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Going to college
Skipping college and trying to get a job right away
As the Author Wes prepared to jump out of a plane to start his paratrooper training, he thought about Colin Powell's book, My American Journey.
"Powell gave me another way to think about the American dilemma and, more than that, another way to think about my own life" (p.132).
The Author Wes had the opportunity to live with a family in South Africa and study abroad, and he took that opportunity.
"[Mama's] candor and exquisite simplicity framed the rest of my trip and helped me better understand the land I was living in" (p. 168).
Another main turning point for the Author was deciding to stay in Valley Forge. He went from a rebellious teen to a respectful and talented young man.
"The financial strain Valley Forge brought to my mother was lessened significantly after the first year when the school gave me academic, and later athletic, scholarships. I was a starter on the Valley Forge basketball team, the only sophomore on the starting squad that year and the first sophomore starter in over five years" (p. 115).
The author decided to stay in military school, and his decision really paid off.
"With the support of people like Cadet Captain Hill and the others in my chain of command and on the faculty, I'd actually started to enjoy military school... My back stood straight, and my sentences now ended with 'sir' or 'ma'am'. My military garrison cap was intentionally a size too big, forcing me to keep my head up, walking taller with every step" (p. 115).
When the Author Wes did miserably at Riverdale, mainly because he didn't bother to go to school most of the time, his mother decided to send him to Valley Forge Military School. He spent his first nights running away, but on the final night he ran away, he was allowed a phone call and after talking to his mother, he gave military school a shot. He decided to try it not only because his mom told him how proud of him she was, but also because he breifly met Colonel Ty Hill that night.
"I had never seen a man, a peer, demand that much respect from his people... This was real respect, the kind you can't beat or scare out of people" (p. 96).
Once I have a steady job, get married and start a family
Complete a college degree in computer programming and/or mechanical engineering and getting a good job.
When Wes's friend Shea pulled out a can of spray paint and asked Wes if he wanted to tag, Wes agreed without thinking of the consequenses. They almost got arrested and although Shea was perfectly calm, Wes was worried about what his mother would think.
"My relationship with my mother was in a strange place. My desperation for her support was in constant tension with my desperation for independence and freedom... In other words, I was a teenager, deathly fearful of of disappointing her but too prideful to act like it mattered" (p.82).
A major turning point in the Author Wes's life was his mother sending him to Riverdale. It was better than the public schools and paid more attention to his grades than the over-populated public schools would have.
"It was the sort of school you might find in a storybook, a fantasy for a public school kid... The ivy-covered buildings were like a promise to its students of what awaited them. It was the school John F. Kennedy attended as a child" (p.48).
My mom's decision to move from Milford, MA to Billerica, MA made the commute to my dad's apartment in Nashua, NH shorter. Because of the move, I was able to see my dad during the week.
My decision to join the CHS Robtics club allowed me to make new friends and be introduced to programming in C
The Author Wes's mother, Joy, felt that Wes would get a better education at Riverdale private school. Wes didn't agree with her.
"In the hood, your school affliliation was essential. Even if you weren't running with the coolest clique, you still got some of your percentage of your rep from your school, and the name Riverdale wasn't going to impress anyone" (p. 49).
My mom's decision to move from Billerica to Chelmsford started my current life in Chelmsford.
My decision to be a programmer in Robotics club allowed me to explore programming in C as a possible elective to take in the future and a possible career in the future.
Shortly after moving to the Bronx, the author decided to take a trip to the nearby basketball courts. There, he met some new people.
"These kids were different from my friends back in Maryland. I started to pick up on their lingo and style, the swagger of my new teammates and neighborhood friends" (p. 44).
My dad's decision to move back to Milford, MA from Nashua, NH made the commute from Billerica to Nashua longer, and I began to only visit my dad on the weekends, and during some vacations
In chapter 1, the author Wes Moore was forced to face the consequences of the doctors not taking his dad seriously when he went for help.
"My father had entered the hospital seeking help. But his face was unshaven, his clothes disheveled, his name unfamiliar, and his address not in an affluent area. The hospital looked at him in askance, insulted him with ridiculous questions, and basically told him to fend for himself. Now, my mother had to plan his funeral" (p. 15).
My parent's decision to get divorced caused me to grow up living primarily with my mom and visiting my dad
My decision to go to CHS instead of Nashoba Tech allowed me time to think about what I want to do with my life instead of jumping right into the decision that I had made at the time. I have changed my mind at least once since starting highschool.
The other Wes found drugs in his mother's closet and he decided to try them. He also found out that he can make a lot of money just by being a lookout, for drug dealers.
"...he realized how time seemed to stop when he was high, how the drug - smoking it, feeling it's effects, recovering from it - made him forget everything else. And he understood, faintly, how addictive that feeling could be... There was definetly money to be made" (p. 62).
After knowing of his father's absence for the first five years of his life, the Other Wes met his father, and he was exactly how his mother remembered.
"A man sat on the couch leaning precariously to the side, his right elbow supporting his body and his head nearly flat against his shoulder. The strong smell of whiskey wafted from his clothes and his pores...'Wes, meet your father' " (p.25).
When the Other Wes was punched in the face by a smaller kid during a game of street football, Wes was prepared to do anything to "settle the score."
"As Woody got closer, his attention was diverted form Wes's left hand to his right, where he held a long-bladed knife...Before Woody could tell Wes that the police were out back, Wes was on the other side of the front door, knife in hand, hurrying to settle the score with the boy who had busted his lip...one of the officers stepped forward. He lifted all eighty pounds of Wes off the ground, slamming him facefirst into the trunk of the police cruiser" (p. 33-34).
A major turning point for the Other Wes was joining the drug trade. Up until then, he had been skipping school and he got into a few fights, but it wasn't until he saw the kid with the cool headset that he really started to turn.
"You want one of these [headsets], it's pretty easy. All you have to do is wear one, and every time you see jakes [cops] roll by, you just push this button and say something" (p.58)
Attempt to teach myself Advanced C programming and maybe get an internship, but probably continue living at home.
When Tony figured out that Wes was in the drug game, he tried to get Wes to admit it, but Wes refused. Tony told Mary and although she didn't want to believe it, she searched Wes's room. Sure enough, she found drugs. She let it sink in for about 15 minutes, and then flushed the $4,000 worth of drugs that Wes was hiding down the toilet. When Wes came home, he was furious, and then worried.
"He owed money, but had no drugs to sell - he had to figure out how to make that money back quickly. The only way to do that was to go see his connects and hit the street again" (p.74).
Jump from low-paying job to low-paying job because I don't have a college degree and live at home for the rest of my life because I can't afford to live by myself and certainly wouldn't be able to support a family.
When a man named Ray beat up Wes, Wes grabbed his gun and started chasing the man. One of Wes's drug dealer buddies joined in the chase and they began shooting at him. One of the boys ended up hitting Ray, they both left and the cops were called.
"They [Wes and friend] saw no movement and figured the job was done... Seconds later, Wes was being pushed facedown onto his bed, his hands locked in cuffs behind his back" (p. 105 and 106).
Someone walked up to Wes asking if he knew where he could get some crack. Wes said no and sent the man on his way, thinking that he could be a potential cop. Realizing that the man could also be a potential buyer, Wes decided to put a couple bags with $20 worth of drugs into a nearby phone booth. He told the man that someone said he could be "taken care of" if he gave Wes $20 and went to the phone booth. The results were not pretty.
"Guns in hand and sliver badges swinging from metal chains around their necks, the men pointed their weapons at Wes and ordered him to the ground. Getting arrested was starting to feel routine. Wes wasn't shocked or afraid anymore, just annoyed" (p.114).
Another main turning point for the Other Wes was getting arrested at the end of chapter 6. It showed that he didn't really care anymore, he was numb to the shock of being arrested. It was starting to annoy him.
"Why him? Why now? Why couldn't they just leave him alone? He had enough to worry about" (p. 114).
Wes joined his brother, Tony, in a jewlery store robbery and murder which ended in the worst possible way.
"With the knowledge of the sentences his brother and the other two defendants had received, he'd known his fate would be the same. He would spend the rest of his life in prison" (p.156).
After the mother of the Other Wes's third and fourth children almost overdosed on heroin, Wes realized how much drugs can ruin people's lives. He wanted to get out of the drug business, so he decided to join the Job Corps and turn his life around.
"He'd learned skills, gained confidence, and finally felt his life go in a different direction... After seven months, Wes met his graduation with as much trepidation as exictement" (p.143-144).