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5.31.2010

Make the World Happy Challenge

Peak's was really fun yesterday and I think we played really well. The big parade is this morning of course and I hope it goes as well as yesterday did! Now while I was chatting online with my good friend Bella I made this little list. And I think that I'm going to really try and do these things. And I'm challenging you to do the same. Before I tell you the list let me explain this little challenge.

It's called the Make the World Happy Challenge and it's centered around this list of five things that I made yesterday. Anyone can do these things- they're not dependent on religion or where you live or anything. And the challenge is for you to do all these things every day for ONE WEEK. (June 1-7) You ready to hear what these 5 things are?

5 things everyone should do every day

    1)    Say good morning to at least five people- it will make them smile and put a good spin on their day

    2)    Laugh so hard that your stomach hurts and you're almost crying- It's one of the best feelings in the world.

    3)    Give someone that you care about a hug- Let them know what they mean to you.

    4)    Listen to music that makes you happy and share it with a friend- More music equals a better world.

    5)    Live every moment of your life out loud- It's the only way you can truly be alive.

It's really that easy. And it can brighten someone's day and make the world better. Isn't that just awesome? So here's what you do:

You can take the little button on my sidebar and put it on your blog. Please post that you're doing this on your blog and link it into my McLinky at the bottom of this post. (under signature)

Try it for a week and on the 8th I'll do a discussion post where there is no comment moderation so we can share our thoughts on this project. Ready....Set....GO!!!




5.30.2010

*Splash!* Oh darn...

Yesterday was a fun day. We found a dress for me to wear and the party was really fun. However, they have a pool and so I was swimming a lot but two times (Two times!!!) while I was fully dressed and didn't have my swimsuit I fell/was pushed/was pulled into the pool. Hence the *Splash!* Oh darn... title. Luckily we live close by and I could ride my bike home and change.

So that was my extremely short recap of yesterday. Sorry for the shortness, but I'm headed off to the Peak's Parade soon. Hope it doesn't rain. Like last year.....It's REALLY hazy though...

5.29.2010

And the total collasal busy-ness starts.....oh yeah. Today.

Well, it's looking like a beautiful Saturday weather-wise! (And not to mention schedule-wise) I woke up really happy this morning, and I'm not really sure WHY, but maybe it's because all the crazy busy-ness pretty much starts today. (I thrive on a busy schedule if you haven't found that out already)

In a few minutes my mom and I are headed to the farmer's market which is one of my favorite Saturday rituals in the summertime. A little later we'll be going shopping too. I still need my dress for graduation and confirmation- but at least I already have the one I'm wearing to the 8th grade dance! I also need some shoes....

In the afternoon and evening we're going over to a friend's for their annual 'backyard bash' as they call it that they host every Memorial Day weekend. It's soooo much fun, and I can't wait!

5.28.2010

Flowers...or not (avec francais beaucoup!)

Good Friday today :) After school I went around and took some painture de fluers partager avec vous.*

Or perhaps not....if the uploading thing isn't working.....

 You know, this is making me angry.

J'DETESE MON ORDINATAIR!**

OK. Ranting now over. Let's try this again.

Oh. Still not cooperating, huh?

Well.

Monsieur Ordinatair. VOUS EST VRAIMENT STUPIDE ET FOU.***

So whatdaya think of THAT?

Fine. I give up....

{French to English translations}

*Pictures of flowers to share with you.

**I hate my computer!

***Mr. Computer. You are really stupid and crazy.

5.27.2010

insane and inspirational

Wow. I was SO tired after this morning I seriously was about to fall asleep in math class this afternoon! Wanna hear all about the craziness? It was certainly NOT a normal morning :)

So I'm at school at bit before 7am for jazz band and we run a good hard rehearsal from about 7:15 to 7:57ish. At that time I feverishly pack up my trombone, grab my cornet and begin my head section leader duties. We have marching practice from 8-10 officially and I'd guess we were back inside a little before 10. Then there's all the wrapping up details, etc, to be taken care of and around 10:05 we're dismissed back to class, but I'm still in the auditorium finalizing some things and packing up my cornet. I take my cornet and head upstairs stopping at the top to drop my cornet off in room 201 (Mrs Barry's room). I'm just stuffing my cornet onto the shelf when my principal's voice comes over the intercom. "Attention all students and staff. We are going into lockdown mode. Students, please go to the nearest classroom. We are in lockdown." So I think "Oh great. The lockdown drill." And go sit along the wall where we're supposed to. Two other students end up there as well and we had our lockdown drill. When it was finally over at almost 10:30, well, it was time for sectional! So we had our sectional and we were worked pretty hard. So yeah. That was my insane crazy morning.

Now for the inspirational part.  We're singing this amazing song in chorus called 'When You Believe' and it's from the movie 'Prince of Egypt'. Well I've never seen the movie, but this song is just incredible! Incroyable! (as you would say in French) The lyrics have such good meaning so I'd like to share them with you. (there is a section where we sing in Hebrew, but I'm going to skip that for obvious reasons like you wouldn't know what I was writing about.)


When You Believe

 Many nights we've prayed,
with no proof anyone could hear.
In our hearts a hopeful song,
We barely understood.

Now we are not afraid,
Although we know there's much to fear.
We were moving mountains long,
Before we knew we could.

There can be miracles,
When you believe.
Though hope is frail,
It's hard to kill.

Who knows what miracles,
You can achieve?
When you believe,
Somehow you will.

You will when you believe.

In this time of fear,
When prayer so often proved in vain.
Hope seemed like the summer birds,
Too swiftly flown away.

Yet now I'm standing here,
With heart so full I can't explain.
Seeking faith and speaking words,
I never thought I'd say.

There can be miracles,
When you believe.
Though hope is frail,
It's hard to kill.

Who knows what miracles,
You can achieve?
When you believe,
Somehow you will.

You will when you believe.

{Hebrew Section}
There can be miracles,
When you believe.
Though hope is frail,
It's hard to kill.

Who knows what miracles,
You can achieve?
When you believe,
Somehow you will.
Now you will.

You will when you believe.
You will when you believe.


5.26.2010

*pant pant*

Did I mention yesterday that the heat was supposed to break today? No? Well, it doesn't matter because guess what. THE HEAT DIDN'T BREAK. As my most recent Facebook status states... "Being in school while it's 90º out FOR TWO DAYS STRAIGHT is not my kind of fun. And it doesn't help that the second floor of the school is practically the same temperature that it is outside. Yuck." Even fans weren't helping. The best part of the day was lunch, because the cafeteria is in the basement which was nice and cool :) But right before lunch was not so pleasant. Gym class. Running the mile. Just plain awful. :P

On a lighter note, my brother has his first ever band concert tonight on the trombone! It's the 5th and 6th graders and I think it should be fairly fun.

5.25.2010

Is it above 80º or am I hallucinating?

The weather is just crazy sometimes!!!

Normal this time of year: Sunny. Often temperatures between 60º and 70º sometimes a bit warmer.

Lately: It's been REALLY hot. Like I almost think it's August but we're still pretending that it's May.

Here's what the weather says right now: 81º. You wanna know how hot it got today? 89º and I'm not even close to kidding. It's really painful being in school when it is that hot out and if you think that our school has any air conditioning....Think again!

And don't even get me started on band sectional today...

5.24.2010

A strange love for fog

You know what's really cool? Fog. Random, right? But it's soooo cool! Like, how it's a cloud and all and the funny noises that foghorns make and all that jazz. The awesomest (that's not a word is it?) thing was something like what happened last night, and probably actually happens pretty often as well....

So I got home from confirmation kinda late last night and on the way back the fog was creeping in softly and going over the bridge all the streetlights looked so cool wreathed in clouds. The best part was when I was in bed and the fog totally enveloped my house and you could see little tendrils snaking past and skating across the windows. It had all burned off by the time I got up though which isn't surprising considering it was 80º out today! :D So anyway, that's my love of fog. To end it here's a cute little poem about it by Carl Sandburg. (Ironically it's showed up just about every year on my NWEA tests)

 Fog
 
The fog comes
on little cat feet.

It sits looking
over harbor and city
on silent haunches
and then moves on. 
 

5.23.2010

Church Was Kinda Strange Today...

So church was kinda strange today- but of course you could've got that from the title. What was strange? Well, bell choir messed up horribly in the prelude, this one little girl was like strangling her brother during the children's sermon, during the passing of the peace my brother said to me 'war be with you' instead of he usual 'peace be with you', and during the first hymn the organist just stopped playing and we had to sing without accompaniment for a verse. So it was interesting. Other than that the service ran very smoothly with a good Pentecost sermon. Plus, the last hymn was one of my favorites: In The Midst Of New Dimensions. I first heard it about a year and a half ago when I played along to it in church (on cornet) for our 275th church year celebration. The refrain is especially nice and goes like this:


"God of rainbow, fiery pillar, leading where the eagles soar. We your people, ours the journey, now and ever, now and ever, now and ever more"
So that's that! I'm heading off to a double header softball game soon and then I've got a confirmation class this evening. Busy, busy, busy!


5.22.2010

Test...Test....

Testing....testing....new signature......how do you like it?


Daybook: 5/22



Date...May 22
Starting time...10:44 AM
Mood...happy :)
Outside my window...Mostly cloudy- but warm!
I'm thinking...that I need a snack
I'm reading...Mein Kampf (very challenging read)
I'm listening to...the silence....and my playlist
I'm wearing...rolled up jean and a red t-shirt
Yesterday, I...went to school....
I'm excited for...Memorial Day parades next weekend
I'm sad because...only 4 more full band rehearsals and 7 sectionals left
I'm hungry for...some key lime pie yogurt
The song stuck inside my head is...A Whole New World
I want...our concert to be amazing
I love...our music for the final concert
I loathe...key signatures with 6 sharps
This week, my goal is...to have a good final marching practice
Did I meet last week's goal?...why yes!
Ending time...10:51 AM

5.21.2010

For the love of Friday's

BEST DAY OF THE WEEK. Just saying. In the grand scheme of things today was pretty fun. Before homeroom, me and Bella and Elránia were walking around and the 7th graders who are going to Peak's with us were practicing so we stood outside and were just being ridiculous by marching/dancing to their music. Was fun :) After I got home (i.e. just now) I took some data...on how much everything I carry into school on Monday/out of school on Friday weighs. Here are the results:

Laptop- 7lbs

Backpack- 8lbs

Pro Trumpet- 13lbs

Marching Trumpet- 12lbs

Cornet- 9lbs

Trombone- 7lbs

Clarinet- 4lbs

Total- 60lbs

Crazy, right?

5.20.2010

Time Just Flies

I'm just flabbergasted! I know I've done a post recently about the craziness of time, but I thought I'd let you know what's coming up for me since we got some more detail on some of these events today. I've linked to posts from last year about some of these events, and I suggest that you read them. Some are pretty funny :)

Sunday May 30- Peak's Island Parade. I live near the ocean :) and out in the ocean are of course, lots of islands. One of the biggest and closest to us is Peak's Island. Every year they have a Memorial Day weekend parade (on the Sunday) and many years they invite my school's 8th grade band to come and play! It's really fun because it's just the 8th grade and a few 7th graders, we get to play Taps and the Star Spangled Banner as well as our marching song, we get to ride the ferry and there's a cookout after. A really fun day. (Wanna hear about the crazy time we had at Peak's last year? Click HERE)

Monday May 31- Memorial Day Parade. So just our basic parade. La la la. Fun, cool, yelling at your rank to much. Good times. (Read about last year's experience HERE)

June 7-9ish- Final Testing? Glog....This is just when I *think* our last tests will be. Oh so so so not looking forward to these giant horrors. I'd better start reviewing everything.......

Oh yeah! During this part of June (8ish-15ish) we're gonna have lot's of family up here which should be cool :)

June 8th- 5th grade step-up day. LOL. That means my bro (and all the other 5th grader) are coming up to my school to meet teachers....and listen to the spring jazz band! This is so fun 'cause we get to show them how awesome being in the jazz band really is! (last year's performance- HERE)

June 9- Final Concert. Gulp. I just can't believe it's the end...I was sad at the end of the 6th grade last concert but I just thought to myself 'Oh well. I've still got two more years' and at the end of last year's- 'Oh well. I still have one more year.' Well, uh, those years are almost up, so yeah. Saaaadness. (Read about last year's awesome 7th/8th final concert HERE and HERE)

June 11- Step Up Day. Going to the high school for a few hours. 'Nuff said.

June 12- 8th Grade Social. Woot! It's the 8th grade dance and it's actually semi-formal which is pretty cool because all our other dances are wicked casual. I actually just tried on my dress which I like very much. It's a sparkly blue and black. Now all I need is some cute strappy black sandals (preferably with a bit of a heel 'cause I'm so short :P ) and I'll be all set!

June 13- Confirmation Sunday. Wow. So I've been working on the confirmation program at church with 8 other teens since January and on June 13 we'll be confirmed which is pretty cool. It's been a great journey :)

June 14- Field Trip! At the end of every school year the whole grade takes a field trip. In 8th grade we get to go to Point Sabago on well, Sabago Lake. My social studies teacher was telling us a bit about it today and it sounded like it will be really fun! They've got tennis and basketball courts, mini golf, an arcade, picnic tables, volleyball, and of course the beach and lake for swimming! And the cool thing is that our teachers are encouraging us to bring iPods to listen to and gum and all the other things they normally yell at us about. (Last year's trip was an interesting one! Read about it HERE)

June 14 (also)- Last Day of School and Graduation. So we'll be at Point Sabago for the day and we get back around two, fifteen minutes before our last day ends. And for me, 2:15 on June 14, 2010 is more of the ending then graduation. I don't know why. It just won't be the same when I go back that night for graduation because, idk, I really won't be a student there anymore. It'll be kinda really odd actually. So I guess after the final bell I'll go take a last look around the place as a student there. Say good-bye. Leave. Come back later that night for graduation, but as soon as I leave the building after school that day, that's when it's really over. :( (Read about the coolness of my last day of 7th grade HERE and HERE)

So yeah. That's my life coming up. Busy, isn't it? :) :) :)

5.19.2010

To My Sometimes Annoying Brain-

Dear Brain,

Yes, I love you dearly. I truly would be nothing without you. However, to put it bluntly, you can really get on my nerves sometimes. Sorry. It's not that I don't appreciate all that you do for me, it's just that when you keep speaking 'textbook' language to me when I'm trying to play my trumpet. Unfortunately, you've been speaking 'textbook' quite a lot today. Can't remember? Well, you know how you've been stuck on memorizing all those verbs for the past couple of weeks? I love getting hundreds on all my verb blasts, but don't you think that chanting 'nous avons, vous avez, nous avons, vous avez' over and over while I'm trying to concentrate on other stuff is going a bit far? And all these strange facts and notes to self that you keep flying past me. The Battle of Midway was the turning point for the Pacific front in World War II, pH scale- percentage of hydrogen scale (defines base or acid) 0-3: Strong Acid, 4-6: Weak Acid, 7: Neutral, 8-10: Weak Base, 11-14:Strong Base. Turn a trinomial (sometimes called polynomial) into a binomial by factoring down- make sure to have +/- signs correct! The theme of the first chapter of Mein Kampf was that Hitler had a great opposition to being a civil servant. Can't you see how this might drive me totally insane? I'm going utterly bananas. So would you mind going off of overdrive for the time being? You will probably thank yourself for it in the end.

My Kindest Regards,

Cornet Crazie

5.18.2010

Messed Up Marching

Yeah. This was pretty much me by the end of our marching practice, except of course, I'm a girl. Let's see.....OH YEAH.

An 8th grader decided that his saxophone wold make a good weapon.

My rank forgot all the commands and started moving on two whistles and stopping on four even though it's supposed to be the opposite.

I'm pretty sure that I saw about five collisions.

Our field is basically one giant sinkhole. REAL great for marching on.

Need I say anymore? I mean, I think that most people were really trying hard, but it's just those few that get me over the edge. And now I have....homework. Only 18 more days Cornet Crazie.....only 8 more. Great. Now I'm talking to myself. :P

5.17.2010

Another........MISCELLANY MONDAY!



Welcome to another Miscellany Monday! :) I love these- they are so much fun.

(1. Caramel Apples- So I really love caramel apples right? I mean, who doesn't? Well, at Funtown on Saturday they were selling some and I was SO excited. But then. Sadness. Because one caramel apple cost like $5!!!!! Crazy for a little piece of yummy fruit dipped in a sauce. Ridiculous. So, needless to say, I didn't buys one.

(2. Squidward. I'm assuming that most of you at least know what Spongebob is right? You know the character Squidward? Well, I honestly don't know what happened but sometime around last Thursday all these pictures of him started popping up all around the school. They're EVERYWHERE. Taped to computers and walls and lockers and whiteboards and doors.....sigh. It's getting on my nerves.

(3. Verb Blast. Round one of verb blast in French was.....EXCELLENT! What happens is that you have to conjugate six (irregular) verbs -totally correctly- to get a hundred....or else you get a zero. And you have to keep taking it until you get TWO one hundreds. I had to conjugate the verbs: être, avoir, aller, faire, pouvoir and vouloir. Happiness for me...I got a hundred first time and only need to do the same this Friday.

(4. Captains and Cruise Ships- OK so do any of you know the song Captains and Cruise Ships by Owl City? Starts like this:

I am stuck
In LA,
Through the week,
And can't get away.
And you're alone,
On the pier,
In West Palm beach,
On your holiday.

And then the refrain goes like this:

Old captains,
And brand new cruise ships,
Sailing across the briny seas.
I'll crash my bedraggled desk job,
And swim through the debris.

Well I had it on my playlist for a while and then it simply.....disappeared! I have no idea what happened to it, but I can't find it to put it back on and that makes me sad :'(

5.16.2010

Fire! (and softball)

*Makes really sad crying face* No, my house didn't burn down. But the ice cream store down the street did last night!!! It is very sad because they had good ice cream, but they are trying to re-open as soon as possible. Plus it's such a landmark in our town! Here's a blurb about it that I found online:

Red's Dairy Fire

Fire broke out early Sunday morning at a South Portland landmark. Crews were called to Red's Dairy Freeze at 167 Cottage Road around 3 a.m. Investigators are not saying how the fire started or releasing any information about possible damage. A News 8 local viewer sent in photos and you can see smoke billowing from the building. Red's Dairy Freeze has been in business since 1952. Stay with News 8 and WMTW.com for updates on this story.


On a lighter note, I have 3 softball games today. We already played 2 of them and lost both (7,2    8,0) and I've got my last one at 7:15. Oh yeah! Under the lights! :) Also, I think I'll be getting Mein Kampf either tomorrow or Tuesday so that's something to keep me busy.

5.15.2010

Band and Amusment Park- What's Better Than That?

Today was just awesome. Our band went to this thing called the Funtown Festival of Concert Bands. Funtown is a really cool amusement park about a half hour away from where I live, by the way. Anyhoo, we first went to this middle school in the morning and did a performance and worked in a little clinic for a bit, and then it was back to the bus and on to Funtown! Most of the time there I was with a big group of lots of my friends. The girls: Me, Bella, Hannah, Hannah, Ellie, Emily, Haley, Cassidy, and  Chloë. The boys: Liam, Taylor, Jon, Chris, Jakob, Gilead, Harel, Christian and Colin. So, as you can see, we had quite a large group! It was really great when our whole group filled up the ride, especially on my two favorite rides: Excalibur and Dragon's Descent. Excalibur is this really fast old wooden roller coaster and it was so much fun! I only went on it four times (which isn't a lot for me) but it was great all the same. I was kinda afraid of going on Dragon's Descent at first because I'd gone on it with Bella two years ago and hated it. But I decided to give it another chance, and this time I had so much fun I actually went on it twice! Dragon's Descent is on of those rides where there's a car around this really big square pillar and you go really high up (as high as 22 stories!!!!!) and it stops at the top for like 15 seconds and you can see for so far and your just dangling there loosely strapped in and then........it drops. Really fast. What a thrill!!!! Of course I went on many other rides but those where my favorites =^.^= I had so much fun hanging with all my friends and going on the rides. It was just a really awesome day.

5.14.2010

Crazy about books

Have I mentioned that I love to read? And love history? Hmmm. Maybe not the history part, but I'm sure I've mentioned my love for a good read :) Anyway...In social studies we have been learning about World War II and in language arts we are also doing WWII/Holocaust stuff. And you know what? It's really cool. I mean, obviously Auschwitz (the largest concentration camp) and Hitler are like the epitome of un-cool horrors, but the records that people have left and written afterward are just fascinating! These books are really able to show what was happening during that time period and I (being the geek that I am) have taken this opportunity to read as many good WWII/Holocaust books as possible, because the truth is that I'm learning so much, and we have to be aware of what happened back then so that we can prevent it in the future. I wish I could get cover pictures but I can't upload any pics for some reason :'(

(reviews are from amazon.com)

The first book I read was:

Jackdaws by Ken Follett

I picked up this book in my math teachers little library when I had nothing to read for SSR. It was a nice thick book and looked pretty interesting, so i sat down to read and was hooked. I finished it last Tuesday. Here are the reviews:

"Each book by Ken Follett, one of the most successful suspense writers of our time, is a welcome event. With Jackdaws, he returns to his most successful era, the darkest days of World War II.
It is 1944 and the Allies are preparing for the invasion of Europe. In the occupied town of Sainte-Cecile, the French Resistance is preparing to blow up the chateau that now houses the crucial telephone exchange connecting the French telephone system to that of Germany. Bombers have been unable to inflict enough damage on the chateau to disrupt communications for more than a few hours at a time, but the Allies need to make sure that communications is down for longer so that there will be as little warning of the invasion as possible.
Felicity Clariet, known as Flick, is a British secret agent patrolling the streets around the chateau waiting for the first explosions that will give the signal for the attack to begin. She is married to Michel, a Resistance fighter. When the operation goes horribly wrong, they barely escape with their lives and Flick returns to her home in London--but not for long. When Flick returns to France it will be as part of an audacious, quickly assembled plan to put female spies in the chateau as telephone operators and cleaners, enabling the Allies to destroy the ability of the Exchange to warn Germany in advance of the landing on the beaches of Normandy. The twists and turns of the plot will keep you on the edge of your seat.
Follett tells us that Jackdaws is based on a true story. The Special Operations Executive sent 50 women into France as secret agents. Thirty-six survived."
"Time is running out. With D-Day rapidly approaching, the Nazis are actively trying to quash the French resistance. Meanwhile, Britain's Special Operations branch is working hard to supply the resistance with intelligence, supplies and agents. Felicity "Flick" Clairet is one of England's most effective operatives in northern France. Having failed in an assault on the Nazis' main European telephone exchange, she regroups in England for another attempt, this time with an all-female team that will infiltrate the exchange under the guise of a French cleaning staff. Unfortunately, finding female agents fluent in French proves impossible and Flick resorts to crash-training nonprofessionals for the task. Imagine Charlie's Angels (minus the campiness) in The Guns of Navarone. Written in Follett's (Pillars of the Earth, etc.) riveting style and with his penchant for historical detail, the Jackdaws (the codename of the all-girl team) are given a heightened air of authenticity with Kate Reading's performance. She flavors her confident delivery with a wry cynicism that is inherent to Flick's character, and her use of international as well as regional accents keeps the rapid narrative flowing flawlessly."
10 out of 10 stars is my rating!!!
The second book I read (and finished yesterday) was:

Parallel Journeys by Eleanor Ayer with Helen Waterford and Alfrons Heck

This was the book I read for my language arts class.
"Grade 7 and up? This is a book to make your blood run cold. Through Ayer's narrative and excerpts from Heck's memoirs, A Child of Hitler and The Burden of Hitler's Legacy, readers learn how Alfons changed from a loving, wholesome boy to a "Nazi devil" (even the Germans called the elite Hitler Youth by that name). It is frightening to see how easily young people can be swayed, and readers learn just how it happened. Alternating chapters reveal Helen Waterford's story through excerpts from her book, Commitment to the Dead, and Ayer's background material. Fleeing with her fiancee to Amsterdam after Kristallnacht, Helen was again caught in the Nazi noose and struggled to survive. As her plight grew more desperate, Alfons rose higher and higher in the Hitler Youth. Eventually, when he and his ragged corps faced annihilation by the Russians, he realized how Hitler had sacrificed his "children." When Alfons and Helen met in the U.S. 40 years after the war, they found that they shared a common purpose: to help young people understand that peace and compassion are possible between individuals, and on a larger scale as well. Their first-person accounts are interwoven with Ayer's words so seamlessly that readers are unaware of the intrusion of a third person. She is an excellent biographer, capturing nuances of her subjects' characters and personality traits. A fascinating work."
My rating? 9.5 out of 10

The third book I began this morning is:

Night by Elie Wiesel

After reading Parallel Journeys my language arts teacher suggested that I read this too.
"The quote from the New York Times on the cover of this book has it exactly right: "a slim volume of terrifying power." Wiesel's retelling of his experiences in the Auschwitz concentration camp is concise and seemingly artless. But the absence of sentimental pathos only makes the story so much more moving, so much more powerful. I first listened to this novel as an audio book some five or six years ago, and the experience was overwhelming. Since then, I've listened to it again perhaps five times, I've read it in the French original twice, and I've read the English translation by Stella Rodway once. I now know it almost by heart. Certain passages from the book would haunt my imagination for weeks, leaving an indelible imprint on my soul. For instance, I feel I know with certainty that I will remember the fate of Moshe the Beadle -- a human being of flesh and blood who once lived and breathed, and whose story is told here in but a few pages -- until my dying day. 'Never shall I forget that night' -- this is a very, *very* powerful book."
"Elie Wiesel is a survivor of Auschwitz and details his experience in this book. Elie was not only a young man when he was taken to Auschwitz but a young man who lost his innocence and childhood. Elie and his family was Jewish and that was the reason for their imprisonment. True story and the book goes into great detail about his experience, feelings and horror that occurred."
I have not finished it yet, but so far, it's very good!
I'd like to read some others such as The Diary of Anne Frank and others which I will try to get a hold of after I finish this next book:

Mein Kampf (My Struggle) by Adolf Hitler

This is going to be an interesting one. He wrote it in jail before he came to power but it details all of what he wants the Nazi party to become. I believe that it will be enlightening to see it from his point of view, not that it would make me change my mind on what he did being wrong/right, but I think it will be very interesting.
*please note* This review has spelling errors and such, but it was the best one I could find.

"It's not fashionable to admit that one has read something written by Adolf Hitler. But, I did, in order to obtain balance from the other literature I've read and to better understand the psychological conflicts within the man. First, Hitler was no intellectual lightweight. I found that his analyses of military, political, historical, and economic affairs was quite insightful! Not bad for an artist from Linz (beautiful town by the way). Hitler seems to lose rationality and experiences emotional flooding when he discusses the aristocracy, the marxists, and the jews. odd, in that it was the marxists who were supposed to rise up against the aristocracy. karl marx was jewish i believe, so the source of his hatred against the marxists might have been from that angle. it's amazing how all throughout the book, when it asserts a claim, he backs it up with brilliant logic and cites examples to support it. always, that is, except where the jewish people are concerned. there, the flood gates are opened and the ravages of hatred are unleashed. given the level of hatred for marxists expressed in this book, i'm stunned that a brilliant tyrant like stalin would ever have trusted hitler's promise not to invade russia. i had hoped to find more information on the financial sources that supported hitler's rise but it certainly wasn't to be found here. this is heavy reading and, frankly, i don't know if it is because the man was evil or because i approached the book believing that the author might be evil, but, it wasn't easy to read. Nevertheless, for anyone who wishes to study history, WW1 or WW2, Jewish studies, or political science (and, maybe even psychopathy), this ought to be required reading."
Anyway, I hope some of you may take the time to read some of these books!
(Readers Please Note: Jackdaws and Mein Kampf have extremely high lexiles (especially Mein Kampf) and Jackdaws in particular was violent. (Hey. It IS war) The other two go into detail of the horrors of concentration camps and the Hitler youth. So please make a good choice. I would not recommend the first two books (Jackdaws/Mein Kampf) to anyone who is not in high school (or an accomplished 8th grader like myself) AND has really good reading skills. The other two I would say to wait until 8th grade. Just because of the graphic horrors.)

5.13.2010

*gasp!*

Wow.......ummm.........wow. Is it really May 13 already? Only one month from tomorrow until I graduate? I have to write the date on every school paper of course, but I guess the date didn't really stick until today! I looked down at my countdown in my planner and on my gmail and saw 21 days of school left. I looked at the weeks/days/hours/minutes/seconds countdown on my iGoogle homepage and saw 4 weeks, though when I last remember looking at it it said 7! Time really flies doesn't it? Not to mention the countdown to final concert on the sidebar! 10 sectionals and 6 full band rehearsals????? That's just.........insane!

5.12.2010

The Moment You've All Been Waiting For.......WINNERS!!!

Hey all! I've FINALLY gotten around to posting the winners of the giveaway for the blog party. Before I give you the big news I'd just like to say thanks to all the people who entered the giveaway or did the questions- it was very fun! So without further ado, the 3 winners (Remember, these picked out of a hat....)  of a header/avatar set (with HTML code for matching background if desired) ARE........


The Golden Eagle


HayHay


and


Erin!


Congrats you guys!!! Please email me at trebleclefblog@gmail.com so that we can figure out what you want for your sets :)

5.11.2010

A Rap Song For A Post

Doing this a little differently today...a rap song about my day for my post! This should be interesting...


So the day started out
With a little of jazz,
But Mrs Barry said the mallet part
Lacked pizazz.

So I switched to trombone,
And she liked that better,
But then I was late to French class;
Don't do that ever! 

Then we had science testing,
All throughout the morning.
And won't lie,
It was very, very, boring!

With period four,
Comes my best class: band.
Where we play lots of music,
A trumpet in my hand.

Lunch was fun,
Eating salsa and chips,
But then it's back to science testing,
Question about an eclipse.

Finally we had free reading,
And I finished my book,
And then I ran off to chorus,
Where we do not learn to cook.

So that was my day at school.

5.10.2010

I've Joined Miscellany Monday's! {week 1}


This is a cool thing that Caressa over at lowercase letters has started and I thought it would be fun to join!!! Basically, you just post 5 really random things. My style, right?


{1} So I always hate the first day back at school after being absent for several days. Because you've missed so much schoolwork you can hardly keep up with what the teacher is talking about. Yuck........but on a lighter note, I finished my catch-up!

{2} I am in the process of reading this amazing book called Jackdaws by Ken Follett.

I would probably mess up trying to explain about it so here are two reviews from amazon.com-

"Each book by Ken Follett, one of the most successful suspense writers of our time, is a welcome event. With Jackdaws, he returns to his most successful era, the darkest days of World War II. It is 1944 and the Allies are preparing for the invasion of Europe. In the occupied town of Sainte-Cecile, the French Resistance is preparing to blow up the chateau that now houses the crucial telephone exchange connecting the French telephone system to that of Germany. Bombers have been unable to inflict enough damage on the chateau to disrupt communications for more than a few hours at a time, but the Allies need to make sure that communications is down for longer so that there will be as little warning of the invasion as possible.
Felicity Clariet, known as Flick, is a British secret agent patrolling the streets around the chateau waiting for the first explosions that will give the signal for the attack to begin. She is married to Michel, a Resistance fighter. When the operation goes horribly wrong, they barely escape with their lives and Flick returns to her home in London--but not for long. When Flick returns to France it will be as part of an audacious, quickly assembled plan to put female spies in the chateau as telephone operators and cleaners, enabling the Allies to destroy the ability of the Exchange to warn Germany in advance of the landing on the beaches of Normandy. The twists and turns of the plot will keep you on the edge of your seat.
Follett tells us that Jackdaws is based on a true story. The Special Operations Executive sent 50 women into France as secret agents. Thirty-six survived."

and...

"Time is running out. With D-Day rapidly approaching, the Nazis are actively trying to quash the French resistance. Meanwhile, Britain's Special Operations branch is working hard to supply the resistance with intelligence, supplies and agents. Felicity "Flick" Clairet is one of England's most effective operatives in northern France. Having failed in an assault on the Nazis' main European telephone exchange, she regroups in England for another attempt, this time with an all-female team that will infiltrate the exchange under the guise of a French cleaning staff. Unfortunately, finding female agents fluent in French proves impossible and Flick resorts to crash-training nonprofessionals for the task."

I am so engrossed in this book and can't wait to read more of his works!!!

{3} It is only this middle of May, and yet I am sick of the ice cream trucks already. I'm tired of hearing 'The Entertainer' over and over, and especially the really annoying trucks that play 'Pop Goes The Weasel'. A disgrace to music! It's gonna be a looooong summer......

{4} So I took a short break from writing this post to check facebook and update my status. And whatdayaknow? It's posted something on most of my friends walls about some diet plan with a link to this article I have never seen before. VERY odd......

{5} Isn't this randomness fun??? Final thing: During one field hockey practice last fall it was all drizzly and we were just scrimmaging. Well, the awesome thing was that as things were clearing up there wasn't just a rainbow. There wasn't just a double rainbow. There was a triple rainbow!!!!! Like how cool is that?

5.09.2010

Purple Ribbons

I'm home. I know that's not much of a starter sentence, but oh well. I got back in time for church this morning which was nice. Yesterday was the service and Amazing Grace was, well, amazing! It was the last thing in the service which meant I had to stay strong throughout, or else I would have never been able to play. The notes just flowed through my horn so easily, I was extremely pleased with how I played, but I think that there must have been some kind of divine interventions to pull it off the way I did! Anyway I have a purple ribbon pinned to my shirt in memory, and I plan to keep it there for a few more days. Back to school tomorrow, I hope I can catch up quickly!!!!!

5.07.2010

Amazing Grace

Can I just say it....my composition is amazing. I spent a lot of time composing and transposing my own version of Amazing Grace to play at the memorial service tomorrow. I got back from practicing with the organist a little while ago and it sounds awesome. Like really good. So, I'm happy that it turned out so well, especially since this is one of the first times that I've took on that task. I think it will be really nice tomorrow.

Another thing is that you will notice the header. I am going to keep this up until I get home, just in memory of my grandfather, and to raise awareness of the cancer that took his life.

5.06.2010

Many Things Including Cousins, Flowers, and Song

I guess this will just be a kinda of all around post, I don't really have a single topic.

First, my cousin is sooo cute! She's one and a half and I've had lots of fun playing with her. She's very funny too, and loves looking at pictures. It's so cute when she points at one and says "Mama." or "Dada".

There are lots of flowers around, and as soon as I finish typing this post I plan to grab my my camera and take a bunch of pics so look for a big pictures post when I return!!!

I'm really tired of language arts homework. Seven whole essays to be put in a booklet. YUCK!!!!!!! I'm only done with 4 1/2....

Finally, I'm going to be playing my trumpet at the memorial service on Saturday. I'm playing Amazing Grace but I'm just waiting for music that I can transpose and add my own twist to.

That's all for now!
--Cornet Crazie

5.05.2010

Safe and Sound

Hello everyone. I just wanted to let you know that my mom and I mad it safely to New Jersey about an hour ago. We were up at 4:30 and on the road at 5, plus the 7 hour drive, but we're finally here. Anyone from my school wanna give new today's news? Language arts homework....yuck.

5.04.2010

Some Sad News

Hello friends. I would've updated sooner, but it's been pretty crazy at my house this afternoon. I'm posting this from Boston, Massachusetts , two hours south of where I live. Why? Sadly, my grandfather passed away in his sleep this morning. My mom (he was her dad) was going to go down to see him today regardless, but after everything that happened I wanted to go down too. (Brother and dad will be coming down in a few days) It just felt weird not rushing down to be with the family right away. Who cares about the school I'm missing? I'll catch up. So anyway, we're crashing at my aunt's in Boston tonight and then we're on the road to Cape May, New Jersey early tomorrow morning. We'll probably get there around noon tomorrow. So that's the update. Yeah.

Finally!

YAY!!!! I finally got my storm!!!!!! Which means.....oops. I shouldn't really be typing this post if there's lightning outside right? Yeah..... besides, I need to get back to LA homework :P

5.03.2010

a taste of summer

I. Hate. Global. Warming. Just saying. It's global warming that brought us an early spring (which I don't mind) and also the uncomfortable weather today. I didn't even know what it was supposed to be like today, but lets just say that I'm glad I wore shorts instead of jeans and put my hair up! I walked outside at 7:20 this morning to leave for school and the humidity hit me. I didn't check the thermometer in the kitchen when I left, but even so early in the morning it was over 70º!!! And it went worse from there. The heat in school was awful, but not as bad as it was outside, and we couldn't open windows because it only made it hotter. Breathing became difficult because of the humidity; it was like up were choking on air, and the air itself felt solid. The auditorium was the best place because it is so big and open, but marching practice was torture. Breathing was bad within itself, but playing an instrument???? I never thought I'd say it but.....I wish we hadn't had band today, just because of the weather. Plus I was having extra problems because of my asthma. :P So I'm waiting for the giant storm that with break this spell, but I don't think it's going to happen for a few days. Yay....

Also I have a prayer request: My grandfather has been battling cancer since last summer and he's not doing particularly well right now, if you could please keep him in your thoughts.

5.02.2010

First Softball Games and Marching Band

Ohhhhhh I am aching ALL over. We had our first softball games today (A double header) and we lost them both. The first one was awful, 21-4, but the second one was better, 8-6. All and all not the best games, but oh well. My shoulder hurts, and I am ready for some olive and green pepper pizza for dinner!!!!

Other news is that our first marching practice for the parade is tomorrow morning from 9-10:30. I get to miss my very *favorite* classes, Social Studies and Science! (I really hope that you caught the sarcasm there...) The forecast is calling for scattered thunderstorms tomorrow...not during practice!!!!!!

Anyway, that's about it, just don't forget to join in with the blog parade fun! (by the way, the questions should be answered on your blog :D )

5.01.2010

Welcome to my Blog Parade/Party!


It's time to PARTY!!!!!!! I've just passed the 550 blog posts mark and I have 80 amazing followers, and that is all reason to celebrate! As with many parties there will be a giveaway and a question/answer thing. First for the giveaway:

3 people will win custom header/avatar combos!!!
(I would do a full makeover, but I'm having HTML problems. I CAN find you a matching background to go with it though) 

This is how you enter...
1st entry- Comment on this post saying that you want to enter

2nd entry- Comment saying that you are following my blog

3rd entry- Post about the party and giveaway and put the link to that post in a comment

4th entry- Comment saying that you've put the blog parade picture at the top of this post on your blog.

Now this is separate from the giveaway, but here is the questions part:

1. Why do you have the blogger name that you have?

2. Do you have any siblings?

3. Coke or Pepsi?

4. What are your feelings about thunderstorms?

5. Do you prefer the sound of a trumpet, or the sound of a flute?

6. Vegan, Vegetarian, Omnivore, or Carnivore?

7. What is your ideal pet?

8. Describe your dream life when you grow up.

9. Pick a color and write a poem about it.

10. Compose a song or conduct the band?

11. Novels or comics?

12. Laptops or desktop? Macs or PC's?

13. Would you like to go sky diving?

14. Do you want to learn to surf?

15. WHich are you more afraid of- Sharks, bears or snakes?

16. When writing- cursive, print or combination?

17. Red Sox or Yankees?

18. Do you wear glasses/contacts?

19. Do you follow over 100 blogs?

20. What is your favorite type of music?


HAVE FUN WITH THE {BLOG} PARADE!!!! :)



Daybook May 1



Date...May 1
Starting time...3:06M
Mood...confuzzled
Outside my window...very warm with no clouds!
I'm thinking...that my bad trumpet playing day better shape up within the next hour
I'm reading...Harry Potter 2
I'm listening to...The sound of the lawn mower
I'm wearing...black shorts and softball jersey
Yesterday, I...had school?
I'm excited for...the final concert
I'm sad because...um
I'm hungry for...nothing
The song stuck inside my head is...Stars and Stripes Forever (it's STILL that time of year...)
I want...for there to be no pollen in the air
I love...softball
I loathe...playing outfield
This week, my goal is...to conduct well at spring jazz
Did I meet last week's goal?...I did actually :)
Ending time...3:15M