Week 2.3: Focus on Vocabulary and Inferencing

Emoji Fever

Emojis are everywhere! Look at marketing ads, emails, texts, and in the stores, you are likely to see an emoji somewhere. The general public has become used to using these fun pictures that represent emotions. This is often how people will kid each other through text or emails. Instead of writing out words, you can group symbols together to send a message. There have even been celebrities who show their love of emojis by getting them tattooed on their bodies. Emojis literally are everywhere in today's world!

The Progress of the Emoji

Can you imagine a life where there were no emojis? The first emojis were invented in the late 1990s in Japan. They were used infrequently at first, but they really began to boom in the early 2000s. The word "emoji" is actually a combination of two words (picture (e) + character (moji) = (emoji)). Some of the most common emojis out there are "tears of joy," "happy face," and the standard heart. It is reported that more women than men use emojis in text messaging, but all genders seem to enjoy using these fun icons.

It is estimated that around 4.8 trillion mobile messages are sent yearly using an emoji symbol. Twitter has a way to track people using emojis in real time. You can search the tracker and see people's tweet in real time.

Big companies have even studied using emojis in their marketing scheme to gain recurring or new customers. Companies like Taco Bell, Pepsi, and Domino's have used the symbols to attract customers to use their products. These symbols often show off the brand's character or personality and have proven to be an effective way to marker a product. Emojis have been present on social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Next time you are on social media, you can add some fun to your message with an emoji!

Creating an Emoji

Do you have an idea for a great emoji? Many apps are available today to create your own, though they will likely be kept from the public. There are even ways to download some from the Internet from your cell phone. As of June 2017, around 2,600 Unicode standard emojis are available, and they are continuing to grow. Whether you like them or not it is up to you, but the symbols seem here to stay. The emotions are also universal to any language int he world. The Oxford Dictionary decided to add the word "emoji" to publication in 2013. Next time you use an emoji in a text or message, you may be reminded of how this feature was not available a short while ago.

Dad's Mustache

Dylan's dad had a huge mustache that was a black as night. His dad had had his mustache since Dylan was a baby, and his dad loved it. Dylan would watch his father get ready for work in the morning and comb his mustache. He would wet it, brush it, and make sure that it looked manicured each day. Dylan sometimes saw his dad use tiny scissors to ensure his mustache was just right. Dylan secretly hated his dad's mustache.

Dylan's dad's mustache reminded him of a pizza man, and he often envisioned his father flipped pies into the air. His father's mustache made him look older than he was, and the worst part was that his mustache was itchy sandpaper across his face whenever he kissed him before bed each night. Dylan adored his father, so he never told his dad how much he loathed that mustache.

One morning, Dylan word up to find his father getting ready and looking the bathroom mirror. Dylan's father had a special get that he used ton the tips of his mustache in his hands. His father twirled the ends of his facial hair, leaving the mustache pointy at the ends. Dylan couldn't take it anymore. "Dad! I hate your mustache!" he erupted like a volcano. "It looks ridiculous!" he screamed and slammed the door. Dylan's dad stood in the bathroom with a dumbfounded look on his face. Dylan sat in his room. He felt awful for screaming at his dad. He soon calmed down, and he went to apologize to his father. His father was nowhere to be found, and then Dylan heard a buzzing sound.

The sound was coming from his parent's bathroom. Dylan walked in to see his father squirting shaving cream in his hand. The white shaving cream was a billowing cloud. He smeared the shaving cream over his mustache and had the razor in his other hand. "Dad, wait!" Dylan said with urgency. "You can't! You love your mustache!" Dylan's father smiled at Dylan and said it was time to say goodbye to the facial hair. With that, he shaved one side and then the other. Dylan's father's face was now as smooth as silk. He no longer resembled a pizza man. Dylan's father smiled in the mirror at his reflection. "Come on, Dylan," he said. "Let's go grab a slice of pizza," Dylan chuckled at the reference, grabbed his jacket, and walked out the door with his father.

Hurricane Brewing

"Lots and lots of rain," stated the weather forecaster. This storm is expected to come up the Gulf of Mexico with category 2 wind speeds, hover over the area for a few days, and then head out. Ivy stared at the T.V. screen and watch while the weatherman killed the remainder of her summer plans. "Ugh, why me?" Ivy, sounding miffed, walked into the kitchen to find her mother.

Ivy found her mother washing dishes in the kitchen. "Oh, perfect," said Ivy's mom, "You can help me load the dishwasher!"

"Can you believe what they are saying about the weather, Mom?" stated Ivy. "School is going to start on Monday, and we are basically going to be indoors until then. I can't even enjoy the last few days of summer; I'll be trapped in this house!" Ivy announced. Ivy's mother advised her to make the best out of the day before the storm arrived. Listening to her mother's instructions, Ivy took off down the street on her bike. She spent the rest of the day at the park with her best friend; she did not return inside until right before dark. After a long day in the heat, Ivy started to accept that the rest of the summer would not go as planned, but she decided she would still have fun indoors.

The next morning, Ivy awoke to pounding rain. She looked out her bedroom window at the water gushing down the sidewalk at a more accelerated speed than she had ever seen before. The rain continues to beat down throughout the day, and the power went out at one point. Ivy and her mother tuned in all day to local weather reports. The rain only broke for an hour that evening. Ivy went to bed that night, knowing that the next day would be her last official day of summer.

Ivy awoke the following day and looked out her bedroom window like always. She immediately did a double take. Ivy's front lawn looked a little more like a swimming pool tan it did a lavish green space. Ivy decided to head downstairs to find her mother. Her mom was watching the news with a distraught stare on her face; she did not see Ivy walk in. "Mom, did you see the front yard?" she mentions. "Yes," said Ivy's mother. "I did; the district just called off starting school tomorrow." "They are going to postpone school for a week." her mother continued. Ivy was ecstatic as she jumped up and down. "My prayers have been answers," she beamed. "Be careful what you wish for Ivy," her mother announced. "Our subdivision cannot take much more rain. Have you looked outdoors?"

The rain continue to pour for the remainder of the day. Ivy's sense of enthusiasm diminished that evening when her mom handed her her suitcase. "I want you only to take your favorite things," stated her mother. "We don't have much time, so please hurry and meet me in the car in 10 minutes." Ivy turned to face her bedroom and let out a long sigh. "I will never hate the end of summer again," she muttered under her breath. She entered her bedroom to pack; she did not know when she would return to their home.