SOL - The Continuing Class Of 2016

       I've spent a lot of time thinking about when I continue. My speech will probably be no more memorable than anybody else's. Through all 8 of my years here only one speech has stood out to me. It was last year, John Walsh's speech, about unicorns and adventure. It was an amazingly creative speech. Now I think about all of my friends who are continuing this year, and how I may not even remember their speeches by this time next year. I want to make my speech memorable, but at the same time I want to blend in. Maybe it would be better to not be remembered.
       Anyway, I hate public speaking, and the thought of having to get up in front of that many people makes me want to run somewhere you will never find me. This year I've really started to think about the fact that I'm continuing next year. It's a weird thing to think about. Just this week I realized that at the end of this year when they say "the continuing class of 2016," that's going to be me. Oh god! It's too soon! Is running still an option? Nope. Nope it's not.

photo credit: http://www.ithenticate.com/plagiarism-detection-blog/bid/91110/German-Education-Minister-Resignation-Plagiarism-or-Politics#.VMrtzGjF-3Q

Beautiful Redemption By Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl Week #2

       Ethan Wate's one dream has always been to get out of Gatlin. He never expected to meet the girl of his dreams, Lena Duchannes, within the town limits. Lena isn't an ordinary teenager. She introduces Ethan to a supernatural world she and her family are part of, forever tangling their fates. When Ethan wakes up in the Otherworld after jumping off the Summerville water tower to save the world, he is miserable. He sets out on a journey to find, and fight, his way back to the Mortal world and the girl he loves.
       I think the end of Beautiful Redemption was good, but pretty predictable. If I elaborate anymore I may give away the ending, so I will leave it at that. Like in the rest of the series, the characters are well written and the plot remains interesting. I would recommend this series to people who like fantasy/supernatural and action books.

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7930335-beautiful-redemption?from_search=true



SOL - Three Point Shots

       The crowd has settled down a little, and the game has just begun. We are all supposed to stand until the Nuggets score, which, luckily, is very early on. Tonight we're playing the Minnesota Timberwolves. Their uniforms are dark blue, almost black, with zigzag stripes up the side of both the shorts and the jerseys, which have short sleeves. They look so unprofessional it's funny.

       Within moments the Nuggets get the ball and are ready to shoot. They make it from outside the three-point line, and we all cheer and sit down. As we're watching the game out of the corner of my eye I see the old usher for our section coming down the row, giving people high fives.

       When she reaches us she puts her hand out and says something like, "Three points! High five!"

       Once she walks away Sarah and I laugh and say, "I hope she doesn't do that every time!" Spoiler alert! She does.

Beautiful Redemption By Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

       Ethan Wate's one dream has always been to get out of Gatlin. He never expected to meet the girl of his dreams, Lena Duchannes, within the town limits. Lena isn't an ordinary teenager. She introduces Ethan to a supernatural world she and her family are part of, forever tangling their fates. When Ethan wakes up in the Otherworld after jumping off the Summerville water tower to save the world, he is miserable. He sets out on a journey to find, and fight, his way back to the Mortal world and the girl he loves.

       Beautiful Redemption is the last book in the Beautiful Creatures series. So far I am enjoying it greatly, though it started out slow. Sometimes the second or third book in a series can get boring, but I think the authors did a good job keeping the reader's interest throughout the whole series. In each book there has been a new problem to overcome, but they make sense in the story line and aren't random. The characters are written well, and I think the more normal characters (not supernaturals, which make up most of the characters) are fairly believable. The story is extremely descriptive, and it is easy to picture what is going on as I read. I would recommend this book to people who like fantasy/supernatural and action books.

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7930335-beautiful-redemption?from_search=true

SOL - Just The Way The Game Works

       You see, I’m not one of those people who races up the field with the ball. I leave that for midfield and offense. Me? I'm defense. The sweeper to be precise. Or is it the stopper... I don't know. Either way, I'm one and Kendal is the other. Kendal is so much better than I am, so I usually leave the long distance kicks for her. I only do the long kicks if I have the ball and time. Usually I only have one of those things, so I set Kendal up to do the kick. She, like she usually does, kicks it over half the length of the field up to the offense players, which usually end up being Sarah and Annabel. They take it the rest of the way and either have it stolen, miss the goal, or make the goal.
       Then we do it again. We all retreat to our sides, do kick off, and either we or the other team gain a point. Along the way the ball usually goes out a few times, we do throw ins, corner kicks, and, if the game is really exciting, someone might get a foul. It really is tiring. We have to run up and down the field guarding our players or trying to get open for a pass. Even with all that sometimes we don't get the point. It's pretty simple if you know what you're looking at. Like for me. When I look at it, it's just the way the game works.

photo credit: *impalaark via photopin cc

Shattered By Teri Terry

       Kyla is complicated. She is running from her past, away from the government and the Anti-Government Terrorists who fractured her personality. In hopes of finding out about her pre-Slated life she goes to live with her birth mother, who runs a home for under 21 girls. Hoping to slip under the radar, Kyla takes on a new identity: Riley Kain. Under this new name she tries to live a normal life, but quickly realizes that the ever present Lorders aren't about to let that happen for anybody.
       Shattered is the third book in the Slated trilogy, and is a confusing conclusion to the series. Although I enjoyed it, as the author introduced more characters and secrets I found it hard to keep up with. I feel like some of the characters, like Kyla/Riley, were a bit complicated and not as realistic as they could have been, though they were all interesting. There is a lot of action in this book, which I enjoyed. The end of the book left a lot of loose ends and left me wanting more, which I feel wasn't a good conclusion to the end of the series.
       Overall, I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to people who like dystopian fiction and action.

SOL - All In Black

Have you ever been standing in the dark with 3 other people just behind the curtain in a theater? Well that's where I am now. I’m standing there knowing I have to be silent and remain unseen while the last scene plays out in front of me. After we take our bows, Alisondra and Teddy have to put the cans over the floor mics, but for now we have another use for them. I hold it up to my mouth and whisper, the can amplifying my voice just loud enough for the others to hear. As we try to stifle our laughter I pass the can to the next person, who does the same. We stand there and giggle, hoping the audience can’t hear our laughter.

Finally, the lights go out and the actors come backstage, making the small area even more cramped. We whisper and shift, trying to fit everyone in the right order, actors first, then stagecraft. When the lights come back up, the first wave of young actors spill out onto the stage, and we shift again to accommodate for the new space. When it’s my turn, I walk out onto the stage and meet the rest of my group in the center. We bow, and move off to the sides to make room for the next group. By the time everyone is out onstage it is so crowded we are almost standing on the carpet. When we take our group bow, it hits me. This was the first performance I've helped with at Logan. That was my theater dream since Primary. And I’m here, getting praised by my friends and family, finally living that dream. Dressed all in black, I decide I’m happy.