Count Down To Alaska

9 More Days
Until I leave for a two week vacation. The very first week from the twenty-second of june until the twenty-ninth my family and I will be on our very first Cruise to Alaska. We are leaving from Seattle Washington, travelling up the canadian and Alsakan coastline all the north to the Inside Passage. The Inside Passage has an abundance of  glaciers and scenice views. Our ports that we will be stopping at are Ketchitan, Juneau, Sawyer Glacier, Skagway, and Victoria, BC, Canada. We are Cruising on the Norweigen Jewel, and it is going to be amazing.

After Our outstanding cruise my brother will be returning home to go back to work, while my father, my sister and I go on a ROAD TRIP!!!!! We will be driving from Seattle, through Yellowstone, down to Zion, and the Grand Canyon and then over to Datil, NM. This is where my father's family lives. They also live right next to a beautiful state forest, one I plan on visiting multiple times on their ATVs. After a couple days in Datil, we will drive north to Albuquerque where my aunt and uncle live. We will spend the night there and in the morning we will fly back.

This is going to be an amazing vacation. And there is only nine days until it all begins. :)

The Hunger Games Chapters 1-3

 Katniss crawls under the fence that surrounds the district that is supposed to "protect them", but is really there to keep Panem's citizens complaisant. She enters the woods through the fence, where she forages and hunts. Her father taught her these skills before his death in a mine explosion when she was eleven years old, and she uses a bow he made. Though trespassing in the woods and poaching are illegal, nobody pays attention, and Katniss even sells meat to the Peacekeepers who are supposed to enforce the laws. Katniss explains that, at age twelve, your name is entered into the drawing once; at thirteen, it’s entered twice; and so on up until age eighteen. But you can choose to have your name entered again in exchange for a tessera, a year’s supply of grain and oil for one person. Katniss, who is sixteen, will have her name in 20 times, and Gale, who is eighteen, will have his in 42 times. Katniss’s sister, Prim, is only twelve and has taken no tesserae, Katniss would not let her, so her name is only in once. The name that is called is, of course, Prim's........

Katniss volenteers for her sister, and starts to wonder about who the male competitor is this year. It is Peeta Mellark, a boy who saved her from starving by burning the bakery bread so he could toss it to Katniss. His mother would never have allowed him to give away bread. She expected for Peeta to feed the burnt bread to the pigs and not Katniss.......

Katniss is escorted to the Justice building where she will say her good-byes. First is her family, and where she yells at her mother to promise she wont just become catatonic like she did when her husband died. Katniss also promises Prim, that she will win for HER. Next, is Peeta's father, who promises that her family will be fed by his bread if Katniss dies. Finally, Gale enters, her best friend, and says that she has a chance if she can get a bow, and that killing humans won't be much different from killing animals. (The contestents/competitors become animals because of the games.) Gale also promises that anything he kills in the woods will be split 50/50 for his family and for Katniss's. Katniss and Peeta are then wisked away, to the train station where they board a super-sophisticated/fast train that will take them across the country to the capitol, where all the festivities are to take place before the Games.


These are the first three chapters. :)

All the things I need to either Read or Watch soon.

Sherlock Holmes
-The Hound of the Baskervilles
-The Entire First 2 Seasons of the miniseries
-All of the short stories that correspond to the epidsodes
-A Study in Scarlet

The Hunger Games
-The 1st book
-The Movie
-The 2nd book
-The 3rd book

The Big Bang Theory
-All seasons that are available
Harry Potter
-All Seven Books
-All Eight Movies

All the requirements for AP Literature
-A Prayer for Owen Meany
-How to Read Literature Like a Professor

Sequels to the Maze Runner

I am going to have a packed summer!!!!!!! :)

Another Week Gone

This week has been weird, and confusing. I am no longer reading Rainbow Six, I am now reading The Hunger Games. A couple of days ago we had a writing prompt about the most terrifying fictional creature and I immediately thought of the mutts from The Hunger Games. My class then got talking about the book and it sparked me to get one of my friends to read it, and I realized that I also wanted to read it; well re-read. So I am now going to be reading The Hunger Games and talking about it on my blog.

"Winning means fame and fortune. 

Losing means certain death. 

The Hunger Games have begun....

     In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV.
     Sixteen-year old Katniss Everdeen regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister's place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before-and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But is she is to win, she will have to start making choices that weigh survival against humanity and life against love."(Collins, Back Cover)

Part I 

"The Tributes"

Okay lets begin our journey!!!!!!

Most Terrifying Fictional Species

The most terrifying fictional species out there would probably be the Mutts from The Hunger Games book. They are described as mutations that are a combination of wolves and the past tributes. Can you imagine being hunted be a wolf that looks like a someone you killed or someone you loved? It brings a wholes new meaning of skeletons in your closet following you around. Having a friend become mutated into a wolf that is trying to kill you is probably the most terrifying thing that I could ever imagine. In the book they are described as having the same hair and features as the dead tributes. Katniss looked Rue in the eyes as she laid her down in the grass so she could die, could you imagine ever having to see those very same innocent eyes peering back at you through a creature with ravenous teeth and a desire to tear you limb from limb? I find these creature to be the most terrifying fictional species.
If they were suddenly good, that would still be incredible creepy. Would you want to have your best friend suddenly become a mutant and then become somewhat of a pet? Mutant friend as a pet? That is something that I would not want to encounter. It would be creepy to play fetch with one of you former friends or former victim.
I find that the Mutts from The Hunger Games books are the most terrifying fiction species out there.

How would you life be easier if you weren't a muggle?

Please enjoy the following ramblings.

First off, Hermione was muggle-born, she became a witch and did quite fine in life. She didn't abuse her magical powers, and she found happiness with Ron.
Second off, if I wasn't a muggle, what exactly would I be? A wizard? A superhero? A super-villain? etc...? Well in Harry Potter, Mrs, Weasley uses spells to help clean the house and dishes.I would use those spells for sure. I would also use potions like liquid luck, because who wouldn't want be automatically lucky for a couple of hours? There are all of the obvious and the very shallow reasons for magic, but eventually life would get boring if you didn't have to work for anything. It is like playing Sims with the "boolprop testingcheatsenabled" cheat on; with this cheat, you can make your Sims basic needs be perfect all the time, gain all the skill points they need, get them any job that is available, make them all the friends they need for promotions, basically everything they need or want. After a little while, playing becomes extremely boring because there is nothing they need to accomplish, and their life becomes purposeless. As in Sims, life has the potential to become meaningless if the magic is over used or misused. It might make daily chores easier, but not having to do real work can really hurt the development of a person and how they interact with society.

I have had the first four books read to me when I was little, but I could never make it through the fifth-seventh novel. I have seen every movie, and our family (my sister) owns every single movie on DVD. We have attempted to do a Harry Potter Movie Marathon, but there are not enough hours in a weekend to eat, sleep, and watch every movie in a row, as well as get other chores done. During the summer, I plan on having a Movie Marathon, and/ or a book series read-through. One of the best series every.

Rainbow Six Prologue

John, the director of the new anti-terrorism agency, Rainbow Six, and his team have just stopped a hijacking on their way to their new base of operations, London, England. Three amateur, Spanish speaking hijackers picked the wrong flight to hijack. Their target was a high ranking person and they found out it was his wife on the plane. They severely botched their job. They are now headed for an Air Force base in Canada to then be escorted back to the states where they will be tried and convicted of terrorism. Although this is a win in the eyes of the passengers and, most likely, the media, John feels it was unsatisfactory because it could have exposed their identities which is not the best thing for a new agency that relies on secrecy and stealth so they won't be compromised for future missions.

Loving the book so far.
Next week I will have read  the next two chapters and will be updating what has happened.

Rainbow Six Update

The nine hundred page novel, still has nine hurdred pages to go. I have been trying to find time to read, but with being sick and working on catch-up work and working on not falling behind, I have not found the time to read this fantastic novel. I am going to try and jumpstart reading this novel and by Wednesday of next week, I am setting a due date of at least the first three (3) chapters. I will be giving a review or check in on whatever I actually read. Looking forward to reading this novel!

Week Before Vacation

The week before vacation always seem to take forever. Everyone is ready for Friday and having no school for nine days in a row. Saturday, Sunday, Monday through Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. And when we get back, we juniors, sophomores and freshmen only have eight weeks left. This year has gone by fast, or what seems to be fast. In actuality it is approximately the same length as last year. 1 year, 52 weeks, 365 days, 8,760 hours, 525,600 minutes, 31,536,000 seconds, approximately. Each year seems to tick by faster and faster. It seems like just yesterday, I was about to begin 5th grade and now almost 7 years later, I'm about to end my junior year. What is time? Is it relative? Why does it feel relative? One way of thinking about it is that each year becomes shorter and shorter because each year is a smaller proportion of your life. When people are five each year was one fifth of their life, and when people turn 30 that year was only 1/30th of their life. 1/30th < 1/5th. Each year seems shorter and shorter because it is, in comparison to your entire life. It is funny how each year seems to go by faster, when a week of seven days feels like a lifetime or an eternity. Seven days in the scheme of life is an infinitesimally small amount of time. It is only 168 hours, or 10,080 hours, or 604,800 seconds or 1/52 of a year. It is small in comparison to a lifetime or even a single year. Time is a funky it?  thing. It can fly by when you're having fun, or drag on when there is nothing to do. Time is very mysterious and not completely understood. Is it possible to travel through time?

Time, what is it?

Week of April 1st

This week is going to be a lot of fun. The senior citizens  show of anything goes on monday, baseball on tuesday and wednesday, opening night of Anything Goes on thursday, friday we have a half day and people in musical get to miss all their classes for the middle school show, we go home and have about five hours to ourselves and then we are back for friday nights performance. Friday is also my first baseball game this season. Saturday we  have another performance as well as on sunday. On sunday after the performance there is strike which is not going to be fun, it will be a lot of lugging heavy lighting equipment down from the catwalks and balconies, and a bunch of coiling a "ton" of cords. we probably have about a mile of cords for only lighting design. this does not include all of sounds cords or the clear communication headset wires. sooo many things are about to happen this week. I am super ready for all of it, suprisingly.

Blahhhhhh

I am running on very little sleep. I have been at school for approximately 14 hours each day so far this week. In Monument until 10 PM. each night plus baseball practice and I have to find a time to do my homework. I need some free time to catch up on homework. I am considering telling coach that I can't come to practice today so that I can catch up on homework. I am very sore because I am going from working out to sitting in a chair for hours. I tighten up and can't get good sleep because of it. I have to write a 3 to 4 page data collection paper by tomorrow. I am really stressed and just need to sit down and finish everything.
I have not had time to work on my "Thirteen Days of Musical" lyrics and don't plan on working on it for at least a week or two. So many things going on right now that I can't think straight. So this is my weekly check-in, I hope it is sufficient. Going back to working on homework.

If I was standing in front of seven doors that read Hogwarts, Camalot, Narnia, Neverland, Wonderland, Middle Earth, and Westeria, which would I choose?

I would probably choose Hogwarts. There are many reasons why Hogwarts is the place I'd choose. First off, it's freaking Hogwarts, who wouldn't want to go to a castle for school, seriously? Second off, I would love to actually meet all the professors, especially Snape. Thirdly, who wouldn't want to learn how to fly on a
broomstick? Possibly having Potter leading the lesson. I have seen every movie, and I am finishing every book. I would like to meet all the characters from the novels, learn magic, go exploring through the castle, find hidden chambers, and get into a little trouble. Hanging out with Hagrid, and his pets. Playing chess on a giant chess board, or even just wizards chess in general. Taking a potions class and mixing various chemicals with professor Snape. Or dueling in Defense Against the Dark Arts class. Meeting the Weasely twins, and buying some of their paraphernalia. Using the Marauder's Map to avoid people you dislike, or being able to find the people you never can. Play in a Quidditch match. Use the Piertotum Locomotor spell in the same way that Professor McGonagall uses it, (but not under the same circumstances). There are so many more reasons I would choose Hogwarts, and I could go on an on about them, but I am not going to. Because that would get very boring. These are just some of the reasons I would choose Hogwarts over the other six doors.

Week of the 13th March

I am about to go on a rant, so please do not take anything personally. Thanks

I am going to be so busy the next couple of weeks. Baseball starts next Monday, Spring Musical Tech, starts this Friday, I am helping out at school tonight and tomorrow night, I have a ski banquet on Thursday night as well. Then the next week is more Tech for spring musical, and baseball practice at the same time. And then, not to forget, Friday the stage lights are loaded in. And we then spend the ENTIRE weekend hanging and focusing them. It is going to be a long weekend. And following this weekend, Tech Week begins, 5 days of being at school from 8 am-8 pm,(that is all the actors, and tech people, EXCEPT for me). I stay until 10. That's 14 hours of being at school for an entire week. The week after Tech Week, is the week of shows which is a lot of fun. Until Strike on Sunday, where everything gets cleaned up and put away. The worst part of strike is that a lot (not all) of the actors leave early in the process. I would just like to say that I am very grateful for everyone who stays until it is finished.
At least this week,(the 11th-16th) I get to spend the last period of each day doing Yoga, super relaxing. Blah!!!!

I am about to embark on a journey of a 900 page novel. Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six. "John Clark is used to doing the CIA's dirty work. Now he's taking on the world... Rainbow Six."... "At its heart is ex-Navy SEAL John Clark, now the newly named head of Rainbow, an international task force dedicated to combating terrorism. In a trial by fire, Clark is confronted with a violent chain of seemingly separate international incidents. But there is no way to predict the real threat: a group of terrorists like none the world has ever encountered, a band of men and women so extreme that their success could literally mean the end of life on earth as we know it....."(quoted Clancy inside front cover)
I started this novel two summers ago and never got around to finishing it. I had read approximately 350 pages, but have forgotten what has already happened. I am going to start it over from page one and be taken on the journey one page at a time. I will be posting some chapter summaries, but will not be giving away anything to vital to the ending. I hope. I am going to dive in head first and power through the engaging plot.

February-March: Mud Season


When melting snow
mixes with defrosting ground
the result is like the gooey consistency
of flour and water.

Sloshing through the soft
unstable ground,
it squishes through toes,
cakes itself on shoes.
It gets on everything
and stays on everything.

It dries and cracks
like the skin on the bottom of your feet.


(MUD
UGH.)

Ghosts of War by Ryan Smithson

I have been reading the novel, Ghosts of War, by Ryan Smithson, a 19-year-old G.I. who served in Afghanistan. He served in an equipment platoon, repairing roads and working construction. Most war novels are about the battles and attacks and counter-attacks, and convoys and such. The front lines, in short. This novel is very different. It is about the supporting companies who make it possible for "front line" G.I.'s to get to there objective etc...
This story brings the reader into Afghanistan and they connect with Ryan, or at least I did. I learned how some G.I.'s survive and remain relatively sane by being insane. He has a discussion about sanity and insanity, and how it is relative to your surroundings. Reading this novel was an extremely eye-opening experience. I would strongly recommend this novel to anyone who wants to get a real life account of one G.I's experience in Afghanistan.

On a cloudy day,
in the spring of 1784,
the goats were running wild

And I believed it all to be a lie,
but oddly enough
a majestic old man,
was standing on the hillside
as bright as the day was not

so I jumped
realizing
I was not hallucinating
but dreaming
as I slept.

The sour grape
surrounded by magma
burned
quickly
in a lake.
cloudy
the goats were running wild
in the spring of 1784
and i belived it all to be a lie
but oddly placed
so i jumped anyways
the majestic old man
slept

This was a writing exercise where we didn't see what the lines before  were and were given to write a part of speech or location etc...