Psychological Setting

In the beginning of chapter 6, there are words that describe the mood through setting and the actions of the beast from air- the dead parachuter.  There are words that describe the action going on at the time- a "battle fought at ten miles' height" and how, instead of saying something fell and landed on the island in a broken heap or what not, Golding says that "a sign came down from the world of grownups, as though there was no child awake to read it.  There was a sudden explosion and a corkscrew trail across the sky;then darkness again and stars" (95). which sets up the reader in a mood for something to land- suspension ans tension at what it's gonna be.  They are wondering what happened and the mood of the passage is destruction and ruin and how grownups are to blame for most of whats happening on the island.

Then, Golding goes on to describe the figure falling as having "dangling limbs" (95). and so when it is bowing in the breeze, looking alive, it isn't much of a shock from what the reader knows.  The mood is graceful almost because it moves with the wind but gets scarier and scarier when the wind picks up and when Samneric see it is is kind of understood why they would be so scared, but the way it looks like a beast is different from a human tangled up- like they are seeing the beast that is inside them mixed with their imagination and what they really see.

In chapter 8, when Jack is telling Ralph's lot where he is staying on the island and how they are invited- to switch groups, not just eat dinner, which isn't really implied until he talks about them wanting to join- Jack is described as "safe from shame or self- consciousness" (140). like when he was embarrassed by the others when  no one would join his group.  Then he has paint on his face in sort of a mask which gives him confidence because it is like a facade in which he can act braver and no one will know it's actually him.  The mood is comfortable and safe, but with an edge to it like something is going to happen.  Then when thunder strikes, which just adds to the creepy vibe already being put out, Jack wavers and is scared before he recovers which shows that he is still a little boy, no matter how grown up or beast- like he is trying to be.

Reading Reflection for 1st semester

Here's my list!!
most challenging:  Palace Walk

In Defense of Food
Lord of the Flies
All the short stories together would average out about here
literacy narrative
literary analysis
The Elegance of the Hedgehog
I think The Firm will end up about here
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Clockwork Prince
Heist Society
Mark of Athena
Nation
The Rhyming Season

Least Challenging: The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau Banks

 I think that over the course of the 1st semester I have kind of found out a little more about myself in interests such as reading.  My strengths in reading would definitely be in books that I choose or that people think I will like.  They usually tend to be right:)  Most of my summer reading is near the top of the list, mostly being that I wouldn't choose the book for myself and even if that was the case, I didn't end up liking them much at all.  That's just me though.  My definite interests in reading have been mostly in I guess the genre is teen fiction but not like Twilight- although I read those books and 2 out of the 4 I liked- but not like graphic novels or too much action or scary or creepy or way too sporty books.  I don't know a genre for that... Books about sports aren't bad, The Rhyming Season was about a basketball team, but I don't read them often- that was the only one.  Strengths in my reading are probably that I can understand most books I read and remember them, but sometimes, if I there's a time that I am just breezing through books, I get a little tired of reading and slow down but don't retain much of anything.  A weakness I think is that I read better at basketball games.  I don't know if its because of the noise or that I'm used to going, but I do.  I read better and understand more.  I still cheer on my brother though, even if I'm at a good point in my book...

I think a good goal for me for 2nd semester would be to read all the books on my reading list, which would include  Casual Vacancy, The Enchantress, Me Talk pretty some day, the new book in Infernal Devices series when it comes out in March- Clockwork Princess, maybe some of the other series by Cassandra Clare, and hopefully I can fit in a book from the library- they have gotten lots of good ones this year!

Ha ha in case you couldn't tell I like to read...<3

reading times

The Firm  by John Grisham
12/5  10 minutes, 7 pages
12/6 5 minutes, 3 pages
Lord of the Flies by William Golding
12/3 ch 6 and 7  45 minutes
12/4 ch 8  20 minutes
12/5 ch 9  15 minutes
12/6 ch 10  23 minutes
outside work on Literacy Analysis
45 minutes

                                                               Total: 163 minutes

Well LOTF was definitely interesting this week.  I feel like my Literacy Analysis has turned out OK so far and hope to improve at least a little more before it's completely due.  The Firm is so far a really good book but I haven't got that far into it so I'll just have to hope it turns out OK:)

reading times!

Alright, so I read:
date        time spent reading     pages      book
11/29       30 minutes                 33 pages   The Rhyming Season by Edward Averett
12/1        2 hours                       193 pages  The Rhyming Season by Edward Averett
12/2        35 minutes                  13 pages   Lord of the Flies by William Golding

Alright, well I'm going to talk some on The Rhyming Season since we are all reading LOTF.  This is about a girl and the basketball team at her school and how, ever since her brother died, her dad has been drinking and how, since the mill, the place where most all the men in town work, is closed down, how her team struggles.  And to top it all off their head coach leaves and their new coach is their once assistant coach- English teacher- Mr. Hobbs.  He is a strange fellow, and they now recite poetry at the foul line and name plays after famous characters and are nicknamed famous poets.  Of course no one did much about it at first because they were the girls team- not the guys team- they weren't as important so they could handle it.  When the poetry thing works, well people notice.  And then Brenda sees her dead brother, Benny, and I'm not going to say more because y'all will just have to read it.  The poetry in this book is quite good and it really relates to the characters they go with and the situations at hand. The moods in it are also quite shifting and, even if only from Brenda's point of view, gives you emotion from many characters.  A really good read, this book.

annotating focus for LOTF

I am annotating for psychological setting in LOTF and some things have stood out to me.  I started the  chart in the end of chapter 4 and wrote some but kind of dwindled at the end of chapter 5 because I couldn't put thoughts together very well. 
OK so here I go...
In chapter 4 it got really happy and in the mood children should be in when some of the kids were reenacting killing the pig, but the mood went down when they all stopped because Ralph was calling an assembly for later when he was going to tell them a speech he wanted people to listen to and wanted it to sound authoritative and powerful.
Then in chapter 5, Ralph was calm and unburdened by all goings on on the island when walking on his strip of beach to think and then he was brave and prepared for his speech but then was thinking on what a leader was- a true leader- and had all these "must be"'s and how they have to make decisions and have to be wise, but then came to realize, even though Piggy wasn't chief material, he could think and was wise.  Later on in his speech Ralph pointed out how lazy they all were saying how they would drink water from the stream that they put in coconut shells but ended up just drinking from the stream.  He got all hopeful saying how they could start over and be happy and then Jack stepped in and ruined it talking about the beast and how it's making everybody scared because they're sissies and cry-babies and they had to man up and deal with it.  This started a huge fight which made the tension rise a lot and at the end they- Ralph and Piggy- realized that grownups were who kept everybody in line at home but there were none here and it was going to be difficult without them.
The tension and bad or sad feelings have gone way up in these last 2 chapters, mainly chapter 5.

what we've learned in class

I remember pretty well all the stuff we have just leaned, like the literary elements and short stories and literacy things, but I could use some review on all the things we learned in the beginning of the year such as traits of writing and the process.
Also, some review on the uses of colon and semi colon would be helpful because I think I might still be using one of them in a wrong way, but am not sure...

reading over the break

 Heist Society by Ally Carter
11/20 20 minutes, 30 pages
11/21 85 minutes, 135 pages
11/22 115minutes, 126 pages
Lord of the Flies by William Golding
11/25 10 minutes, pages 76-79
11/26  50 minutes, pages 80-91

Well, we are all reading LOTF so I wont really go into that, plus I'm doing that other post on my reading focus, so I'll tell y'all about Heist Society.
Wow.  I really liked this book.  It was just enough action with the right amount of comedy and romance and it blended really well together.  I read it pretty fast, but that's mainly because I was at a basketball game, perfect place for me to read for some reason.  I can concentrate so much better amidst the noise and everything than I can in the quiet... hm...
This book was about a girl, Katerina, and how she pulled off a heist at an art museum and it did really well in describing the locations and pulling together facts later on in the book that I could actually remember and connect with rather than just flat out telling you which I found really interesting and cool.  So... yep:)

in class LOTF activity

OK, so the activity we did in class.  Well, it was definitely interesting; we had 4 people who nominated themselves as our rulers, some people in the corner talking about enslaving the first graders, killing people, and colonizing the nation, and the people asking for a boat, as well as those who wanted nap time or who just wanted class to end.  It was pretty cool though to see how everyone would've responded or how they acted as they would've- they might care more if it were a real life situation, who knows? But ya, it was fun.
Also, we took a democratic style vote as to what form of government we would be- democratic- and it was really spread out as to who was in charge.  There was a supreme ruler, 4 kings/queens, princesses, people, slaves, it was all confusing but the group work got done in the selective groups.  Like, the four rulers talked amongst themselves as to what they would do and the "supreme ruler" people would talk amongst themselves to formulate their own ideas.  It kind of helps you realize who you would hang out with in an event like this.  I would probably stay away from the boys suggesting colonization, slavery, and death, so now at least I know that!
But really, it was a fun class activity to do:)
<3

reading times!

Mark of Athena      17 pages, 13 minutes
                               20 pages, 18 minutes
Lord of the Flies    24 pages, 120 minutes (all that annotating! and I was confused...)

 So close to being finished with Mark of Athena! I am so excited! Well anyways, I read chapter one of Lord of the Flies and, personally, it's not my favorite book.  For me, at least, it's a slow read and I'm not a really violent, war- like, and so meaningful type of book person so, well there's that, but it's interesting so far.
I like how Golding describes the characters by how they look and act rather than just one or the other and I found the first chapter interesting, but, I dont know, it's just not my type of book.  I got most of the stuff Golding was talking about but I don't get the meanings of what everything refers to.  There's an island with pink rock everywhere and it's shaped like a boat, there's a boy who likes the play with his glasses when he's nervous or under negative pressure and there's a kind of built twelve and a half year old who has blonde hair and is named Ralph.  There's also Jack, or is he Merridew? I'm not sure, but for some reason, I feel he's evil.
Yep! Haha so I'll try to warm up to this book, I really will, and I think that once swimming is over, although I will be sad about it, I can really focus on it and maybe like it, who knows?
<3

Reading Times!

10/29  8 minutes, 9 pages
           7 minutes, 7 pages
10/30  30 minutes, 28 pages
10/31  10 minutes, 20 pages
           30 minutes, 35 pages
            20 minutes, 17 pages
11/1  5 minutes, 2 pages
         12 minutes, 18 pages
11/5 30 minutes, 36 pages

Well, I'm currently reading Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan and let me just say I LOVE IT!!!! I'm not going to spoil it for anyone currently reading it or those planning on it, which I recommend by the way... Yep! Everyone reading this should read it if they have not already.
In this book I really like how Riordan writes because I can follow along easily and read fast but also understand it while taking in information... Pretty cool:)  His books are some of the few (and by few I mean like 15...) books that I can follow along like that in, which is one reason why I love all of his books.  Yay!! So, yep...:)

My best and worst experience

How can it be that something that feels so good doesn’t at the same time? Well I’m gonna tell you…

         To me, the best experience is when you finish something, for me it’s a race, and looking up at the score board right before you get out of the water, seeing your new time, faster than before.  You know you just gave your all and it paid off with a new time for the next meet.  You know you did your best and that your coaches and family and friends are proud of you.  They give you a hug or a high five, telling you “Good job! I’m proud of you,” and you feel on top of the world with joy. 

         During the race you were excited too, knowing that you just paced someone who was seated faster than you by multiple seconds and that you can actually do that, it comes as a surprise to you.  You feel proud of yourself when you take a breath and see all the people cheering, some for you, some for others, and just taking it all in as there are people here who want me to succeed in this, I’m going to make them proud of me and then realizing you do that when you get out is reward enough for anything.  Before the races though, is not really any good experience unless you get a pep talk or something by friends or coaches who realize you’re freaking out, shaking even, and want you to do well.  You calm down just enough to get up on the block for the right race and get a good start.  This is the downside…

        This is also a really bad experience because once you finish this race, it may not be for everything you finish, and you are in pain.  Your legs feel numb and you’re getting your heart rate down by taking deep breaths and going to the warm down pool to, well, warm down.  Your physically and mentally tired, having had to figure out how to pace and if you can keep up with the much faster person in the lane next to you and if you are going to not do well or not make the coaches proud, if your goggles are falling off or filling up with water, if you’ll hit or miss the divider, there are many more… 

        During the race you are in pain as well, because you can’t just breathe every stroke but you can’t hold your breath a whole lap because you need oxygen.  Your lungs hate you and your legs feel like they’re going to fall off, yet somehow at the end of your race you put your all into the finish, giving it all you’ve got.  If you’re race was 30 seconds, less than that, 2 minutes, 6 minutes, however long it may be, you are just as tired for you have just given your all and it had hopefully paid off in some way or another.

        Before the race is a whole different story; some people get excited, some nervous, some sick, some are just impassive thinking it’s just this one thing, nothing too bad.  I myself shake a little and have a pit of nerves, sometimes they aren’t too bad sometimes I wish I never swam, that nothing comes out of feeling like this.  But that is where I’m wrong. 

        I make people proud of me and help my team with points, maybe, and I get to know that I didn’t mess up.  I didn’t fail at something.  I’m actually OK at a sport for once.  I know I am because I just dropped time and I hear my coach say “good race, Wendy” as I am getting our like I heard him say “Let’s go, Wendy” as I stood up on the block.  It’s an overall really good feeling after and before some bad ones to know that they have faith that you can do well.

        So sure the pros outweigh the cons, at least in my opinion, but I would have to say that the best and yet worst experience that I’ve ever had would have to be the time before, during, and after a race.  You go through feelings from sick with fear to elatedness of dropping time, whether it be less than second, less time than you can motion in, or 8 seconds, you know your work paid off.  I’m no Olympian, not going to be, but from this experience you can feel like you just won a gold medal and its close enough in my book.

Short Stories and My Book

The three outside of class stories I have read are Hills like White Elephants by Ernest Hemingway, The Sniper by Liam O'Flaherty, and The Return by Ngugi Wa Thiong'o.  I didn't really understand Hills like White Elephants so I dont think I could make a strong thesis out of that one.  The Sniper I understood and actually felt the tension and stress and found it really interesting, even if having occured in a short short time frame.  War changes a man and I think that that is showed through O'Flaherty's description of the main character and his facial expression as well as his eyes and how he moves as well as his emotions towards killing people after the fact and his curiosity towards who the person was.  I might be able to expand on this, but I'm not sure...

I semi-understoon The Return but coulsnt figure out what culture Kamau was from, and the words like "wazungu" and how there is  "bride price" as well as how he really wanted a son, which indicates that maybe he lived in a patriarchal society, male dominant, but I dont know, that could just be World History getting to me...

All in all I really liked the last two stories I read, not so much the first one, and maybe I could make thesis out of one?? Not sure though, I ight have to read a few more, or maybe just one... who knows??




Week's Reading:
       The Mark of Athena
10/25  10 minutes, 15 pages
           3 minutes, 5 pages
10/26  10 minutes, 19 pages
10/27  60 minutes, 75 pages
       Short Stories:
Hills like White Elephants   25 minutes, 3 pages (I had to reread to understand and go back to get some stuff)
The Sniper   15 minutes, 3 pages
The Return    27 minutes, 4 pages (same situation with Hills)

          * spell check isn't working at the moment so sorry if there are any mistakes*

A Week of Reading

I have a new book!!  I also have a list of books that I am going to read after this one, which is The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan.  I have friends who are reading this and I have friends who are finished with it.  I am in the first group so no spoilers please!! This is such a great book and 3rd one in series with The Heroes of Olymps series <3  Also, since it takes place in part in the Roman camp, a lot of the terms and language and names as well as mythology is Roman so I understand it from Latin class which I find to be so cool.
I also am writing down the words I dont know now so that I dont have to later...
So here are my times:
10/15       10 minutes, 10 pages
10/16       5 minutes, 5 pages and 10 minutes, 15 pages
10/19       30 min, 37 pages
10/20       75 minutes, 86 pages

I'm so excited to continue reading this book... tomorrow... when I'm not sleep deprived so...ya:)

Reading for the Week

Well, I finished my book!!!! Finally, ha ha well this week I read:
Waltz of the Fat Man-- 35 minutes
Harrison Bergeron-- 20 minutes
And of Clay we are Created--  40 minutes
Dry September-- 20 minutes
Clockwork Prince--  55 minutes
Total time spent:   170 minutes
Well the short stories we talked about in class so I'll just talk about my independent book...
Clare's description of well everything was just amazing and she did such a good job at conveying emotions and fitting them exactly with their character, which I find amazing.  An example would be on page 344 when Tessa describes Will's gaze on her as being "like hot flecks of ash landing on her skin" and on page 334 when Tessa is gazing at Jem as if she were staring "at a beloved place she was not sure she would ever see again, trying to commit the details to memory, trying to paint them on the backs of her eyelids that she might see it when she shut her eyes to sleep."  It's deeper and more emotional than saying she stared at him intensely.  And as for the character descriptions, it was their actions, words, and appearances that made them, well, them and how Cassandra Clare wrote them out made them come alive and I felt as if I was there, perhaps watching from the shadows of the institute, their carriages, or the warehouse, as well as anywhere else they had traveled too.  It was a magnificent book. <3

Literary Element

        In Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., I think characterization is a big part in it.  Both indirect and direct characterization were used, examples being "On the television screen were ballerinas." on page 209 and "a siren was going off in his head." on page 211 of direct characterization, because they tell you what's going on instead of showing you and indirect characterization would be on page 211 when Vonnegut writes "She must have been extraordinarily beautiful, because the mask she wore was hideous.  And it was easy to see that she was the strongest and most graceful of all the dancers, for her handicap bags were as big as those worn by two- hundred pound men."  This is indirect because you can picture her standing there with a hideous mask on and a huge heavy bag on her shoulders as a handicap.  Another example would be "Clanking, clownish, and huge, Harrison stood" because it gives you an image in your head of his appearance.
        I think characterization was important in this story because you had to have all the direct things in there to know that Hazel and George were watching ballerinas and what the sounds were like in George's head without going too deep into their thoughts and all of the indirect so that you can picture the story in your head and make inferences and connections that otherwise you wouldn't have made.  An example for me would be when on page 214, Diana Moon Glampers came in and shot with perfect aim at Harrison and his "empress", I immediately thought of Latin class.  Yes, Latin class.  This is because it connects to mythology, Diana was the goddess of the hunt and the moon and this shows her shooting with perfect aim and has "moon" in her name.  Pretty cool, right? Anyways, that's my literary element for you:)

Participation First Quarter

        I think this quarter of English has been long, but I have learned a lot during that time.  I think I did well with my materials and participating in the discussions- well, kind of- I would say answers or voice thoughts in my head a lot, I don't voice opinion much in class if I can help it.  I took thorough notes during Dr. D's lectures and although when I'm paired with a friend I do more talking than with someone who all I know about them is their name and English block, I get more work done with them because if I ask them a question they get me and know what to say and how I can put it to sound like me, so that's always helpful. 
       You see, I don't speak up much in class because I don't know, I'm just not comfortable talking and sharing opinions or things that might be mocked/wrong... with people who most of which I don't hang out with at all.  I will share answers in my head, I'll think of this explanation and all this stuff but as weird as it sounds sometimes classmates will raise their hands and say almost exactly what I was thinking, no joke, and so I just get to sit there.  Im totally fine with that though.  If I ever have a question or anything I can turn to my seat partner, hopefully a friend and they can help as I stated previously.  Sorry I dont talk too much but I do participate in my own way. 
      
      I think I learned a lot in this quarter, from arguments on book opinions to character analysis.  I felt like I really learned the stuff with what we did for the most part, except for some of the few times where I felt it went by a little fast.  And wordly wise has been sort of a blur to me, but all in all, I have had a good time and learning experience this quarter.

A Week of Reading

This week I read Clockwork Prince for an hour- I'm almost done, I'm so excited!!!!  Then there are the short stories, which I read A&P for 20 minutes, Da Duh in Memoriam for 35 minutes, and An Old Man with with Wings for 40 because it was really confusing and I had to read over a lot.  So... yep:)
My total reading for this week was 155 minutes.

What kind of writer am I?

        I am a writer who... makes mistakes and usually learns from them, takes from past experience, uses "-ish" a lot in some stuff, adds some funky words to other things, likes to write as I would speak, so it doesn't always flow right or stay on topic, but it sounds like me:)

        I am a writer who likes to write based off felling and use music and stories as inspiration.  Memories and current events I am going through, emotions, movies, anything really... how my day was, if I just did something really silly or something really serious.  If I'm hungry I'll hurry up, if I just ate, well I can just sit here and write, now can't I?

        I am a writer who likes to write about what they are doing, rant about their book, a guy, girl stuff, swimming, band, choir, friends and acquaintances, fun stuff, boring stuff maybe.  Random and specific stuff, colorful and dull topics, mostly and hopefully fun to read type of stuff.

      I am writer who strives to be perfect and knows they can't be really but can be in their head. I am a writer who can think things but can't say them, who can have a perfectly put together puzzle in their head but then on paper or in words its back to the first piece.

        I am a writer who wants to be heard, but not as me, as some anonymous amazing flawless person.  I am writer who wants to let myself show without giving too much away. 

I am a writer who wants to sounds like me.

Reading Response!!

days:                   time:           pages read:           book:



September 24       30 minutes        LITERACY NARRATIVE
September 24       15 minutes         12 pages     Clockwork Prince
September 25       20 minutes        LITERACY NARRATIVE
September 26       10 minutes         8 pages       Clockwork Prince
September 27       10 minutes         9 pages       Clockwork Prince
September 27       35 minutes        17 pages      To Build  a Fire
September 28       15 minutes        LITERACY NARRATIVE
September 30       30 minutes         25 pages     Clockwork Prince
                                                                                                    Total: 165 minutes  71 pages read


        The description and details in Clockwork Prince is AMAZING!!!  For example: pg. 274 "Will and Jem were like mice scurrying up and down the body of a cat, driving it to distraction." when they were battling a large automaton.  Also on page 307 when Tessa is thinking of how she saw Jem, as "a lovely silver shadow against the darkness."  Amazing word choice right?? Ha ha well anyways, time to do the REAL assignment...

       So any recent read that I haven't already told you what has happened over countless reading responses I wont do so that leaves a few books that I have as all time favorites to choose from, yay:):) So I'm going to choose The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern- any friends from last year can remember me talking about the book and how good it was and all that awesome stuff, well it's true- and so, ya...

Plot Structure:
Characters:  Marco, Celia, Alexander aka the man in the grey suit, Hector a.k.a Prospero the Enchanter, Bailey, Chandresh, Poppet and Widget, Tsukiko, Mme. Ana Padva, and Herr Thiessen.
Setting:  London in late 1800s and Concord, Massachusetts early 1900s.
Title and Author:  The  Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Conflict:  competition between Marco and Celia with the Circus as their chess board and the tent as their pieces.
Rising Action:
- When Alexander and Hector met up and restarted their "game" seeing who could be the best with "talent" I'm not really sure of a word for it... power? anyways, and have 2 students, Hector's daughter and a student that Alexander will find.
- the card Celia gets that says "Your Move", getting the ball rolling faster on the "game"
-  Marco and Celia meet at a Midnight Dinner at Chandresh's home.
CLIMAX:  When Celia and Marco discover they are opponents
Falling action:
- Marco and Celia fall in love
- Celia finds out from Tsukiko that only one will survive
- Herr Thiessen dies
Resolution:  Celia and Marco get themselves "out of the equation" and unattached to the Circus so that they can live happily ever after together.

      OK, well I hope that this was an OK plot structure of The Night Circus, an amazing book by the way.  Really good, you should read it sometime:) Alright well yep, so that's it:) Now back to Clockwork Prince...

Revision work

OK, so I cant really tell y'all whats going on in my book at the moment without spoiling a huge important part in it so you'll just have to read it for yourselves.    Its such a good book, plus it's fiction, so that's always a good thing:)  Clare's description and attention to detail is superb as always and its hard to put down.  So because of this, I'm going to talk about my narrative revisions.
       My literacy narrative is about how reading a dreadfully boring non-fiction book in first grade changed my outlook on reading and got me to stay away from the genre for quite a while.  For my revision I plan on adding vivid detail as well as change some word choice in a few spots and add a little more dialogue to emphasize why I chose the book in the first place.  That I needed to do some research for.  About halfway through class today, while working on the narrative, I remembered an important detail as to why I had not minded that the book was on Benjamin Franklin- I had been hooked to a television show called Liberty's Kids at the time, which was in the time period and had Ben as a character, so I thought that one perk of the book would be that it would somehow, maybe relate to the show.  It did in a way.  The main character in the book and Ben in the show had the same name and description.  Other than that I remember little so, ya...
       I looked up the show on PBS.com and couldn't find it so I asked my mom when I got home.  She thought it was Patriot's Kids so I looked that up.  No luck but I got a hit in the search bar for google on the real title and ended up finding a whole website on the show, confirming that Ben Franklin was a character and that it actually happened.  I have added that part into my narrative as well as a little more description to hopefully bring the reader "into the scene" and... ya:)  Um... I added some more about why I thought that the book couldn't be that bad and how I was wrong.  Way off base with that one.  Well, that's about all I have on revisions so, yep:)
<3 Wendy

Thinking...

"Have you ever crossed the road, and looked the wrong way? A car's nearly on you? So what do you do? Something very silly.  You freeze.  Your life doesn't flash before you 'cause you're too scared to think- you just freeze and pull a silly face." - from the movie Snatch, in 2000.
     
      OK, so I know what you're thinking, why put this? Well, I'll tell you:)  So, when I'm bored or just need some inspiration to think or some motivation, I look up quotes.  Sometimes they're funny, sad, quizzical, or from specific movies or people.  For this one I just searched  "movie quotes".  This popped up as one.  I find it interesting because it's true, now that I think about it.  If you see the car before you cross, you run fast across or you wait until the next big gap between cars.  But if you are halfway across and turn and see a car, you freeze mid step.  Like you don't know if you should go back or not.
      I've personally had quite a few experiences with that feeling, none ending badly though, so that's good, but it, I don't know... I just found it really interesting.  That split second or less of pure mental and physical block where you just cant decide what to do because thousands of scenarios are flashing through your head about what could happen and your body's trying to tell you what to do... I'm not sure why, but this one quote just caught my eye.  I felt somehow compelled- however cheesy that sounds- to write about it. 
       And who knows? Maybe next time I'm in a situation like that I'll think of this post and just kinda go in a circle with my thoughts, what should I do? I wrote about this... did I say what to do? what's more logical? I don't know... but I found it very interesting and relate able to most, so... ya:)  Topics are kinda hard to just think of to write about, so quite a few free posts will probably start with a cool quote or some lyrics...  So think about it.  Have you ever experienced this???
<3 Wendy

Literacy Narrative Idea, Maybe

        Well, I'm not really sure about what I'm going to write about for this literacy narrative, and my mind is drawing a blank right now.  I mean, if I read a really well- written, entertaining, fun, and amazing book I'll usually end up thinking about different stories that I could write for fun or something, I don't really know, but it usually centers around some part of the book I read, whether it be character personality, looks, or location.  I don't know why, but I do.   So maybe writing isn't my best option...
         Maybe for reading I could do something like how my whole family at home reads and how my dad would read to me for a long time at night when I was younger and how that got me to like reading more than if I weren't hoping to see what the next night and few more chapters would bring in the Nancy Drew, mostly, or sometimes Indiana Jones books, whatever they may be.  I would think about what was going to happen in that book and then, when we finished that one, he would take me to the library and I would go into the childrens' section and grab 2 or 3 different books in that series, not necessarily in order, and go back to the front where my dad would be making his way to the check out counter as I did that.  I remember how my dad would make his way up the stairs and read a while and, when I was asleep, turn off the lights and go downstairs and I would at times wake up when he had made his way downstairs and hear his chair creak as he sat down and went to the kitchen or where ever he went.  I think it influenced my reading because if he didn't read to me, even when I knew how to read, it gave me something to look forward to each night that involved books, and it helped me sleep, so it was all good:) But it's not really a short event/scene, so there's that issue... but I don't know... Maybe it could work, I'm not sure...
Well thanks for putting up with this brainstorming:)
- a confused teenager

A Secret Masquerade

Even if you dont see me, I'll be there...
        I'm still on Clockwork Princeby Cassandra Clare and still loving the book.  I really like Clare's word choice and how she describes things such as the rain on page 178 when she writes "great, icy drops that tasted of cahrcoal and silt." and that it- the rain in London- had a "needlelike sting" to it, and compared it to the rain in the countryside and the "green fresh taste of it, the way it felt to roll over and over down a damp hillside, getting grass in your hair and clothes.  You think of different scenes in each.
       So, Tessa has kissed Jem now.  But still maybe likes Will, so... there's that.  And then Sophie and she have seen Jessamine leaving her room at night dressed as a boy and then Sophie catches her with a masquerade ball invitation that is pretty secret and held by Mr. Lightwood.  Nate, Tessa's brother is apparently back, and Jessamine is his lover because he wrote her a note on the back of the invite with what dress to wear and called her "Jessie" in the note, very informal for a gentlemen then.  So, since they had the invite and Sophie knocked out Jessamine, Tessa is Changing into Jessamine for the night and going to the ball with Will, who will be hiding in the shadows, but will be there for her when she needs him. Tessa has to pretend to be her brother's lover... weird right? So she goes and Changes and gets all dolled up and then walks out and her and Will are picture perfect contrast in their get ups.  She, as Jessamine, has blonde hair which contrasts with Will's dark hair and her white dress and gold domino half mask that is sharp contrast with his black suit and mask.   Some things go down at the dance about what Tessa may be that you will just have to read the book to find out.  I'm not gonna spoil the book.  So then she and Will kiss on the balcony when she Changes back on accident.  But it was probably because of a drug in a drink? Ya right but whatever, I think it just made them show wha they really fell but that's just me:)
       After the ball, Will chases the demon that cursed him and gets his tooth stuck in his arm and acts a little weird, which Magnus finds might be a coincidence, might not be one.  Then Jessmaine is sent to the Silent City so that the people there can try and figure out what she knows besides what she told Charlotte and them all in her room when she woke.  Right now, Jem and Tess have gone there to convince her to write a note to Nate, asking to meet him, and Tess will Change into her and dress in boy's clothes and go meet him, and catch him.  Also, Sophie and Gideon Lightwood might have a "thing" going on between them, but maybe not, according to Sophie.
      I really like this book and can't wait to finish it.  What is Tessa? Jem or Will? Nate and Jessmaine... together forever? I'll just have to find out.


Reading times:
9/11/12: 9 minutes, 9 pages
9/13/12: 10 minutes, 10 pages
9/14/12: 17 minutes, 12 pages
9/16/12: 120 minutes, 77 pages
       

Response to Comment

        Well, I just revised my "In Defense of..." post with tips from Dr. D's comment.  She typed: "Wendy, you have a really developed post with a lot of good reasons. I want you to think about where you could strengthen by simplifying. For instance, how would this post be changed if you began with "Without music, life would be boring: no background music in movies, TV, or commercials, no songs at all, and none of your favorite singers would even be doing what they are doing." While it is good to know your thinking about choosing a topic, putting that at the beginning prevents you from having a strong, striking opening."  I took that into consideration and changed my opening to a question... "What would life be like without music?"  I mean really, what would it be like?  Can you imagine?  Anyways...  I simplified some of the rambling I did in the blog and shortened it and added some more specifics to make it a little better. 
        By changing the opening, I think I let it be a little more readers' thought based rather than think about if this happened and this happened and all these specifics on how life would be different.  It lets the reader think on it for a second or two before reading my reasons as to how it would be different and how I feel it is important in my life.  I know I don't really do the whole "simplifying" thing and ramble or add unimportant things, and I'm trying to get out of that habit.  I also know I'm not that great of a writer, so I hope this makes sense as to why I revised and how it changed the post.

Independant Reading

If no one cares for you at all, do you even really exist?... 
I'm currently reading Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare and am really enjoying it.  This week I have read:
9/5/12- 10 minutes, 8 pages (16-24)        9/9/12- 42 minutes, 33 pages (40-73)
9/6/12- 10 minutes, 8 pages (24-32)        9/9/12- 26 minutes, 23 pages (73-96)
9/7/12- 10 minutes, 8 pages (24-32)        9/9/12- 60 minutes, 50 pages (96-146)
I dont think that I have really devled all that much into this book, so here it goes...  There was this trial because Charlotte, who runs the Institue in London with her husband, Henry, is deemed responsible of losing Mortmain, an evil man who is making automatons- viscious, inhuman robots, and is assigned the task of finding his whereabouts in 2 weeks, or Benedict Lightwood canchallenge Charlotte for being in charge of the institue.  There's Will, a Shadowhunter and his parabatai- like his brother, but not.  It's where you, as a Shadowhunter, find another Shadowhunter before you turn eighteen.  Not everyone gets one.  You are then bound together and protect one another.  It can come in quite handy- Jem who is sick and has to take a drug to keep him alive but it makes him silver.  They seem to be very different.  Will, a lady's man who goes out to drink and the like and Jem, quiet and sweet and friendly.  There's also Tessa, a warlock... maybe?  She's unmarked- some have cat- like eyes, some a tail...- but shes not mundane- human.  She can change into someone, look into their thoughts and memories, become that person, just by holding an item that is close to them from a coat button to a locket they wore. In the pages I read, she changed into Aloysius Starkweather, a senile old man who might have been hiding some pieces of information when she, Will, and Jem visited him.  She saw the thoughts as fragments of mostly unsensable fragments, with little help.
        Gabriel and Gideon Lightwood are brothers and the sons of Benedict Lightwood and are training Tessa, Sophie, a maid in the Institute, and Jessamine- shes a Shadowhunter, but not proud of it.  She hasnt participated in any of it so far.  They are training them so that they can defend themselves in case of an attack, like what happened in the first book.  There's Magnus Bane, a warlock, and he is helping Will when he comes to see him distraught.  Will spills his story as to why he is so cold towards others and why he wants Magnus to send him to the demon world.  When he was 12, he curiously opened a box in his fathers office from when he was a Shadowhunter- he wasnt one anymore because he married a mundane and left that life- and a blue demon appeared and cursed him.  Anyone who loved him would die.  Not necessarily over night, but they would.  The demon started with his sister.  After that he left and stayed at the London Institute, making everyone think of him as cold and mean.
        He's only 17- I tend to forget that sometimes.  They act older than their age but then again not.  Will loves Tessa and thinks that he has to make her not love him and that that's the most important thing at the moment.  Tessa loves Will... or does she? She might be falling for Jem, who clearly to Sophie- in love with Jem- but not to Tessa, is in love with her.  Complicated and curious. Now at this point in the book, Will, having just seen this house that is housing his family- he cont go near because Mortmain has automatons ready to attack if he warns them- is freaked out and talks to Magnus who writes to Tessa telling her that Will may be getting himself into trouble.  She gets Jem and together they find Will, having abused subastances at the place where he buys the drug for Jem, passed out and some stuff is about to go down...
       The line from the top of this post- sorry its so long, but a lot of stuff had to be said and described...- and Will says it when talking to Magnus. He got it from a letter that Tessa sent Nate- her brother, not exactly the nicest person now- when she was being forced to use her power. I really like it and it makes me think.... well, do you? So far, I really like this book as I did Clockwork Angel, and am excited to see what more will happen...will they find Mortmain? Who does Tessa really love? What about Jem's illness and Will's curse?  We shall see...

The Event of my Week

        When I woke up this morning at 9:00 AM, on my way into the living room, my eyes fell on the article on the front page of the People section in the Advocate: "Local players join U.S. team".  Scanning the picture descriptions for what it was, I found that it was quidditch.  This rung a bell in my mind because I had a friend who knew these people who got to go to London to play quidditch at the Olympics.  Of course, we were confused on if it meant as a sport or what, and it turns out that they played in an international tournament- the first one ever- in Oxford, England, before the London games.  Anyways, so I'm sitting on my hard wooden kitchen chair reading this article, when my dad comes in, and we shake hands good morning( just a thing we do) and he goes over to turn on the radio.  Now I'm reading about the players and listening to news on the after math of hurricane Isaac.  My dad says Baton Rouge was lucky because we were on the side of the hurricane with less rain and wind.  After that I went to go make some mint tea and let me tell you, it smelled refreshing.  So just as I start in my tea, my mom walked in. I now get to help with broken branches all over my yard.
        I get the big branches and my brother gets to do the smaller ones when he gets up.  Its around 9:15 AM or so that this happens.  Outside it smells like water, mud, and pine trees and there is a breeze outside which feels nice and the sun"s not so bad because there are clouds covering the sky.  I set to work.  So I go straight to the backyard- that's where all the trees are anyways, behind the fence.  Luckily they fall into our yard; not exactly the nicest animals live behind there.  So anyways, I find this big branch and I start bringing it down my driveway, but there's one problem: a basketball goal is lying right in the way and so is a huge brick pile.  After getting around all that, walking through all the mud in flip flops (what? I think they're comfy and my feet were getting muddy anyway) - we just got a pool and theres still a lot of dirt instead of grass- and then down my driveway 4 times with 4 different branches, one of them a part of a pine tree that fell from my neighbors yard.  The sap was all sticky and red and is still stuck on parts of my hands.  After this my mom and I go to the back again and she tells me I can jump in the pool to feel less disgusting from all the mud and dirt and tree parts all over me, so I do. Its around  9:45 or so now.
        Now see, I forgot that rain makes a pool colder.  It was freezing but I still swam around for a few minutes to try and fell more refreshed, which worked.  I get out and my mom brought out a towel and my laptop so I could write this.  I get something in my eye so I dunk my head under water to get it out- I'm not about to use my tree sap- covered hands.  Second time in the pool today.  My hair kept on dripping on the keyboard and I had to watch my dog because the fence isn't able to close and she wants to always be around my mom who went back to the front and that's when a huge bumble bee decides to land right on my shirt.  I didn't notice it at first but then I looked down for some reason and there it was, just crawling around on my wet shirt.  I didn't know what to do, I've never been stung by a bee before and didn't plan on it being today, so I screamed.  I screamed for my mom ( if you think that's childish or silly, you obviously don't know me very well).  My dog came running and she- or as it seemed to me- tried to calm me down by sitting there and making me pet her by putting her head under my arm and lifting it.  After a few minutes my mom is back in the backyard and I'm a mess, I'm crying and hyperventilating I don't know where the bee went because I had towels on my lap and lost track of it.  Shes oblivious to the fact that I had been frozen there for a few minutes, calling her name.  I tell her theres a bee and she helps me up and looks me over to make sure its not there and then tells me to "jump in the pool.  Drown the sucker or whatever you want to call him,"which made me laugh.  So for the third time today I jumped in the pool. 
        I'm still freaked out after so I move to sit under the gazebo in a lawn chair.  Of course, with my creepy crawly luck, ants and spiders show up on the chair and I move inside, passing a bird house that was wasp infested which got me thinking of one of my moms friends who found some sort of bee or wasp nest in the ground of his backyard unluckily- he mowed over it with his lawnmower, something my dad has done before apparently- and got attacked.  That night he went out and poured gasoline all over the nest and lit it with a match.  Needless to say all of the bugs died.  My mom just used wasp spray though, so theres no big burnt spot on our patio.  All of this ended right around 10:15, so a little over an hour, oops.  Well two hours later I'm inside, still wet, and about to go make some tea because it was cold when I came back. That is, after I finish up some more work outside. Toodleoo!( that's a neat word, is it not? ha ha) well goodbye!:)

Independant Reading

        Well, even though I still have power at my house for the time being, I decided to do some reading.  First, I finished The Elegance of the Hedgehog, which was such a great book! Now, I wont go off and just ruin the ending of it, if you want to know, read it:)  Alright, so even though the book takes place in modern day Paris, I often forgot.  I don't know why, it just seemed like the descriptions of Renee and Paloma and the other characters and just general setting descriptions never really reminded me of modern day, so I was often confused for a minute when a modern aspect came up that jumped out from other thoughts like when Paloma saw a rosebud fall she went into a detailed description on beauty and its relation to death and poetry and you just don't hear that much thought about something like that nowadays.  Especially from twelve and a half year old girls.  But I was brought back into reality of the time setting when Renee uses Eminen to relate to her personal life.  She also talks about getting songs stuck in her head and how it amazes her each time and I can relate to that also.  I get songs stuck in my head all the time.  But anyways, I liked the book very much and finished the last 25 pages in 30 minutes.
        After that lovely book, I decided to look for my nook which I had lost near the end of the summer. I found it thankfully and charged it and started back up on The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, which I had started near the end of the summer.  I had been anticipating what Charlie's next letter to his friend would say and I was excited to get right back into it like I had never lost it.  I read for an hour to finish the last 50 pages I had left.  I really liked this book for multiple reasons.  One of them is that the writing style is one I find unique.  Charlie- or that's what he calls himself- writes to this anonymous person and tells them all about his life in multiple letters and changed the name of everybody, but you would have never guessed that if he hadn't of told the reader.  I also liked this book because I actually felt for Charlie.  He wasn't just some book character to me.  He was a person.  I felt that he could have been writing the letters to me, which is maybe what Chbosky intended with the anonymous "Dear friend" at the beginning of each letter.  I don't know, maybe that sounds silly but its what I thought.  I really enjoyed this book.
        Lastly, I have just started Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare.  So many books, I know! But I just felt compelled to read today and got a lot accomplished, which I think went well.  I read Clockwork Angel last year from the school library and I really enjoyed it.  Many of my friends were telling me to read the "first series" The Mortal Instruments, but I wanted and still want to finish The Infernal Devices, the second series Clare has written.  It kind of plays off the first one in a different time period is what I've heard and its easier to understand but I started the books that way and intend to finish them that way.  The last book in this series comes out in March of next year though, so I guess I'll just have to wait a while, but its worth it.  A reason I like this book is its setting.  Its set in London in the late 1800s and I don't know hwy, but I like that.  It seems like such a different place from just Neverland or somewhere in America which I find intriguing.  I also like how Clare connects all the characters.  There are all these unique things about them such as Jem and his drug addiction that keeps him alive or Jessamine and her not wanting to be what she is, a Shadowhunter, and her struggle with that.  But all in all they all end up like a family in a way, or at least most of them do.  That's all I know so far, and its mainly from the first book and 25 minutes of reading that include the first 15 pages.  Its not much to go on, I know, but I am confident that I'll like this book. 
        This is really long, wow, um... sorry if its just long and uninteresting, but that's what you get from 3 books, a laptop, and a teenage girl stuck inside all day due to a hurricane:)  The reading times total 155 minutes and 90 pages.  I kind of spread it out all over this post, so I just totalled it.  Anybody who's going through Hurricane Isaac stay safe!!

Independant Reading Book

        My current outside reading book is The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery.  I have read for 175 minutes this week and am almost finished with it, 25 more pages to go!! I have found this book to be very good and well written but sometimes a little hard to understand, which is understandable because it was translated from French.  An example of this wold be the first page in Chapter 4, when Renee, the concierge, is thinking about how on some days she can read a book through and understand it all and then others when it takes a good while to get through a couple pages because you are going back to reread it over having not understood a single word of it.  I can definitely relate to that.
        Also there's Paloma, who's 12, and very opinionated but hides it.  She has her own views on the world and is quite intelligent.  She really just cant wait to grow up in a way because of how she thinks and how much she cant tolerate being around people of her age that much.  Shes curious, which I can relate to, and she wants reasons for things other than "just because".  I like her character and like how Barbery portrays her.
        The whole sense of the book is really good, I think because of well how its written and because of the sort of conflict going on individually with Renee and Paloma.  They are both smarter than they seem and hide it because of what others- in Renee's case, the tenants of the apartment building, especially Monsieur Ozu and in Paloma's her teacher and family- think of them and how it wouldn't be right.  The book dwells a lot on their thoughts specifically and not just mindless dialogue or description.  I find it makes me think more than most books I've read and I like that for a change.

In Defense of Music: A Music Lover and Musician's Manifesto

       What would life be like without music? TV shows and movies without background music to add effect or set the scene.  It would be weird wouldnt it? Imagine spending a day without hearing any music, whetehr background or top of the charts... that would be hard to do.
         I personally find music to be a nice get away and use it to focus on things or to just calm down.  I even sing it in my head to get pumped up for events and things that I'm nervous to do.  Like, for example, I'll find myself singin a whole different array of music in my head in hard and fast sets during swim practice to pace or I'll sing something in my head when I'm sad or scared to calm me down.  Weird maybe, but it works for me:)
         I'm also in band and a choir so I get to be around music in and out of school with that and then there's my iPod.  I don't know what I would do without that, as silly as that sounds, because I am usually listening to music as much as I can during school days and weekends.  In fact, I'm listening to Pandora on my laptop now, because its helping keeping me focused on the task, writing about how to defend music.  What better way to do that than to be listening to music while writing about it?
        In school, having had music education can actually help.  Studies have shown that children who have had music education, especially rhythm, are better in some subjects such as math than those who haven't.  Also if a young child has had some exposure to music on paper, it helps them learn to read with the lyrics, listen because they are listening to see how the song sounds, and it also helps their speech because they are singing the words. 
        I think that some people have some misconceptions about how music can really make a difference in what we see or do.  What if, instead of the scary horror music played in scary movies, they played a Disney song, like "A Whole New World" from Aladdin?  If you hadnt seen a horror movie and known that it should be scary, maybe you'd feel different about what mood it should be in.  Of course visual effects make a difference and so do scripts but the tone of the music can make you feel jumpy, nervous, elated, or sad.  Just depends I guess.
       Also lyrics play a big part in music.  Songs are like poems with a tune.  They also can make people feel different ways. For example right now I'm listening to "What Makes You Beautiful" by One Direction and I feel better than I would if I were listening to "Landslide" by Fleetwood Mac.  They have different sounds and feelings that are exposed, but its still music.  Also, many can relate to songs such as "You Belong With Me" by Taylor Swift because of personal experience and music is a good way to show any feeling really whether it be anger or sadness or joy and you can show it without doing anything physical or anything you'd regret.  Plus it usually sounds good, so that's always nice.
        But just because I find music to be a staple in my life doesn't mean that it has to be one in yours. I just find it to be a good way to stay focused and let my feelings out and just get through most days. So that's why I find music to be an important thing almost everywhere. Most cultures have music they play.  Many also listen and dance to it as well. Trying to go almost anywhere and not hear music at all would be pretty hard to do, try it and see...

Summer Reading Response

        My choice book that I read this summer was The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart.  Its about a girl, Frankie, who, when she comes back to boarding school for her sophomore year, has looks that get her more attention in a good way.  But everybody thinks she's harmless and she doesn't like that, so she anonymously heads major pranks of a private boys club and, well I cant tell you the rest because that would ruin the book for you.

    When my mom brought the book home from Barnes and Nobles, I didn't think I would like it, she didn't.  Well I picked it up anyways and started it and then just fell headfirst into reading it and got very engrossed.  I found the plot interesting and in some ways different from what I normally read.  I liked how Frankie sort of changed that stereotype that just because you look a certain way and are a girl that you cant be suspected of doing something so... smart and powerful as her boyfriend, who is in that club but thinks she couldn't possibly be behind it all.  I usually don't read that many criminal- mastermind, kind of action-y books, I like fairy tales and sort of more fantasy, like fiction books better, but not like books that are chic lit or really "out there", but this one was definitely a good read.

Expectations

         High school is definitely different than middle school, that's for sure.  More free time, more homework, and a busier schedule oh my!  I've made some new friends, so that's making for a good start to this year.  I like English class, reading is one of my favorite things to do, so that's good.  As long as the book is interesting and fun, I'm happy most of the time,which makes me excited to see what Macbeth and Lord of the Flies will be like.  Writing... well I will try to warm up to it more this year.  I think that I'll get the hang of the schedule in a few days, so that's good, and I'm ready to take on the challenge that high school will bring this year.
      
        Other than English class, I have other activities as well.  I'm swimming for the varsity team at school which is definitely a challenge most times and I have AP World History which is going to be a challenging but fun class.  It moves fast and we have a busy syllabus, but the class itself is fun to be in.  I'm also in an out of school choir, which just adds on to my schedule, but is really fun to participate in, so I'm excited for that.  Once swim is over, I'll be reallysad, but I'll have time to do my homework at school and not later at night.  There will also be next year.  Sleep will be a welcome change.  So even though this year will be a challenge, I'm ready for it.  It's been fun so far.