Coming of age

       From my novel I learned a lot about growing up. My character Craig was suffering from a lot of problems one example of his problems was depression. He was really depressed about school. He couldn't keep up with his classes and he felt like a failure. And his life flipped around around from there. He had to do a lot of things just so he could make things right. This book was like a guide for me. It showed different ways you can solve your own problems. That's one thing I've always struggled with. I was never really good at solving my own problems. But now I'm better at it and I can be more independent in my life. I would recommend this book to anyone. It's a good long read, it was funny and I can be sure you will relate to the book in someway. Overall this was a very interesting unit. It helped me find my self a little more.
     people should think more about there lives and how they can fix it. its all apart of growing up and finding yourself. it might take some time but it will eventually appear.

Its Kind Of A Funny Story by Ned Vizzini

       The book  Its Kind Of A Funny Story by Ned Vizzini is about a young boy named Craig that is really depressed. He doesn't really whats happening and doesn't believe in living anymore. One thing I've noticed about Craig is that he is just learning how to solve his own problems. He would just smoke pot and not eat thinking it was a solution...but that didnt really work out. Soon enough as a depressed teenager he started contemplating suicide. He just didn't want to live any longer.
       Thats just something i don't get. No matter what i dont think i'd be able to kill myself, no matter how depressed i was. Its like the human instinct the want to live. But before Craig could Jump of the Brooklyn Bridge and kill himself, he took a moment and thought about his family. He would think about how this would change their entire lives. So he ended up calling 1-800 SUICIDE  hoping they could help him. He couldn't put his family thru something so drastic.
Craig ended up making the decision to go to the hospital to get some help.
       Later when he called his mom she was so proud that he was able to make that sort of decision. This was really the first time that he was able to solve his OWN problem instead of relying on people to do it for him. That being said i feel like this is something you go through when your maturing. Not necessarily thinking about suicide but making decisions on your own.
think about it, your not always going to have someone to fix your problems. Craig always relied on his parents and therapists for everything. Not that asking for help is  bad thing, but to  relying is bad.  in order to keep moving on in life your going to need to do things on your own.
       What im trying to say is that making your own decisions is a key part of growing up.

Blog post on article (spring break HW)

The article pythons attack the everglades  by Stephanie Kraus really helped me understand how people are hurting the ecosystem  and the food chain even if it’s on intentional. People don’t even realize what they are doing is hurting the land and animals around them, it even affects them. People are releasing their pythons into the wild where they DON’T belong.

This article states that people are bringing Burmese Pythons into Florida and its hurting the ecosystem! The reptile trade as grown immensely over the past couple of years which of course includes snakes as stated in the article.  People buy these pets and don’t realize how big they will grow. Burmese Pythons can grow up to 19 feet. And that’s when people realize they can’t take care of them anymore so they release them into the wild. This is not the natural habitat for this large animal, so other animals don’t know how to respond to it. And as all animals do these snake needs to feed as well, and they feed on the native animals that live in the everglades such as raccoons, bobcats and opossums. And they are now wiping out these species and this is messing up the food chain because this is not naturally supposed to happen. The numbers of these animals have decreased drastically, affecting the other animals that revolve around them, such as over population in small rodents.

Another way that these snakes are creating havoc in the food chain and ecosystem is that they are now competing with the alligators that live there. The Burmese Pythons and the alligators have much of the same diet including fish, small mammals, raccoons and what not. But they are also feeding of each other. “We have documented pythons eating alligators, and alligators eating pythons,” he said. “It depends on who is biggest during the encounter.” As stated int the article.

Overall People are bringing Burmese Pythons into the state of Florida and then letting them free in the everglades which is not where they belong. The snakes are disrupting the food chain by eating certain animals like raccoons which are now low in numbers and creating competition with alligators. This is an issue that needs to be addressed more clearly and needs to be solved.  

Plagiarizing (Spring break HW)

1. What the student did wrong was that he took the material from another person and used it as his own without giving the author any credit. What he could have done was quote the site he got it from.

2. "There is a peaceful essence flowing from the structures. Perhaps the cool dark colors and the fiery windows spark memories of our own warm childhood years filled with imagination of what exists in the night and dark starry skies. The center point of the town is the tall steeple of the church, reigning largely over the smaller buildings. This steeple casts down a sense of stability onto the town, and also creates a sense of size and seclusion.To the left of the painting there is a massive dark structure that develops an even greater sense of size and isolation." as stated in the article A Brief Understanding of the Starry Night Paintings.
http://www.vangoghgallery.com/painting/starryindex.html


3. To avoid plagiarizing you can 1. site your source 2. paraphrase it 3. write in your own words 4. quote

My thoughts on reading responses (Spring Break HW)

I really like Joyce’s blog about how Peeta and Gale are different and Aiden’s blog about being ‘unwound’ and all the characters different opinions about it.

One reason I liked Joyce’s article is because she kind of gives her own opinion about it. She states “I have fallen for Peeta ever since I read about him”. Basically she stating if she were Katniss she would go for Peeta instead of Gale. I like that she did that because if make the audience reading her blog get more into it and sparks ideas in their head about the same things.                                                          
 I also like how she gave reasons why she liked Peeta better then she liked Gale. She also made it really brief getting right to the point which is something I love about blog posts.

I really liked Aiden’s blog post because I could tell he put a lot of time into it. The wording was clear and to the point. He also explained what the story was about. It was really helpful and gave me a clear understanding of what his blog was based on. 
“In the book Unwind by Neal Shusterman, abortion is illegal until the age of thirteen and cannot be performed after eighteen. When they kill the child, they use its organs to give to others in need, so they are "technically alive". This is called being unwound. In this book, three characters called unwinds because they are about to be unwound. Even though the three unwinds have the same fate, they all think of it differently.  Connor is determined to get out of his situation, Risa wants to run away but first feels hopeless about it, and Lev is a tithe; born and raised to be unwound.  Lev feels it is his divine duty to be unwound.” is what Aiden stated.
Overall I really liked Joyce and Aiden’s blog because they both were clear and I feel I could do some of the same things as they did by giving background information like Aiden did or/and add my own opinion like Joyce did.

Much to do about nothing review and thoughts

I recently saw the play much to do about nothing with my class 810. One thing I really liked about the Shakespearian play is that the stage was small and close. it was like I (and the audience) were just spying on the lives of the people in the play. I felt really connected to the play and the characters. Plus you really got to see the facial expressions of the actors and it was really good.

I also noticed that the setting in the play was different then I original because in Shakespeare it usually takes place way back but in this play it took place in the 20's. You could tell by the music, the costumes, props, and dances. I also think the story line of the play was in a way really confusing. At some parts I was literary lost and found myself asking a lot of questions about what was happening in the play. But i did get the overall sense of the story, partly because the two guys came into our class and told a us a little about what the play was about, before we went to see it.

Overall I think this was a good decent play that was funny at some parts and confusing at others. But I would like to see it again to get a better understanding of it.

Mockingjay; reading response

This is the second time ive read mockingjay and i chose to read it again because of the moviewe are going to see and ive noticed a lot more. In Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins, I think Gale is heartless towards Katniss, although he acts all fuzzy and warm. I think he says he loves Katniss, but at the end of the book, I think we have enough reasons to think that he is heartless.
For one thing, when Katniss and the Rebels attack the capitol with bombs, and Katniss’s sister Primrose dies, it is most likely although he says it isn’t, the bomb that he and Beetee, another engineer, were working on to destroy the capitol.
Another reason is because at the very end of the book, he leaves to go to District Two, and Katniss assumes that he’s in love with some one else, even though he was the one competing with Peeta for her love, and he was the one who said that she would choose the person who she couldn’t survive without.
I wonder what happened when he supposedly dropped that bomb on Prim and the other Rebel medics. He was the one who promised to take care of Prim when Katniss went off to her first Hunger Games. And the Rebel medics and medics-in-training were on his side! So wat could have happened to the feelings inside of Gale. His bomb destroyed thousands of allies and the most important and loved person in Katniss’s mind. He must have known that Katniss would be angry with him if he used his bomb on people that included Prim. I know I was angry with him.
In conclusion, I thought that Gale was very heartless at the end of the book. He acted like he didn’t even love Katniss anymore. Very heartless.

Romeo and Juliet: what character i like/ feel is important

Once character that really stands out to me in the play is Mercutio,Romeos cousin. I really like his tactics and feel he is more unique then any other character in the play. He takes things in a different matter, he really cares about Romeos well being but at the same time he's being forceful. He makes demands that romeo must follow to help Romeo overcome his heart brake.
here is a letter i think Mercutio would write to romeo if it was little more modern

Dear Romeo
You cant let love keep you down. you need to get back in the game, find a new lady. There are plenty more fish in the sea that you can chase after! I'm sick of seeing you moan every 5 minutes. You got rejected so what, you cant be depressed about this one girl forever! And if you ask me, she wasn't even that pretty...
There is a party soon and you should come...scratch that I'm MAKING you come. Some things need to be decided for you, im not going to let you be a party pooper! look i know you are going threw a really rough time, but who knows you might find the love of your life at the party! Meet me at the corner behind the market we'll meet there. we. are. going. to. that. party!!!!!!
Love Mercutio
I also think Mercutio will play a bigger part in the play then people reading the book might expect, he seem like a more violent type of person and it seems like he would do something devilish as long as it doesn't hurt Romeo and his fragile heart.
He is also not a Capulet or a Montague which in my opinion makes him a bit more special then other characters because it allows him to roam in both houses,
Over all i really like him as a character and in my opinion he's the most interesting person in the play!!!

Romeo and juliet

Dear Friend

The most important observations I’ve made so far about the book is that the montogues and capulites hate each other, and as we all know this is going to affect the book greatly.

Shakespeare so far is really complicated, I feel like in order to understand an piece you need to read it over more than one time and try to read it out load, and I would recommend asking a teacher for help because it can get really confusing with all of the language.

I also wonder why the two sides hate each other it’s never been made clear to me.

What i Think About ´´A Sonnet For Stephan´´

It’s safe to say we´ve all lost someone or something very important to us, but no matter what we will never forget about it. i feel like this is what this poem is mainly about. This sonnet tells the story of a young boy who was like a son to him who turned into a strong young man. Went to a very good school and was building a very strong future for himself. But there was one thing that stood in his way...sickness. The person who wrote this probably felt deeply about this person and was greatly affected by his death. So he wrote this poem as a way of saying good bye.

In the first stanza it says ¨ I see a little boy of four or five whose face lights up whenever we would play Who made me feel it’s great to be alive and wish that time would never tick away¨

This is stating that he was really attached to Stephan, and it made him feel new and good. It made his life seem like it couldn´t get any better. And I can relate to that. Sometimes when I’m with my family and friends and I’m having such a good time I never want it to end. I remember when I was in Costa Rica and we were surfing and we would catch huge waves laugh and have a good time I never wanted it to end. That’s how I think the author felt when he was with Stephan.

I also think this was a way of the author saying goodbye because of all the effort and emotion put into the sonnet. I fell like the author chose the most meaningful words and put them together in a way that really touched hearts of many people. From the looks of it he wanted everyone to know how he felt about Stephan and how important he was. One part that really stood out to me was the last lines that read “The boy, The youth, The man are each now gone

Except in that in my heart they linger on”

Those lines were extraordinarily powerful that meant allot to him and the people who read it.

Overall this was a very honest poem about how the author had a strong connection with Stephan and how he misses’s him. One message passed on from the sonnet is that true things or people can never really be lost and will always be a part of you. 

My Sonnet

The Lake

By Gabriel Cano-Garraway

Shall I compare its beauty to the moon?

While healthy it’s filled with joy, love and life

Its home to the magical bird the loon

Animals swim in it cause it feels nice

It cools those who need a re-freshening brake

It’s as large as a field of open land

Most people today know this as a lake

But as if now, it looks like a wasteland

 It can only take so much pollution

The water is now contaminated

We must soon come to a quick solution

 Before our water is terminated

Before a magical beauty is gone

We cannot destroy what truly belongs

Poems; The Goldfish

The Giant Gold Fish
 By Gabriel Cano-Garraway
I sense danger near
We must move quickly or else
The giant goldfish



It Glows
By Gabriel Cano-Garraway
It glows with power
mending the waves beneath it
Strikes fear in many


the goldfish
By Gabriel Cano-Garraway
It roams freely swimming about the open sea
swallowing the hearts of many
makes them tremble with fear

bright as the sun
dark as coal
mythical like the stars

The goldfish that glows
the goldfish that strikes fear
the goldfish that is swims

Paul Klee

This painting called 'The Goldfish' is by Paul Klee( pronounced Klay). Paul Klee is a famous painter who was born in Bern, Switzerland, in 1879. Paul Klee loved to use many different colors for his paintings. He was inspired by lots of his collage mates. They loved to use many different colors that you would not normally use for what they were painting. They would use green to paint a cow or purple to paint milk. This had a great impact on Paul Klee's art work. One thing that lots of people don't know about Paul Klee is that he was also a very talented musician. He had a choice either pursue music or art and he chose to stick with art. Even thou many of his painting were very colorful it was noticed that as Paul Klee aged his paintings became more gloomy and dark as said in the biography 'Paul Klee' by Mike Veneza.

The painting 'The Goldfish' is very unique. It’s actually not even painted. It was created with oil and water on cardboard! This piece of art work has many different shapes. The plants on the sea floor are made up of lots of lines and they are all blue. Another thing that I've noticed about this is that in a way it looks like something a little kid would draw. It’s all so simple. The fish are pretty much just ovals with fins and eyes. The water is also just squiggly lines, but what impressed me the most about this picture is how the colors pop out so much. The colors seem to be glowing especially since the back ground is a dark color. I also like how the gold fish in the middle has very unique fins. its like spikes are poking out from its back. The fish is also a mix of gold and red. I like the specification of where the colors are placed. It seems that only the eyes, Fins and tail are red while the rest remains gold.

I think this is one of those pieces of art that doesn't necessarily have a deeper meaning. I feel like this painting is just majestic. It was just meant to be made to wow people who see it. But it seems that the more I look at this piece the more I see what the scene is. It looks like all the fish around the corners are swimming away from the big gold fish. You can see the ripples as well. It’s like the gold fish is superior and the smaller fish are afraid of it. I also think the goldfish in the middle is glowing with some sort of light or power inside of it but yet it still doesn’t light up the water.

Overall I really liked this painting. It’s really majestic and looks ancient. I feel like Paul Klee is a very unique artist with a different style then most other artists.

Glass by Ellen Hopkins

Crank by Ellen Hopkins is a really sad book. It seems like the entire family is divided. The father left Bree/Kristina and Leigh when they were at an extremely young age. Leigh is lesbian and is at a collage living with her controlling girlfriend and not to mention she hate her dad. Their mother is super strict, uptight and protective. Kristina/Bree is loose outgoing, loves to get high off meth and is a teen mom as a result of rape.
And now they are all together and i can just feel the tension whenever they are around each other.
It barely seems like they even want to like each other. Kristina/Bree is the only one who wants everyone to get along as a family.
After all they are all here because of her and her baby who is going to be baptized very soon.

I don’t think i would be able to live like that. Everyone would be so; distant from each other and it would always be okward being around them. It would feel like I’m alone.
Overall this is a really good book, and I’m at an important stage in the story and I can’t wait to read and find out what happens next in the plot.
Will everyone cooperate or will there be fighting and many disagreements. Time will only tell.

blod post: lost hero

I read The Lost Hero, by Rick Riordan. One of the main characters, Jason, has just decided to go on a quest to save Hera, a Greek god who is imprisoned. I am wondering why Jason made this decision.
In other books I have read, the characters don’t want to leave loved ones. Jason, however, has had his memory swept clean. If he ever had any loved ones that he wouldn’t want to leave, he does not remember them. Therefore, he has no loved ones to stop him from going.
Another reason he might have decided to go is because Hera has stolen his memory and he wants it back. If he gets his memory back he might be able to understand what’s happening in his life with the Greek gods.
Since he has lost his memory, Jason doesn’t know much about his personality or his own beliefs.

I also think it was really cool how Rick Riordan made dreams a huge part of the book and that’s something I might want to do in one of my own writing pieces.

 He also wanted to go on to quest to feel important and that he belongs to something (in this case a quest) . Since he doesn’t know if he belongs to anything this might help him feel wanted and special to an important cause.

But I can’t wait till the next book!

Good ol' Jeff Kinney really hits home with his latest installment of Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Greg finds himself stuck inside with his mom and two brothers in the middle of a large snowstorm. They survive for a couple of days before the power goes out and the heat along with it. Can they make it out alive? And what's this about a creepy doll that seems to follow Greg around everywhere he goes?

I forgot how much I loved to imagine some of the things happening in the book happen to me! I can really connect with Greg because we similar yet different experiences, not just in this book but in all of his books. We both struggle with siblings. I have and older sister and he has an older brother, I have a younger brother, and he has a younger brother. And we are both the middle child. And as the middle child we feel like we get treated different then we should be treated!

But in a way we both have to cope with it! Yes we have struggles but at the same time we have good times! And at heart we care about our siblings! Even if they do annoy you to the breaking point…

you can never go wrong with this series. There are parts that'll make you chuckle, or even laugh, if you're easily amused. This book cover is also one of my favorites. It just seems to tell you what you're in store for. I'm curious to see what he comes up with next. A nice little read that'll easily take you a day, two if you're preoccupied with something. You'll realize that the book is over before you know it