Trees

Trees

Trees, they are; tall, short, fat and skinny. When you look at a tree you don’t really think of all the things it does for us and the earth and what we use them for and what we would do without them.

Trees look like all they do is take up space and in some circumstances cause problems, trees are much more than that. We use trees everyday whether you know it or not.  In school every time you use a piece of paper, there goes a tree limb. All of those bonfires you had in the summer with your friends, where do you think the wood came from, trees. To add to that for all those families that start fires in their homes to stay warm in the winter, they go through a lot of trees.

A very important d thing that trees do is, they take in carbon dioxide and exhale oxygen, which is the opposite of us (people).

It is very important to recycle so we aren’t knocking down trees 24/7 365 days a year. It is very important to understand that we can’t just stop cutting down trees because it would be really hard to survive in the world today without the supplies trees provide.  We can limit ourselves to the amount of trees we cut down and the reason or doing so.

Trees are very important to our environment and it is a good idea to take care of them properly and if a tree is over gown and old in your yard. For your safety you need to call professionals to cut it down so you aren’t in danger. Trees are helping us stay alive by providing us oxygen so take care of your environment and cut down the use of “tree sources” and pollution. (302)

The Difference between a Good and Bad Date

The Difference between a Good and Bad Date

The difference between a good date and a bad date can mean two different things.  It can be referring to “the date” as in the person or it can be the date itself and how it went. For starters let’s begin with “the date” as in the person.

A good date is someone who sets up a date, place and time. They don’t bail at the last minute and stick to their word. They dress appropriate for the occasion and act and look like they actually want to be there with you. When he comes to pick you up he doesn’t text you saying “I’m here, come out”. He comes up to the door and walks you out and opens and closes your door for you. When you have reached your destination to wherever you are going he gets out and helps you out of the car. While the two of you are eating dinner and he sees friends of his and they start making rude comments and saying stuff that doesn’t need to be said he shrugs it off and doesn’t get embarrassed.  He keeps his eyes on you.  A good date is just a very thoughtful person who makes sure if you need anything he gets it for you.  He will be proper and not look at other girls and check them out while you’re together and act like you are invisible.

A good date is where you feel comfortable and you both have a blast. Not all dates are good.  Some dates don’t always go like you plan and those are the ones you don’t want to go on more than once.  If you are on a date and don’t feel comfortable you need to just ask to be taken home.  Good dates are so much fun you want to keep going on them. And that’s what makes a good couple. (322)

Home

Home

Home, what is home? Yes, it’s where you live or lived but it is so much more than that.

Home is you, as a person as a friend or neighbor.  Home is something that has impacted your life forever and made you who you are today. Home can be the time when you and the neighbor boy scared the old lady from across the street on Halloween and practically gave her a heart attack. Home is about all the memories you have or will make.  It is that place you feel safe no matter what condition you are in. You can go there and feel invisible. It’s where you can have parties for your years of aging or just for having friends and family over for a good time. It’s also a place where you get grounded for breaking the house rules, but hey that’s life. No one’s perfect.

Feel no shame and be proud of where you were born and raised in what you call home. Home is what you make it. One thing you need to know, no matter where you go, keep your heart and soul in your hometown. It’s where you learn about living, it’s where you learn about love, it’s where you learn about working hard.  Home is where you learn about Jesus it’s where you learn the values of life that you keep for the rest of your life.

Home comes in all different sizes.  Some have mansions and have pools to lay out at in the summer time and have a personal maid to clean up after them and make them food.  Others are used to not having much. They come from a different side of town and to them home is their family and everyone in the neighborhood giving a hand to help one another out.  It’s the trust between neighbors and the help of lending and borrowing.  These two life styles are very different and opposite but in another way there outcome is the same.

 In another circumstance home for an old person may just simply be sitting out on the porch in a rocking chair enjoying the fresh air on a warm day. They get to hear the joy coming from the neighborhood kids, 4-square game and it may just bring back memories for them.  For kids 13 and under home is where their guardians feed and cherish every minute of their life. To some home is that soccer field down the road that was so torn up but the kids had fun anyway because they were all together. The kids learn something new every day and when they grow old they will cherish those days.  When they are the old person in the rocking chair on a warm nice day listening to their neighborhood children they once were.

Home is also a place of wishing and dreaming. At night we dream we are the best at everything and wish we could do things that in reality we cannot.  It’s staring out into the night trying to hide the pain. Going to the place where love and feeling good don’t ever cost a thing. Going home back to the place where you belong.  Don’t regret the life god chose for you because the place where you call home will be within you forever and always.  All the faces that have ever given you a helping hand are aging and soon they will need yours.  Home is what you make it. (581)

Choosing Your Seat

Choosing Your Seat

Choosing your seat in class can impact you for the year. It may not seem like that big of deal but it actually is a pretty tough decision. It makes you wonder if the reason behind a teacher coming up with a seating chart isn’t to just make you mad that you can’t choose your seat and sit by your friends, but to put you where they think you will be most productive.

Let’s be honest, the first day of school you walk into class and sit by the first person you recognize because you don’t want to be that awkward person that sits all alone in a row by themselves and be left out. But at the same time, after you are seated or even when you open the classroom door you are thinking to yourself, “Should I sit in the front so I can see? Wait no, because then I will look like a nerd. Maybe I will sit in the back. But wait then I will look like I don’t care about the class and I will feel out of the loop. Should I sit by my friend that I know is in this class? Wait then I will get into trouble for talking too much and plus then I won’t learn everything that I’m supposed to know. But if I don’t sit by my friend he/she might get mad at me for not sitting in the seat next to them.” All of these decisions just make school and life way more difficult than it actually is. For those reasons are why teachers make up seating charts, so you don’t have to go through the risk of getting into a fight with your best friend or even getting embarrassed for sitting front and center on the first day of school all alone.  (308)

Weather

Weather

Weather is different everywhere depending on where you live. The weather in Iowa is extremely different than weather in Florida. For instance Iowa winters consist of a steady zero degree and below zero degree temperature with a ton of snow and ice. Where Florida winters are around 65 degrees at the coldest and they see snow maybe once every 10 years.

Weather can mean a lot of things. It can be used to describe the temperature outside or even inside. It can be used as a joke also. Like when a tall person says to the shorter person, “Hey, how’s the weather down there?”. Sometimes that “joke” can be taken the wrong way, but it can also actually be taken as a joke. Weather can also be used as a topic/headline like on the news, they say “and up next is so and so with the weather”.

 Weather is so weird. It changes all the time, actually every day. Not only does what falls from the sky (rain, snow, hail) change along with temperature, but so do the trees. In the fall the trees are full of beautiful colored leaves but once it hits winter all those leaves fall and the trees are now bare and in some areas covered in snow.

Weather determines a lot of things. It determines how you get to school, transportation wise. For instance if you normally ride your bike and it is raining then you will most likely drive. It also determines what you wear that day. If it is freezing you will wear a winter coat with gloves and a hat with a scarf and sweatpants or jeans to stay nice and cozy. If it is summer time and hot out then you will probably decide to wear a tank top with shorts and flip-flops. The weather basically runs your daily wardrobe. If you are going to play in a soccer tournament and the forecast says it’s supposed to be 40 degrees the whole weekend, you are going to want to make sure and pack your under armor to keep your torso and arms warm and leggings to keep your legs warm. It’s also very smart to double up on your soccer socks if it is really cold out because it will keep you that much warmer. Also if you have hand and feet warmers they last for a long time and stay hot. They are a life saver especially if you get cold really easy.

So always look at the forecast and be prepared to change your outfit accordingly. It may be frustrating at times because you may have your outfit picked out already but it’s ok. You don’t want to be that one person who is wearing short jean shorts and a cute short sleeve top in the middle of winter just because it looks cute, trust me. (478)

Camping

Camping

                Ah camping camping camping. There are so many things to do while camping. For starters you get to be with your friends and family. At night time, after it gets dark and the stars come out, you can start a fire and make s’mores. If you’re a kid like me, you will ditch the dinner and have s’mores instead. Sitting around the fire, laughing and telling stories with your friends and family is always fun and entertaining and a great way to end the day. After a long night of eating s’mores and telling ghost stories around the campfire and drinking way too much alcohol (for those over the age of 21), you go back to your camper or tent and sleep to finish the night. Then in the morning you are awaken of the wonderful sounds of the birds and you walk outside just to see the beautiful sunrise.

After sitting in your lawn chair for awhile, watching the sunrise you slowly walk over to the neighborhood breakfast. The best thing about it is the breakfast is all homemade. After getting a full belly and put your swimsuit on, you are ready to hit the water. On a nice sunny hot day there are so many things to do while camping. You can go to the beach, skiing, wakeboarding, floating and jetskiing. If you decide to go to the beach you first have to decide on how you are going to get there, by boat or by jetski. Well if you don’t have one or the other than your decision is pretty easy then isn’t it? If you go by jetski don’t just take a straight shot to the beach. Have a little fun, go off the other boats waves. Then by the time you get to the beach you will be ready to relax and catch some rays. If you go by boat then crank the tunes and cruise on over to the beach while dancing, singing, and having a blast. If you want you could also go tubing off the back of the boat and get some massive air. Then when you arrive at the beach you will be so pumped up from tubing and jammin’ out that you will still be ready to keep the party going. On the beach you can play sand volleyball, football, you can make up your own games or go floating down the  river or just lay out and get some sun. After being at the beach for a while, go out on the water and try some new things. If you have never skied before than try it. You will never know if you like it or not if you don’t try it. If it is a not so nice day and you can’t go out on the water because it is raining or about to rain you can find things to do to have fun and keep yourself entertained. For instance, you can play cards, watch movies, go get pizza up the road, play in the rain, or just talk with your friends and take random pictures because that’s always fun! Just because it’s not hot and sunny doesn’t mean you can’t change your plans from lets say catching rays to playing cards with grandma.

You never know you may find things out about all sorts of stuff in just one rainy day that you thought could only go wrong. (572)

Water

Water

Water has many purposes. We need water for ships to transport items across the ocean.  We need water so cruise ships can take people on vacations. Water is a place of employment where many fisherman work to catch fish, shrimp and other sea mammals to sell to make money for their families.

Water is important for people to drink. Athletics need water to replenish their bodies after their sporting event or after a workout. All people should drink water to replenish the water they lose daily. People make ice out of water so their drinks can be cold.  Animals drink water after they run or when they eat and they depend on their owners to give them the water.

We use water to wash our cars, boats, bikes, quads and even wash our house. Without water things would be dirty all of the time.

If there isn’t rain we depend on water to grow food, without water the farmers wouldn’t have crops to sell for people to eat. We wouldn’t be able to grow our own gardens or have flowers in our yards.  People even water their lawns when it doesn’t rain so the grass can be green.

People use water to take showers and baths.  People use water to wash their pets.

In hot climates like Arizona people carry water bottles because it is so dry there. They don’t water their grass but water is very important to them.  It doesn’t rain much there so nothing is green and they have cactus and they don’t need much water.

Water is important not only to you in general but to your body. In order to keep your daily routine up and going and functioning properly you need to stay hydrated. With lack of water it can cause many health problems one of them being dehydration. Dehydration cause many systems in your body to shut down including your digestive system. To prevent this from happening never go without water. (329)

Cars

Cars

Cars have been taking people where they need to go for a very long time.  Old men like the old cars and boys like the fast cars. Girls like the color of cars. Teenagers all want new cars but their parents look for the good deals.  Cars give teenagers independence; it takes them places without their parents.  They can take their friends places and they can drive to school.

Cars cost a lot of money to repair. When you get a good deal on a used car you have to be careful because it may not have cost much money but then something goes wrong with it and you have to pay more to get it fixed.  If you get a new car and something goes wrong you have the dealer fix it under warranty.

Some people buy new cars and then trade them before the warranty runs out so they just keep getting new and never have to repair a vehicle. This is what older people do because kids can’t afford to.

Some people lease their cars, but then they are always making a payment and never actually own a car. These people must have a lot of money.

Cars are a lot of responsibility; you have to make sure there is oil in them.  You have to wash them and you have to clean all of your stuff out of them so your friends have somewhere to sit. You have to make sure there is air in the tires and you have to have insurance on your car. You have to make sure you don’t drive too fast so you don’t get a ticket.

Some kids take their cars to college but have to park it along ways from their dorm.  The car is there though so they can drive home. People that don’t have a car have to find rides so a car is a good thing to have.

Cars have changed a lot since they were first invented. Air conditioning and heat is something the first cars didn’t have but it what most cars today have. Electric windows are another thing cars didn’t have and electric locks.  Today most kids don’t know what manual windows are or what it is like to reach across the seat to lock a car door.  A lot of moms have electric doors on their vans it makes it easier to load their kids and groceries. Cars of the future I wonder what they will be like.  (417)

Why Dogs are the Best Pets

Why Dogs are the Best Pets

Dogs are the best pets to have at all ages because each and every dog has its’ own unique personality. No matter what your age is as an owner you can find the most perfect dog to keep you company.

The thing about dogs is that you can find the perfect one for you no matter how picky you might be. Dogs are all different sizes, from 4 lbs – 300 lbs.  There are thousands and thousands of breads and on top of that you can get a dog with sports, patches or even just a single color.

Dogs are fun to be around also. They get very energetic and wild and then they are so worn out that they sleep for hours. Dogs are very smart and they are one of few animals that you can actually play and be active with. If you want to go to the park you can take your dog and instead of driving there you can run or walk to get exercise for both your dog and you. Once you get to the part you can play fetch, throw a Frisbee or even just let your dog run and have fun. You can also train your dog to be obedient to impress your friends. Teach him or her to roll over, sit, lay down, to shake, to stand on his/her hind legs, and even how to play dead. If you take the time any dog can do these things but make sure to reward them when you are in the process of training them so they know they are doing something good.

Dogs are especially good to have around during the winter. Because at night when you are laying in your bed freezing you can have your dog come jump in bed with you no matter what their size, but the bigger the better because when they snuggle up and lay next to you they make you so warm instantly it’s cozy. The downer about have a quite large dog that likes to snuggle is that in the summer you can get really, really hot at night it is very uncomfortable.

Dogs are also very caring and loving. They can tell when you are down because they get all worried and lay by you. It’s just amazing what all a dog can do. Just think about it, police officers have a K9 unit and the dogs not only understand English but they also understand German! That’s crazy. Those dogs can smell anything and find what they are looking for in an unbelievable time, plus they save lives.

Now after putting a ton of thought into this try telling yourself and/or others that dogs are not the best pet to have.  (462)

Things to do when you are bored

Things to do when you are bored

            I personally hate being bored and I’m sure you all do to. So I’m gonna try and shoot out some ideas and explanations to why the activities I recommend will keep you from being bored ever again!

            If you are alone and bored painting your nails is a wonderful thing to do, especially if you take the time to put designs on them because that could easily take up two hours of your day. Plus the outcome looks beautiful! If you are with a friend of yours and you just can’t find a single thing to do, walk to the nearest ice cream shop. You will get some fresh air and exercise plus a delicious treat on a warm summer day. Bike rides are actually quite fun and you can be pretty adventurist with them. If you and a couple friends just want to be together on a nice day a bike ride is the thing to do. You can’t necessarily have conversations but it’s just something fun that most kids love to do.

            Being bored is such a lame excuse. I know speaking for myself I say I’m bored before I have even tried to find something to do or asked a friend to hang out. Saying “I’m bored” is more of a reaction I think. It’s used immediately after someone stops doing something and they want to move on to something else. The next time you say, “you’re bored”, think about it and all the things you could be doing and give it time you can’t possibly be doing something that you want 24/7. Give it time, because there is no such thing as being bored there is always something to do; you just have to be patient! (297)

How to make Friends

How to make friends

            I know some of you are reading this and thinking this is a dumb topic, but some people really don’t know how to make a true friend.

            In order to become friends with a true friend or a best friend you MUST be yourself. Don’t try to impress the person you just met by telling them little white lies about yourself because they will want to be friends or not friends with the person you are describing. You must always be honest. Tell them about yourself and ask about them, find things you have in common and things you don’t because maybe they can teach you how to do things you never knew how to do. By doing this, you will have a best friend in no time. Don’t sweat it if you find a friend that doesn’t have the characteristic that your best friend should have. Just keep that friend as a close friend, you never no someday they may turn out to be your best friend.

            Treating others the way you want to be treated is one of the most important roles of friendships and life in general. Sadly it is one of the most abused also. I don’t get what is so hard about it either. Let’s say from a friend’s point of view; you were supposed to hang out with your best friend but something came up and instead of telling the truth you lie about why you have to cancel. Would you want your best friend to lie to you? Or would you want to be told the truth? If your best friend is a true friend the s/he will understand why you had to cancel. Just be honest and don’t take others for granted. If you do all of these things you will have yourself a best friend in no time, but don’t rush it. (315)

How to Play Soccer

How to play Soccer

            Do you know how to play soccer? If you think it's just kicking a ball around and trying to get it into the other teams’ goal, then you’re partially correct. The thing is, it’s much more than that. It takes technique, speed, adrenalin, endurance, faith, hope, desire, will-power, the tempo of the game and most importantly it takes team work.

            Of course here, in the United States we call this game soccer. But over in Europe and various other places in the world this beautiful game is called futbol. It makes no difference to what you call it because no matter where you are the game is all played the same. Some basic things of the game are; it is your team vs. one other team one the field at a time. There are two goals, one on each end line of the field; goals are often referred to as nets. The main object of soccer is to score on the opposite goal that you are defending, while trying to keep the ball out of your own net. There is one soccer ball on the field along with 11 players for each team, so a total of 22 players on the field along with one referee on the field and two referees on the sidelines determining whether or not the ball goes out of bounds.

            The positions in soccer can get a little confusing but once you get the hang of it they are easy to adjust to. On each there are 11 people on the field. The 11 players usually make up of one goalie, three defenders, five mid-fielders and two forwards. The goalie has a box in front/next to the goal that they are defending and they can use their hands anywhere in the box but anywhere else on the field they cannot. The job of a goalie is to not let the ball go in the net that they are defending. The defenders are really just supposed to be a brick wall that doesn’t allow the ball to get passed them so there goalie doesn’t have to make any saves. The mid-fielders have the hardest job on the field I would say. They have to run end line to end line, while receiving/giving the most contact on the field. The two outside mid-fielders especially have a hard job because they have to play defense when the ball is across the field on the opposite side of them, then as soon as your team re-gains possession of the ball they you are expected to get wide and make a run down the field over and over and over again, even if you get the ball once every ten times that you make the run. The forwards are basically the most selfish players on the team and they would even say so themselves. All they do is call for the ball (mostly from the mid-fielders) and try to get to goal and score. So basically the forwards get all the credit even though most of the time they just “cherry pick” the goals from the mid-field.

            In soccer there aren’t really plays like there are in basketball. Its more of a free for all, live game that is 90 minutes ling in high school with 45 minute halves and a 8 minute half-time with 0 time outs. Some close friends of mine that thought soccer was a total joke until I made them come to one of my really intense soccer game of mine and after the game the apologized because the had no idea that soccer was physical and difficult. They now have total respect for the players and the game itself because they realized they would never be able to run up and down the field for 90 minutes while getting shoved and getting kicked at, at their ankles all at the same time.

            I have convinced a lot of people that soccer is a tough sport but to them seeing is believing and after watching a game or two, they are still titled to their own opinion. (685)

Things I don't Understand

Things I Don’t Understand

I don’t understand why high school students always go to the boys’ athletic events and not the girls. People say it is not as much fun to watch girls play and it’s not as intense. Well, I’m sorry but this just may be a rumor or something (sarcasm) but I’m pretty sure the womens’ soccer team just won the 4A State Championship but yet the mens’ soccer team still has way more fans. Considering the boys had a losing record and didn’t even make it to the State Tournament, you would think the games would be boring to watch but I guess boys will always be more important than girls. 

I don’t understand the point of knocking on wood. Some people say something and they don’t want to jinx themselves, so they say knock on wood and they actually go and  knock on wood. I mean I get the whole OCD, superstition thing, but why wood? What’s wrong with plastic? I mean our world is basically paper and plastic now a day and we are dropping trees like no other.

I don’t understand the point of posting 1,200 words a week on this blog when what we can write about is very limited. It’s like how am I suppose to write this much if I can’t tell a story? It can’t be about me and it has to be real. I don’t understand what there is left to write about! Plus this is just way too much time and effort into a three point assignment every week.

I don’t understand slavery. I know that sounds stupid and I don’t mean I don’t know what slavery is. I mean how come the whites were “in control” or African-Americans and it wasn’t the other way around? What made some white man think he had the power to create slavery based on another mans color? I think it was stupid, wrong and a flat out disgrace to slave owners later on children’s children and whites in general.

I don’t understand dressing up for home games in high school. I do understand how it makes you stand out so other students know you have a game/event that night. I don’t get why we can’t just wear our team warm ups or something we chose. I personally hate dressing up and feel uncomfortable all day long. As a player wouldn’t you want to be comfortable all day so when it comes time for the game/event you don’t have blisters from those high heels you wore all day or calf cramps because you normally wear tennis shoes to school? I don’t know about you but dressing up on game days makes no sense to me.

Warm Delicious Zookie

A Warm Delicious Zookie

Do you know what a Zookie is? Well let me just sum it up really fast, it is the most delicious thing in the world. It’s not just delicious, a Zookie is: amazing, tasty and my favorite dessert on earth. For those who have no idea what I am talking about when I say Zookie. A Zookie is a warm chocolate chip cookie in a pan about the size of your face. On top of the cookie is; three scoops of vanilla ice cream, three scoops of whip cream and to top it off chocolate syrup drizzle across the ice cream and whip cream. You can purchase a Zookie at your closest Zoey’s Pizzeria and it only costs $7.50. 

I know, I know a Zookie sounds like a heart attack in a pan but it’s really not.  It seems horrible (calorie wise) but especially if you split it with a friend or two it’s not that bad at all. There is one not so good thing about a Zookie. Zookie’s are super addicting. Now that can be a good thing as well as a bad thing. Good, because it’s a great way to get together with some friends and get a filling but cheap (money wise) bite to eat. Bad, because if you find yourself being to addicted then you may be eating them more and more often and see yourself gaining a few pounds. Now from a girls perspective no dessert is worth a weight gain, even if it is a Zookie. I am not sure if Zookie’s are able to be taken on the go, I have never asked. It would make sense to me to have the option of a Zookie carry out. I know I would want a Zookie for my birthday instead of a birthday cake. Now that I think about it I’m not quite sure how the workers would transfer the Zookie onto a carryout plate with it still being intact. I recommend to you all to try a Zookie!

Who Am I

Who Am I

Who am I? That is a simple question but at the same time a hard question. I am a noun, no not a thing or a place I am simply just another human being on planet earth.

I am a “daughter”, a “sister”, a “niece”, a “cousin”, a “granddaughter”, but yet much more.

I am she and I am her.  I am Jordash11 from time to time when I am on twitter but I am basically a big deal.

To some I am that sports girl and to others I am no one. To my family I am the baby girl who gets everything she wants. To my friends I am a character as they would say; “I’m the Donutland Queen”.

I am athletic.  Some would say too athletic and question at the same time how I manage to do all my school work, sports and have time for my friends and fun! My response to that is roughly the same every time. I have two sports practices every night, on top of that too much homework. I get home from my activities and start my homework and by the time I get done with it, it is 2am. A lot of people feel bad for me and I say “don’t”, I’m not being forced to do any afterschool activities, I simply choose to do them. To answer their second part of the question about having time for friends and fun is easy! I may be well-known but I don’t have many friends, therefore I don’t go out and “hang”. Most people are like, “yeah whatever”.  But really, I don’t have many friends, I have about a handful. 

I am one who loves stories, but I only like to read them if I know I’m going to like them. In order for me to like the book I have to start it, but I don’t start it unless I know I’ll enjoy it, so therefore I do not read.

Shoes, shoes, oh my god shoes! I’m in love with shoes, especially Nike’s! I would much rather buy shoes than any other item.

I am me. I am courage, I am bravery, and I am hope. I will survive because I always believe. I never give up because I am a fighter.

Being born isn’t just anything, it’s a miracle. I wasn’t just born to be born. I was born to be somebody and I will make that happen in any way, shape, or form because I am me . . . Jordan.