Portfolio Cover Letter

To whom it may concern,

My name is Ethan Cunningham. I am an 18 year first year student in college. All my life I hated school, primarily English. It was the first challenging that in my life that I could not grasp and excel at. I have done taekwondo, soccer, football, and even made the rank Eagle Scout but i couldn’t write a simple essay. It was always very hard for me because i really could never express myself on paper or even out loud. The subject has never been graspable to me and the frustration did not help. I found out that with frustration came the overload and eventually the shutdown. I just couldn’t do it. I would shut down and eventually fail the assignment. However, this year in English definitely helped me open up and add emotion into my work. I did breakdown, but I said to myself “I can do this” and picked myself up by the bootstraps and completed the assignments. Creating this portfolio angered me, frustrated me, made me hate myself, and eventually broke me. However, it also made me realize all the errors i was making and once i picked myself up, I managed to correct my mistakes on my essays and made them into works that i am very proud of. I am confident that I have excelled in English, and in school in general, after this semester.

My first essay that i chose to add into the portfolio was my “Place Proposal” essay. This assignment I feel was the best essay i have written this year. In this essay, I talk about adding solar panel walkways as a better means for my community to create electricity which would reduce the money being used. This saved money could then be used to repair roads and public buildings. I strongly feel positive about this idea and actually plan to bring this up to the town. Growing up in my hometown really makes me appreciate nature and I see the destruction that these businesses in my town are doing which makes me want to do anything i can to help.

My second essay i chose was my “Memoir” essay. This essay talks about my family and what i go through basically every day. I talk in this piece about the hardships i face in my household. I tell about my “solution” to fighting these problems. I tell about my daily routine to avoid the problem and i go into great detail which makes the reader picture the scene and picture themselves in that scenario causing them to feel the pain i felt. This piece is a very personal and emotional essay and when I was revamping this essay for the portfolio, I found the pain, the suffering, the emotions, and the questions and put it all into this essay. I chose this piece second because in formality, it is definitely not the best. But, I feel, it scores high numbers in emotion and in making the reader feel the pain i felt during the stories i told.

My final essay i chose to add was my “Shopping Ethnography” because i actually found this to be a very confusing and more of an “odd ball” essay. The goal was to observe and collect data of a business and their customers to report their behavior. I could not wrap my head around the objective. Regardless, I still feel that with the graspable parts of the objective I created a rather good essay and discovered the relations of people patterns and their personality.

English is probably one of the hardest subjects in school for me especially the essay aspect of it. There is no changing that for me. However, this semester has taught me a couple tricks here and there that can help benefit me in English and when writing an essay. One of those tricks is that you cant make an essay without adding passion. This class taught me how to channel my emotions and passions, and put in on paper. I will always be grateful for this class and will use what i learned this semester in all my other writing later in my life.

Thank you, Ethan Cunningham

(Place Proposal) Essay 1

My hometown of Freetown is considered a town in the countryside. There are many farms, fields, and forest and is a very quiet area. Until about 10-15 years ago, many industrial businesses have opened up in the town created pollution and also partaking in deforestation. As a residence of Freetown and also growing up here, I am appalled at what is happening to my town. Although I cannot force these businesses to leave, I know there is something else I can do. That idea is creating solar energy. My plan is to create solar panel sidewalks that will decrease the cost for street lamps, and also create profit for the state to be given to public buildings.

Solar Energy has been a trend for about 15 years but sadly the idea of solar energy has been around for a very long time. In 1839, Alexandre Edmond Becquerel discovered that certain material that produced electricity when exposed to solar rays. In 1876, another man by the name of William Grylls Adams discovered something even greater. In an article by the state of california, they said, “William Grylls Adams, who, with his student, Richard Evans Day, discovered in 1876 that a solid material – selenium – produced electricity when exposed to light. Selenium photovoltaic cells were converting light to electricity at 1 to 2 percent efficiency (History of Solar Energy in California 6-8). It took more than 100 years before we gathered the data from these men and started to create an alternative power source.

Yes, we have seen solar panels in fields, but sidewalks?? Well, its not impossible in fact its been done! In the Netherlands, they have already created solar walkways for walkers and bicyclists which has been way beyond the definition of good. According to sciencealert.com, within six months of the 70-metre test bike path, they have generated 3,000 kWh, or by their standards, enough electricity to power a small household for a year. If 70-metre of solar panel walkway can power a home, then how much can an entire town’s worth of walkways generate? This project would be even more profitable in big cities where there are no trees to block the sunlight. Also, by using the power from the solar sidewalk to light street lamps and local public buildings, the extra money saved could go towards road work and other constructions. Along with money saving, creating a project of filling a town with solar panels requires a lot of manpower which would open up job spots. Even after all these positive facts, there are still more! The cost of installing solar panels is actually decreasing every year. In 2016, the average cost of solar panels are $12,500 which is 12% lower than last year.

There are so many benefits to solar energy being used as a primary electricity source. From cost reduction to light public building and street lamps to creating more jobs solar panels have been proven to be better than the way of gathering electricity now. Solar Panels are not cheap to install, however within a few years of the installation you will end up being profitable from it. It could even be sooner than that if you depending on the amount of sunlight each town would be receiving. By having these solar sidewalks, we will be creating more electricity than ever before while also being environmentally cleaner.

 

Works Cited:

“History of Solar Energy in California – Go Solar California.” History of Solar Energy in California – Go Solar California, www.gosolarcalifornia.ca.gov/about/gosolar/california.php.

MacDonald, Fiona. “The Solar Road in the Netherlands Is Working Even Better Than Expected.” ScienceAlert, www.sciencealert.com/solar-roads-in-the-netherlands-are-working-even-better-than-expected.

Matasci, Sara. “What is the Average Cost of Solar Panels in the U.S.?” EnergySage, 2016, news.energysage.com/how-much-does-the-average-solar-panel-installation-cost-in-the-u-s/. 

(Memoir) Essay 2

You ever walk down the street and speed walk past the alley to your side? Yeah, that’s what my house is like. I don’t know why, but I don’t like talking to my parents a lot. Its mostly during the week when i get home late because I don’t like dealing with the usual drama in my house. Most days when I walk in ill hear something that i instinctively know as bad. What do you mean you lost your homework?!  I hear my mother yelling at my sister in the dining room. I quickly, yet quietly, head upstairs to my room where it only softens my mothers voice to a whisper. These yelling nights don’t end very well for me. Suddenly, I hear her shoes come up the stairs. Oh crap not me. I listen carefully in hopes I don’t hear the footsteps get closer but sadly they do. I still have hope that she will take a sharp right before my door on the left side of the hall into the laundry room. My door swings open, “And what about you mister where is your homework?!? What about that laundry i told you to do?”. Yup, today is one of those days.

I usually get home at around 6:00 pm from work and pull up to the front door and sit for a little. Then i get all the stuff i need from my car, walk up the front steps, take a deep breath, and open the door. I immediately look to my left to see if anyone is in the living room (sadly they usually are not) and walk forward past the walkway. Once i do that, i walk through the hallway and bank a sharp right up the stairs, making a quick glance beforehand to my left to see if anyone is in the kitchen or further down in the dining room. Then, once i am at the top of the stairs, i race past my parents bedroom door on my left, and take another sharp right down the hallway all the way to my room. Then i shut the door so fast, that sometimes i hit my foot and turn on the AC. I always hate when the room is quiet. I pull out the books i need to study, sit at my computer desk, put on my headphones, and get to work. About 3 hours in i start to get thirsty. By this time, my sisters are both sleeping and mom is usually in her room reading a book. My dad was easy to avoid since he was usually in the living room watching TV. I get down the end of the hallway and peek my head around the corner down the stairs into the kitchen. The lights are off so no one is there. I leap past my mother’s room down the stairs and into the kitchen. I grab a glass and pour some water. I know my dad likes to know who is in the kitchen, so before he peaks his head from the living room,  I clear my throat loudly to indicate my presence and head back upstairs into my room. Once again I leap past my mother’s room to complete the final obstacle and after that I know I am clear.

Living this way isn’t so bad but it’s not so good either. Living this way makes me resilient when it comes to life. I don’t let little bumps in the road affect me. However, i don’t really grasp emotion well and that sometimes worries me. I don’t really care about how my parents are feeling today or how my sister handled that bully in school. I don’t even know if my sister WENT to school. Some mornings I will go downstairs to find her on her computer because there was no school. Living this way will help me handle the hardships in life but i worry about when i am starting a life with someone. What if I have my kids come to me with problems and I don’t care? I simply handle my problems without incorporating emotions into it. All I ever think of when I come face to face with a problem is that soon I will be back in my room to shut the door.

Shopping Ethnography (Essay 3)

Patterns are everywhere. From the movies you like to the colors you prefer. However many people do not realize that your trends can also define you as a person. Trends can tell people your style, how you act, and even what you probably wouldn’t like if presented to you. To prove this, I have taken the time to study the individuals who stumble into a small coffee shop in the side streets of Fairhaven. My goal is to determine how the trends of their purchases are also a way of determining a person’s personality.

The outside of the store is one that does not quite seem like a business. It is a rather small building crammed between two other houses. The only thing that makes it stand out is the big open flag. Toward the bottom left, is a small metal container that holds books that the public can borrow whenever they please. The store is a small rectangular shaped building with tables and chairs along with a small couch and a side table. The walls are painted tan and the flooring is wood. On one of the walls, is a big TV that plays movies, or has games for people to play on. This is the building of a local coffee shop and bakery called “The Nook”. The atmosphere is pointed toward the younger, and more sociable group of individuals.

The average customer from “The Nook” are very sociable beings. A typical age is from 18-30, many of the older customers bringing children with them. Many are very friendly and will even start conversations with you. The employees are also very sociable and always talk to you with eye contact and a smile. A few customers however seemed to be anti-social and wouldn’t even make eye contact with the employee. Also, after observation must antisocial customers were out of the 18-30 range, being around 40+.  They would answer questions or statements with one or two word answers. I also realized that the antisocial group had a relatively similar product they would buy while the more sociable group had a different product.

The two products are coffee. Now while coffee itself is the same, the type of coffee bought by each group were different. For the social group, they typically buy something called either “the buzz” or “the mocha madness”. Both drinks were high levels of caffeine. The buzz has over 4 times the amount of caffeine than regular coffee! While the buzz clearly has that name for a reason, the mocha madness is almost similar. Instead of high levels of caffeine, it is replaced with high levels of Godiva chocolate. Both coffees are very sweet coffees at that. Meanwhile, the antisocial, older group have a different style of coffee they choose. The crazy combination they choose is… regular. Yes just regular coffee. No flavors, sometimes not even sugar or something to dilute the coffee such as cream or milk.

My observation has been very successful. With the data i collected from the sociable group age 18-30 and the antisocial group ages 40+ about 90% stuck to the hypothesized trend. Therefore, younger, sociable people tend to have sweeter, more flavorful coffee while the antisocial older class tend to have a bitter, non flavored cup of coffee. This leads me to believe that by having a sweeter, flavorful coffee, you tend to be a more outgoing person where as having a regular style of coffee tends to keep you more introverted. Thus, the conclusion that depending on the purchases a person chooses, you can identify their personality.

The Place Where I Live

You ever walk down the street and speed walk past the alley to your left? Yeah, that’s what my house is like. I don’t know why, but i don’t like talking to my parents a lot. Its mostly during the week when i get home late because i don’t like dealing with the usual drama in my house. When i get home at 6:00pm, i get all the stuff i need from my car, take a deep breathe, and open the door. I immediately look to my left to see if anyone is in the living room (sadly they usually are not) and walk forward past the walkway. Once i do that, i walk through the hallway and bank a sharp right up the stairs, making a quick glance beforehand to my left to see if anyone is in the kitchen or further down in the dining room. Then, once i am at the top of the stairs, i race past my parents bedroom door on my left, and take another sharp right down the hallway all the way to my room. Then i shut the door so fast, that sometimes i hit my foot and turn on the AC. I always hate when the room is quiet. I pull out the books i need to study, sit at my computer desk, put on my headphones, and get to work. About 3 hours in i start to get thirsty. By this time, my sisters are both sleeping and mom is usually in her room reading a book. My dad was easy to avoid since he was usually in the living room watching TV. I get down the end of the hallway and peek my head around the corner down the stairs into the kitchen. The lights are off so no one is there. I leap past my mother’s room down the stairs and into the kitchen. I grab a glass and pour some water. I know my dad likes to know who is in the kitchen, so before he peaks his head from the living room,  i clear my throat loudly to indicate my presence and head back upstairs into my room. Once again i leap past my mother’s room and i know from there i am clear.

The Place Where I Live

Freetocfiles45345wn is the place where i live. It is not a tourist town, but rather an adventurous one. Every path in the woods leads to a mystery. Even the locals such as myself always find a new path that leads deeper into the dark and mysterious woods. The woods are not to be taken likely. Once you dream off, the woods take you into a place no other have gone. Freetown is a sacred place once belonging to the Wampanoag tribe and there are legends that the spirit of the great chief Massasoit lives inside profile rock. There are other proof of the existence of this tribe in the woods such as a 3 foot wall stretching over 50 feet which marked the boundary of the tribe. Everytime i go to profile rock or the wall, i can still feel their presence on the land. It is a dark feeling of hatred and sorrow that i cannot evade. I feel as i am an intruder in the woods. The weather gets colder the deeper into the woods i enter. Sunlight is soon a thing of the past. There is only darkness and my thoughts in the woods. Not even the birds are chirping nor the squirrel that was picking at the tree for food. Everything is quiet and cold. I am alone with the spirits of the forest and i am not welcomeprofile_rock_assonet. Even when i ride my bike on a nice sunny day. There are parts of the ride where the warmth and brightness of the sun is gone and not even the tires on the pavement make a sound. I can only hear the music from my headphones but i can see the movement of the leaves on the trees grow louder and i feel a chill run up my arm and down my back. Almost against my will, i take off my headphones and now there is nothing. The leaves have stopped moving and there is no more wind. The forest finally has my attention. I look on both sides of me into the trees looking for anything, anything at all to let me know i’m not alone. But then i see the other side of the forest. Sometimes when i go it will be a cold fall breeze on my way to the path behind my house. The clouds fill the air and there is not much sunlight. As i go into the woods deeper and deeper, the sunlight shines so bright between the leaves. It is lighter in the woods than on my street. I will often see deer grazing in little clearings in the woods. Birds singing their morning songs and squirrels chasing one another. It is a place of bliss and serenity. As i travel through the woods i find a small opening covered with tall grass that has been patted down a while ago by a family of deer. As i lay on the patted down grass, i look up through the leaves of the trees into the open sky. Through the leaves i see only blue and can feel the rays of the sun slipping through the trees and onto my face warming me up. Soon the rays dissapear and it becomes colder in the forest. Dusk uncovers the veil of the darkness in the woods. Everytime i feel the darkness it feels stronger and stronger and I seem to run back home faster each day.

 

About Me

Since we have to do this, might as well go all out…Hello ladies and gentlemen and welcome to my blog. My name is Ethan, and i am 18 years old who plays soccer and PC gaming. I use to do Taekwondo and have been in two Junior Olympic tournaments and placed gold both years in fighting. Since then, i have stopped. I currently work at New Bedford Regional Airport and i am training to get my pilot’s license. I plan to either fly corporate or fly drones for either the military, or other companies such as Amazon, UPS, etc. Although i am American, the majority of my family is Portuguese and they all live on the island of São Miguel. As you can probably tell from my blog, i love streaming video games. I don’t know why, but i have always loved doing it. I love everything to do with computers. I currently have a $900 AMD computer that i build from scratch and i am planning to build a monster Intel computer that will be inside of a desk instead of a normal computer case. The whole project will cost between $1500-$2500 but it will be my final computer. Welp, that’s pretty much my entire life summed up in 200 words. How about you guys?

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Me @ São Miguel