Know-It-All

I decided to read Know-It-All because Mizzay said she had read another book similar to this one by the same author, and thought it was a very enjoyable read. This book was very challenging for only a couple reasons. For one, there were some very interesting facts in this book I would die to remember, and secondly this book was very repetitive and long. For the first time, I would not recommend this book to my friends. Although it was very interesting, it just wasn’t very fun to read.

                This book was organized in chapters by the letters from the alphabet and because of this the book read as just fact after fact in each chapter. The hardest part of reading this book was trying to remember some of these fun facts. For one, abalone, a type of snail, has five separate holes for excreting waste. Another fun fact is that for a Pueblo Indian woman to get a divorce, all she would have to do is place her husbands moccasins on the doorstep and SHABAM! They are divorced! There were many things I would try to do to remember some of the facts like re-reading things over and over multiple times, and dog tagging the page of a fun fact so I could go back and refer to it whenever I wanted.

                This book was very repetitive. Every chapter was a letter from the alphabet and then in each chapter there would be word after word starting with that letter. Although this was a big part of the repetitiveness another contributor was the pattern in which the author wrote. The Jacobs would write his chapters so it was word, fact, word, fact, and then a personal story relating the word back to his life. Although some of the stories were quite funny and some of the facts were defiantly worth remembering, it still became just too much the same all the time. This repetitiveness caused the book to get old very fast and I found myself beginning to get bored in the H chapter.

                Although the first challenge of this book was a fun one to overcome the second was in charge of making or breaking the book. Unfortunately it broke it and I would not consider recommending this book to anyone unless they simply needed to look up the definition of a word. Over all I am partially happy to have read this book because now I know fun facts that no one else does. Also I’m happy I have experienced a new kind of book because I know now that I don’t need to read another like it.

(441 words)

The Power of Song

I believe in the power of song. Singing makes it possible to create magic in people’s lives.

I believe singing is magical when it can make people feel. As a performer, if you sing a song that makes people cry, not because of the lyrics, not because of the band, but because of the sheer beauty of the sound, and the emotion and tone quality of every shimmering note, you have made magic. The ability to make people feel that happiness and bliss all from just a sound. As an audience member, there is no greater joy than to be able to listen to a singer who can place the goose bumps on your arms and the tears in your eyes.

I believe singing is magical when it can bring people hope. Back in the day when there were slaves in the United States, the African Americans of our nation needed hope. Without hope there would have been no drive, and without drive there would still be slavery today. The music sang by the slaves gave them the courage to go on. Without song as their refuge, they wouldn’t have accomplished a fraction of what they did in their quest to end slavery.

I believe singing is magical when it can make the impossible possible. In the bible there is a story of Jesus helping a blind man see. Just as Jesus gave sight to the blind, singers can give sound to the deaf. When a singer uses their instrument the right way they find that they can make magic. I have heard stories of people who sing to the deaf. This may sound funny because what’s the point in singing to someone who can’t hear. But if sang correctly, like a bat, sometimes the deaf are able to feel the sound waves of a singers voice. Although very different from actually hearing a song, the vibrations of the voice can still be detected, and to a person who cannot hear anything remotely close to sound, this is close enough.

 (340 words)

The colors of my life

Red:

When I think of the color red I think of my boyfriend Jon. His favorite color is red so every time I see the color it’s a nice reminder of how lucky I am. Red is also the color of a heart. So in a sense red makes me think of love. But more often then not when I see the color red I think of blood. I must say I am not a fan of the color red.

Blue:

When I think of blue I can’t help but think about the sky. Those lovely days when there’s not a cloud in sight and you’re out walking around in the sun. I also think of the ocean and how broad and vast it is. When I think of the ocean I feel like life has so many possibilities. The color blue is always nice. If however it is navy blue I think of the night sky. I think of lying out under the stars with someone I love and care about. I think about how long it would take to count every star in the sky.

Yellow:

            When I think of yellow I see my mom. That’s her favorite color and it fits cause yellow is such a happy color and she always seems to be in a happy go lucky mood. Yellow also makes me think of the sun. I wonder how so much light can all come from the same place. Radiating over and warming everything below. I also think of baby chicks. I see them popping out of their eggs so ready to join the world.

Green:

            When I think of green I think of life, of the earth and all the trees and plants. Hostas somehow always come to mind. I also find myself thinking of grass and the plants ability to never stop growing even after the plant is always being knocked down. It always just pops back up again.

White:

            White makes me think of cleanliness, of heaven and of an empty sheet of paper. Like a new chapter waiting to be written. White also makes me think of clouds and how they are always so light and fluffy looking. Like cotton candy in the sky.

Black:

            When I think of black I think of a big dark hole. Like a well that has no bottom, going straight though the earth out past china and into the sky. But always dark. I think of sleep and all the colors I see behind my eye lids and how they always end up turning back to black.

The colors of my life

(437 words)

We Did It!

In my life I have been a lot of things, but this is my first, and probably my last, time I will ever be a national champion. After Happiness Inc, the varsity show choir at Kennedy High School, won nationals down in Nashville, Tennessee, the feelings going through me were crazy. I was happy, proud, excited, and even sad. This is what being a national champion means to me.

Being a national champion means that I along with the rest of my show choir have worked our butts off! It means that we have had the longest season ever stretching from July all the way to March. It means we never gave up and kept on trying to improve our show. We pushed the bounds of happiness up and over the sights we saw at the beginning of our season. Before it began, we only dreamed of the possibility to be national champions. Now that dream is a reality and we are all so happy for it.

Being in show choir is like having a second family. Being a national champion makes me proud of all my friends and makes me so happy for the years to come when we will reminisce about the glory days in Happiness Inc. This year we worked so hard and we managed to make it farther than any other Happiness group has gone before us. Being in Happiness Inc. of 2012 school year makes me proud to be a Kennedy student and it means that I have given my energy and attention over to something that is worth more than anything else they can offer us students in high school. It means we made life time friends, memories, records that other groups to follow us will strive to reach.

Being a national champion makes me sad. Now knowing that our season is over, we will forever miss the times and memories we have shared in 2012. Being in Happiness means that we will always have a connection to the people in our group, and even though were all sad that it's over, it will remain to be a “Happi” memory that none of us will soon forget. Knowing that half our group will be leaving at the end of this year makes us all sad. Nervous and excited, for us and them, to continue on knowing forever that we were the group that made it farther than any other happiness group had. Knowing that we made a bond that can never be broken.

Being a national champion makes me excited for next year. Although all the juniors will miss the leaving class, we are still so excited to see how the group will hold in next years season. We're excited to go back out with our heads held high knowing that we are one of the best. Knowing that it wasn’t easy to get to where we are now. We are excited to welcome all the new members who are lucky enough to achieve their goal and be a part of Happiness, Inc. next year. We are excited to go back out and work our butts off yet again trying to reach beyond the triumphs we reached this year

            Over all, we have had a GREAT season. Better than any of us hoped for, and better than anyone was expecting. We have pushed the limits and now our name is one being said across the nation. We ended up on top, and now it's time to bask in the glory of our accomplishments. We did it, Happiness Inc. We did what no one thought we could do. We bounced back up when we fell and worked harder than any group at Kennedy has worked before. We did it. And that’s what it means to be a national champion.

(631 words)

Vera v.s. Coach part 2

Accessories:

            When choosing between accessories my answer is clear. Vera Bradley has a very low selection of accessories. In fact, when clicking on the Accessories button on their page all that comes up is lap top cases and cosmetic bags, and in my opinion these are not accessories at all! However when clicking on the Coach Accessories button a wide variety of hats, scarves, fragrances, key chains, and pet accessories pops up! Now that’s what I call accessories! So my clear choice is Coach!

Luggage:

            Under this category there is no competition! Literally! Coach doesn’t even have a travel or Luggage section on their web page! How can this be? Coach lovers must go on vacation sometimes! However Vera has multiple duffels, rolling luggage, dopp kits, luggage tags, and backpacks that make travel so much more fun and colorfully organized! So obviously my luggage allegiance is pledged to Vera! For now and forever more!

Apparel:

            This category is just pathetic! Coach has an assortment of coats and jackets and that’s it! Not T-shirts or jeans, no tank tops or underwear! Coats and jackets is all they have to offer! But this offer is better than the one given by Vera for there is no apparel on that web page. Vera has nothing to wear on your body. Period. Not even jackets!

School:

            Another Clear win for Vera. When looking at all the school options coming from her end you end up with laptop cases, dopp kits, pens, laundry bags, coffee mugs, blankets, picture frames, everything you could possibly need when getting ready to go off to college! Coach however is no comparison. All they have to offer is a dinky lap top case. LAME! How am I supposed to carry my laundry home in a laptop case! Selection is much too stingy!

Men:

            The final category discussed on this blog is men. When browsing through Vera I see nothing manly enough to make it into a guy’s wish list! So unfortunately I must say that Vera looses this one. Coach has a variety of shoes and bags for men. Not to mention phadoras, key chains, wallets, and belts. So the win for the Men category goes to Coach!

(368 words)

Vera v.s. Coach

When someone asks me my two favorite brand names I have no problem finding my answer. It would defiantly be Vera Bradley and Coach! But I don’t know if I could say which I like better. I like them both for different reasons!

Shoes:

            When I think of shoes I defiantly like coach better! Coach has a very wide variety of shoes such as boots, high tops, heels, exc.! The list goes on and on! Almost any style of shoe you could possibly want you can get in any color! Vera however only has flip flops! Although flip flops are great in the summer I really only wear them when going to the pool or beach! I, not being one to take a visit to the pool very often, find myself standing strong with Coach on this one.

Bags:

When it comes to bags, totes and clutches alike it is a very tough decision. I would probably have to say though that I prefer Vera bags. There are so many styles and patterns there are probably millions of combinations that could be made to personalize a bag to my style. I being a softy for options have to choose Vera. Coach though does have very good bags! I myself have quite a few purses and clutches at home. But the patterns aren’t as exciting and the variety just isn’t as broad. So Vera it is!

Sunglasses:

Although I don’t own Coach or Vera sunglasses I would have to say I am a Vera sunglasses fan. Most Coach sunglasses are quite big and chunky and I am much more a sleek sunglasses fan. I did come very close to buying a pair of Coach sunglasses once but now looking back and comparing them to the Vera sunglasses I want now I simply couldn’t go any way but Vera! The bold patterns and thin-rimmed glasses frames sore far above that of the chunky rimmed Coach sunglasses.

 (324 words)

Floaters, Sinkers, and Skidders

Growing up in a family like mine you learn a lot of very different things. You may be thinking, yea so what my family knows fun facts too! But trust me! My family is especially knowledgeable on any topic most would think to be odd! One of my mothers favorite thing to talk about is Poop! She is a health freak so when she learned that you can use poop to gauge how healthy you are she dove right in!

Poop can be classified into three groups. There are the floaters, the sinkers, and the skidders! Now you may be thinking, floaters?..skidders? Well no worries! In due time you will be a poop expert!

Most people eat meat during every meal, every day! They think to themselves, well protein is good for you! So they just go right on eating. Animal after animal. Well im here to tell you your poop disagrees! Too much protein is not good for you! Have you ever looked in the toilet after taking a nice steamer and noticed its position in the water? No? well im here to tell you that it probably ALWAYS sinks down to the bottom of the toilet! this my friends is not good! When your poop sinks down to the bottom of the toilet it almost always means you have consumed too much protein! Protein is good to some extent but too much is just no good! Don’t belive me? Ask your poop!

The next kind of poop you may have is a skidder! Now when you think about skids they really aren’t a good thing! Weather its breaking to fast in your car or falling down on the cement, skids are never a good thing! Well my friend’s skids in the toilet are no different! When your deuce leaves skid marks while exiting the Lou it means you have eaten too much sugar! We all know sugar is bad for us so why do we continue to stuff ourselves will unhealthy sugary snacks? Well let me tell ya your poop wishes you would stop! Nothing ruins a good bowel movement more than looking down to find that your unhealthy life style is affecting your poop!

Now the most uncommon type of poop! A floater! If I had to guess I would think that right about now your thinking, wait a minute, my poop has never floated! Well to be honest most peoples don’t! But that doesn’t mean it’s a good thing! If you drop the kids off at the poop and you notice that they float, then that means you have been eating food that has a good balance of everything in it! Not too much protein, not too much sugar, just the perfect balanced diet! So floaters are good!

 So next time you pop a squat on the john take a looksy after wards to see how healthy you really are! And remember “Floaters” good! “Sinkers” and “Skidders” bad!

(492 Words)