Finally

During this semester I read alot of fiction books and not much of anything else.  I did read one book which was nonfiction but it still containted many of the aspect of the other books.  I chose these books by the cover mostly, and the title.  If someone had recommended a book I would look into it but mostly I read what sounded good.  Some of the books lived up to their title, such as A Long Way Gone, but others, such as the Murder Room, were far from appealing.  In general, it was fairly easy for me to find things which interested me.  The wall of books gave me a nice variety to choose frm along with the few select books up in front.  The problem was that I kept having this feeling in the back of my mind that while I was looking from title to title, I may miss one that didn't seem interesting but was or that I just would not notice it.  However, once I found a good book, I could stick with it for the most part as long as it didn't recess into any moments which lacked interest and bored me to the bone.  I hate when a book does that.  I didn't have much trouble reading the weekly quota, but some weeks were worse than others.  Lately there has been a ton of homework and it really brought me down and I hated it all, but it lightened up after Wednesday and so I found more time to read.  Before this week, however, the reading was generally easy.

Gladiator

     This movie was on and I decided to watch it since I've seen it before but it had been a while and so I didn't remember alot of it.  I really liked this movie for alot of reasons.  It had a good plot with Maximus first beign captured and then thrown into the arena where he has to fight for his life.  He rallys the other gladiators who would normally be independant and so he is easily able to survive.  He was a general for the romans who have now capruted him due to a corrupt emperor and after a while one of his troops recognizes him and speaks to him.  I'm sorry if this post is all over the place but that's just how my mind works-  I'll start thinking of the plot and then I'll think of something I forgot to mention and go back and explain it.  Anyways, Maximus has gained the respect of the other gladiators and many other powerful people and is therefore able to create a plan of escape in which he will go to a nearby city where his army is waiting and then storm the city to kill the emperor.  My description probably sounds terrible, but the movie is actually really interesting and is fairly suspenseful throughout the plot.  There's an ending which you will not expect and is a pretty nice changeup from the normal happily ever after of almost every other movie.  The fight scenes are also pretty intense and will maintain your attention with a few moments of recess in which main point of intrigue and sentimentality are presented.  I would highly recommend watching this movie if you can find it.  It's a little old but that doesn't make it bad.

1948

     I've never read this book before now, but alot of people I know have read it for class work or something.  anyways, I started to read the book and it's actually really good.  Its about the world after a long time of wars and a new dictatorship.  There are no laws, but there are still police to arrest you if you speak out against the government. Also, there are thought police who will arrest you for being too suspicious or seeming like the type of person to act against the government.  If you are too smart or innovative, you're already dead.  Right now the man, Winston, has joined the Brotherhood, a secret organization against the government that works in the shadows and is merely a rumor to most.  I won't tell you what happens to him but it came as a surprise to me, especially since it was really sudden.  This book wasn't really what I had expected it to be and the begginning is pretty slow, but it gets better near the end.  There was one part where Winston was simply reading the brotherhood's book about why they do this and the pages mirrored that of the book he was reading.  I don't know why but I thought that this was somewhat lazy since it was pages and pages of a book within a book.  I would have just summed it up and put that instead of the entire written page.  Other then that its an interesting book and some of the ideas within the book, like how people will believe whatever they are told, seems crazy to me and it made me want to keep reading.I'd suggest this book for personal reading and I think you'll enjoy it.  I've already read more than half the book in about a week.

Currently

These 2 weeks: 359

Favorite sentences:
"She flipped her canoe and began to look around under the water."  I thought this was really cool because she flips her canoe and then flips it back when she runs out of air.  Of course, since we know that there is a massive prehistoric shark in the water near where they are, we can figure that it is going to end badly.

"Everybody get out of here!' she exclaimed, but everybody continued sitting. Just then the entire restaurant started shaking, causing people to rush towards the door, the building started falling into the sea." This would freak me out!  The shark is under the restaurant, which is on wooden stilts, and as it starts ramming the poles everybody runs.  I always kinda laugh when people ignore a person's warning and the start to panic once it begins to happen. 

"suddenly the doctor said 'hmm this shouldn't be here.' and then dissapeared into the open stomach of the creature."  Creepy.  A man was performing an autopsy on a dead prehistoric creature which the team had pulled out of the sea, and then is pulled into it's stomach one he cuts it open.  I won't tell you why put you will never expect what happens next.

MEG[ALODON]: Hell's Aquarium

     This is the sequel to The Trench which I wrote about in my last book and it's even better!  I don't want to give anything away, but the daughter of the original megalodon was captured and is now being held in a massive aquarium while being held for viewing along with her own three daughters if you pay for a ticket.  The act starts out normal enough but there is a terrifying accident that leads to the closing down of the aquarium and possible euthanization of the meg.  However, it is agreed upon that the meg will be transported back to the Marianas trench where it came from.  Meanwhile the main character's son takes a job with a private corporation in India where he will be teaching a group of people how to use the divers which his father used the first time they met the prehistoric shark.  The man behind the business is very mysterious with a past that he will not tell anybody.  The son, naturally suspicious, investigates the compound which they are on and finds that there are massive empty tanks filled with water along with one which holds a massive surprise.  The whole book is filled with many unexpected curve balls which will make the inner child inside you giddy due to its fascination that there may be something else out there which has not yet been discovered.  The book also has a completely unexpected ending which was meant for shock and awe along with a mix of sadness that makes you want to tell somebody about it just so you can say "wow."  Because that is all that will be going through your mind at the time.

1408- the absolute best movie i've ever seen

     1408 is an amazing movie and there is no possible way to not like this movie unless you are blind or born without a soul.  It's a movie about a man who lost his daughter to cancer bout 2 years ago and then left his wife.  He didn't divorce her, he just left and later we find out that it was because everytime he looked at her he saw the daughter.  I love that line because its so loaded with pitiful sadness and plays with your emotions.  Anyways, he goes around to lots of different places which are supposed to be haunted and then proves that they are not.  He has written a book about it and is looking for a sequel when he goes to the Dolphin hotel in order to investigate room 1408, but when he asks for the room the staff act suspiciously and call the manager who tries to dissuade him from entering the room but to no avail.  During his night in the room bizaar and unnatural events attempt to crush him both physically and mentally in a way that will captivate you.  The movie starts to mess with your mind near the end and makes you question what is actually going on, but the ending is haunting and amazing and sad at the same time and it made me want to watch this movie again just because I couldn't believe what had just happened.  The ending made me literally just sit there gaping at the tv while thinking " there is no way that just happened." It will blow your mind and I highly recommend it.

MEG(ALODON): the Trench

     Okay so I found the sequel to this book lying on the floor of the family car when we were all going somewhere and i decided to read it.  It was a really good book and I read it constantly!  Although, it kept making references to events that happened in the previous books so I was a little lost there, but it was still an easy read because it would describe the event it mentioned so you didn't feel lost which is a really good idea!  Anyway this book is about the prehistoric shark species, Megalodon.  A scientist who was hired to set up earthquake sensors in the Marianas Trench was doing so with his partner when the vibrations from the mechanical arm which was unwinding some cable attracted a male megalodon, which is around 30 feet long and a few hundred tons, and attacks his partner and kills him.  Meanwhile a female arrives and attacks the male which was wrapped in the cable which was being unwound. The ship above on the surface then started to retract the cable since there was too much tension and they needed to find out what was happening.  As they bring up  the caught male though, the female follows it out of the trench into the open ocean where it then proceeds to wreak havoc on the innocent fisherman and swimmers along the coast.  Its incredibly suspenseful and very well written!  It's one of my all time favorite books and I'd even be up for reading again which I never do.

Bad Teacher

     Okay so i haven't been reading as much and so there isn't much for me to write about book wise, so I think that i'll have one post each week about a movie or song and another about whatever i've read this week.  That being said, this week I saw the movie "Bad Teacher."  It's a comedy about a teacher who is really really bad at her job and cheats on a test.  It's got that one woman with blonde hair whose name i'm forgetting and Jason Segel, who is the gym teacher.  I thought it was pretty funny and my brother thought it was too.  A lot of it is partly dirty humor but some of it isn't! Jason Segel is the guy from "How I Met Your Mother" and that's my favorite show so I was already partially inclined to liking this movie.  Anyways she cheats on the test and eventually some snobby teacher tries to get her but the ending will surprise you.  It will make you laugh for sure, but still surprise you.  I wouldn't suggest this movie for people in elementary school, but anyone above that would probably get a kick out of this movie.  Then again, why bother setting an age limit?  The kids will probably be exposed to this kind of stuff anyways and the whole point of life is to enjoy it, so why not get a laugh while you can?  I'm not really doing a very good job at describing this but I really hate any sort of spoiler and so I don't want to cross that very fine line between detail and spoiler.  So just know that this is a funny movie which will make you laugh and feel better.

Blog Bingo (Close Reading Bingo)

1) "At the same time, he uses a figurative type of language when describing objects such as the lobby." mistake number 6.  http://mariahsetymologyblog.blogspot.com/

2) "The language used in Neil Gaiman's stardust was fairly scholarly." mistakes number 6 & 7 from That Peruvian Chick: http://thatperuviangirlathomestead.blogspot.com/

3) "The piece is calm and almost poetic. "...and dark falls here like a thunderclap and a cold wind sets the weeds to gnashing." mistakes 2 and 5 by Squirrelmonkey at http://the-squirrel-monkey.blogspot.com/

4)  "This is evident in his story “Catcher in the Rye”, which is written as if it were a personal account of the author's." Mistake number 9 by Viking Death Metal http://vikingdeathmetal.blogspot.com/

5)  "McCarthy writes, "Days of riding where there rode no soul save he. He's left behind the pinewood country and the evening sun declines before him beyond an endless swale and dark falls here like a thunderclap and a cold wind sets the weeds to gnashing." Stardust by Neil Gaiman is more denotative and specific however. His way of description is littoral, precise, and common. His description is seen by the excerpt, "The houses are square and old, built of grey stone, with dark slate roofs and high chimneys." The Help by Kathyrn Stockett is lower and blunt, but is still somewhat poetic with a figurative rhythm to it. One of the characters, Aibileen, says, "But I ain't never seen a baby yell like Mae Mobley Leefolt. First day I walk in the door, the she be, red-hot and hollering with the colic." Quite a few examples of mistake numbers 1 and 2 here by Running with Circles at http://ilikesoccer17.blogspot.com/

Worst: "Blood Meridian" by Cormac McCarthy is a very connotative and figurative piece. The piece is calm and almost poetic. "...and dark falls here like a thunderclap and a cold wind sets the weeds to gnashing." "Stardust" by Neil Gaiman is a low and common piece. Talking solely about a small town called Wall. "The town of Wall stands today as it has stood for six hundred years..." And Crescendo has very high language. Becca Fitzpatrick uses elegant and elevated words and grammar. "We waited until Scott had angled himself behind the steering wheel and backed out of the parking space before we exited the building."

- I thought that this one was so bad that I had to ridicule it publicy, but I don't even know where to start so I won't.  This was by monkey squirrel which is my number three for bingo. http://the-squirrel-monkey.blogspot.com/

Best: "In Nicholson Baker's work The Mezzanine, he uses elegant and intricate diction to create a formal tone. Baker states that the sun adds "long glossy highlights" to the handrails of the escalator, which "wavered slightly as the handrails slid on their tracks." This descriptive entry of the sun hitting the handrails emphasizes how bright it is and how it is a welcomed place to be." by skittles train at http://clayballl.blogspot.com/

Activity 2

     In J.D Salinger’s novel Catcher in the Rye, the incredibly low harshness of the connotative diction creates a sense of unfulfilled longing and insouciance.  The vulgar language of the passage hints to the rather childish attempts of the speaker to sound more mature as he unnecessarily depicts whatever he decides to talk about in his “goddam” biography as “crap” or “crumby.”  This unabashed overflow of foul language seems to suggest that he is trying to make up for his young age with his gratuitous choice of words in his attempt to be an adult.  Meanwhile the discordance of his stream of consciousness creates a shifting labyrinth of topics which seems to be heading in many different directions at one time.  This uncertain path of literary focus reflects on his on uncertainty over his future.  This passage also contains a slight connotation for objects which the narrator describes as he is quite imaginative. 

A Long Way Gone

     A long way gone is an intense story.  I first saw it when i was waiting to leave the room while standing by the book shelves.  I was looking over and I saw this picture of a boy and then I realized he was carrying a gun on his back with a rocket held behind his head.  This came as a complete surprise to me because when I had seen it before I thought it was just a little boy walking, I had never noticed the weapons.  In my curiosity over why such a young boy would be carrying such deadly items, I decided to read a little bit of it.  The story is told by a boy who used to live in Africa during the civil war which is currently raging.  He lives in New York Now and the story is told as a reflection by the boy on the events which he had to endure.  He begins with a telling of how he and his brother were trouble makers due to the fact that his parents were divorced and his step mothers were no nice to him,  He has an older brother, Junior, and a younger brother, Ibrahaem.  They all live in the same village, but one day the boy, I don't think he's mentioned his name, Junior and Juniors friend walk to a town which is about a day or two's journey on foot.  When they arrive they spend the night at a friend's house, but the next day news arrive that their town has been attacked by rebels and many have fled.  Immediately they run down to the docks where the refugees will be arriving.  Their parents are nowhere to be seen, and neither is their younger brother.  They walk back to an intermediate town where to scared and the wounded are passing through.  The sights that they see and the way the boy describes it horrified me.  And the worst part is: this is real.  These types of events are actually happening within Africa and to hear a 12 year old boy describe it is even worse.  I knew there was a war in Africa, but I was too far away to care.  This book was enlightening on the hoorors and evokes an intense sympathy for those who must endure it.

My longest Poem: it's not TOO long, but i don't have many that are extensive

The Last Wolf

Mary TallMountain

The last wolf hurried toward me
through the ruined city
and I heard his baying echoes
down the steep smashed warrens
of Montgomery Street and past
the ruby-crowned highrises
left standing
their lighted elevators useless
Passing the flicking red and green
of traffic signals
baying his way eastward
in the mystery of his wild loping gait
closer the sounds in the deadly night
through clutter and rubble of quiet blocks
I hear his voice ascending the hill
and at last his low whine as he came
floor by empty floor to the room
where I sat
in my narrow bed looking west, waiting
I heard him snuffle at the door and
I watched
He trotted across the floor
he laid his long gray muzzle
on the spare white spread
and his eyes burned yellow
his small dotted eyebrows quivered
Yes, I said.
I know what they have done.

Currently

This week I have read 155 pages from A Long Way Gone.

My three favorite sentences are:

"1984 by George Orwell uses straightforward and exact diction, colloquial formality, and dull sound to create a harsh feeling for the reader, much like how Winston feels the chill of the bright cold day and the enormous eyes of the face watching him." brought to you by: http://freefifteen.blogspot.com/

-  Simply put, the use of the word "colloquial" was what first brought my attention to this peice.  It is this one word that first took me in because its one of my favorite words.  Then, the description of the "chill of the bright cold day" is pleasing to my senses, if that makes sense.  I just think it sounds nice so I liked it even more.

"To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, uses the coarsely sophisticated literal language which accurately conveys the dialect of the narrator." brought to you by: http://bookwormsfiresidereading.blogspot.com/

-I thought this one was better than the rest since it uses plenty of nice sounding adjectives.  It uses a few too many while describing language, but it's description is paradoxical which is amiable to me.  After reading quite a few other blogs, this one won partly by default to be honest.

"In Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by JK Rowling's words are very connotative, elevated, and magically musical." Stolen from: http://bradey.blogspot.com/

-I thought this line was pretty clever and so I liked it.  To begin, I've always liked the sound of alliteration, I'm not completely sure why but I just think that it enhances the writing.  Also, the fact that they describe it as "magically musical" is pretty clever because Harry Potter is a movie about magic.

MOVIE: straw dogs

     This is my first post about a movie because I still feel like i should mix up my topics in order to stand out among this blogging sea of uniformity, although it may just be mine that is too uniform.  Anyway, I saw the movie straw dogs last weekend and it was terrible.  The plot was weak at best and I'm the kind of guy who looks for a good plot in movies.  Its about a movie writer and his wife who move to her parents house after the parents die and then hire some of her old friends to rebuild the barn at the side of the house.  The trailer made it seem like the whole movie was about how the couple were trying to survive while these men attacked there house for some reason, and i've always like the suspense created by that type of situation as well as the strategy of defending the home.  However, the majority of the movie is pointless with no presentation of relevant plot information or surprising volte faces.  There were a few but they all occured within the last half of the movie.  I think they should have been spread throughout the movie in order to attract the viewers attention and then maintain it.  Also, the reason for their fight at the end of the movie is completely and utterly dissapointing it was all extremely far fetched and just not believable.  I like a little realism in a movie and it just wasn't here. 

Style Mapping

     The low, musical connotation of "Blood Meridian" is revealed by the diction in which there are no sophisticated words or those used simply for there pretty sound.  There is plenty of imagery and poetic description as he describes the sun as "the color of steel" and his shadow falling for "miles before him."  This also helps the flow of the passage to create a musical feel to it.  Nearly a complete opposite, a passage from "the Mud Below" consists of low denotation with a rather harsh sound to it.  The country drawl of the main character and use of slang emphasis the common diction as he gets ready to ride a bull with the supposedly inspiring words of " aw, this is a sums buck" tossed his way from a nearby helper.  The description of the bull and what the man is doing is just that, a description.  There is no embellishment on the details as he is preparing to ride the "Brahma-cross" known as Little Kisses.  The book Catcher in the Rye provides a excessivly low connotation with an evident harshness.  This story, narrated by a 16 year old with a disregard to manners, relays his story through a rambling onslaught of the chronological events of his life mixed with random bits of whatever pops into his mind.  This curving pathway of thoughts evokes a discordant mumbling in the mind as the story continues.  Meanwhile, the vulagarity of the boys lack of etiquette is repeated through the text as he repeats obscenities in order to describe nearly everything.  Through this low coarse diction his autobiography becomes a "goddam" autobiography and his brother spends his "dough" on a car which cost "damn near" four thousand dollars.  These diction types enforce the suggestivly imaginative connotation as he describes normal objects with a certain blunt hyberbolishness.  These three stories provide extensive foils for eachother and map the entire range of styles for diction.

The exciting conclusion of Zeitoun by Dave Egger- he's the author its not my name

     I finished the book and it really surprised and disguisted me.  Zeitoun was standing in his house with three others when national guardsmen burst in and arrest them.  They asked for identification but when he handed it to them they didn't even bother to look at it.  So he was taken to a makeshift prison which consisted of chainlik fences and barbed wire with a concrete floor that doubles as a bed.  Before being put into this cell he was interrogated because the soldiers thought he was a terrorist.  They repeatedly muttered things such as "taliban" and "al-queda" even though he was not affiliated with them.  I know that this is a book but the kind of stereotyping biggoted "stuff" really gets under my skin.  I don't understand how people can be so closed minded and stupid.  I realize that this is a book but the thing is: it happens.  There are people in the world that are actually like these soldiers and they don't deserve to be placed in the same race as the ones they harasse, because they are nowhere near as worthy of being called a human as the victims are.  I just hate stupid people and this kind of thing get me roling down a very intense hill of annoyance.  I won't tell you what happens at the end, I hate spoilers, but I will tell you that it gets worse for Zeitoun.  It's this kind of book that will make you happy to live in a place where there are no natural disaster to make things get this crazy.  Anyways, its a pretty good book overall and I would definatly suggest it for others.

Quarterly

     This quarter, which went by really quickly!, I have read more books in this period of time than ever before.  I tend to have periods of time in which I will read fanatically, as i have in the beginning of the quarter.  This usually only happens when I have found a new series which I find to be incredible and wprth my time.  This year I was surprised to find that I found this same intense pursuit for the Hunger Games.  I ended up reading all three books in about two days each.  Ever since then my reading has floundered and then fallen to the bare minimum since I have not been able to find a book that really captures my interest.  That is not to say, however, that I haven't found any good books, because I have found a few.  these books were just not TOO good.  I spent all of my spare time reading the Hunger Games but there hasn't been a book that makes me want to do that since then.  The type of reading that challenged me was when he had to read Jane Eyre.  The old fashioned type of speaking and sheer inaction of the plot drove me insane!  I couldn't stand reading the beginning where she just describe EVERYTHING in incredible detail.  I skipped all of that "stuff" and instead searched for anything that may be important.  A challenge that I may try for the semester is to find more books like that in order to attempt to find an understanding with the book.  It's not likely but it's possible.

Goodnight Goodnight

I've decided to change this one up and write about a song instead of a book.  The books are all starting to meld together into one big story so this should be a refreshing change of pace.  Goodnight goodnight is a song sung by a band named "Hot Hot Heat" they seem to prefer repetition.  Anyways, the song is really good and I think it may be my utmost favorite.  I'm pretty picky about songs and this one fits all of my requirements.  It has a pretty upbeat pace which keeps you interested right from the start and the guy's voice is captivating.  The lyrics are about this guy who is sick of his girlfriend who drags him out with her so called friends and is just with him for the fun of it.  This is his final goodbye to her and all of her trouble, which happens to be why it is called Goodnight Goodnight.  I'm not quite sure how to put music onto hear and I'm too lazy to do it anyhow so if you're ever on youtube, check it out.  I promise that you won't be sorry!

UPDATES for OCTOBER

Last week I read 169 pages. This may be different than what I put on my book mark because I forgot what I put and i've read a little more since then but it should be above 160.

My three favorite sentences for this quarter are:

1) "Valjean is hauled before the bishop for punishment, but the bishop says theres been a mistake, he gave Valjean the backet of silver as a gift but the ex-con forgot the silver candlesticks."
-This is the greatest line I've read this quarter because its a great story!  Even though the man tried to steal the silver the bishop adds more.  This is both slightly comical and sentimental at the same time.

2) "'Because whatever happened in the past is in the past. And no one in this arena was a victor by chance.' He eyes Peeta for a moment. 'Except maybe Peeta.'"
- I like this sentence mainly because I thought it was funny.  This is their trainer talking to them and he decides to single out Peeta who doesn't really have any special talents.  It was a very serious moment too which makes it even funnier.

3) "Plutarch's attempt to cheer me up- laced with the news of another four, possibly five, murders- somehow backfires."
- I liked this sentence because dumb people make me laugh.  This guy is clueless and doesn't even realize that he is making her feel worse.  It's a pretty simple reason for inclination but I don't care much; I'm a simple person.

Zeitoun

Pronounced (ZAY-TOON), this is a pretty good book! I've liked what i've read so far and i think it will only get better.  It is a story about a muslim man who stayed in New Orleans during hurricane Katrina.  He is a carpenter and a painter and knows a lot about many of the buildings all around town.  So as the storm hits he is at his home while his wife, three daughters, and son go to stay in Baton Rouge with her family.  Throughout the night Zeitoun is at his house placing buckets and trash bins below any holes in the ceiling.  When the flooding starts he then brings everything up stairs.  Then in the morning he goes around in an old canoe which he had bought at a yardsale a few years ago.  During the night he had heard dogs barking so he goes around to the houses with meat from his freezer in order to save the dogs.  He also helps some other people who he happens to come across during his trips to check on his neighbors houses and those that he was working on before the floods.  Eventually he finds a phone and he calls his wife to make sure everything is o.k. and promises to call her everyday at noon.  I haven't finished it so this isn't everything.  I'll tell you more when I know it.  It may not sound very good the ay i describe it, but it's actually a pretty good story. 

Life

School is becoming an even bigger pain... at first there wasn't much homework and the subjects weren't too complicated.  Now things are getting a bit more comple but i still had a half hearted outlook.  My grades dropped a bit but i still have all a's which is good.  The good news is that i've realized the problem and now i can do something about it.  At least thats what i tell myself.  I will probably still put off my work as usually but not so much for tests which is whats really hurting.  I've always been good about doing work, but not so much at studying.  I've never really found the need to study excessively.  Just reading over what i've written down but that the extent of it.  Recently i've found that i'm needing to study more because i'm not doing as well.  I think its because i've been distracted more.  Right now its an intense craving to play a new game i got which i REALLY want to play but i can't because of my homework!  Although, my little brother plays it and comes up to tell me "THIS GAME IS AWESOME!!!" and i'm doing homework... way too much homework...

Currently

I'm reading the Murder Room.

This week I read 173 pages.

My favorite sentences are as follows:

"Bender's face pinked with excitement."
-Bender is a strange guy who's face is like a chameleon.  When he's mad it will turn red and now it turns pink when he's excited.  I like how he's got a color for every emotion!

"Valjean is hauled before the bishop for punishment, but the bishop says theres been a mistake, he gave Valjean the backet of silver as a gift but the ex-con forgot the silver candlesticks." 
-This is my favorite line of this whole book.  Its a segment from a book mentioned in this book and talks about a man who stole a basket of silver from a church but when he was caught the bishop went along with it and added more silver so he could start an honest life.  Its touching.

"They go into the woods but they don't come out."  Spooky.  This is a classic horror story begginning with the gullible people being lured to their demise by a killer in the woods.  I like it because it hints to a future conflict with a sadistic serial killer who will be ver tricky and hard to catch.

The Murder Room

     I still don't get what this book is supposed to be about.  I think its about the whole history about how this society of crime solving people came together, but it presents the story in a really weird way and its getting on my nerves.  Since the last reading there has been more background info on cases, but now its starting to mention the vidoque society more which is the name of the group of people.  So far it has shown the three first cases and then gone into detail for each of these whith no apparent prupose for the plot.  The society meets once a month and each time they have a new case without even solving the previous one.  I think this book may be a prequel to another book where they actually do stuff and this was just meant to give the details on how it was started.  I think i may stop reading it soon because it is just so pointless that i can't stand reading it anymore.  We shall see...

The Murder Room

     This book is rather dull.  Its got a good storyline, though rather mixed up and tumultuous, with three main characters that work together as one perfectly functioning machine of crime solving glory.  First of all, there is Frank Bender who is a prurient sex addicted artist/psychic who uses his gift of "seeing" how a human head would look and then creating a bust of that person for police identification.  Then there is Richard Walter who is a criminal profiler who is Benders complimentary friend and co-worker.  They usually have some tension since Frank is laid back and has many girlfriends in addition to a wife who is okay with his girlfriends, while Richard is an uptight man who always wears a suit and tie.  These two would never have been able to funtion if it weren't for the third character: William Fleisher.  He is the glue that holds the group together and offers his wide range of associates and informants to the group in order to solve the crimes that they are solving.  The group is really well described and the background is really well described.  But it seems like thats all this book is- background.

The Murder Room

This week I started the book "the Murder Room."  It's a pretty good book, but mostly just stories of what has been going on and backgrounds on the characters.  Honestly, I'm pretty confused because it keeps skipping around to a lot of different stories and characters.  In my opinion it is not a good way for a story to be written.  But it's about a group of people who gather on the third thursday of every month who gather to solve a cold case that has been unsolved for at least two years.  The thing is, they have opened with a passage about the murder room but then gone off to stories about murderers and two people specifically.  Although, it mentions three main characters to begin with.  As I said, I'm confused and its really starting to annoy me.  Once I finish the book it should all come together so i can put it together for you.

Currently for week 5

" To hear delly describe it, I had next to no friends because I intimidated people by being so exceptional. Not true. I had next to no friends because I wasn't friendly."

-I liked this sentence because I thought it was funny how the author used a kind of parallelism with a twist. The speaker doesn't like how her acquaintance put it since it made her sound better than she thought she was.  I'm not really sure how to describe why I like it as much as I do, it is ineffable.

"Nepetrov was used to playing highway chicken and winning."
- This passage is from The Silent Man.  I liked it because highway chicken just sound like something that could be suspensefully funny.  I'm a man of simple tastes and humor is what i mainly look for in a sentence.

"'Because whatever happened in the past is in the past. And no one in this arena was a victor by chance.' He eyes Peeta for a moment. 'Except maybe Peeta.'"

-  This sentence is my utmost favorite because it singles out the one kid who isn't as able.  The sentence is basically a corollary of he cliche about high school student being picked last on a sports team, and, given the seriousness of their situation, it was unexpected and amusing.

Ok so this week finished the Silent Man and have started The Murder Room.  I read  about 65 from The Silent Man and 100 exactly from the Murder Room for a total of:

This Week: 165

Total this semester: 1772

THE LAST SILENT MAN POST

The moment has finally come where I have finished the book and can now stop blogging about it.  The book was good, but I didn't like having to write about it each week when i already knew what was going on.  So anyways, back to the book, the ending was pretty good.  There wasn't much suspense, just a short incursion.  It as a little disappointing... and so was the part after that!  The guy ends up standing at an airport flipping a coin for where to go next.  Terrible.  There was a major disappointment which you'll figure out if you read it but it left me with a vague feeling of emptiness that a book shouldn't give off.  Decent book, bad ending. The end.

Claims of the Day

1) Emerson's chubby cheeks, varying moods, and melodic giggles highlight the sincere, playful, and cheerful innocence of children.
2) The painting “Bold as Love” by Scott Cicero portrays an intense and dramatic expression through the spiritual flow, soothing colors, and compassionate movement emphasizing the complex design.

3) In this photograph, the contrasting colors of the bench and the grass, along with the thoughtful camera angle, communicate a sense of appreciation and respect for the nature that we seldom acknowledge."

4) The music group Ok GO and dance group Pilobolus' smooth and elegant costumes along with the modern aspects of movement portray the lyrically pleasant mood of the collaboration in the music video.

5) The educationally stimulating childrens' game Questionaut incorporates pleasantly jubilant music with whimsically quaint animation to create an inventively playful adventure.

The first claim is from the blog "Lucky" and its link is: http://freefifteen.blogspot.com/

The second claim is from "Back of Napkin Blog" and its link is: http://almostfacebook.blogspot.com/

I liked these two because the word choice was flowing and pleasant sounding while most others were either nonexistant, too long, or was not nice sounding.

Pictures are worth a thousand words, but twelve will do

Brush Strokes: Relaxed
Interpretation: Nostalgia
Colors Scheme: Complex, Simple, Complimentary
Feeling/Mood: Pleasant, Sincere, Passionate
Layout: Focused, Segmented, Mesmerizing, Unassuming

In this painting of a couple meandering down a sidewalk, the relaxed broshstrokes and comples simplicity of the colors embody a feeling of pleasant passion which mesmerizes with its unassumingly focused design.

Three poems of my choice

1) Surprised by Evening- Robert Bly

2) The Trail is not a Trail- Gary Snyder

3) Poem to be Read at 3 a.m.- Donald Justice

These trails all have a mellow tone and a nice story.  Story is the most important aspect in any poem, song, or movie followed by tone.  Poem to be read at 3 a.m. was a bit funny to me since it was just depicting a drive through a town and what the writer happened to notice.  Especially when he states that the poem was for whoever had the light on.  That made me laugh and so i decided to like that poem even more than others that I have read so far.

Currently

Pages read: 203
Last week : 212
This sememster: 1607

Best sentences:

"Nepetrov was used to playing highway chicken and winning."

"It was a molotov cocktail on sixteen wheels. Now it was lit." If you don't know what a molotov cocktail is it's a spirit in a bottle with a rag that it lit, thrown and burns.  This was refering to a semi truck carrying gasoline that flipped over and skidded on the ground.  I liked this metaphor because it impedes a sense of ominous foreshadow.

"The road was clear, aside from a big tractor dragging a load of brics towards him."

Silent Man

     I haven't had as much time to read lately, mostly because i haven't found a book that can really capture my interest as well as the Hunger Games.  This book just keeps dragging on and i keep having to write about it.  If your getting as sick as I am about this repitition, don't worry it will be over soon.  Anyways, the protagonist has established a meeting with a lead to the terrorists and is heading to meet him.  Meanwhile the terrorists are almost done completing their bomb which may work or may not.  If i go any further into detail i may give something away and ruin the story.  In general, it's a big race to the finish line with no definate winners and with an atomic bomb thrown into the mix.  Fun stuff.

Silent Man... Still

     This book is taking a lot longer to read than i previously thought, but nonetheless maintains my interest.  The part of the story has mellowed down a bit with no major events occuring.  Terrorists are trying to find ways to devistate America and theres a slight chance their plans could either work or be a complete dud.  One of whom may be having second thoughts about starting an international nuclear war... we'll see how that turns out.  Meanwhile, the hero has plans of his own and is following leads that may lead him to the missing bombs.  I'm nearing the end so it will all come together soon, but I'm really appreciating the two sided story line with a view point from both the terrorists and the heroines.  It helps drive the plot as much as it helps to enhance comprehension.

Currently

I have read 212 pages this week and 1404 pages all together

I am currently reading The Silent Man

My favorite sentences are as follows:

"'That is your earpeice. I will give you exactly one more chance to wear it.  If you remove it again I'll have you fitted with this.'  He holds up some sort of metal headgear."  I think this is funny because kids are always resisting, so this guy decides to find a find a way to threaten them into submission.  Since this is a book and not actually happening, I think it's ok for me to laugh.

"Plutarch's attempt to cheer me up- laced with the news of another four, possibly five, murders- somehow backfires."  Yes murders are tragic, but in a book where a clueless man is trying to cheer someone up with news about them is not quite so horrible.  I thought this line was funny and decided to include it.

" To hear delly describe it, I had nest to no friends because I intimidated people by being so exceptional. Not true. I had next to no friends because I wasn't friendly."  No explanation needed.

The Silent Man, Part 2

I've read even further into this book and there has been a surprising turn of events.  The terrorist stole two bombs, but while they were transporting them over the seas, one was lost over the edge of the boat.  Now they may not have enough nuclear stuff to make a bomb.  Mean while the protagonist made a complete mess of things and will now be unable to find the one who tried to assassinate him.  Both sides are losing and that seems to be for the betterment of everyone.

The Silent Man

I haven't read too far into this book, only 160 pages or so, and yet it is incredibly captivating.  It's more of a guy's book with more action and suspense than most books.  It reminds me a little of the Bourne movies.  Anyway, the story of what i've read so far is that nuclear material has been stolen and is now in the hands of someone who wants to destroy all of america and apparently has a plan do due so... hence the nuclear material.  There's a weapons dealer who wants revenge on the protagonist- John Wells- and attempts to murder him and his partner/ girlfriend- Exley. This may sound like the typical guy movie with shootouts, explosions, a bad guy, and the goodguy getting the girl, but that's because it is.  Each chapter is a different view point of characters in this book, which allows for a total comprehension of whats going on.  Overall its a good book and I've liked what I've read so far.

The Tree

Check out this picture I took of a crooked tree up at 'the property'. It's an 80 acre plot of land that my grandpa owns and we go up there sometimes and ride ATVs/dirtbikes. There are three different fields which are all surrounded by trees and connected by the dirt paths which we ride on. I was walking through the woods when I saw this tree and thought it was peculiar.  I took the picture and when I looked at it I could see this ring of light.  I thought it was oddly spectacular and decided to share it.

Week 2 Blog views

BLOGS THAT I VISITED:

1: Norwegian Wood
2: The Adventures of Streamer Man- this ones awesome.
3: Lucky
4: The Blanket Fort
5: Back of Napkin Blog
6: The Ozone Layer
7: ETYAFTER
8: As Told By Ginger
9: Charlie Bucket
It won't let me comment on any of the other blogs though...

Week #2

     This week:
Books: Mockingjay and first bit of Quicksilver

Pages: This week: 427, Running total: 1,129

Sentences: see other post

Quicksilver

     I tried to read this book, but i could not.  It was incredibly dull in the beginning and could  not capture my interest.  It was simply too uneventful for my tastes, but i'm sure it would have gotten better eventually; I just don't want to go through the first few chapters of dull inactivity which is like nails on a chalk board...  This books reminds me of Jane Eyre which we had to read over the summer, the first part was excrutiating.  Once i got to the middle it lessened into a medial instead of major annoyance.  I do not wish to pursue this book any further.  I think this may be my most brutal review of a book... so far.

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

     This week I read, is that the correct past tense for reading? I don't like how it is the same as present tense. People were too lazy to change it, Mockingjay.  This is the third and final book for the Hunger Games books, which may just be the best series i've read, red? readed? have read?, in a long time, if not longer.  This book was not as good as the others in the series in my personal opinion.  While you're reading the book its not as obvious, but once you reach the end and reflect on what you have just read, you may find that the book was rather depressing.  Many die and some things that may have seemed like they would happen don't. Others do though and it's a nice change of pace.  My description of this book i extremely vague as i have just realized, but once you read the book you will know what i am talking about.

For the week of the 29th

I decided to knock out my three favorite sentences right now, save sometime in the future.  These are all from Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

1: "So that the others will have no choice but to target you," says Haymitch flatly. " Go to bed. I can't stand to look at either one of you."
i thought this was funny because it's pretty much a classic line for someone to say when they're mad. I'm a fan of classics.

2: "'Because whatever happened in the past is in the past. And no one in this arena was a victor by chance.' He eyes Peeta for a moment. 'Except maybe Peeta.'" ha! now you've got to admit- that's pretty funny, which is why i decided to make it one of my favorites.

3: "He's just five yards from the beach when he senses them. His eyes only dart up for a second but it's as if he's triggered a bomb." SUSPENSE! Assuming that you haven't read this book before, you have no idea what just happened.  I'm not giving out any spoilers so here's this: and boom goes the dynamite.

Personality Test

Idealists (NFs), as a temperament, are passionately concerned with personal growth and development. Idealists strive to discover who they are and how they can become their best possible self -- always this quest for self-knowledge and self-improvement drives their imagination. And they want to help others make the journey. Idealists are naturally drawn to working with people, and whether in education or counseling, in social services or personnel work, in journalism or the ministry, they are gifted at helping others find their way in life, often inspiring them to grow as individuals and to fulfill their potentials.
All Idealists share the following core characteristics:

• Idealists are enthusiastic, they trust their intuition, yearn for romance, seek their true self, prize meaningful relationships, and dream of attaining wisdom.
• Idealists pride themselves on being loving, kindhearted, and authentic.
• Idealists tend to be giving, trusting, spiritual, and they are focused on personal journeys and human potentials.
• Idealists make intense mates, nurturing parents, and inspirational leaders.

Idealists are sure that friendly cooperation is the best way for people to achieve their goals. Conflict and confrontation upset them because they seem to put up angry barriers between people. Idealists dream of creating harmonious, even caring personal relations, and they have a unique talent for helping people get along with each other and work together for the good of all. Such interpersonal harmony might be a romantic ideal, but then Idealists are incurable romantics who prefer to focus on what might be, rather than what is. The real, practical world is only a starting place for Idealists; they believe that life is filled with possibilities waiting to be realized, rich with meanings calling out to be understood. This idea of a mystical or spiritual dimension to life, the "not visible" or the "not yet" that can only be known through intuition or by a leap of faith, is far more important to Idealists than the world of material things.
Highly ethical in their actions, Idealists hold themselves to a strict standard of personal integrity. They must be true to themselves and to others, and they can be quite hard on themselves when they are dishonest, or when they are false or insincere. More often, however, Idealists are the very soul of kindness. Particularly in their personal relationships, Idealists are without question filled with love and good will. They believe in giving of themselves to help others; they cherish a few warm, sensitive friendships; they strive for a special rapport with their children; and in marriage they wish to find a "soulmate," someone with whom they can bond emotionally and spiritually, sharing their deepest feelings and their complex inner worlds.
Idealists are relatively rare, making up no more than 15 to 20 percent of the population. But their ability to inspire people with their enthusiasm and their idealism has given them influence far beyond their numbers.

Currently

This week: 765 pages
This semester: 765 pages

Mr Hill- i have a question

How do i make a list? I may have forgotten... or wasn't listening when you told us... twice, but the point is that i don't know how. If you could post a comment telling me how that would be appreciated.

My three favorite sentences

From the Book: Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins: "I don't watch him as he heads for the door, so I flinch when he whispers in my ear, "By the way, I know about the kiss." This may seem like something from a soap opera, but its not.  I do not read that kind of mush in any circumstance. This happens to be a hidden threat to the main character by the oppressive and sadistic president. I won't give any more away, but it's got some pretty interesting implications.

Same book: " A street made impassable by bombs caused them to be late for their factory shift, so they were still a hundred yards away when it exploded, killing everyone inside- including Twill's husband and Bonnie's whole family." Since you don't know the story this has to be suspenceful and captivating, and so i say- told you it wasn't a soap opera.

Same book: "Two peacekeepers, a man and a woman, are standing in the doorway to our kitchen." Even more suspense and curiosity- which is why i can never seem to put this book down...

Look at the fish!

My blog is awesomer because it has fish.  But don't feed them because I already fed them this morning...

P.S. I forgot to mention that i can be weird/akward alot because its fun when people stare at me with blank expressions of not knowing what to say...

                                                                                         - Mr. B

THE HUNGER GAMES by Suzanne Collins

     Before i start to describe this book i feel that i've got to say a little about my writing.  When i talk i usually tend to use simple word and get so off topic that i lose m original train of thought and make stuff up as i go.  My writing is no better.  While my diction becomes a bit more sophisticated and i use big words on occasion, i still off track.  That being said, i can talk about the book.

     In all honesty, this may be the best book i have ever read... so far.  I will not give away any details, because i've always hated spoilers, but i will give a basic overview.  It is about a girl named Katniss who is, by an unfortunate twist of fate, elected to go to the Capitol, the city which rules the other districts in this place, to fight in "the Hunger Games".  The games put her through a vast array obsacles, some good and some bad; some happy and others that will leave you feeling desolate and despressed. 

     The author, Suzanne Collins, did an immaculate- hurray for big words!- job of creating a story that will captivate you and keep you wanting more.  In the simple time frame of 2 days i managed to read the whole book of 374 pages simply because i did not want to put it down.  Each chapters ends with suspense in order to keep the reader interested and i must say, it works.  Reading this book will not disappoint you and if it does, I'm sorry to say that i do not think that there is a cure for whatever may be wrong with you, but don't worry there's always hope!
            
                                                                                                    -Mr. B

My first post.

I have just lost my blogging virginity...