Angels and Demons

Angels and Demons is a really great mobvie. The camera work was brilliant, and was the special affects, but most of all the music was superb. It talks about a very long battle between science and religion, and I think through this high speed, heart pounding movie, it's a great way to get people to learn more about the catholic religion. It talked about the moment of creation, and one golden line was, I think, "If science can even claim the moment of creation, then what is there left for god?" I think that shows a really good point. And though I lean towards science rather than religion, I also think that on some level give shows a really great truth to life. I think there should some mysteries in the world that can allow men to think for themselves. Over all, one of the greatest movies I've ever seen, at least.

Quote of the day:
"Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference." Winston Churchill

Well, that sure sets the tone for the rest of the year. Happy birthday Churchill, the person, as well as Ben Stiller!

Christmas Party

I find that many people I know have two faces. They are pretty nice in school, you know, shy, a little wall flower that will never blossom. But online they're like out there and courageous and all that. They are no longer invisible online and instead they are always on and always in your faces. I don't really want to mention any names, but mostly also because they are no one in this school. But take the Christmas Party list for example, people just go crazy on it. I don't know much of the grade 9s, but I'm sure not all of them are as crazy and abnoctious as they are online.

Quote of the day:
"The internet is a poison, don't get near it." My friend's grandmother

Well, this coming from the person that thought the noises that the fidge made were actually ghosts of her boyfriends past.

Lots to do

It seems like today I have more projects than ever!! But unlike the other weekend when I was in panic mode, there actually is a lot to do this time. Last time was just a defence mechanism that I use to get all my homework finished. You know when you tell yourself that you have a lot to do, and when you believe yourself it's like you actually start and finish them all before you know it? Well, it's not like that any more!! I've got three days to finish NaNoWriMo, and yes, I'm at the last part of the book, but I've still got 4,000 words to go, and I have to edit it. Plus, I think I'll need more pages than I can get with the end of the story getting oh so near (I'm finding that I'm using "oh so something" a lot more now because Geoffery always says it). And I've still got a lot of homework left, mainly science. And two tests on Monday and Tuesday. PANICING, PANICING, PANICING!!!! (just pretend I just said all that in like 7 seconds, and you'll think it's hillarious!!)

Quote of the day:
"A charming woman is a busy woman." Loretta Young

Well, then, I guess I'll have to stay in panic mode for the rest of my life.

Improved typing skills

Though I'm not as skilled and quick in typing out words than my friends, I feel like I've gained a lot more progress. In grade 3, when we learned how to type, I went to ESL while every one else had a lot of practice in it already. So I was a little behind. I've always been a league of typing lower than my friends from then on. I don't think it'll ever be as good as theirs, but it's improving, which is a good sign. That's what happened for reading as well. I've never had the reading out loud practice like the other kids, so now I read pretty fast in my mind, but really horribly out loud.

Quote of the day:
"Winter lingered so long in the lap of Spring that it occasioned a great deal of talk." Bill Nye

I know usually my quotes are germane from my topic, but it's this guy's birthday today, and he's just an awesome guy. So happy happy birthday to you!!

Self-evaluation

I just edited my first self-evaluation in highschool, and I hated it!! I've always hated making comments about myself. I feel like others always know you better than yourself. I mean, do I say I'm horrible, or do I say I'm great? Am I great, or am I horrible?? Does it look like I'm a snob if I right good things, but people will think I'm the worst person in the world if I right all bad things!!!??? I DON'T KNOW!! But at least this one was a little easier, I've seen worse.

Quote of the day:
"Every human being is the author of his own health or disease." Buddha

Then why do people still get cancer??

Lesson 11

Lesson	WorkBook	Quiz	Extensions	Family Reflections	Get Go
11	Done	Done	Done	Done	Done

Extensions and Reflections

Extensions Lesson 11

What are your greatest strengths?
I can get things done. If I get a problem or project to do and I have a dead line, I'll probably get it finished. I guess that's what I'm really good at. It probably isn't the best one in the pile, but it will always be there, and it's not that bad, either.

What do you deeply enjoy doing?
I love to watch movies, and other creations from other people. It's just so interesting to learn about other people and characters. I just love reading and everything in that consept.

things are most important to you?
My family and friends are really important to me. I think getting the best out of myself and others is pretty important too. And doing my best at all times.

Reflections
Discuss your collective mission as a family. If asked, how would people you know describe your family? How would you want them to describe you? What do you spend your collective family time doing or talking about? What is important to you?

We just want to stick together and make it as a family. Also, we want to get our financial problems out of the way. My friends describe my family as easy going, and they describe me as free and independent. Of course, there are times that I need my parents, but apparently not as much as my friends. We talked about how we can make life easier now and how we can make life easier in the future. It was mostly about my parents and how they can work on their careers, but that was pretty much it.

My usual blog:
I think that today was really easy day. It was relaxing because Angel and I finished our English Project. We didn't do much at Applied Skills. We had a lot of notes to copy from Social Studies. We have just a little quiz next class. Plus we have a little homework from Science, but that's it. It was great.

Quote of the day:
"Life grants nothing to us mortals without hard work." Horace

Well, that says it about the accomplishments in my day today.

Ooops

haha, silly me. Actually, I should say silly Ms. Greskiw, I did pass the book test, she just credited Edbert for it. ANd Edbert never did it, she just missed a line or so, because Edbert's name is right under mine. Haha, I'll go talk to her tomorrow.

Today was a very fun day. At Literature club, it turned out that no one did the NaNoWriMo thing except for me. And they were all amazed at 45000 words, I've only ogt 5000 to go!! Well, it's a month, that's a long time. In teh summer I wrote a screenplay that consisted of 126 pages in two weeks time!!

Quote of the day:
"Experience is one thing you can't get for nothing." Oscar Wilde

Hear, hear, well said!!

Failed tests II

It was a really weird day today. I didn't pass mt book test, which was on SOS Titanic, one of my favourite books. That was sad because I thought it was really easy, but I didn't get it. I somehow had the feeling that I'll get a B in englsish, which is very weird because I love literature and I want to be a writer when I grow up. But any way, I got a really bad mark on my Chapter 6 of the Pearl sheet, too. We only got half a day to do it, so I understand how I would have gottne a bad mark. It still hurts, though. Angel, however, got the exact opposite. She didn't get into basketball, but I did, and she got really good marks on her tests. I would have good marks over basketball any day. I'm very sad and disappointed at myself. :(

Quote of the day:
"Life must be lived as play. " Plato

Not in highschool, it's not.

Old Classics

Today was a day of learning about the famous literature throughout history. Like Jane Austen, and Agatha Christie, and Charles Dickens, and Mark Twain, and Arthur Conan Doyle, and Mobo sang, O-Henry, Charlotte Blunte and such and such. It was really fun.

Quote of day:
"Education is the transmission of civilization." Will Durant

huh?

Homework and schedules

Today, I thought I had a lot of things to do. I thought there was no way I could get them finished in two days. But, what do you know, I'm done half the list already, and it's only non on the first day!! I finally get some time to myself, and yet I still feel like something's missing. But if I really think about it, my petri plates are good to go, I've done my first round of the science fair, I'm done my science foldable, and my math and french homework. All I have to do is my english project and practice my violin. That's the hard part though, I'm stuck on my englsih project!!

Hey, guess what, immunizations at school on December 7th and 8th at 3:30 to 7 pm, come and see. This way, I don't have to wait in a long line in a stuffy old clinic!

Quote of the day:
"All things are difficult before they are easy." Thomas Fuller

Really, I don't see how they got hard today, but I don't see how they got easy on bad days.

Basketball

This morning we had a basketball try-out. I sort of missed the last one. But I was there today, and it was very tiring indeed. The exercises was fun, all of them except for the shuffling one. We had two lines and we stood between them, then we ran to each of them. It was so dizzying. Because of that and other reasons, I don't think I'll get in. But then again, all my friends say that I will get in because I'm so tall. Of course, being tall in basketball is a great advantage. I'm still not sure if that's enough. So lets just wait and see.

Quote of the day:
"Always turn a negative situation into a positive situation." Michael Jordan

Well, I guess that's my answer, I'm going to get into the basketball team!! Thanks, MJ.

Wifi for SY

That is awesome!! But I didn't read the whole thing, so I don't know if it is Wifi for all of us, or just synergy members. I'd benefit either way, but I don't think it'll be very fair. No, wait, why should I care about fair?? I'll be benefiting either way, so why do I care. I'm too nice. I now just hope she approves of it. It's stupid that we can't use the network.

Quote of the day:
"I don't have one, sorry" Jessica Yang

Break-ins

I live in a townhouse property and the other day there were some break-ins. It was not our house that got broken in, though it has happened before. Quite awkwardly I was at camp that day, so I didn't really know what wnt on. My parents say that the thief came in in the morning and ravaged our house messy. They took my mom's jewelery and my toys, which was weird. Last year there were a lot in the winter, and now they are back. I wish they would go somewhere else to steal.

Quote of the day:
"Work is a necessary evil to be avoided." Mark Twain

What?

Lesson 10

Lesson	WorkBook	Quiz	Extensions	Family Reflections	Get Go
10	Done	Done	Done	Done	Done

Extensions and Reflections

Extensions Lesson 10

What do you look like?
I look confident and sure of myself. I look like I've got nothing to worry about.
things are important to you?
The basic stuff, family, friends, principles, grades, and most of all, trying my hardest.
have you done over the past year with your life?
Not much. I'm in Synergy 9, I've got decent grades, perhaps my circle of friends has changed a bit, for the better of course, and maybe everything else can stay the same.
How would your friends describe the "year from now" you?
Exactly the way they've described me for the past six years of my life. I'm hard working adn I'll get what ever that needs to be done done. That I'm not the craziest, or the prettiest, but my grades just balance that out.

Reflections
Discuss your family's future: what does it hold for you? Are you going to have the relationships that you want with each other? As a family, are you making things happen, or are you on autopilot?

Actually, my family all agrees that the life that we live right now is pretty good. Maybe we can work on the way to talk to each other. We're sort of in a financial rut, but who isn't these days. We can work on working around each other's schedules, and maybe we can save a little bit of money. But there's nothing really that we aren't satisfied with.

My usual blog:
Oh finally!! I finally thought of a name for my NaNoWriMo story. It'll be called Caustic Bliss!! It's it's burning happiness. The story is about a kid and his grandmother dies, and he lived with a murderous uncle, and he always sleeps on the floor, and he helps the Scarlet Pimpernel, and he gives up his life, and his love interest gets shot. But he also has a best friend, and a family that cares about him, and a generous boss. So even though he's been through so much, he always thinks of himself as fortunate, and he doesn't dwell on the things he's lost, but on the things he still has. His friends are really the only good thing in his life. And yet that is the most important thing to him. So burning happiness, burning is bad and it's destroying the happiness, but that's what everyone thinks about his life, but to him, his life is wonderful. Caustic Bliss, coming to a store near you, never.

Quote of the day:
"Believe that life is worth living and your belief will help create the fact. " William James

That's what the boy does!!

A day of computers

Today I practically did nothing but stay on the computer. I've alread got 70 pages of my stories done, and I've done a lot on the Social Studies website. I've finished the Departed (which, by the way, wasn't the best movie in the world, if you know what I mean) and I've watched Ocean's Eleven (which I love). Two completely different movies, both of crazy people. Hey, Matt Damon is in both these movies, weird.

Quote of the day:
"A lot of movies are about life, mine are like a slice of cake." Alfred Hitchhock

Alright, whatever you say, Hitchhock.

A day of reading

Because I failed the book test, I have to do one on Tuesday. That's why I'm reading a new, and easy book. It's called SOS Titanic and I've read it before. But sh, I don't want to parade that fact all around, I don't want Ms. Greskiw thinking that I'm just trying to get marks. Actually, I really like this book and it proved enjoyable to be reading it again. So technically, I'm not just doing it for marks. And besides, I read a lot, and I enjoy it. In fact, my mother just scolded me about how much I'm using my eyes these days. I told her it was homework, and that I don't have to do it if she didn't want me to. Haha, I cornered her there, didn't I?

Quote of the day:
"I shouldn't be near Vegas and have money in my pocket." Adam Sandler

Ha, no one should.

Christmas Party!!??

That is awesome that MY, sorry, Synergy has our own Christmas Party!! I got the document from the grade 9s just now, and added nachos to the list and commented on some of the comments others made. I've added nachos to the list, awesome mexican food should be at every party, just to spice it up a little. It's really mean what they said about Edward Sissorhands, that was a good movie. But I'm really hoping that we could watch the Titanic!! I'm like obsessed with that movie. That is the movie that got me into movies!! And now I'm like a movie genious, so you can imagine how much influence that movie gave me.

Quote of the day:
"Everyone told me to pass on Speed because it was a 'bus movie.' " Sandra Bullock

Well, that's probably the only movie I like with you in it. And it was a bus movie, it was exciting, though.

Failing Tests

Today I didn't exactly fail all my tests, but I got a couple that I wasn't fully satisfied with. I got a 12 out of 20 on my book test and now I have to do another one. I got a 41.5 out of 50 on my socials test, but I think I got one of the good marks in the class. And I think I did really bad on my science test. But then again it can always be better, or worse, than I expect it. A lot of my friends got worse than me. I only know that Nancy got a 42 out of 50 on the socials test. I'm a little down, but it'll all be oaky, I hope.

Quote of the day:
"Education is a progressive discovery of our own ignorance." Will Durant

Ha, well it's good to know that I'm on the right track. Oh, just a random fact, happy birthday Whoopi Goldberg! Is it like A-list actors' birthday week??

Science Cheat-sheet

Oh, no!! Why do I always do this?? I printed out my science cheat sheet and I forgot to look it over, and now I think I've missed a lot of things!! Oh, no. I never learn, do I??

Today was the block rotations, and I hate it. I got so used to my first schedule, and everything worked out fine. Now I have PE in the morning, and it's just horrible. You don't have enough energy when you are there, and you are tired for the rest of the day.

I'm just a big complainer today, aren't I??

Quote of the day:
"Always write angry letters to your enemies. Never mail them." James Fallow

I'm angry at the school, and this is my homework so that my teachers can see, oh no!!

Happy birthday to a lot of famous people today: David Schwimmer, aka, Ross Geller from friends, Neil Young, not young any more, and Grace Kelly, what??

Furniture

Today my family bought a lot of new stuff. I finally got a huge boss chair that I've wanted since a long time ago, and we got a new frame work for some big mattress-like cushions. Though I didn't help assemble anything, instead I finished my Science Cheat-Sheet, which, by the way, isn't that easy. Ms. Smedley told us to write a cheat sheet (it isn't an actual secret, illegitimate cheat sheet) and we were supposed to write everything in Chapter 1 on one piece if paper, one side!! It was so hard to actually squeeze all the information in. I had to make it the smallest font.

Quote of the day:
"I have not yet begun to fight!" John Paul Jones

Yeah, and lets hope you never will.

Weird fact for y'all out there, today, rememberance day, is also the birthday of Leonardo DiCaprio and Demi Moore. Weird.

lesson 9

Lesson	WorkBook	Quiz	Extensions	Family Reflections	Get Go
9	Done	Done	Done	Done	Done

Extensions and Reflections

Extensions lesson 9
1) Get yourself into groups of five or six and create a scene, commercial, role play, poem or song that best illustrates the ideas behind The Pause Button

Mary: Yo, what's up??
Jake: Where were you yesterday? I waited at the coffee house for ever!!
Mary: Oh, I'm sorry, my mom's still sick, so I couldn't make it. I left you a message.
Jake: Well it's still your fault PAUSE!! Wait a minute, not getting that message was my fault, why didn't I check? And her mom was sick, that is a really good excuse, alright, fine. UNPAUSE!! Well that's alright, just give me a heads up a little earlier, other wise it's fine.

2)Write in your journal about a quote by Theodore Roosevelt.
Quote of the day:
"Courtesy is as much a mark of a gentleman as courage." Theodore Roossevelt

Indeed, and you should use the pause button once in a while so that you make sure you are alsway nice. Even if some one is being mean to you, you can ignore it and focus on how you can make this situation better rather than making it worse. And it actually takes courage to be nice rather than be mean. People will look at you as if you can't be aggresive, but instead they are the ones that are making the mistake.

Reflections
Decide on a family code word or phrase to remind each other to count to 10 before sinking into a "reactive rant zone." Post your Press Pause phrase on your fridge.

Ours is "hold it". I've used it three times already, but I think my mom's getting a bit annoyed with it. But haha, she can't do anything about it because she thinks I learn very good morals in the go program and she wants to set a good example.

My usual blog: We have our first real science test on friday. I'm so nervous!!!! But I can study a lot tomorrow, and I mean a lot. I already know my notes pretty well,a dn I can understand every aspect we've learned. And yet I feel like I don't understand any of it. I guess it's because I haven't really sat down for a long time and really studied. I do review my notes every weekend.

I've already done my quote of the day, so yeah.

super old songs from the dead

Today I added onto my collection of super old songs. They were Stand by Me, song by Seal, Unchained Melody, song from Ghost, and Can you feel the love, song from Lion King, song by Elton John, I think. This is why I'm different from other hiphop liking kids. I like songs that my mom even thinks old. I'm so weird, yet so awesome.

Quote of the day:
"Any good music must be an innovation." Les Baxter

Very true.

The Forum

It seems like I'm on the computer more and more each day. It's either I'm posting on my blog, or going on my email, or working on the NoNoWriMo project, or I"m on Mr.Sale's Forum. I guess that's highshchool. I love the forum for social studies. Apparently I'm one of the few that is actually passing on it. I've got 49/90 so far, and passing is 45/90. It's actually quite enjoyable, in fact, I feel like that's the time that I actually get to have fun (with the exception of watching Friends and the numerous Leonardo DiCaprio movies).



Quote of the day:
"Fashions have done more harm than revolutions." Victor Hugo



OMG, it's Gucci!!! Horrifying.

Songs from the dead

I love old songs, and now they've come back to haunt me. Like Elvis, and the Beatles, and even recent artists like Justin Timberlake and One Republic. Songs that I haven't heard in a long while I'm now listening to. It's actually funny how I could remember all the lyrics, too. Weird!

Quote of the day:
"But I always loved songs with great lyrics." Johnny Rivers

Of course, everyone does, Johnny Rivers ladies and gentlemen!!

NaoNoWriMo progress report

So I'm closing up to 10 000 words in my NaNoWriMo project. It's the 6th and I'm done 1/5 of it. But I'm really scared that I'm not going to finish. I still haven't thought of a name for the story yet. I was thinking something about the French Revolution or friendship. But I just can't seem to decide on one. This is usually what happens. I can't get a title until I totally get the whole story in my head. There are scenes that come to me from the story at random times, I guess I'll have to wait for the title to come as well.

Quote of the day:
"The hardest part is developing the idea, and that can take years." Eric Carle

I loved his book of the Caterpillar, it was one of my favourites when I was little.

Random Singing

Today at lunch, my friends and I somehow got into the mood to sing random songs. So we belched out the best and the worst of the Billboard top 100. It was actually quite refreshing, I haven't had just random fun in a long time. And I feel like it's a really good way to have fun too. Some people like to gossip, others like to make fun of others, what could a couple of goofballs hurt anyone.

Quote of the day:
"All cartoon characters and fables must be exaggeration, caricatures. It is the very nature of fantasy and fable." Walt Disney

Speaking of which, just a big shout out to my favourite childhood TV characters, happy birthday Sesame Street!!!!!

The Aviator

If you were to ask me who was the greatest aviator of all time, I would say it was Howard Hughes. He was flying legend, and though he was not exactly what you'd call sane, he was still a genius. He broke many records. I think the H-4 Hercules was the first water plane ever, adn he had built it. Hughes was insane when it came to detail, everything had to be just right. I know him from the movie the Aviator, with Leonardo DiCarpio, directed by Martin Scorsese. In that movei I remember him flying through a bunch of houses. He was defintely insane. He hated germs and the details of opening his milk was crutial. It was a good movie.

Quote of the day:
"I'm not a paranoid derranged millionaire. Goddamit, I'm a billionaire." Howard Hughes

Haha!! You were still paranoid, either way!

Day 1 and Day 2

I feel like day 1 is when my brain gets tired and day 2 is when I get physically tired. I'm not an active person, so PE isn't really great for me, and I've got that on day 2. My day 1 binder is miraculously heavier than my day 2 binder. That explains that I've gt a lot more homework on day 1. I think it's kind of neat, since then I don't have to be physically and mentally tired on both days. Middle years, I'm sorry, Synergy, really is kind of like a vacation. Yes, you do get a lot of wodk, but you're also expected to do horribly in PE, perfect!!

Quote of the day:
"Education is a better safeguard of liberty than a standing army." Edward Everette

But isn't liberty mean equality to all? Then there would be no equality if you've got guns and people who are authorized to use them for occasions that others are not allowed to. So, yeah, I guess he's right.

Extensions and Reflections

Extensions Lesson 8
Is there an area in your life you are unhappy about or frustrated by-classes, a subject, friends, family, work?

Yes, I am unhappy when people don't do things the way I want them to. But it's mostly friends that do that.

are you unhappy about or frustrated by? For example, do you feel powerless, hopeless, or used? Describe the situation.

I can't seem to get my friend Angel to focus on her work, and being her partner in a lot of projects, it's bringing my grades down too. I feel powerless because every time I talk to her, she says sh'ell do it, but then she just leaves me to do her share as well.

have you been responding? What do you do? What is your attitude?

I've been trying my hardest to ask her to do what she need to do. I guess I should understand her a little better, I'm sure she ahs her reasons.

other (more proactive) ways might you respond to this situation?

I could not complain about her not doing her work. I could just do it all myself, or I should see the things that she has done.

this situation comes up during the week, remember to take a moment and choose your response. Set up an action plan with steps on how to change your reactive reaction to one where you are more in control and feeling better about the situation.

I should first try to understand her schedule and how busy it is. I then should ask her once more about her work, adn maybe I should really see how much she's already done.

Reflections
I'm going to make my own lunch since I don't like my mom's lunch. I'm going to organize my time so that I don't feel so busy and I won't blame others. I'll help my friends with their schedules so that I could see how busy they are as well. And I could do a lot more than that!! (Using more proactive language as well)

My usual blog:
Why do authors have such a good way with words. Like Jane Austen, I mean, her language is so pretty and brilliant, but it also sounds so easy and fluent. When I try to use more fancy language in my writing, it always comes out as if I'm trying too hard, which I am!! Well, maybe it just sounds like that to me because it's my writing. Ms. Greskiw says our own writing always looks different in someone else's eyes, so that's why I'm getting my friends to read it. Peir editing, right?

Quote of the day:
"Formula for success: rise early, work hard, strike oil." J. Paul Getty

Yes, that is the definite way for success. Though I got another type of success today, thanks, Mr. Olson!

Halloween Past

While others went out trick or treating, I finished all my homework. So today I called my friends and they're freaking out because they have homework they don't understand due tomorrow. And then I tell them how I finished my homework yesterday and rub the fact in their faces!! I felt so powerful and sooo much better than others. But then that feeling died down when I realized that I've still got French left, and probably more homework on Monday, and a big project due on Friday!!!

Quote of the day:
"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." Thomas Edison

Ha!! It's not you who failed, it's Tesla who is failing for you. He's the real genius!! Have you even seen the posters up at Churchill!