The Explosion

The army squad 774 was in Afghanistan trying to detonate IED's  down one of the common walking roads for the locals. One of the Afghan police said that he saw a man putting something in the ground late last night and waited until the morning to contact the American soldiers. The American Soldiers went out early this morning  to detonate the bomb so none of the locals would hit the bomb. One of the US soldiers said that he saw an orange wire but thought nothing about it. They kept driving down the road when they got to the spot that was said to have the IED. The high tech vehicle sent a high tech robot with over five cameras attached to look at the spot where the IED was. When it got to the end of the road it stopped do the soldiers could see the ground and tell if there was a bomb or not. A man on a camel was said to be riding down the street towards the US soldiers. When the camel touched the area where the bomb was supposed to be it exploded it a huge fire ball of red and orange fire. The man is unknown due to the massive fire ball. The IED was said to have a trip wire and when the camel walked across the wire the IED went off.       

 

Senseless Violense

What are the symbols in the story “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson? If you look into the text finding the symbols can be very easy. “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson is a great short story that tests the reader if they can find the true meaning of the story using symbols.

“Bobby Martin had already stuffed his pockets full of stones, and the other boys soon followed his example, selecting the smoothest and roundest stones.”This is very important thing to start the story with because it says the irony that will eventually take place later in the story. The rocks symbolize death and torture because later they stone a normal woman because she won the town’s lottery. “Mrs. Delacroix selected a stone so large she had to pick it up with both hands and turned to Mrs. Dunbar.” The big rock that she picked up was very important. The woman who threw the rock was friends with the woman who was getting stoned and she wanted to kill her quick and easy. The big rock meant friendship and humanity.

Most things in this story were black like the black box that held the lottery tickets and the black dot that meant whoever holding the black dot ticket would be stoned. The black box symbolized death, tradition, and unwillingness to change. The black spotted ticket meant death and curse. Black overall symbolizes evil and death. The lottery its self meant tradition.

It is very easy to miss symbolism in a story but Shirley Jackson’s short story “The Lottery” really showed that you should look for symbolism to understand a story. Even though the story was an Irony and someone died at the end it is a great story showing that you should think outside the box.  

Un Washed

I am as dirty as an un washed window. Oh wait that's why I have a sigh on me that says wash me. So if you do not know me I will tell you about me. Okay so I am the back window of Zach Galifianakis's limo. I am the only original window left on his car. The rest were smashed out by his stupid friends. At least I am not the water bottle holder. Oh my gosh where should I start. He is always gross and sticky. Zach took the limo threw the forest last night and now I'm extremely dirty. This guy put this sigh on me this morning and now I can’t even see anything. Oh wait here comes a guy holding something in his hand. Yes it looks like a hose. He is getting closer. BANG and I'm broken. Some of me is in the car some of me is still in the window holder thing and some of me is on the ground. I see the man clearly now and he is taking things from the inside of the car. I hear Zach come out of his house and he is yelling at him to go away. This time I don't think it was his stupid friends. Zach is on the phone with someone who I think is the police. Five minutes latter there is a cop car in his drive way and a woman is picking me up with some kind of sucker thing. She walks me over to a can and throws me in. So now I'm in the garbage and Zach has no original car windows.

Viruses Are All Around US.

Did you know that there are more than 5,000 viruses know to man that can be described in detail and more than a million different types of viruses still being discovered and researched? It is very important to know what a virus is and how they can affect the body so if you get sick you know how to stay safe. 

What is a virus? A virus is an infective microscopic organism that lives in anything alive that can only reproduce in the living host (virus). They are not alive (virus). Viruses could be in humans, plants, or animals (virus). The virus stays in the cells of the body or plant (virus). The virus can grow and reproduce until it is killed or destroyed (virus).  

Knowing what a virus is can help in the process of learning how viruses affect organisms. According to www.mrphome.net  “First the virus attaches to a specific host cell. Then the virus’s hereditary material enters the host cell. Next the virus’s hereditary material causes the cell to make viral hereditary material and proteins. After that, new viruses form inside of the host cell. Last new viruses are released as the host cell bursts open and is destroyed” (Glencoe/McGraw-Hiee). 

It is very important to know how viruses affect organisms so people can know how different viruses affect the human body. Viruses that attack the body after getting in cells can cause some pretty bad sicknesses (Staff). Meningitis is the swelling of the thin layer of tissue covering the brain and spinal cord from an infection (Staff). The symptoms of meningitis are headache, fever, and a stiff neck (Staff). This can happen to anyone (Staff). This virus can be deadly if it is not treated right away (Staff).   

Meningitis is a very scary virus but so is the Mumps. Mumps is a disease made by a virus that spreads through spit that can infect many parts in the human body mostly the Salivary Glands (Foundation). When you have Mumps your glands get swollen and become very painful (Foundation). The swollen glands make it difficult for people who have the mumps to open their mouth, talk, eat, and drink (Foundation). When a person has the mumps it gives them the appearance of a hamster, making the infection pretty easy to recognize (Foundation). The mumps can be deadly if not treated immediately (Foundation). 

Knowing about viruses and how they affect your body is very important if you want to stay safe while being sick. There are hundreds of viruses known to man and many to learn about. If people know about viruses it will help find new viruses and keep people safer.

Bibliography

Foundation, The Nemours. "Mumps ." April 2009. KidsHealth . 19 April 2012 <http://kidshealth.org/parent/general/sick/mumps.html>.

Glencoe/McGraw-Hiee. "Viruses." McGraw-Hill, Glencoe. Life Science: Life's Structure and Function (Book A). Glencoe/McGraw-Hil, 2008. 54-57.

Staff, Mayo Clinic. Meningitis . 29 April 2011. 18 April 2012 <http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/meningitis/DS00118>.

"virus." 2012. Merriam - Webster . 17 April 2012 <http://www.merriam-webster.com/medical/virus>.

Viruses Are All Around Us.

Did you know that there are more than 5,000 viruses know to man that can be described in detail and more than a million different types of viruses still being discovered and researched? It is very important to know what a virus is and how they can affect the body so if you get sick you know how to stay safe. 

What is a virus? A virus is an infective microscopic organism that lives in anything alive that can only reproduce in the living host (virus). They are not alive (virus). Viruses could be in humans, plants, or animals (virus). The virus stays in the cells of the body or plant (virus). The virus can grow and reproduce until it is killed or destroyed (virus).  

Knowing what a virus is can help in the process of learning how viruses affect organisms. According to www.mrphome.net  “First the virus attaches to a specific host cell. Then the virus’s hereditary material enters the host cell. Next the virus’s hereditary material causes the cell to make viral hereditary material and proteins. After that, new viruses form inside of the host cell. Last new viruses are released as the host cell bursts open and is destroyed” (Glencoe/McGraw-Hiee). 

It is very important to know how viruses affect organisms so people can know how different viruses affect the human body. Viruses that attack the body after getting in cells can cause some pretty bad sicknesses (Staff). Meningitis is the swelling of the thin layer of tissue covering the brain and spinal cord from an infection (Staff). The symptoms of meningitis are headache, fever, and a stiff neck (Staff). This can happen to anyone (Staff). This virus can be deadly if it is not treated right away (Staff).   

Meningitis is a very scary virus but so is the Mumps. Mumps is a disease made by a virus that spreads through spit that can infect many parts in the human body mostly the Salivary Glands (Foundation). When you have Mumps your glands get swollen and become very painful (Foundation). The swollen glands make it difficult for people who have the mumps to open their mouth, talk, eat, and drink (Foundation). When a person has the mumps it gives them the appearance of a hamster, making the infection pretty easy to recognize (Foundation). The mumps can be deadly if not treated immediately (Foundation).

Knowing about viruses and how they affect your body is very important if you want to stay safe while being sick. There are hundreds of viruses known to man and many to learn about. If people know about viruses it will help find new viruses and keep people safer.

Bibliography

Foundation, The Nemours. "Mumps ." April 2009. KidsHealth . 19 April 2012 <http://kidshealth.org/parent/general/sick/mumps.html>.

 

Glencoe/McGraw-Hiee. "Viruses." McGraw-Hill, Glencoe. Life Science: Life's Structure and Function (Book A). Glencoe/McGraw-Hil, 2008. 54-57.

Staff, Mayo Clinic. Meningitis . 29 April 2011. 18 April 2012 <http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/meningitis/DS00118>.

"virus." 2012. Merriam - Webster . 17 April 2012 <http://www.merriam-webster.com/medical/virus>.

Gallon Challange

Authors note: This is a research paper on the Gallon Challenge.

 

Many people try to beat the gallon of milk contest but can’t do it and end up throwing up.  The real question is why can no one beat that challenge?  Is it the amount of milk?  Is it because it is milk?  Even though it sounds easy in the end it is truly not.

The gallon of milk contest, also known as milk chugging and the gallon challenge, is a hard task to complete.  In this challenge, a contestant has to drink a gallon of milk either in a certain limited amount of time or as fast as possible.  Most of the time people follow the simple rules of drinking the gallon of milk in 60 seconds without throwing up.  This challenge all started on season five, episode two, of the American television show ”Jackass.”   Also this challenge was used in the reality TV show “Inked.”  Now today high school students and college students carry on the challenge. 

Knowing the side effects of the gallon challenge why is it so hard to even do? Many studies have been done on why the challenge is so hard.  Sarah Ash, a professor of nutrition, says that “the reason people cannot complete this challenge is due to the limited capacity of the human stomach.”  She says that generally the stomach can hold a half gallon.  When the organ limit is met and exceeded, it triggers the vomit reflex.  Another study stated that there are three reasons why it is so hard; the lactose, calcium, and casein.  The human body can only process a certain amount of lactose at one time. Your body only has a certain amount of available lactase and during the challenge your body can become lactose intolerant.  According to the web site www.howstuffworks.com, the problem with calcium is that milk contains a lot of it – about 300 mg per 8-ounce glass.  A Tums chewable tablet contains about 200 mg of available calcium.  So in drinking a gallon of milk, it is like consuming 25 Tums tablets at one time.  That creates an imbalance of the acid level in the stomach, giving your stomach another reason to consider puking.

If milk is so hard are other liquids hard as well? Some of the times people try to use different types of liquids like soda, water, or beer.  According to the website www.howstuffworks.com “Too much water overloads the circulatory system and the kidneys, dilutes blood electrolytes, and can cause cells to swell, potentially causing brain damage or death.  A gallon of soda contains over 100 teaspoons of sugar and way too much caffeine  for your body to safely process. A gallon of beer would be 10 and a half 12-ounce cans. That is enough alcohol to put the blood alcohol level of a 175 pound male above 0.20 and render many people unconscious.” 

The gallon challenge is tried by millions and may look easier then it is even though it is nearly impossible.  People who try the gallon challenge usually end up getting bad stomach aches or throwing up.  Do you want to try to beat the odds?

Bad Cop

Authors note: This is a fictional writing piece to get my word choice score up higher.

 I told him he looks as ugly as an unpainted wall and he slapped me across the face. He yelled at me but I tuned him out. Quietly I said, “My life is a roller coaster and you make the drops in the track.”

As he was starting to walk away he whipped his head around and yelled at me to be quiet or he would kill me.I heard a pop, felt a sharp stabbing pain, and my leg was broken.

 “Do you want to know how I feel?” he yelled. “I’m so mad at you that I could explode the earth and be the only person left living!”

His words stung my ears because I was worried for my family.

 “You’re like Osama Bin Laden because you set up ways to kill people but you make other people do the killing because you’re just plain scared,” I yelled.

 I could see him trying to think of a comeback response and he said, “All I think of when I look at your body is fat, fat, fat.”

Slowly I tried to get up but he punched me in the face and I fell to the ground. The pain in my broken leg is unbearable.

 “You’re a terrible man!” I yell. “I thought cops were supposed to be nice to people and help them, not hurt or kill them.”

Swiftly he said “I thought that little boys were supposed to play with their cars and not get involved in criminal acts.”

 I heard the bathroom door slam to the wall and I saw at least twenty cops running into the ten foot by ten foot room. I passed out and the next thing I knew was that I was in a hospital.

“Wow little dude” a nurse says. “You were as beat up as a beat up person who was attacked by one million dogs that had rabies.”

“Thanks?” I asked confused.

I saw the bad cop walk into the hospital room and he stabbed the nurse in the back with a three inch long piece of glass. I tried to get out of the covers but I was strapped to the bed.

 “Can’t run now can you?” he yells.

He lifted up the glass and said that he was going to kill me. His eyes shifted and he slowly lowered the knife. I could tell by the evil look in his eyes that he wanted to slowly kill me. I saw him slowly close the hospital door and he pulled over in a cart to my bedside.

 “What are you doing?” I asked.

He did not respond. I could see the cart turning around.

 “Pick a box!” He yelled.

 I was startled by his loud and sudden demand. There were four brightly colored boxes on the table. He told me to pick one of the boxes and the contents would drive how he was going to kill me. I picked up the red colored box as fast as a cheetah can run.

“I just open it?” I asked, my voice shaking with uncertainty.

 He said yes and I slowly opened the box. Whatever it was I knew it was sure to kill me slowly.

Similar and Difference between "Big Yellow Taxi" and "Feild Bellow"

The song “Big Yellow Taxi” by Joni Mitchell was about nature being destroyed by humans and technology. Then the song “Field Below” by Regina Spektor was also about nature being destroyed but instead talking about a city being built and having no sunlight.

The tone in both songs when reading the lyrics is sorrow, anger, and sadness and the mood is regretful and anger. When the music was played it was all changed. “Big Yellow taxi” was happy and cheerful like she was happy that the city was built but sad at the same time. People listing would think she was happy not angry or sad. “Field Below” was more of what people think when reading the lyrics which are sadness and regret. I don’t like how the singer of “Big Yellow Taxi” sang the song because she was too happy and the song was to fast when the other song was slow and sad. I would have liked “Big Yellow Taxi” to be more serious. It was as if the song was a joke I could not take that song seriously.

Why is the Cinnimon Challange so Hard?

Authors note: This is a research piece on the Cinnamon Challenge and why it is so hard.

What would you do if your child tried the cinnamon challenge and either died or was hospitalized? To make it worse they did it because it was a dare. The cinnamon challenge is very dangerous and people need to know the dangers of the challenge.

This challenge has been around since 2001 but became popular in 2007. The cinnamon challenge is a challenge where a person must eat or swallow a tablespoon full of ground cinnamon in less than 60 seconds without drinking anything. Sounds easy right? Well it is not easy at all. There are many reasons that the challenge is so hard and the reason is the cinnamon it’s self.

Cinnamon has a moderately toxic substance called coumarin which can damage the liver. European Health agencies have warned against consuming large amounts of cinnamon. Usually the result of the challenge is coughing, gagging, gasping for air, and even vomiting. Most people think of cinnamon is a sweet southing spice because it is on apple pies and cinnamon buns but that is because it is mixed with lots of sugar. Cinnamon is what makes candies hot like Atomic Fireballs, Hot Tamales, cinnamon gum, and Red Hots. Even though the cinnamon is so hot there are also dangers.

Inhaling the cinnamon can lead to inflammation of the lungs or scarring of the lungs. According to abcnews.com Dejah Reed spent four days in the hospital with an infection and a collapsed right lung after she ingested cinnamon. You are probably wondering why it is so hard.

The reason it is so hard is because the cinnamon acts like a sponge socking up all of the salvia in your mouth and therefore expanding in size. It dries out your mouth making it nearly impossible to swallow. Drinking water makes it even worse because the cinnamon soaks up the water and turns into a mud like substance that can lead to choking.

Thousands of people do the cinnamon challenge every year. If people knew about all the dangers no one would want to put their life on the line. Even though many people are okay after the challenge would, you want to be the one that is not okay?

Fast forward through “Hunger Games”

Authors note: This is a retelling piece on the story "The Hunger Games."

Katniss has to go into an arena to fight to the death because of a tradition of her country. To win she has to fight off 23 other kids. Then she falls in love with the boy from her district in the arena.

I'm sorry Ricky

I have stole the bullet
That was in the store
So I could show you
That yours was fake

And which
You were probably wanting
For your war collection

Forgive me
I wanted to be right
So you could be wrong
so I stole the fake bullet.

This is the part of the story when Bobby stole the fake bullet from the gift shop because Ricky claimed that he had found a really bullet from the war many years ago so it is Bobby half apologizing to Ricky. This poem is in Bobby’s point of view and he is saying it to Ricky. The tone is that he is feeling sorry but not really sorry because he is talking how he just wanted to prove him wrong. The mood is sorrow and anger because Ricky is still mad even though he left the note.

Langston Huges. AKA inspiring writer.

Authors note: This piece is a response to the poem “Mother to son” by Langston Hughes. It analyzes the figurative language that he used.

Langston Hughes tries to get across to the reader that he is angry and sad that his life has been difficult. He does this by writing fiction story by in an angry woman's voice since he is angry about her bad life. The reader fells inspired and encouraged by the woman’s words to her son. Hughes has great figurative language in the piece. In the story he writes “Life for me ain't been no crystal stair.” Since life is not a crystal stair you can tell that it is a metaphor since it says something as if it was something else. This is talking about how the woman’s life was not perfect and if her son does not have a perfect life she wants him to fight through it just like she did and in the end it will probably be okay.

Who is Katniss? (With Fig. Language)

Authors note: This is a revised Character Description about Katniss for the book "The Hunger Games." It has added Fig. Language and it is trying to get a score it Word Choice.

Katniss is not the average 16 year old. She has to take care of her unstable family including her mom and little sister as if they were little babies. Hunting, hunting, hunting is what mostly goes through her mind as well as stealing, and rummaging in garbage cans for food. She is so hungry she could eat a horse. Although she is over protective of her sister she still finds ways to do things for herself. She is petite brunet who struggles through life but never complains and always has a good attitude. Her brown hair pours over her shoulders stopping mid back.

Katniss is the mom and dad of her family since her mom runs away when anything goes wrong and her dad is dead. They have so little food it is as if the food walks away and Katniss has to chase after it. When her small innocent sister was picked to kill 23 other kids and possible dying her self Katniss volunteers to go into the countries arena to fight to the death. After she wins the games but faking that she liked her fellow competitor she becomes famous in her district. She loves hunting like Billy Dixon and hates having to be always hungry.

Who is Katniss

Authors note: This is a Character Description piece on Katniss from the "Hunger Games".

Katniss is not the average 16 year old. She has to take care of her unstable family including her mom and little sister. Hunting, stealing, and rummaging in garbage cans is the only way to find food. Although she is over protective of her sister she still finds ways to do things for herself. She is a petite brunet who struggles through life but never complains and always has a good attitude.

Katniss is the mom and dad of her family since her mom runs away when anything goes wrong and her dad is dead. Feeding her family is her top priority. She saves her sister from going into the countries arena to fight to the death by volunteering to fight instead of her. After she wins the games but faking that she was in love with her fellow competitor she becomes the top person in her district. She loves hunting and hates having to be always hungry.

The Fascinating Ending of “The Giver”

Authors note: This is a play prediction piece to show what I thought could happen at the end of the book “The Giver”. The purpose is to end an unfinished story and to get my predicting up

Characters:
Man one
Man two
Woman one
Jonas
Gabriel

The Camera pans up to the hill and stops showing Jonas and Gabriel flying down the snowy hill. Then the camera stops when the sled gets to the bottom of the hill showing the joy and thrill in Jonas eyes. Slowly the camera flies to a city one mile away showing homes and fires. After one minute showing the city the camera flies back to Jonas and shows him and his brother walking.

Jonas: Gabriel were almost there hang in there buddy.

The Camera shows them trudging through the snow with snowing hitting them in the face.

Jonas: Gabriel can you see the light? We’re almost there. Can you imagine being able to have food whenever we want and we never have to take pills.

Finally the camera stops and Jonas falls into the snow. He gets back up and starts to walk down the hill to the city.

Man one: Hey do you see that up on the hill?

Man two: Is that a boy?

Woman one: Someone get blankets.

The camera shows the people of the city running up to the boys and trying to comfort him. Woman one takes Gabriel and runs him into her house.

Woman one: its okay honey you will be okay.

Gabriel starts to cry and in the distance a man runs by carrying Jonas to the hospital.

Man one: Buddy what’s your name.

Jonas: (struggling says) Jonas.

Man one: Okay Jonas you will be okay where did you come from?

Jonas: I really don’t know

Man one whispers to doctor: He’s from the city that can’t see any color.

Doctor: How do you know?

Man one: Because of his cloths and when I was a kid I did the same thing as him.

The camera flies out of the city and flies fast over to the city that Jonas came from. It shows a building on fire and people running around in chaos. Women are screaming and children are crying. A helicopter flies over the city and sees the community in chaos. The helicopter was from the city that Jonas just found. Then the camera flies to an aerial shot of both cities and the screen goes black and the credits come on.

I felt like this could happen because the receiver and the giver keep the community together and without them the city would go into chaos. The reason I stopped in a cliff hanger is because people could talk about and have discussion to see what happens after that. It would be the good and bad side of the earth for the cities.
Jonas at the start of the book always talked about escaping his city. After being the receiver and finding out they had to kill his little brother he finally tried to escape and be the odd one out. I thought he was really brave to escape since no one has ever done it before. Just saying that he wanted to escape showed his bravery.

Quote

Quote
In the story “The Giver” there is a quote from The Giver that is said to Jonas. The Giver says “But I have another place to go. When my work here is finished, I want to be with my daughter.” This quote has many different meanings that could be possible for him to say that.

The first thing I thought when I read this is that he had a daughter that he wanted to go home to. Jonas was a lot like me that he thought that he had a daughter as well. Jonas says to the giver. “I didn’t know you had a daughter, Giver! You told me that you’d had a spouse. But I never knew about your daughter.” Also after I read this I was a little confused because in the start of the book The Giver says that he could not have children because it would be hard for them to see him since he can’t leave the room that he stays in. This is only one of three reasons I think he said the quote.

Right after I thought of the first purpose for him saying this I thought of another logical idea. In the story it then says The Giver smiled, and nodded. For the first time in their long months together, Jonas saw him look truly happy. “Her name was Rosemary,” The Giver Said. When I read this it was really confusing at first because it did not make any sense. This part of the story really test your
knowledge of the book because if you were paying attention you would have realized that Rosemary was the girl who was picked to be The Receiver ten years ago but asked to be released. I then started to realize that The Giver was talking about asking to be released to “see” his daughter in heaven. After he talked about wanting to see Rosemary Jonas changed and he realized that he should run away to let all the people in the city to be able to see color and have emotions. A big question that I had was “Was Rosemary really his daughter?”

The Giver saying that his “daughter” is Rosemary can mean many different things. The first thought that comes to mind is that Rosemary is really his daughter. Then I thought to myself if that would be too obvious so I started thinking. I then thought that he called her is child because they only knew each other for such little time and that he really liked her. Rosemary could have also been the closest thing to The Giver that he has every lost so he calls her his daughter.

The Quote “But I have another place to go. When my work here is finished, I want to be with my daughter.” Has or could have many different meanings. The real meaning is what the reader things it means. It could mean so many different things but in the end it all turns out that The Giver wants to see his “daughter” in heaven.

Speech.

The Giver is set in a futuristic society that is completely politically incorrect. The city is isolated and the people in the city do not think there is anyone else in the world. People cannot choose their jobs, instead, they are given jobs and to make it worse they cannot see any color.

The setting in this story is very important because if it was set in 2012 they would know of a different world and the people in the city would not have to be told what their job was. Everyone in the city would be able to see color and live life better than being color blind.

The setting affects the plot in many ways and the first thing is that if they were in 2012 they would not only see black and white and they would have cars and not have to ride bikes. The people would get along differently if they could talk when they drove. Another thing is that the people in the city would not have to lose their friends by what job they get.

The setting would change the characters because if they did not live in such an isolated city they could communicate with the outside world and would be able to be friends with people outside their community.

The setting is very important in the book “The Giver” and without the setting the way it is the whole book would be changed.

The fascinating setting of The Giver.

The Giver is set in a futuristic society the is completely politically incorrect. The city is isolated and the people in the city do not think there is any one else in the world. The setting in this story is very important because if it was set in 2012 they would know of a different world and the people in the city would not have to be told what their job was.

The setting affects the plot in many ways and the first thing is that if they were in 2012 they would not only see black and white and they would have cars and not have to ride bikes. The people would get along differently if they could talk when they drove. Another thing is that the people in the city would not have to loose their friends by what job they get.

The setting would change the characters because if they did not live in such an isolated city they could communicated with they out side world and would be able to be friends with people outside their community.

Character analyses "Thank You Ma'am

Authors note: This is a character analyses of Roger from the short story "Thank You Ma'am." I would like feed back If I need to add more detail or take some of it away.

What would you do if someone tried to rob you at eleven o'clock at night? You would probably not take the robber home and feed him. The short story "Thank You Ma'am" by Langston Hughes explains to think before you act and try to earn money the good way by not robbing.

Roger, who was the robber, was a very interesting character. At first he starts of as a tough mean robber who want to steal an innocent woman's purse. After being caught the woman drags him by his shirt to her house. Right now Roger is scared and does not want to be hurt or sent to jail. When they get to the woman's house she tells Roger to wash his face and get ready for dinner. He looks at the door and is thinking about running away but does not. Quote from the story "The door was open. He could make a dash for it down the hall. He could run, run, run, run, run!" Then before they eat roger tells the woman that he wanted blue suede shoes. The woman says, quote from the story, "Well, you didn’t have to snatch my pocketbook to get some suede shoes," said Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones. "You could of asked me."At the end the woman gives roger ten dollars to get the shoes. He is then led out side and says thank you and goodbye.

Even though Roger was a very interesting character who changed over the course of the story may or may not fall into crime again. Roger learned that he should try to get money the good way by finding a job and not stealing.

Prediction

Author’s note: This is a prediction piece on the story “The Schwa Was Here” I would like feedback if I need to add more description or loosen it up a little.

What would you do if you met a person that could make himself invisible? Then imagine that you and your invisible friend get dared by a bully from school to go into an apartment and get a dog bowl and both you and your friend get caught by Crawley, the old man that lives there. The book “The Schwa Was Here” by Neal Shusterman so far has been a great story explaining that you should not do crazy things just because someone dared you to do it.

After meeting an invisible boy and being dared to go into old man Crawley’s apartment to get a dog bowl, Anthony and the Schwa, who is invisible, get forced to be the old man’s slaves. Crawley later falls in his shower and breaks his hip and needs to go to the hospital. Against his will he goes to the hospital and forces Anthony to go with him.

I predict that by the end of the book Crawley will turn out being really nice to Anthony after all the mean things he did. As well as Anthony running the restaurant that is currently owned by Crawley. Lexis, who is blind, and is being fought over by Anthony and the Schwa will end up dating Anthony. Last I think that Crawley will move into Assisted living instead of living in an un-safe home with 14 dogs.

Even though Crawley is a terrible man and Anthony is so innocent “The Schwa Was Here” by Neal Shusterman was a great book explaining the importance of thinking before you act.

Dead Man's path.

Authors note: This is a retelling of the short story dead Man's Path. I would like feed back on if I should add more detail or make it more bland.

The story "Dead Man's Path" was a story about a man Michael Obi who becomes head master at the school that he works at. Obi walked out side and realizes a path in the forest. He then decides to block the path so people can't use it anymore. Then Michael goes to the village priest and asks him for his opinion. The priest says that he should re open the path. A woman in the village dies so the villagers destroy the school thinking that it is his fault. Michael then gets a bad evaluation since the villagers destroyed the school so he gets fired.

Japanese Rice

Author's note: This was a very interesting conversation that we had at my aunts house the day after Christmas. I would like feedback on if you think rice from Japan makes sushi better.

With the house still smelling like Christmas from the night before my cousins boyfriend sits high in his chair ready to speak. He says with confidence "Did you know that rice from Japan can't be exported to America? It's illegal."

Looking at each other and trying to figure out why he just decided to tell us this my mom said "What?"

In an even more confidence response he says "Yup. The FDA will not allow it in our country and that is what makes sushi from Japan so good."

My other cousin Elyse says in a snotty voice "Have you even had sushi and what does the FDA have anything to do with that?" Without giving him a chance to speak she asks my dad if he new a difference. Since my dad has been to Japan with work over 5 time he has had the sushi.

In a calm voice that my dad always talks in he say "Rice is rice isn't it?"

My mom then says right after "wouldn't it be the quality of the fish and the freshness."

In an I hate this guy my cousin Elyse rolled her eyes.