This is going back to my research project and being tired without drinking any caffeine.

What is Text?

     In my eyes, the word text can be referring to a few different things. It could be referring to someone else's words, for example in a book or in an essay. It could also be referring to your own words. Text is something that is written down. It is not simply words floating around in your thoughts. Text is a group of words that have been thoroughly thought out and organized into an easy to understand fashion and have been written down or typed into some sort of document or on paper.

Excellence is Not an Act, but a Habit

     Over break, I did not intentionally continue my experiment. I love drinking pop and caffeine and honestly, caffeine is what keeps me awake most days. However, for spring break I just went home and had a relaxing week. I slept in almost every day and was wide awake usually without the help of caffeine. Because of this, I was not tempted as much to drink caffeinated drinks. I found myself drinking more milk and water just because I had been in the habit of it and did not feel that I needed the extra energy. I think it is very interesting that I subconsciously did not consume as many caffeinated drinks as I normally would have and I think that Aristotle's quote is very accurate in that it was more because I had gotten in the habit and mind-set of not having caffeine.

Experiment: Week Four

This is the last week of the experiment and I am exhausted! I have had numerous headaches this past week and I have just been outright sluggish. We began practicing longer hours this week as well for volleyball, which I am sure is not helping my case much. However, I am doing my best to stay away from caffeine. I am going to be very excited when I am allowed to drink caffeinated drinks again. This experiment was very eye opening for me. It has shown me that I depend on caffeine a lot just to get me through the week. I have been falling asleep earlier and taking naps more often. These results are probably expected, however I did not realize how much it would impact me!

Waste Land

     The statement made by Vik Muniz in The waste land, I believe is completely true in some situations. However, I also think that it has to do with ones perception on a situation. Two different people could look at one situation completely differently. One person could view a situation as a learning experience, for example, while maybe another person can only manage to find the negative aspect in the situation.
     In my opinion, his argument does not change so much throughout the documentary itself. I think that his statement changes more peoples view on their lives. In the beginning of the film, a lot of the workers, in my opinion, simply thought that this job was the only option they had. It was the only way they could survive and they knew that was going to be where they would be the rest of their lives. After their experience with Vik, and they saw how he could take useless garbage and mold and create it into a beautiful work of art, I believe they started seeing that they could better their lives and make something more out of themselves, just like Vik made something better out of the garbage. I think it had the most affect on the man that was in charge of the landfill picking, when he accompanied Vik to the auction and was able to witness himself how much money Vik was able to make off of his work created from garbage. It was really cool to see the workers outlook on life change after their experience.
     I do believe that this statement could be considered universal because I think with the right mind set, anyone can better their lives if they think about how they can apply this quote. If someone is always looking at situations with a negative attitude, then no, I don't believe anything better can come out of it. However, if people are optimistic and see that if they try hard enough, they can make something negative into something more positive or beautiful. This statement can relate to anyone who is going through a hardship. It is a very inspiring message that I think can be very helpful to people.

Experiment: Week Three

     This week I have continued to avoid caffeine no matter what. Let me just say, with 6 a.m. lifting workouts for volleyball every morning during the week, this is not easy to do. I have had a lot of headaches and have actually noticed that I have not been able to lift as much weight as I normally am able to. The energy just is not there which I thought was very interesting. It is definitely not a mental matter. I will be very excited when I can once again drink caffeine.

Experiment: Week Two

     Today, I am starting the second part of my experiment, cutting out caffeine completely. This means no caffeinated pop, no Starbucks, no chocolate. Let's just say this is going to be a difficult two weeks for me. I am extremely interested however in how it will affect my mood, my health, my sleeping patterns, and more. With the first part of my experiment I noticed I was frequently in a very good mood despite the fact that I had to be up at 6 a.m. every day and wasn't taking a nap later on in the day. This was very different because normally a schedule like that would make me very irritable and in a very bad mood. We'll see how these last few weeks go!