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Tuesday 27 November 2012

My Twitter Fiction- Afraid of the Dark


Afraid of the Dark 

By: Jenine Thompson

The stair creaked under her foot and she froze instantly. Did they hear her? Would they catch her? She inched down to the last step quietly.

Ten more steps and she was home free! She made a run for it but just as she was reaching for the knob, she was stopped dead in her tracks.

The arm that grabbed her around the waist made her jump.” I win again!” declared the smug voice behind her. She smacked his arm, annoyed.

“Let go of me Kyle!” she barked, as her best friend Amy came running around the corner. “Awe come on Skye! They win again!” wined Amy.

Skye hung her head in shame as Ren waved their teams red flag. This was the fifth time in a row their team had lost at capture the flag.

She jerked away from Kyle who still had not released her. He thought they had a ‘thing’ because he could get any other girl he wanted…

What he couldn’t seem to understand was that she hated him! He was so self-absorbed that he hadn’t even considered she might not like him.

It was his arrogance that she truly hated. He could be a nice guy but then his friends would appear and he would transform into a total jerk

He laughed when she glared at him, and this only infuriated her. “What do you say?” he chuckled “One more round or are you too scared, Skye”

She looked over at Ren who appeared to be bored. “Nah I’m done for the day” She said with a sigh “Let’s do something else, any suggestions?”

“Let’s go back to my place and watch a movie.” suggested Ren. Everyone nodded and with no objections, they walked back to Ren’s black truck.

Skye jumped in the front before Kyle could and stuck out her tongue as he climbed into the back. He seemed to bring out the worst in her…

Within minutes they were back at Ren’s giant house. His family had a lot of money from his dad’s multiple businesses and it really showed.

They went around back to the entertainment room so they wouldn’t run into Ren’s aunt. She was a little crazy about keeping the place clean.

They took turns going into the bathroom to try and clean some of the dust and dirt from the old house off of their clothes and faces.

Skye went last and as she was standing in front of the mirror scrubbing a spot of dirt off her cheek, she stopped to look at her reflection.

An oval shaped face with bright hazel eyes starred back at her. Her lashes and eyebrows were naturally dark compared to her light complexion

She had a small straight nose and full lips. She didn’t spend her time starring at herself but she guessed she was pretty. Then her hair…

She could never do anything with the long wavy mess, that was such a dark brown that it looked black and made her light skin look even paler

She took a final look at herself and decided she couldn’t do anything more to clean up, so she left the bathroom to look for her friends.

She walked towards the huge couch where her friends were browsing through the thousands of movies on Ren’s big flat screen TV.

She immediately noticed that Kyle had left a big space between him and the end of the couch, which was obviously meant only for her.

She made a point of walking past Kyle and sitting in the tiny space between Ren and Amy. Kyle laughed and moved over. She had one this one!

The movie turned out to be some action movie but no one really watched it. Amy kept trying unsuccessfully to flirt with Kyle the whole time.

Kyle kept glancing over Amy’s head to look at Skye who was doing her best to ignore him and just enjoy sitting so close to Ren on the couch.

Once the movie was over, Kyle volunteered to drive them all home. Skye rolled her eyes and told Amy to take the front seat.

As they walked to Kyle’s Mustang, Skye couldn’t believe how dark it was. “It must be a new moon tonight.” she muttered quietly.

They piled into the Mustang and Kyle took off at his usual ridiculous speed while Skye clutched her seat belt for dear life.

She could feel the wind whistling through her long hair and stinging her skin. The wind was so cold it made her eyes water.

“Please slow down!” Skye begged. “You’re going to get us killed!” Kyle laughed and swerved the car a few times just to scare her some more.

There was a sharp bend in the road up ahead and Kyle sped up even more. Skye’s eyes were wide as the bend approached much too fast…

Kyle started to turn but was going too fast. The tires of the Mustang started to skid into the other lane at the crest of the bend.

Just as they came around the bend, they heard the loud growl of a trucks engine and saw a blinding flash of bright yellow light…

Skye found herself thinking about her life and decided that if this was the day she had to die than it had been almost the perfect day.

Her only regret was that she would never get to see Ren one last time or hug her best friend Amy again or even fight with Kyle one last time

The last thing Skye heard was the shriek of metal against metal and an unearthly scream…then all was black…

To be continued….

Response #9 My Twitter Fiction

 So far my twitter fiction story is going to be one extended story. I would say it’s almost done. I have about 22 tweets so far. I’m not sure if I will keep all the tweets I have so it’s only estimation. I have enjoyed writing a story without planning it. It is interesting to see where my ideas go. I’m not sure I like restricting my story to little 140 word tweets. I find I am leaving out a lot of detail that I would normally add in my writing. I'm not sure if this is a good thing but I guess I will have to see how it looks when it’s done. I think I chose the extended story style because I the little short tweets didn’t interest me at all and I love to write stories. I guess, for me as a writer, it is the easiest form of writing. So far the only things I need to add to my twitter fiction are one more VASK’ing and the ‘so what’ of my story. I must admit that I’m not really sure what the so what is going to be yet because I don’t really know how my story is going to end. I have thought about my visuals but so far have only decided on one scene that will be easy to add a picture of. I think I will draw most of my pictures but I might use a picture I took if I can incorporate it. I’m not sure I like the idea of tweeting my story but I do enjoy writing stories so I am a little torn. I like the project but wish I wasn’t limited by the 140 character tweets.
Well here is my rough draft so far…It’s pretty messy but I guess that’s just how I think.


Reading and Writing Response #8


Reading Response #8

Book: Untraceable
Author: S.R. Johannes
Pages read: 60-126

This is the first book in the Nature of Grace trilogy. This book was an interesting mystery that had me asking many questions. For example I wondered what had happened to Graces father. I predicted that her father was still alive and that he was just injured or lost so he couldn’t make his way home. Another question I had was why everyone seemed to give up the search so early. I have a suspicion that someone doesn’t want Graces father to be found. I also made a text to self-connection between myself and the main character. Grace is an outdoorsy girl with a love of animals and reading. I feel like I can really connect with her because of how similar we are. We also both love our fathers and have learnt so much from them. I can easily sympathize with her difficulty in communicating with her mother and trying to find a place for herself in the world. Another thing I wanted to point out was how detailed the descriptions of the forests flora and fauna was. It was really impressive to see how much research the author must have put in for me to be able to feel like I was really there walking through the forest.

Writing Response #8

I found the blackout poetry to be an interesting new writing form. I found it was a little more difficult to find inspiration in the depressing newspaper articles that I read.  I liked the overall look once it was done but I found it wasn’t as interesting as some of the other writing projects we have done. I preferred the writing and adding a visual (6 word memoir) because I thought it had a better impact then the blackout poetry. Plus I am not a huge fan of poetry so it was harder for me to write. I much preferred taking words and visuals and combining them or even just writing a story. I don’t think I learnt much about myself other than I really don’t like to write poetry (and I really can’t write poetry…). I found that poetry is a really difficult form of writing because not everyone likes the same kind of poetry as well as not everyone interprets it the same way. I also found that without the visual it was much less interesting in my eyes.

Monday 5 November 2012

Reading Response #7


Book: The Fallen Star

Author: Jessica Sorensen

Pages Read: 1-40

 

This is the first book in a new series I started. It leaves me with a ton of new questions after every chapter. One of my questions was who and what are the men with yellow eyes? They seem like they will be one of the more important foes in this series. Could it be that they are some kind of vampire or demon? I also wonder why Alex seems to be so heartless and so cold. Is it possible he too is not human? His sister and his best friend disappear and we never find out what happens to them so I am wondering if they are dead. It seems like the most likely answer but I really hope not because I like Laylen and Ailsin. Gemma is the main character yet we know so little about her history. I want to know who her father is and if both he and her mother are still alive. Mark and Sophia are her grandparents yet they don’t seem to love her at all. Could it be that they really aren’t her grandparents? Could they have stolen her away when she was young? It would explain some of their terrible behavior towards Gemma. I made one prediction so far. I think that the man with the scar from her dream will be Alex’s father. We often here about this man with a scar and we know nothing of Alex’s father so it makes sense that they would be one person. I hope by the end of this book I get at least some answers to my questions.

Monday 29 October 2012

Writing Reflection #6


Question #1

Before I can really answer this question I must say that I’m not entirely sure I know what I want to do with my life after high school. I know that I need to get an education so that I can get a good stable job (I've only heard that about a million times from my family…) but I would almost like to travel for a year first. In the long run though I think it will be best if I just go straight to school so I can finish as fast as possible. I think I will study to become a vet or a teacher. By using my blog I can post many pictures and in depth comments about my animals to give future employers an idea of how dedicated and knowledgeable I am concerning animals. I hope to be a large animal vet so the work I do with my horses will be valuable in the future. Though, even if I end up being a small animal vet I still have a lot of experience with dogs, cats, and many other small mammals, that I have owned or cared for. My work for the Winnipeg Pet Rescue Shelter will also come in handy, so I could make a post for the shelter as well. Or if I was to go into teaching I could use my blog to show my talent in writing and responding to what I read. If that is the case I should probably try and post some of my short stories on my blog as well. I’m not sure what kind of teacher I would be…Maybe a French or English teacher, or possibly some kind of science teacher? I guess I will have to wait and see where my talents lie. In the meantime I’m going to do everything possible to keep my options for the future open and plentiful.

Question #2

Comment #1

Comment #2

Comment #3

Question #3

I must say that the commenting part of our blogs is not my favorite. Don’t get me wrong, I love all the comments other people leave, but I find it hard to come up with some comments of my own. It’s easier when they are blogging about something that you find easy to relate to but for the most part I find it hard to come up with something more in depth than ‘wow that’s a really good idea’ or something along those lines. I think a good comment is anything that is in depth and is giving an opinion of the post. You can contradict someone’s idea as long as it’s in a kind and civil manor. I would say a bad comment is one where you get absolutely no feedback about your post or one where the person is just outright rude. The benefits of commenting on someone else’s blog, is that you can complement and/or relate to any post that you find inspiring or well relatable. The benefits of receiving comments is that it encourages you to keep posting and to show you that your thoughts and ideas are being looked at and considered by other people. 

Reading Reflection #5

 Kelsey's iPhone

Book: Tiger’s Curse Series

Author: Colleen Houck
























1.     Tiger Tracker: The first app I created for Kelsey was a Tiger tracking app because throughout the book she constantly losses one or both of her tigers, so I think this is definitely something she would want to have. I put a tiger paw print for the picture because for the most part when we track an animal we look for their foot, or should I say paw, prints.

2.      Dragon Riddles: I created this app because throughout the series, Kelsey has to solve multiple riddles in the form of poems and/or prophecies. This app was designed to help solve all the riddles using the dragon’s cunning. I used a picture of a Chinese dragon (No it is not a snake) because that is the kind of dragon they encounter in the series.

3.      Google Quests: This app was designed to keep track of their location. I have a kimono with a map on it because that is what they followed when they we’re out of time.

4.      World Clock: I chose this app because Kelsey and the rest of the characters are almost constantly traveling to opposite ends of the world, so it is an app I can see her using often. I drew an earth and put the hands and the marks from a clock.

5.     Kadam Notes: This app is designed for Kelsey to write down anything she needs and also to save all the notes and research that Mr. Kadam does to help them on their quests. Kelsey is always losing or ruining the paper notes that Mr. Kadam sends along, so this app will be very useful.
6.      iProphicies: This app was designed to keep track of all the prophecies that Kelsey is given over the course of the series. This way she can always have them at hand and will never have to try and memorize them.
7.     iWeapons: This app was designed to keep track of all the weapons that Kelsey receives from Durga throughout the series, as well as what they can do. They also find out that they can combine certain objects so this is where they could keep track of everything.

8.      Translator: As I mentioned earlier, the main characters travel all over the wold, and though Ren and Kishan can speak multiple languages, Kelsey can only speak English. There are many times during the series where a translator would have come in handy for her.

9.       Flying Tiger Airlines: This app was designed to keep track of the Rajaram’s private plane. It can be used to call the pilot to any place they find themselves as well as keeping track of where the plane is flying.

10.     iQuotes: This final app isn't as useful as the others but it is one that would be very important to Kelsey. Kelsey loves to read and she loves to quote the books, poems, and any other media she can think of. This is an app where she could keep track of her favorite quotes or look up ones she forgot.

For the case of the iPhone I chose to draw the Damon Amulet. This amulet is the key part of the series, because all their quests lead them back to this amulet. On the amulet is a Yin Yang made up of the two tigers in the series. They balance Kelsey’s life and are the most important parts of her life.

Wednesday 10 October 2012

Reading and Writing Reflection #4


Reading response

Book: Tiger’s Quest
Author: Colleen Houck
Pages Read: 230-270

This is the end of the second book in the Tiger’s Curse series. I have had many questions and comments as this book has come to an end. But so far I haven’t been able to figure out the “So What” of this series.

I will start with questions. The first question I had has to do with a new character that has been introduced in the story. We learn about an ocean teacher and I wonder how he will be tied into their next quest? Another big question I had was concerning the dreams of Ren that Kelsey has been getting. Could they be true dreams sent along their deep connection or could they be a horrible trick played by Lokesh to find out Kelsey’s location? I truly hope they will find a way to rescue Ren before Lokesh destroys his mind and spirit! When they go to see the ocean teacher, there is much that is revealed about their destinies and also a lot of cryptic messages and promises that can only make me wonder how their lives will tie into the destiny of the world? As Kelsey and Kishan make their way to the spirit gate they are attacked again and again so I have to wonder whether or not Kelsey will even make it up to the spirit gate alive?  

I can make a few guesses about the “So What” of the book but I think it will become clearer by the end of the series. So far I think it would be something along the lines of ‘fight for what you believe in and the people you love’ because of all the sacrifices Kelsey makes to help Dhiren and Kishan. I truly hope that all her sacrifice will one day be worth it…

Writing Reflection

Well due to some technical difficulties, I am only just posting this now. I really enjoyed the six word memoirs. I love creative projects like this where I can use my creativity to really express my talents. My favorite part of this assignment would most likely be combining everything together and looking at it as a whole. I think that the picture really influences the point or phrase that you are trying to express as well as making it more visually appealing. Over all I think it was an easy assignment because I found it enjoyable. I learnt that it is harder to compress your thoughts into just six words, than I thought it would be, but I enjoyed the end result. I learnt that as a reader, writer and thinker I enjoy having a visual to add on to my writing and I found that it helped me to think and be more creative when we had to combine the two together. So I really enjoyed the six word memoir assignment and I hope we will do another like it.

Monday 1 October 2012

My 6 Word Memoir #6


For my sixth and final memoir I chose a foot print in the sand for the quote “Today’s the Tomorrow You Worried About” because to me it represents the present. We worry about tomorrow and what will happen and we forget to live in the moment. The foot print represents a moment preserved for all to see. It is one step you took that was a step towards your future and is now a step from your past. Must we dwell on this or could we not just enjoy the feeling of sand under our feet?

My 6 Word Memoir #5


The fifth picture I chose was another pencil drawing I drew, this time of a horse rearing. I chose the saying horses are birds without their wings for two reasons. The first reason is that when you are riding a horse at a full gallop it really feels like you are flying and the second reason is that when the horses are running around outside it looks like they are trying to run and jump into the sky. They are as free and fast as a bird but they are bound to the earth. I chose the white curly font because of its elegance and beauty, which I believe is an accurate depiction of a horse. It is hard to describe to most people why a horse is so special, because unless you have ever been loved by a horse you cannot understand the special bond that is shared.

My 6 Word Memoir #4


For my fourth memoir I chose a picture of one of the tallest marsh flowers in Manitoba. This flower has to grow above all the other plants so that it can get a few moments of sunshine each day. It takes courage and persistence to rise above everyone around you but in the end it will always be worth it. I chose a bold, white handwritten font, so that my point could be clearly seen and I believe that the font accents the picture. 

My 6 Word Memoir #3


For my third memoir I chose to add a pencil drawing I drew of a tiger’s face. I added it because I love to draw tigers because no matter how many times you draw one they always turn out different. No two tigers have the same stripes and I think this is a good representation of individuality and how it’s important to just be yourself. Don’t try to be like the person next to you because you are both very different in your own ways. I added the orange font because I think it represents that they can be different colours as well. Weather they are orange or white they will still have different stripes

My 6 Word Memoir #2


For my second memoir I chose to add a picture of a summer lightning storm. I believe that life is as unpredictable as a summer storm because you can never predict what will happen next or where the lightning will strike. Life is full of unexpected twists and turns that can be influenced by you but ultimately you have very little control over them. It took me over an hour to finally capture a picture of the lightning in the clouds because I could never predict when it would flash. I chose the bold white font to match the colour and the intensity of the lightening. 

My 6 Word Memoir #1

 For my first memoir I wrote about love. I believe that love is someone who stays by your side through everything that happens to you. They should be your support and your comfort. I chose this picture of my two cats together because of the touching story behind them. When the orange one (Milo) was a kitten, he was the runt of his litter and was left to fend for himself in a house full of feral cats. We rescued him and brought him home but he was too young to be away from his mother. We were worried about him but we soon saw that there was no need to worry. The grey one (Missy) took him in and cared for, taught him everything a house cat needs to know and kept him out of trouble.  To this day they still look after one another as you can see from them napping together in their favorite chair.

Personal Addition #7


http://goo.gl/kC3Nu

This is a quote that I think really pertains to our creative writing class because we can be told a thousand times how to write a response but without creativity on our part the response will just be a boring recitation of what everyone else already knows. I personally find this quote to quite inspiring because I love creativity. I know I can solve a problem from A to B but I prefer a project where you can truly show your strengths and talents through creativity. Without imagination where would we be a this very moment? That is impossible to say but definitely something that is interesting to consider.

Personal Addition #6

These are two pencils sketches I drew. I was inspired to draw these while reading my current book, Tiger's Quest. I love the fact that no matter how many times i draw i tiger i don't have to make all of their stripes the same. I can try different designs and patterns and not have to worry about weather or not that's what a tiger's stripes look like exactly.

 I love to draw their eyes the most, so i included one of my favorite drawings of a close-up on a tigers face. Enjoy!

 This second picture is another one inspired by my book. I love how tigers look when they move. The power and grace under their striped coat....they are such beautiful animals and my silly sketches don't even come close to capturing their true splendor.

Thursday 27 September 2012

Personal Addition #5


What is hope.................

What hope means

Hope is a bright shining light which keeps darkness at bay
Hope is a gentle cold breeze on a hot summer day

Hope is to remain positive when the going gets tough
hope is seeking more when others think you've had enough

What hope means

Hope is dreaming of tommorow
Hope is simmering under sorrow

Hope is the sparkle of tears in our eye
Hope is a beautiful thing & beautiful things never die

What hope means

Hope is as light as a feather
Hope keeps all of us together

Hope is ubiquitous and free of cost
hope is the last thing ever lost..... 
Vineet Bansal

http://goo.gl/vy5lb
I added this poem because it is one I can find inspiration in whenever I feel down or if I find myself losing hope. I love this poem because of the way it flows when you read it and I also enjoy a poem that rimes! I believe that everyone needs to have hope. Without hope what are we really? That is too heavy a question for me to answer, but it is one that is always good to ponder. 

Writing Reflection


So far my six word memoirs have gone well. I have them all written out and have chosen the images I want to put with them. I chose to stay in the classroom to work because I like the atmosphere and I find it easier to focus when there are other people working around me. I was able to get a lot accomplished in class so I had very little to do on my own time. I enjoy this style of writing because of its simplicity and the fact that we get to add a visual aid as well. I love drawing and taking pictures as well as writing, so this style combines them all into one project. I learnt that I enjoy having a visual element with my writing and that it can be difficult to express yourself with only six words. The most rewarding part of this project was looking at the end result and seeing how well it all fits together.

Blogging is a new concept to me but I do find it an interesting way to share my writing and my opinions. I have had a harder time finding personal additions to add to my blog. I have added some of my pictures and some of my art work which I find an interesting way to “publish” my work. I want to add some different personal additions, for example maybe a poem or a quote, this upcoming week. So all in all I would say I’m enjoying posting things about myself on my blog for other people to view and I hope to expand upon it in the near future. 

Reading Response #3


Tigers Quest
Colleen Houck
Pages: 160-230

This is the second book in the Tiger’s Curse Series. So far I’m about half way through the book and already I have many questions and predictions. One of the many questions I had was why Kelsey and Kishan were able to escape Lokesh’s men and only Ren was captured? Could it be that that is what Lokesh had planned all along? This leads me to a prediction that Lokesh will try and use Ren as bait to capture Kadam and Kelsey, so he can take there pieces of the amulet. I also wonder if Lokesh will be able to find Kelsey’s foster family and if he does will he kill them or use them like he is using Ren? How will Kelsey complete her quest without Ren? He was always the one to get her out of trouble, and even though she does have Kishan, will the goddess accept him in Rens place? He is part of the prophecy but he isn’t the tiger Kelsey started out with. I guess we will just have to wait and see if the temple responds to his presence as a tiger like it did for Ren. Also what if Lokesh manages to get his hands on Kishan as well? Will Kelsey be able to go on by herself or will she collapse into a depression. She has lost so many people she loves…will she really be able to handle losing anyone else?

Lokesh is the newest character we see in this book. He is an evil man as ancient as the brothers and we must wonder how he managed to survive as long as he has. Could it be that he has some of the missing pieces of the amulet and if he does get all the pieces, what kind of havoc could he reap on all of India….or on the entire world. He is a powerful foe and he obviously has a lot of influence, so what could he be doing to Ren? That makes me wonder where he has Ren hidden away, as well as how Kadam and  Kelsey will be able to find and rescue him. We learned earlier that at the end of a quest we can see Lokesh so maybe that is how they will try to locate Ren. Though, when they complete their second part of the quest, Lokesh will be able to see Kelsey as well, so I think that he will try and lure her and Kadam to his hideout. If Lokesh does take Kadam’s piece of the amulet, I wonder what will happen to him because he is as old as the brothers only because he wears the amulet. My final prediction is that Ren will be forever changed from his experience as Lokesh’s prisoner. I can’t be sure that he will even survive, but if he does then he won’t ever be the same after being held captive and being tortured by Lokesh’s men.

Well in the next reading response hopefully we will finally find out what has happened to Ren and we will also be working towards their third quest, which I’m sure will only bring raise questions.

Thursday 20 September 2012

Personal Addition #4

I have added two of my most resent sketches. I love to draw horses as well as almost all other animals, including those that don't exist. (Dragons, unicorns, other mythical beasts...) For me, drawing is a way to let some of the random thought in my head take form. I am terrible at drawing people so don't expect to see any   sketches of people. I prefer to have a model to look at when i draw but it's not always necessary. Well without a due, here they are...
 Sorry this one is kind of hard to see because it was sketched really lightly. Anyway if you can see it is a picture of a dragon. I recently reread the Eragon books and this what i pictured the dragons would look like.
 This was originally going to just be a picture of a horse, but two of my friends asked me if i could draw them a unicorn, so voila! A unicorn, which is just a horse with a horn.










All pictures drawn by: Jenine Thompson

Personal Addition #3

These are some pictures of the horse I part-board at WW Stables. His name is Renny. He's an ex-racehorse but he doesn't seem to know that. He is a thoroughbred, so he is tall and thin. He stands at approximately 15.2 hands high. He is a super sweet horse and he's great to ride. He's a little skittish (he gets scared of almost everything that moves) and he can't stand the flies in the summer. I put these pictures up because horses are a huge part of my life. I spend almost all my spare time at the stables with the horses. (For those of you who are wondering what part-boarding is, its just sharing the responsibilities of a horse with some one else.)

 This fist picture is of Renny in his fly sheet and his fly boots. He has to wear all this so that the flies cant get him as much. The "clothes", as we call them, also help to keep mud off and its harder for other horses to bite him as much.
 This is a picture of Renny in his english tack. You can sort of see in the background, the indoor arena we have to ride in.

 This is Renny in his new fly mask. He had a cut near his eye so we had to put this on him to keep the flies off it. Though its hard to tell, he can actually see through his fly mask. That doesn't mean he likes to wear it though!









Pictures taken by: Jenine Thompson

My digital footprint

For my digital footprint I decided to put a bunch of the most common logos we use on the Internet. For example I put google on there several different times because I myself use google at least once every day. I couldn't fit every website logo I could think of on my footprints because there are just too many to count!

Wednesday 19 September 2012

Personal Addition #2

This is a picture of Twin beaches. My family and I would spend all day at the beach and watch the sunset.
This is a picture of Bird Hill Park in the fall. I love the colors of the leaves in the fall.

This is a picture of a section of lake Manitoba. We would often hike around the paths and then go for a swim in the lake.
 This is a picture of Patricia Beach. When the water is really low we would get lots of sand bars and the water would get these beautiful little waves.
This picture is of the greenest park of Manitoba's Desert. Spirit Sands is a beautiful place to do some hiking if you don't mind driving all the way out.

 This is another picture of Twin beaches. We stayed at a beach front cabin for a week and this was the view from the back step. I would fall asleep to the sounds of the waves lapping against the shore and the sea birds calling.
 This is a picture of the Devils Punch Bowl. This is the biggest body of water in Manitoba's small desert.
This is a picture of the harvest moon at Grand Beach.







These are some of my favorite summer pictures. I added them because in a way they represent me. I love nature, so that’s what most of my pictures contain. These are pictures of some of the beaches I have been to as well as some of the places I like to go hiking. I love the fresh air and the sounds of nature. I might also try to include some pictures of my vacation in Ontario, at a later date, if I have a chance.

Personal Addition #1

One of my favorite books! 
http://goo.gl/QlNO3

 
This is one of my all-time favorite books. I threw this picture up because I love the new cover. The new cover is the one where we see Katsa, the heroine of the story, in her all her glory. I think the new cover is way more eye catching and I think it represent the book better because it looks more mature than the previous cover.  I would suggest this book to any science fiction and/or fantasy readers out there. It’s a great book filled with adventure!

Tuesday 18 September 2012

Reading Response #2


Tiger’s Curse
Colleen Houck
Pages 1 to 60

To begin I will answer your question about my last reading response. You asked me if my book was about werewolves or vampires or both and how they compared to the lore about these creatures. The book was solely about werewolves. They were not forced to change every full moon though the need to change became stronger in the week of the full moon. They became wolves, not some wolf-human hybrid, and kept both their wolf and human instincts and senses in both forms. So they aren’t the typical werewolf from the horror movies, but characters that are easier to relate to in the end.
            I had a few questions about my new book so far. For example, I wonder if the change in the tiger’s behavior means he has taken a liking to his new handler. Ren seems to respond to Kelsey much more than he did for his owner. Could it be that he has finally found someone he can trust? Could his seemingly more human behavior mean he isn’t what he seems to be? That leads me to my next question. I wonder who the tiger will turn out to be. It has become obvious that Ren isn’t a normal tiger. Could he be the betrayed Prince we read about in the prologue? Or is it possible it could be the Princes brother Kishan? Those two seem like the most likely options so far. Another question I had was, what could this new character, Mr. Kadam, have to do with Ren? He has taken a great interest in Kelsey’s tiger. Could he be connected to the human I believe Ren to be?
            I made quite a few text to self connections in my book. The first one was when Kelsey starts talking about the precipice we stand on when we are in our final year of high school, how we have to choose to work or to go back to school. We have our whole life ahead of us and it is all in our decisions at the end of grade 12. I can relate because I’m in my final year of school. I have to start applying for universities as well as finding a new job so that I can succeed later in life. Another connection I made was when Kelsey talks about her personality. She describes herself as an animal and book lover, and an outdoorsman. I feel a connection to her character because we seem to be similar in personality as well as in our hobbies.
            So next time I hope to be finishing this book or I will be reading the sequel, Tiger’s Quest and hopefully I can get some answers to some of my questions. 

Rambling Autobiography

I was born on April 26th and my favorite number has always been 26. I have been an animal lover all my life. I absolutely love my mom’s homemade Lasagna and garlic bread. When I was first learning to read I hated it. I started reading for pleasure at age 8 only because my friend would brag about how many books she read and how good they were, so I started to read so I wouldn’t be left out. My favorite animal is a horse. I have been riding horses for over 6 years now and I currently share a horse with another woman at WW Stables. My goal is to buy my own horse when I’m older. I have a younger brother named Matthew who is in grade 9. I once told my dad I wanted a new pet, so he brought home a pet rat. My brother and I used to take our pet rat and our cat for a walk around our block. Both the rat and the cat had harnesses and leashes. My father told me he would be really mad if I didn’t join band in grade 6, so naturally I joined art…He got over it. I love going to the beach and going for long hikes with my father. Once my mom, my brother and I saw a baby black bear in front of the cabin we stayed at and we were so scared that we screamed as loud as we could and turned all the lights on. The poor bear cup ran up a tree. (Apparently he was more scared of us, then we were of him!) I hope one day to have a dog because that is one of the only animals I haven’t had as a pet. My favorite book (At the moment) is Graceling by Kristin Cashore. When I’m older I want to be either a veterinarian or a teacher. I’m in my final year of high school and I have my whole life ahead of me…