SECOND TERM - JOURNAL ENTRY 2

                                                         AMELIE

        I want to introduce one of my favorite movies “Amelie.” It moved me so much that I have watched it several times. Briefly, it is a French movie made in 2001 directed by Jean Pierre Jeunet. It is about a girl named Amelie who is really optimistic and hopeful. She is misdiagnosed with a heart condition when she is a child so she couldn’t attend to school. That’s why she doesn’t have any friends. She creates her own fantasy world and friends. Later on, she becomes a young woman and starts working as a waitress in Paris. One day she finds a lost treasure box which belongs to the former occupant of her apartment. Then, she decides to return it to him anonymously. When she sees the man’s reaction and happiness she decides to devote her life to the people around her.

      She enjoys small pleasures in life like skimming stones on the water, plunging her hand deep into a sack of grain, cracking crème brulee with a teaspoon and looking at people’s faces in the dark. She likes these small things because she is aware of the fact that one doesn’t necessarily need money, power or fame to be happy. I think this part makes the movie more realistic and sincere.

     When it comes to acting of the lead role I can say that Audrey Tautou is the best choice for the role of Amelie. First of all, she has a perfect smile. When she smiles it gives you hope, peace and joy. Secondly, she uses her mimics flawlessly and the way she looks at someone is expressive. Lastly, she has all necessary qualities to play the leading role in a movie.

    All in all, I think this movie is like a modern version of Pollyanna story. It gives you hope and courage whenever you watch it. Above all, it gives the idea that if you appreciate little things in life happiness is not hard to achieve.

This is my favorite scene from the movie. Hope you enjoy it ! :)

                      SECOND TERM - JOURNAL ENTRY 1

                                                    
                                        "THE USERS” OF TECHNOLOGY

    Technology has been such an indispensible part of our life that probably one cannot think a life without it. People benefit from technology for almost everything in every field of their life. However , the way one uses technology varies from person to person.So we can categorize people according to how they use technology : techno-freaks , technology-users , technology-ignorant.

    Techno-freaks are the people who know everything about technology and technological devices. They absolutely have an answer whatever you ask about technology and they can talk about it for hours without getting bored.You can always recognize these people as their appearances reveal their characteristics.For example they usually wear round wire-rimmed glasses and their hairs are unkempt. So when you see one of them in your daily life you can describe him as "crazy" . Techno-freaks do not have many friends as their best and most loyal friends are computers. They rarely communicate with other people and when they do it the only thing they talk about is again technology.

     The second group is technology-users , who benefit from technology only when they need. They think that technology makes their life easier and one can use it whenever he needs.Yet , these people do not allow the technology to capture them. In other words they are not the one who are shackled by technology but  the one who dominate technology. They also esteem very highly their relationships with other people and their social life. For this reason technology cannot make them asocial people. These characteristics make them concious users of technology and they do not face any problems with technological improvements.

      The last group , technology-ignorant are the one who know little about technology but try to use it in every field of their life. They alwas need help to make use of technology as using technology is the hardiest thing in their life. This results from their own ignorant as they do not make any effort to understand how the techology works. So they always fall behind with technological improvements.They actually make life harder instead of making it easier by closing their eyes to new improvements in technology.

       To sum up , Neither should we put the technology in the centre our lives nor turn our behind it as it is a necesity in our modern world. Also we should realize the pros and cons of technology and we should not only stay away from its bad sides but also make good use of its facilities.

                                                                       

                                                                                                                                                                                                   Hale Albayrak

I commented on 2 friends' journals and 2 friends' reflections.

http://serifbaltaci.blogspot.com/2012/10/what-ideal-university-for-me-is-metu.html?showComment=1358713277116#c4407136338455284225

http://zeynepeda.blogspot.com/2012/12/reflective-journal-2-pianist.html

http://tbcan.blogspot.com/2013/01/journal-8video-reflection-4.html

http://elifaydn.blogspot.com/2012/10/i-change-with-metu.html

                                             ERROR CORRECTION


1) When I first heard that I had been accepted to Middle East Technical University, I was disappointed because I do not like Ankara as a city. However, my opinion has dramatically changed over time as Middle East Technical University is really a different world in Ankara.

2) It has been only a month since I came here. However, I got used to this environment because people at all ages respect each other here.

3) I love Ankara, my dormitory, my new friends and my department. I am content with everything which belongs to METU.

4)  If someone wants to walk, he or she can wander around and it is a nice place to meet friends.

5) We can easily see this by watching TV, surfing on the internet or just looking around us. There are many people who graduated from different kinds of universities but they are not even able to know what is going on around the or they do not even try to find good ways to improve the countries where they live.

               JOURNAL ENTRY 2 REVISED VERSION

     METU is like another lovely city in Ankara with its beautiful campus. Being a part of this feels so good as I have always dreamed about it.

  In METU we have lots of facilities to improve ourselves, to socialize or to specialize in our fields. In other words, it gives countless opportunities to make us more sophisticated and easy-going. A great many examples can be given for it. Firstly, we have a huge and well-equipped library which provides a lot of materials and access to all kinds of information. Secondly, campus supplies almost everything that anybody needs. It is a rare feature that few universities have. Lastly, there are many kinds of clubs here and they enable us to meet other people, make new friends and be a part of something. Anyone can find at least one club that appeals to him. When we think about intellectual advantages of being a METU student, we can say that “English as a language of education” is a big opportunity. In this way students will be one step ahead in their field when trying to make a career. Besides all these good features there are hardships too. Courses are so hard and it is the biggest challenge for me as I have to study hard every time. However, when I think my future career this challenge becomes less important to me.

   Overall, being a METU student is a great thing and every single day I spend here will be an unforgettable experience. It means more than a university for me.

                     

                 JOURNAL ENTRY 3 REVISED VERSION

       University is such an important part of our lives that we have always dream about it since high-school’s first years. Everyone has different images in their minds when they think about their ideal university. I can count some specific characteristics of my ideal university.

     First of all, campus should be big and full of green area since such a nice place always makes me peaceful. People that are living in this campus are also an important factor for me. I want them to be open-minded, cheerful and friendly. In this way they can express themselves freely. Moreover, my ideal university has all the necessary materials and facilities for my profession. It helps me to improve myself on every hand. It creates me a free environment to make my dreams come true. Apart from these, it has lots of social activities and clubs. Thus, students find opportunity to socialize and get away from the stress of the courses. Lastly, it provides accommodation for all students so that no one faces any troubles to find a place to stay.

     When I this compare METU with my ideal university I can say that it fits almost all my criteria as it is one of the best universities in terms of academic and social life. It offers everything that a student will need.

VIDEO REFLECTION 3

                                                               

                                              

                                                 THE MISSING

    Casta-Gavras (the director of the film) tried to stay away from political polemic and exhibited an attitude like a dramatic document in this film. It took place North America where military stroke affected life severely. When preparing this film, the director combined with the book by Thomas Hauser and the even which is about Charles Harman that was killed in Chile during a military stroke.

      Even though it took place in Chile, at first it started in Santiago whose regions were full of soldiers, frightened children faces, fires and at the same time people drinking their champagne.

  Beth (Sissy Spacek) started some researches to find her lost journalist husband Charles Harman. Even Ambassadorship couldn’t help her. Later, Charles Harman’s patriot and conservative father Ed Harman joined the research. But the clues they had made him think that his son was killed because of some political reasons.

     After the period that waking up after a long and deep “sleep” the action of the film increased reasonably. “The Missing” reminds people the pain they had and affects them like being slapped.

    I really liked the story of the film as it was interesting for me. Also, actors’ performances were praiseworthy. The message given in the film about America was notably effective. Actually, I don’t like politic or political films but this film attracted my attention. So I watched it without being bored. As you see in the trailer it is an old movie but don’t be prejudice because of it. I am sure you will like it.