House Journal

"The house is made of brick, wood, and concrete" said the tour guide. I could tell this old house meant a lot to him from the twinkle in his eye when he spoke. My eyes however were squinted because he chose to stop and talk with us facing straight into the bright midday sun. He was as gabby as tour guides come. I love history but I wasn't really sure why we took a class trip to go see some old house wobbling on the top of a mountain. I guess it was pretty cool though how this house was still up there. It was pretty impressive in fact. What was nearly as impressive was that back when people still lived in this house, they would drive a wagon up and down the steep mountain path everyday. Our modern schoolbus had a difficult time climbing the bumpy road so I can't even imagine what the trip would be like in a wagon.

Sonnet

Shall I compare you to the seasons
Everyone has a different liking
Preferences vary and so do the reasons
Some like snowboarding and some like hiking
Oh music, you mean something to everyone
Play different roles in everyone's life
But you're there everyday like the sun
You're there for the good times, there for the strife
Pounding beats in my head through my headphones
You are as essential as my heartbeat
You are always there so I'm never alone
My love for you is intense like the summer heat
Like the seasons, you are always changing
Old playlists, they need rearranging

Dinner table Journal

If I could invite three people to the dinner table, living or dead, they would be...
1. Lupe Fiasco- I would invite him because he is a favorite rapper of mine. He writes lyrics with actual substance and I respect that a lot. He has a lot of talent and it would be cool to chill with him.
2. Rob Dyrdek- I would invite Rob because I loved watching his shows and he seems like a really chill guy. He would have some hilarious things to say and he would bring some interesting conversation to the table.
3. Frank Sinatra- I would invite him because he is such a classy guy and he is a legend.

Assonance

He drags his exhausted body out of bed
He thinks to himself, "Ugh.. Another day of this"
He clumsily stumbles to the bathroom to shower
He nearly falls back asleep as the warm water flows over his body
After getting dressed, he strolls downstairs where his parents are sitting at the table
They are way too awake and energetic for 6:30 in the morning
They attempt to start a conversation but he quickly shuts them down
He grabs his breakfast, throws himself into the dark maroon reclining chair, and turns on the TV
For the next 20 minutes, he immerses himself in SportsCenter and Boy Meets World reruns
As 7 o'clock rolls around, he goes back upstairs to brush his teeth
He packs a minuscule lunch for there is nothing good to eat at his house
Driving to his dreaded destination, he can only think about how much he wants the school year to be over

Lyrics Assignment

Song Title : "Real World"

Artist : Matchbox Twenty

1. Why did you choose this song? Why is it important to you?
I chose this song because Matchbox Twenty is one of my favorite bands and its a catchy song.

2. What is the story in the lyrics?
The story in the lyrics is that the singer is feeling like he doesn't have control over his life and he is wondering what it would be like to be someone who is in control and can do whatever they want. In the last part of the song, he is speaking to someone who means a lot to him and is saying "please don't change" because that person makes his life better when everything else is going wrong.

3. What is the structure?
This song is mostly free verse with only a few examples of rhyming

4. What is the emotional tone or mood?
The mood of the song is that the singer is frustrated

5. What is the message or lesson?
The message is that a lot of times in life, things won't go your way and you'll be upset but there's always someone or something that makes everything good again.

6. What is the intention of this piece of music?
 The intention of this song is it an outlet for the singer to vent his frustrations

Scary moment journal

A time in my life when I was really scared happened this past summer. My friends josh, alec, and I were looking for something to do on a boring afternoon. After awhile of brainstorming ideas, we finally came up with our acivity for the day. Cliff Jumping. We hopped in Josh's car and drove for at least 30 minutes until we came to a park and got out. I didn't really know where we were but it didn't matter to me because my adrenaline had started flowing. We had to hike for a few minutes past a few "No Trespassing on the cliff" signs to get up to the cliff. We climbed up and looked down and thats when my fear kicked in. I had never realized my fear of heights before this moment. It was about a 50 foot drop but it might as well have a 100 story tall skyscraper. Josh went first because he had been there before. Then Alec went and I was left alone standing on the top of the cliff. I told myself it was "time to man up" and just jump even though it was an incredibly stupid thing to do. So I ran to the edge and jumped off. Time seemed to stop as I was flying through the air. As I was in mid-air, I looked around and realized that I was at the will of gravity. I flailed my limbs about and nothing but air was around me. I crashed into the water and I was kind of in shock about what had just happened.

Wordle

Music Journal

I start and end every day with it. It comes into my life multiple times during the day. I'm not sure what I would do without having music in my life. I wake up every morning and put my iPod on my iHome while I take a shower and get ready for the day. I do the same thing while I get ready for bed at the end of the day. I'm not really sure what it is about music that I love so much. On some days, it amplifies my mood while on other days, it changes my mood (usually for the better). On bad days such as yesterday, all I wanted to do was listen to music and be by myself. Nothing particularly horrible happened yesterday, but I was tired and I just didn't really feel like dealing with other people. My iPod is my best friend on days like these because it provides me with a way to escape to a different world for awhile. I constatnly have songs stuck in my head and it feels like even my heartbeat has a musical tendency to it. Music surrounds me constantly and I wouldn't have it any other way. My iPod library isn't complete yet and it never will be because I honestly enjoy listening to pretty much every genre of music.

Alliteration

Its a beautiful thing that the baseball season has almost begun
Spitting sunflower seeds and cheering for my team
Spending the summer sitting under the shining sun
Twins fans respond to a towering homerun with a triumphant scream

Watching a game at Target Field is like a warm wonderful dream
Spring Training starting is a sign of summer drawing near
The Minnesota Twins are my team
The stands swarm with people and the suffocating stench of hot dogs and beer

Childhood Memories

Growing up, I was always a very active child. I loved being outside and running around. When the weather was nice, my favorite activities were playing baseball, playing backyard football, playing basketball on my neighbor's SportCourt, riding my bike, and going to the waterpark. I would usually spend all day outside during the summer. During the school year, as soon as I got home, I would go over to my neighbor's house and play basketball.  On Sunday afternoons during the fall, my neighbors and I would all put on our NFL jerseys and go in my backyard and play football. During the winter, my favorite things to do were having snowball fights, going sledding, playing baksetball, and playing PlayStation. My neighbors and I used to have big snowball fights in our yards and play king of the hill on giant piles of snow. The big hill behind Andy's Market is right by my house so I used to go sledding there a lot during the winter.

Fourth of July Poem

Fourth of July
Red, White, and Blue
Colors of the American flag
Warm weather
Fireworks, laughter, national anthem singing
Grills cooking food
Hamburgers, hot dogs, and potato chips
The Fourth of July is a great summer holiday enjoyed with family and friends

Cold Night journal

 A man walks out into the cold night air. His hands are shaking from what just happened. This man is named Ray Allen. His adrenaline was still pumping through his body. Just an hour earlier, he made the game-winning buzzer beater in Game 7 of the NBA Finals. It was the biggest shot of his life and it went in, nothing but net. Tonight he lived up to his reputation of being a clutch shooter as he dropped 30 points and sealed the Celtics second straight NBA title.

Parts of Speech Poem

A baseball
Round and White
Throwing and Catching
Baseball Field

Free Writing Journal

As the weather slows climbs back into the positive digits, all I've been able to think about lately is summer. It has consumed my thoughts nearly 24 hours a day. Seeing snow for 5 months a year is pretty depressing. Nothing really beats the clear blue skies, warm weather, and freedom that go along with summer. Plus, there's no school. It just seems like everything has been so monotonous lately. Wake up, go to school, go home, do homework, go to bed, repeat. Life is lacking variety. What I love about summer more than anything is being able to wake up every morning and having the opportunity to anything I please with my day. As I lay in my bed at night trying to fall asleep, all I can think about is being at the Alimagenet Park frolf course throwing my discs.

Cinquain

My dog
Frequently lays
On my bed when I'm gone
Like a person in a coma
She sleeps

Pain Journal

I wake up and try to take a deep breath, but the deeper the breath the more severe the pain. The ground is hard beneath my back, and I feel a dull pain in my arm. My vision was shaky and the bright lights on the mountain were blinding. The last thing I remembered happening was flying through the air without control of my body. I slipped as I flew off the jump and the rotation of my body and my snowboard was completely off. From this point on, I was simply a projectile flying at the will of gravity. Still laying in the snow, the paramedics were huddled over me, making sure I wasn't severely injured. I heard them say that my arm was broken. In addition to my broken arm, my head was throbbing  and pulsing with pain. I glanced over to the giant replay screen and watched the replay of my fall. It was painful to watch myself fly helplessly through the air and crash into the ground.

Metaphor Poem

Life is a rollercoaster
It has it's highs
It has it's lows
It can change direction quickly
Sometimes you don't know what's going to happen next
Sometimes you throw your hands in the air with excitement
Life moves fast so buckle up and enjoy the ride

Best Friend Journal

My best friend is Alec Knop. Alec is a tall, red-headed guy with a skinny build. While he is goofy and fun to be around, he is also very responsible. There have been many times in our friendship when I haven't been thinking but he was always there to back me up. A good example of this was a few summers ago. It was an abnormally hot summer day and we biked to Subway to grab some lunch after Super Group. I was sweating heavily but I thought that it was just from our morning workout. We got to Subway and I started to feel dizzy and lightheaded and my vision became blurry. What I didn't know was that I was dehydrated from my baseball game the night before and I had heat exhaustion. I ended up fainting in the Subway after a few minutes. I was going to bike home because that was my only transportation but Alec was being responsible and smart and he called my mom to come pick us up because he realized that it would be very dangerous for me to bike home.

Simile Poem

My trip to NYC this past weekend was the closest thing to a perfect weekend as I have ever had. It was like a dream. Even waking up early every morning like a bear coming out of hibernation couldn't ruin the trip. My favorite parts of the trip were dancing at the Cotton Club on going on the dinner cruise. The fact that these were my favorite parts of the trip came as a huge surprise to me. It was like a total underdog team coming through unexpectedly and winning the championship. I wasn't really looking forward to these parts of the trip much like a child who doesn't want to eat his vegetables. In the end, these 2 nights were extremely fun and I think that partially has to do with me not expecting them to be fun. On the dinner cruise, I danced like an fool without a care in world. At the Cotton Club, the charming gentleman in me came out when I asked girls to dance and I really surprised myself.

Change Poem (Spring)- (absent)

The
snow
slowly
melts

It
is
brown
from
cars'
exhaust

The
grass
starts
to
show
more
and
more
every
day

Spring
is
on
its
way

Similie Excercise

1. A calendar is like a mirror because it reflects everything that you have done.
2. A sandwich is like a piece of artwork because everyone prefers something different and it can be breath-taking.
3. An ice cube is like a cookie because they can both be craved.
4. A knife is like a whisper because they can both be painful in certain situations.
5. Kissing is like a careful collision because they are meant to be.
6. A basketball feels like a peeled grape.
7. Damp clothing feels like leftover spaghetti.
8. Falling in love sounds like a professional orchestra because its moving and beautiful.
9. A dentist’s drill feels like finger prick because both are uncomfortable.
10. Tomato soup tastes like bleeding hearts because neither are appetizing.

Out of the dark...

Out of the dark we came, into the the breath-taking glow of Times Square. Brightly light screens and people were everywhere we looked. We had just come from the side streets which can be dangerous at night if you aren't careful. Taxi drivers honked their horns that squealed like horribly out of tune trumpets. The streets reeked of cigarette smoke and sewage. We were in a hurry so we had to be crafty as we waded through the enormous crowds of strangers. It was quite the adventure back to Times Square but we made it back just in time to make it to the show we had tickets for.

Bucket List (absent)

1. Travel Europe -This is on my bucket list because of my love for history and travel.
2. Own a cabin or lake/beach house-I love summer and spending time outdoors so this would be the perfect place for me
3. Skydiving-I'm an adventurous person
4. Go scuba diving-I love the ocean and it would be cool to explore it
5. Meet Elton John-He is my favorite musician and it would be really cool to spend a day with him
6. Go to Hawaii again- I went to Hawaii a few summers ago on a family vacation and it was incredible. I'd love to be able to go back
7. Learn to play the piano-I love music and it would be helpful and cool if I knew how to play
8. Work for Rolling Stone magazine-This would be the coolest job ever because I would be able to listen to tons of music, go to concerts, etc.
9. Go to Lollapalooza- Lollapalooza is a music festival held in Chicago every summer and its one of the biggest music festivals in the country. It would be insane to be able to go
10. Learn how to skateboard-Skateboarding has always been an interest of mine and I think its one of the coolest sports out there. I suck at it and it would be cool to actually be able to do it

Limerick

There once was a kid named Ryan
Who claimed that he was Hawaiian
They thought it was real
But then he revealed
That he was only just lyin'

10 Years from now

As I rise up out of my bed, I walk over to the curtains. I throw them open, slide open my door, and step out onto my balcony. I place my hands on the railing and stare. I am looking out to the horizon with the ocean and my private beach in my view. I reflect on some thoughts and ponder about what today will contain. I walk downstairs into the kitchen of my isolated, tropical vacation home. I get ready for the day and get dressed. I brought some friends with me out to my vacation home to chill with so we all pile into my car and make the 20 minute drive into the nearby small beach town. Here we grabbed some lunch and played a game of pickup basketball at the local courts.

Ode to Summer

Oh summer, you are my true love.
Frolfing, beach volleyball, no school
You have it all
I love your feeling of freedom and joy
The sun shines brightly in the clear blue sky
You are care-free go with the flow
Each day brings with it an opportunity for excitement and adventure
I look forward to you all winter long

Most Embarassing Moment

My most embarassing moment happened earlier this year at Bravo rehearsal. We had just finished running the Polar Express so the full cast was walking off stage and I was the last one off stage. The choreographer then said to come back to our spots so we had to turn around and I was in front of everyone. I was goofing around while walking back to my spot and I had ended up tripping on the stairs onstage. I tripped and fell down in front of the whole cast. I got up quickly and started laughing and clapping to play it off as it not being a big deal. My friends gave me crap for it for the rest of rehearsal but I was a good sport about it since everyone has had a moment like that in their life.

Auto-Bio Poem

Sam

Honest, Goofy, Loyal, Adventurous

Brother of Jacob

Lover of music, laughter, adventure

Who feels fulfillment when helping others

Who needs music and laughter everyday

Who gives encouragement, laughter, support

Who fears failure, loneliness, and clowns

Who would like to see happiness for friends and family

Resident of Apple Valley

Higgins

Lion Journal

As the lion turns and starts running my way, I would instinctively run away as fast as I could. If possible, I would try to find a diner or restaraunt to go into because due to the "No shirt, No shoes, No service" rule, the lion wouldn't be able to come inside. If I just happened to be on desolate piece of land with no places of business, I guess I would just have to fight it with my bare hands. On most days, I would call myself a lover instead of a fighter but this situation is a little different. Even though I'm used to only fighting grizzly bears, a lion doesn't seem like it would be much different. In fact, it might actually be a little easier. After I put a good ol' whooping on the lion, I'd tame it and keep it as a pet to show off to my family and friends.

Haiku Assignment

Flying through the sky

The ball landed in a pond

My only homerun

Thank you note

I would to thank my parents for all they have done for me. I know that's the cliche answer but it's really true. Throughout my 17 years of life, I have learned a ton from my parents. Whether they are just helping me with my homework, or having a conversation about life, no one else could have taught me the things they did. If I had to choose one thing that I am thankful for in life, I would choose my family. I am blessed to have loving, supportive parents and a great brother. I would not be where I am today without them. I ocassionally take this blessing for granted but I know I am incredibly lucky to grow up with the family I have. They have been there to support me through everything in the past and I know that this will continue in the future.

Most Memorable Events Brainstorm List

• Hitting my first homerun
• My dog Hank dying
• Opening night of Bravo
• Passing my driver's license test
• Sneaking into the waterpark
• Receiving a Superior Rating on my vocal solo freshman year
• Snorkeling in Hawaii
• Donating blood for the first time

Free Writing 2: Best place I've been

The best place I've ever been was the North Shore of the Hawaiian island of Oahu. My family traveled here a few summers ago and it was unlike any other experience I've ever had. Driving up to the North Shore from Waikiki Beach, which is on the southern end of the island, was a peaceful and relaxing drive. Lining the road on one side were jungle covered mountains and on the other was the deep blue ocean that stretched to the horizon. Once we reached the North Shore, we stayed at a resort named Turtle Bay Resort. We spent nearly the whole first day there just walking around and taking it all in. This paradise was vastly different from home. Waking up every morning and being able to just sit on the balcony and stare out at the ocean is something that everyone should experience sometime in their life. It was the perfect place for a man to kick back, relax, and collect his thoughts.

Free Writing

In Creative Writing I am hoping to learn a lot. Today was the first time I have ever created or used a blog so that in itself was a new and valuable experience. I would like to learn how to write down my thoughts and ideas in abstract and new ways of writing that I am not typically used to using.