When i was 25 i got testicular cancer and nearly died. i was given less than a 40 percent chance of surviving, and frankly, some of my doctors were just being kind when they gave me those odds. death is not exactly cocktail-party conversation, i know, and neither is cancer, or brain surgery, or matters below the waist. but i’m not here to make polite conversation. i want to tell the truth. i’m sure you’d like to hear about how lance armstrong became a great american and an inspiration to us all, how he won the tour de france, the 2,290-mile road race that’s considered the single most grueling sporting event on the face of the earth. you want to hear about faith and mystery, and my miraculous comeback, and how i joined towering figures like greg lemond and miguel indurain in the record book. you want to hear about my lyrical climb through the alps and my heroic conquering of the pyrenees, and how it felt. but the tour was the least of the story. source: armstrong, lance and sally jenkins. it’s not about the bike: my journey back to life. new york: putnam, 2000. 2-3. print. which statement describes the author’s perspective and purpose in this excerpt?

Frequently the subject of blues songs has to do with some challenge or problem faced by the writer. everyone faces personal challenges. sometimes music us deal with these problems. do you know of times when music has you or people that you know cope with difficult situations? think about your life experiences and challenges or the experiences of someone you know. then write your own twelve-bar blues song that describes one such experience that you or another person has had. your blues song should have three verses. you may write a fourth verse for extra credit. each verse you write should have three phases and should be written in call-and-response form. the first two phases of each verse should describe the experience, challenge, or problem and should act as your “call” phrases. the third phrase should describe the solution to your challenge or problem, or the next step in your story, and should act as your “response” phrase. review “sneaker blues” to see an example of a call-and-response song with three verses. “sneaker blues” my sneakers got a hole and my feet are killing me; my sneakers got a hole and my feet are killing me; i’m gonna get my sneakers fixed just you wait and see. the man said twenty dollars; you have got to be kidding me; the man said twenty dollars; you have got to be kidding me; twenty dollars is what he said, i might have to let them be. the hole in my sneakers is getting bigger every day; the hole in my sneakers is getting bigger every day; twenty dollars is what he said, that’s what i’ll have to pay. write your song title and verses as the answers to the questions. after you have written your song, try putting it to music using one of the online music samples. original twelve-bar blues song (2 points) score 1. title(6 points) score 2. verse 1line 1: line 2: line 3: (6 points) score 3. verse 2 line 1: line 2: line 3: (6 points) score 4. verse 3 line 1: line 2: line 3: