Physical Activity

Author's note: I wanted to see how my gym essay would score on the LA rubric. 

While I take my deep breathes to relax, I see a cloud of air from the cold weather. Jumping a little to keep myself warm, and mentally trying to focus. It may seem like another soccer game but to me it means more than just the game. Sometimes I have moments were I don’t want to be at soccer or ever basketball but I realize how much I am actually benefitting from these activities. Devoting most of my time to physical activity such as soccer or basketball provides me so much more than just the memory of the event or the fun of it.

Mainly basketball and soccer for me is a great way to stay in shape. Which is one of the main reasons I like playing these sports, to stay active. Eating well may be one way to stay healthy but the other half is exercising daily which I get to do by my two favorite sports. Staying in shape and healthy makes me feel better about myself, it makes me actually do something good with my day besides sitting around doing nothing. Usually after I exercise it puts me in a better mood.

Not only does it make me feel better, but I find it enjoyable. I get to exercise while it seems like I am playing just a game for fun with my friends. Which is why I do sports for a fun activity that I get involved with other kids. From playing soccer and basketball I have such great memories like winning close games by a basket or even a goal during the last minute.

Being able to do something that creates wonderful moments is always fun, but when it is with friends it makes it even more fun. Many of my friends play the same sports as me so we usually get on the same team. Since I play sports with my friends it makes it more comfortable. Also we usually talk about the memories we had with these sports from 3 years back.

Overall physical activity provides a lot more for me and others then we all think. I hope to continue playing sports in high school and beyond because it is a great way for me to stay healthy, interact socially with friends and just for the fun of it.

Book vs. Movie

Author’s note: Recently I just saw the movie “Safe Haven” and was a little disappointed because the book was so much better. Therefore I thought I would write an essay analyzing the book verse the movie. 

With a bit of a thrill Nicholas Sparks creates another outstanding love story, named Safe Haven. After reading the book it really made me wonder what the movie was like, especially since Katie had such a thrilling adventure. Therefore once I was finished watching the movie, it was not up to my expectations of what it seemed like it was going to be.  There were many minor changes but there were some clear aspects in the book that you didn’t get from the movie.

One of the main aspects that you miss in the movie is when Katie is planning her escape from her abusive husband, Kevin. The movie begins with Katie fleeing from Kevin; making the escape seem like she actually didn't know what to do.  Although the book made her escape planned out. Without him chasing her right away, she was able to leave and it seemed like it was just another day to him. When he called she answered because the call was forwarded to her pay as you phone that she purchased. This created the readers to think she was a smart woman caught in a dysfunctional relationship.

Not only the escape plan was different but some events in the story created more of a suspense in the book then the movie. For an example once Kevin figured out where Katie was, part of the book was telling his point of view. By exposing all of the thoughts that were going through his head made readers really worry for Katie and the kids. On the other hand when watching the movie we had no idea that he was really thinking of killing her until the final fight. Which is the downfall because in the movie Kevin’s real personality wasn't shown. It seemed like he was just trying to ruin the romance between Alex and Katie.

Similar to not giving Kevin’s thoughts a lot of detail, the film doesn't give Jo Katie’s neighbor, that much of a role either. Which Jo was the major twist in the whole story. The book showed that Jo was Katie’s confidant. Making it actually seem like Jo was a real person and telling Katie her own background that informs some conversations that they had. However the movie seemed to just show the two talking whenever it was convenient. Basically just giving Katie someone to talk to. Wasn’t until the ending we finally figure out who the mysterious women is.

Overall the movie and book were very similar but the movie missed key components.  I recommend watching the movie then reading the book because then you get to understand more in depth about the main events within this story. In conclusion this was a phenomenal story line.

Text Analysis

Author’s note: I was trying to complete my goal to analysis the book Safe Haven to say what the authors point of the story was.

Seeing the sight of his old ripped baseball cap made my heart race. That can’t be him I thought to myself, why would he come all the way to the small town of Southport. Although that is for sure his hat, I remember Kevin standing out on the porch grilling chicken; seems like it was just yesterday. Even though  I haven’t seen Kevin for months. Slowly the man started to turn in my direction, now my heart was beating so fast I felt like it was going to fall out of my chest. Finally able to see the man in the old red baseball cap, I figure out it wasn’t Kevin. Feels like the weights fell off my shoulders. In the book Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks Katie worried and feared seeing her abusive husband, the one she escaped from. By escaping it didn't help the problem it just made her take a vacation from it. In this book I think that the authors message was you can’t just run away from your problems, you have to face them sometime.

Clearly Katie couldn’t put up with her husband anymore and running away was her only option but she never thought about what happened if Kevin were to come for her. As Katie was settling in this small town she meet new people along the way, which she started to care for a lot. Therefore when she started to get closer to a man that she meet at the store Alex and his children she never would intend for them to get hurt. Attempting to keep her distance and her past a secret it didn’t work because later in the book Kevin comes for her.

While she was trying to protect her relationship with Alex, she was still trying to figure out how to end it with Kevin. Eventually Katie and Kevin see each one more night this time while Katie was babysitting Alex’s children. This eventful night finally made Katie face up to Kevin and end things; maybe not the way she thought it would end.  By finishing things off she was now able to continue her life down a new path with Alex.

Many people now in days try to avoid their problems and they try to push it away but it comes right back to them, just like this story. Sometimes running away from problems makes it worse, and you may dig yourself in a deeper hole then you started. This reminds me of many people in society. For an example, many people get bills in the mail but they decide they don’t want to pay it right away and they push it off. Eventually the bill will come back and there will be an overdue fee with it so it will cost more than the original price.

This happens to a lot of people with paying bill but even in other situations too. The only solution is to try to help the problem right away, instead of hiding from it. At least Katie finally ended the abusive relationship that she was in. The best was she was able to move on and start her new love life with Alex. 

Child Labor

Dear Lilly,

Most of the time I feel drained, depressed, and ill. Ever since I left you and our parents my life has been nothing but pure torture. Starring out the window thinking back to the old cheerful memories I had with you is the only sort of happiness I have. I can’t get over how ridiculous it is to have a kid at my age working as long as I do, but I know that our family could use the money. Although for the pain I am put through, I desire a lot more money. It just isn’t fair.

Through all the hard, dangerous work we do we still only get paid one dollar a week. Clearly the money is low to the amount of hours I work. Each day I work for about 16 hours, with machines that adults should be handling. Many kids have pulled the wrong handle, and severely hurt themselves.  Although the boss really doesn’t care.  

Even though they may never pay me as much as I need, they could at least treat us kids better. Scars and bruises are all over my ghostly pale skin. I’ve learned to arrive to work promptly otherwise my injuries would get worse. Almost every day a kid arrives a little late or takes too long of a break, and then the factory is echoing with a loud voice, painful screams, and constant slams. Suddenly my head would start throbbing from the fear I felt when my head was just about to get smashed against the ground.  

Not only did I feel pain from the abuse but I got soar from spinning the cotton. Most the time my work is spinning the cotton gin and it takes up most of my energy. If I am not spinning it fast enough I may get hit. Which makes me more weak, especially since we don’t even get enough food to replenish our bodies. It’s starting to make me really sick, and weary.  Although when I think of coming back home to the family, I start to feel a little liveliness.  

Despite all the stress I got through, I really just can’t wait to get home. I miss all of you guys. Once we are stable with money I will come back. Maybe I will even go to school to advance my skills at reading, writing and math.  Hope to see you before I turn 9 so we can celebrate. I will talk to you soon.

Love always,

Lucy 

Pony Express

Author's note: For this piece I was trying to reach my goal of getting an 8.5 or higher for word choice. 

Staring at his slender smooth face, as his big soft hands reach down to grab his old leather bag filled with thin tissue paper. They were letters from family members going to the men in California.  As he starts approaching the sturdy, fierce full, black horse he turns and takes a glance at me, our eyes meet it felt like I was just watching the stunning sun set for a moment. Our eyes said everything.  Suddenly his eyes drop from mine and I could tell he started to look at the unbreakable silver chain with a heart locket that he gave me.  As the horse draws his attention by kicking and neighing louder than a freight train, he decided to head off. Gently a breezed rolled by and made me notice that the sun was playing hide and seek with the clouds. As they faded in the distance, I decided I should go inside because I felt like a giant ice cube.

It’s been 15 days but feels like a hundred years. Every day I fear that he is going to get attacked by the Native Americans since they said most of the men that worked for the pony express would die from these surprising attacks (1). Even though most of the men were suppose to be 19 years old, John was only 18 years old (3). Typically the rides took 10 days, and the letters were mail from the East going to the West (4).  Supposedly I only had to wait 5 more days but it may take longer. In this time period of not seeing him I wonder if he became just skin and bones. The men that delivered the mail were usually under 120 pounds, and John just made it (3). Hopefully he returns on time and still healthy.

At last I see the black horse quickly trotting into our small village with John on his back. My heart was racing so quick that I felt like it was going to fall out of my chest. As he noticed that I was waiting patiently for him his eyes seemed to brighten. Finally, he hopped off his horse and hugged me. It felt so great to see him and I wanted to know all about his trip. He started off by showing me  the money that he made; the mail was $10 an ounce (2). Then he starting to go off about how he traveled a total of 100 miles but the average riders traveled between 60- 120 miles (5). Riding at an average of 7 miles per hour he was able to give the mail to the families in 10 days (4). Many things had went on when he was traveling but he said that he wouldn’t do it again if he had the choice. Also he stated that they were working on something called the telegram and that it should be completed around October 24, 1861 (1). I was delighted to have him come back safely and hopefully I won’t have to experience this much time away from him again. 

Kids Are Ready for Cell Phones

Author's note: I read over my piece out loud to make sure it made sense. I also added in a semi colon. 

If we were to take a survey on how many kids in Asa Clark Middle School that have cell phones, it would probably be a little more than three fourths. Some parents allow their kids to get cell phones at this age but others say they are too young and have to wait a certain age.  Personally I got my phone in 6^th grade and now it is so much easier to communicate with my friends and family. Although there may be some cons for kids around middle school having cell phones,  I think there are more positives.

There may be a lot of positives, but the most important one is emergency situations.  If a kid were ever to need help but no one was around,  they could call someone to make sure they receive assistance. Another good reason is for parents to keep track of where their children go. Many kids hang out after school, but they usually need permission from their parents. So with their cell phones, it is easy just to call and ask.Cell phones can be used for many other things such as; videos, texting friends, listening to music and many other. Therefore, phones are outstanding technology and nice for communication.

Since cell phones are used in so many ways, kids may get a little addicted to it. This may cause kids to waste their time. Kids will text rather than doing homework. In addition to it getting addicting , it could cause some health problems due to the bacteria on the screen from talking on the phone. It could create skin problems if the bacteria from the phone keeps rubbing against your face. Even the environment can get damaged. Some people don’t recycle their old phones so it will get destroyed and chemicals are released in the air.

There are ways that these cons could be easily taken care of. Therefore, the positives outweigh the negatives. This make kids safer because they can reach anyone if needed. Most kids in Middle School  have cell phones for these reasons, and parents that let their kids have a phone obviously felt that they were important to have.

Changing Point of View

Author’s Note:  I tried to work on my conclusion of just saying my last thoughts and summing it up.

In the song “Someone Like You” by Adele you can hear how confused, and lost she seems to be. The way Adele tells the story is that her and this guy were friends and they started to feel something for each other so they decided to date. Although it seems like it didn’t work out, she pushed him away. Eventually she figured that she missed him so she tried to see how he was doing and then she realized that he is doing just fine without her. The man was married seemed to have everything in place, and that is when she was disappointed. If this song would have been sang from the guys point of view it would have changed the point completely.

From Adele’s point of view she thought that once they would see each other maybe they would start to talk again. Once she arrived to talk to him he was speechless. Wanting to express her feelings about how she never got over him and how she wanted him back didn’t work. After she found out he was over her, she just wanted to tell him that she wished the best for him and hoped she wasn’t forgotten. At that point it was like her heart shattered in a million pieces. Trying to cheer herself up she thinks “I will find someone like you.” Everyone understands Adele’s point of view, but what about the guy that she was talking about what was he thinking?

The moment when I saw her face, my thoughts just seemed to stop. I was speechless I didn’t know why she was coming to my house. The door bell rang and I dropped the towel from my wet shaky hands.  Once I opened the door her face seemed so delighted, I sat there starring as she was saying something to me. I knew I had to tell her that I moved on, and that I was married. She was waiting for me to respond and I told her right away. Suddenly her face seemed to drop, and she seemed to get very sad within just seconds. At this moment I could tell she was the most confused she has ever been and she waited to leave. Before she left she told me not to forget her and sometime maybe we will see each other again.

Changing the point of view makes any song or story different because it shows what someone else is thinking about the situation. Therefore in this song if the man would have been singing it, the lyrics would have the feeling of surprised and shocked. Not slow, and sad like the way she sang it.