill/index.ssf/2010/10/louisiana_oyster_industry_stru.html
The Gulf Oil Spill: Human Health is Affected Too | Gina Solomon's Blog | Switchboard, from NRDC
Gulf Oil Spill Restoration Begins For Oyster Beds In Mobile Bay
Barataria Bay - Effort to keep oil spill at bay tips ecological balance - Los Angeles Times

Sources for Photos:

NA-BH085_OYSTER_G_20100719200027.jpg 553×369 pixels

gulf-oil-dead-oysterjpg-1cbec5ef873534b3.jpg 512×312 pixels

Water and Us

     Our planet has 67% water covering the surface, but only 1% is drinkable. Most of that 1% of water is frozen in icebergs and locked away in icy places way up north, leaving us a slim amount left over. Right now, 1 billion people lack a clean water source and by 2050 one third of our population may not have access to drinkable water as well. Also, one half of hospitalization diseases are water related, and Water.org says that 'The ancient Romans had better water quality than us'.

     People all over the world have been trying to help bring awareness to this global issue, such as the ECO who has been making very powerful environmental videos and messages about keeping our water clean. Annually, they encourage 1 billion people to actively protect the earth. Someone else who's been making a difference is Ryan Hreljac, a 19 year old boy, who started to raise money when he was just 7 for Water Wells in places where clean water was hard to get. He got enough money for his first Well in 1999, and has made many more since then. He still raises money for Wells and gives talks to kids about what they can do. The UNICEF has recognized him as a global youth leader.

     To help the problems of water safety be resolved, we need to spread the word. We can get the word out by sending ECO videos and telling people Ryan's story. Following Water.org on Facebook or becoming someone on their email list is one way to help yourself become more involved with the topic. One thing our class can do to help is be like Ryan and try to raise money from our friends, family, and ourselves. Together, we will be able to raise awareness and possibly raise enough money to build a Well of our own and maybe even save someone's life.