Débora #7 – Being Normal (Updated)

People, at least one day in their existence, will ask themselves if they are really normal and what normality is, because the concept is so subjective. What is normal for me can be abnormal for another person. Besides, it’s impossible to live according to other people’s expectations.
According to dictionaries, one of the concepts is that normality is to live according to the rules, which begs the question about what the dictionary refer to as “rules.”

Surfing on the Internet, I’ve found a lot of blogs, pages where people inquired about the concept of normality. After a lot of explanations and rambling, the consensus was that the best definition for normality is to live according to the rules of the society that the person lives in at the moment.

For example, it’s chilling for me to think of a man who is married to ten women. After all, it’s allowed and normal in Arabia, but in Brazil, where I live, in spite of it not being legal, it’s weird, freaky and hard to accomplish. Managing a relationship with only one person is already difficult. Only one person can monopolize all time, asking for attention, demanding time to be with, being jealous with friends. Besides it´s costly: presents for Valentine´s day, Birthday, Anniversary, Christmas and something else that commerce can contrives.

Let me clarify something, by society i don´t mean only different places, countries and cities, it also depends on people beliefs. Veja São Paulo Magazine, two weeks ago published an article about Jewish people in São Paulo, precisely in Higienopolis neighborhood. It has portrayed how they live, their habits inside and out their homes, their relationships. Practicing “Hassidicos” Jewish Orthodox follow word by word the Commandments of “Torá” and “Talmude” at the same time – both Jewish Sacred Book which it means a lot of rules, restrictions and above it all, respect to “Shabat”, a period prayers and rest that commence on Friday sunset until the beginning of following night. In this period of time, it’s totally forbidden to generate any kind of energy that’s why they can’t not even press the button of the elevator or use any kind of vehicle, that’s why we usually can see them walking down the streets going to the Temples. Men dressing dark clothes and hat, long beard and sideburns while women must use clothes that hide neck, knees, elbows and for the married one wigs. Dates or any kind of touch are totally prohibited before marriage. Hand shaking also. They start splitting sexes since the kindergarten, boys in one school and girls in another. Inside the Temples, when they grow up is not different, men close to the altar and women in a different room. They don’t eat pork, seafood and they also don’t mix at the same meal, meat with dairy. All variety of food must be prepared with rabbi supervision. This is a complete normal behavior for “Hassidicos” Orthodox Jewish but for people like me, this is a total parallel world which I must say that I respect, but I can´t say it´s normal at least for me.

Another example of normality involves an English teacher of mine, who used to work as a life guard in his college years. He told me that one day, instead of saving a drowning child, he preferred to save a dog who had jumped into the ocean to save the kid. People on the beach that day probably wanted to kill him, labeling him as rebellious and heartless. If this behavior is normal, who am I to judge? After all my teacher is a dog’s lover. Let me say in different words, if everyone worried only about kids, who would take care of dogs? Is the life of a human being more important than the life of a dog?

Therefore, living with and according to so many rules is really irksome. In other words, it is better to be yourself as long as you don’t hurt anyone. Maybe people will look at you as a rebel, but then again, who cares?

HELLO GUYS

This is just a reminder that we are closing the blog now. From today on, we should be focusing on your final exams. I am quite happy at the progress all of you have made during this bimester. Congratulations. Rick

Ana – Portfolio #3

The placebo effect is taken in great skepticism among people.Scientist and doctors have been trying to prove its miracle mechanism even though they haven’t yet been proved by the current science. Several illnesses and health problems solved have been attributed to this powerful sugar pill, but there still are contradictions of what has caused it.

The Latin word, placebo, means “I shall please,” which denotes a positive meaning. This placebo treatment is mostly known as a sham medical intervention that leads the patient to believe in its effectiveness and, mysteriously sometimes the illness is cured. For example, according to a study of gastric and duodenal ulcers, placebo treatments, in many cases, were as effective as active drugs: Of the 1692 patients treated in 31 trials, 76% of the 916 treated with the drug were healed, and 48% of the 776 treated with placebo were also healed.

On the other hand, in 2001, a published study showed no evidence of important placebo effects, except in the treatment of subjective outcome, such as pain. Despite the contradictions, there are two main theories about how placebo effect takes place. First, it is believed that what occurs is a positive belief from the patient in which the treatment works and he will be healed; as a result, the patient tends to be biased and he really feels better,which shows an important role of the brain in the treatment of illnesses.

The second theory is that the positive effect caused by the placebo treatment is simply a conditioned response of the patient to the treatment. This conditioned response is a proven result of Pavlov’s experiment, where he rang a bell before giving food to a dog several times and after some time, when he just rang the bell the dog would salivate because he would associate the bell’s ring with receiving food, although there was no food stimulus whatsoever. Similarly, from conversations with the doctor, articles read, comments of other people, or any previous experience, the patient is led to believe that something is going to happen and it triggers his nervous system response.

In contrast, there are many religious people who believe that the placebo effect is nothing more or less than God’s invisible hand choosing their lives outcome. Meanwhile, other people think that placebo effect does not exist, and it’s simply a natural progression of the disease. In spite of all beliefs, what cannot be denied is that the placebo effect really occurs and it’s better to believe on it, so we may have this chance to be cured. As Shakespeare stated: “there are more things in heaven and earth, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.”

Fernanda – # 7

Botox injections should not be offered for free because many people will use without care about the side effects.
Nowadays everybody is looking more and more for news procedures for being always youth, and in the most of the cases without worry about the side effects that could be happen. In the last years Botox for cosmetic use became a new trend. Botox is a
substance that causes a disease, but when is used in very little portions is able to correct some changes that occurs in our body, for instance, crow’s feet. In otherwise, when we start to use BOTOX indiscriminately, could be transformed in a real problem because this use have a lot of side effects, like bruises, lack of facial expression , and weak muscles.
For example, Rosa Maria, who is a director at the company where I used to work for, have used Botox once in her crow’s feet, she loved the result and didn’t want wait the necessary time to do another application, as a consequence, her left eye stayed paralyzed for 4 or 5 months.
Therefore, Botox injections should not be offered for free.

Karla #10 Parents Should Pick Up Their Children

Parents should pick up their children at school because it is a great opportunity to talk about what have been happened during kid’s routine  and sensitive situation.

Sometimes parents don’t realize how is important to pick up their children at school instead of sending a driver or a maid to so. Actually, the moment that children have gotten back home with their parents, should be a great opportunity to them to talk about what have been happened during kid’s routine. For instance, Sarah Bell, 33, had picked James up since his first day at school. In fact, James, 10, Sarah’s son had been studied at a small school located in Campinas. However, Sarah had the chance to talk with the teachers at the end of the class to follow up what her son had been learning during the time he spent in class. Furthermore, Sarah had given the support all the time that James had test, trying to help him on the subjects when he needed to improve the knowledge. Due to this habit to pick her son up at school, Sarah believed that she had the chance to raise her son with more quality also she had a wish that James would be a self-confidence boy being sure that her dedication would be forever.

 Parents should pick up their children at school trying to solve, as fast as they could a sensitive situation. Last year, on May, 15th, 2008, Corinne Smith, 39, had picked her youngest son up at school at noon.Joe, 5; smart boy had studied at an excellent school acknowledged as one of the best in Brazil. When Joe had came into the car, Corinne had noticed his damaged face and immediately asked about what had happened to him trying to find the cause of his red cheeks. So that, Joe had told his mother that he was seated on the floor together with his classmates paying attention to the music class. By leaps and bounds Tyrone a classmate, who had a penchant for aggressive boy, had held Joe down struggling to hit his face without giving any chance to react. At the same moment all class started to scream loud also the incensed teacher had clutched Tyrone snatching him away of the classroom. According to this fact, Corinne had talked to the school’s coordinator, stating her position as a mother who believed that moral compass stemmed from the family and this aggressive boy Tyrone might have risen as peasants. Even the coordinator had tried to solve this sensitive situation together with Corinne; nothing would recover Joe’s pain. Children’s relationship boil down to respect.

 In conclusion, children feel care for when parents pick them up at school over and over again.

Fernanda – Portfolio #3

When I was 10 years old, I used to live with my mother and my grandmother in a good place at Aclimação, our lives worked very well, but we lived in a rent apartment and we had to deliver it. My grandmother had an apartment at the same neighborhood, smaller, but at that moment the apartment was empty, then we decided to move there.
The building was in a beautiful area, very near of Parque da Aclimação and very near of my School, in the building have playground, a big pool, and a lot of children at the same age as I was. As a consequence, when we moved to this apartment I start to live in a different way, the fist change was a possibility for me to walk alone to school, making me feel more independent, the second was that I started to make new friends, and spent all the afternoon, after do my homework, together with them playing at the playground and in the pool, and the third one was passed from the childhood to adolescence realized through physical changes on my body, sentimental changes on my mind. Was also at that moment when I was in love for the first time.
At that time, I was 12 years old and he was 16, and his name is Alexandre. His brother Junior and his sister Lú used to be my best friends and we spent all the time together, but not him, he was very introspective and at times a little unfriendly, but in fact he was very shy, and I think that was what called my attention, because in reality this bad mood was a kind of protection and he was a sweet person.
I used to be a teenager completely in love, doing anything to see him at least a little everyday, thinking about the possibility of kissing him someday. One day it really happens, I remember the day I kissed him for the first time until now. He used to play football in the afternoon, then about 4 pm his mother went pick him up, as usual, his brothers and I stayed at playground waiting for them, he always arrived and went directly to his apartment, but not that afternoon, he stayed with us, we started to talk and unexpectedly he asked me If I would like to dating him, it was everything that I wanted to. We went to stairways of the first floor and the expected kiss happened, I was very happy, excited with the situation, and afraid at the same time, a mix of new sensations for me.
After that we don’t start dating, and until today I really don’t know way, but we become very friends. For a long period, our lives have gone different ways, and 3 years ago he has become my husband.

Paula – Portfolio 3

General Motors and the hope of tax payer’s

The USA and the whole world are facing a big and severe crisis. It had started in the “heart” of the global economy, the United States. Its president, Barack Obama, is doing lots of effort to try to prevent the total loss of credibility and money in the north america economy.

Criticism will always exist, like what happened when the presindent helped General Motors with tax payer’s money. If he hadn’t done this, problems probably would get worst, and maybe the US would be facing a heavier recession than is facing now. In this case the government’s intervention was necessary to avoid the collapse of GM. It could have provoked a new wave of banks shutting down. Also, GM will become more competitive, with new and modern cars.

But these critics that spreaded out has a point that should be analyzed very carefully. If GM restructure succesfully, it’ll benefit the american economy, and the government will make profit, but if the opposite happen the economy can be damaged, and the tax payer’s as well.

The american society will, from now on, look very closely to these process of trying to re-emerge the company, longing for good news.

Débora – Portfolio #2 – That Afternoon

It was winter of 1998, precisely June 3rd. I was in my last year of Law School in my last week of classes before the finals exams. As I used to work as a trainee in a Law Office in Santo Amaro, on that specific week, I wanted to finish my job as quickly as possible and go to the library one hour before the beginning of classes in order to study a little bit and solve all my doubts with the teacher before the finals.

But that day, I don´t know what happened to my inflexible and intolerant boss, who had told me the week before that I would be able to leave the office one hour before the usual time until the end of the semester. Even though there was not much work to do and we were great about deadlines, he didn’t allow me to leave the office earlier that day.

As a consequence, there I was, stuck in the middle of that terrible traffic jam in front of Ibirapuera Park at the time I was suppose to be in class solving all my doubts. Minutes went by, and I couldn’t move my car for even 10 meters. I can’t remember the music playing on my radio, but I remember that, despite my stress, I was singing and dancing — assuming it is possible to do that in a moving vehicle — and then I saw THE guy in a S-10 pick up on my right side, staring at me.

I didn’t know if it was because he thought I was crazy, dancing and singing out loud, or if I was pretty or both. Later on, he told me he was looking at my car, a S-10 extended pick-up, asking himself if he did a good job buying a S-10 regular pick-up instead of the extended one, when he noticed the driver of the pick-up and then looked at me. He smiled at me and got a smile back. Encouraged by the response, he started to mime so as to discover my cellphone number. He was a good looking, charming guy, and owned a nice car I have to admit. He was only asking for my number. As soon as I gave him the number, he called me back at the same time. We started talking, just an innocent flirt.

I ended up missing class, which I didn’t mind at all. What can I say, exactly seven years later, June 3rd, 2005 we got married. In other words, Prince Charming does exist but don´t expect to meet him necessarily in a ball or at a party: he can be anywhere.

Débora – Portfolio #1 – Description

I´m a 32 year old woman with blond, chin-length hair. It´s not as straight as I wish, but it´s fine. I have hazel eyes, turning from blue to green and sometimes to gray depending on my mood.
My pink cheeks always gives away my mood, which is not always so pleasing. Pimples come and go. I wish I could have a full mouth like Angelina Jolie, but I´m happy with my regular lips. I´m not slim neither fat, just call me average. I´m working on it, because nobody deserves a flabby and fat body, right? Like people say, “You weren´t born like this.”

Paula – Portfolio 2

Life after death

People need to believe that there is something after death. For certain persons it’s a need to continue living. The humanity, long ago, and actually nowadays have always strongly believe in Paradise. It’s natural to have faith in existence when the body is gone for good. The soul continues to exist somewhere.

 A common belief between religions throughout the world is that life exists after death. Obviously, it is easier to cope with diseases, and the threat of death if the person believes there is something else. It is mainstream that human mind plays a big role in the heal of an illness, or the opposite, its deterioration, so this belief can be very positive. It has a strong power in the cells and in the metabolism in general.  Psychologists and psychiatries acknowledge that it decreases the fear of people who are passing through distress situations. The power of imagination is really overwhelming.

Groups of people who lives under strict regimen, and with life in danger most of time, like in a refugee field, might believe they’ll be free and safe after death. Sometimes it works as a relief  for them, not to be insane, living in threatening conditions.

So, people should believe there is something after death, for faith reasons and also to increase their well-being, mentally and emotionally.