8:15 English with Ruth 9:45 Personal Finance with Bill 10:00 Hydro class with Robby 11:15 English with Ruth 11:30 Personal Finance with Bill 1:00 Hydro with Robby
Personal Finance
For my entire life I have been surrounded by talk of the stock market. In 2008 it seemed to be all I heard at home for a few months. I knew my dad and grandfather had investments in the stock market, but that is all I ever understood. Two years ago I started learning about the stock market with Bill, first through branching out, and this year through the Pilot. My goal was to understand how to buy/sell stocks and become good enough to not loose money (all the time). Although Bill and I have not done much trading overall, I have got to the point where I feel confident analyzing a stock, and telling Bill if I think it is a good buy or sell.
Going forward I will be buying stocks in my own Roth IRA account, funded with 3600$ I made last year working at miscellaneous jobs I got throughout the year.
In order to make my personal finance class meet the schools expectations I had to take a Personal Finance class through an online website called Coursera. This class lasted the first semester, while I simultaneously managed Bill's UBS profile. During the third quarter I focused on watching Bill's multiple portfolio's, and telling him when I thought a company got overvalued, or undervalued.
During the 4th quarter my main accomplishment was slimming down Bill's trust portfolio by 6 stocks. We went from 62-56 companies. We will continue to slim this portfolio down throughout the next few months
Highlight of the year:
The highlight of this year with Bill, was definitely when we almost bought a house within the trust to fix up, and sell again. I enjoyed this project because it took class to an entire new level in terms of reality. We were about to spend over 100K on a property, and we had to go through it thoroughly in order to make sure we knew what we were getting for out money. When we looked around enough we decided it was just not a very smart investment, and backed out.
Another highlight throughout the past year had been my returns on small shares of companies I have purchased inside of the RGK Trust.
Boeing (BA) Purchase price : $119.84 Sell price : $145 Gain %20.99
Allergen (AGN) Purchase price : $219 Sell Price : Currently still holding onto this stock In The days after I bought Allergen the stock price fell from $229, to $209 per share. This freaked me out because I had lost a significant amount of money on this stock. In the days following, Allergen went straight up. Throughout the next few months it reached $260 per share, for a gain of %18.7. Unfortunately I did not sell at this point, and the stock price ended up falling again. Currently it is at $234.76 per share, for a gain of around %7.
Going forward:
Going forward I would like to continue meeting with Bill, and my dad to talk about stocks, and alternative investments. I will also be working to invest the money in my Roth IRA account. I plan to wait for a correction in the market, and then invest my money when prices are reasonable.
English
Goal For The Year: My overall goal for the year in Pilot English was to develop good reading habits, read a lot of books, and become a better writer. Over the course of the year I read 11 books (2X-3X more than I have in any school year preceding this one), and I also wrote quite a few different stories.
Books
Kon-Tiki Thor Heyerdal
The Stranger Albert Camus
The Catcher In The Rye J.D. Salinger
Rolling Nowhere Ted Conover
The Old Man In The Sea
The Intruder In The Dust William Faulkner
The Right Stuff Tom Wolfe
Animal Farm George Orwell
The Unvanquished William Faulkner
Huck Finn Mark Twain
Favorite book(s)
Huck Finn My favorite book this year was Huck Finn. This book was really fun to read because the plot behind it, as well as the characters, were interesting, and adventurous. When I first read Tom Sawyer, I absolutely loved it, and immediately went on to try Huck Finn. Being 10 at the time, I hated the 30 pages of Huck Finn which I got through. Now coming back to the book years later, I can understand the plot, and the language used throughout the book.
The Intruder In The Dust My second favorite book was The Intruder In The Dust, by William Faulkner. I really enjoyed this book because it kept you on the edge of your seat throughout the entire story. This book was my first Faulkner experience, and in the beginning I hated it. As I read on, and read on, the style of writing started to make the book come together perfectly. I began to love how he wrote in long sentences, which were exactly what was going through his brain at the time. A few books later I decided to read The Unvanquished by William Faulkner as well. I enjoyed this book as well.
Writing pieces
SB Seamus Beall was always the kind of kid who brought everyone up around him. He had a way of making people feel special, without even trying. This story is about one January night I spent with Harper Wimble and Seamus Beall riding a beat up snowmobile around the back roads of adamant. It started with two figures walking down my road. I thought nothing of it until they turned sharply, cut through my lawn and head directly for the house. I stood up, and walked to the door, but before could get there they were already inside. Harper and Seamus had decided to come up to the house to hangout. We sat around in my mudroom talking for ten or fifteen minutes when out of nowhere Seamus said, “You have a snowmobile….right?” As he said it I watched his, and especially Harper's face turn towards me with the ever so sly grin we all gave each other when we passed in the halls at school. It was a look of mystery, and unknown. Like we both had a secret no one else knew, and when we saw each other, the grin was a way of acknowledging that. “Yeah, of course I still have it. Can’t promise it will run, but we can try!” We rounded up and headed outside towards where the snowmobile had last been parked. As I walked there I remember being very worried that it wouldn't start. When we got there I grabbed the cord, pulled it once and it started immediately. When Seamus heard it fire up he went crazy. I've never seen anyone more jacked up to ride an old torn apart ski-doo, but being the person he was, Seamus couldn’t wait. We took turns riding around my field, but eventually a desire for new territory grew inside all of us. I do not remember who thought of this idea, but 5 minutes later we were inside asking my parents if we could drive the snowmobile over to my grandparents. At first we got a hell no from both parents, but as Seamus worked it, and I threw out every piece of convincing evidence i could they eventually cracked. Our plan seemed foolproof when first suggested, but we quickly ran into many different problems. Our first major problem was trying to fit three teenage boys on a snowmobile meant for one, maybe two. I was jammed so far up into the handle bars that I had a turning radius of about two inches before the handlebar was stabbing into my leg. At no point did any of us think about the reality of this trip, or the likelihood of this snowmobile making it all the way, there and back. As we pulled out onto the road it was getting dark. The perfect amount of light to allow you to see a little ways, but not very far. The snowmobile had an extremely intense load on it, and it told us that all the way over to the bottom of my grandparent hill where it died. I was expecting this from the moment it started in my back field. Being a donor snowmobile from a neighbor that my dad and I had magically got running one summer day, it was never expected to run as long as it had. We all hopped off, confused at the misfortune that was upon us. Although we were broken down, and I knew my father would be very angry if I could not get the snowmobile home I will always remember how Seamus made everything better. It was not a direct action he did or something he said, but just being around him always gave me a feeling that everything was going to be just fine, under any circumstances. Maybe it was because he was like an older brother and I looked up to him and trusted him, or maybe it was simply because Seamus got it. He understood that although being broken down sucked, in the end it would be fine. This aspect of him was something that I know a lot of people really loved, and wanted. The ability to take the best of even the worst situations, and be happy with it. After a few minutes of sitting around talking I remembered that I hadn't put gas in the poor beast for at least two weeks. I checked the tank, and it was dry as all hell. I told the boys the news, and after a small break… we decided to make the journey up the long curving hill to borrow some gas from my grandfather. As we neared the top of the hill the dogs began to go crazy like they always do. I talked to my grandfather, Bill, and like always he was more than happy to help me out. We took turns carrying the 5 gallons of gas all the way down the hill. We dumped it in, pulled the cord once, and just like that it started back up. I drove back up to the top, dropped the can off and then picked up Seam and Harper. We drove down the road until we came to the three way, I dropped them off, they walked home, and I took the snowmobile back to my house. Although Seamus is gone now the things I learned from him will be with me forever. His positive outlook on life was something I will always remember and cherish. Since he's been gone the halls in school, and especially our small village of Adamant Vermont have seemed much different. Life has been and will continue to be much different without seamus, but the good times we spent together will be with us forever. “Sometimes we give so much, that we end up losing ourselves.” -unknown
Loudon
Here is a short summary of what I saw on my trip down to Loudon NH for the NASCAR race Over the weekend i went down to Loudon NH, to meet my friends for the races. I left around 11 on saturday morning and started my first long drive by myself. My friends Stephen, Connor, Rob and Tyler had been down there since thursday afternoon, and had been watching different races all weekend. As I got close to Loudon I noticed the quality of cars started to go up. It seemed like everywhere I looked there were nice old cars, and expensive new ones as well. As I got to the first entrance I could see nothing but thousands of campers. I kept driving and made my way around to the main, and then the north entrance. Here I called my friends, and was informed that the pits were through the south entrance. I turned around and drove back to where I had passed the first entrance, and went in. They told me to park in lot S. As I turned in and started my way down towards lot S I realized that I was basically on a 6 lane highway. There were so many people flowing in and out of this place that they needed a road 6 lanes wide to deal with it. Three on the left and three on the right. Eventually I decided that I should find a parking spot, and start walking in the direction of the noise. I had not even got into the first parking lot before I was offered a few beers for a ride. The majority of my trip occurred on my walk into and around the Speedway because I unfortunately never actually made it into the race track. Soon after getting out of my car I found a shuttle which brought me right up to the base of the huge grandstands. I rode with 20 plus college guys who were all already very drunk. Every time we passed a food vendor someone yelled, “WAIT…. This is my stop??”, but none of them ever dared to get off. Finally we arrived at the base of the grandstands. I got out and started walking. I did not know where, but it seemed hard to go wrong when it was basically a fair outside the track. I walked around and somehow ended up sitting across from a few of the guys I had rode the shuttle with, at the Philly Cheesesteak stand. They had not made it very far, and neither had I. After that short experience I found a go cart track and had a great time watching kids, and a alarming number of adults, probably all drunk, take these go carts out, and beat them around the pavement track. Clearly written on the back of the go-cart it says “ NO BUMPING”. A desperate attempt to try and keep things somewhat under control. No one listened. After this I decided I should try and find my friends. I walked up to the ticket counter, and tried to buy a Pit Pass. The lady working the counter told me that they had stopped selling pit passes a few hours ago, but I could buy one for the next day. I said no thanks, and decided it was time I went home. I had been there for a few hours at this point, and I was tired from walking around, and wasting my money on food that was not even that good. I started walking back towards my car, and hopped on the first shuttle to pass me. As I was driving out I took this picture of the campers, and track in the distance.
The stranger disputed
The Stranger Disputed By Ford Porter As I read the book The stranger it became very vivid what Meursault's view on life was. He is a middle aged man whose life changes very rapidly in a few days. To begin with his mother passes away, the day after that he meets the girl he plans to marry, and then a few months later he is on death row, with his head about to get cut off. But of course none of it goes as smooth as that, or does it? Meursault’s view on life is a very strange one. Throughout the book he struggles to understand what life events really matter to him. This is something that I have occasionally found myself wondering as well, but I usually seem to find purpose in most things I do. I often think kids around my age get way too wrapped up in small life events which may not matter in a few hours, or even a few days. I see this happen often in school and wonder why these kids cannot take a step back and see that the problem they are so upset about, will not matter in two years. Meursault does not have this problem. Instead he struggles to find meaning in anything in his life. I think this is because he has thought about life much more than most people ever do. From thinking about life Meursault understands that death in an inexorable feat which occurs everyday thousands of times. And because of this he seems indifferent to his mother's death. I agree with him for the most part about death, but when it comes to someone who you are really close with, i find it strange that he has no emotion. With recent deaths in the community it confuses me how Meursault was so accepting to his own mother's death, although it you really think about it, it does make sense. Everyone who is born dies, whether it's young or old it's going to happen. After Seamus died I thought about death quite a bit. One thing I figured out is that death has a lot more meaning than I think Meursault gives it. He seems to care less about the entire death of his mother, himself, or the innocent Arab he shot. He does no believe in an afterlife, but at the same time he is not sad or mad that his life is ending. When someone close to me dies I try to see meaning in it, and see how they had lived a full life, and that is why they had died at this particular point in time. But does meursault see that? Does he think that way as well about death? It would make sense because he seems to not feel sorrow around the concept of death. While writing this I have been constantly second guessing myself, wondering if what I am writing is true, or completely false. Maybe Meursault did not understand death, and him trying to kill an innocent man was a cry for help in a time of need. Maybe his whole problem was that he was never taught to value certain things in life, and because of that he is now indifferent to the whole concept of life. This book may be interpreted many different ways, all of them may be right. Either way I thoroughly enjoyed trying to understand this book, and I will continue to wonder what the real meaning behind it is.
02
Ford Porter An Attempt To Write Like Faulkner I heard the annoying noise, all too familiar from every morning for the past two months, but this time I was excited and got right up and fell in behind my dad on our way down the stairs (an unplanned occurrence but at the same time almost a routine act) sometime around 4:15 in the early morning of November the 11th. The all too familiar sound of the metal furnace door slamming shut and cereal falling into the two bowls of two usually half asleep men but not today for today was a very exciting and important day because it marked the beginning of the most tiring and solitary two weeks of the year, if you look at it that way, of course you could also see it as not solitary at all because one is never truly alone in the woods especially here in Vermont. As we ate, we talked not about many things but about one thing which took the whole meal to decide which was best, and as we came to the end of the meal we had both decided on the place we liked the most, and loaded up and got into the truck with me driving for I would be keeping the truck and parking it near where I thought they would be, and dropping him off where he thought they would be, and of course then he would have to walk home through the woods, but that was what he had asked to do. As I made my way up the hill, we wished each other good luck, he got out, and I turned around and left as quietly as possible rolling down the long twice curving hill then up a small hill to a field where I was planning on parking the truck. But as I got out, I was faced with the decision to load here, or be safe and wait until I got to my stand, and after a lot of thought (really not any), I decided that I must load here just in case I get lucky on my way up and with that I started my ascent up the low grade field underlying the ominous tree line (but only when the day was approaching night, and the light was at a minimum where the branches look like they are hiding something, only to move your head to get a better look and have your eyes trick you by printing an animal or object underlying these low hanging thick branches), walking slowly and quietly in my apple and pine soaked clothing. As I neared the top of the field, I saw movement but assumed that it was just the fever playing tricks on me especially in this light, the kind you get around 30-25 minutes before the sun rises where everytime you move your head you think you see things out of the corner of your eyes which is why I assumed that there was nothing in front of me and continued on two steps more before I heard a loud and deep grunt, which brought me to a dead stop, not to move again for half an hour in anticipation and desire, leaning on my back leg, absolutely motionless, staring straight at a shape which I was not sure even was anything yet but a shape, but if it really was more than a shape, it must be staring straight back at me, but still was I even looking at anything right now or am I just very sick with the fever and my brain is trying desperately to compensate and heal me. And then movement which not only confirmed that I was not insane and imagining everything so far, but that there really was something standing on the slight lip up of this field about 100 feet away from me, but unfortunately it was still much too dark to really see anything at all except whenever this thing decided to move and get a better look at me. Meanwhile I was hoping it could only see me as well or worse than I could see it for if it knew exactly what I was and my intentions it surely would have turned and run right then and there. After what seemed like an hour (I actually realized this immediately because if I had taken the 308 with a light-gathering scope instead of the 300 savage with iron sights, I would be in a much better place than I was right now) I realized that I had taken the gun with iron sights instead of the one with a scope which meant I would be totally out of luck shooting for the next 20 minutes until the sun was almost up and throwing off enough light to allow me to see what exactly I was staring at, but that was when I realized I had a monocular and could at least confirm that I was looking at a living creature and not just a bunch of dead tall grass blowing in the wind, so I reached for the monocular as slowly as my intense anticipation and desire would let me and brought it to my eye, also attempting to do this slowly to not scare off what I hoped I was looking at, and finally when I got it to my eye, I felt relieved for now I would not have to wait any longer to see this thing in front of me, but of course I could not seem to find the body in the darkness with one eye shut, and the other looking through this old monocular. I continued to search and search until I thought my back leg was about to collapse under the weight of my whole body being rested on it and on top of that a 300 savage resting over my left arm only adding to the weight problem but then it grunted and moved again, and I had it this time in the monocular, but still too dark to see the most important physical attribute of the whole animal, so I decided to look at it without the monocular again, which to my surprise seemed to be much more clear than when I looked at this object through the monocular. The animal began walking away from me, and in desperation I raised the monocular once more to attempt to see its head, but it had stopped moving, which ended up being a good thing, because when it began moving again, I finally saw what I had been trying to see for the entire morning thus far. As it picked its head up it looked like a few of the branches above its head were moving right along in unison with the head of the deer; the exact thing I had been hoping to see, because this meant that this was not a doe, but in fact a buck, and although I was now certain this was a buck, I still was not certain how many points this certain buck had on the top of its head. And unfortunately for me the movement which allowed me to see the buck’s head was also the beginning movement of the deer turning and walking towards the woods, so naturally I began to panic as the deer closed in on the treeline, and I realized that a decision must be made to shoot, or not to shoot, and a decision like that is a very hard one, for the desire to have success in killing an animal on opening morning is very strong, but at the same time the shot which I had at that moment was not a good one, so I took my eye from the sights, and kept watching the deer with my eye. Much to my surprise the deer reached the treeline, and did not break the threshold of the forest, but walked in my general direction right along the treeline until he smelled me again and decided to cut up into the woods finally. But now his broad side was facing directly towards me, and he was stopped dead in his tracks looking to his right, directly towards me, almost as fascinated with me as I was with him. Now the choice was easier, and I had a good shot, but I was shaking so damn bad I couldn’t keep my sights set straight on him, partially because I had been resting all of my weight on my back leg, and also because I was wearing an extra 30 pounds of clothing, not including my rifle. But none the less I knew that this was likely the best shot I would get all season, so I must take it, and I began to try and calm down and steady my arms which were already tired from holding the gun up for the past 5 minutes, and when I finally got steady enough to take the shot I was truly amazed that the deer had not taken off running, for it was quite a long time that it took me to steady my arms. After I had fired the shot, I was not sure what went wrong, but I am almost positive it was the fact that I was shaking very badly, and I must have tipped up right as I pulled the trigger. What could be a long story, I can make short by telling you that I missed the deer, and after searching for hours I did not find it. Unfortunately for me, I had done almost the exact same thing the year before, and now this would make me 0-2 for my hunting career, something I am not very proud of.
Knudsen
His name was Alex Knudsen, and ever since we were kids we had been best friends. Whether it was riding our bikes into the village to get candy, tinkering with lawnmowers, and snowmobiles or playing paintball in the woods we were always together throughout our teenage years, maybe a good thing, maybe not, but one thing is for sure; we always had a good time. As we grew up things did not change much, the toys just got bigger, and the responsibilities grew slightly, whether it was work or school, two things neither of us put much mind towards, and although there are many interesting, semi life threatening stories which I could tell you, the one I will focus on happened this past summer on our way home from watching our friends race over at Thunder Road. We were on our way home around 10:15 at night, driving down a small dirt road that leads into the village we both live near, Adamant, the same one which we would ride our bikes to in the summer. Moving along quite quickly because if you had ever met Alex, you would know that he was an iconoclastic person when it came to driving, speed being the biggest problem. We must have been doing 50 down this road, but it was not any old back road in vermont, this was a road Alex and I took many times or one reason, a reason only two teenage boys would find worthy of cause. We were on this road or one reason, and it had a lot to do with the tight U shaped corner which led into a short straight away, and then a steep hill which seemed to almost drop off at the top, and of course I say drop off because at the speed Alex and I were about to hit it at, that's exactly what it felt like, but i’m sure if you were in a slower car, with your mom driving this hill would feel completely normal to you, but that was not the case for us. We came around the corner sideways, and Alex floored it, causing the sound of small pebbles hitting metal to become very vivid, and the inexorable scratches that would be left from yet another successful illegal road rally to be painted in my mind, but as I said earlier this was at the bottom of the list of concerns for Alex, for when it came to these small scratches which the flying rocks would certainly put into his truck, he was indifferent to the whole situation. We were now flying towards this hill both smiling for the intense rush we were about to receive as we floated over the top of the hill, and prayed that no other cars were coming along, but little did we know that this time would be far different from all the other times before (I say before because Alex and I had done this quite a few times, and it had almost become routine). As we reached peak, and the front wheels left the ground something caught my eye, but in a second it was gone. I was sure of what I had seen, but I did not know if Alex had even seen it, or even what I should do. It was the last thing, other than one of my parents driving the opposite way, that I wanted to see. As we came to the ground I chagrined as I turned my head quickly around, and caught a quick glimpse of brakes coming on, and right before they disappeared below the hill a faint flicker of blue, which lingered in the leaves, high above the crest of the hill, in the tops of the trees. It was in this moment which I realized the inexorable problem which we had just created, but had Alex seen what I had? He must have, but if he hadn’t I must tell him right away, and as I turned my head to look at him I could tell he had noticed as well, for his normal carefree look had done a 180 degree turn, and now he had very concerned look on his face; he knew exactly what was about to happen, but did not know what to do quite yet, and as I began to open my mouth to suggest we slow down, just to be on the safe side, I heard Alex’s foot hit the floor, and the motor take off. If we were to be caught, our punishment would certainly be very severe, Alex would likely lose his license, the one thing he needed for work, and recreation, and I knew he had also determined that would be the outcome of our immitigable punishment, but that is only if we were to be caught, and right then and there I realized that getting caught was not even on Alex’s mind right now. We flew around the oncoming corner, completely sideways, all 4 tires sliding, a left turn towards Adamant and we were off racing into the darkness, but it was not very dark anymore because through the trees I could see the ominous flicker of blue lights, which had made a remarkably fast turn around, and were somehow already very close behind us. We were picking up speed quickly, but it was counterproductive because the cop car was picking up speed as well, likely gaining on us, and also getting more angry as we went faster and faster, but the one difference between us and him was that he was in a very expensive new cop car, and we were in a old beat up toyota 4runner, and therefore the mud and rocks scraping the sides of Alex’s truck would not bother him nearly as much as it would bother this debonair cop, in his new cruiser. As we came out into Adamant I told Alex to turn up towards my grandparents, and take one of the logging roads up into the woods in order to lose the cop. Because we were in a beat up old 4runner we should have no problem, but this cop would certainly not be able to follow us up into the woods, and we needed to get there quickly because he was now right on our ass honking, sirens on, and blue lights flashing. Luckily Alex’s license plate was covered in mud, but the only identifiable piece of the truck we were in was the “IN LOVING MEMORY LIL JOEY LAQUERRE 1996-2014” which was plastered across the back window of the truck. I paid little mind to the sticker, and focused on the road which we were flying down at a speed much too fast for this lifted truck to be going down, but luckily we were just coming up to the head of the logging trail. That is when everything took a turn for the worse when further along the road up the hill, the same ominous glow of blue seemed to be moving our direction. I turned to Alex, and he just smiled and said, “Fuckin’ cops”, as he pulled off the road and down a small hill into the woods. He put it in 4low, and we took off on the logging trail my father and I had gone up many times during that summer to cut firewood for the coming winter, but much to our surprise the blue glow followed us into the woods, but this time a couple hundred feet behind us, and moving much slower than we were. Alex and I wasted no time, and knowing the trail very well we made good time, and ended up right above the back field, way up behind my grandparents house. We stayed a few hundred feet in the woods, away from the field overlooking the back of their house, about a mile from where we had entered the woods on the logging trail. We had taken multiple different trails to get here, but there was no way that the cops would know which way to go. We were in the clear now. We parked the truck to calm down after the 30 minute car chase we had just been in, and then decided it would be interesting to go and see how far the cops had made it up the trails. We knew there was no way they would have made it much more than a few hundred feet so we began walking, and after 10 minutes we could faintly see flashing blue lights down below the pine covered ridge we had been walking on. We got down and army crawled to the very edge of the hill, moving slowly through the ferns, and soft bed of last years needles until we peeked over the ledge, and what we saw was much to our amazement. As we both stuck our heads part way through the ferns we saw two cop cruisers, both buried up to the windows in mud. The one in front was still spinning its tires when we arrived, and after a few minutes the back window rolled down, and mud slid into the back seats as the cop climbed out in a fit of rage and swear words. It looked as if the second cruiser had tried to pull the first one out, but having little traction to begin with he was unsuccessful, and had buried himself as well. As we got up to leave one of the cops looked as if he had seen us because he stared right in our general direction for about a minute, but being in the situation he was in, he did not even bother to try and do anything about it.
Napoleon vs. Trump
Trump Farm Ford Porter As we elect a new chief to our tribe we call the Divided, I mean United States of America, one can not help but notice the strong connections to a famous story written by George Orwell. Both main characters, Napoleon, and Donald J. Trump, have very high opinions of themselves and will go to extreme extents to show people how important they truly are. So far both characters have been detrimental to the well being of the people they are supposed to control. This far in his presidency, Donald J. Trump has already addressed many issues he has with the country and the people helping him run it. On top of his constant complaining, and 3am twitter wars with anyone looking for a quick exchange of a few harsh words, he has failed to complete any of his major ‘promises’ which he has made to the American people. Trump’s first promise, and possibly his most certain-sounding policy, effective immediately upon election would be building a wall to keep Mexican immigrants from coming into the country. He stated that this would be beneficial to the American economy, and especially to the unemployment rate, because the illegal immigrants were stealing American jobs, and therefore money. If you get right down to the facts, our country has been built on immigrant labor. Whether it was Chinese migrants put to work building the transcontinental railroad, or the influx of German and Irish workers building ships during the first world war, our country owes a lot of its large feats directly to hard working migrants. Trump does not see this and his plan to build a wall for the purpose of lowering the unemployment rate would go directly against our success story so far in history. The connection I see in Animal Farm is Napoleon's windmill which became one of the most corrupt pieces of the whole story. In the beginning the windmill was proposed by Snowball, and Napoleon was totally against this idea. Upon Snowball’s expulsion from the farm, Napoleon had a revelation and decided that this windmill would be a good idea. He convinced the other animals of this as well. He told them that it would be used to power a motor which would turn on heated blankets in their stalls during the winter time. It would also power lights in the barn so they could see at night. All good things, just like lower unemployment and crime rates promised by Trump. When the structure of this windmill was finished, Napoleon changed his mind and turned the structure into a wind powered barley mill, for the purpose of making beer. Although these are different problems, there is one underlying connection. Trump stated that the Mexican government would have to pay for the wall, and under his administration he would see that this was completed. As it turns out, Mexico is not going to pay for the wall, and now it falls back on American taxpayers to pay for it, if by some miracle it passes legislation. In Animal farm it is very similar because the leader promises one thing, and after everything is completed, it turns out that in no way, shape, or form will this project benefit the people who built, or payed for it. Another thing Trump was so sure he would get done, on “Day 1”, was to take down the ACA. He was vehemently against Obamacare, stating that it was a disaster requiring emergency attention. Trump’s plan was to repeal this act, and replace it with his own, better version of a nationwide health care plan. But what ended up happening? Trump was talking out of his ass. There was never any chance for Trump to step into office and repeal a nationwide healthcare plan during his first day in office, and no one expected that. He would first need to draft a replacement health care plan, then get it through both congressional houses, and all in one day? Never. With increasing support for the ACA, his plan looks continually distant. I think this is similar to the overall story in Animal farm because in the beginning the animals are extremely against Jones and his farmyard policies, but as the story progresses, the pigs begin enforcing many of Jones’s policies in alternative ways. Although Trump is not exactly accepting Obamacare, he tried to repeal it without the proper preparation, and ended up getting nowhere. He is now between a rock and a hard place. He can either accept Obamacare and go against all of the statements which got him elected, or actually put in the work, and create a new healthcare plan. The same is true for the Animals on the farm, in particular the pigs. The pigs led many speeches to convince the other Animals why their farm was being run in a corrupt manner. Upon expelling Jones from the farm the pigs slowly fell into the same rut Jones was in, and the farm went back to the old ways under different management. To cover their tracks, the pigs confidentially re-wrote the 7 commandments which were agreed upon during one of the very first meetings, to now be accepting of their new beliefs. Overall it is fair to say that so far both of these leaders have not been very beneficial for the people which they control. Consider Trump’s overall stagnant presidency, and Napoleon's iconoclastic speeches, which mislead the entire farm into a spiral of confusion. The true losers in the situation are the people underneath these leaders struggling through countless failed policies and deceiving promises. The next three and a half years of the Trump Presidency certainly should be interesting, based on the events occurring in the end of Animal Farm. From 7 commandments to one, from a 25,000 page tax bill, to an 8 X 11, and polarization of cultures in a country known as the melting pot, America is well on her way to becoming great, again.
Vocabulary list
1“The moment he mentioned the girls name I knew she was a Moor”. Def.A member of northwestern African Muslim people of mixed berber and arab descent. Sen.There were a group of men outside Raymond's apartment who must have been Moors. 2“At four o’clock the sun wasn’t too hot, but the water was pleasantly tepid…” Def. Only slightly warm; lukewarm. Sen.After spending the day with him, I realized he was a tepid person. 3“Life begins to stalk him quietly, and slowly, but inexorably.” Def.Unyielding; Unaltered. Not to be persuaded, moved, or affected by prayers or entreaties. Sen.As we sped past the turn about I saw a flash of white and blue paint. I saw headlights flicker on, and it seemed inexorable that he would chase us down. 4“The Stranger presents an indelible picture of a human being helpless in life’s grip.” def. (Of ink or a pen) making marks that cannot be removed. Sen.He had an indelible impression on the community. 5“And has he uttered a word of regret for his most odious crime?” Def.Extremely unpleasant; repulsive Sen.He was an odious dog. 6“Raymond began to expostulate…” Def.Express strong disapproval, or disagreement Sen.“When I told him the news, he showed expostulation in his response.” 7“Unless I find some way of answering such ‘callousness’ I shall be handicapped in conducting your defense.” Def.A callous person is insensitive or emotionally hardened Sen.“I asked him how he felt on the situation, but he was a callous person and seemed not to care. 8“He was unscrupulous” DefHaving or showing no moral principles; not honest or fair. SenAfter watching how he dealt with people, I realized he was an unscrupulous person. 9 “Holden… One short, faintly stuffy, pedagogical question.” DefThe function or work of a teacher. The art of science of teaching; education; instructing methods. SenI raised my hand and asked a pedagogical question. It seemed to satisfy him. 10Loquacious DefTending to talk a great deal; talkative. SenThe plane was delayed for three more hours and I didn't know what I would do, until I ran into a very loquacious girl. 11Iconoclasm DefThe act of attacking or rejecting cherished beliefs and institutions or values and practices. SenSometimes I am an iconoclastic person. 12Disdain DefThe feeling that someone or something is unworthy of one's consideration or respect. SenI asked to leave, and he responded with disdain in his voice. 13Chagrin DefFeel distressed or humiliated. SenHe was chagrined when he compare other test scores to his own. 14Monicker DefA name SenI was new to the area, but they had already given me a moniker due to my unusually large ears. 15Obeisance DefA movement of the body expressing deep respect or differential courtesy; as before a superior; a bow, or curtsy. SenAlthough I did not recognize him, I realized he must be important based on my friends obeisance. 16Incongruous DefNot in harmony or keeping with the surroundings or other aspects of something. SenIt had been days since I had showered or slept in a bed, incongruous my hair got in the way of people listening to me. 17Paucity DefThe presence of something only in small or insufficient quantities or amounts. Sen 18Immitigable DefUnable to be made less severe or serious SenThe group of people ostracized him, but his punishment was immitigable. 19Debonair Def(Of a man) stylish, confident, charming SenIf you have ever met George Cooke, you know the definition of debonair. 20Recalcitrant DefHaving an obstinately uncooperative attitude towards authority or discipline. SenWhen I took him out of the game I tried talking to him but he was a recalcitrant person, and walked right past me. 21Carrion DefThe decaying of dead animals. SenI was lost, and it was approaching dusk when I smelled the carrion, and knew I was in the wrong place. 22Demarcation DefThe action of fixing the boundary or limits of something. SenEvery NECAP test has a distinct demarcation after every subject. 23Peignoir DefA woman’s light dressing gown or negligee SenShe took off her clothing, and got into her peignoir. 24Instantiate DefRepresent as or by an instance. SenHe seemed to instantiate his father's beliefs. 25Itinerant DefTraveling from place to place. SenMy sister is a very itinerant person. 26Catharsis DefThe process of releasing, and thereby providing relief from, strong or repressed emotions. SenWe hoped that bringing him to the hospital would bring him catharsis. 27Expiation DefThe act of making amends or reparation for guilt or wrongdoings. SenI showed him expiation for what had happened the other night. 28Mastication DefThe process which food is crushed or ground by the teeth. SenI saw the food arriving and could barely wait for the mastication to begin. 29Aberration DefA departure from what is normal, usual, or expected. SenThe crowd attacking the referees was described as an aberration.
Hydro
Goal for the year: Since my parents became owner of Kingsbury Hydro in North Montpelier I have wanted to understand how running water, and a really loud electric motor created such a huge amount of electricity. This year I found out it was more that just a simple concept. My goal for the year was to be able to maintain this business on both mechanical, electrical, and desk side of operations. Since the beginning of the year I have replaced the main bearing, lifted the turbine and 20 foot shaft out to fix it, sent net-metering invoices, and deciphered ever-evolving net-metering laws. I am not at the point where I feel confident running this business by myself, but I have come much, much closer to that goal, and should be able to do it on my own within the next two years (depending on application).
Turbine Shaft and housing
One of the very first projects I did in my Hydro class was removing the shaft, and runner which turns the shaft, and therefore the electric motor.
Transformers / Generators
Transformers A transformer is an electrical device which takes high voltage power and lowers it down to a lower voltage. A voltage is the strength of the force which pushes electrons around a circuit. Basically how a transformer works is there is a coil of wire wrapped around an iron core. The high voltage of electricity is sent through the coil and then when it comes out it leaves by way of fewer coils, and therefore a smaller voltage. The iron core and the energy flowing through the coil creates a magnetic field. Therefore the thicker the coil, the higher voltage/magnetic field, and the lower the coil, the lower voltage and magnetic field. These coils and iron cores sit in a oil based substance in order to keep them cool. With that much energy moving through metal it does not take long for them to get really hot. On the outside are rows or radiators which cool the oil as the coils heat it up. Generators:
Induction Generator An induction generator is an alternating current generator which throws off power when the turbine forces the rotors to turn faster than their normal operating speed. This is the type of generator which is in Kingsbury and North Troy. Synchronous Generator: This generator is just a simple electric motor which turns by the force of a belt or chain, and produces electricity by turning. Such as an alternator.
Potential Difference When there is different voltage from one end of a conductor to the other the voltage will flow from the end with the higher voltage, to the end with the lower voltage. This process stops when the conductor is equally charged. Take the hydro site for example. The turbine spins and produces electricity. That electricity is a very high voltage and therefore it flows into the grid (transformers) because there is a lower voltage in the transformers, and on the other side. From there the grid transforms the high voltage of the electricity into a lower voltage, that can be used in homes. The electricity then flows all around and into homes because there is a lower potential in the lights, and electrical devices in our homes. This is because the lights are constantly using electricity when turned on, and therefore the potential is constantly being diminished, and replenished. AC/DC Motors
DCDirect Current
A generator pushes electrons from one point, through a coil of wire (the conductor) and then through the resistor ( the light ) and then the circuit is completed when the electrons return to the generator, to charged, and used over and over again. When the electrons are charged there is a potential difference between them, and the resistor/lamp, which is why they flow down the wire, through the resistor, and the light can turn on. This law of physics is called Potential Difference. After the electrons push through the resistor, and give it their energy they complete the circuit by flowing back to the generator.
ACAlternating Current This is the more confusing type of energy, alternating current. In AC current, electrons never move through the entire circuit, they only ever go about 100 feet forward, and 100 feet back. In an AC motor there are many different poles inside of the motor. Each time the poles change, the magnetic field flips, causing the electrons to be pulled quickly in the opposite direction that they were just flowing. In the United States our standard rate of AC flow is 6p Hertz per second. Meaning that the
Advantages of AC/DC motors:
1 One huge advantage of a dc motor is that these motors can be used in cars, much, much easier than ac motors. In order to use an ac motor in a car you would have to use rectifiers, and diodes to convert the ac to dc current.
2 An advantage ac induction motors have over dc motors is that dc motors require brushes, and commutators, two things which decrease the life of the motor, and can also limit the speed the motor can turn.
Conductors: What makes a good conductor is any material which has a large number of electrons making it up. Plastic for example does not have a lot of electrons already in it, which is why it does not conduct electricity. Copper on the other hand is a good conductor because it is made up of lots of electrons throughout the metal.
Voltage
Voltage is the potential amount of charge per coulomb available to the electrons moving between two terminals.
Why is higher voltage better for transmission of electricity?:
In order to move electricity you must have the right conductor, and it must be large enough to carry the load of energy which you must move. Say you are trying to move 10,000 watts of energy from here to Montpelier, the equation would look something like:
Watts = Volts X Amps. If you were to have high amps, and run at the standard voltage which you receive in your house, 120, then the amps would have to be very high, and the line you would have to run your energy through would be massive, which would cause huge energy losses everywhere, particularly through heat. So instead let's say we use very high voltage, and low amperage(more pressure) than the wire can be thinner, and more energy will be saved through less heat, and energy required to move through such a large piece of metal. So instead of having a large conductor for the electrons to flow through, you have a small conductor, but you have lots of pressure (volts) pushing the electrons through the conductor. The equation would look something like 100,000 = 120a X 833.333
Solar array
For a large portion of the 4th quarter I studied how solar panels work. My goal by the end of the quarter was to install a small array. I planned to do this with 6, 6 volt panels, and put them on top of my mom's bus, or my sister's cabin. Currently I have reached the point where I understand how the panels work, and how to wire in series in order to receive 12 volts, instead of 6 from each panel. Unfortunately I have not installed the array on anything but my dad's wooden decked trailer. Until I figure out where the panels would work best, I am going to leave them on my father's trailer.
Below is a picture of two panels which I wired in series. The output is slightly over 12 volts, instead of slightly over 6 which is what a single panel produces by itself.
How solar panels work
1 There are two sides of a solar panel. The N side and the P side. These two sides are both made up of silicon, and crystal mixed together (these two substances do not conduct well). The atoms of these are held together by strong bonds, preventing the movement of current through the material.
2 The difference is that the N side of the panel, which also appears on the bottom, is a type of silicon lacking electrons. The P side, which is on the top, is a different type of silicon, which has extra electrons.
3 When the sunlight, in the form of photons shoots down from the sun, and hits the solar panel at the right force and angel it can knock one of the electrons from the P side out of the bond which it is in, leaving a hole, which will immediately get filled once again by the returning electrons coming through the N side, thus completing the circuit.
4 When the photon hits the panel the electron which is knocked free and upon connecting a resistor to the panel, the free electron will flow from the P side (electrons) through the conductor, and into the resistor where its energy is used, and it can then return to form a bond by finding a hole where a different electron was just dislodged by a photon.
Solar array
Below is a picture of two, 1' X 4' solar panels which I have wired in series. If these panels were not wired ins series the fluke meter would only produce around 6 volts. Now, the panels are wired together which allows them to produce over 12 volts.
Solar array
Below is a picture of the completed solar array, wired together in series. All that is left to do it connect the positives, and negatives together, and the wire them to the resistor which we will be charging (12 volt batteries). If my sister decides she wants electricity at her cabin, this small array can easily be moved, and installed on her cabin.