Quote To Close Out Creative Writing II

"In Mr. Torres' class, none of us are okay, and we're all perfectly okay with that."

-Nick "The Niz" Puracchio

Tuesday, May 26th, 2015

Silence in the Trees

yo listen this song is pretty top notch. like, normally this isn't music I'd listen to... but this song. Wow. Changed something, whatever it was. My life, its style? Has it changed my lifestyle? I hope! Listen please, something to take into the summer maybe? Thanks. Good knowing you people. Alien emoji. 

some sick beats dog

Final Blog Post Of The Year

Hey guys. It's The Niz for the final time this year. Or at least I hope so. And this time I don't have a WWE post for you. I have a deep post for you. So here it goes.

Today in 3A at Central Campus we had our end of the year party and my arch nemesis, Anthony Puch, wrote a poem about the Seniors leaving which gave me this idea. What if we all wrote our poems to say goodbye to the seniors? I for one am going to here in a minute. But before I do, I want to take a minute to say "Thank You" to the Seniors because they made this year of Creative Writing AWESOME!!! Amber Munn, Joshua Bouie, and those are only two names that will be missed. So thank you Seniors for making this year great. Anyway, let me get to my poem to the seniors.


Finding The Strength To Say Goodbye

I try to find the strength to say goodbye, but the words won't come out.
All I can do is stand there, give out hugs as my soul cries deeply.
You've blessed us with your presence.
So we try to find the strength to say goodbye.

Those we call our friends and understood us in those awkward silences.
All I can do is stand there with a mouth sealed shut.
You listened to us ramble on and we've taken different sides.
We still try to find the strength to say goodbye.

We've laughed together, we've listened and learned together.
All I can do is stand there frozen. Not wanting to say those words.
You are the poor souls but now have done your time.
Why can't we find the strength to say goodbye.

When will we see you again? Will we ever see you again.
All I can do is nothing.
You will be missed, as you will miss us.
I want to find the strength to say goodbye.

So this is my one last poem. And I dedicate it to you.
All I can do is know I need to let it all go.
As I give out hugs to those that will no longer be with us,
I finally can find the strength to say "Goodbye."


That's my poem to the seniors and I hope you guys like it. You all will be missed by us because we all know you will miss us. Congratulations Seniors, you are the next class of MCHS. So I'll say it one last time. I hope you know that you will be missed next year BECAUSE I'M THE NIZ AND I'M AWESOME!

Cannibalistic Poetry (South AND Central)

Eating Poetry

BY MARK STRAND

Ink runs from the corners of my mouth.

There is no happiness like mine.

I have been eating poetry.

The librarian does not believe what she sees.

Her eyes are sad

and she walks with her hands in her dress.

The poems are gone.

The light is dim.

The dogs are on the basement stairs and coming up.

Their eyeballs roll,

their blond legs burn like brush.

The poor librarian begins to stamp her feet and weep.

She does not understand.

When I get on my knees and lick her hand,

she screams.

I am a new man.

I snarl at her and bark.

I romp with joy in the bookish dark.

Cannibalize this blog. Cannibalize the words, verses and prose. Cut them up, eat them, and

make them your own. Make new from the old, original born from originality. 

Your assignment is to scour the blog, dissecting PHRASES (3+ words) from ANY post

(South OR Central), response, or reply, and assemble them in an aesthetic way to create a

new poem. Write the poem in a word document, save the document, and then copy/paste 

your cannibalized poem below. 

Happy eating. 

24 Hours of Something More

Many say we are slaves to the clock, meaning we spend so much of "our" time that we have little to none in the end for what we really want to do. Sprouting from an on-going emotional experience, my post poses the question: how ware you truly feeling?

You don't have to give me reasons why, just tell me, honestly, what you are feeling.

And then tell me what you wish you were doing instead of the things you are doing today.

Because somewhere in those handed-down 24 hours you contemplated something more.

That Does Not Give You The Right

Hey guys. It's The Niz with another blog post question and story to tell with it. I don't know why it's so easy to find things to inspire me to post about while watching WWE, but it is. (If you don't know what to post about and really want to, I suggest you watch a few weeks of Monday Night Raw and Thursday Night Smackdown. I'm serious. It's where I get 90% of my ideas.)

But enough about that. Let me get to the story I have to tell to explain this blog post. And some of us, are really not going to like some of the events I explain in this post because it involves quotes that disrespect America. So, let me just make that clear.

So, here it goes. It all started when the Russian Super-Athlete, Rusev, made his WWE debut. Now, he didn't just make his debut and begin trashing our wonderful country, but after a few weeks, he made it clear why he didn't listen to the WWE Universe. For well over a year, Rusev went undefeated, always winning with his very painful submission called the Accolade. He would "crush" any and all who stood in his way, as his manager, Lana, would say. And Rusev wasn't beating just some local jobber. He was beating former World Champions, like the Big Show, Jack Swagger, and even the World's Strongest Man, Mark Henry.

Rusev was unstoppable, and it clearly looked like he was. But the only reason so many people challenged him was to defend America's dignity after Rusev and Lana would trash the USA. And then, John Cena stepped up to challenge Rusev after he said, "If America had a soul, God would look down and spit on it."

Well clearly, that ticked Cena off. And then he would challenge Rusev for the United States Championship at Fastlane seeing Rusev had beaten the last United States Champion, Sheamus.

The challenge was set to be at WWE  Fastlane. It would be Cena vs. Rusev for the United States Championship. Well, as much as Cena fought against Rusev and tried to win, Cena would ultimately lose when he passed out to the Accolade.

Cena was very disappointed in himself. He had thought he had failed his country. So, Cena issued a challenge to Rusev for another match at the grandest stage of them all, Wrestlemania. Rusev refused to give Cena his rematch. But Cena would not stop trying to get his rematch. It took weeks for Cena to find a way to get his rematch. But one week on Raw, after Rusev had trashed America yet again, Cena had had enough and Cena went out of control, running down to the ring and attacking Rusev after his match and locking in his own signature submission, the STF. Rusev tried to fight back but Cena would not let up. Rusev had tapped, but Cena would not stop. Eventually, Rusev passed out. But did Cena stop there? Of course not. He went to ringside, grabbed a water bottle, dumped it on top of Rusev and just went back to the STF, making Rusev pass out yet again. It was then, that Rusev's manager, Lana, would give Cena his rematch at Wrestlemania.

Well, Wrestlemania rolled around and Cena had managed to give Rusev his first loss to become the the new United States Champion. But was Rusev finished with Cena? No.

The night after Wrestlemania on RAW, Rusev would attack Cena with a chain. We would then find out that Cena would defend the United States Championship against Rusev at Extreme Rules in a Russian Chain Match. Cena and Rusev would be chained to each other, and the first man to touch all four corners of the ring, would walk out the United States Champion.

Well, Cena once again would hand Rusev another loss. But was Rusev done this time. Again, No. We would find out later that the final chapter of Cena and Rusev would be at Payback in an I Quit Match. And that match is yet to take place.

But now that I've told my story, here is my question. In our United States Constitution that every person has the right to free speech. But, does that give you the right to degrade the very country that gives you that right? Us as American's seem to think it's okay as long as we're the only one's that degrade America. But, if we give ourselves the okay to do it, why can't other countries degrade our country without starting a war. America is NOT a perfect Country, but why do we think it's okay for us to degrade our nation and not let others do it? I, for one, don't EVER degrade the USA. I'm a proud American, butI realize, there are a lot of things wrong with America. So, if we have the right to free speech, does that give us the right to degrade the country that gave us that very right? And if it does, why can't other's degrade America. Seeing that everyone is entitled to their own opinion.

Leave your interesting and creative responses in the comments section below. I am The Niz, and I approve this message BECAUSE I'M THE NIZ AND I'M AWESOME!

Watchman, Tell Us of the Night

So I was told to not do this blog post because "no one would care about it." However, I'd like to prove that person wrong. I don't talk much in class. I don't always participate in group discussions, and most of you probably know nothing about me. So, I'm going to share a huge part of my life with you, and that thing is band. I've been in band for 8 years, and I'd like to continue with it for as long as I can. Now, here's a link to a song called "Watchman, Tell us of the Night" that I'm actually playing in band currently.  Here's the thing: It is 15 minutes long. Now you may be saying, "I'm too busy, I don't have time for that!" However, I urge you to take 15 minutes out of your life and just listen. Do it while you do homework, for instance. I guess I could be asking you to test your patience, when you do something that you may not want to do. I get it; it's a long time to listen to a song. But there will be so many more situations in the future in which you have to be patient, and they will be on a much larger scale. So all I ask of you is to listen to this song, and just comment on what you felt about it. Sure, some of you might skim through to say you listened to it, but by doing that, you could be missing out on something more powerful than you think.

The journal today is what got me thinking about this post. Not many can relate to this song, for it is actually about child abuse. But this emotional rollercoaster of a song is worth the listen.I hope you listen, I really do.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVe1L-K3WlQ

My favorite Dance

This is one of my favorite dances choreographed by Travis Wall, who also dances in it. So I thought I would share. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=khvcCpoFszM

I'm Going To Do ANYTHING If It Means I'm Gonna Win.

Hey guys. It's The Niz again. I know I said that I wouldn't be back until next year's Wrestlemania week, but I just keep using WWE for examples in my posts so I've decided to stick around. By the way, if you're wondering who is writing the WWE poems that are posted on Mr. T's classroom wall at central, that's me. (You know. The ones that are about the Main Events of Wrestlemania XXXI and Extreme Rules 2015.)

Well, as you may have guessed, I have another post for you and it's a good one where I can use something that has happened in the WWE as an example. So, here we go.

For well over a year after they made their WWE Debut, The Shield; made up of Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose, and Roman Reigns, dominated the WWE's Tag Team Division and where ever they thought there was an injustice being done in the WWE. The Shield would have their team given the nickname "The Hounds Of Justice" with their signature remark of "Believe In The Shield." As well as their team as a whole had been labeled, each member was also given their own nickname describing the role they played in the team. Seth Rollins was "The Architect" because he was the one to form the team. Dean Ambrose was the "Lunatic Fringe" seeing how he would do some crazy dangerous things to achieve victory. And Roman Reigns was "The Powerhouse" and that one kind of speaks for itself. They were a force to be reckoned with. A team so dominating, not even Superstars like John Cena, Sheamus, Ryback, or even CM Punk could stop them. (That's Rollins on the Left. Reigns in the Center, and Ambrose on the Right.)

Anyway, after some phenomenal battles with Evolution, made up of Triple H, Randy Orton, and Batista, The Shield was officially declared the most dominant tag teams of the modern era. But it would all come crumbling down one Monday night on RAW, when Seth Rollins would attack his Shield brethren and join Triple H and Randy Orton seeing that Batista had quit earlier that night. Jaws dropped as fans watched Rollins attack Reigns and Ambrose with a Steel Chair.

After claiming that The Shield was all his idea, Rollins would move on and continue to work his way up to the top by backstabbing and manipulation at one point Curb Stomping Ambrose's head through Cinder Blocks one night on RAW. Rollins and Ambrose would feud over the fact that Rollins stabbed Ambrose and Reigns in the back for months. All the way leading up to money in the bank, where after Kane, who was also working with Triple H, attacked Ambrose and took out every one else, would help Seth Rollins capture the Money In The Bank Contract, guaranteeing Rollins a future WWE World Heavyweight Championship shot whenever he pleased and labeling Rollins with the nickname of "The Future."

After months and months of feuding with Superstars like Ambrose and John Cena, Rollins would begin to bid his time, waiting for the moment he could cash in and become Champion. After numerous failed attempts thanks to Dean Ambrose, Rollins would watch as his former brother in The Shield, Roman Reigns, would win the 2015 Royal Rumble match, advancing Reigns to the Main Event of Wrestlemania XXXI for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.

Rollins knew that at Wrestlemania, it would be his time to cash in his contract and show up Reigns at the grandest stage of them all by becoming the new Champion. And that is EXACTLY what Rollins did. After a grueling, painful, but entertaining match between Reigns and Brock Lesnar, just as it looked as if Reigns was going to become Champion, Rollins cashes in his contract and making the match a Triple Threat match, curb stomping Reigns and Lesnar, and pinning Reigns, Rollins had finally made his way to the very top in the WWE. He was the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion.

So, here's my question to you guys now that I've told you the story of Seth Rollins: Would you be willing to hurt those who consider you their friend in order to get to the top? Are you willing to backstab those who love you and call you family in order to achieve victory? Are you willing to step on those who help you if you knew there was a greater prize in your future? Are you willing to sell out yourself in order to buy in something you only could dream of?

It was later revealed in a special showing on the WWE Network in a documentary called "Destruction Of The Shield" why Rollins did what he did. You see, before The Shield even made their Debut, Rollins, Reigns, and Ambrose all made a pact promising they were all going to do whatever they had to do in order to make it to the top in the WWE, no matter how they would do it. Reigns almost did it at Wrestlemania after he won the Royal Rumble. But Rollins truly did what he thought was needed in order to get to the top.

So, Thank You for bearing with me through this LONG post, and leave your interesting and creative responses to the post's question in the comments section below and I'll get to you as soon as I can.

An example of post-modernism (as I see it to help those confused) refer to comments for easier to read version

The clock strikes half past Green;

The feelings of the o so small bee puts the "O", "B"  in obscene.

Down the valley, the small, they careen.

The voiceless scream? Deaf to both you and me.

How can we know what we're not taught, me versus you the battle was fought. 

Lessons taught. 

And again the bee mocked.

In the frame,, the keys locked. 

Can't get inside, to get what's needed out. 

All these feeling i buried-dragged out.

Buried, under the millions of miles of sea

Trapped under the murky water that's trapped with in me. 

But they don't drown.

Back with a vengeful veracity. 

It's not air they breathe.

It's the negative feeling, that leaves this heart reeling, in which they feed. 

So tall, yet more small. 

A few inches till the rope tightens.

Prolonging the fall. 

It snaps.

The clock rings green to black. 

Memories of enemies, mouth muttering

"Hey him...isn't he?" 

May be voiceless, but my only choices, are to be constantly listening.

Or suffocate in the depths of sorrow. 

Live like there's no tomorrow. 

Each second, on the color wheel is borrowed. 

My watch is hollowed.

Don't look back, I may be followed. 

Leave me be, the buzzing bee

Baring the bore brunt, but brain blee's 

Clock face frowns, help him please. 

Anymore blood tht fills the lungs

-wait-

the inanimate can't breathe. 

Leave the humbling, blubbering, breaking bee. 

He was all alone from the get go anyway. 

Besides, the tears wash the red away. 

The minute hand tics.

Looks up through the trees and sticks 

see's a reflection of his seas. 

A vision he will rue

The hour hand strikes the color blue. 

Now inside the the bee the oceans in an up roar. 

A beautiful sky a sight he has longed for. 

The baby blue, she danced, he wanted more. 

Her hands like sun rays, brought light to blank space. 

Warm to the touch, caressed his face. 

He found her, the new Queen Bee.

A true Q.B. 

Calling the shots, the bee begs,

"THROW THE BALL TO ME" 

~I needed her to need me~

           She didn't. 

Skip the sob story.

My times running out 

Besides this is all Nonsense i spout.

To the buzzing bee, the world so mean

He opens his eyes they,

And  another, hour rolls by.

The clock tolls. 

The bell rings.

Head up.

Desk stays down. 

Back into the wild, pretending life's a <costume> party now.

He puts on a masquerade mask

Fills up his flask.

Drinking from Amontillado's cask.

His facade on blast 

As the stereos Suffocated in his ears, they gasp. 

Even iTunes voice gets rasp. 

Onto his hands, his pockets-they clasp.

So normal now, he takes pride in finishing last.

This verse, pros being the origin of which it was composed, was put together, and all it did was expose all these heart Aneurysms. Just to show the class an example of poetries 

Post-Modernisms. 

BV

If you had to make up a holiday when would it be, what would you call it and why would it have significance to be celebrated?

Constant Day Dreaming

Everyone day dreams from time to time. Some more than others, but it's obvious we all do it.
Why do you think that is?
Is it because we are always wanting something better? something different?
If yes, do you think that want for something else will ever be satisfied?

Stop Acting Like A Child And Grow Up!

Hey guys, it's Easter Sunday and I had some thing I just had to get on the blog. But, before I get to that, I'm going to start with Happy Easter from Three-Sixx-D! (The Niz is gone until next year's Wrestlemania Week. If you want the results of every Wrestlemania Match, check my latest comment on the 'Showcases Of The Immortals' Post.) Now, that I've gotten that out of the way, let's get to why I'm posting this, and I have a little short story to go with it.

So, here's why I'm posting today and I'll start with the short little story I have to tell to go with it.

For the past two or three years, Every Easter, the "Easter Bunny" (AKA: My Parents) would show up on the Saturday night before Easter, hide plastic eggs full of cash and candy around the house and leave my sister some bigger candy and a barbie, and leave my two younger brothers and I each a box of peeps (Sidenote, I love peeps. Just sayin') and also leave us three boys each one different WWE figure in our baskets next to our boxes of peeps. Then, on Easter, we'd wake up, go downstairs, put on our lame bunny ears (which we have no choice in wearing while we hunt down our eggs. If you don't wear the ears, you don't get any candy or cash.), find all of our eggs, put all the candy in a bowl, put our cash upstairs, then while my sister is opening her new barbie, my brothers and I would open our boxes of peeps, take a look at the figure the other two received, then take our figures back and open the figure from their packaging while eating our marshmallow chicks.

Now, why am I putting so much attention on the figures? The answer is simple. This year only my youngest brother got a figure in his basket. Now, it's not like I'm really depressed, I know I'm too old for stuff like that. It's just for the past two or three years after all three of us would open up our figures, we'd go upstairs and hang out and play around with the figures. It's not something we do all day every day. Plus, I'm not really much for playing around with the figures, but more for just collecting them and maybe play around with it if I'm really bored. (Also a sidenote, this year, instead of a new figure next to my peeps, there was a t-shirt I already owned. So, it was kind of a let down. I even told my mom if she's not doing figures for the two older boys, get me a specific t-shirt that I've wanted since my birthday. If you want to see what the shirt looks like, search 'The Miz Awesome: The Movie T-Shirt' in google images. But yeah, it was a total let down not having a figure to open while eating peeps because it had kind of become a thing for all three of us.)

So, now that I've told the story, let me get to the question I want you guys to respond to.

We all do childish things sometimes, and lets face it, Mr. Torres is a PRIME EXAMPLE of what I'm talking about(That's not an insult. It's more of a compliment actually.). No matter how cool or tough you think you are, you have that one thing that you've done since you were very young and still enjoy doing today, like mine is eating peeps and opening a new WWE figure and playing around with it along with my two brothers. I want to know what childish thing you still do today and why you still somehow find enjoyment in it. (Don't be embarrassed. Trust me, do you think I'm proud that a new WWE figure is what I look forward to on Easter?) Leave your interesting and creative responses in the comments section below. And thanks for reading my whole long story.

By the way, my favorite two figures I've gotten on Easter are hands down either my figure of The Miz I got two years ago or my Brock Lesnar figure I got last year. I'm split on which one I like more. Later guys! Hope you're having an AWESOME Spring Break!

Before We Conquered It

This is the sound of the Earth

Before we conquered it

The sound of Heartbeat

Before we stomped it

I guess this is God’s voice

But I think we silenced it

The fire of a gun

The rage of the riot

You think insanity’s bad

But we’ve all tried it

I am a newborn child

Crying for his mother

I am CAIN

Who was ABEL to murder his brother

And this world is a crime scene

No blanket could cover

And we’re so far gone

That we’ll never recover

This is the world

In the palm of my hand

I’d crush it if I could

But I don’t think I can

The crowd yells, screaming out

“Just be a man!”

This war we call Earth

Was over before it began

Better mad with the world

Than wise and all alone

There is no place for the truth

No glory for these bones

I can feel my heart beating

A mile a minute

Madness becomes sanity

When you’re finally within it

And this is our reality

That the bloodshed has no limit

And as the blood runs dry

All I can do is condemn it

Silence to the death of peace

We do not honor it

For silence was the sound of Earth

Before we conquered it

Everyone understands Everyone

So, my question is what would happen if all languages converged into one that everyone was able to understand. How would this affect people, would it change our cultures or diminish the diversity of the world. Would this be beneficial to the world or take away from the complexity of Earth. What are your views on this concept, and please further explain your feelings.

BV strikes

Ohkay guys, if you could create your own utopia what would it be? Explain why you would have life be this why. 

Showcases Of The Immortals

Hey guys. It's The Niz, the WWE World Heavyweight Champion of MCHS, with something I just couldn't help but post. I apologize to Mr. T for posting when I'm not scheduled to, but I really can't wait to get this down. I just had this idea and I think I'm going to get some very interesting responses.

So anyway, March 29th marks the 31st Wrestlemania and Wrestlemania for years has been called the "Showcase Of The Immortals." When you work for the WWE, you work your entire career in the company for your "Wrestlemania Moment" because that's how you know you've made it. It means you've proven you are at the very top of your game. Your match at Wrestlemania, whether you win or lose, is usually near the top of your list of your favorite matches. I'll post a link at the end of this of some WWE Superstars sharing their favorite Wrestlemania matches.

The thing about Wrestlemania is that since it only comes once every year, you know that every moment counts on that day. Whether your one of the men in the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal, in a match against Undertaker, who until last year's Wrestlemania, was undefeated at Wrestlemania with twenty-one consecutive wins at Wrestlemania until Brock Lesnar became the man to end the famous streak at Wrestlemania XXX last year, or even if your in the Main Event for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, you know you've amde it when your competing in a match at Wrestlemania.

So here's my question, how do you know you've made it to the top of something? Whether it be in a school sport or something else, how do you know that you've proven to yourself that every time you told yourself "I can and I will" that no matter what happens at the end of it, you still feel a huge feeling of accomplishment? For me, it's when I complete something nobody else thought I would be able to complete in a million years. That's when you can look at the world square in the eyes and just say "Bring It. What's next?" So when do you have your moment that you've waited all that time for and at the end, no matter the outcome, you know you did something great. Leave your responses in the comments section below.

Here's the link I promised:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJQolutghLs

Because Torres wouldn't work shop my poem you guys should!

Hey critique please :) (because poetry unit) 

How can the grass be so green?

Why is this scene so serene?

How can this world be so mean?

How can the sky be so blue?

Because it reflects the ocean that separates me from you?

An ocean so wide, but your just in the other room.

I can't speak to you.

Not like this.

Because the knowledge of pain hurts.

And your ignorance is bliss. 

Get It Out Of My Head!

It's Three-Sixx-D's first blog post!!! Now before I get to my actual blog post, I want to invite both students from Central and South Campus to comment on this because EVERYONE has this problem.

So, here's the actual post question. You know that one song you are constantly getting stuck in your head? Yeah, THAT one. That one you keep muttering over and over and over and over and over again. The one that no matter what you do, like listening to every other song in your library, but even after that it's STILL stuck in your head. Then you turn into Queen Elsa and start singing the song "Get It Out" instead of "Let It Go." For those of you who have no idea what I'm talking about, I'll attach the lyrics now:

"Get it out! Get it out! Get this song out of my head!
Get it out! Get it out! I'll sing anything else instead!"

Yeah, but the only thing that's worse than having that one song stuck in your head is when you've got that one song stuck in your head and you don't even know the actual lyrics. You start filling in the lines you don't know with the word "something" in tune to the song.

So, there's my question that I chose from my long list of things I wanted to post about. Hopefully, I'll be able to post another one before the school year is over. So, what is that one song that's always stuck in your head? Leave your responses and links to the song in the comments section below.

By the way, the song that's always stuck in my head is "This Is Gonna Hurt" by Sixx A. M. Here's the link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RAw-EFuwC3A&list=RDHChMrmwbKouiI&index=6

Fate and Destiny (Central)

    We all have our own path in life. Many think it is their's to control. Others think a higher power has a say in it. Some leave it entirely to fate, or wherever the wind takes them. 

  

    There are loads of philosophies regarding this realm of thinking. Do we really have free will? If we do, to what extent? If not, why not? As humans, we are always asking questions and seeking answers. I seek your answers-- so tell me your thoughts on all of this, though, my direct question for you is this:  Do we have full control of our destiny? And where does fate come in to this equation?

Central Guest Blogger

This past year I learned one of the most important lessons of my life—conscious living.  I learned this from my mom as she lived the last 6 months of her life.  Every day she lived to the fullest and when her final moments on this earth came to an end I found myself celebrating my mom; an emotion I did not think was possible in the face of death.  I was celebrating what she modeled for me—her mantra--This is not how I thought my song would go, but I can still dance.  I now start every day by stating my mantra.  A mantra comes from the Eastern world and its root word means to think.  Reminding myself what is important to me everyday, allows me to recognize and value my life and to move through the challenges and joys of each day with a solid purpose and focus of who I am.  I will share my Mantra with you:

Carpe the bananas out of this Diem.  Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Much.  When you know better do better.  Be my most authentic self.  Do not dig my grave with my fork and knife.  Take the time to be healthy so I do not have to make the time to be sick.  Less Space, Less Things, More Life.  Every action you take is a choice about the effect you want to have on the world.

My mantra comes from a series of quotes I have stumbled upon.  I love quotes and I am always writing them down.  What do you value?  Do you have a mantra or motto?  How did you come to discover it? (Book, music, quote, personal experience)  If you don’t have a mantra, will you begin to explore your values and create one?

There are 86,400 seconds in a day, thank you for sharing some of them with me!

Bolek :)

1st Guest Writer! (South)

Blog-o Por Favor

Hey there fellow bloggers. My son Aidan always likes to play “Would you rather”, but I am going to change it up and say, “Could you ever…?”  Could you ever imagine not having control over your body, your mind, or your words?  Being a teacher, I get to witness all different kinds of people. We are all born with things that are easier for us to do than they are for other people. I decorate cakes, and it’s probably easier for me than for others.  Some of my students were born math geniuses, and others were born to read.  But what if you were born with the difficulty to control yourself?  Can you imagine being different than the average student?  Can you imagine people judging you when it is so difficult for you to control your words, corky behavior, or physical movements? Could you every accept people and be nice to them knowing that others are judging that person for being different?  I have witnessed this in some of my students.  There are always going to be people who are different than the average “bear”, but could you ever be one of the few who accepted those who are different?

Just a thought.  “Could you ever…?”

Ms. Martinez

Button Poetry

for my blogpost I also want to talk about poetry. it is kind of similar to katelynn's post but for my blog post I want to focus on slam poetry, button poetry & youthspeaks on YouTube. I spend quite a lot of time there and I want to share them with other people. so I would like each of you to either:
1: copy/paste a link to your favorite video on button poetry, slam poetry, or youthspeaks and explain why you like it so much or why it speaks to you. or
2: if you have not seen many of these videos or wish to see more, watch one that you have never seen before, copy/paste the link, and explain the things you liked about the video, the message, the speaker, etc. you can do both options if you want to and are interested in this topic (rane) because I know how addicting these videos can get. you can also post more than one if you wish.
enjoy! namaste, falafel, & let's grind.ॐ

The Test of Time (South and Central)...

Time tests. That is a universal truth. It tests our spirit. It tests our body. It tests our mental capacity. So what wins? What is able to withstand the test of time?

You may write about whatever you wish, but at some point I want you to incorporate the following fill-in-the-blank answer in your response:

"I never get tired of hearing______________."

Friendships

Throughout your life you are going to have many friends. You will have school friends, work friends, your let's go out and do something friends, your stay inside and watch a movie friends. You will have friends that turn their back on you and ones that stay by your side through the toughest times. These are the friends that you would consider your best friends. So my question is, how do you know whether someone is your best friend or not? Is there signs that show if someone is going to become a back stabber? Does someone changing and growing apart from you mean that they were never a true friend? Basically just leave your opinions on the topic. You can answer the questions or just give your opinion on anything related to friendships! One question I would like answered though is if you do think you have found your life long best friend, (you may not have yet!) what moment made you realize that they will never let you down?

Your Favorite Poetry

I love poetry and I think it would be really cool to share the different styles of poetry everyone likes. 

So copy your favorite poem and tell everyone why you like it so much and what you think it means.

If you like slam poetry copy a link of a video to it instead of copying the poem down. 

Inanimate object

For this post, write a first person account of being reincarnated as an inanimate object. Describe your initial reactions and what you would proceed to do after your realization.


Go crazy. It can be as long or as short as you want!

Snow day topic!! Let's be honest we don't have anything better to do. (Central and south)

Ok so here we go! We're about to start our short story unit, I think...but in the spirit of that I think it would be cool if we wrote a class story, put together part by part with everyone contributing and hopefully by the end of the year we will have made something great! As I am not confident enough to start this story myself I will leave it to someone else, preferably Torres it is his class so he should start the exposition! So..,.yea go! 

Different Perspective

Below is a picture, one I hope is interesting enough to you, and for this post I would love to see you guys react to it, and type something creative about the image. Whether it be a poem or prose or just a few lines! I look forward to seeing it!

Words OR Pictures (South and Central)

1.)Your language is a living, growing thing. Invent a new word. Tell us what it means, where it comes from, and why you think it must stay and live int eh language for a while.

2.) Describe an image that has never been described before. One that will shape me. One sentence that elevates human kind with one image.

(Words and Pictures)

Are Your Memories Falsified?

Throughout my life, I have seen the memories of family members and loved ones completely deteriorate.  This mental deterioration is caused by alzheimer's disease.  My grandma, for instance, no longer knows who I am.  All of the memories that we have created over the years are completely erased from her mind.  When trying to hold a conversation with her, she often tells falsified stories from her youth that I know not to be true because of the information she told me when she was in better health.  Recently, though, I have questioned how important memories are.  More importantly, how accurate our memories are.  Studies show (link is below) that people oftentimes memorize things incorrectly. This occurs for various reasons: "Nostalgia plays a roll in how we remember".  There are various emotional ties to how one remembers something.  This means that not a single person has a perfect memory.

So here is what I am asking you: If memories can be remembered incorrectly, does it matter whether what you are remembering is the factual truth or what you perceive to be the truth? (Obviously, factual truth is vital in things such as court cases etc.  What I am asking is about nostalgic memories of your youth and things like that.)

http://lifehacker.com/why-your-memory-sucks-and-what-you-can-do-about-it-596782066

We Take Advantage

Watch this short video first:

http://youtu.be/36Fq2zZ0Syg

This seems like such a simple video to all of you guys. When I watched this video a certain thing caught my attention. In 30 seconds we all take 8 breaths, that's crazy. You don't normally think about something you automatically do everyday without telling yourself to do it. 
For those who don't know me, I have asthma. I'm not just like any other person who has asthma, my asthma is severe. I don't think people who don't have this illness understands how precious a breath is. 
Let me tell you a story, on September 11, 2014 at 4:00 am I woke up to myself wheezing. I went for my inhaler and it was all out of puffs. So I told myself to not worry because I have a nebulizer. For those who don't know what a nebulizer is, it's a machine that connects to your mouth and you pour the nebulizer treatment in which is a liquid and when you turn on that machine it turns the liquid into a vapor. I'm supposed to inhale that vapor so it enters my lungs and opens them up and stops the asthma attack. So anyway, I go to get the nebulizer and start to use it. Within the hour I notice myself getting worse not better. So I figured it was because I needed to do another treatment so I did another one. By 6 am I was at a full blown asthma attack. I was able to breathe slightly but not enough. I start panicking while i still am doing this nebulizer treatment and I start thinking that the medicine was expired and wasn't working. My sister wakes up to get ready for school and sees me sitting on my couch hunched over trying to catch my breath. I hesitantly tell her to call mom. By 6:30 am my mom walks down the stairs and at that point i can't breathe. To the point where I couldn't talk. I had to write everything down on a piece of paper. I was sitting, laying down, walking back and forth, you name it. I was doing it all trying to catch my breath. My mom finally told me to sit down. She asked me if I needed to go to the hospital and I nodded my head yes. She was about to walk away to get her coat when I got the strength and breath to say "Mom, I'm scared." Immediately she dialed 911 and called for an ambulance. I was crying hysterically but that just made my asthma worse. So I collected myself and stopped crying. The ambulance came sooner than expected. Two very tall men came into my house and one stopped to talk to my mom and the other came up to me. He kindly said, " Hey Nelly, so here's the plan. I'm going to disconnect you from the nebulizer and take you outside to the stretcher okay? Do you think you can make it if you walk there?" I shook my head yes but he saw how bad I was trying to breathe. He scooped me up and ran outside to the stretcher and sat me down. Two other men carried the stretcher into the ambulance and closed the doors in front of me. I remember it being super cold in the truck. They hooked me up to an oxygen tank and put an IV in. They started driving super fast and got on the express way. I remember wondering what the people behind us thought about me knowing they could see me through the windows. Half way down the express way i felt extremely tired. I started falling asleep and my eye sight was in and out. One of the men kept waking me up and once we finally got to the Morris Hospital Emergency Room Entrance they pulled me out of the truck and quickly took me into a room in the hospital. Just about 5 nurses started to undress me while hooking me up to certain things. The doctor came in and observed me as i was still struggling to breathe. He left then came back 30 minutes later to find me relaxed and my breathing came back to normal. He told me that I was the worst case he has ever seen in 4 years. He also told me that if I hadn't came in at the time I did, I would've died. 
So remember this story the next time you think that everything sucks in your life, cause trust me it doesn't. 
Every 30 seconds you take 8 breaths, while you can be taking one. 

The Alliteration of Our Minds

So, for my blog post, I'm going to be the first person to break the barrier of having a prompt for you to respond to. Bellow is a poem I have written, and all I'm asking you to do is to tell me your thoughts. I want your feedback. Tell me what you like, and hate, and anything that you think could better this poem.

Also, I'd like to challenge you all to do something. One of my favorite things on YouTube is Button Poetry. When you type that into the search bar, so many videos come up of slam poetry, and it's the coolest thing. I want you to find one that you really like, and just attach the link in your comment.

( Here's one of my favorites: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnKZ4pdSU-s )

the alliteration of our minds

energetic blues and greens

zig zag before my eyes,

pulling me under.

faster.

stronger.

my mind is racing,

yours is already gone.

gone forever into the solemn night.

black.

midnight during November.

it closes in around me,

suffocating.

what is it like again to breathe?

to feel the blood pulsing through my veins?

trapped.

bursting red leaps before me.

i’m swelling,

about to combust.

tell me again,

how do you make this stop?

Yellow.

peaceful.

cautious.

approaching.

the seasons are changing.

how many have gone by with no notice at all?

slowly.

ever so slowly it has arrived.

pink,

a light rose dancing in spring.

the delicate Butterfly lands with a simple flutter

against my innocent hands,

caressing me with all it’s colors.

deep, deep, deep,

purple has it’s turn.

nothing lasts forever,

i truly should’ve known.

Hello blues.

Hello greens.

Welcome to the never ending

      Cycle.