Author's Note: For my creative piece I decided to just do a little story about when I went to New York and kind of describe what it looked like during Christmas and what I did there.
I'm not a person that goes on vacation a lot and the only places I have been to are Las Vegas and New York. It is kind of what you call a family tradition for us to go to Wisconsin Dells yet nothing interesting really ever happens there. New York has a much better story. When I was in New York, it was during Christmas which made New York was the most extravagant site I have ever seen. Everything was perfect, there was maybe two inches of snow which gave the city a wonderful coat of white and at night when all the Christmas lights were on, it was like the whole city was flooded with colors of yellow, green, red, and blue. There were huge lit up snowflake decorations that put a wonderful shade of blue light that bounced off each building window surrounding them. The best part was the biggest tree that was decorated so beautifully it stung my eyes it was so well lit up. I have never been in such a magical place, and I got to do and see some pretty neat things.
Even though seeing the city was a great experience there was a few things we didn’t get to do, for instance we were going to go to the top of the Empire State Building, but we didn’t have enough time and it was really busy. One thing that really got me upset was that there was a birthday dinner for my mom that I was never told about. We were just sitting in a restaurant and then POP! The workers just do a little surprise celebration with confetti and singing happy birthday and I was literally even more surprised than my mother. I held a grudge for the remaining time we were there and I still am.
The rest of it was nice, we got to get a ride in a carriage with a big, white, stinky clydesdale that smelled as if it hasn’t been washed for over a month. This kind of reminds me of that Seinfeld show when the guy gives his horse some bread and it gets all gasey. After circling Central Park I never hated a horse ride before in my life and I love horses. We walked on the Brooklyn Bridge and I saw the magnificent statue of Liberty in the distance. With the sun gazing down upon her making the water beneath her sparkle, I thought to myself that that was the biggest, proudest looking statue I have ever seen, even though it is the first and only statue I have ever seen. I also remember seeing the remains of the twin towers. The places that they were in were cut off by huge plastic covered fences. It made it look unbelievably depressing. One thing that I will never forget is the amazing pizza they have there; it was the most delicious pizza I have ever encountered and I would definitely go there again just for one more slice. Hopefully I get the honor to go there again to have some more fresh memories and fresh pizza.
Monday, February 18, 2013
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Patriot or Loyalist
Author's Note: This book was a hard choice to figure out the point of view but I pretty much explain how the story would be told from other people in the book and explain what Tim's point of view is on the Revolutionary War.
In the book My Brother Sam Is Dead by Christopher Collier ,Tim is a young boy who lives in Redding, Connecticut and his family are loyalists. His father is a man who think’s the war is just a stupid, pointless act against the king, while Sam,Tim’s older brother, is in college, but snuck away with some other men to join the Continental Army. So Tim’s father is not happy with Sam because he thinks that it’s God’s rule that men are supposed to be loyal to their king. Their mother is a loyalist but doesn’t care much of what Sam is doing she doesn’t want any part of it. The author is showing that Tim is not the bad guy here that he is just trying to get a good perspective of things, while Tim is pretty much in the middle of it all because he wants to obey his father but when he looks at same he thinks that he is the most intelligent and proud man especially when he came home with his Continental Army suit. Sam steals the family musket and takes off to join the cause while Tim is forced to become a man and help out with their farm and tavern. The father gets kidnapped and killed on a British ship so Tim was the man. Sam comes home because his team is resting in Redding and Sam gets executed by being accused of stealing his own cattle.
Tim doesn’t really pick a side of either loyalist or patriot because of how he was grown up with loyalists and seeing British troops do something horrible to the patriots. If Tim was just a loyalist then the story would have been how horrible the patriot’s are and if he was a patriot it would be the other way around. Having being able to see both sides was a good experience for him not just listening to Sam or their father. Therefore Tim’s point of view is that the war is just something that should have never happened or that there should be another way for the patriots to get their freedom.
Of course if the author didn’t tell the story from Tim’s point of view then the whole story would have changed. Take Sam for instance, if the story was told from his point of view then the story would just be about him in the war and actually that sounds pretty good. If the author did another book that takes place as Sam in the war, his point of view would all just be him in the war and how he thinks fighting for independence is worth dying for, which it is. Now it would be the same for author if he chose someone else's point of view. For most of the people who lived in Redding they were loyalists so the point of view from anyone in the town would be all about how great of a king king George is and how Sam is such a good almost grown up man and how smart and strong he is but that he is a traitor of the king and he should be banished from Redding or executed.
It is important that a great author has a well understood point of view and that the reader can find and understand it. The point of view for Tim is that he is in the middle of war and he is just trying to keep his mother safe, keep out of trouble, and to keep the tavern running to stay in business. His point of view will change a bit throughout the book but in the end his point of view is pretty clear that Tim was a more of a pacifist.
In the book My Brother Sam Is Dead by Christopher Collier ,Tim is a young boy who lives in Redding, Connecticut and his family are loyalists. His father is a man who think’s the war is just a stupid, pointless act against the king, while Sam,Tim’s older brother, is in college, but snuck away with some other men to join the Continental Army. So Tim’s father is not happy with Sam because he thinks that it’s God’s rule that men are supposed to be loyal to their king. Their mother is a loyalist but doesn’t care much of what Sam is doing she doesn’t want any part of it. The author is showing that Tim is not the bad guy here that he is just trying to get a good perspective of things, while Tim is pretty much in the middle of it all because he wants to obey his father but when he looks at same he thinks that he is the most intelligent and proud man especially when he came home with his Continental Army suit. Sam steals the family musket and takes off to join the cause while Tim is forced to become a man and help out with their farm and tavern. The father gets kidnapped and killed on a British ship so Tim was the man. Sam comes home because his team is resting in Redding and Sam gets executed by being accused of stealing his own cattle.
Tim doesn’t really pick a side of either loyalist or patriot because of how he was grown up with loyalists and seeing British troops do something horrible to the patriots. If Tim was just a loyalist then the story would have been how horrible the patriot’s are and if he was a patriot it would be the other way around. Having being able to see both sides was a good experience for him not just listening to Sam or their father. Therefore Tim’s point of view is that the war is just something that should have never happened or that there should be another way for the patriots to get their freedom.
Of course if the author didn’t tell the story from Tim’s point of view then the whole story would have changed. Take Sam for instance, if the story was told from his point of view then the story would just be about him in the war and actually that sounds pretty good. If the author did another book that takes place as Sam in the war, his point of view would all just be him in the war and how he thinks fighting for independence is worth dying for, which it is. Now it would be the same for author if he chose someone else's point of view. For most of the people who lived in Redding they were loyalists so the point of view from anyone in the town would be all about how great of a king king George is and how Sam is such a good almost grown up man and how smart and strong he is but that he is a traitor of the king and he should be banished from Redding or executed.
It is important that a great author has a well understood point of view and that the reader can find and understand it. The point of view for Tim is that he is in the middle of war and he is just trying to keep his mother safe, keep out of trouble, and to keep the tavern running to stay in business. His point of view will change a bit throughout the book but in the end his point of view is pretty clear that Tim was a more of a pacifist.
Monday, January 7, 2013
Mockingjay
Author's Note: Probably most people love this book, I know I do and we all know Katniss, the one who will protect her sister and her friends at any cost and that she has some very great qualities and it was hard to pick one for my theme.
The Mockingjay series is about a girl named Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark were chosen to be a tribute and fight in the seventy-fourth annual Hunger Games to become a victor for district twelve. Peeta falls in love with Katniss but she’s not sure if she feels the same way. In the end they both win but the Hunger Games is just starting in their lives. Katniss and Peeta survive the seventy-fith Hunger Games but Peeta gets captured by the Capital while Katniss is reunited with her family, joined the rebels in district thirteen and is helping to show the capital that the Mockingjay (Katniss) is ready to fight for everyone's freedom. There really isn’t just one thing that is good about Katniss because as she is growing up she has to take on a lot more responsibility especially when her dad died and she had to take care of her mother and sister.
For Katniss she goes through a ton of tough things that takes a lot to accept what has all just happened to her. One thing is when Katniss is in the middle of the capital she finds her sister and out of nowhere the whole area just starts on fire and Katniss watched her sister burn to death and become a human torch. Now if I knew Katniss I think that there is no doubt that she is very brave. Katniss had to have her arm ripped open to get a tracker out of her so she could get to district thirteen.
Sacrificing herself for thirteen districs something that sure takes some strength. She doesn’t fight just for her family, no she also fights for anyone who is on their side which is most of the other districts. I’m sure Rue is also one of the people she fights for and Katniss will go to extremes doing so. During the story Katniss would go to the burning remains of district twelve and the camera crew would take tapes of her to show the capital and anybody who wants to be free of the capitol that Katniss Everdeen is now the Mockingjay and is going to do anything to destroy the capital and stop the Hunger Games forever. One time she was in district four and the rebels were fighting against the capital that remains in the district and they flew Katniss in and videotaped her using her bow against some airships to show just how much strength she still had.
We all know that in the beginning Katniss was not a trusting person at all. Katniss didn’t want anything to do with anybody at all. Only she would let Gale get close to her by hunting with her but it took a long time for her to get used to it. It’s the same for Peeta because he got hijacked and any memory of Katniss was turned into a nightmare. For Katniss she can’t trust being around Peeta without him being watched or handcuffed because given the chance Peeta would strike and try to kill Katniss. Trusting has gotten Katniss so far with trusting Cinna to help her by making the most amazing life threatening costumes and then getting executed. Putting her life in other peoples hands is the only way for her to survive and keep her family safe.
I think that Katniss is like a role model for me and for other people who will do whatever it takes for freedom. In a way she is like George Washington because they both fought for people’s rights and freedom. They are also both very good leaders and love their family. I hope I can be just like Katniss one day.
The Mockingjay series is about a girl named Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark were chosen to be a tribute and fight in the seventy-fourth annual Hunger Games to become a victor for district twelve. Peeta falls in love with Katniss but she’s not sure if she feels the same way. In the end they both win but the Hunger Games is just starting in their lives. Katniss and Peeta survive the seventy-fith Hunger Games but Peeta gets captured by the Capital while Katniss is reunited with her family, joined the rebels in district thirteen and is helping to show the capital that the Mockingjay (Katniss) is ready to fight for everyone's freedom. There really isn’t just one thing that is good about Katniss because as she is growing up she has to take on a lot more responsibility especially when her dad died and she had to take care of her mother and sister.
For Katniss she goes through a ton of tough things that takes a lot to accept what has all just happened to her. One thing is when Katniss is in the middle of the capital she finds her sister and out of nowhere the whole area just starts on fire and Katniss watched her sister burn to death and become a human torch. Now if I knew Katniss I think that there is no doubt that she is very brave. Katniss had to have her arm ripped open to get a tracker out of her so she could get to district thirteen.
Sacrificing herself for thirteen districs something that sure takes some strength. She doesn’t fight just for her family, no she also fights for anyone who is on their side which is most of the other districts. I’m sure Rue is also one of the people she fights for and Katniss will go to extremes doing so. During the story Katniss would go to the burning remains of district twelve and the camera crew would take tapes of her to show the capital and anybody who wants to be free of the capitol that Katniss Everdeen is now the Mockingjay and is going to do anything to destroy the capital and stop the Hunger Games forever. One time she was in district four and the rebels were fighting against the capital that remains in the district and they flew Katniss in and videotaped her using her bow against some airships to show just how much strength she still had.
We all know that in the beginning Katniss was not a trusting person at all. Katniss didn’t want anything to do with anybody at all. Only she would let Gale get close to her by hunting with her but it took a long time for her to get used to it. It’s the same for Peeta because he got hijacked and any memory of Katniss was turned into a nightmare. For Katniss she can’t trust being around Peeta without him being watched or handcuffed because given the chance Peeta would strike and try to kill Katniss. Trusting has gotten Katniss so far with trusting Cinna to help her by making the most amazing life threatening costumes and then getting executed. Putting her life in other peoples hands is the only way for her to survive and keep her family safe.
I think that Katniss is like a role model for me and for other people who will do whatever it takes for freedom. In a way she is like George Washington because they both fought for people’s rights and freedom. They are also both very good leaders and love their family. I hope I can be just like Katniss one day.
Wednesday, January 2, 2013
Family In War
Author's Note: My Brother Sam is Dead was the perfect choice for a retelling since not many things happened in the story so it was easy to retell it.
In the book My Brother Sam Is Dead, there is a boy named Tim who has a mother, father, and a brother Sam. He goes off into war to fight with the patriots, his father is not happy with it at all. Tim’s father takes him to go collect cattle when his father gets kidnapped by cowboys and later dies on a British ship. After his fathers death Tim learns to take responsibility and after a few months Sam comes back because his leader is taking a rest with his soldiers including Sam in Redding, his home and Sam gets accused of stealing his own cattle when he was trying to save his cattle but gets caught by the thief's and they turned him in. After a few weeks Sam gets sentenced to death and gets shot with Tim watching him fall to the ground never seeing him again, wishing there was some other way for this war to turn out.
In the book My Brother Sam Is Dead, there is a boy named Tim who has a mother, father, and a brother Sam. He goes off into war to fight with the patriots, his father is not happy with it at all. Tim’s father takes him to go collect cattle when his father gets kidnapped by cowboys and later dies on a British ship. After his fathers death Tim learns to take responsibility and after a few months Sam comes back because his leader is taking a rest with his soldiers including Sam in Redding, his home and Sam gets accused of stealing his own cattle when he was trying to save his cattle but gets caught by the thief's and they turned him in. After a few weeks Sam gets sentenced to death and gets shot with Tim watching him fall to the ground never seeing him again, wishing there was some other way for this war to turn out.
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Buried Treasure 3:15
Author's Note: This piece is based on the story 3:15 and what I did was I wrote what I thought the ending was going to be. I decided not to do a horror ending but it does have some scariness in it.
Cody Miller was just about to melt the gold when he saw a shadow right in the corner of his eye. Cody turns, but sees nothing nor no one. Once again he hears the voice of the old man saying "You better not take my gold treasure boy". Cody was starting to feel a little guilty about taking the old mans treasure but decided to do so anyway. He picks up the hook and he sees there is words on it spelling do what is right boy. Feeling a little creeped out Cody gets some water and washes his face, hoping that he is not going crazy because he does not believe in ghosts. Then he starts to think about how he would hate it if someone took his treasure when he passed. Cody looks at the golden ring, admiring it's beauty and decides that maybe he can keep the ring and give back the hook.
Thinking of a way to give back the hook he decides if he can find a family member of the old man he could give it to them and possibly get a reward. As he is walking into town he heard some fella's talking about the old man. "Can you believe that the guy with the golden hook finally died"? says a man. "Yeah, if I was young and crazy again I would probably steal it since he sadly has no family member to look after it and he was probably buried with it". Cody felt stupid that it was obvious that any man would rather have a family member look after it than the ground. Feeling doubtful Cody decides that maybe he should just sell the hook and go on with his life, then the voice trails off in his mind for what the old man said to him. He sees a shadow once again but it looks like an old man and is trying to gesture him to follow. Cody decides to not get the spirit angry and follow him. After about ten minutes Cody realizes that he is back where the old man was buried. The shadow then walks on top of the grave and disappears. Then Cody realizes that the ghost will not leave him alone unless he puts the hook back with it's rightful owner. An hour past and he dug all the way down back to the wooden coffin. He uses the back of the hammer to get the nails off and finally put the hook back on the old man. When he reburied the hook he started walking home when he sees the shadow but now its look exactly like the old man and he said "I knew you would do the right thing boy". He never again saw the spirit.
I choose this ending because I don't think that the old man is a bad guy so he didn't exactly haunt him. In the story the old man wasn't too much of a push over so I that is why I thought he was a nice guy. Of course I was wrong and in the real ending the old man Kills Cody so the he wasn't as nice of a guy as i thought.
Thursday, November 15, 2012
Katniss Everdeen
Author’s Note: This short story is for my character analyzation piece. It is about how Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games changes throughout the book because she is doesn’t let anyone get personal with her and she just wants to do things on her own the way she does it, but then she starts to realize that is not true.
In the beginning of the story Katniss doesn’t want anyone to try and help her because she has always been the boss of her family, catching game and trading it to peacekeepers. The only one who she hunts with is Gale and they work together to try and feed their family. Other people want to help Katniss but she refuses to let them because she thinks that she can do everything on her own and not show that she is weak and needs help. Gale is pretty much the only person she talks to personally. This started when her father died in a mining accident and before that he took her out in the woods and taught her to hunt by using a bow and arrows, and taught her to make traps. Same thing happened to Gale’s father so he has to hunt to feed his family. After Katniss got chosen to be a tribute everything started to change.
Halfway into the story Katniss is starting to learn that everything she knew about growing up was a not what she thought, and what she thought was that she doesn’t need anybody’s help. When Katniss was training she still didn’t partner up with anyone or work with anyone but she started to realize that maybe some other tributes needed her help or that some tributes could be of some worth to work with as an ally in the arena. With the help of Haymitch her mentor, she realized that she needed sponsors to help her survive. During the games when she did stuff that Haymitch wanted her to do she got rewarded with gifts like food or medicine. For instance, Katniss did not want to partner up with Peeta but she had to do so that she would get presents to help her survive. There was one thing that Katniss didn’t like almost at all which was kissing Peeta so that people will root for their love and have a higher chance for their survival. Katniss realized by now that helping people and working with them is not such a bad thing. In the beginning she was very personal, and shy with strangers but now she is more comfortable with having to work with others that having people help her is not such a bad thing.
In the beginning of the story Katniss doesn’t want anyone to try and help her because she has always been the boss of her family, catching game and trading it to peacekeepers. The only one who she hunts with is Gale and they work together to try and feed their family. Other people want to help Katniss but she refuses to let them because she thinks that she can do everything on her own and not show that she is weak and needs help. Gale is pretty much the only person she talks to personally. This started when her father died in a mining accident and before that he took her out in the woods and taught her to hunt by using a bow and arrows, and taught her to make traps. Same thing happened to Gale’s father so he has to hunt to feed his family. After Katniss got chosen to be a tribute everything started to change.
Halfway into the story Katniss is starting to learn that everything she knew about growing up was a not what she thought, and what she thought was that she doesn’t need anybody’s help. When Katniss was training she still didn’t partner up with anyone or work with anyone but she started to realize that maybe some other tributes needed her help or that some tributes could be of some worth to work with as an ally in the arena. With the help of Haymitch her mentor, she realized that she needed sponsors to help her survive. During the games when she did stuff that Haymitch wanted her to do she got rewarded with gifts like food or medicine. For instance, Katniss did not want to partner up with Peeta but she had to do so that she would get presents to help her survive. There was one thing that Katniss didn’t like almost at all which was kissing Peeta so that people will root for their love and have a higher chance for their survival. Katniss realized by now that helping people and working with them is not such a bad thing. In the beginning she was very personal, and shy with strangers but now she is more comfortable with having to work with others that having people help her is not such a bad thing.
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Thank you, Ma'am
Author's Note: In this short response I am writing about a how a boy changes from the beginning of the story to the end of the story.
In the beginning of the story Roger tried to steal an old woman's purse. This was probably because he listened to the song “Blue Suede Shoes” by Elvis Presley, or because he saw an ad about them, or he saw some other kids wearing them so he wanted them too. Since no one was home he had no money to try buy the shoes. Rogers only option was to try and steal someone purse or wallet for money and buy the shoes. He was probably waiting for an old woman or someone that wasn’t a threat and steal their purse. Roger then saw this old woman and tried to steal her purse but he underestimated her and she caught him.
Another part in the story was at the end when the old woman gave Roger ten dollars and told him to buy himself a pair of blue suede shoes. Roger wanted to thank her but she closed the door right behind her and he never saw her again. I think Roger wanted to thank her because the woman did not harm him and did not take him to jail as he expected. He wanted her to trust him since nobody else did. Also that the woman fed him and made him wash his face. Basically she treated him like he was her own son which made him feel bad that he treated her so poorly by trying to steal her purse. Roger wanted to say “Thank you, Ma’am” but didn’t have the chance but since she was so kind to him he will hopefully never try and steal a purse or anything from anyone again.
In the beginning of the story Roger tried to steal an old woman's purse. This was probably because he listened to the song “Blue Suede Shoes” by Elvis Presley, or because he saw an ad about them, or he saw some other kids wearing them so he wanted them too. Since no one was home he had no money to try buy the shoes. Rogers only option was to try and steal someone purse or wallet for money and buy the shoes. He was probably waiting for an old woman or someone that wasn’t a threat and steal their purse. Roger then saw this old woman and tried to steal her purse but he underestimated her and she caught him.
Another part in the story was at the end when the old woman gave Roger ten dollars and told him to buy himself a pair of blue suede shoes. Roger wanted to thank her but she closed the door right behind her and he never saw her again. I think Roger wanted to thank her because the woman did not harm him and did not take him to jail as he expected. He wanted her to trust him since nobody else did. Also that the woman fed him and made him wash his face. Basically she treated him like he was her own son which made him feel bad that he treated her so poorly by trying to steal her purse. Roger wanted to say “Thank you, Ma’am” but didn’t have the chance but since she was so kind to him he will hopefully never try and steal a purse or anything from anyone again.
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