Hawaii

Right now Maryland is filled with snow, I'm sick of snow!  I need a vacation, I need to feel the salty ocean water and sun on my skin, that's why if I could go anywhere within the continental United States it would be Hawaii!  I love the islands and I've never been!  I love anything tropical, sunny, warm, bright, and beautiful.  The water is crystal clear with huge waves!  Just thinking about it makes me wish it was the summer!  The ocean is probably my most favorite place to be and the oceans in Hawaii are absolutely gorgeous!  I am absolutely in love with the sandy beaches, the clear water, the gorgeous scenery, and every other aspect of Hawaii. 

If I were to take a trip to Hawaii first off I would need a lot of sunscreen!  I have very fair skin and I would not like to spend my vacation with bad sunburn!  I would also need bathing suits.  I love the water and would probably spend most of the day in the ocean.  Another necessity I would need to get is a map of the island.  I love to explore and I would want to go around and see the island, but I wouldn’t want to get lost!  I would need to get a lot of water so I don’t get dehydrated in the warm weather.  I would also want to bring my camera so I can get some good pictures of the beautiful scenery.

Hopefully I will be able to visit Hawaii soon!  If I do I will take a lot of pictures.  I will also go snorkeling and maybe hike around a volcano!  It seems like there are a lot of fun and interesting activities I could do in Hawaii and maybe I’ll even take surfing lessons!  I would have the best time in Hawaii!

http://www.adventure-travel.org.uk/AMERICA_N/hawaii.php

Jon Krakauer

Jon Krakauer loves adventure!  When he was a young boy his dad introduced him to mountaineering and he fell in love with it.  As he grew up he traveled to different mountains and climbed them.  One of the places he went to was in Alaska, where his book Into the Wild takes place.  After adventurous trip to Mt. Everest in 1996 Karkauer started writing.  Since then he has published many award winning books including, Into the Wild.

Starting to read Into the Wild!

English, Sarah.
Into the Wild is based on a true story about a guy that goes into the wild!  The main character hitchhikes to Alaska and is able to survive for 119 days!  His journey takes place from 1990 and he survives for about 100 days before dying.  I really love the outdoors so I'm very excited to read this book and learn more about survival!  This book seems so full of adventure, I'm thrilled to read it!   I will keep you updated on it!

http://ryanpatton.glogster.com/Into-the-Wild-Before-the-End/

NEW SEMESTER!

     It's a new semester!!  We are still reading a Mid Summer's Night Dream, but we are going to read a new book soon thats a true story called, Into the Wild!  I'm starting to realize it isn't that hard to make friends and everyone here is so nice!  I've grown almost an inch from September!!  Well hope your year is going good!(:

Character Sketch Essay: Along For the Ride

January 11, 2011

Along for the Ride

Auden, an extremely smart and independent, yet socially challenged teenager, inherited her mother’s critical and judgmental personality.  Because of her lost childhood she grew up with a very mature nature; however, when Auden visits her dad for the summer she learns not only can she be sociable but even a little flirtatious as she makes friends and relives something she should have had years ago.  Making up for lost time and reliving a past she never had, Auden learns that she can be more than an exact replica of her shallow, self-centered, judgmental, incredibly intelligent mother.  Sarah Dessen illustrates the thrills of a lost childhood, the myth behind people changing, and one girl’s life-changing journey in arguably her best novel yet, ‘Along for the Ride’.

Auden West not only acts like her mother, but shares her mother’s looks too.  Her long dark curls, liberated attitude, and a deep critical overlook on life were all traits of her mother.  Auden kept to herself and didn’t make many friends because she could not relate to them.  “Because of this upbringing, I had kind of a hard time relating to other kids my age” (8). Despite these positive and negative elements Auden is a completely different person by the end of the summer.

Many events happen that change Auden, one of which being when her brother’s girlfriend comes into town.  She brings back with her a gift, which is a picture frame with Hollis, Auden’s brother, in front of the Taj Ma Hal that says on the bottom, “Best of Times.”  A harsh and terribly true reality dawns on Auden; she would have absolutely no pictures that could fit this frame, “They (referring to Hollis and her friends) probably had a million pictures that could fit in this frame, but I didn’t have a single one” (16).  She begins to realize that she has wasted her life on academics and trying to please her parents when she should have been a normal teenager.  This realization leads to a decision that triggers more life-changing events for Auden; she decides to stay at her dad and step-mom’s house.  “And just like that, my summer changed” (16).

During Auden’s first night at her step-father’s summer home she finds herself at a local hangout called ‘The Tip’.  She gets together with a boy named Jake, resulting in some trouble from Jake’s ex Maggie.  Maggie and Auden end up working together, “Maybe in the world of girls, this was supposed to be a turning point.  When we saw beyond our initial differences, realized we had something in common after all, and became true friends” (45).  Over the course of Auden West’s summer she learns that there is more to people than meets the eye.  Maggie came off to her as a stuck up girl who only cared about clothes and boys until she learned that Maggie is actually going to one of the most prestigious colleges in the country, with Auden.  Through Maggie, Auden also meets Eli, a boy dedicated to giving Auden the past she never had and even teaches her how to ride a bike.  Eli even jokes with her about how good she is getting at riding, “And here I thought you couldn’t ride a bike” (374)

What changed Auden West the most was the time she spent with her father.  She had always seen her father as the type of man who ran away from anything.  When things got to complicated he bailed out.  With his newborn baby of course things were chaotic and he tried to leave it all which broke Auden’s heart because her dad did the same thing to her.  Auden’s step mom Heidi makes this point very clear, “You have done this before Robert.  Twice.  You knew what it was like to have an infant in the house” (262).  Eventually Auden’s father did come back though and did not abandon his family again, “Sometimes, you get things right the first time.  Others, the second.  But the third time, they say, is the charm.  Standing there, a quitter myself, I figured I would never know if I did not get back on the bike, one last time” (369). 

By the end of Auden’s summer she discovers who she truly is.  She is not trying to be her mother, her brother, or taking bad habits from her father, but she is just herself and she learns that people love her for it, “Because it was obvious, this true difference in me now:  I had these experiences, these talks, more of this life” (361).  Because of her father’s rough summer with a newborn in the house Auden learns people can always change for the better and she should never expect the worst out of someone, “But I wanted to keep believing people could change, and it was certainly easier to do so when you were in the midst of it” (182).  Thanks to Eli, Maggie, and countless other friends Auden made along the summer she learns that she can still have a memorable childhood she always wanted, “…but mostly we disc5ussed making up for lost time, if such thing was possible” (89).  Auden West’s transformation is teaching us that people can change, second chances are real, it is never too late to find yourself, you can always make up for lost time, and if you fall off the bike get back on one last time because you are just along for the ride. 

Book of the Month

The Noticer by Andy Andrews is by far the best book of the month.  Have you ever contemplated the secret to success, healthy marriage, and a good long life filled with people you love?  Well what if there was a secret to anything you ever wanted?  Well there is, and Andy Andrews fills you in on the secrets to life.  An old man Jones, he refuses to be called anything but that, takes a poor homeless man and tells him how to succeed.  Within a few years the poor homeless man turns into a wealthy happily married business man.  Jones transforms a relationship heading for divorce into a healthy one.  The secrets you come across in this book can be applied to your daily life and help you become happier.  This book should be recommended for mature ages because younger audiences could lose interest.  The secret to life is right at your fingertips.

http://workfromhomesuccesszone.com/self-improvement/the-noticer-by-andy-andrews-book-review/