Reading log

Wow, the last week of required reading for the year. I think I have done pretty well on my goals although I never finished reading a whole book outloud. I started, but only got about twenty or thirty pages into it until I got bored with it. This week I've been reading Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?, I love the office so I thought I would also love the book. I'm only about 175 or so pages into it but with all of the added work from other classes that has been piled on heavily I am ok with it. I found the book hilarious from the first page and found myself turning page after page into the early morning hours thursday night, leaving myself exhausted friday during school. I've also been reading a lot of poetry lately, trying to get better at analyzing it quickly for the AP Lit exam, something that I have never been very skilled at. There have been a lot of poems that I found I loved and I'm really glad I did this. Reading poetry for a week has grown my adoration of it and reading it will most likely be something I continue after the exam.

Reading Log

I have been coming along on my goal of reading an entire book out loud, I have decided to read Beautiful Boy aloud. My purpose in reading aloud is to get better at it and to understand the book a little bit more. Although I have not gotten very far into it I feel like I have understood more and gotten more out of the book. I have been pretty occupied with reading AP Lit this week too but I have managed to find time to start reading To Kill a Mockingbird which is a book that I have wanted to read for a while now since everyone else has read it in sophomore english. I think it might also help on the AP Lit exam ith the free response essay which would be nice. So overall this week I have been kind of just reading a little bit of everything!

Reading Log

This past week I have finally gotten around to starting to read a book outloud, I decided to read another book about paramedic stories outloud because I feel like these types of shorter stories all within a book will add emotion to the case. I think that the stories are all very intersting and constantly have me thinking about going into the medical field. I have been reading a lot more than usual even though some of what I have been reading is for one of my english classes. I've also read a little bit more of The Missing Girls this weekend, I kind of forgot about that book for a while. Over the semester I have noticed that my preferences on genres have started to change a little bit and I would rather pick up say Jane Eyre than a Sarah Desson novel or a mystery.

Reading Log

This week I have been trying to finish The Summer I Turned Pretty and I am just about done! I plan on finishing it this weekend and picking up a new book at the library. I have been doing pretty good on my reading goals but I haven't started reading a book out loud yet, maybe I will do that with the next book I pick up. In my last post I said that I wanted to finish White Noise this week as well and I have only gotten to about page 110 so far but hopefully I can get a little bit more into that this weekend as well. I need a weekend to just relax and reading sounds like a great way to spend it. I am really enjoying White Noise because it focuses on the technology of the world it seems like. There are contrasting statements about the technology of different characters and I find the movement from having little to no technology to a massive amount very intriguing.

Pages Read: 160

Notes 2 and 3

Glee-We Found Love
 In Glee's exciting rendition of "We Found Love" Will Shoester proposes to Emma Pillsbury of course with the help of his glee club and some synchronized swimmers. The bright and smiling faces of each of the actors in the scene convey a welcoming mood to the newly engaged couple. The red and white ruffled swim suits suggests a sense of love and youthfulness. The bright blue splashing pool water depicts an exciting unforgettable moment much like the summer spent at the pool for a teenage girl. Shy, Miss Pillsbury is nervously laughing as the engagement is about to take place demonstrating her reserved personality and how that one special guy was able to break through to her. The steady, rhythmic beats played in the energetic piece suggests the rhythm of love that is beginning to take off between the two about to be engaged.

Someone like you

The husky belting voice of Adele is captivating in telling the story of being without love in the music video "Someone Like You." The loud and hefty vocals that she projects about a discouraging lost love life is suggesting the rejected but still strong heart that Adele has within herself. The gloomy, dark, and almost depressing colors depict a sense of grief that is offset by the heartbroken singers contrasting shy and blasting volumes. The smooth blowing leaves on the trees at the beginning of the video create an ejected feeling before any of the story is told establishing a doleful woe that single women contains in any usual situation. The relaxed stroll through the park turns around the establishing thoughts by illustrating Adele as to be content with her life without a man for her to love conveying to young admirers of Adele all over the world that one does not need a boy to be happy.

Reading log

Lately ive been starting a book and getting about half way through it and finding another book that looks more interesting to me. Of course with the exception of Catching Fire. I finished both the Hunger Games and Catching Fire pretty quickly and soon picked up Mockingjay which I just dropped around page 140, however I do plan to pick it back up soon! A lot of my friends recommended reading the summer i turned pretty [sic] and i got to around page 70 before I picked up Beautiful Boy which I havent gotten far in at all. I stayed in Fort Wayne for break and was bored one day so I started reading White Noise. That book has kept me pretty engaged so far and I hope to finish it this week.

Pages read:595
Total read:969

Exercise 3

The Disenchantments
Try Not to Breathe
Lie

Each review should have a short summary that doesn't give anything away.
There is usually some opinion of the writer towards the end of the review.
There is a focus on the main character but mentions about other supporting roles.

This week I read the second Hunger Games book (catching fire) and I like the first book a lot more. The way that the book just kind of drops off at the end was kind of depressing. I love the way that Collins writes and keeps the action going either through the games or through the little bit of romance between Katniss and Peeta. The way that KAtniss can sort of read Haymitchs mind is interesting. I haven't seen the movie yet but I really hope it wasn't turned into a romance, I like the complexity of life in this futuristic view. The way that the different districts are reacting to everything that the tributes from district 12 are doing to defy the capitol infering to times that the government has been attempted to be overthrown before in other countries. To me I feel like the hunger games books are a way of the past and te future. I overall love these books and would recommend reading them before seeing the movie. I just started Mockingjay yesterday as well but im only about 30 pages into it so far. It picks up quickly from where the second book left off and I can't wait to read some more of it!

Note # 1

Love Song
Dorothy Parker

In Dorothy Parker's life like "Love Song" the extravagant and formal diction aids the figurative language depicting that the speaker is too high on love and wants to rid of the feeling she is not worthy enough for her boyfriend. The speaker describes the love "My love runs by like a day in June," exemplifying the love the speaker has for her boyfriend speeds as fast as the speed of light. The speaker simply wishing time would slow down as a teenager does on any June day during summer vacation. The speaker admits to loving her boyfriend in a very strong way, so strong she wishes "somebody'd shoot him." just to have him disappear taking from her what she belives she is less than worthy of.

Exercise 2

Everything in Roberta's life is described as Cruddy, although it is probably a little exaggerated. - Weakness 3

Outside of the room is "cruddy dark rain" seen through "the yellow lit-up window." - Weakness 2

"Once upon a cruddy time on a cruddy street on the side of a cruddy hill..." the repetitive use of cruddy creates a negative feel for the place she is describing. - Weakness 2

Reading, Reflecting, and More

Exercise 1

In Lydna Berry's "Cruddy" Berry's crude and terse language suggests that the narrator has a harsh violent manor. "Who can't even CONCENTRATE TO WRITE this because her little sister will NOT shut up," announces the narrator illustrating the harsh reality to her life. "I WILL KILL IF YOU TOUCH THIS," the way that the narrator speaks in the passage conveys a wretched and ill-humored ton suggesting to stay away from her things or else you will be dead. The repeating "cruddy," demonstrates the over all effect that the narrator feels through out the entire passage.

Reading Goals

- Read a whole book outloud
- Read at least two more books about paramedics
- Spend at least one saturday or sunday reading by the water

Anthology Theme

I think for my anthology theme I will do something about teenage love or crushes that a teenager has. It has always interested me, the way that elementary school aged kids to old couples love each other or have crushes on each other.

Some of my ideas to include in my anthology are a backstreet boys song or NSYNC song, lately I have been listening to these boy bands on replay and I think some of the songs include lyrics that play along with the idea of a crush.

A scene from a movie (maybe a walk to remember), clearly a romance.

An part of a sarah dessen book, these books always have some kind of crush/love thing going on so it seems like an obvious choice.

 These are just a few of my ideas and I haven't even explored it yet, I hope to find some not so obvious choice to include.

The Hunger Games

 Everyone has been reading the hunger games and saying how amazing the book is but in all honesty I never had any intention of actually reading it. I figured that it would be one of those Harry Potter or Twilight Saga books that are only popular because of the movie. I've just started reading it and haven't quite made it to the games part of the book but I'm going through it pretty quickly. The Hunger Games is about 24 teens competing to stay alive in rigid and ridiculous matters. There could be fire or ice that they must stay alive in, they must kill each of the other competitors in order to win and bring the entire glory home for their district. Names are put into a drawing to decide who will be the chosen two, a boy and a girl from each district, to go to the capitol. I really like how there is a family aspect to the book in the beginning. Prim, only twelve, most likely would have died if it had not been for her sister stepping up and taking her place for her. With the knowledge of the next two books I think that she will survive. The new stylist for district 12 and his acceptance with doing so well foreshadows how well those of the competitors in district 12 will do for the first time in years.

            I think that the bond between the two district 12 competitors although it is slim will do the two good at first leaving them to be the final two standing when they then have to break their bond and one of them must kill the other. I think that this novel is definitely a fight to the finish with all of the required training and styling. It is not just who can stay alive the longest but who looks the best and has the most support from the different districts.

they saved my life

So this past week I've been reading a book about paramedics and cases that the paramedics have been on. The book is called "A Paramedic's Story Life, Death, and Everything in Between" and I think I enjoy this book so much because I am able to relate to a paramedic from the way that two saved my life when I was diagnosed with diabetes. If it hadn't been for the two men in the ambulance I wouldn't be here today.

In the novel Steven, the author, known as "Kelly" tells his story of being a paramedic. There are forty different calls that he describes each in detail. In one of the calls he tells the story of an ostrich attack, which is one of the most unique stories in the book in my opinion. There was an old couple in a pasture of their farm out to feed their pet ostrich; one never knows how an animal will react to people being near. The ostrich began to attack the old man and woman, luckily the old woman got away but her husband was not so lucky. The old man attempted to fight him off with his cane but the ostrich attacked him, the man was soon dead.  There was a gaping wound in his back, one of his ears was torn off, and there was a gash from his neck to his collar bone. The bird tried to attack the police so they shot him. One officer tried to shoot him and he barely flinched and attempted to charge. The grandchildren were there but were luckily tucked inside the house safe and sound.  "Kelly" goes into great detail about the medical components of the man and women after the attack had taken place as he did in his entire novel.

Submission # 4: Blog Assignment

Good Claims:
Vivir, Sonar, Leer

"The radical range of color schemes, discombobulating object scale, unusual item combination, and drastic angling of geometric shapes combine to form a divine harmony in the middle of a flustering discord."

Books for Dummies (like me)

This opening scene is pivotal to the rest of the film because it already sets the stage for the theme of horrific deaths by sharks. The frantic movement of the kids and the thundering suspense of the music conveys this sense of carnage  and trepidation so that the audience might pee their pants in fright.  
Evaluative or Personal:

"When first looking at these amazing hand animals or paintings some may feel astonished or think it is unbelievable."

"As for the style of the book, I am very impressed.For an informative book, my attention is so well grasped."

Submission # 4: Homestead Hallways

Anyone who has ever stepped foot in a high school hallway during a passing period knows the rushed and congested feeling that is contained within the hallway. In just the short six minute period the normally hushed and abandoned hallways transform into a loud and crazy place holding hundreds of people at a time. The crowded hallways transforming from an almost silent library like atmosphere to an obnoxious Gaga concert like atmosphere. Walking through the whispered hallways the art mounted on the walls underscores the intricate work that the students within the school complete throughout the school year. The windows loaded with tall standing trophies illustrate to unaware visitors in the school what achievements have been completed by the array of different students within the school.

The hallways in Homestead each can be described with a different tone, the main hallways during a passing period are always jam-packed with teenagers that are creating an earsplitting sound. The commons is always an area freshmen wish to stay away from illustrating the hierarchy within the school. The commons are filled with juniors and seniors lounging on the benches or standing in tight concealed groups making it almost impossible for one to make his or her way through the commons. On the other hand, there are hallways farther back in the school that are still calm and quiet, of course there are the occasional people one might meet walking through the left behind hallways but it is a much easier route then going through the hectic hallways.

Each hallway also has a different sense to it through the décor spread over the walls or inside windows. A hallway around the choir and band rooms has sky high trophies representing all of the amazing accomplishments the student body has made. The quick turn on the stair case emphasizes a sort of sun god underscoring the diversity within the student body at Homestead.

Walking through the hall one can see a group of giggly girls or a group of guys punching each other. There's the couples whose hands cannot seem to be separated as their arms stretch clearly not ready to part as the two go their separate ways. There's that girl who has the biggest crush on one boy but he is a year ahead of her so she takes every chance to say "hey" to him. The girl eating a yogurt or the nerd running to his chemistry class even though he has five minutes until the bell rings again he does not want to be caught arriving late to class. Where ever one is in the crowded halls of Homestead he or she can see through the personalities of the student body attending school at Homestead.

Along for the Ride Part 2

This week I finished Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen, I actually had only read to around page 160 and finished it Monday night. I really liked the book because I feel like I could relate to it very easily. Auden never knew how to ride a bike before her new friend at her dads taught her the summer before she was going to college. Even though I know how to ride a bike I go to my dad’s house a lot of summers and always learn something new and meet new people that I hangout with for the summer. Auden becomes a whole different person during the summer she spends at her father’s house. The different environments and different expectations from her mother’s house to her father’s house help her complete her journey to becoming more of a normal teenager.

Auden, at her mother’s house, had been strictly focused on academics but once she arrived at her dad’s house she met a boy named Eli. Eli showed Auden the world in a whole new way that she had never seen in real life before, yes she had seen the love and party life on television but never experienced it. When Auden and Eli started meeting up every night and staying out into the early morning hours they became best friends almost. Before Auden, Eli had not been talking to anyone since his best friend Abe died in a car accident the year before. Auden and Eli were able to connect in a healthy, beneficial way even though just did the simple things like hanging out at a laundry mat each night. Through the relationship Auden and Eli had the new Auden was brought out which was emphasized throughout the entire novel.

Short List # 3

T-shirts, to an average human eye they mean so little but there is usually a story behind each sentimental, or not so sentimental, t-shirt. From a Race for the Cure t-shirt illuminating that the person wearing it may have run in a race, volunteered at a race, or has some connection with the fight against breast cancer to college t-shirts illustrating the desire one has to go to the college represented accross his or her chest or that one attends the school and is displaying his or her school spirt.

Adele is by far one of my favorite artists this year, I often find myself with "Some Like You" on repeat even though everything she belts out about in this song is completly the opposite of how I feel everyday. The music video to this is very simple and in black in white, a huge contrast from Lady Gaga. As a british singer who I first heard on Greys Anatomy she breaks out of the ordinary and demonstrates to the world who she truly is even if it is through music describing the same thing countless times.

High school hallways, we all know how crowded and congested they can be during a passing period, but what really goes on during that short six minute time frame. From the freshmen zooming through the crowd always trying to arrive to class as quickly as possible to the juniors and seniors seen lounging the the commons.

Submission # 3

Summer Camp, one of the most exciting times of the year, in fact for some people it is the most exciting time of the year. The exuberant emotions of campers and counselors are collected within oneself throughout the school year, waiting for that one day in June where everyone gets to go to camp and become a completely different person then who they are during the school year.

In the podcast "Notes on Camp" the first act is following the life of Mr. Popular, David Himmel everyone's favorite counselor at camp, illuminating the importance of summer camp to some people and part of what makes summer camp such an everlasting experience. David Himmel has gone to camp as a camper and is now a counselor at the same camp, staying at the same camp throughout one's life is something a lot of people choose to do because of the tradition held within each different summer camp. "Camp is just number one with everything I do," says David, "I would not be who I am if it wasn't for camp," illustrating the importance of summer camp to those diehard summer camp goers. Camp helps one find them self, at summer camp one can act as who he or she truly is and does not have to pretend to like the hottest band or latest television show, he or she can love NSYNC instead of Gaga and not feel ashamed of it. Everyone at camp can sing at the top of their lungs no matter how bad their singing voice is and not be judged, the people at camp aren't just friends that surround you, the people at camp are your family.

Another act of this podcast episode is about the color wars that take place at summer camp. Color Wars of this particular camp in Michigan play into the idea of tradition at summer camp. “Once you are assigned a team, the blue team, or the black or red for boys, you will stay on that team for all your years at camp,” demonstrating how important tradition is to the people of the summer camp and the bonds that are formed through the intense and fun filled days of the color wars. “It is not normal if you don’t lose your voices,” this being said by one of the recently appointed captains of color wars. Color wars may not seem like a big ordeal for people outside of camp but to most people in camp it is one of the most anticipated times of the summer. The oldest girls in the girl’s camp are eligible to be color wars captains and the array of positive and negative emotions are spread far across the board. In the early morning when all of the younger girls are woken up to go to the ceremony to find out who the captains will be for the year the older girls haven’t slept. The older girls filled with anticipation and anxiety but the girls are ready to find out if they have finally been able to become color wars captain. The ceremony seems as if it is the most serious time of the summer, there is no talking allowed. The only sounds heard on the way back to the cabins that night are of muffled crying, either of joy or sorrow.

Between the two different segments within the podcast episode there are several different tones set. In the Color Wars segment there is a great seriousness then there is in the Mr. Popular segment. The girls repeat in this section, “I will be silent,” underlining the solemn tone in an odd way; it seems so serious but in a very exciting way. In contrast with the Color Wars act of the episode the Mr. Popular act seems so much more moving from talking about how camp made David who he is and from the love that is clearly shown to him as a group of thirteen year old girls have made up a song about him revealing their true love to the so called “Davey.”

Along for the Ride

This week I asked one of my friends for a book to read. She asked me if I liked Sarah Dessen and well yeah I do. So she told me to read Along for the Ride. I don't remember the last time I've been so engaged in a book! The novel tells the story of a girl who goes to live with her dad and step mom for the summer. There is a catch to that though, her step mom just had a baby and refuses to get any help caring for the wailing infant. Auden's parents got divorced years ago after they had been fighting most nights to the point where Auden was always awake at night listening to the constant bickering of the two. As she stays with her dad for the summer she can not help but feel like she is in the same kind of environment once again. Auden's dad is not the most helpful when it comes to caring for the baby, he claims that he has work to do although he does not have actual work to do during the summer. Her dads sits in his office each day for the majority of the day working on a book that he is writing. He claims it will become a big hit and end up helping care for his wife and newborn infant. This is the same thing that happened when Auden was a child herself underlining the fact that people never change, something that Auden's mother has been trying to teach her.

I like this book a lot because it reminds me of my own life. Living with my mom during the school year and spending the summer with my dad and step mom can be fun and a drooling experience just as Auden faced.

Podcast Response: Notes on Camp

I chose Notes on Camp because I'm one of those camp people, I love everything about camp and it is a huge part of my life. In this podcast episode mostly two camps are followed, a boys and a girls camp, but they are run as one camp. In the Mr. Popular act of this podcast David Himmel, a former camper and now counselor, says, "Camp is just number one with everything I do," I think this is true for the majority of people who attend camp. This segment of the podcast gives the thoughts of camp an energetic tone and demonstrates what fun camp can be. David also says, "I would not be who I am if it wasn't for camp," illuminating the importance of camp to some people. David, not knowing who he would be if he hadn't attended camp underlines the significance of tradition of camp and the strong relationships that are built between people at camp. In the last act of the episode of Notes on Camp, Color Days, the importance of tradition is once again stressed just as it is in the Mr. Popular act of the episode, "Once you are assigned a team a blue team, black or red for boys, you will stay on that team for all your years at camp." Although this may not be true for every camp each camp has their own traditions and they are all important to each other person who attends the camp.

“It is not normal if you don’t lose your voices,” this said by one of the captains of color wars alludes to how important winning the color wars and the rivalry between the teams is captivating to all campers, young and old. Color Wars are a lot of the girls favorite part of camp and on the last night there is a relay, this linking back to tradition. Most of the older girls compete in the same event year after year, the events being fun and odd, nothing one would do just hanging out with friends at home. The events varying from eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich to showering and washing your hair, to building a fire. No one judges you at camp, you can have as much fun and be yourself which is why so many people love camp and why it is such an important part of campers lives.

The tones between the different segments in the episode are very similar; the most illuminating is the energy that each speaker brings about camp. Everything has a high energy and a fun and exciting tone to it. In the Color Wars segment there is also seriousness when the older girls are waiting to find out who will be the color war leaders for the three days. As the girls repeat, "I will be silent," the solemn tone is underlined in an odd way; it is serious but also a very exciting event.

Define Normal

I was looking for a book to read and I just could not find anything that I thought would be interesting to read. I think I'll start making a list of books that I would like to read, I always see so many that I want to read but I forget the name of the book or I just never know what book I want to start with. Anyway, I've read all of the books I have in my room so I asked my step sister if she had anything she thought I would like. She went to look in her room and came out with a pile of books. All of the books she came out with were bright and happy looking except one, "Define Normal." The book had a black cover and the summary on the back of the book was not very captivating but I had nothing better to read so I just got started.

“Define Normal” is about two teenaged girls in middle school who have completely different lives. From Antonia, a straight “A” student to Jazz a student with tattoos and piercings the two find themselves as peer counselors. Although both girls have their own problems they are different in many ways but alike in the way that both girls have some problems with their mothers. Antonia not having as great of a house as Jazz emphasizes that just because one has a good house doesn’t mean that one would be defined as “normal.”

This novel illuminates that there is no normal for everyone. Each family has a different normal, each person has a different normal and that there is no way to stop one from changing. “Define Normal” is a great book for younger girls to read when they are going through hard times and think that they are the “odd one out,” because it defines normal as there not being a normal at all.

Love Gives Me Hope

Love Gives Me Hope is a website dedicated to describing what love there is left in society today. From having a long distance relationship to a brother always looking out for his sister people tell the world what love there is left. When someone has been knocked down and need to get back up they can go to Love Gives Me Hope and realize there is still love, they are not alone and that life is not useless. One story describes a girl who was about to commit suicide and while searching online for tactics to kill herself came upon the LGMH website. She decided not to kill herself.

Everyone needs love in their life, they need the support to go on. Within the website and each short story that is posted on the website, much like a tumblr page is run, illuminates a whole different side of the world that a lot of people in the world do not get the chance to see through his or her eyes. Society today has changed drastically from a century ago but there is always love in the air, somewhere, it just is not visible to everyone in the world at the same time.

Everyone can relate with at least one of the stories on the webpage because of the wide variety of subject matter. As one submission focuses on the donation of a kidney from a what seems to be a teenage boyfriend to a teenage girlfriend and another focuses on a little boy whose parents don’t take care of him so his brother writes a note on her lunch bag everyday. Despite the difference of subject matter all of the stories demonstrate the lost love that some people feel in the world presenting a happier way of life. Looking at the site may just save someone from feeling left out of the world and leaving life forever.

Short List: 2

Superbowl Commercials: Not thinking of a specific commercial but everyone knows that all of the good commercials come on during the Superbowl. The span of the products being advertised during these commercials would give you a lot of lee-way choosing what you would like to write about. Being able to analyze something that is recent in the news and that the majority of people enjoy would creates an inviting atmosphere to readers.

lovegivesmehope.com: This site is basically a bunch of short stories all combined together on the site that people submit. It may be compared to MLIA.com but this site gives a light-hearted touch to some cute love stories that one who enjoys reading chic-lit novels may enjoy reading.

Roses are Red Poems: I've always like this type of poems. They are short, sweet, and to the point, just how I like them. The way that one can add a few words after the typical "roses are red, violets are blue," intrigues me because there are endless possibilities. With these simple poems anyone can write them allowing one to include specific memories or thoughts into their own piece of art.