The Tooth Fairy

 

Summarize the article, “Curtain Up on Act II for the Tooth Fairy.”


The article, "Curtain Up on Act II for the Tooth Fairy", by Bruce Feiler, published in The NewYork Times on December 9, 2011, is Bruce Feiler’s opinion about the tooth fairy of his tradition. He didn't believe in giving money for lost teeth to children. He said that if you give the money for lost teeth, why don’t you give the money for broken bones, excised tonsils or, God forbid, menstruation.

When Bruce’s daughter, Tybee, lost her first tooth, she worried about whether the tooth fairy would come or not. That’s what he didn’t like about the tooth fairy. He believes that the tooth fairy is just about money and money. Parents ask each other how much money they give to their children, and the children ask each other how much money they each get from the tooth fairy.
The older children get the more they understand that the tooth fairy doesn’t exist, and if big kids have younger siblings, it means the parents must ask them to lie to their siblings. It seems like the tooth fairy teaches the children about untruthfulness.

The tooth fairy, who exchanges money for children’s lost teeth has been a tradition in America for hundred of years. Many cultures developed different rituals about children’s lost teeth. Witches were believed to covet discarded teeth spells, children tossed their teeth onto the roof (Vietnam, Haiti), buried them with ancestors (New Guinea), fed them to mice (Mexico, Afghanistan), or burned them.

Nowadays in America, money is given not only for the first tooth that falls out first, but also covers every tooth. The author, Feiler, got suggestion from the parents on his Facebook and Twitter of what all modern parents do; for example, having their children deposit their baby teeth into a jar and claim to a coin. Some parents prefer to give a small gift, from nail polish to Hot Wheels, and an electric toothbrush. Feiler said, “One friend gave her daughter a prayer book with the admonition to always use her mouth for meaningful things, like good speech or worship. My favorite recommendation came from a friend who had the tooth fairy leave a pile of loose change, say $1.72, to both clean the mom’s bureau and teach her child math.”

In the end, because Bruce and his family love to travel around the world, he and his wife decided to give some foreign coins from many countries and to describe the charms from each country. He believes that giving their children some charms from other countries will teach them about the world and also likes the fact that they couldn’t spend the money any where. With that global theme, the tooth fairy is dead in their house.


In Indonesian culture, where I come from, when children lose their baby teeth, the parents tell them to toss their teeth onto the roof. The older people believe that if the children lose their lower tooth, they have to throw their tooth onto the ground, but if they lose their upper tooth, they have to throw their tooth onto the roof, so their replacement tooth will come out soon. Otherwise, If they throw their tooth in the opposite direction, their tooth replacement will never come out.

So, every time I lost my upper tooth, I threw my lost tooth onto the roof and when I lost my lower tooth, I threw my tooth onto the ground. This was what my grandmother told me.

When my son loses his first tooth in a few years, I will follow the American tradition, the tooth fairy. I don’t believe in lying to my son, so we’ll explain to him that the tooth fairy doesn’t exist, but this is fun to continue the tradition with the children, so he will understand about our cultures

Interview with a Classmate

Diah : What is your first language?

Irina : My first language is Belarusian, but most of the people in my country speak Russian, and Russian is an official language in Belarus as well.

Diah : Where is your office? and what is the company’s name?

Irina : I work for the company Electronics for Imaging (EFI). It is located in Foster City.

Diah : How old is your son?

Irina : Thank you for asking!! Exactly today my son is turned 20.

Diah : Is there a restaurant for authentic food from Belarus in Bay Area?
Irina : I have not found Belarusian restaurants in Bay Area, but there are many Russian restaurants, for example, Russian Renaissance Restaurant in San Francisco. Some dishes are similar.

Diah : What do you like the most about America?

Irina : I like the weather and nature here in California. Also, I like that I can meet people from different countries here.

Diah : Do you like living in America?

Irina : I like living in America, yet I miss my home country very much because I spent half of my life there, and my relatives and old friends live there.

When I asked Irina what her first language was, she said that her first language was Belarusian, but most of the people in her country were spoke Russian, because Russian was an official language in Belarus as well. In answer to my question about where her office was and what the company's name was, Irina said that her office was located in Foster city and she worked for an Electronics company for Imaging (EFI). When I asked how old her son was, she said that her son turned 20. In response to my question about whether there was a restaurant for authentic food from Belarus in the Bay Area, she answered that she had not found any Belarusian restaurants in the Bay Area, but there were many Russian restaurants, for example, Russian Renaissance Restaurant in San Francisco. She said that some dishes were similar to Belarusian. I wondered what she liked the most about America, and she said that she liked the weather and nature in California and she liked to meet people from different countries. I asked Irina if she liked living in America, and she said she did liked to live in America, even though she missed her home in her country very much because she had spent half of her life there, and also her relatives and friends live there.

Two Teachers

Sidney McGee, a teacher from Frisco, Texas, who are being suspended because her students saw nude art in the museum during a museum field trip.

After I read the articles, "Museum Field Trip Deemed Too Revealing" and "Suspended Teacher Defends Book Assignment", which were about Sidney McGee, a teacher from Frisco, Texas, who was being suspended because her students saw nude art in the museum during a museum field trip, and Connie Heermann, who assigned "The Freedom Writers Diary," a collection of at-risk teenagers' essays containing swear words and sexual overtones, to her 11th-grade English students in November.

Ms. McGee, an art teacher was being suspended by the school principal after one of a student’s parents complained that his children saw nude art in the museum, even though the tour had been approved by her, and the tour was accompanied by 4 teachers, 12 parents, and a museum docent.. McGee was being suspended, even though the other children and parents were happy with the tour trip. The principal explained to the parents that this wasn’t only about a field trip to a museum, but also about Ms. McGee’s performance concerns and other criticism of her work.

For another suspended teacher in the article, “Suspended Teacher Defends Book Assignment,” Connie Heermann, was a teacher who assigned a collection of at-risk teenagers’s essays containing swear words and sexual overtones to her 11th-grade English students. The Perry Township school district said that Heermann assigned the book before the administrators could answer her request for permission to use the book. She had tried to ask permission to the administrators, but nobody answered her request. She assigned the book to her students after she got permission from the student’s parents. Ms. Heermann realized that the administrator’s fear of their school board is one of the reasons why they didn’t answer her request. So, no administrator took responsibility because everyone was afraid of being fired by the school board.


After reading of these 2 cases, I realize that the culture in America is that people have the right to complain if they're not happy, especially about a teacher. Teachers have to be really careful, because they can receive complaints anytime for any small reason. It seemed unfair for McGee and Heermann since they both are very good teacher, and they had been teaching for many years. She was being suspended after a parent complain, even though the other children and parents were happy with the tour trip. Heerman was being suspended after she assigned a book containing swear words and sexual overtones to her students. Nobody answered her request, even though she had tried to ask permission to the administrators. The principals weren’t being fair because they didn’t look at their dedications to the school for many years.

Ban On Pet Sales

I. In the article, "The no pet stores proposal," by Ken White, he supports the proposal for not selling pets in stores. He works for SPCA, so he believes in protecting animals. Despite the fact that he supports banning the commercial sale of pets from the stores, he doesn’t know the reason. He said in his article, "A ban which would, for reasons which are not quite clear to me, cover all animals but with the exception of fish." If they want to ban cats and dogs, they should have banned fish too, because fish also needs to be treated nicely.

The author mentioned that some people think there is no reason to ban animals such as hamsters from the stores, because there are more important problems than this case, like economic problem, etc. But this is an Animal & Welfare Commission, so it's their job to deal with animals. Despite the fact that the reporter said on average, animal shelters in the U.S. are euthanizing 35 % of their dogs and cats, he thinks that some reporters have the wrong facts, because the correct fact is that shelters have to kill a lot of cats and dogs. It's not even about hamsters, but about cats and dogs. San Francisco has a lot of problems with cats and dogs in the shelters, so they have to kill a lot of them. Even though people don't need to buy pets, they buy them.

Despite the fact that he supports banning the commercial sale of pets from stores, he's not saying he supports the proposal. He's only saying it should be discussed seriously. He also said that it should cover fish too.

II. According to the article, "Banning Pet Stores in SF: A Solution in Search of a Problem, by Michael Yaki, who is working as an attorney and political consultant. He's arguing against the proposal. He thinks that you should be able to sell pets in stores. Even though the commission protects animals, he thinks the Commission isn't logical. He said that the person who wrote the proposal is not logical. He thinks hamsters are not important. He thinks that banning pet stores from selling anything but fish is a very silly thing. Although many people don't know how to take care of animals, human nature is to buy pets. If people don't know how to take care of pets, the Commission shouldn't ban the pet stores. People will always want pets even though they don't know how to take care of pets really well. Despite the fact that human nature is to not to take care of pets really well, people love pets.

Although the law has banned smoking and guns, we can't compare them with the animals. Smoking and guns are bad, but pets are not a problem. So, I think why should we worry about pets? Anti-smoking laws are concerned about health and anti-gun laws are concerned about people’s safety. Although fish, food animals, and craigslist are an exception, the author is suggesting that the proposal isn't going to work because there are too many exceptions, because the proposal is not written well. It doesn't solve the problem of humane treatment of animals. This is a waste of time when the city has big problems.

My opinion about banning pet stores in SF is that I disagreed pets should be banned. If the government bans the pet stores, it will effect  the economy, because a lot of people will lose  their business. The government should find a way to solve the problem so animals will not end up in the shelters and being euthanized. According to the article the manager of a pet store said, "If you buy a pet and it doesn't work, you can always return it." I think that's a good idea, because there are a lot of people who want pets. It's human nature that people will always want to buy pets, even though they don't know how to take care of them really well. Human nature makes people love pets. If the government banned the pets store, fish should not be an exception. Fish needs to be treat really well too. The government should be concerned more about the economy, not just waste time about the animals.

Interesting website

                                                                          

www.indonesianpod101.com




Www.indonesianpod101.com is an online podcast that was founded in December 2005. This website offers lessons on the Indonesian language and Indonesian culture in the fastest, easiest and fun way from free to Premium plus. You can get a free lifetime account and instant access to Indonesianpod101.com. On the website you will find some effective Indonesian audio and video that you can take on the go. You can download the mobile application to your iPod, iPhone, and Android devices.


How to start a lesson? First, you need to create your free account by selecting your level on the right side of the screen, input your email address and then click on “Join Now.” You will need to activate your account by clicking on the link that you get in your email.


You can start your first lesson by selecting Study Now, then listen to the audio on how to pronounce Indonesian correctly, review the lesson, and practice the lesson by recording your voice.

If you want to get full lessons including the video, you can upgrade your lessons and pick a plan starting from basic plan to premium plus.


This website is very interesting if you want to learn and get to know more about Indonesian or if you have a plan to visit Indonesia. You can start by learning the language on this site.

Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior

Amy Chua with her daughters, Louisa and Sophia

The article, "Why Chinese Mothers are Superior," by Amy Chua, published in The Wall Street Journal on January 8, 2011, is about how and why Chinese mothers raise successful children compared to Western parents. In this article the author explained that Chinese mothers are very strict and very powerful in order to raise their children. Western parents are very nervous about their children but Chinese parents are very confident and they know what's best for their children.

As a Chinese mother, Chua has some rules that her children had to follow, like not having a play date, not being able to choose their own school activity, etc. The author said how confident she is as a Chinese mother and believes that her children will be successful if they keep up the hard work. She keeps her daughter working again and again to practice on a piano piece called "The Little White Donkey."  It was so difficult for her daughter, who was really young, to coordinate both of her hands to keep schizophrenically different rhythms, but she made her daughter keep doing it and not to give up and finally she did it. Once she got it, her daughter thought that was easy. It made her daughter proud of herself and made her proud of her daughter and herself, because she made her daughter succeed. Even Jed, her husband who disagreed with the way she treated her daughter, in the end gave her credit for that one. She raised her children in the hardest way to make them independent and prepared for their better lives in the future. Even though she was very strict with her children, her children didn't hate her. and Lulu was happy after she knew how to play piano better and they hugged each other. Chinese children seemed like they realized that the way their mother raised them is for their better future life. That's why Chinese mothers are superior.

After reading this article, I think all parents have their own way to raise their children and every parenting style has its own advantages and disadvantages. I agreed with Chua as a Chinese Mother that children should work hard in order to get a better life in the future. On the other hand, Children should be able to socialize with their friends. Kids should have balance between their academic and social life, and they should be able to enjoy their youth. Parents need to guide and help them to manage their life between academic and outside activities, such as sports, play dates, etc. So they won’t be out of control.

Introduction

My family picture, my son is 2 years and 9 months now.

Dear Everyone,

My name is Ainul Mardhiah Brinck, and you can call me Diah. My name comes from an Arabic name.  Ainul means “eyes”, and Mardhiah means “One who is loved and respected by all.”

I'm from Indonesia, and I used to live in Jakarta, the capital city of Indonesia. Originally my family comes from Padang, West Sumatra, and I was born in Medan, North Sumatra. I have been here in the U.S. for 3 and 1/2 years, and I live in Palo Alto.

I'm married to an American man, and I'm a mother to a 2 1/2 year old boy. He's a very cute little boy and very talkative, and his American English accent is even better than me.

In my spare time I love cooking and I love to try many kinds of food from all over the world. My favorite food is Spicy Kung Pao Scallops, Japanese food, and food from my own country. I love spicy food. Whenever I eat I need a spicy sauce such as Tabasco.

 I'm taking this grammar class because I want to improve my grammar skills in writing and speaking. As my son gets older I want to continue studying in college here. I want to study Health Science.

I'm glad I had a chance to join this ESLL248 online class since I heard a lot of good reviews about Mrs. Wong’s class from former ESLL248 students.