What is Pride?

              What is pride?  Pride means to be proud.  Is pride good or bad?  I think that pride is both good and bad.
               I think that pride is bad because often times we get too prideful and become self absorbed.  Which leads us to make bad, hurtful decisions.  I think pride is a good thing because its important to be proud of yourself.  I think that being proud builds your self esteem, and your self confidence.
               There's also many other good and bad things that having pride can do.  I can't name them all, so what I listed will have to do.

Reading book report one: Fable Haven book four: Date: October 29, 2013

             I disliked the end of the story.  In it the author impossible it was to get hold of the artifact on the preserve Wyrmroost.  Then when they had to battle the three guardians shielding the artifact they defeated them too easily.  I think that maybe Brandon Mull was excited or something because it was rushed.  In fact it was so rushed and easy that I thought that the impossible part of the story was easier or just as hard as earlier threats.  On working on the other obstacles the characters had to face Brandon Mull took his time.  The rushed ending made it less exciting.  The tension never built up high enough.
               Gavin, the boy who Kendra had a crush on, was a very good fighter and contributed a lot in fights with dangerous creatures.  He was also a dragon tamer.  Dragon tamers are able to talk to dragons without being paralyzed by the magical fear they use to freeze people.  As the story progresses Gavin leaves his friends with permission to try to put a hydra to sleep with arrows dipped in a fluid that causes you to sleep.  Then later when Tanu, Mara, Dogan, Trask, Seth, Gavin, and Kendra (Warren was in a magical room in a knapsack because he'd been wounded) were trying to escape from dragons, the team is split up.  Dogan, Gavin, Mara, and Kendra charge toward a small crevice in which the dragons won't be able to fit in.  When a dragon blocks their path Gavin tries to keep it from devouring them.  Seeing there's no hope he charges the dragon and as he does he turns into a dragon himself (his true form).  He starts to battle the other dragon then stops to gobble up Dogan.  Then he knocks Mara off the cliff and thrusts Kendra onto the ground with his claws.  Kendra now realizes that hes been a traitor all along and that hes only acted like he cared about her.  Then he showed his true form, which was uncaring.  After Gavin battles the other dragons he transforms back to human and goes after Kendra, whom he was assumed to like.  This was a huge change of character in the story.  He used to be a nice stuttering boy, but now he was a cruel heartless beast.rea

The Progression of my Relationship With my Sister

                    My sister and I have never really gotten along well.  Most of our relationship is just plain arguing.  We don't take the time for each other very much.  I'm either always firing back at her or I try to be nice.  So nice that I'm taken advantage of.  I've always thought its impossible for her to be nice to me, unless she works at it for a terribly long time.  Recently, I've somehow found the happy medium.  I'm nice to her, and at the same time being myself.  Instead of criticizing her and telling her what and what not to do, I've started suggesting.  Although its been less than a week I've seen lots of changes coming together Now we've been spending more time together and shes been willing to take my suggestions. I've also seen changes in myself.  I'm more patient and I'm more willing to help my sister out.  By showing kindness it hasn't just affected her relationship with me its affected the whole family.  My sister no longer yells at my other sister, instead she asks for her to please stop doing something that's annoying.  I plan to continue progressing in becoming a better person to my family.

My Bucket List (and the reason why I have one of those items on my list)

BUCKET LIST


1)  See the eight wonders of the world

2)  Get a scholarship for collage

3)  Become famous

4)  Learn which clan I'm from in Ireland (or Scotland)

5)  Write a chapter book in my youth

6)  Fly in a hot air balloon

7)  Go to Italy

8)  Build a beautiful garden

9)  Go paragliding

10)  Go hang gliding


               Something I'd like to do is build a gorgeous garden that contains different kinds of  gardens in it.  By different kinds of gardens I mean like a Japanese garden, American garden, Ireland garden, Iceland garden, Ecuador garden, etc.  The reason why I have added this to my bucket list is because I want to accomplish something amazing that everyone will enjoy, like the Butchart gardens (in Canada) and the Thanksgiving Point gardens.  Its important to me because I've dreamed of having a gorgeous garden and I want to build it for my mom.  I'll have my mom help me decide so;me of the things she wants.  I can just imagine beautiful flowers blossoming everywhere.  There's occasional fountains, creeks, waterfalls, bridges, gazebos, streams, and even a lake.  There would be tons of gardens from different places with things in them from those different cultures.

Reading Response 2: Fable Haven Book Four

                  In Fable Haven book four Kendra's family and friends are out to seek the key to Wyrmroost (a dragon sanctuary) so they can recover the artifact there before the Sphinx gets it first.  The key isn't any specific key, its just any first unicorn horn (which are extremely rare).  In Fable Haven unicorns shed there horns twice in their lives.  The only one they know of is the one Patton Burgess (the old caretaker of Fable Haven) gave to the centaurs.  So they go to ask the centaurs if they can borrow the horn to help save the world.  The centaurs selfishly refuse to lend them the horn and describe how impossible it is to steal the horn.  One thing that prevents you from taking the horn is guilt.  The horn can only be given to someone or the power from the horn will fill them with extreme guilt so they will be forced to return it.  There's also many other complications that keep the horn from being stolen.
                  That night Seth takes off into the woods to Graulas' cave.  There the demon teaches him how to use the magical abilities he inherited that summer and he sets off to capture the horn.  One of his abilities as a shadow charmer prevents him from feeling magical guilt or fear, so hes able to steal the horn without feeling guilty.  What I didn't like about this part was that I thought it wasn't hard enough for him to acquire the horn.  I think that because of the impossible problems for acquiring the horn it should have been harder to retrieve it.
                     I did think it was a very creative idea about that the horn can not be taken because of the guild one would feel.  It makes you try to dig for ideas of how they could possibly lay hands on the horn without feeling guilt.  Then went Graulas calls to Seth though thoughts it assures you that he knows how to acquire the horn.

Reading Response 1: Fable Haven book four

                           In this book I have enjoyed Brandon Mulls creativity. One part I really liked was the part about the sting bulb.  The sting bulb originated as a fruit on a tree and when one of its spikes poked Kendra it took a sample of her DNA.  Then it transformed into a duplicate of Kendra.
             At the beginning of the story Kendra gets kidnapped by a sting bulb and he takes her to her real captor, Torina.  Torina is a vampire that sucks the youth out of the young to keep herself young.  Though she won't suck Kendra's youth because shes keeping her captive until her boss, the Sphinx, arrives.  So she won't suck Kendra's youth.  During Kendra's stay she meets some of Torina's victims.  When someone new is tricked into coming to Torina's house Kendra tries her best to warm the man so that he doesn't become a victim too.  She doesn't want him or anyone else to suffer the fate of Torina's other victims.
                Brandon Mull incorporates the characters feelings about the changes occurring around them.  He relates after the sting bulb (duplicate, that replaces Kendra when shes kidnapped) dies Seth, her brother, mourns over the loss of his sister.  He also describes Kendra's desperation to escape from her captors and reunite with her family.  The strong feelings he uses in these parts and other parts of the story make you feel what they feel with them.  Its written very well and it makes you sad when one of the characters is sad, happy when they're happy.

Current News Events

     
                                                      Cause of the Weber County Fire
         Earlier this morning at eight AM there was an accident involving two trucks, and one of the trucks contained diesel fuel in it.  The fuel was scattered onto the westbound and east bound lanes, and then the fire roared to life.  They then closed I-84.  Fortunately, one of the truck drivers was sent to the hospital with minor injuries.  The resources I selected told nothing of the second driver.  My resources were KSL/news.com and fox13now.com.


                                 People go to National Parks Even Though They are Closed
                     As I'm sure you all know by now that the government shut down and so the national parks closed down with it.  Even though the government closed there were still national parks with business because the people didn't care what the government.  In fact, the business doubled.  One example of this is at Dead Horse Point.  At this national park there was three hundred fifty cars that came the day before Dead Horse Point closed.  Then the next day five hundred eighty eight cars came to the national park.  Fortunately, the government has reopened and the national parks are reopening as well.  My resources were KSL/news.com and fox13now.com.


                                                  Forged Papers for Released Prisoners
          On September seventeenth Joseph Jenkins was released from the prison that confined him to a lifetime imprisonment. The reason for his lifetime punishment in the Franklin Correctional Institution was because he murdered the dad of a family of six kids.  Then another prisoner named Charles Walker was released from the same prison which bound Joseph in Florida.  Charles got released from prison on October eighth.  The documents for the prisoners read that they could get released early, when the were confined to the prison to live out their days.  Documents from the crime have told us that they were forged and the only thing that was correct about them was the chief judge's (of the case) signature.  Though, Perry (the chief judge) didn't sign the false documents.  The Florida Department of Law Enforcement has been seeking out more information about the forged documents. There is also a search for the dangerous criminals.  My resources were www.foxnews.com and abcnews.go.com.