To Younger Me

Dear Younger Eleanor,

               I know times are tough right now for you, but they won't always be like that. Don't worry about the bullies or people that are mean to you right now, because they will go away. The people that call you fat or over-weight will regret it when you become older. Stay strong, and push towards the future. You will do big things in it.
               As you grow you will become more independent and will change. You will be strong academically and will have more confidence then before. However, do note that in the future, school and life will get more challenging. If you stay on the right path, you will achieve greatness. You are a very strong, beautiful, and special girl Eleanor, always remember that and don't let anyone else tell you otherwise.

Writing Center / Reading Log

            The writing center was very useful to me this semester when writing my literary analysis. At first I was really nervous that they would, in a way, make my paper bleed red, but it wasn't like that at all. Kiddie was my helper and she was very kind and helpful to me. I explained to her what I was writing about, then she read it. She made many comments that helped me improve my paper and make it better.
             Kiddie did not destroy my paper like I thought she was going to. She commented on minor things that helped my paper reach final material. She noted that I should imbed my quotations into my sentences when trying to reference to something. Kiddie also helped me develop my introduction paragraph which I had been stuck on for the past week. I made the improvements that she pointed out and made my paper much better in return. I definitely will visit the writing center more this year.

Reading Log:
Lord of the Flies : 180 minutes

Reading Log

Reading Log:

Insurgent: 45 minutes

Lord of the Flies annotating + reading: 95 minutes

Total: 140 minutes

State Meet

         The cross country season officially ended yesterday. The state meet, the final and last meet of the season, was held in Natchitoches. As a cross country team we all took two buses down to the meet. The ride was three hours long! That was a pretty long time to be sitting in a bus. When we got there we ate some lunch and then all got ready for the races. The boy's varsity ran first. Bryan Stamey finished first out of the entire race. Alex Dunbar got third overall, and Jack Bowman fished tenth. Since we had so many runners in the top ten, the boy's won state. The boy's did their very best yesterday. 
         The girl's varsity also raced yesterday. They stated second however, which was at 3:15. The girl's also ran their hardest. Alisha finished eighth overall and performed very well. We all did our very best this season and I am proud of our team. I am sad that the season is over, but am excited for tennis season 

Self Prompt

What are you excited about for the holidays? Are you going anywhere?

             I am very excited for the holidays, they are going to be packed. Although, I am not going anywhere special for Thanksgiving. However I will get to see my family when they come down to visit us. Every year we eat as a family together at my grandmother's house and the food is always so delicious. I can't wait to have my grandmother's macaroni again. I also can't wait to just have a week of rest and peace away from school.
             My Christmas break is going to be very packed. As soon as I finish exams, my holiday will start. I will be attending multiple family parties and will be unwrapping many gifts. Then it will be off to the mountains for me. I am going to Gatlinburg, Tennessee for the Christmas holiday. We are going to stay in a cabin for a week in a half in freezing cold weather. I am so excited to see snow and icicles! I also cannot wait to go skiing once again. I am very excited for the holiday season.

Reading Log:
LOTF : throughout the week 95 minutes (inside and outside of class)
Insurgent : 30 minutes
Total: 125 minutes

Metro Meet

            As most of you know I run on the cross country team. We have been training since the beginning of the summer for the season. Today was the JV's last competing meet. It was sad to know that this was the end of the season, but it was relieving to know that we had finished strong. I ran in the open race today and ran the two mile course. It was challenging, as always, but was fun since it was our last meet. I ran hard and finished the two miles in 20:18 (twenty minutes and eighteen seconds). For me that was a PR (a personal record)! 

            I ran and ran and ran until I felt as though I couldn't move my feet anymore. But then I saw the finish line. I looked toward the line and ran as hard as my feet would muster, breathing hard, in and out. The finish was so close to my reach and was only a quarter of a mile awake. You will finish strong I continued to think as I raced to the finish. Finally I crossed the line and felt amazing, I had finished my last race of the season with a bang. I am now ready to go to the state meet to cheer on my teammates in their race to the finish. 

Island Captive Meeting

           Looking back at the simulation that we ran in class, I thought that we handled the situation pretty productively and in a sophisticated way. We were very well organized and thought the whole process of survival through. In this real life situation I think we would have handled it the same way. We would have sat down and thought about what we would do as a group and what was needed to survive. Then we would split up and would acquire or create the things necessary for survival. Although, there would be a ton of panic reactions in real life. But, overall I think we would organize and plan a way to survive and get off the Island with ease.
            However,  there would be some problems with our plan. People would argue who would get authority and who would make the major decisions for the group. Also some people might argue about their role in survival, such as disliking their position. Finally there would be many psychological problems with being stranded on an island. Some people might lose their temper and go on a rampage, or some might just lose themselves completely and forget who they are. These problems could eventually be overcome however with just a little help from organization.

Reading Log:
Lord of the Flies by William Golding - 42 minutes (in class) 15 minutes (outside of class)
Writing Center Appointment for Literary Analysis on November 6th at tutorial - 30 minutes
Insurgent by Veronica Roth - 47 minutes

Total: 134 minutes

Reading Log

"A Worn Path" written by Eudora Welty (reread about 3 times throughout the week and weekend) :  75 minutes
Insurgent Free reading : 55 minutes
Literary Analysis Work TIme : 60 minutes
Total : 190, or 3 hours and 10 minutes

Divergent Trailer

             The divergent trailer came out this past week following the release of Allegiant. I was walking into the movies and was about to give the man my ticket when I saw it. It was two different movie posters, one with Tris and her 3 black sparrow tattoos, and the other Four's back which showed the river of tattoos that flowed down his back. I immediately stopped and stared. I was shocked. I had been waiting for this moment for a long time. I then immediately took out my phone and pulled up youtube. I typed in divergent and the first thing that popped up was divergent trailer. My eyes lit up as I clicked the search button. 

             I then saw a video titled Divergent Trailer release and quickly clicked on it. My eyes were glued on the screen as the loading circle turned round and round. Then it finally showed. The trailer began. Even though it was only an introduction I felt like I was watching the actual movie. It was over before I knew it and I flashed back into reality. Even though it was only a one minute and sixteen second trailer, it had made my night. I am now extremely excited for the movie to come out and will be at the midnight premier on March 21st 2014. 

Reading Response

           Out of the three short stories that I read, I think "A Worn Path" by Eudora Welty is the most reliable. I think the idea of the worn path that she knew so well is something I could look at more closely to see if I can catch anything different or a deeper meaning. I also think I could interpret the idea of some stereotyping  remarks that were inflicted on Phoenix. Such as being called granny and grandma throughout the story. Were these comments meant to hurt, or meant to show respect?
           Another story I read was "Araby" by James Joyce. This story comes in second in my reliability. It could be useful in the idea of this powerful love that this boy felt for this girl who he barley knew. However, it doesn't have a lot of things that I could interpret to match a thesis that I would make. The only evidence that I could take would be the little signs of affection that he showed every now and then, but beyond that I feel like I would just be stating facts.
          The last story that I read was "The Sniper" by Liam O'Flaherty. This story would be my last choice for my literary analysis. It is just too vague and doesn't have any deep meanings that I could pull from it. It is so short and frankly I didn't find any importance or significance that stood out to me in the story. I would rather use a short story that I can dig into to write an analysis on.

Log:
"Araby" : 37 minutes
"The Sniper" : 23 minutes
"A Worn Path" : 53 minutes
Insurgent : 50 minutes

Total: 163 minutes

Reading Log + Personal Questions

Log:
    Insurgent:
         10/9 - 30 minutes
         10/12 -  45 minutes
         Total: Pages 270-340 = 175 minutes

    Short Story Work- 45 Minutes

    Total number of minutes: 120


Personal Questions:
In what genre of writing do I most excel in?
Can my mood affect my writing, either positively or negatively? & Can I use my mood to my advantage?
In what area am I most focused in when writing?

Reading Log

Reading Log:

      "Waltz Of The Fat Man" - 45 minutes (took time annotating in color-coated form)

      "From Clay We Are Created"- 55 minutes

      " Girls in their Summer Dresses" - 30 minutes

Total: 130 minutes

Short Story Map

Exposition:
There is going to be an overlook at the kingdom of Essance Hollow as a whole.
It will explain the features of the hollow, roles of the people, and the basic situation they will be in
Also there will be an introduction to all the characters

Rising Action:
Eve (the king's daughter) will finally leave the hollow to go and explore the other side of the realm
Then she will meet Ash (another elf, who isn't from her kingdom but from another one)
They will fall in love and Eve will sneak out to see him
Then Eve will learn a terrible secret about Ash

Climax:
Eve will decide wether or not to stay with Ash or abandon her family and kingdom
Or she might find a way to have the best of both worlds involving the kingdom and Ash
Then she will act
This will be the highest action of the story

Falling action:
Eve chooses what destiny she wants
Then whatever she chooses will decide what kind of a life she will live

Resolution:
I don't know the resolution yet, I don't know wether it should be happy or sad
I will eventually decide

"A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings"

      This week we read a very old man with Enormous wings. I liked the story, however it was very confusing. I was confused by the changing of the story. One place you are here, others you are here. I thought it was very discombobulated. I didn't realize that the story had taken place for over a couple of years until Dr. D told us in class.
      The entire story also was weird but fascinating. The fact that there was this old man with wings that seemed to be an angel. However, the people annoyed and tortured the poor man. They were afraid of what they didn't know. I thought "A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings" was a good representation on how stories are not always what they seem to be.

Log:
Man with enormous wings - 35 minutes
Dry september- 45 minutes
Insurgent- 40 minutes

Thoughts of Drifting Away

          Tossing, turning, heart racing. So many questions, with so little answers. Why can't I be free? and What kind of things are out there lurking in the dark forrest just waiting for me to explore them? I constantly keep my mind on leaving Essancee, and seeing for myself what is out there beyond our gates. You can call me a trouble seeker all you want, but all I want is to be free. 
          Why does daddy always have to protect me, when will I be big enough to be on my own? O ya never. I am the daughter of the great Broderick, ruler of Essancee Hollow, so you could say I am kind of a princess. My dad is always protective and careful when it comes to me. He knows my longings and desires, but never wants to lose me, therefore I am forced to stay in the Hollow where I am under protection. My life has no excitement, no new ideas, no reason. But I will change that. I thought. Before I knew it I was fast asleep. 

A&P

         The short story A&P was very interesting to me. I loved how it related to our world today. How a guy sees a pretty girl and gets excited, sometimes too excited. I enjoyed how it related to the cockiness of some guys today, acting like a brave hero, just to get a girl to notice him, which doesn't always turn out well. Some get too big for their britches and make a fool of them-self trying to impress a girl.
         Another great factor of this story was its character descriptiveness. Each character was described with great detail. The "Queenie" was the most detailed of all. This short story gave you a perfect picture of this girl wearing a bathing-suit walking into this grocery. The detail of her face, her figure, her bathing-suit, even her skin was excellent. I thought this short story was very well written and descriptive.

Log:

Monday: Short Story - 30 minutes
Thursday: Short Story - 30 minutes
Friday: Short Story - 45 minutes (paid attention to annotation)
Sunday: Insurgent - 15 minutes

E-Book

           I am very excited to make an E-Book. I think through it I can show not only my writing skills, but also my creativity. My literacy narrative was about writing my very first short story, which matured my way of writing immensely. I think my narrative is in tip-top shape and is ready to be published. However, I could use some designing to make it even better.
           I think that I could make my literacy narrative by making visuals and by using my artistic skills. I think adding pictures would make my story more visual and interesting. Also I think that the cover/title page of my narrative should be exquisite. I had the idea of editing a picture of a moon the background of the cover. Then, I would use papyrus and a blood colored font to make the title and the cover-page match. I think this would be a great way to catch my reader's attention. My main focus is going to be the design of the narrative, so I will spend almost all my time on it.

Reading Log

            I really enjoyed reading Sienna's blog on Syria this week. I was going to blog about my outside book, until I read her blog. She did a great job of writing her opinions without trying to offend anyone and proved her point across. I read over it and thought to myself that she did have a very good point.
            The whole fiasco in Syria has been all that is talked about lately. I also have heard many opinions just as Sienna has, and also think that we shouldn't get involved. Getting into all this chaos would just hurt our economy more. We also shouldn't be spending all our money on other people's problems, we are too much in dept right now. Also, Syria is basically starting a civil war in their country, let them fight and end it, just as we did in 1861 during our war. I always feel like everyone relies on the U.S. to come "save" the day, when people should stand up, put on their big girl panties, solve deal with their own problems. Getting involved would make our lives much more complicated and difficult, so I believe we should stay out of Syria's issues.


Log:

Monday~ literacy narrative 45 mins
Wednesday~ literacy narrative 45 mins
Thursday~ literacy narrative 30 mins
Friday~ Insurgent 15 mins

Total: 135 minutes

The Interrogation

The room is dark and cold, and then the bight light hits my face and burns my eyes. A broad man with big shoulders in a dark suite walks to the other side of the table and sits directly across from me. He stares at me with his big, cold, black eyes.

"Have you ever seen these young girls Mr. Hathoway?" He asks as he lays four photos on the shining silver table. The photos look familiar to me. 

"Yes, they are four of my students." I say as I wonder why I am here in this creepy and off-putting room. 

"Well did you also happen to know that they went missing three days ago and were found dead in the Manciac Forrest?" He slides four more photos of mangled, disfigured, and dirty looking bodies with blood all over their chests onto the table. I flinch back in disgust and horror. 

"Oh my god." "They were some of the kindest and most thoughtful girls in the entire school, i wonder why someone would do such a thing to these innocent young girls." I look down at the photos and just shake my head in disbelief and with no comprehension. 

"Did these girls have any enemies, any arguments or disagreements with people that you remember?" He looked at e with his cold eyes, It felt like he could see right through me. 

"Not that I know of no, but there was this one girl named Emery.""She is another girl in the grade.""One day I was walking back to my classroom to finish grading some Abraham Lincoln essays, and overheard some girls talking." I played with my fingers for a second thinking about that exact moment. ""I heard a girl yelling in disgust and turned to see who it was.""Then I saw Emery, and the four girls standing there.""One of the girls was yelling at Emery and it got pretty heated""One of the girls had to pull her back and then they just turned and walked their separate ways""The last thing I saw was Emery storming away in the opposite direction" I look up hoping that the evidence I gave the man would believe me. The man had gotten up and had been pacing for awhile and then finally rested and spoke.

"Is this all you know?" He looks at me with the sternest and most serious looking face. 

I nod in nervousness "Yes, I swear." Next thing I know I was being escorted out of the building. Once outside I got in my car and smirked a little, he put his trust in the wrong person, and drove away. 

Reading Log

Divergent, by Veronica Roth

Monday: 30 minutes
Thursday: 45 minutes
Saturday: 1 hour

Total: 2 hours and 15 mins

Pages: 216-268

Literacy Narrative Update

         I am proud of my literacy narrative in my workings so far. I have payed attention to every detail trying to make the story as vivid as possible. I made it to my third page, by just one line, so I have a pretty descent length. My story may not be the most exciting because it is based off of me watching a movie, but it is meaningful to me. That movie effected my writing and made me a better writer overall, therefore I think that story is worth telling.
         My only concern with this paper is the title. I cant decide wether it should be to the point or eye-catching and exciting. The title I have picked for now is Red Riding Hood, but I believe in time I will change it. The Blood Moon sounds like a pretty flamboyant title, but will it fit with my literacy narrative? I have a lot of thinking to do before I find the perfect title.

Literary Narrative

             For my literacy narrative last week I read "Always Living In Spanish" by Marjorie Agosin. At first I thought this literacy narrative was just going to be about spanish people, but it was so much more. This story that this woman has to tell shocked me in so many ways. The fact that she moved to the United States because of the problems she faced in Argentina completely astonished me. The problems she faced were unreal, people disappearing and being tortured to death, and killing of innocent people. She moved to escape but faced more problems entering the U.S.
            Not like she had enough problems in her life like losing most of her family, she wasn't accepted in the United States. She was outcasted for being foreign and not being able to speak english very well. The way she stayed strong baffled me. To remember her upbringing and heritage, she wrote poems in spanish. She felt she could express all of her feelings through this language. One day, her work was published so that the entire world could know her story. This story was so powerful and made me think of how lucky I am to live in such safe conditions. It changed my way of thinking, made me less selfish, made me open up to new ideas and ways of life. I truly loved reading "Always Living In Spanish" by Marjorie Agosin.

Reading Response

             So-far I am still reading Insurgent. Personally I think it becomes more and more intense as you read further. The book has just gotten deeper and more complex. I love how Veronica Roth continues to keep all this action going, without the story becoming a gory mess. Tobias and Tris are still facing tough obstacles in their relationship, but are managing to not tear apart for good. Another thing I love about this book is that the author leaves room for a little romance in all this chaos. It is almost like it is a little beam of light shining through all this darkness.
             The character development in this book is also fantastic. Veronica shows the growth, maturing, and reactions of the characters in this terrible situation. Another thing I love about this book is the descriptiveness of it. While I am reading, I feel like I am right there, in all the action and chaos. This makes me want to only read more and more.
             This week I read my two hours over a period of three days, Monday, Wednesday, and Sunday. Monday I read for forty-five minutes, Wednesday thirty and Sunday another forty-five. I am naturally a slow reader and read from page 162 to page 216.

The Faith Walk

It all started at Camp Hardtner two years ago. That summer I was going into the eighth grade and was trilled to be at camp for the first time. Everyday we played games after games after games. Every night we had special event. Just so happened that the Friday of camp was the 13th of June. The counselors thought it would be fun to take a faith walk with one boy cabin and one girl cabin. They grouped the girl's cabins with a boy cabin and brought us through the woods and told us to look at the stars. Right as I looked up at the gorgeous nighttime sky, I heard a scream coming from the front of me. I looked to see what had happened and saw a dummy hanging from a tree. All of us started to panic and started running further into the woods, which wasn't such a good idea. Next thing we know we here a low, muffled sound coming from the left of us. Then we hear it, a chain saw, and heading fast in our direction. We all start sprinting and screaming as we run from the man with the mask. Finally we stop to catch our breath because we had out run him. As we are standing there I feel a hand on my shoulder, I turn to see a black figure with a screaming face. I scream and it lurches toward a kid named Jackson. As the figure grabs him he smacks it right in the face and knocks it to the ground. We start running again. Finally we see light, and head toward the pavilion shacking, with the palest visages. The counselors greet us and says how was your faith walk, and oh happy friday the thirteenth. I will never forget that night of horror and shock.

Reading Response

           I love reading Insurgent by Veronica Roth. The book just keeps getting better and better as you read on.  I read a total of 120 minutes over this past week. I read slower than I did last week however,  I only read from page 120-162. But overall I think I read a lot last week. I read about 30 minutes on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.
           The book has gotten more intense in the hiding from Jeanine. Heat has stirred between Tris and Four and it has gotten ugly. As you watch them hurt and tear apart you feel bad for them. You start to wonder why tough situations break people apart. Although, I am still loving the book and cant wait to read more!

Reading Log

         I read Insurgent for a total of hundred minutes and worked on class work for the other twenty. Over last week I read on Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. On thursday I read for thirty minutes, Saturday forty-five minutes, and on Sunday twenty-five minutes. I reached page 120 after reading.
         The book Insurgent, I think, is really good so-far. I like how it relates to the first book, Divergent, which I also really liked. I also love how it is basically the same story, but has some new characters and some new ideas. I know I will finish this book soon if it continues to have action, while having the love story between Tris and Four, which I enjoy so much.

Eleanor's Reading Log # 1

              I really enjoyed reading Divergent by Veronica Roth this summer. The book had a lot of adventure and romance, two of the things I love reading most. It was an amazing book, I loved it! At first I was a little confused because of all the faction names and qualities, but then I caught on.  This book grabbed my attention by relating to my dream world. I am what people call at tom-boy. I love action and adreaniline, it is my life! So, this book naturally made me wish I was dauntless.
              Since this was a summer reading book, it surprised me that I liked it so much. I mean most summer reading books that you are assigned to read are usually non-appealing or boring, but this book was different.  I loved the romance between the characters, yes I can be a girl, and am actually a hopeless romantic, but still seek thrill and excitement. I loved this book so much, it is now one of my favorites. I can't wait till the movie comes out on March 21st!