I think it was a very worthwhile expirience that was a blast. I loved seeing my friends working their jobs in different countries, buying different products, and managing my own job in my country. International Towne definitely taught me how to handle money better and manage a buisness/ country. If I could change anything, I would go to Mexico and get food, go to Ukraine and get lots of cookies and chocolate-covered raisins, request a song, and participate more in making the newspaper. Overall, it was worth all the preparation and time we spent learning how to do our jobs. The best part for me was going on break and getting to spend my money how I wanted and get what I wanted. It was nice for once to be the one with the "whip."

World history can influence our lives through simple history fairs like the one we did, because it gives people a chance to learn about geography, culture, different ethnicities, and more. We find out about a bunch of stuff we never knew we would be interested in, in a cool, neat way by seeing visual aides and attractive poster boards that catch our eye so we can learn something new without being bored to death through a lecture. My guiding question is: "Was Cleopatra more of an Egyptian or Greek monarch?" I learned that she was born in the winter of 69 BCE (specifically with the 'E') and her siblings are as follows, from oldest to youngest: Berenice, Cleopatra Trypheona, Cleopatra VII (who I did my project on), Ptolemy XIII, Arsinoe, and Ptolemy XIV. Her father (Ptolemy XII A.K.A. Alutes, died when she was eighteen and she married her brother, Ptolemy XIII. The most interesting part for  me was how she died. A servant smuggled in a basket of figs with an asp in the bottom and when no one but her closest maids were around, she lifted it to her bare breast and it bit her. She died several minutes later, as did her handmaidens, for they had been accidently bitten as well.

I think that it is really clever how he did each chapter from a different point of view, and didn't really say how each person ended up, but you could kind of guess by what happens at the end. The big idea is that a bunch of people of different background and ethnicity who never talked to each other before come together and formed a community garden where it transforms everyone's lives and they are all happy together gardening there. I liked and disliked Marciela. I liked her because of her "teenage attitude" ("I have went to exactly zero parties, and I've been asked out exactly zero times, including by the scum who got me pregnant"). I disliked her because of her attitude towards her life ("I'm a Mexican, pregnant sixteen-year-old. So shoot me and get it over with. I wouldn't actually care if you did"). I only did two activities: planting tomato seeds in Science, and a music-matching game in Band. I liked the one in Band better, because I actually got to involve, since my group members just hogged all the work in Science. For the matching game, Mr. Silloway played short clips of music, and we had to match it to the people from Seedfolks who were from the country we thought it best went with, with the exception of only two decoys. I have already finished the book, and I was impressed how Paul Fleischman tyed so many people together with the garden so that they were all happy eventually.

My topic has created change, because it has really opened my eyes to what went on in the world in Cleopatra VII's time, and all the astonishing facts of her time. I found out that she was born in the Winter of 69 BCE, and was the only person in her family to learn Egyptian, though they lived there. Cleopatra had romantic relastionships with Julius Caesar and Mark Antony in her lifetime.  My final project is coming along really well, and my poster board looks amazing. I just have to finish my 3D model of an asp snake and paaste some facts on my board and I'm totally finished! It is going to answer my question by using research points, and by summing up the final facts supporting my side in my conclusion. I know my topic, just in case people ask me questions about her or her lifestyle, and I am totally ready with my Cleopatra costume, which I am wearing to my fabulous presentation on Tuesday.

Double-Headed

“Hey, girls, get down here! I have someone here for you!” Mr. Hamilton called up.

Skye and Melody exchanged exasperated glances, both knowing exactly who it was. A few weeks ago, a boy named Wendell Havoc had moved into the peeling yellow house next door that had been vacant for over a year. He was head over heels in love with them, but the problem was, they didn’t like him back. They had their eye on Seth Peterson, a dashing boy who was the girls’ friend. The other thing was he didn’t know there were two of them, because he had only met Skye at the time, since Melody had been at soccer practice. Since then, they had taken turns meeting up with him- at their parents’ insistence, of course. The girls were identical right down to the last freckle, so he had no idea he was being made a fool of.

“Your turn!” the curly haistrawberry-blond girls exclaimed together. Melody raised an eyebrow and gestured towards the ever-growing pile of homework on her writing desk, and then said pointedly,

“It really is your turn, you know. Last time he visited I was at my writing group.”

Skye groaned and strode over to the door with her long, slender legs. “You really do owe me one, you know.”

Melody snorted. “No, I don’t. It’s totally even. We take turns.”

“Yeah, but I mostly see him because you are always at your practices or writing meetings.”

“Oh, right, like you never go to cheerleading practice, volleyball, ice-skating, ballet, and track meetings and competitions.”

Skye rolled her violet eyes and left to meet Wendell. Her hand shook on the banister as she slid it down the smooth, polished wood. She quickly raked her fingers through her hair, and stepped down to meet her father. Her temper flared when he shot her a smug smile. Ever since the first time she had met Wendell, since it had been Skye that time, her parents had the idea that Wendell was only in love with HER, and that she was in love with HIM. It was a great annoyance when they made casual comments about her “love life" at dinner. Of course, Melody couldn’t help but chuckle into her glass of water or snort into her plate of ravioli. Her parents were always confused when Melody went with him somewhere, until she explained that Skye was somewhere else, since their parents hadn’t yet picked up their ploy.

Wendell even liked her personality better than Melody’s. Skye knew as well as her sister that if he were to ever find out he would like Skye better, which of course Melody was relieved about. Skye braced herself as she stepped out onto the porch and came into view of Wendell’s adoring gaze...

To Be Continued….

We dissected chicken wings to see how the parts looked, fit, and worked inside the wing. I thought that it was really awesome, and it didn't gross me out at all. In fact, I can't wait to dissect a frog. It's really fun to see what's inside things. Probably the only thing that I couldn't stand dissecting is a human being. The dissection was worth while because it helped me gain some experience in dissection before we dissect a full animal, like the frog. I learned where each internal part was connected to, how it functioned, and what it looked like. I am truly looking forward to dissecting the frog, and will relate my pleasurable experiences then. Chow!

I wish...

I wish I was a prima ballerina

Whirling in my pointe shoes across the stage

My fluffy pink tutu swishing around my legs

The roaring applause of my audience cheering me on

Rounding off my performance with a beautiful curtsy

I wish...

I wish I was a horse-whisperer

Able to connect with horses

To understand what they’re saying

To hear an animal like never before

And to understand how they truly feel

My Pointe Shoes

Soft, light to dance on

Pink, comfy

Like cotton candy

Satin ribbons

Sturdy to stand on

Support me while I dance

Beautiful figure

Hug warmth

To my feet

Snug, but not too tight

Falling Asleep

I'm tired

 Not wide-awake 

Not slumping onto the ground tired

  Not like I’m falling asleep sitting

Tired because I'm sick

My reaction to The Ernest Green Story was fury and hate towards the people that were cruel towards them and pity towards the nine kids who suffered through all that. If I were them, I would've probably never even considered switching to the white school. I would have rather stayed at the not-so-good school for blacks than risked my life for a good education. I would have never in my entire life had enough courage to even attend the first day of school. All I would've be thinking about is the angry mobs outside the school and whether or not I would survive the day without any harm. I think that I would have rather never received an education than to go put my life on the line. I am very afraid of any kind of pain. That is mostly why I am afraid of heights, because I every time I look over any kind of high distance, all I can imagine is falling and getting severely injured. I am also afraid of falling, because the feeling is terrifying. If I were to go to Central, I would be very afraid of getting beaten up or hurt emotionally or physically. Things have mostly changed, because now there are pretty much no schools that are all-white and there is so much different ethnicity, including blacks. I think that is wonderful that they are apart of that now. Of course, there is still racism, and that may never completely fade. Slavery is now illegal and blacks have the same rights as us, though many people are furious about this, and it is still going on in the United States and basically every other country in the world. You pretty much get the idea that slavery is everywhere and you should be very cautious... I think that I will always be impacted by the fact that people with different colored skin are sometimes treated differently. They are human beings, just like us, and they could all band together and revolt against us. Some blacks and other colors will never forgive "us whites" for what we did, and to be honest, I am not proud at all of our ancestors and I don't know if I'll ever forgive them myself for all the torture and abuse the Little Rock Nine went through. I am glad they got to have some hope in their lives, because some blacks sure needed some then.

These days in science, we are reviewing the parts of cells. I know a bit about the parts and what each one does. I like the word 'osmosis' best. The best part so far into this unit was when we wrote the answers on whiteboards. The worst was when... hmm, I don't think there really was a down. I have learned that cells have to have water to perform certain functions, and that only certain things can leave and enter the cell. Also, viruses are considered nonliving, or parasites, because they can't do anything for theirselves unless they're inside a cell. As far as labs, we have done a gummy worm lab, an egg lab, and an elodea plant lab by observing them in different situations and environments. I just took the test on Monday and I feel I did very well. I hope I can finish this unit up by rounding my great A up to a perfect +A. That would be just the way to finish it up.

"The greatest sweetener of human life is friendship. To raise this to the highest pitch of enjoyment, is a secret which but few discover."

~Joseph Addison

The Meaning of Lifelong Friendship

I believe that friendship is the way to go

Because it helps my friends and me go with the flow

It keeps my frown upside down

And makes me be able to enjoy the day

When it is raised to pure enjoyment

There isn't anything else in the world

That can do that for me

That can make it a treat for a lifetime

But a few people find this

And I am very lucky

But I believe that anyone,

Anyone who searches,

Can find what they're looking for:

Happiness.

A relationship.

It's all right here

You just need to need to know where to look.

About my ice-cream passion-

Above the sprinkles

Across the melty-chocolate chips

After taking a bite-

Against my diet!!!

Along the path my hand takes to deliver ice-cream to my mouth

Among ice-cream

Around the whipped cream

As I swirl the ice-cream

On a spoon

At the top of the cherry

Before strawberry passion

Behind sweet, savory vanilla

Below smooth, mouth-watering chocolate

Downing bowls of ice-cream!

“Come on, you can do it!” William Turner urged his wife, “Just a little further and we’ll be there.

“Are you the one who just gave birth to our child?” Rachel Turner snapped. But neverless, she let him lead her into the room and sit her down on the bed.

 “Why did we have to move?” she complained, “I just want to see my baby! They didn’t even let me see if my child was a boy or girl before they snatched my darling away.”

 “Maybe they thought something was wrong with it,” William suggested.

 “Our child is not an it, and no, there’s nothing wrong with my precious darling!” Rachel, exhausted, slumped against the bed. “I really don’t want to do this right now.”

 She closed her eyes, but opened them a second later when the doctor came in with the nurses right behind him. They seemed nervous about something. The doctor adjusted his glasses with a shaky hand and said,

 “Er, we, uh-have some news for you. Uh, some bad news.” He said this while looking around the room for support from the nurses.

However, they didn’t seem obliged to take part in anything he was saying, so he pressed on, saying: ”I’m very sorry to say, but your daughter is-uh-autistic!”  

 William gave a great gasp of remorse. Rachel sputtered, “Er-OK…” and then, “William we have a girl! A beautiful, healthy baby girl!!!” She tugged his arm. “Aren’t you happy?”

William looked up slowly at his wife. “Autistic? You have got to be joking.”

 Rachel frowned at him. “At least she wasn’t born with extra arms or only one eye. We can manage! Oh, our own baby girl!”

 The doctor and nurses seemed quite appalled at how she was taking the news. If anyone hadn’t known better, it seemed as if their baby wasn’t autistic at all. Rachel had gotten up and was dancing around the room. William caught her arm and pulled her down.

 “Let’s go,” he hissed, “get your things. We’ll leave in a couple of hours after you’ve had rest.” He began to pull her to her feet.

 Rachel jerked free. “We can’t just yet. I need to stay at least another day. And besides, what about our baby? I didn’t have her for nothing! She is coming home with us!”

 And with that, Rachel stalked out of the room. The doctor and nurses hastily followed her, with William bringing up the rear. She stopped at the room that she had given birth in. With a cry of happiness, she swooped into the room, grabbed her daughter from a startled nurse’s arms, and lay on the bed. Joyful tears rolled down her cheeks.

“Oh, William, look!” He entered the room cautiously. He eyed the baby with a look of disgust. William sat down regretfully.

 “Ooooooh, William!” Rachel squealed as the baby opened her eyes. She looked at her mom and reached out one grubby finger.

 Rachel leaned forward, still crying, and when the baby’s hand touched her face, she gave a great sob and stroked her baby’s face. The girl turned to her father, squinted up at him, and gurgled happily. She reached out her arms to him. He snorted and didn’t pick her up.

 “William!” Rachel said sharply. He reached and picked his child up like she was some contagious germ.

 She lovingly wrapped her arms around his neck and laid her head down on his shoulder. William stood there stiffly and after a minute peeled her off his neck like some posionous slug and handed her off to her mother.

“Annalise.” Rachel whispered. “Your name is Annalise, because you have God’s grace and favor, and I believe you can be just as normal as anyone else. My own girl! Thanks, Jesus.”

Blog #22: Accomplishments

Very soon I am going to meet one of my long-time goals: becoming a published author! And not only that, but it was my goal to become a pulished author at twelve. I am finally there! I entered my poem, "The Bright Side: A Hopi Prayer for Luca Strong," into the Creative Communications Poetry Contest and I received a postcard in the mail saying my poem has been accepted to be published and they only needed my permission! Now, all I have to do is click 'yes' on their website ands then I will officially be published. I am now in the final competition for the big award. I could be one of the top-ten winners who get mentioned on their website. I really hope I at least get in the top-ten. If I don't I will be disappointed, but I know that there is a lot of competition. If I do get the final award, I hope it is cash, and if it is, I only want enough to buy my own cell-phone, iPod-Touch, Kendall, Nook, etc... Basically some type of technical device.  So I hope you've all got your fingers crossed, because I really hope to win this contest...

"Believe you can and you're halfway there." Theodore Roosevelt

I think this message means that if you can believe in yourself to accomplish whatever it is you want to or are struggling with, you have already gone halfway, so to speak, meaning you can have confidence to help you accomplish it, and you most likely will. I could apply this to my life by believing more in myself and having more self-confidence that I can get through my struggles. I could "see myself through God's eyes" (which means he sees me much better than I see myself). I could love myself more and I would be happier and not hurt myself as much.It could make an impact on me and the world, because if everyone believed that they could believe in theirselves and they were almost there, they would be more positive and then be able to accomplish their goals.

I have lots of goals for this year. First, I would like to move up to 3b to be one step closer to accomplishing another goal of me going on to pointe. I will have to continue stretching twice a day; in the morning when I wake up and in the evening before I go to bed. Thanks to my mom, she has made sure that I do it day and night. I will also need to work harder in class than I have been so I'm drenched in a cold sweat by the end of each class, whether it's really hard-core or not. Second, I really would like to move up to second chair in band for French-horn. I would be a higher position and it would be something to put in my Developmental Workbook that I got moved up. To do this, I'll need to practice more for longer periods of time. I will also need to do my best in class because the band teachers will notice that and put that into mind. I'll need to practice really hard for my playing tests so that I don't get nervous and mess up. Lastly, I would like to heal myself physically, mentally, and spiritually. When I heal myself physically, I will be allowed to get double peircings on both ears! I also will get my contacts again. These are all my wishes I want to come true this year. 

color:#FF66CC">Sweet and Sunny

Is the way you run

Is the way you laugh color:#92D050">

Right under the sun

color:#FF66CC">Sweet and color:#FFCC66">Sunny

Is the sway of the swings

Is the color:#FF99FF">swoosh of the wind

Through the color:#006600">trees

color:#FF66CC">Sweet

The color:#FF66CC">sweetness of ice color:#FF9966">cream under the sun

color:#FFCC66">Sunny

The color:#D60093">laughter of kids all on the color:#993366">run

color:#FF66CC">Sweet. Sunny.

All have a taste

A show of bright colors

And the soft sound of mothers

color:#99CCFF">Rocking kids to sleep

With the soft hush

Of color:#FF66CC">Sweet and Sunny

Settling down without a rush

color:#FF66CC">Sweet. Sunny.

Simple as can be

The project went very well. We all got our parts done and put together very nicely. We communicated good, I think, but I think we could've got on more often and put in more detail of what each person was supposed to do. We got all the facts and paragraphs together good and the pictures too. We could've found more pictures and gotten a few more poems. We would probably do the timeline and the paragraphs the same, though. Next year, you could make access to the wiki easier and editing to be easier to use to put the page together. You should also let them choose their own names (as long as their approved by you) and easier access to chat.

In the days of Ancient Greece, the people started seperated into seperated polis, or city-states. The five different city-states were Sparta, Athens, Argos, Corinth, and Megara. The Spartans were power-hungry soldiers whose solution to every problem was to fight. They were known for their professional fighters and they almost never lost. The Athenians followed Athena, the Goddess of Wisdom, for she ruled Athens, the capitol of Greece. They also were known for the arts, learning, and philosophy. They also hosted the first Olympics in 1896. Argos's Argons were involved in the arts.They made many beautiful stone and marble statues, the envy of many other Greek people. Arogs is famous for their musicians and poets. Drama was actively practiced there. The Corinthians were widely known for their cultrual and trade center. They were also a monarchy and were ruled by a king. The Corinthians made aqueducts to solve their problems with clean drinking water and created their own coinage to solve the problem of foreign money coming in. As a result, Corinthians were very good with money. Megarans had a trade port, which they used to gain wealth for their city-state. Megara exported wool and animal products. They were also amazing mathematicians and were highly intelligent scholars.

In the Anicent Greece unit in Humanities, we are all divided into seperate city-states. My group is Megara. We are really close to taking the lead for points. We have our own badges and logo. Tommy and I made up the badges together and designed our logo to look like it. I did the lettering and coloring, Michael did the outlining, and Tommy did some coloring too.

Once upon a time, there was a reindeer named Elvis who lived at the North Pole. It was almost Christmas, and all the reindeers went through intense practice flights to prepare for the final test to see which reindeers would fly Santa's sleigh this year. Elvis hated practice flights and training. In fact, he wished he could do whatever he wanted. And what he wanted was to be a rock star. He wanted to have a band called 'Elvis the Other Reindeers' and be the lead singer. The problem was reindeers were not normally allowed to be rock stars. They were only allowed to pull Santa's sleigh once a year if they got picked, but otherwise they hung around waiting for their chance next year to try out.

Elvis had such an excellent voice that Mary Mae, the most attractive reindeer in Elvis's opinion, heard him singing alone once and thought it was the sound of the elves’ harmonic angel-like voices. 'It's no fair the elves get to sing all the time!' Elvis thought enviously. 'They probably have to sing, even if they don't want to. I would trade places with them. Anything to get Mae!' He blushed at the thought of the pretty she-reindeer will honey-colored fur and nicely curved antlers. He wanted desperately for her to bat her long eyelashes at him and stare at him through her pure violet eyes with affection. There was a lot of competition for her though.

Elmer, the most attractive and muscular reindeer had an eye for Mae too. He was always picked, because he was the son of Coach Winfrey, who chose who pulled Santa's sleigh. He knew that Elmer liked Mae, and that Elvis did too, and if Elvis so much as looked at her he had him galloping 4 mile terrains. Even though he liked Mae, he did his best to avoid her so Winfrey couldn't have an excuse to make him run, which turned out to be quite hard, because Mae always came over to him when she saw him. Oh, the way her beautiful eyes sparkled as she spoke! He sighed and entered the stables. He slipped the bell collar down his neck, stepped into his silver hooves, and cozied under his soft back blanket.

He turned around and started when he saw Mae standing there.

"Hello." she smiled, her pearl-white teeth gleaming. "Do you want to be chosen this year?"

He didn't know what to say. "Uh, I- well, I never want to be chosen. Elmer's so cocky and rude and boasts about being at the front." he stuttered.

Mae's smile dimenished. "Yeah, and besides, he likes me. I do not care for him one bit, as I already have an eye on someone else." Her smile broadened.

Coach Winfrey entered at that moment. His gaze flickered over to Elvis as he scooted away from Mae. He stared for a moment then gestured for them to follow. "As you know, today is the final exam. Those who are chosen get to pull Santa's sleigh. Get in line!" he barked. "Saint Nick is coming this time to watch!"

The reindeers snapped to attention as The Big Man came up. "Hello, Winfrey. Proceed." He sat back and watched.

Coach Winfrey immediately called out, "Elmer!" Elmer strode to his father's side looking very smug indeed.

He looked at Mae. Coach called out several other names, including Mae's. When she walked up, Elmer immediately came to her, so close that she shifted uncomfortably. He passed Elvis without even speaking and selected several others.

"Here, Santa, stand your reindeer who will pull your sleigh. They will do practice flights with your sleigh."

Santa walked up and down the rows. He paused in front of Elvis. "What do you want, son?" he asked suddenly, making Elvis jolt. "Do you want to pull the sleigh for once?"

Elvis muttered, "I want to be a rock star..."

THE END

Every can probably assume how the story ends here. Something short and sweet, since my mom said I had to get off "RIGHT NOW=http://", so I didn't get to finish.

Three things I am thankful for are:  Everything I own, my friends and family, and every little thing God blesses me with every day.

I am thankful for the clothes I wear to school every day and all my books for my classes that help me learn. I thank God for my classes and my awesome teachers!!!

I am thankful for my friends and family because they help me with my journey with Christ and are always there on my bad days.

I am glad with all the blessings I get all the time because it improves daily life and keeps it interesting. It makes life brighter and keeps me a happy person. I am very glad for all the good things in life!

The best mystery I've read is"Why the Dr. Went Mad" because it really is a mystery and it isn't solved, even at the end of the story. I doubt the author even knew the end to the mystery! Here's the beginning of the mystery I'm writing for L.A. It's called The Legend of the Hunt.

"The Legend of the Hunt"

     Charlotte Hunt looked up from her watchful post over her brand-new baby girl, Helen. She’d been hearing the same noises for the past hour. It sounded like multiple heavy footsteps grinding across the floor, and they were getting louder by the minute. Helen gurgled happily from her bedside crib. Charlotte rested her gaze on her, but snapped her head back up when she heard heavy breathing outside the door. She leapt to her feet.

“Damien, is that you?” she called out to her husband.

There was a pause. Then there was a deafening noise of cracking wood as the door was knocked down. There, in the doorway, stood a gigantic metal beast with clawed feet. Charlotte gasped as she saw it held in one clawed hand a giant, shinning silver sword, tipped with black poison. She recognized the sword at once. It was the worst nightmare of the Hunt family. Charlotte was overcome with emotion as she looked upon the sword that had killed her mother, and her grandmother before that. Now this creature would surely kill her with the same weapon that had pierced all of the Hunt women.

Charlotte backed up against the wall, paralyzed with fear. The beast advanced and with a slice of his sword, she lay on the ground, holding her bleeding stomach. Charlotte heard the back door being unlocked, but her brain was in too much of a fog from pain that she didn’t hear the groceries hit the floor and her husband come rushing to her side.

“Charlotte!” he said, surveying her bleeding body.

“Damien...Watch out! It’s the Hunt!” With these words the beast came and took the bloody sword in both hands and sliced her head off with one clean swipe.

Not even the sound of the outside world could have blocked the screams of sorrow and hatred from Damien as the beast quietly turned and walked away.

You see, I've got a passion  for blogging, and I would definitely be devastated  if we ever were to stop. I have had a wonderful experience with it. I am officially a blogger  with a freakin  awesome blog and I LOVE it! It has gone as smooth as whipped cream on over-churned ice-cream  with pink sprinkles for me, because I have really good  internet connection and I am hoping to spread the word of my blog  on more than just Blogmeister . I really enjoy writing blogs as assignments, but I think we should write a little more focused on not exactly like homework type stuff but poems, stories, and any other interesting topic you may have noticed other blogs have. They seem, well, more like fun sites, whereas our blogs sound obviously like school assignments. Nobody wants to read a blog like that (I know I don't ). I think  we should have a short story contest where the best one gets posted , or perhaps we could have a special quiz  set up to see which 743 teacher you're most like , and put in your blog what the test results were and explain them and why you think you're most like them. I think that would be awesome ! I hope to see a blog explaining that very assignment . That would be amazing  if you could come up with an accurate test that would give results to everyone. BTW, which 743 teacher do you think I'm most like? 

    Now, why DOES it matter? How many people do we know that will give their life for you? They fight for us every second of every day and they will go out of their way to make sure that we live, even if it means that they don’t. So why IS it so important to remember veterans? Consider this one thing: do you like being free? Being able to go to church without sneaking around, and going out to eat pizza with your friends without worrying about an invasion? There are many reasons to remember our veterans, and our current troops who are helping preserve our way of life. Without them, where would we be? In a world full of death and misery? What about children? Would you really want them growing up in a place where they can step out the door and get blown up? We have a right to defend ourselves, and veterans do it for us all the time.

What do you suggest for this paragraph? What does it need? I think it's pretty good and well-spoken, but I'd like to hear what everybody else thinks before I turn it in. I have edited it like crazy and changed tons of stuff, and I believe it's pretty well thought out. What do you think, Kacie? Ms. Lubich? Do you like my writing? Is it good enough to win the contest?

Thirty five year-old John-Alex Mason, a guitarist of Colorado Springs, died recently due to major blood loss. He was with his family when there was problems with the surgery to remove cancer tissue. He became known when he won the Telluride Acoustic Blues Competition in 2001. John-Alex beat records, competed in music festivals all over the country, and recently won the Pikes Peak Council award for best solo pop musician. He even had an opportunity to play with famous artists, such as B.B. King, John Mayall, and John Hammond. He was seriously talented. John-Alex was widely admired for being able to play guitars made out of cigar boxes and wailing on them simultaneously. Mason is missed dearly by his wife Rosanne, daughter Ruth, mother Charlotte and brother Stephen. He lived out a legacy, and people will always remember him for that. This article affected me emotionally because a young man died and left behind a greiving family- that's just plain sad, isn't it? That's like me seven years ago when my dad would've been 30, and I was 5. Losing a father or husband at that age? That is very harsh to live through, and it almost makes me want to cry at the thought. I will remember John-Alex Mason.

See the article at http://www.gazette.com/articles/mason-126994-musician-alex.html. Come and mourn for him!

I have just finished reading a book called Sixth Grade Secrets by Louis Sachar. The main character is a girl named Laura Sibbie who finds a hat at a garage sale that says "Pig City" on it, and that is where it all began. She started a secret club named after it, and to make sure none of the members tell about it, she makes them give her what she calls "insurance", an embarrassing thing she will show to the whole school if anyone tells. Gabriel, a boy who has always had a crush on her and wishes she would notice him, overhears Laura talking to her friends about the club and wants to join. Then something goes wrong, and Gabriel starts a different club, Monkey Town. Eventually, there is a happy ending in which Laura and Gabriel become together and her friends, who ditched her before, accept her back. I won't give you all the details because you have to read it to find out and I wouldn't want to spoil it for you. What I disliked about it was Sheila and Howard, two people that just hate Laura and do something very horrible in the story to her that results in out of school suspension. What I liked was, well, everything else! It really is a great story that everyone would enjoy (but probably not boys because it has love). You can probably get it at the LMC so check it out! 

Isabelle jumped. The shadows made her uneasy after watching Bonecrushers:Thirst for Blood. In fact, she could almost see boney, shadowy figures lined up against the wall. Stop it! she scolded herself. There's nothing to be afraid of! Still, the movie had freaked her out. It had been about a girl named Izzie who was about her age, 14. She had unfortunately been home alone, too. In fact, she had actually been watching a horror movie as well, though Isabelle couldn't remember what it was; she was too terrified at the moment. Then, she suddenly felt a strong, boney hand grab hold of her leg and yank her down. Izzie suddenly found herself facing a whole row of blood-thirsty skeletons with flashing red eyes, ready to... but Isabelle had shut it off, though she could only assume the worst, that the poor girl had been... No, stop it, right now! she screamed silently. There's absolutely nothing to be afraid of. She relaxed and let her leg hang down, and suddenly felt a hand grip her tightly. Isabelle's blood froze in her veins. No, it can't be! It yanked her down. And, just like in the movie, she saw a whole army of hungry, glittering red-eyed skeletons enjoying the sight of their victim, just biding their time, waiting to strike. Suddenly, Isabelle remembered that the girl, Izzie, had been watching Bonecrushers as well, before she was pulled to her doom. Then Isabelle thought of something else that make a chill go down her spin. Now that she thought of it, the girl had looked just like her. Her name had been Izzie, sort of like the name Isabelle. Isabelle's heart pounded as she remembered the most important fact, that there had been a warning sticker on the back of the case that had read:

WARNING: WHOEVER WATCHES THIS VIDEO, THEIR LIFE WILL END VIOLENTLY. DO NOT TAKE THIS WARNING LIGHTLY. THIS VIDEO IS CURSED AND YOU ARE DOOMED=http://

Isabelle then realized why the person at Blockbuster had been so nervous to give it to her and tried to stop her from renting it. In fact, they had been so nervous and on the verge of seeming to lose their minds that they sold it to her for a buck. Yeah, now Isabelle understood the warning. The girl in the movie had been her, and it was just showing what would happen. That was what probably what happened to all the other people who watched it, and now it was too late. But wait... she hadn't seen the end of the movie. Maybe the girl got out ok! Her heart took a leap of hope and she strained with all her might against the skeleton hand still holding her tight to reach up to the couch to retrieve the remote. She wrapped her fingers around it to get a firm grip as she was jerked down again. Trying to forget the fact that a dozen angry bonecrushers were seemingly deciding on how to eat their meal, Isabelle aimed the remote over their skulls and pressed the 'play' button. Izzie was still staring transfixed at the lot, her mouth frozen open in terror and the skeletons gazing at her hungrily. Then the skeletons made their move. Isabelle looked away as Izzie gave an earsplitting scream. She covered her ears with her hands to block out the sound of ripping flesh and rapid bloodsucking. Her heart sank. She knew the same would happen to her. Just like the warning label had said she would die a violent death. Oh, why, oh WHY had she taken it as a joke?! The skeletons had apparently been focusing on the screen, because now they looked ready to strike. And the last, and worse thing, that Isabelle saw was a boney, skinless mouth stretching out to her, before the remote fell to the ground...        

Fox Run Adventure!

I think the best part of our time at Fox Run Park was the team building activities. It really challenged us to think like a team and it showed me it was easier to work together in a group rather than alone. My favorite of all the team activities was probably the tube one, because what we did was really fun and definitely challenging and we were the first team by far to get the ball through the tubes into the bucket. When we got it in, it sounded like a bomb had gone off, such was the noise that exploded! I learned a lot in every activity, like in the Food, Water, and Shelter game with Ms. Gagnon, I learned that the more food there was, the more deer survived because there was more food to find to live off of. I also found that the less food there was, the less deer there were because there was less food to survive off of so only a few lucky deer that found food survived. In the plant study with Ms. Kosters I learned a lot of neat facts about plant life that I JUST HAPPENED to forget  (that's too bad). Anyway, in the Camouflage Hide-in-Seek with Mr. Howard, I learned that in the wild, there were a lot more animals than I thought there were that had camouflage to survive. (Am I hidden enough? Isn't this a great disguise?!) Plus, some animals who had, lets say, green skin in the summer could turn white for the winter! Isn't that amazing?! And I also found that animals who didn't have camouflage were a lot more likely to be prey. Like when we hid in the trees. Those of us who had dark colors on like black, brown, and dark green and other colors that blended in with the surroundings were hidden better, but those of us who wore light colors like pink, purple, and especially bright colors like yellow were quickly spotted and singled out. Then in the Pond Study with Ms. Lubich (yeah, that's right, you, Ms. Lubich ), I found that in higher places of the pond where the sunlight hit it more it was hotter than the places that were lower that were cooler. I also discovered (after some observation) that the section of the pond we looked at was man made, judging from the lots of miniature waterfalls leading off. Finally, I enjoyed the excellent team building activities that, well, built up teams (like I mentioned before). All in all, this was a wonderful expirience and I would definitely jump at any chance to visit again!   

To Ban or Not To Ban?

I am a book person. I do not deny it. If someone were to pass a law to ban all bad books, which would probably include Harry Potter, I would die!   That would be the worst day of my life, because some people have different ideas of what a "bad" book looks like. They would most definitely ban Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, and other really good reads that lots of people enjoy. I'd say that Freedom of Speech is very important here, because everyone has a right to speak, even if I may not entirely agree with their opinion.  I put my foot down at that. I guess it's ok with books that shouldn't ever even be printed in the first place, but then, people like reading them too, so it really isn't fair either way. Books should just stay. Books shouldn't be banned. Even though I'm not a real big fan of inappropriate books and "bad" books, but if good books should stay, it's only fair that the bad ones stay too, right? Some people may not agree with my point of view, but I think it's more fair. Just a recap, books should stay, because if you throw out or burn a book, it's like doing that to a human being. Would you rip apart a living soul? If not, then books are like the same thing. It's like destroying a living, breathing soul. Books are alive in a special way, especially from my perspective. So if you mess with a book, you mess with ME.

Once, actually, last week, I was walking out from the band doors with my French Horn. I walked up to the steps to the waiting platform where the swim buses were. There were the buses, full of waiting kids. I set my French Horn down and scanned the bus windows, you know, just to see who was there and everything. My eyes rested on this one sixth grade kid. He immediately widened his eyes and stared me down. I held his gaze until the bus pulled away. It was kind of stupid. The other people on the bus were staring at me like ‘What in the world is that girl doing?’ It was really strange because a complete stranger just randomly had a stare contest with me. A sixth grader, for that matter! A small, puny little sixth grader! Man, he’s got some guts. I totally beat him, though. I saw him in the hallway today. He was even shorter than I thought. This was the weirdest thing that ever happened to me.