Thanks!

Mr.  Thompson,

      I would like to direct my very last blog post towards you. You are the best teacher I have ever had! I am not just saying that. I have honestly learned more this year in English than ever before. I am happy I was able to take this Honors English class because it pushed me to do things I would not normally do on my own, like reading all those assigned books. I actually liked most of those books pretty well, except for that one…

       I didn’t think I would like any of the books we read this year, but I ended up really liking them all! Some of them were hard, like A Tale of Two Cities, but I felt like I grew while reading them. I learned that if I really try, I can read difficult books. The only book that was truly the hardest was The Chosen. Don’t worry!  I read the whole thing, but at parts I questioned if I could go any further! I usually like most books I read, but for some reason that one just got me! In the end, I was happy I read the whole thing because it taught me a lot about the Jewish culture and religion. It was really cool to learn more about all of that.

      I have probably written more this year than in any other school year. I have noticed that I don’t hate writing as much as I thought I did! I actually kind of enjoy it :) I think my writing has improved this year too. My mother often looks over some of my essays and writings to see if she can correct anything for me. A lot of the time I am there with her so as she revises it, I am able to learn from my mistakes. At the beginning of the year, it would take us a REALLY long time to get through each piece of writing because I had so many errors. Now that it is closer to the end of the year, it doesn’t take as long and sometimes there is almost nothing she has to fix! This is how I know that your class has helped me improve.

      I hope that as I go onto high school,  I will find more English teachers like you! I am so grateful that I had you as a teacher this year. I have decided that your class is one of my favorites. You are always so relaxed and you really seem to understand junior high students. I always get a good laugh when I go to your class, so I will come back to visit you often.  Look out!  Tell your son, James, congrats for the nomination for First Falcon! I don’t really know him that well, but he seems like a great kid! Just wanted to say thanks for a great year Thompson!

          

              Goodbye blog!  I may never see you again :( Thanks everyone!

Analysis of Bradbury's Style (first draft)

This is the very last assignment due for honors english! I would just like to take a minute and reflect on honors english. In the end, I am very happy that I took this class! It has made me improve so much this year! It forced me to read books that I would have never read and I am happy for that becuase they ended up being good books, even though some of them were harder to get through than others.  So now...without further waiting... here is just the first draft of the Analysis of Bradby's style.

Have you ever read any of Ray Bradbury’s books? If not, then I strongly encourage you to pick one up and give it a try because the writing in his books is fantastic. Many of his books have similar traits because of how he writes. Even though he keeps his writing techniques the same within his books, compared to other types of writing, his diction is very unique. That’s just the first thing about them though. The tone of Bradbury’s writing is also intense in many parts of his books. The last thing is that Bradbury creates a sort of questioning mood by always making you wonder what will happen next in the story.

                Bradbury’s diction is unique because of how he writes his books. They are all so unique compared to other books, but compared to his own books, they are quite similar. In Fahrenheit 451, it has a perfect example of how his diction is sometimes a little different than other books. It says “one drop of rain. Clarisse. Another drop. Mildred. A Third. The uncle. A fourth. The fire tonight. One, Clarisse. Two, Mildred. Three, uncle. Four, fire.  Clarisse, Mildred, uncle, fire, sleeping tablets, men, disposable tissue, coattails, blow, wad, flush, Clarisse, Mildred…” (Fahrenheit 451, 17) This quote from the book really spoke to me because when you think about it, we don’t always think in whole thoughts. Sometimes our thoughts really come out it just bits and pieces of words and sentences. Even though Bradbury does not talk like this during the whole book, it shows that sometimes his diction is very unique. In Something Wicked This Way Comes, it says “…Welcome…..Well….cumm…mmmm” ( Something Wicked This way Comes 84) I like this one because he sometimes changes the way things are so that the reader can better understand how the words are actually sounding coming out of the characters mouths.  Even though these are completely different books, they are still very similar. They are also similar with the tone of Bradbury’s writing too.

The tone of Bradbury’s writing is intense at many points in his books. The other book I chose to read, if you haven’t guessed by now, was Something Wicked This way Comes. If you have ever read this book, you know how creepy and scary it can be at times. Even Fahrenheit 451 has many intense moments.  “My hand closed like a mouth, crushed the book with wild devotion, with an insanity of mindlessness to his chest.” (Fahrenheit 451 37) When Montag was lighting fires and talking about books, things could get really intense. In Something Wicked This Way Comes, it says, ” Not that anyone would believe their gibbering’s, in fact it’s good advertisement for our shows, people titillate, night-sweat, then come prowling down to look us over, lick their lips, and wonder about investing in our special securities.” This book was very intense and creepy at parts. All of these quotes just make you really wonder what will happen next.

                In all of Ray’s writing, he creates sort of a questioning mood by always making you question what will happen next in the story. A good example of this is one of the first lines in each of his books. In Something Wicked this Way comes, it reads, “The seller of lightning rods arrived just ahead of the storm.” My initial reaction to this line was, “What is this story about?” Montag says, in Fahrenheit 451, “it was a pleasure to burn.” This line is one of the most famous lines in the book. When I first read that line, I had many questions as well, such as, “what is he burning?” and “Why does he like to burn so much?” This is the mood that Bradbury creates with all of his writing.

                As you can see, Bradbury’s style of writing is quite unique in many ways. Whether it is the unique diction, intense tone, or questioning mood, he carries it with him whenever he writes a different book.  I really enjoy his writing, even though sometimes it is a little hard to understand. He uses so much detail that I can always picture exactly what he is trying to show me. This is one of the aspects of his writing that I really like. I will always be able to tell if I am reading a Bradbury book, even if it doesn’t say his name on it. His style of writing is just so distinct, but very fun to read!

What Nature Means to Me

I have always been a fan of nature. It is so beautiful and has so many wonderful aspects to it. There are animals, plants and weather, all of which make up our beautiful world. One of the definitions of nature is “The beautiful elements of the natural world.” I find this statement to be very true. Nature is beautiful and everything in it is really a work of art.

        There are so many species of animals, reptiles, amphibians, arachnids, etc. in the world. There are also many endangered species that many of our children will never be able to see. We need to do our best to keep these animals alive so that our children can one day see them and so they keep the environment stable. When an animal is lost from an ecosystem, it can change the whole thing, which is not good and can potentially kill the environment.

        Plants are a very valuable asset to our world. They provide oxygen, food, and shelter. Plants can also be used to heal, like burns and diseases. Plants work right alongside humans. We breathe out carbon dioxide. Plants then breathe in the carbon dioxide and release oxygen, which we need to survive. We use plants to help us make our homes but it also can be a bad thing. The more trees we cut down, the less plants we have to help our ecosystem and the environment we live in. We need to be very careful so we don’t let any plant species go extinct.

        Weather is a very influential piece of our lives. I am not just talking about if it is cold we wear a jacket, and if it is hot we wear shorts.  I t is more than that. The weather is what keeps us alive, or kills us. We are very fortunate to have our mild weather. If the weather was too hot we would die.  If the weather was too cold we would die also. The weather changes our lives dramatically and if we don’t treat our nature better, then the weather could go to extremes and kill us all. We all have heard of global warming, and if we don’t start taking better care of nature, it could become a reality.

        Nature is very important in our lives and is very important to me.  Hopefully, it is also important to a lot of others. If we take time out of our busy lives to see how wonderful nature is, then we can help the world have a better future. Sometimes we think of nature as scary and gross, but it is all those parts that make nature what it is.  Animals, plants, and weather are just some of the important parts of our world. There are so many more yet to be explored and figured out, all we can do is just keep trying to help out in any way possible way we can.

thoughts on Fahrenheit 451 :)

As with many other books I am assigned to read, I went into by Ray Bradbury, with sort of a bad attitude. Most books I am assigned to read aren’t my favorite. Sometimes they are not that bad but I must admit that at first, I did judge this book by its cover. On the cover there is this man made out of books and he is on fire. I really had no idea what it was about. It always concerns me when I have to read a book that I haven’t heard much about, because the books that are really talked about are usually the best and most exciting ones.  I didn’t think it would be that great of a book so I started it with the intentions of just getting it done as soon as I possibly could. I had a really hard time trying to get myself to actually pick up the book and read it, but once I did I found out something that I hadn’t expected. The book was pretty interesting!

                When I first started to read the book, I was sort of confused because of the setting.   As I continued with the book, I realized that it was actually really good. In this book, it foreshadows what may be to come in even our world. The things that were going on made it almost seem possible.  It was really interesting. The main character, Guy Montag, is a fireman.  Montag does not put fires out though, he starts them.

                Montag has been starting fires all his life, but in the book he starts to question what he does. When he starts fires, they aren’t just for any reason, but he burns books and the houses they were in. In the world that Montag lives in they try to make everyone happy, and to do that, they don’t really let you have much freedom.  They pretty much tell you what you can and can’t do. I can’t imagine living in a world like that! There are only certain books that you are allowed to be read, and if you are caught with any different books, your house and your books are burned, and you are either sent off to jail or to a mental institute.

 Montag starts to question why they burn the books and why they are so bad. This causes a problem for him and his wife. People start to get mad when they find out that Montag is actually hiding and reading books. After his wife leaves him, he is forced to flee the city and just in time too, because he meets others along the river and then the city blows up. He learns a lot about fire when he is there with virtually nothing. He learned that the fire is there to really keep him warm, and can be used in good ways.

I really enjoyed this book and I really like Ray Bradbury’s style of writing. I can really picture everything in my head well because of all the description he gives. I love how he compares things. It makes me look at things in a whole new way, and that is one of the reasons I really liked it. In the end, I was happy I was assigned to read this book because I may never have read it otherwise.

Moving on to high school...continued:)

 I just wanted to add onto this week’s discussion because I think that it is a very important subject that I had a lot to say about ad I didn’t want to take up a ton of space on the discussion board, so here it is!

I have heard a lot of people saying how they are just so ready to go onto high school. I have heard this for about the last three years and I really haven’t felt the same way until recently.  I must admit, seventh and eighth grade were not the best.  I have really enjoyed this year a lot better though! It almost makes me not want to leave the school because I am just now starting to meet new people from our school. To get put into a brand new school sounds frightening! The high schools are so big and filled with so many people that I don’t know! Luckily for me, my older brother will still be in high school so I will know a few people.  Ninth grade is the very top of junior high and I think it will be hard to go right to the bottom again! I guess you could say that high school in general is the top though. I am just hoping it won’t be a repeat of seventh grade.  Even though we will be at the bottom, someone once told me that “the bottom of the top is better than the top of the bottom.”

                Regardless of all of my fears of high school, I really am excited to go. Like I said earlier, I didn’t think I was ready to move on but recently I have decided that I am sooooooooo ready to get into high school. I am excited to meet new people, try new things, and have a big variety of classes to choose from.  I am going to try and be more outgoing and more involved in the school next year. Hopefully being on the cheer squad will help with that! I think by doing that it will make my whole entire high school experience better. I don’t think that the fact that we are really “moving on” has set in yet. It will probably hit me closer to the end of the year when I realize that I am really almost done with junior high. The last day of school will be the hardest I think, because not everyone is even going to the same high school :( I think that that is one of the worst parts. I am really excited to me “movie on” to high school though!

                A funny thing happened this morning in fact that made me really decide that I was excited for high school. This morning, at 5:00 am I was woken up by two of the senior cheer leader at Layton high by being yanked out of my bed and put into a car. At first I was way confused but then they told me that we were going to wake up other girls that made the squad and then go get breakfast. I thought it sounded way fun except for the part was I was in my pajamas with a high pony and no make-up. The idea of being seen like this at all was scary but then I saw all the other girls and we all were in the same boat so I wasn’t too embarrassed. The cheer leaders told us to be happy we were going to breakfast because in previous years they would wake the girls up and then make them go to school! For the rest of the day at school they were in their pajamas, right out of bed. I would be so embarrassed! In the end, I had a way fun time and was just happy they didn’t make us go to school after. This was one of the things that made me so excited to get out of junior high and into high school because all the people I was with were so fun to be around. I hope that is how high school will be, just one big party:)

Walt Disney

I was recently watching a Disney show and I was realizing how much I really like Walt Disney. I was thinking about what the world would be like without him and I really could not picture a world without Disney land, Disney world, and Disney movies. We don’t usually realize how famous Walt Disney is but who does not know who that is? Who has never heard and watched Cinderella, Snow White, Sleeping Beating, and many other classics! I decided in this week’s blog to tell you a little more about Walt Disney. You may learn things!

             Walt Disney is a famous director. He made many classics such as, Mickey Mouse, snow white, and many more. We all know of him as Walt Disney, but his real name is Walter Elias Disney. He was born the 5^th of December 1901, Chicago, Illinois, USA. At a very young age, Walter was recognized as a great artist. Davis Low, the late British political cartoonist called Disney “The most significant figure in graphic arts since Leonardo DaVinci.” In his lifetime, Disney and his staff received more than 950 honors and citations from every nation in the world, including 48 academy awards and 7 Emmys in his lifetime. Walt Disney’s personal awards included honorary degrees from Harvard, Yale, the university of southern California and UCLA; the presidential medal of freedom; France’s Legion of honor and officer d’academie decoration; Thailand’s order of the crown; Brazil’s order of the southern cross; Mexico’s order of the Aztec Eagle; and the showman of the world award from the national association of theatre owners. Walt Disney was also the founder of Disneyland and Disney World.

            Walt Disney was one of five children, four boys and a girl. He was raised on a farm near Marceline, Missouri, Walt became interested in drawing at an early age, and he started selling his first sketches to his neighbors when he was only 7 years old. At McKinley high school, Walt also took place in making the school newspaper, he would comics and take pictures for the paper. At night he would attend the academy of Fine Arts.

            Walt Disney went on to perfect his skills. He has won many awards and produced many films. He Died December 15 1996 at the age of 65. Even though he has passed on, his hopes, dreams, and imagination are still with us almost everywhere we go!

Electronics

Electronics can be very frustrating sometimes!

Today when I walked into my computer room, I had every intention to get my blog post done and still have enough time to clean my room and get my chores done before I had to go to this party. When I came in, the Facebook login was up on the screen so I instinctively logged in. I was on for a little bit when I decided I wanted to change my cover. I tried putting different photos in that I liked and every time it told me that it had to be 399 pixels wide. What the heck does that mean?!?!? Well, an hour and a half later I realized that I was getting nowhere. I gave up on that Idea. I was very frustrated! I then decided it would be simple enough to just change my profile picture. This took a long time also. I finally just gave up on it all after spending a really long time trying to figure it out. So here I am trying to write this blog post as fast as I can so I can have as much time as possible to get ready for what I still have to do! That is where I got the inspiration for this blog post. I know that a lot of you have the same problem.

                Electronics are sometimes very helpful, but in some cases they make me want to pick them up and throw them when they do not work. If I work on trying to get something to work for a long time and in the end it works I usually don’t get too frustrated. It’s when I work that long and then in the end it does not even work! So I spent that much time working on something that was absolutely a waste of time. What makes me even madder is when I work so long, and then I finally ask for help and it works right away for someone else! It makes me want to scream! Ugh. Electronics can be so frustrating to deal with, but they are good too sometimes.

Farenheit 451

I was pretty proud that I got the first reading assignment due on time! So here it is...hopefully this will happen every time!!!

So in the beginning of this book, Fahrenheit 451, it seemed like Montag really liked his job. I think that the first real thing that sparked his transformation was meeting Clarisse McClellan. Clarisse saw the world differently than most people did at this time. She stopped to think and catch the rain in her mouth. She thought every little aspect of the world. She said that “the rain tasted almost like wine”.  She was not satisfied with the way that the world wanted her to be, so she was herself. I almost cried when later in the book they said they thought she died four days earlier. Mildred didn’t even seamed concerned at all! She simply forgot to tell him. At the end of one of the conversations that Montag and Clarisse had, Clarisse asked Montag an interesting question. She asked him if he was happy. I think that at first Montag probably didn’t question it. I am pretty sure Montag always just thought he was happy. This question really burned inside of him. When he got home to see that Millie had overdosed on pills, I think he started to question if he was really happy. I think another thing that sparked his change was the dandelion trick. It told him he wasn’t really in love and I think he started to believe it. In the end of the first section, I think the change he went through was good. I think it will bring him and his wife closer and they will find out all the secrets of why so many people love books.

                 I sure hope that our world is not headed down the path that leads us to the world that Montag lives in. In Beatty’s lecture, he tells how everything goes on the way it does so that everyone will be happy. I don’t think that his definition of happiness is correct at all. They think that happiness comes from just partying all the time with not a whole lot of responsibility. At first glance this may seem like a great lifestyle, but when you look closer you realize that it would not be a great life style to live at all. I strongly believe that happiness comes from all of us being unique and doing the things we really love. In Montag’s world they strongly discourage strong thinking and diversity. Clarisse was the closest thing to that that this world they live in has had, so they got rid of it. They “nipped it in the butt”. If out world is really heading in a way that we will not be allowed to really think and read the books we want, I am really worried for us.

How To Get The Most Out Of General Conference

I recently gave this talk in seminary and in sacrament. This talk is about getting the best out of general conference:)

The topic I was assigned was finding answers to life’s challenges through general conference. I realize it is good to think about this because the next general conference is in just a few weeks.  When I heard the topic I was very happy because I love listening to general conference. When I was younger I didn’t enjoy it much because I was just there, not really listening to it. Now that I am old enough to really listen and understand what our leaders are trying to tell us, I can get more out of it.

One of my favorite general authorities to listen to is President Uchtdorf.  He helped me understand why it is so important to work through life’s challenges.  I have the book “Your Happily Ever After” that is based on a talk he gave.  He pointed out that life was never all sunshine and roses for fairy-tale princesses.  Before the happily ever afters, they all had to start at “once upon a time”.  And I love how he says that, “Sandwiched between their “once upon a time” and “happily ever after,’ they all had to experience great adversity.”  We all will have adversity in life and it is our reaction to adversity, not the adversity itself, that determines how our life’s story will develop.  It says in the scriptures that there must be opposition in all things, for without it we could not discern the sweet from the bitter.  Our loving Heavenly Father has set us in a world filled with challenges and trials so that we, through opposition, can learn wisdom, become stronger, and experience joy.  So to get back to my topic….  

          One way to find those answers to life’s challenges is to come to conference with a question in your head that you want to be answered. This last week in seminary we were talking about this exact thing. My teacher told us that if you come to general conference with a question in your head, it will be answered in one way or another. One time I was looking through my scriptures for an answer to a question that I had, and it just so happened that where I was reading led me to understand the question. When I later looked back on the scripture that had given me that inspiration, I realized that it really didn’t have much to do with the question I had, but something in it spoke to me and told me the answer I needed at that time. This can happen in general conference too. Even if you are listening for an answer and there is not one whole talk dedicated to that subject, you can still find the answer if you listen. The lord will always find a way for your question to be answered, whether it is through a living prophet, scriptures, or even a thought that was planted in your head.  I have a testimony of this because I have had it happen to me.

I love that this gospel and the leaders who speak at general conference give me so much guidance in my life.  I feel so lucky to be a member of this church and feel like I will be able to get to my own “Happily Ever After” if I just stay true to what I know is right.

Good or Bad?

There are many valuable things in our life that we sometimes take for granted!

I believe that the internet and computers have a positive influence on our lives. It is a great form of communication and can help give a lot of important information. It is a good way for people and companies to sell products, or advertise something. The internet can help many people in many different ways.

          The internet offers great ways to communicate. We can send e-mail messages that can get to people across the world in just a matter of seconds. This helps with business, long distance relationships and families that want to stay in touch. By using sites like Hotmail, Gmail, and even Facebook, people can stay in touch with each other better. Important upcoming events or new stories can also be put on public sites like AOL and MSN so people know what is going on in the world. These sites also give out important information.

          The internet has many great sources to get information from. This information can be helpful if you are doing an essay for school, or trying to find facts like who the fourteenth president of the United States was. All this wonderful information is easily accessible to the public through sites like Google and Yahoo. You can even read up on certain problems going on in the world that you can help with. The internet is also good for advertising.

          Many companies have websites so that they can sell their products online. This is very convenient to those people who have difficulty getting places on their own. The products simply get delivered straight to your house. There are many sites like EBay and shopping      mall that can help you get anything you need from the convenience of your own home. Some people may argue that this just makes people lazy but I know that it is more beneficial.

          Some people have been in tragic accidents that have left them handicapped. Some can no longer walk or talk, or even drive. The internet lets them know what is going on in the world around them without them actually having to leave their home. They can buy the products they need without having to go through the pain of traveling. This does not make people lazier; it simply helps the people in need.

          Internet and computers are very helpful things and I don't know where we would be in this world without them. It is a very scary thought to be in a world where we don't have an easy way of communicating with each other, and ways to get all the important stories out into the world. They caution people about the dangers, not to mention how bad business would be if they had no internet advertising. The internet is a very helpful and important thing.

Literary Analysis for A Tale of Two Cities

I am sure that you have heard of the famous author, Charles Dickens. I am also sure that you have probably heard of the book he wrote called, A Tale of Two Cities. Dickens wrote this novel in London during the year 1859. The setting of this novel was in the outskirts of London and Paris. I think there are many themes that can be addressed in this book. Some of themes are resurrection, class struggle, fate, social injustice, and revenge. I could discuss all of them in detail, but for right now I want to talk about the classes and about how much injustice there was during the time of this book.  Very different classes that all need new world control can cause much social injustice and conflict in a world that is all about hatred and revenge. This book might be fiction but it sure is something that really could have happened. I chose this passage that you can see in the next paragraph because I really feel like it explains almost all of the themes very well. Although it doesn’t directly state one of the themes being addressed, if you look within you can find them.

 The passage I chose to talk about with my theme says, “The wine was red wine, and had stained the ground of the narrow street in the suburb of Saint Antoine, in Paris, where it was spilled. It had stained many hands, too, and many faces, and many naked feet, and many wooden shoes. The hands of the man who sawed the wood, left red marks on the billets; and the forehead of the woman who nursed her baby, was stained with the stain of the old rag she wound about her head again. Those who had been greedy with the staves of the cask, had acquired a tigerish smear about the mouth; and one tall joker so besmirched, his head more out of a long squalid bag of a night-cap than in it, scrawled upon a wall with his finger dipped in muddy wine-lees—blood” (A Tale of Two cities, 64).

            This passage was taken from a scene in front of an old wine shop in Paris where a wine bottle had been broken and wine spilled everywhere. I think one of the things that Dickens wanted us to know as a reader is that these were very hard times to live in. There was extreme poverty and sickness, social injustice, and many other cruel things that apply to the themes of the book.  In this passage, it shows that the people are not only physically starved but I also  think it may symbolize that they are hungry for something new. They need something to change within their world so that they can have more justice, and to get away from all of their misery. A Tale of Two Cities really shows just how bad things got during this time in London and Paris, and so many innocent people were getting killed. The lower classes wanted revenge on the higher classes called the aristocracy. Like I said earlier, even though this passage does not address all parts of the book specifically, if you look into it you can see how it is significant to Dickens’ novel as a whole.

            The imagery from this passage is very intense. When I first read it, I pictured people with  blood all over them like they had just came from some sort of war. Even though what was on them was not blood, but in fact wine, the wine still resembles blood in a way.  Part of the passage says, “Those who had been greedy with the staves of the cask, had acquired a tigerish smear about the mouth; and one tall joker so besmirched, his head more out of a long squalid bag of a night-cap than it in, scrawled upon a wall with his finger dipped in muddy wine-lees-blood.” The people were so poor and starving that they acted like wild animals. They were even compared to a tiger in this passage.  This imagery relates to the theme in many ways.

As I read this part from the book over and over again, I can’t help but get such a clear mental image of what was actually going on at the time of the book, and what was going on with all of the injustice in the world. These people were probably the very lowest class. I am sure that many of the aristocracy in London and in Paris didn’t even know that this was going on. I don’t think they cared either. In A Tale of Two Cities, Dickens gives us many examples and imagery of the world these important characters lived in. The tone of this passage can also tell us a lot about the theme of the book.

As the narrator is telling us the story of what happened to a broken wine bottle in the late 1700’s, he says it in kind of a sad and heartbroken tone. But he also acted like it was a very normal thing. Things like this probably happened all the time in these parts of the world at this time. Sad things like innocent people getting sent to the guillotine happened all the time. This was one of the main parts of this Dickens’ novel. Charles Darnay, just after marrying Lucie Manette, is sent through multiple trials for crimes he did not commit. Luckily, Sydney Carton looked enough like Charles that in the end he could take his place at the guillotine. Enough about the characters though, this example just shows even more about the theme of injustice. Sydney should have never had to take Charles’ place for death. No crime was committed by any of them, yet they were still punished.

            Madame Defarge is another important character who also shows one of the themes of this book. Madame Defarge is a very revenge-stricken character. She knits names of people in the aristocracy who she has as victims. This woman is not a happy lady in any way shape or form. I think that Dickens is trying to show us a very important lesson with Madame Defarge. I think he wants us to realize that nothing good will ever come with wanting so much revenge.  I think that even within this passage, if we look close enough we can see how it relates to the themes of this book. It shows how nothing good ever comes from acting like a savage. The people described in the above passage really are comparable to savages.

            The passage I mentioned earlier really covers the themes of the book A Tale of Two Cities. The main themes in A Tale of Two Cities are just how much injustice there was at the time of this book and how all the different classes were treated. How the different classes were treated even goes right alongside with all of the social injustice. Very different classes that all need new world control can cause much social injustice and conflict in a world that is all about hatred and revenge. Nothing good ever comes from a world filled with angry and vengeful people. This book was a very interesting book that may seem scary at first, but once you get into it you can really learn a lot of important life lessons from it. I encourage you all to go read it so you can learn more about the characters and the real story of the book.

               

High School!

 I started this post as a falcon forum post but I decided I had a lot to say about it so wanted to make it into a whole blog post! I didn’t want to put this on the discussion board because I was afraid It would take up too much room!

I have been just talking with my friends and we all decided that we were done with Jr. High. Lots of them said that they were done with Jr. High before 9^th grade even started! For me, by the end of 8^th grade, I wasn’t ready for high school. I am glad I got another year before I was forced to go to another bigger school. Since we are almost done with ninth grade, I am staring to feel the readiness. Even though the high school seams kind of big and scary, I am really looking forward to go into high school. Lately in my school work I have just really noticed that I am ready to go to Layton high. My brother goes there and every single night of school this year I have had more homework than he does. I think that juniors in high school should have more homework than me! I am only in ninth grade! This is one of the things I am excited about for high school, having less work to do, which I heard is the case if you go to Layton high! I do think that coming here to Fairfield has prepared me well for high school.

 I am extremely sad that some of my friends are going to Davis. I will probably ball my eyes out on the last day of school. There are pros and cons to going to high school and losing friends will be the hardest one to overcome I think.

 I have been trying to convince some of my friends to switch to Layton and they are trying to convince me to go to Davis and it is really quite sad that I am going to have to leave some of my very best friends that I have had sense preschool! When I talk to my other friends from different schools they don’t seem to understand because there school does not split up. They should make the boundaries for the high school around the different schools so that people don’t lose friends when they go into high school. Variances sometimes make it possible to switch but most of the time the parents just really want the students to go to one specific school for various reasons. High school is already scary as it is and now they are making us go into it without some of our very best friends. What is this?! Every time I talk about this I kind of get worked up and mad so sorry! I just don’t understand why schools have to split up and go to different high schools. It is always good to look at the positive side of this though. At first I was really mad and could not think of any positive things but I have realized as time has gone by that this could end up turning out to be a learning experience.

 It is really important to have the skill of making new friends which sometimes I have a hard time with because being around new people sometimes makes me shy. This is something that I want to work on and I really think it is a valuable skill for everyone to have and work on. In my opinion, it is important to be outgoing and to know a lot of people. In a world this big you want to be noticed or else sometimes you just get left behind. Being outgoing will help you get to know people you would have never known and even get your name out there for new opportunities!

                High school I think will be scary to go into but if we going there with a positive attitude I think that it will become one of the most life changes experiences ever. It gives you a good fresh start to make new friends and become of better you! I am nervous for high school but really excited and ready too!

Greek Mythology

So I had to write this essay for Thompson’s class like I’m sure most everybody should have done. I missed some class so by the end when we were supposed to have this whole thing finished. This was a little hard considering I was a little confused but I think it turned out okay!

The Quest of the Golden Fleece: Jason and the Argonauts

Many of these hero stories teach us something important in our lives. Sometimes it is hard to find what it teaches through all of the war and fighting but in the end, something good always comes from what they have done. In this story of Jason’s quest for the Golden Fleece, it illustrates many common themes. Heroes always seem to accomplish the impossible even when the circumstances they were born into are very difficult. Jason, a hero in Greek mythology, is sent on a very difficult quest. Jason was born with an uncle who wants him dead so he cannot claim the throne of Lolcus. In the end, heroes always reclaim their rightful place in life. This very interesting story of Jason and the Golden Fleece illustrates all of those themes.

            To make the story of Jason and the Argonauts more clear, I will start by saying that Jason goes on a journey to find the Golden Fleece so that he can reclaim his rightful throne. When I went to the library; I found a book on this story that said, “Pelias said that Jason could be his heir if he fetched the golden fleece from colchins” In the story, he had to do many things that would seem impossible. Some of the things he faced would seem absolutely ridiculous to us.  He was not going to receive the Golden Fleece easily, so he was faced with some difficult tasks. He had to yoke a team of fire-breathing bulls and then plow the field with them; had to plant dragon teeth which turn into “warlike armored men” and fight them; and worst of all he had to pass by a sleeping dragon to get the fleece. Jason accomplished all these tasks with the help of Medea, Aeetes' daughter, who had fallen in love with him. In the end, he finally got the Golden Fleece and all was well. He did not get it without a fight though. The three themes that I mentioned earlier are found within the story of Jason and the Argonauts. The first one being that Jason conquered all these things after what you could call a rough child hood.(Pontikis, Nick)

            Aeson was Jason’s father. His father’s step brother Palias stole the kingdom of Lolcus from him and imprisoned him. Jason’s mother , Plymele, knew that when Jason was born his evil uncle would try to kill him so that he would never be a ruler of Lolcus.  She made Palias believe that the baby died at birth. Pymele was smart enough to get Jason smuggled out of the city and delivered to Mount Pelion where he was cared for by Cheiron. (Greek Myths and Legends 32,33) Jason had a hard life growing up. He had his father in prison and his own uncle wanting to kill him. This example is the first theme  this story demonstrates. Heroes sometimes rise from lowly beginnings or unhappy circumstances.  Even though Jason was raised in unhappy circumstances, he was still able to complete nearly impossible tasks.

            In the story of Jason and the Argonauts, as I told you before, Jason is faced with many tasks that seem impossible. His uncle found out that he was still alive and told him he could have the throne if he retrieved the Golden Fleece. His uncle thought that Jason would just be killed on the quest and never retrieve the throne but his uncle Palias was badly mistaken.  One of the first things that Jason is faced with is rock walls that slam shut when you get into them. No ship has ever been able to pass through safely. They were clever enough to find guidance to know if the they threw a bird through first, the walls would shut and while they were reopening, it would be the perfect chance to go through. Magic rock walls that close to kill was just one of the challenges the Argonauts were faced with. ( Jason, quest for the golden fleece, 26) Once they got to the place where the Golden Fleece was, they were faced with the challenges that I mentioned earlier. This just shows the second theme I am showing, which is that Heroes can accomplish seemingly impossible tasks.

            The third theme that best fits this book is the one about heroes always reclaiming their rightful place in life. After a long and hard journey to find the Golden Fleece, Jason, with the help of Medea, retrieved it. Medea, who was a great sorceress cast a spell on the dragon that was protecting the Fleece so they could go in and snatch it. They brought it back to Lolcus to show the king. The king then got what he deserved. The truth was revealed about the king so his own daughters cut him up and boiled him! Jason, with his wife Medea, lived very happily for some time afterwards.

            As you can see, this story about this amazing hero shows three major themes in Greek mythology. The first being that heroes sometimes rise from lowly beginnings or unhappy circumstances, which in this case is very true. The second theme represented is that heroes can overcome nearly impossible tasks. Last but not least the third theme covers how heroes always reclaim their rightful place in life. In this epic Greek story about Jason and the Argonauts (the Quest of the Golden Fleece), all three of the daily themes are represented. I encourage you to go and read these fabulous Greek myths because you can really learn a lot of important things from them!

Finding Joy

By reading the book “A Tale of Two Cites” I want to make this week’s blog post about revenge and how nothing good comes out of it. You hear people telling you all the time that you cannot be truly happy when you are so held up on anger and revenge. I found this poem that shows just a little glance of how to be happy and how to have joy. I liked looking for these pomes because in doing this is showed me even better how to be happy and how to have joy. This is just one of the small poems that showed it.

joy leaps joy skips joy dances

joy in a spring step of life lives

joy in brevity of life celebrations

joy in spontaneous moments lives

joy in a quick pace moment lives

As you can see, nowhere in this poem does it say anything about revenge, anger, and hatred. This is because to have joy you can’t have any one of those traits be part of you. Joy truly does come from dancing, being optimistic, and moments of peace you will never forget.

On sort of this same subject, you can get happiness from similar ways. When I am just having a really bad day or just mad for some reason, exercising really helps. I did a science article on exercising and is said that it releases endorphins that make you happy. Good Music and other things have the same affect.  Laughing is also a good source of medicine when you feel sad. You could be having the worst day ever but someone makes you laugh and it can turn your whole day around.

Surrounding yourself with things that make us happy and feel good really makes a difference in how we see the world around us. If we hang around friends that make you feel bad about yourself or make you do bad things than you aren’t going to feel as good as hanging with friends that make you feel good about yourself for who you are. A good friend won’t try to change you for who you are. They will embrace it and make you an even better person. Being nice to others and bringing the best out makes you happy too.

Doing service for others makes you feel better too. If you don’t believe me then go do service and see how you feel afterwards. I have never met anyone who after they have done something nice for someone else had a bad feeling in their stomach and felt bad about themselves. You never hear this because it never happens!

Doing service and finding joy in the small things is what will make us truly happy in life. Revenge, hatred, and other things will just bring us down. Be happy!

Why sports teams and other clubs should keep the expectations for GPA’s high

Many sports teams have their required GPA’s at about 2.0 or a 2.5.  Officers and cheerleaders have their GPA’s up at a 3.0. Many schools and people believe that the requirements should be lower than this so that more students can be in on these fun activities. There are also a handful of people that believe that requirements should be raised so they can get their students to work harder. I believe that we should not lower them and even raise them if we can.

            Kids enjoy their extracurricular activities. Sometimes even more that their school work and that is where the problem arises. It is important for students to get good grades even if they don’t think it will help them. Lots of kids are interested in some sort of sport or club whether it is wrestling, dance, basketball, cheer, color guard, art, glee, etc.  If a student’s wants to be in this club but cannot participate because of their grades, it gives them an incentive to make them better.

            Being a cheerleader, I know what the grade point average expectations can do to a team. It really motivates the girls to get better grades to still be on the cheer team. This practice of getting good grades now prepares you to be more successful later in life. Weather the kids know it or not the standards and expectations for grades and clubs is really not that high. They also might not realize that it will really be helping them later on.

            I do see where the other people come from when they say that they want to lower the GPA’s for sports teams and clubs. Many students have a harder time focusing than others so it is harder for them to achieve these expectations. Others may argue that it doesn’t matter at long as they are getting exercise and having fun. I must have to say that although those things are important, if they can’t meet those grades then they should not be able to participate in these activities.

I think that the GPA’s for sport teams and clubs should not be lowered. If anything they should be raised because students should have these activities as a reward for their good doings. By having a higher grade point average for sports it will help the students become smarter and achieve more in their lives.

Poem Contest. Seasons

This is the poem I wrote for the literary contest. It’s not the greatest thing I have ever done but it has taught me to stop procrastinating! When I read the requirements for this contest I thought it said AT LEAST 40 lines. I wrote this whole poem that was really good and like 60 lines and it was a complete thought and I was super excited to turn it in, and then I read the intrusions one more time and I about had a heart attack! There was no way for me to shorten it down with it still making sense so that is how this whole new poem called “Seasons” came about. This made me realize more than just not to procrastinate. I realized that you must read ALL the instructions before you ever start a project of any kind. This was a good learning experience for me so I hope I never to it again! Besides, there is nothing wrong with a good old rhyming poem about things in nature :)

Seasons

Spring is the beginning,

The beginning of a new year.

You can start over

Without any fear.

Animals are born,

Grass turning to green,

Flowers blooming in the sun,

Oh, what a wonderful seen.

The sun stays up late,

And the heat is coming near,

The sweet smell in the air,

Lets us know that summer is here.

The season is so great,

Because summer makes you free,

From school, from work

And responsibility.

The Bar-B-Q starts,

The first thing on is the meat,

It smells so delicious,

It smells so sweet.

Fall is also a start,

A sad one at best.

The starting of school,

Lets me get no rest.

The leaves all change,

To brilliant colors of red.

They all fall to the ground,

‘till the last leaf is shed.

The taste of harvest

Lingers all around.

All are excited,

For a plump turkey to be found.

Winter brings snow,

Along with the cold.

To go outside,

One must be bold.

As winter ends,

We know spring is near.

So we can start this poem over,

Right now, right here.

Mexicn Paper Flowers

MEXICAN PAPER FLOWERS

 I had to do some research on this for Spanish so I thought, “Why not just write all this up and make it a blog post”. That is exactly what I did! I hope you like it!

Mexican paper Flowers are a very popular craft in Mexico, especially around the day of the dead. The day of the dead is a holiday around the same time as our Halloween.  Mexican Paper flowers are a very popular craft mad to decorate churches, day of the dead altars, tombs, and celebrations such as weddings and Quinceaneras. The most common use for paper flowers is to decorate the graves of their deceased family members and friends during the Mexican festival of The day of the Dead. They are usually made with tissue paper and sometimes with crepe paper too. Sometimes they are lacquered with acrylic varnish to make them more resistant and strong. Paper crafting made its way from Asia to Mexico and crossed the Pacific Ocean from the Philippines to Acapulco, Mexico. From there is just spread to all different parts of Mexico. A common name for tissue paper in Mexico is “papel de seda”. This means paper of silk. Paper crafting was one of the imports from the Spanish ships when they arrived in Mexico. Ever since then paper crafting has taken on many forms such as piñatas and other types of festive things. In some parts of Mexico, paper flowers aren’t just used to decorate graves but also used to decorate cakes that are then used to celebrate the day of the dead. Mexican paper flowers have been around for a really long time and have served as a great tradition to make around the day of the dead!

Turn it Off

I walked down into my basement this morning and saw my brothers sitting and playing Call of Duty. I then asked how long they had been playing and the said, “I don’t know, let’s just say I didn’t really sleep last night”. I see this lot with many ages of people. Some people it is the addiction to the T.V. Others it is to a video game on the x-box or a handheld device. Whatever it is I have learned that it is not healthy and we should try to stop these nasty habits if we have any of our own.

                I will admit that I even have some of these nasty habits. Sometimes I get so caught up in a T.V. show that I neglect what really needs to be done. Whether it’s So You Think You can Dance, American Idol, or Lost, we need to learn how to say no, or just pace ourselves with how much we watch. I am not saying that T.V. is bad, because there are a lot of positive things about it too! It shows all of the important news events going on, and after a long hard day of work it is nice to be able to cool down with some T.V., but too much could end up hurting you later in life.   

                T.V. sometimes affects people lives in that they can affect grades, if you neglect homework to watch it, household duties, and other important things. Just monitoring how much T.V. you watch can be a really good idea if you have a problem with too much. But video games are another story.

                Video games are insanely addictive. In a way, they are kind of like a drug. The more you do it, the more you are addicted to it. Sometimes when my brother is on Call of Duty, it shows how many players around the world were playing. The whole entire globe almost lit up. When I saw it I was surprised, but then I started to realize just how much people really do play. My brothers don’t usually have a problem with too much but I know many people do. For some people, Call of Duty and other video games are all they do. This can eventually start affecting your life.

                Some people can hold good grade point averages until video games start coming into their lives. This just shows how addicting video games can really be. I am not going to lie; I think that video games like the Wii and Kinect can be super fun and just a great time to play, but too much of any good thing can end up being bad.

                I think that having schools do the turn of T.V. week and video games is a great idea! It gets kids to be more active which really does help kids in every aspect. I know that when I am up and doing other things I always feel better about things! So turn off the T.V. and video games and do something new!

               

The Cold

The Cold

 I really can honestly say that I HATE the cold weather that comes with the month January.  I love the snow but I wish that it could just be warm.

A perfect winter:

1.       Still felt like summer.

2.       It snowed warm flakes.

3.       There was no ice to slip and fall on.

4.       We never had to go outside in the cold.

5.       Cars are automatically preheated in the morning so no one would ever have to come out to a cold car.

6.       January didn’t indicate that school was ONLY half way over and third term was just starting

These are all things that would make the winter a little better in my opinion. I do enjoy the snow and snowboarding but sometimes It just gets so cold that I can’t stand to even go outside. Then I am forced to go to school, dance, tumbling, and a number of other activities that I would really appreciate it if I didn’t have to go. Don’t get me wrong… I love to dance and tumbling but just the thought of going outside makes me shiver! I hope the groundhog says an early spring is coming this year because I don’t know how much longer I can last through the winter!

The assassination of Abraham lincoln

            April 14, 1865 was a sad day. This was the day that our beloved President Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth. As President Lincoln sat watching a play at Ford’s Theater, Booth snuck up past Lincoln’s light security and shot him in the back of the head. The event was tragic and devastating to so many Americans.

            As I researched Abraham Lincoln’s death, I discovered that Lincoln was in fact anticipating an event such as this. Only three days before his assassination, he had a peculiar dream. In his dream, He heard people mopping and sobbing, but he didn’t see any people. He looked and looked for them, and finally, he discovered a covered corpse with soldiers stationed around it, many people surrounding it and mourning. President Lincoln went up to the guard and asked him who had died and he responded by saying: “The President. He was killed by an assassin.” It may have just been a dream, but since then Lincoln knew something was going to go wrong.

            Abraham Lincoln was a huge part in bringing slaves to freedom and uniting the country we have today. His ways were not popular with everyone during his time. People even began to believe that the Civil War was his war. That he was only fighting it because he wanted to free slaves. As times have progressed, it has become very apparent that President Lincoln’s motives for doing what he did were extremely just. He was a genius, great politician, and amazing leader that many look up to this very day.

Sout and Salamanca Comparison Essay

 

After Reading To Kill a Mockingbird and Walk Two Moons, I realized how the two main characters of each book are both similar in ways, and very different. Scout and Salamanca are both very observant girls. The two girls see everything that is going on, but sometimes do not always understand it. Neither of the girls has a living mother, but still tries for what they want. The girls are same in these ways, but these things also make them very different.

                Scout and Salamanca are alike in that they both are very observant girls who see the world in their own ways. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout describes things in a way that does not always sound her age. Right before the accident with Mr. Ewell, which really defines the book, she was at a pageant. Scout says, “The ladies were cool in fragile pastel prints: most of them were heavily powdered but unrouged; the only lipstick in the room was Tangee Natural.” This quote just shows how much Scout goes into detail about her surroundings.  In Walk Two Moons, Salamanca is also very observant. The way she describes places and people makes you really just want to see it in real life.  Salamanca says, “Mist hung about the ground, finches were singing in the oak tree beside the house, and there was my mother, her pregnant belly sticking out in front of her, she was strolling up the hill swinging her arms and singing.” The passages from each book really show how these two girls are quite the same. They just have different ways of showing it.

                Both these girls are observant, but sometimes don’t exactly get what is going on. Scout, from To Kill a Mockingbird, finds herself in sort of a sticky situation when a bunch of white men come for Tom Robinson. She doesn’t understand how dangerous the situation is, and just goes about her normal business. Scout has a conversation with Mr. Cuningham, one of the most dangerous men there.

She says, “Hey, Mr. Cunningham, How’s your entailment getting along?” Scout goes on to have a very normal conversation with him, and ends up being the reason the bad mob left. She does not know it but she avoided a very bad situation. Salamanca does kind of the same thing. She sees everything around her, but does not always understand. She can’t understand why her father would want to be around Mrs. Cadaver, whose name means dead body. She says , “Margaret nearly fell over herself being nice to me, aren’t you sweet! I wouldn’t sit down and I wouldn’t look at Margaret.” Salamanca did not like Ms. Cadaver just because she was in a place she didn’t like. Ms. Cadaver was really the only connection with her mother that her dad still had, but Sal did not realize it. Her mother was dead and Ms. Cadaver had known her, but Sal does not listen. Sal does not figure it out until the end of the book when she is older, or at least she would not admit it.

                Both of the girls had lost their mother.  Not in the same way, but their stories are similar. Scout did not ever know her mother well, but always talked about her like she was great. “My mother died when I was two, so I never felt her absence.” The difference between Scout and Salamanca was that Salamanca did know her mother, and felt her absence everywhere when she was gone. Salamanca goes on to say, “That is one of the reasons why we left Bybanks, Kentucky. We could still feel my mother’s absence everywhere in the house and everywhere around us.”

                Both Scout, from To Kill a Mockingbird, and Salamanca, from Walk Two Moons, are very similar girls. They are also different. They had many of the same things happen to them. They experienced many of the same emotions.  By reading the two books, I got to know the two girls very well.  Although their problems come about in different ways, they have some of the same things happening to them and they face those situations differently. They might be similar, but they are nowhere near the same. That is why Scout and Salamanca are alike and different.