The post where I tell a scary story

          He was finally nodding off when a girl’s scream pierced the calm night air.  Joseph shot out of bed, eyes alert, and raced toward the sound.  He soon realized that he was in a graveyard.  “How’d I get…?”  He stopped as a cold finger slowly kept time on his shoulder.  Joseph stepped forward and whirled around.  Eyes searching.  He saw no one.  “I’m dreaming,” he thought.  But then, Michael Jackson materialized in front of him and let out a high-pitched, “Mah-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!”  Joseph screamed like a little baby and ran full speed into a headstone.  Joseph flipped over it and his head struck another headstone.  Michael Jackson approached.  He knelt down beside Joseph and said, “Watch out, Joseph.” His breath smelled worse than tuna casserole in the school cafeteria. Then Michael Jackson disappeared.

          Joseph started to stand up, and saw a blue flash behind a headstone.  He bolted over to it.  Etched into the stone, and still glowing, were two words: ‘STAY AWAY!’  “Oh my God”, Joseph yelled before taking off.  As Joseph was about to run out the gate, his legs stopped.  He couldn’t go any further.  Joseph then swore, at nothing in particular, before turning around.  There, walking towards him was a zombie.  “Oh come on,” he muttered under his breath.

          Joseph tried to run, but could only move in slow motion.  As he tried harder, the zombie caught up with him.  Joseph stuck out his hand in defense, and when the zombie touched it, the zombie evaporated.  “Phew”, Joseph said, but his success was short lived as a crowd of zombies gathered around him, and then they slowly moved in to grab him.  Joseph screamed and threw himself onto the ground.  A few seconds later, he felt a gentle shaking, too light for a zombie, so he rolled over and looked up. His friend Jake was standing over him.  “Dude, what happened?” Jake said in his irritable voice.  Before I could answer, Jake helped me up and said “Come on, I need to get you home”.  As I walked away, Michael Jackson appeared floating above a headstone.  He mouthed “STAY AWAY,” then he laughed his shrill, wicked laugh, and was gone.  Joseph thought, “I knew I shouldn’t have watched the ‘Thriller’ video three-dozen times last night.”

My "The Million-Year Picnic"* Interpretation

*From The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury         

           “Boom!” an ear-splitting bang broke the calm caused by the boat motor’s low drone, as a giant red fireball engulfed the deep purple Martian sky. “Hide!” Dad yelled.  You see, in the Million-Year Picnic by Ray Bradbury, William Thomas, Dad, knows that the only way to save his family from global annihilation is to flee Earth and go to Mars.  When the family decides to begin a new life as residents of Mars, they are in fact Martians!

When Dad takes his family on a “fishing trip” to Mars he is taking the first step towards his family becoming Martians.  Although excited for the fishing trip, Timothy wonders, “Why go so far for vacation?”.  ‘They had come millions of miles for this outing- to fish.  But there had been a gun on the rocket.  This was a vacation.  But why all the food, more than enough to last them years and years, left hidden back there near the rocket?’ (Page 175)  Timothy begins to figure out that maybe it’s not just a vacation; maybe it’s something more.  He is right.

Dad explains to the family that they left Earth to avoid annihilation and to start a new life on Mars.  They’re going to leave all their old ways behind, just like those dwindling remains of Earth in the fire.  ‘ “I’m burning a way of life, just like that way of life is being burned clean of earth right now.” ’ (Page 179) Dad wants to show the family a new way of life by burning their memoirs from earth.  Now their new home is Mars.

The family eventually realizes that they are the Martians.  Dad takes them down to the canal and they see, ‘The Martians were there - in the canal - reflected in the water.  Timothy and Michael and Robert and Mom and Dad.  The Martians stared back up at them for a long, long silent time from the rippling water.’ (Page 180) This means that the family is finally realizing that they are the Martians and Earth is no longer an option.

If Dad had kept his family on Earth they would not have survived, so he had to move his family to Mars in order to survive.  Because they moved to Mars, they become Martians.  The bigger message of the Million-Year Picnic is that we can’t keep fighting wars, or we’ll kill out our species.  As Bradbury writes, ‘strangle ourselves with our own hands.’

Book Review: Kingdom Keepers III: Disney in Shadow

Read October 9, 2010
    
       The book I just read, Kingdom Keepers III: Disney in Shadow, by Ridley Pearson, is a nice old fashion mystery story.  It takes place in Disney's Hollywood Studios and EPCOT theme parks.  The main character, middle-schooler Finn Whitman, is a DHI, which stands for Disney Host Interactive and works in the Disney theme parks.  For the third time now, he is caught up in the Overtakers' evil scheme.  The Overtakers are all the disney villains.  This time though, the stakes are much higher as the Overtakers have captured Wayne, who is Finn's friend, mentor, and creator of the DHI's.
       This was a really good book, in my opinion, because it has all kinds of action and adventure.  For example, they ride the Test Track way over the normal speed limit, and battle the Overtakers at the Fantasia dress rehearsal.  I would highly recommend this book to anyone, especially to people who love mystery and adventure.

The post where I describe my cell phone

It sits there, baiting me to pick it up in my hand - that little red rectangular box with the curved angles.  It has already buzzed like a, I don’t know, a giant bee perhaps.  The box buzzes again and the screen lights up reading “New Text Message from Nick H”.  What’s a text message?  I have never heard that term before, but it interests me.  I press the center button to see what it does.  It opens the “Text Message” and it reads “Hey Colin wats up” on the screen.  I think “what the heck".  Now, I’m going to examine it.  On the front it reads ‘Samsung’ and ‘Verizon’ with a check mark.   Under 'Verizon' there is a number pad with numbers 0-9 and a # and ✻ .  I have no clue what they are, so now I’ll turn this object around in my hand.  It’s surprisingly heavy for it’s small size.  On the back, there is a mirror with a circle within a circle under it.  Now I twist it again and I realize it slides open on the side and there is a pixel picture of me throwing a baseball, as I think it’s called.  Now, I slide it back to center.  After studying the keyboard, I accidentally push a button on the side and the phone speaks “Please say a command!” “Yikes!”, I say and throw the phone across the room.  Then my mom comes in and says “Colin, Why are you throwing your phone?”  Then, it all comes back to me.

The post where I describe ice cream

The bowl of ice cream sitting so innocently in front of me, is not so innocent.  It makes me want to eat it right now, but I must write first.  The name of this delicious fudge-swirl ice cream with chocolate sauce drizzled on top is 'Cape Cod Fudge Shop'.  My throat yearns for a little of this delicious food.  Now comes the taste, Dum-Dum-Dum.   Mmmmmm, it's delicious taste has me addicted to even licking the chocolate sauce off my lips.  Now another bite, it's smell and look draw my hand towards it as if I am in a trance.  It smells like solid happiness, but I will not touch it except for with my mouth.  My hands are not worthy enough to touch it.  Mmm, my taste buds thank me as I shovel spoonful after spoonful into my mouth.  Choc-o-late, my taste buds scream as a piece of solid fudge goes into my pie, I mean ice cream hole.  Now, I am running low on my full bowl.  I must-must-must savor it slowly, but I cannot, it is impossible.  Now, as quickly as it came, it has disappeared.  Nooooo, I think, my fudge :(   Knowing me, my lips are probably dressed with chocolate.  Now, looking at that empty glass bowl with melted ice cream scraps still in it, I feel a wave of extreme, sincere sadness and excitement wash over me.  I have decided why people pray to God.  It is to beg him to give us some more of the food of the gods: CHOCOLATE!!!!!!  The reason I'm sad is 'cause there's no more! 

Book Review: Cherub: The Recruit

Read September 30, 2010

In Cherub: The Recruit, by Robert Muchamore, James Chote is a boy who’s always in trouble.  His mom’s a shoplifter, and his stepdad has an extremely bad drinking problem. In the beginning of the book, James’ mom dies from drinking too much. James is then sent to a foster home called the Nebraska House.  After getting into trouble for stealing beer, he is sent to a juvenile detention center.  From there, he is recruited by Cherub, a division of MI5 for kids 17 and under.  Soon after getting used to Cherub, James begins basic training, a 100-day training course to prepare you for everything a spy would have to accomplish during a mission.  Next, James, Kerry, Connor, Mo, Shakeel, and Gabrielle all pass the final challenge of basic training, a week-long mission simulation in Malaysia.  As a result, they earn their gray shirts and their qualifications for missions.  After that, James Adams, formerly James Chote, is assigned to his first mission with his teacher Amy as his ‘sister’.  The mission is to locate and stop the environmentally friendly terrorist group ‘Help Earth’. ‘Help Earth’ is threatening to destroy Petrocon, a meeting of all the CEO’s of the major oil companies.  The MI5 thinks ‘Help Earth’ is based in Fort Harmony, a hippy camp located extremely close to the location where Petrocon will be held.  James helps uncover the members of ‘Help Earth’ in Fort Harmony and saves Petrocon.  James and Amy also uncover the would be plan of ‘Help Earth’.  The plan was to release a highly poisonous bacteria, anthrax, into the air at Green Brooke conference hall.  To do this, ‘Help Earth’ would use the air circulating vents to spread the disease around the complex.  When James returns, very successfully, from his first mission, he receives a navy shirt, a great honor. 

In my opinion this is an amazing book.  The beginning was dark and slow, but it really picked up the pace as it went along.  The Cherub series has quickly become one of my favorites and I hope to read the whole series.  I would recommend this book to grades seven and above boys, who love plain old adventure with NO VAMPIRES.  

Update- 10/4/10: I just read Mission 2: The Dealer, which takes place mostly in Miami, Florida.  In The Dealer, James has to take down Keith Moore’s Gang (KMG), from the inside out.  This is another good read.




Update- 10/25/10: I just read  Mission 3: Maximum Security, which takes place mostly in Arizona.  In Maximum Security, Cherub is working with the FBI to capture Jane Oxford, the second most wanted criminal in America.  James' mission is to bust Oxford's son, Curtis, out of the Arizona Max prison.  This will help the FBI set a trap for Jane Oxford.  The FBI hopes that she will try to visit her son, and there they will capture her.  This book was as good as the first, The Recruit, and even better than The Dealer.  I highly recommend it.

Book Review: The Wednesday Wars

Read September 23, 2010

In The Wednesday Wars, by Gary Schmidt, Holling Hoodhood is off to a really bad start in the school year with his teacher Mrs. Baker, who he thinks hates his guts.  First, Holling starts spending Wednesday afternoons with Mrs. Baker, when everyone else goes to Catholic or Jewish religious programs.  During that time, she decides to make him clean all the chalkboard erasers in the junior high.  Then, Mrs. Baker decides that cleaning the erasers is a waste of time, so they start reading Shakespeare together instead, which to Holling is worse than cleaning erasers. She also makes Holling read the plays at home, and his dad makes him do that to make Mrs. Baker happy, because he wants a contract to be the family sports store architect.  Next, Holling’s knowledge of Shakespeare gets him into a sticky situation in which he has to play Ariel, the faerie in a community showing of the “Tempest”.  In the play, he has to wear bright yellow tights and a shirt with feathers on the butt. He will also have to miss Mickey Mantle signing autographs at Baker Sporting goods.  After that, Holling’s dad brings him to a job interview for the architect of the new Camillo Junior high school, because he wants Holling to see how to be an architect and that it’s a blood sport. Holling also decides that he doesn’t want to follow his dad into the architectural firm, but he’s afraid to tell his dad that.  Finally, Holling attends his friend, Danny’s Bar Mitzvah and stands up to his dad to tell him he doesn’t want to be an architect because he wants to take control of his own life.  Holling also figures out that when you feel you’re a man, you’re a man and nobody can tell you otherwise, even your dad! 

In my opinion this was a pretty good book.  The beginning was funny and light, but the ending got more serious.  My favorite part is when Holling uses Shakespeare’s swears instead of modern profanity.  I would recommend this book to most seventh graders who may like the story of an unlikely hero and his journey through life, with lots of mishaps along the way.

Book Review: Chasing Lincoln's Killer

Chasing Lincoln’s Killer

James L. Swanson                              

Read September 17, 2010

This book takes place in Washington DC, Maryland, and Virginia around April 1865.

The main characters are: John Wilkes Booth, Lincoln’s killer; David Herold, his accomplice; Abraham Lincoln; Lewis Powell, Booth’s accomplice and Sec. Seward’s attacker; Edwin Stanton, officer in charge of the manhunt; and Boston Corbett, the man who shot Booth.

First, on April 14, 1865 John Wilkes Booth sneaks into Ford’s Theater and shoots President Abraham Lincoln with a .44 caliber deringer single-shot pistol, then flees the theater and the district.  Then, Booth meets up with David Herold outside the city and they make their way to Dr. Samuel Mudd’s farm for medical care, a meal and some rest.  Next, they leave the farm and hide in the woods behind before meeting up with Thomas Jones, who agrees to help them cross the Potomac, but he tricks Booth into heading the wrong way. So, instead of landing in Virginia they land farther north, in Maryland and are almost captured by the manhunters.  After that, Booth is cornered at the Garrett’s farm and gets himself shot and killed with a bullet rather than surrendering, and hanged back in DC.  Finally, Booth’s accomplices and the other conspirators are caught, brought back to Washington, tried and then hung, their names were Mary Surratt, Lewis Powell, David Herold and George Alzerodt.

My opinion of this book was very good.  I wish it had been a little faster in the beginning before the assassination, but overall this was a really good book and I’d certainly recommend it to anyone who asked me.