Exercise #3

1: Absolutely Maybe - Lisa Yee
2: A Walk to Remember - Nicholas Sparks
3:Blue Sky July - Nia Wyn

1. Describe the beginning of the book. It makes the reader a little more interested in the book.
2. Don't tell the reader too much of the book so that they know exactly how the book is.
3. Talk about the authors choice or words or writing style, it may interest the reader in some of their other books.

Reading Log: Catching Fire

I'm only half way into Catching Fire. It seems as if this author always starts her books out boring and slow. After I got through the first two or three chapters it's beginning to pick up. Katniss has to go into the games again which I never saw coming. I'm really excited to finish up this book and start the third. I have no idea how these will end but they keep me interested. Just when I think Katniss' life is back to normal, something happens to change that.

Exercise #2

1: Barry comes across as a bitter woman with the constant negative and degrading word diction saying "Roberta was writing the cruddy book of her cruddy life."
7: The bull "loose-skinned brindle Brahma-cross identified in the program as Little Kisses." 

6: Lynda uses lyrical words and is poetic. 


Favorite blog: No Such Thing As An Ordinary Cat

Exercise 1

The diction in "Cruddy" is abrupt. It has a type of simple-slang. Lynda uses lyrical words and is poetic.

Reading Log: The Hunger Games

I just finished the first book of the Hunger Games. I was really pleased with the way it turned out. The two things I didn't like is the fact that you already know the ending because there are two other books, and the fact that the beginning was really boring. Once you get to the games, the book begins to speed up. Katniss forms allies, she loses friends, and she "finds love." She's troubled with trying to pretend she is in love to save the life of her tribute, Peeta. Eventually, they both win the games, and both return home to their families. But just when everything seems to be going back to normal, something is wrong. The end of the book makes you want to keep reading which is something I like. I'm currently in the second book.

Reading Log: The Hunger Games

I've recently started the first book of the Hunger Games trilogy. At first I found it boring, but once I got a couple chapters in I couldn't put it down.Its set in the future, revolving around a girl named Katniss and her family. She’s the rock in her family and when she gets nominated to be in ‘The Games’ she has to leave and fight for her life. She promises her sister she’d try her hardest to win and come back home to them. Out of all the other tributes, Katniss scores the highest which is a surprise to her. She’s already a crowd favorite and that is an advantage to her.

The only thing I don’t really like about the book is that you almost know the ending because there are three other books. All I want to do right now is finish the book. It’s suspenseful, and gives an insight to what the future could be like.

Submission #4

Wall To Watch

This is a website similar to stumbleupon. On this site are various groupings of pictures and videos. Some of the categories include animals, art & design, clothing, film, landscapes, photography, and travel. There are funny categories, and some that just amaze you. Hours upon hours could be spent on this site. This page is highly distracting, entertaining, and interesting. Wall To Watch could be enjoyable for people of all ages because there are categories for everyone. It gives ideas for art and creativity. Wall To Watch is a way to pass time on the internet without wasting time on Facebook and filling your head with mush. It's funny, inspiring, creative, interesting, and enjoyable.

Short List: 2/21/12

 Wall To Watch.
This website is a bunch or random things grouped together by category. Some of the categories include animals, art & design, clothing, film, landscapes, photography, and travel. I could spend hours on this website and I think I already have. My favorite group of pictures that I've stumbled upon is the Exploding Food.

Spring Break
When someone says "Spring Break" to you, what is the first thing you think of? Florida, warm weather, somewhere pretty? Somewhere other than Fort Fun Indiana? Why is Florida the first place that pops into everyones mind?

Pets
I know this one is random but I've always wondered, what would life be like without any pets? I don't think I could ever live without my dog.

Submission # 3

Everyone's been through a Break-Up. Well, almost everyone, and if you haven't, then you're lucky. Something we don't realize during this time is that the feelings we express are natural. If you really like someone and then one day they're gone, you're bound to be upset and confused. There are the break ups that you don't really care about, and then there are the ones that completely devastate you. Some people turn to music, friends, or the stereotypical girl watching romantic love stories on TV with a box of chocolates next to you with your favorite blanket and fuzzy pajamas on.

It seems like any song you listen to these days is about love, either good or bad. During this podcast, they interview a writer, Starlee Kine. She explains her break up from the guy she thought was “the one.” She lists the songs that she relied on to express her pain. All of these songs express how they don’t want to get over their love, how they can’t make them love them as much as they would want to. After months and months of listening to other peoples break up songs, she decided to write her own. Her kind of love song was the type that explained that this guy wouldn’t have to even say sorry to have her heart again. Which most people think is pathetic which it really is, but you can’t help it when you’re going through this kind of thing. She confides in Phil Collins, a popular writer, to help her write this love song. They had gone through similar situations and he helped her.

Even if you haven’t gone through this kind of situation, this is a podcast that anyone can listen to. Almost all of us can relate to these people.

The Help

Lately I’ve been reading The Help. I’ve already seen the movie; normally I don’t read books after I’ve already seen the movie but I couldn’t resist reading this one. I’ve heard it’s amazing from all my family and friends. After the first paragraph I was captivated by the woman’s story. You can tell by the way she talks that she has had a rough life. She speaks in almost an uneducated tone. Her name is Aibileen. She takes care of a white family, the Leefolts. She cooks, cleans and takes care of Elizabeth’s baby, Mae Mobley. Over the years that she cares for this family, she becomes a mother figure to Mae Mobley since her mother pays more attention to how her friends think of her.

Her best friend is Minny Jackson, a witty black woman who also is a maid. She cleans for Miss Hilly Holbrook. She’s the ringleader of Jackson, Mississippi. When Hilly assumes that her mother is being malnurished, she fires Minny and she has to look for new work. She finds a job outside of town. Mrs Celia Foot. The woman Hilly's boyfriend ran off with.

This book is all about the hardships of these african american ladies and their lives. It's a must read for sure and the movie is great too.

Short List # 2

Pinterest: The new tumblr.

There is not much of a difference between these two websites except for the fact that you have to be invited to Pinterest. It may sound dumb, but it’s actually a great idea. With Tumblr, ANYONE can put together a blog full of things that may not be appropriate. With Pinterest, it’s moderated and much easier to use. You can use it on the go with the app for IPhone or Android whereas Tumblr does not have an app. Pinterest is more sophisticated. You can make different boards to organize your pins by category. Some popular categories are weddings, food recipes, stylish clothes, bedrooms, and of course, the cutest animals on the planet. Surprisingly, you can tell a lot about someone’s personality by the things they pin. I’ve only been a member for a few weeks but it’s easy to say I’m already obsessed. This may easily be the most distracting app I have on my phone.  I think everyone should try this website.

Pandora

This is a website, and also an app you can get on your phone. This radio station allows you to create your own station of whatever music you enjoy listening to. When you create a station, it mixes songs together and sometimes introduces the listener to songs they may have never heard. I think that it's better than any regular radio station because of the fact that it doesn't over play what is considered "good music" at the time. It jumbles around songs that are currently popular and that have been popular over the years. It's an easy listening station and you can create as many different stations as you please. I personally listen to pandora every day.

 

 

Twitter

There's something about this website that I just love. I think it's the fact that it's easy going, and easy to use. You can tweet as much as you like without looking weird whereas on Facebook, if you put more than one status everyone goes insane. It's easy, fun, and a good way to get whatever is on your mind out. Everyone I talk to hates twitter in the beginning, and then slowly becomes infatuated and obsessed with it. It's slowly taking over the social media world.

Spartan Reader

I've come to the conclusion that if I had to pick one website, I would pick The Burning House. By the title, you could probably guess what the website is about.These people submit a picture of the items they would carry with them, along with a list, their name, and where they're from. Most of these people claim that they would take their cameras, phones, some old vintage clothes or sunglasses, or their laptops. When someone asks another person what they would bring, the normal answer is "my phone, computer, camera, clothes, etc." But if you put some thought into this, your answer may be different.
If your house was burning to the ground, what would you bring?

Week 5: Top Links

Well I'm finishing my post from yesterday. I really enjoy looking at the blogs from our class. I've found two, that I enjoy the most though. I don't know what it is but there's something about their blogs. I think it's the way they write.
 http://lifeisgood.blogspot.com/
http://wwwdancersmindblogspotcom.blogspot.com/
http://realismisreal.blogspot.com/


There ya go!(:

Reader Short List

So I've rounded up a few websites that a worth looking at..

The first one I looked at was Andrew Zuckerman's website. He went all of the world to interview a group of commonly known people. Most of them, I don't know but I found what they had to say was intriguing and I actually watched the whole thing.

Like Mr. Hill, I LOVE the Convoy Tumblr. I don't know what it is about it but it has a distinctive style that is almost impossible to not like.

I stumbled upon another tumblr that I really like. It's called From Me To You. She collects a lot of vintage photos and puts them all together by category. I believe most of the pictures on her blog are her own since she is a photographer. Some of them have one part that moves if you look at it. I know I sound crazy but you'll see.

Enjoy(:

The Guardian... Continued

The Guardian

This confirmed my love in Nicholas Sparks. After the first 150 pages, I found myself not being able to put this book down. I spent most of my Friday night reading and most of my Saturday morning reading it and I just now finished it. The last half of the book, Julie begins to fall for Mike. But Richard still loves her. He doesn't understand why she doesn't love him back and all he wants to feel is her love. Well she does not feel the same way. She has basically forgotten about him. Only to be reminded of him when he starts following her around town and "coincidentally" running into her. She first sees him at the supermarket where she turns down a date, then sees him at the salon where she works. He calls her house every day until she finally snaps. She yells at him and tells her to leave her alone but Richard does not get the hint. She begins to get strange calls all throughout the day, no one talking, just a blank line. Richard has been watching her every move. Scared, Julie has Mike stay with her. She eventually changes her number, frustrating Richard. He's stalking her. He begins seeing Andrea, Julies co-worker and makes Julie think shes out of his trap. The next day they find Andrea in a ditch and Richard becomes a prime suspect in a huge investigation. The cops are on his tail but still cannot find him. Richard isn't new at this game, he knows what he's doing.

I'm not going into much detail because I think anyone would enjoy this book. I've been so busy this week and I'm getting sick but all I wanted to do all weekend was finish this. It's a thriller for sure. The Guardian is going down on my top ten for sure.

**sorry this is late, i've been soooo busy and sick.**

My Friday the 20th Post

Well I have to say, our class has pretty interesting blogs. I think the most interesting so far would be: http://99bottlesofpoponthewall.blogspot.com/
"I mean, from the perspective of a teenage girl who had probably never read more than ten books for fun in the entire fifteen years of life, I was rather confused as to what my mother’s motives were." - I honestly think this is my favorite part. My grandma does the same thing and I always wonder when she is going to understand I don't want new books, I never read them. I think that if I had the time, I'd enjoy reading much more.

There were also many good posts about 'The Dead Poets Society.' Since I have to pick a favorite, I'd have to say it would be http://arabella-cruz.blogspot.com/

I liked this one because its very true. It's easy to understand and very easy to see from the video clip. I like the fact that they pointed out the one boy who doesnt seem to have as much pride in the school as the other boys. I think that some act like they are proud of going there, when really, their parents forced them into it. I don't think many kids our age would like going to a school like that. It seems very strict and I think I'd be kinda scared..

The Preppy School Boy

This traditional school boy movie is filled with serious and stern expressions. The boys walk down the dark, candle lit isle with stiff movements. The instructors are proud and the boys are disciplined. The attitude of the boys reveals the strict rules these instructors enforce. This school in Welton is plain and expresses how education is the top priority.

That strict, stern, attitude changes when these young boys enter this classroom. Mr. Keating shows the boys a new perspective on life. He tells them to seize the day. Carpe Diem.

The Guardian

Soo this book started off sooo slow. Now that I'm in like the 15th chapter it's actually really good and if I hadn't been reading it allllllll day I wouldn't have put it down. I don't even know how to begin explaining it. Basically, it's about this girl, Julie, who has recently lost her husband to a brain tumor. Her first Christmas alone, she gets a strange package in the mail from her late husband, Jim. She thinks about how strange it is while opening the lid to find a puppy. Well this puppy grows to be her best friend. He looks after her almost like he is Jim. It's weird. When she starts dating, he would growl at every man she dated except for one guy. Jim's best friend Mike. She never pictures herself having feelings for him but it starts to dawn on her. What if he was the right guy for her? He was easy to hang out with, easy to talk to, and he had been her shoulder to cry on since Jim died. I left off with her just ending a date with Mike and I'm really rooting for them(:

Literacy Narrative

When I first learned to read you couldn't get a book out of my hands. I loved reading. Since I was young, I had a lot of free time and could read whenever I wanted to. My mom used to find me in my room at night reading under my covers when I was supposed to be sleeping. I loved the magic tree house books and had almost every single book in the series. I had a very positive reading experience when I was young.
Over the years I have become busier and I find myself not really having time to read outside of what I have to, which is disappointing because the things we read in school don't interest me. I don't really know how to explain my favorite genre but I love Nicholas Sparks if that says anything. Lately I've realized that I really enjoy books that later go onto a movie and comparing the differences. My all time favorite books that I have read in the last year would be Dear John, The Last Song, and Charlie St. Cloud. I enjoy Sarah Dessen books as well. So you could basically say that I like Chick-Lit.
Now whenever I have time to read, I read to relax. With work and school I get very stressed out and that is one of the things that calm me down and I can forget about how crazy of a day I have had. If I could read more, I would like to read every single book by my two favorite authors, Nicholas Sparks and Sarah Dessen. I also like reading books about animals, because I would like to go in to the veterinary field after high school. I ride horses and will read or look at basically anything that revolves a horse. I even go to movies sometimes just to see the horse scenes. I know it's lame but that is one of my passions. One book that is on my list is War Horse. So basically, I like reading when I have time.