"Work hard, be kind, and amazing thins will happen" - Conan O'Brien

Conan O'Brien was a TV host for late night talk shows for almost 17 years until a huge "public relations disaster" in 2009 occurred. Conan was promised to be the host of  "The Tonight Show" starting in 2009 when Jay Leno's contract ended. After this new change failed to attract viewers, NBC wanted to switch the times and move Conan's show to later. This sparked up many emotions and Conan and his staff were furious and did not agree to these changes which led to a settlement for Conan and his staff of 45 million dollars.(Tonight Show Conflict) Conan's discussion of disappointment and failure is very similar to Mark Edmundson's discussion of failure in "Glorious Failure". The point Edmundson seems to be trying to get across is that everyone will fail at some point in their life, and many times after that. But instead of looking at your failures and mistakes as they don't exist in our past, we need to take those failures with us and learn from them and use them to help us accomplish other things in our future. Conan states an outstanding quote that really caught my attention right away in his commencement speech to Darmouth Colleges Graduating Class of 2011. "It is our failure to become our perceived idea that ultimately defines us and makes us unique". This quote goes right along with the point that Edmundson is trying to get across. Failure in life defines us, it helps us grow into the people we become, and it helps you learn the what to do's and what not to do's in life.

STOP BANNING BOOKS AND LET STUDENTS LEARN!

    Banned Books Week or better understood as a week of encouraging people to read or even just acknowledge the books that have been banned for the most silliest and most absurd reasons you'll probably ever hear. Banned Books Week is an international campaign held by many different American Library Associations. I feel as if this falls in line with Frank Bruni's hope for "dangerous learning" in many different ways. First off, Banned Books Week like I stated earlier is a week of exploring these books that have been banned mostly due to the parents or guardians of students feeling as if they are inappropriate and not wanting their kids "exposed" to this type of learning. Bruni's point of "dangerous learning" is that he feels as if students brains should be tested and exposed to this real life juicy information. This lines up because this "dangerous learning" could be benefitted from these banned books. Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher, banned in 2012 is one book that I am very intrigued to read. A heartrending, eye opening book where a girl takes her life and leaves her peers thirteen reasons why leading up to it behind her. This book was banned for drugs, alcohol, smoking, sexually explicit and suicide. Yes, all of this happens in this book obviously but it is something that students of many ages these days need to read. This book is very appealing to me because I know first hand of a friend being bullied, sexually abused and dragged around in high school so much to where suicide was finally the end result for her. This isn't only in high schools today, but its happening with all ages all around the world, and to banned students from these types of things isn't a bright idea. My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult in 2009 is one book I am quite confused on the reasoning they have given for it being banned. They say its for homosexuality, religious viewpoint, & sexually explicit. This book about a daughter of two sweet parents, has had cancer her whole life and overlooking the other children, the mother has used their other daughter for may procedures to where everyone resents Kate and their mother. In my eyes, yes the scene of the "gay bar" is homosexuality, but Julia simply went to the bar and got advice that's not enough information to banned a book. This novel and film were very eye opening for me because again first hand I had a family member become very sick and was put first. Not that the rest were neglected or anything, but you really start to see how life can change in one second and how everyone's attention has to be on that one person.


Frank Bruni's hope for "dangerous learning" and John Green's message to skittish adults are very similar goals. These authors are reaching out to many people on many different levels. They are basically trying to say stop making these decisions for your teenagers and the students of today's generation. These students need to learn and know about real life, they don't need mommies and daddies trying to hide what happens in today's world. In Bruni's article "The Wilds Of Education" he states "isn't education supposed to provoke, disrupt, challenge the paradigms that young people have unconsciously absorbed." This relates to Green by when people vote to banned books, they are not learning and being provoked to these things. I honestly found Green more presenting for an argument because he put an argument out there as to where Bruni just talked about how these things are affecting today's learning.

My Response to David Brooks

In David Brooks article "This Is Not About You" he says that the graduating senior class has been "ill served by their elders". Brooks states that high school seniors have been "ill served" by being constant, monitored, tutored, coached and honed and basically told what to do throughout their childhood and then teenage years. The only time I have personally seen this in my own everyday life was growing up in my early childhood years. Going through elementary and junior high I remember always having a set schedule, and always being stayed on top of by teachers and my parents. That all changed for me when I went to high school. The high school I attended was a private Christian school and it was more about getting to school, getting your work done and if you didn't then that was your problem. The teachers were all about enjoying high school but their main goal was helping their students prepare and get ready for either the working life or college life. This definitely was a change but it was such a help to growing up and becoming responsible. My parents were always ones also to of course guide me and my siblings but they were also more about teaching us things that would help us when we finally went out on our own. The skills my parents taught us and the way they raised us definitely compared to the way I was learning to fend for myself in high school which really helped when my parents split half way through high school. I really had to step up and take care of many things and become one of the adults. I know none of this is irrelevant but this is where I don't feel like every student is completely "ill served." Yes I agree that most students are babied and are continuously being handed everything even after graduating high school. I know a few people first hand that still are not learning their own way. They are still having their parents or some sort of guardian still having a set schedule for them even though they are cities away and on their own. So to an extent I feel I can agree and disagree with Brooks. I feel its truly about how your raised, who your raised by and what their life techniques are and lastly what your atmosphere is.

The difference between "finding yourself" and "loosing yourself" as stated in Brooks article is that just because you've graduated high school doesn't mean you should have every little thing in your life ahead planned. Brooks states "most people don't form a self and then lead a life. They are called by a problem and the self is constructed gradually by their calling". That statement to me is a way of saying just because you may thing you have your whole life planned does not mean your course or path cant change at any given moment. I feel as if finding yourself is the most important part and that people need to realize there isn't a time limit on when that should happen and their isn't a right or wrong way to finding yourself.

Romance production Safe Haven released in 2013, directed by Lasse Hallstorm was a film that caught and kept my attention like no other. Safe Haven is about an abused wife trying to escape her horrific life as she changes her whole physical look and runs away to a small town deciding between leaving a life of unsafe risks and starting a new life of complete safety. When I first saw commercials of this movie coming out I thought to myself, this doesn't relate to me, this is just another sweet love story between two of my favorite actors Julianne Hough (who plays the abused wife Erin Tierney and then the run away girl who falls in love Katie Feldman) and Josh Duhamel (who plays the single widowed father as Alex Wheatly). I then went to the releasing of it and after the movie it all made sense to me why this movie meant so much to me and hit home right away. My aunt plays a huge role in my life and growing up I watched her live with an alcoholic, drug addicted, abusive husband. My uncle as bad and scary as it sounds was all of those in one. After many doubts and "I cant leave him" talks, she finally got the strength to leave and ended up finding her "Safe Haven" in a small unfamiliar town. I feel as if this movie compared so great to my everyday life one because I just like any other girl am a huge sucker for love movies and two I have so much respect for women who pick their selves up and get the courage to leave these unhealthy situations that occur way too much these days. I have a few people in my life today that are struggling with this continuous manipulative mind boggling abusive situations that after all the advice and long cry sessions, or long talks, I immediately say "go watch Safe Haven". Not only because its some tear jerker love story but because its one movie that can open one's eyes in so many different ways to not only getting out of an unhealthy relationship and finding the right kind of love. But its also about finding the strength after losing someone close to you and not necessarily replacing that love, but finding that empty piece that's been missing.

I would like to completely disagree with Ny Times film critic Stephen Holden on a few points. I for one second do not find this film as a weepy sudfest. Yes there were many tears for most people i'm sure, but I feel as it should be described as a film about an abused woman finding her inner strength to leave and find the true love that she deserves. I would also like to disagree with how Holden is comparing this film to a reality dating show & as an "I miss mommy" moment just because the kids in the film's mom died, I would personally describe this film as  "I can move on", "I can find love", and "anything in life is possible" type of film. The way Holden makes this film out to be is completely nuts to me.My last point I would like to disagree on is how Holden feels the scenes were awful and played out terrible. I feel as if there is nothing wrong with the scenes and the way the film was brought about was an outstanding line of events and perfect examples of real life today.