Sayings

These are some phrases and thoughts that I think people need to listen too.

*We kill all the caterpillars, then complain there are no butterflies.
I'm not a 100% sure what this means, but I think it means something around the lines of : we get rid of all the bad and ugly caterpillars then complain their are no marvellous/beautiful butterflies.
*What's the Future? It's a blank sheet of paper, and we draw lines on it, but sometimes our hand is held, and the lines we draw aren't the lines we wanted.
To me this means that you can make your own decisions, it is yours and only your decision.
*If life gives you lemons, make lemonade.
To me this means, what ever life throws at you, make the most out of it as you can.

If only...

If I was a magician, what would I do?
I would create lots of animals, and a painting or two.
I would wave my wand, and everything would be alright.
I would create a cure for cancer, to win that fight.
I would fly really high, up to the sky.
I would create lots of money, to buy a new house
And maybe even whisk up a pet mouse.
I would create happiness, that would destroy all negativity.
And last of all, I would create a food city!

If only...

LI: To write a memoir, (personal experience) about a camp experience, (5-10 min episode), using snapshots, thought shots, and exploding the moment (show not tell).

Abseiling

My heart skips a beat as I take a glance down. My hands feel clammy, and even the views of the lake, the chirps of various of birds, the friendly smell of damp bush, plus the supportive cheers of friends don’t take my mind off what I am about to do. A few minutes ago I was all ready to go, thinking it was going to be great, but when you're actually standing on the edge of the cliff you don’t feel as enthusiastic as before.

“I’m ready” I say, adjusting my hands on the rope. I swallow my fears and slowly lean back, letting inch by inch. Once I’m in a near horizontal position, the instructor tells me to start descending down the cliffside. I slowly move my feet, watching as loose gravel showers down to the bottom. Suddenly, I can’t see the instructor anymore. Then I realize. I’d just gone over a side of a cliff, abseiling! From then on down, my adrenaline starts flowing, and I’m not even a teeny bit scared any more! I climb down like a monkey, swinging around like a lunatic. I even try bouncing off the cliff a few times. Then I pause and look out at the view. It is simply stunning! As far as the eye can see, a beautiful lake shimmers and moves, as ripples dance on its surface. The sky is dark blue, and mini clouds seem to float. Reluctantly, I move my eyes away from the breathtaking sight and concentrate on getting down, so that someone else can have a turn. I slow down a little, because the end is looming up, and I want to enjoy it.

As I abseil down the last little bit of the cliff, and my feet touch the ground, I feel a tinge of forget that it’s all over. Looking up at the cliff, I feel really proud of what I’ve achieved. At the start I was quite nervous, but now I wish I could do it over and over again!

By Casey

Christchurch earthquake, Methven

The quaking comes suddenly. One minute I am lying peacefully on my bed, trying to sleep, the next I'm being thrown around like a rag doll. My bed feels like an out of control massage chair, jumping up and down like a bull at a rodeo. I attempt to stand up, but do it unsuccessfully. My next try is successful, and I shakily make my way to the doorway. Mum meets me there and we stumble around like drunks, aiming for the safety of her big warm bed. We reach it and lie down, watching as the ground continues to quake, and listen to the everlasting noise. It sounds like a train coming straight towards us, a deep rumbling noise that seems to grow louder and louder. I watch the corner of the room, half expecting a train to come and crash into us. Finally, the earthquake stops, and the night is still.

Did you know?

*Did you know that I was in the Christchurch earthquake.
*I can do a 180 back-flip.
*I had a pet kangaroo
*I am half Australian. 
*I am the oldest sibling.
*My favorite food is fish pie.
*I have a dog and a cat.
*I do BMX.
*I LOVE climbing trees
*My dad lives in Australia.

My clammy hands unconsciously tighten their grip as I pull my blanket over my head. I tuck my knees up too my chest, feeling the fast rhythmic beats of my pounding heart. My skin is covered in goosebumps like thousands of miniature hills.

They chase me down a long corridor, my evil year two teacher leading. Suddenly my eyes notice a door, so I open it up, and go inside thinking it would be an exit to this house full of never ending tunnels. The light is dim, so I grope around clumsily. Then I realize, this was not an exit, it was a dungeon. I turn and sprint towards the door, and run straight into my pursuer. “Any last words?”

Then I wake.

How I hate nightmares.

Book Review

Title: The Executioner's Daughter   

Author: Jane Hard staff

Genre: Adventure with some fantasy.

Moss is the Executioner's daughter in the Tower of London. Her job is to catch the chopped off heads in her basket. She despises the job, and longs for a way to escape. But Pa always tells her, that they are prisoners, there is no way out. Then, one day, she finds a hidden tunnel, leading to her freedom. Out of the tower, on the banks of the river, she learns that her life, as she thought, was not what it seemed. She turns to the river, looking into its murky depths, on an epic journey to find the truth.

I think this is a well crafted story, with many hidden messages. For example, if you search hard enough you will find what you are looking for, and, sometimes the best things in life are right in front of you. I actually really liked that you had to think of the meaning of the book, as normally books have a clear message. I don’t think that the author should have made a message more pronounced, because it is sometimes worthwhile to actually try to decipher it instead.

I think the story was definitely enhanced by where the story was set, because it made me listen carefully, as it was not a location that you hear much about in books. It also made me think about what it would be like in the tower of London, back in the days, and gave me a clear image in my head about Moss’s home, and when she met the rag-tag fishing boy, Salter.

As you may have guessed, Moss is the main character. I think she had a strong personality, but she could be very defiant, and she always talked back to her father. She was also a very brave and witty girl, but sometimes she could be very stupid. She was very much like, you and me, just a young girl living her life, and I found I could relate to her, at some parts of the story. At the end of the story, she seemed to have of changed into a more positive person. The one downfall, to me, was that I could not picture her in my head, because it didn't really give a clear or informative description of what she looked like.

On a more positive note, I think the author had a good way with language, and knew exactly how to enhance and make sentences more dramatic. “She bent her head and stepped forward” That was a line that popped out to me, when she had just found the hidden tunnel. I also really liked how there was some poems and short songs included in the book. Like the Riverwitch’s song. To me it added intrest and added lots of new information.

One of the best parts of the book, to me, was that the story flow was not all predictable. I also liked how the ending had no loose ends and didn’t leave you feeling that there needs too be a second book. There was also a good balance of characters, (some good,some bad.) One thing that I think could of made the book better, would of been too increase its lenghth. It was an average sized book (368 pages) but I believe the story line was exceptional, and could have easily have fitted more into it without it becoming boring.

In conclusion, I have enjoyed this reading book immensly, and feel I have learnt a lot about what makes up a good story whilst reading it. Personally, I can not find much too pick on, so I think that Jane Hardstaff has done an amazing job. With it’s marvellous characters and storyline, I believe that The Executioners Daughter is not a book to be missed.

By Casey.