Q2, P15. Stormy Weather #3

My outside reading book - Stormy Weather by Carl Hiaasen - just keeps getting better and better. I have been reading a lot since I last posted so a lot of new things have happened in the book. Bonnie and Augustine have added a third person to their hunting party. Jim Tile is a highway patrol man and also Skink's Ex-bodyguard. He is always keeping tabs on Skink and making sure he doesn't get into to much trouble. The three are finally able to contact Skink and they are able to get back Max along with brining Skink along. Meanwhile, Snapper and Eddie Marsh couldn't be happier because Tony Torres was murdered by a disgruntled Brooklyn-mafia-involved son of a woman killed in a mobile home during the storm. This leaves Snapper and Eddie as the only people receiving the hurricane money. But suddenly Tony's Ex-Wife, Niria Torres calls the house and starts asking a lot of questions to Snapper. He panics and hangs up the phone, leaving Niria no choice but to drive down to Florida and collect her hurricane money in person. As soon as Max was rescued, all he could think of was his job back in New York and took the first flight back there to make sure his job was safe. Bonnie didn't want to go and decided to stay with Augustine until Max came back. Max was mad about her decision but still left without her.

The story is really rolling now and I think that it will only get better and more exciting. I really love how there are a bunch of different story lines inside the book. I think it makes the book more interesting and makes it so there are a ton of twists and turns in the story. Another reason I like having multiple story lines is because Hiaasen likes to connect the characters together to help solve the problem in the story. It is fun to read the book and watch the characters slowly come together and create on big plot instead of multiple smaller ones.

Q2, P14. Stormy Weather #2

As I told you last week, I have decided to read Stormy Weather by Carl Hiaasen for my second quarter outside reading project. What is happening in the book now is Bonnie is still looking for her husband. Skink brought Max back to his home in the woods and to control him, he put a electric panther collar on Max. Also another story line has entered the story. Edie Marsh and "Snapper" came to Florida to get lawsuit money for faking accidents in damaged neighborhoods. They came to the house of Tony Torres, a mobile home sales men who realizes they are trying to pull a fast one on him and demands they stay at his house or he will call the police. He makes them stay with him because he doesn't want his Ex-Wife to get any of the hurricane money so he is going to pretend Edie is his wife, sign the insurance papers, and collect all the money. Back with Bonnie, her search is going no where until she meets a man named Augustine who was the newly made owner of many rare animals including a Lion, Panther, Water Buffalo, Grizzly Bear, and the monkey that stole Max's video camera. They team up to search for the animals and Max.

I am really enjoying this book and it has been really hard to put down. I feel like the story is just starting to get going and I think there are going to be a lot of twists and turns in the story coming up. So far my favorite character is Skink. He is my favorite because he is always unpredictable and doing spontaneous things. I like how he uses a lot of sarcasm and his dry sense of humor. I also like him because he has a weird path that is different from any other character I have read about. I'm very excited to keep reading and once again, Carl Hiaasen has not disappointed me.

Q2, Outside Reading. Blog Comments

12/9/08 - Pat B. Outside Reading Post #1

12/9/08 - Steven F. Outside Reading Book

12/11/08 - Joey K. Outside Reading #1

12/11/08 - Andrew C. No Title

12/15/08 - Ben O. Extreme Measures

12/15/08 - Rutger H. Basketball

12/15/08 - Marcus J. The Hatchet

12/16/08 - Aleman A. Outside Reading Book

12/17/08 - Alex N. The Road (2)

12/30/08 - Max I. My Book: The Blue Star

Q2, P13. Stormy Weather #1

For the second quarter outside reading project, I decided to read Stormy Weather by Carl Hiaasen. I love all of Hiaasen's books and just like all of the other ones I have read, I find it hard to stop reading andput this one down. So far the book is mainly about a newly wedded couple - Bonnie and Mike Lamb - who are on their Honeymoon in Disney World. Their plan was to stay at Disney and visit all of the parks. But when Max learns a big hurricane is headed to another part of Florida, He drags Bonnie with him to go see the aftermath. Then when Max is filming the damage the hurricane did, a monkey takes his camera. While chasing the monkey, Max runs into the Ex-Governor-Turned Hermit, Skink who doesn't like him filming the destruction and his tourist ways. Skink gets mad and ends up "kidnapping" Max. Bonnie then realizes he's missing and she starts to search for him.

I chose to read this book because I have read multiple Carl Hiaasen books in the past and I have enjoyed every single one of them. I like Hiaasen's books because they have multiple story lines in every book and in the end all of the story lines come together to help resolve the problem in the story. I also like the books because they all take in place in Florida, and I go there for spring break ever year. So i fell like I can relate to what is going on in the story sometimes and compare the people in the books experiences with my own.

Q2, Extra Credit. The Road Soundtrack

"Landed" by Ben Folds would be a good addition to The Road Soundtrack. Landed relates to The Road when Ben Folds sings "Till I opened my eyes and walked out the door. And the clouds came tumbling down. And it's bye-bye goodbye I tried. Treading the sea of a troubled mind. I had to leave myself behind." Those lines are similar to the book when The Man and The Boy have to make tough decisions. "And the clouds came tumbling down." is like when the characters wold turns into one with out comforts or friends to support them. " I had to leave myself behind" symbolizes The Man deciding to start his journey with The Boy even thought he had to leave a lot of the things he loved behind. From the book, "You cant protect us. You say you would die for us but what good is that? I'd take him with me if it werent for you. You know I would. It's the right thing to do. You're talking crazy (Pg.56)." That quote relates to "Landed" because they both talk about someone trying to do a crazy thing to help others. But someone who care about that person intervenes for the better of everyone. "Landed" would be a perfect addition to The Road sound track because it has a nice tempo to fit the books story line and a lot of the lyrics can be compared to the book.

HERE IS THE LINK TO THE SONG ------ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54eNjLgImLs

Q2, P12. The Road

On Monday (12/1/08), we started reading The Road by Cormac McCarthy. As readers, we don't know much about the two main characters. Their names are unknown and the McCarthy refers to the two as The Man and The Boy. The book so far has been about The Boy and The Man walking along a long road while they head South to avoid a harsh winter. The two characters have not met any other people so far and everything has been shut down and abandoned. The author doesn't give any details of what happened to everyone or why it happened. McCarthy has a unique writing style that I have never seen before. A lot of times he decides not to use punctuation (like periods, commas, and apostrophes) when need. He also changes up his sentence structure and length to help depict the mood of what is happening in the story. He will create run on sentences to keep the flow of a scene going. Or he will use short, choppy sentences to help describe the scene and explain a lot of details.

So far I like The Road. I like the story like and the way the author writes it. I think that it is a depressing story especially because we don't even get to learn the two main characters' names. I hope that in the end The Man and The Boy will meet other people, reach the South and are able to start a new life. I'm excited to keep reading the book and hopefully uncover the reason why The Man and The Boy are on this journey and what happened to the world.

For this quarter I chose to read another Carl Hiaasen book. The book title is Stormy Weather. Here is a little preview of the book from Carl Hiaasen's website:
"When a ferocious hurricane rips through southern Florida, the con artists and carpetbaggers waste no time in swarming over the disaster area. Caught in the middle are Max and Bonnie Lamb, newlyweds torn in wildly different directions by the storm. It is Max's fateful decision to abort their Disney World honeymoon and race to Dade County to see the terrible devastation.
Armed with a video camera, the ambitious young advertising executive can't wait to show his hurricane tapes to his buddies back in New York. Over Bonnie's objections, Max eagerly sets out through the rubble, debris and mayhem - and promptly vanishes. The only clue to his whereabouts: a runaway monkey. The only bio who can help Bonnie's search: a mysterious young man with a tranquilizer gun and a roomful of human skulls."

HERE IS THE LINK TO HIS SITE --- http://www.carlhiaasen.com/books/books-stormy.html

Q2, P11. Call of Duty 5

This week I'm going to take a different route in my blog. Instead of writing about sports, I am going to focus on video games. The game i have selected is Call of Duty 5. The game is set during World War Two in places including Russia, Germany, France, and Japan. In the Campaign, you switch off playing as a Russian and American soldier, going on various missions and playing different roles inside your squad. Not only do you get to experience infantry levels, there are also several airplane and land vehicle based missions to play. But the main focus of the game is the online multi-player. If you have an Xbox Live account, you can log in and play a wide variety of game types and maps against people from all around the world. As you kill more and more people, the more weapons and "perks" you unlock. The highest level you can reach is a 65 but you still are not done yet. Once you reach a 65, a player can enter "Prestige Mode" where you go back down to a level one while keeping all of your stats. Prestige Mode can be done ten times and takes a lot of time and skill to complete.

I really like Call of Duty 5. A lot of people were not very excited for the game because they didn't want the game to go back to WWII (Call of Duty 4 was Modern Warfare). But i was very impressed with the game and how it plays. So far I am a level 23, first prestige on Live and am about 1/4 of the way through the Campaign. My favorite level in the Campaign is the first Russian level. You play as a sniper in a German town who must stealthy snipe his way out of trouble until your back up arrives. For Live, my favorite guns are the Springfield (American Sniper Rifle), Mosin Nagant (Russian Sniper Rifle), and the Type 100 (Japanese Sub-Machine Gun). A lot of times on XBL I will play with Joey K. (He's pretty good), Marcus J. (Absolutely terrible/garbage/n00b), and Mark G. (n00b). I'm by far the best and i have to carry our team every time. I have also heard Pat B. is pretty good but him and his Hornettes bag have nothing on me (insider).

Q2, P10. The Odyssey Part 2

The Odyssey endeds on a great note and had a lot of good, fast paced action. When Odysseus returned to Ithica, he silently bid his time disguised as a beggar and collect intel on the enemy over-running his house. Odysseus made a plan to slaughter the suitors with Telemachus and a few other loyal servants. Once it was time to strike, Odysseus shed his disguise and showed who he really was. The suitors were amazed.... Then Odysseus stated the killing spree and didn't stop hurling spears, shooting arrows, and stabbing flesh until the last suitor collapsed dead on the cool floor. Control over the palace was regained and Penelope could finally get it on. The end. On a scale of one to ten, I would rate this book a six because it has a great story line and a good amount of action but gets very boring in a lot of parts. I think it is a decent book to read for school.

So this is my second time blogging about The Odyssey in the last two weeks. Frankly I'm very excited for this unit to be over. Don't get me wrong, I liked the book a lot and I love reading about Greek stories and mythology but it's just getting old. The biggest pain about the book is the fact that we need to do a study guide for every chapter. The concept is pretty good but it would be much better if we did them together as a class. I read every chapter we were supposed to but it is still hard to remember all of the details of what happened. Now I have to go back in my book and find the answer to some of the questions. I think for all the effort we put into these study guides, we should be able to use them for more than the last ten minutes of the test.

Q2, P9. The Odssey

For the past couple of weeks we have been reading The Odyssey by Homer. The book was made long ago and was translated to English so we could read it. The stories two main story lines are following Odysseus and, Telemachus (Odysseus' son). Odysseus has been away from home for a long time and wishes he was safe in his own bed already. But the Gods are set against him and put many obstacles in his way. Telemachus is tired of suitors ruling his house and he decides it time to man up. His journey is to set out looking for news of his father. If he finds his father he will stay out looking for another year. But if he learns his dad is dead, he is supposed to return back to his mother and run their house. Both characters face many challenges during their journeys but also receive help from some Gods that favor them.

So far I have enjoyed The Odyssey. I think it is interesting to read about the long journeys that some warriors had to take back from Troy. I especially like reading about how the Gods help some mortals and are out to kill others. The mythical and magical creatures are also fun to learn about and how they came to be. The book has mostly been pretty good. But some of the books have been boring and uneventful. I am happy that we are skipping part of the book so we don't have to read a ton every night. THANKS MRS. B

Q2, P8. #7 Texas Tech Stuns #1 Texas

Last Saturday Night (11/2/08), The #1 ranked Texas Longhorns faced their long time rival, #7 Texas Tech Raiders. This was the second meeting of the two teams this season and was a highly anticipated one. Not only was this game a big rivalry game but there was sub-plots to go with it including the Heisman Trophy race between Texas QB Colt McCoy and Texas Tech QB Graham Harrell. The game was predicted to be a game of big offenses and high scores and fans of both sides were not disappointed. The Longhorns fell behind 19-0 at halftime but cut the lead to three points at the beginning of the fourth quarter with a 91 yard TD pass to Malcolm Williams. Texas Tech marched back down the field and extended their lead to six. But Texas was not ready to give up and answered with a four yard TD run to capture the lead. It seemed like Texas had won the game but after a big kick return, the Raiders went right back to work. They steadily drove down the field and entered field goal territory. Then with eight seconds left Harrell went for it all heaving the ball down field to WR Michael Crabtree for the winning TD with one second to spare. The Raiders beat arch-rival Longhorns 39-33.

I liked both teams coming into the game but I was very happy to see the underdogs win the game. This was one of the best games I have watched all season and for sure the most exciting. Since Texas Tech won the game they have a shot at the National Championship game and could possibly take the #1 ranking in the country. After his amazing performance, I think Graham Harrell deserves the Heisman Trophy more than any other player in the country. Him and Michal Crabtree have put up amazing number all season and will be playing football for a loooong time to come.

Q1, P7. Marian Gaborik Placed On IR

Today (Monday, October 27), the Minnesota Wild placed Marian Gaborik on the Injured Reserve list. The team said that Gaborik suffered an "unspecified lower-body injury" and will be put on the IR for an unknown amount of time. Before being placed on the IR, Gaborik had not played since October, 14th and has missed the last four games for the Wild. Center Owen Nolan was taken off the IR to make room for Gaborik and may replace him on the first line. Throughout Gaborik's career, he has been plagued with injuries to his leg muscles and it has kept him out of many games in previous years. This year is also Marian's contract year , but negotiations have been at a stand-still for at least a few weeks.

I think that we need to trade Gaborik before the trade deadline this year. The Wild tried all summer to sign him but he seemed unwilling to sign with Minnesota again. So the best course of action is to trade him now so we can get something in return from another team. There have been reports that the Montreal Canadians were interested in trading their captain, Saku Koivu for Gaborik. If that deal were to happen it would be an amazing steal for the Wild. We would get rid of a player who is unwilling to play for us and is struggling with injuries. In return we would get a solid player and proven leader to boost the team to the next level. Not to mention he's Mikko Koivu's brother. Unfortunately, I feel a trade for Gaborik will not happen and we won't sign him either. I hope some team gives him a huge deal next summer and he becomes a huge disappointment. If you haven't realized yet, I'm not a Marian Gaborik fan.

Q1, P6. Army VS. Notre Dame Lacrosse Game

Two weeks ago, I was able to attend the first ever Division One lacrosse game played in Minnesota. For the main event, the West Point Military Academy (Army) faced off against the University of Notre Dame. The University of Minnesota Duluth was also there to scrimmage both teams and the game was held at the Blaine Sports Complex. The tournament and expo was sponsored by the Minnesota Swarm in an effort to spread the sport. The game was an extremely intense one and required extra time to decide the winner. With about ten minutes left in the second overtime, Army came down on a fast break where the ball was passed to in front of the net. An attackman for Army caught the ball and shot it between his legs with his back to the goalie. Army won the game 8-7. There were over five thousand people attending the game and the atmosphere in the stadium was incredible.

This weekend was a very important one for lacrosse and will hopefully get more kids into lacrosse. The governor even declared the Saturday "Lacrosse Day" in Minnesota. I was at the Sports Complex all weekend because I was playing in a lacrosse tournament also sponsored by the Swarm. The team I as on didn't have a lot of players so I go to play Attack, Middie, and Defense in every game. My team was also very bad so I had to carry the team in every time we stepped on the field. In the first game on Saturday, I scored our teams only goal and we lost 8-2. In the second game of the day, I struck fire and had a hat trick. But my individual effort wasn't enough and we lost 5-3. The following day we had one more game but had to play with no substitutes. Our team didn't show any sighs of life all game and we were shut out 9-0. Overall it was a great weekend It was one of the most thrilling sporting events I have attended. I hope the weekend tournament becomes a tradition every year and that more and more teams enter the tourney.

Q1, P5. Rangers Prospect Dies Unexpectedly

The New York Rangers 2007 top prospect, Alexei Cherepanov died on Monday during a KHL (Continental Hockey League) game in Russia. It was reported that he collapsed while sitting on the bench due to an apparent heart attack. Paramedics tried to revive Cherepanov but were unsuccessful. After the game he was sent to the hospital and he was then proclaimed dead. It was later released that Cherepanov suffers from chronic ischemia, which is a condition where there is little blood flow to the heart and other organs. Another issue with the situation was that no ambulance was at the game and when one was called, they were slow to arrive and didn't have the appropriate equipment to revive the unconscious winger. Cherepanov was the Rangers first round pick (17th overall) in the 2007 NHL Draft. Cherepanov, was 19 years old.

This was a very tragic event not only for the New York Rangers and the KHL, but for all hockey players across the world. It is so sad to see an extremely talented person die at such a young age and with an amazing life ahead of him. The KHL is looking into the incident to find out why there was no medical staff available and I hope they can get to the bottom of the matter. It's unacceptable for a sports franchise to be so unprepared in case of an emergency. Every team in every sport should learn from this disaster and take specific precautions for future incidents. I think there should be more health test taken by athletes to make sure it's 100% safe for them to play.

Q1, P4. Vikings Vs. Saints. MNF

The Minnesota Vikings Played the New Orleans Saints Monday (10/7/08) night on ESPN. The game was a very awkward one and touchdowns came in unusual ways. New Orleans marched down the field to score on their first drive. Then the next series, New Orleans had a field goal block which Minnesota returned for a touch down. Later in the second quarter, Minnesota then scored on a half-back pass from Chester Taylor to Visanthe Shiancoe. At half time the Vikings were somehow winning 20-10 even though the Saints had 130 more yards of offense than the Vikes. Later in the game, Saints running back, Reggie Bush returned a punt return for a TD then did the exact thing later, to make the score 27-23, New Orleans. The Vikings struck back with a TD pass from Gus Frerotte to Bernard Berrian. New Orleans missed a field goal on their last drive to win the game. Then the Vikings drove down the field to kick the game winning field goal with 13 seconds left in the game. The Vikings won the game 30-27. Both the Vikings and Saints are 2-3 this season.

I watched most of the game and I enjoyed it very much. The game was also one of the weirds games i have ever witnessed. Scoring came in very unconventional ways and there were some questionable officiating. The first bad call was when Adrian Peterson fumbled the ball in the first half but he was ruled down so the Vikings kept the ball. Then later, a linebacker for Minnesota face-masked Reggie Bush and caused him to fumble but the Referees missed the call. New Orleans was the better team all game and I don't think the Vikes deserved to win. They had little offensive production but still managed to score more points than any previous games this season. I do hope that the Vikings can turn around the season and get into the playoffs. I also feel they will never be Super Bowl contenders until they get a new head coach and a better quarterback.

Q1, P3. Oakland Head Coach Fired

The Oakland Raiders head coach, Lane Kiffin was fired today (Tuesday, September 30th), after weeks of rumors that he would be fired before the season ended. The Raiders announced the firing this afternoon in a one page press release. It was reported that he was fired by phone and was not allowed to speak to the press about the firing or even talk to his players. Al Davis, the Raiders' owner announced he was going to fire Kiffin after the Raiders week three loss the the Buffalo Bills. Davis and Kiffin's relationship was a very rough one. It started when there were rumors that Kiffin was interested in the University of Arkansas job. Then after 2007 when Kiffin tried to fire the Defensive Coordinator, Rob Ryan. After that, Davis asked Kiffin to sign a resignation letter. Overall, Kiffin and Davis fought on many team issues and it was clear that the arrangement wouldn't last much longer.

I think that firing Kiffin was a good choice for Al Davis and the Raiders to make. But I also believe that Lane Kiffin still has a future as a coach somewhere else The Raiders have been a terrible team ever since they lost Super Bowl XXXVII. The best thing they can do to get back on their feet and start winning some games is to totally rebuild the team. But I don't think they will be able to start to be a good team again once Al Davis is gone. He has been ranked the worst owner in the league many times and no one wants to play for his team. Al Davis is a very hard person to please and as long as he's in charge of the Raiders, they are not going to get any better.

Q1, P2. St. Louis Defenseman Out For Season

Doctors say that The St. Louis Blues All Star defenseman, Erik Johnson is out for the 2008/2009 NHL season. Johnson, 20 was the number one overall pick in the 2006 NHL draft. He tore two knee ligaments while on a team golf trip. His foot was caught between the gas pedal and the brake pedal when the cart turned and jerked his knee. Doctors say he tore his anterior cruciate ligament and medial collateral ligament in his right knee. As soon as the swelling goes down, Johnson will have his season ending surgery. The rehab for his knee will take some time but he will return to 100% and be ready for next season. The Blues will be missing a big part of their defensive core and are looking for replacements. One option is 2008 number four overall pick, Alex Pietrangelo.

I am very sad that Erik Johnson is out for the season. He is one of my favorite players and he is from Bloomington. The Blues were a bad team already and now that they lost their best player for the season, they will be even worse. One positive I can think of for this situation is that they could now get the number one pick in 2009. This would give them even more young talent and could make them a really good team in a couple of years. It is sad to see Erik get injured in such a freak accident. His absence will be very noticeable for the Blues this year.

On a personal note, my friend Ben Ostlie crashed my golf cart two weeks ago. My dad won it for getting a hole in one and during the first week we had it, Ben crashed it into a tree. He was very sad about what happened and said that " I guess I'm just not a dirty golf cart driver like Pete.....It looks really easy but it's not." The cart was slightly damaged but is now fixed. Ben Ostlie is now not allowed to drive golf carts.

Q1, P1. MLL National Championship Game

The 2008 Major League Lacrosse National Championship Game was held at Harvard Stadium in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The Rochester Rattlers defeated the Denver Outlaws to claim the title by a score of 16 - 6. The Rattlers dominated the entire game and held the lead for the whole game. The Rattlers were lead in scoring by Attackman Jeff Zywicki, who had six goals in the victory. Rochester Midfielder Joe Walters was also named the Championship Weekend MVP. In two game playoff, he had 11 points, including six goals and five assists. The leading scorer for Denver was Ryan Powell with one goal and two assists. In the semifinals Rochester beat the Philadelphia Barrage 16 - 15 in overtime. Denver beat the Los Angeles Riptide 13 - 12.

I really enjoyed watching this game and the other games during the weekend. All three games were very intense and high paced. I was able to watch every second of every game and that made the weekend even better because one of my favorite sports was on all day. I am happy that the Rattlers won the game because it was their first championship. In winning the game, Rochester became the first city to have a lacrosse team win a championship in three different leagues. Another reason I wanted Rochester to win is because they were upset in the playoffs last year. Also my favorite player, John Grant Jr. is on the Rattlers and I am very happy that he can add a championship to his long resume.

A Journey I Intend To Take

There has always been a journey I have wanted to take. The journey I would like to go on is to the rainforest in Pnama. I think it would be amazing to go on expedition in the rainforest and view the breath taking scenery and wildlife. My favorite animal is a sloth and it would be simply amazing to get to hold one or see it in its natural habitat. I would take a group of friedns with me along with a guide to show us around the tropical wilderness. At night we could sleep in luxury tents with air condtions, and televisions. That would be such a cool experience and something I will hopefully be able to do during my lifetime.

FIRST BLOG expectations

My name is Pete. This is my super cool blog,which I will personalize and make my own (but not post pics of myself on or use my last name on). I will always use appropriate language on my school blog and folow the conventions of the English language.
The expectation for this assignment is that I post on mu blog once a week for the remainder of the school year. I am expected to comment on texts that I'm viewing in the world around me. These might include, but are not limited to: books, magazines movies, internet articles, television shows, trips to musuems, etc.
Each post should be at least 200 hundred words. Each weekly post is due by 8pm on thta Wednesday. Therefore, Q1 due dates are: 9/17, 9/24, 10/1, 10/8, 10/15, 10/22, and 10/29. That makes for a total of 7 posts this first quarter. I understand that blogs are worth 100 points per quarter and are graded hollistically ( I will recieve the rubric from Mrs. B. soon). I also understand that blogging is a signifacant component of my quarter grade. By the way, what i have just typed is only 196 words!! Now it's 200!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!