There once was a duck who could not fly
He was so sad that he wanted to die
But then came a day
When all the ducks flew away
And his family was shot out of the sky
The duck cried loudly because he was sad
But then that sadness was changed to glad
Because if he could fly
Then he would surely get fried
And that would be incredibly bad
Then the duck shot up out of his bed
He thought he would surely be dead
Then he looked up
And proceeded to upchuck
And a bullet went into his head.
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Saturday, December 17, 2011
My Brother Sam is Dead: Sams Point of View
How would you feel if your older brother just decided to fling himself into a war? How would you feel if that brother of yours was you only role model, and your only mentor? In the book My Brother Sam is Dead by James Lincoln Collier, that is exactly how Tim feels. His older brother Sam comes home from college one day and proudly announces that he has joined the patriots to fight the British. Tim and his family are not sure what to think. They have been British there whole life, and now the other member of the family has somehow decided to go to war and fight for the other side. It is a death sentence for Sam, and his family knows it. But what if Sam were telling the story and not Tim? Would the book be the complete opposite?
If Sam were to be the one narrating the book, many of the main parts would be different. For example, when Sam first heads off to fight the British, his family thinks that it is the dumbest idea ever thought of. Sam on the other hand thinks that it is an opportunity to become free from the mother country. If he had told the story then he would make it sound like the rest of his family were the dumb ones, and he and the other patriots were the ones who knew what they were doing. If the book had gone Sam’s way, then he would not have been killed at the end. Sam told Tim to butcher the cattle that they had, or otherwise it would have been stolen. Tim decided not to butcher the cattle, and some troops did try to steal them. Sam tried to stop them, but they beat him up and put him in jail for an attempted cattle theft even though he didn’t do it. The general decided to have him shot for the attempted theft. If Sam would have been telling the story, the cows would have been butchered, and he would not have died. The book would have changed completely, and the title would even have to be changed.
If Sam were to be the one narrating the book, many of the main parts would be different. For example, when Sam first heads off to fight the British, his family thinks that it is the dumbest idea ever thought of. Sam on the other hand thinks that it is an opportunity to become free from the mother country. If he had told the story then he would make it sound like the rest of his family were the dumb ones, and he and the other patriots were the ones who knew what they were doing. If the book had gone Sam’s way, then he would not have been killed at the end. Sam told Tim to butcher the cattle that they had, or otherwise it would have been stolen. Tim decided not to butcher the cattle, and some troops did try to steal them. Sam tried to stop them, but they beat him up and put him in jail for an attempted cattle theft even though he didn’t do it. The general decided to have him shot for the attempted theft. If Sam would have been telling the story, the cows would have been butchered, and he would not have died. The book would have changed completely, and the title would even have to be changed.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Conflict piece
In my book, the main conflict is that the main characters brother Sam leaves for the war. The problem is that he is fighting for the patriots when his family members are loyalists. Another huge problem is that Tim's father died, so him and his mother have to run the tavern business all by themselves. The fact that Tim's brother Sam left makes life extremely hard for Tim and his mom, and it also makes the Winter nearly impossible for them to get through. I thought that the luck of Tim's family would change towards the end of the book, but it didn't.
Although it seems like nothing else could ho terribly wrong, it does. For example, at the very end of the book, two people steal the cows from the bran next to Tim's and his moms tavern. They put the blame on Sam, and he is taken away to a jail. The crime for this is death and Sam is sentenced to be shot. This does not really solve the problem, seeing as he died, but it also helps the family turn to the side of the Patriots. The whole book is one big problem for Tim and his family, because nothing ever goes right for them. First, his father dies. Then his brother leaves for war leaving them running a business by themselves. Then of course the end of the book when Sam dies. It never seems to end.
Although it seems like nothing else could ho terribly wrong, it does. For example, at the very end of the book, two people steal the cows from the bran next to Tim's and his moms tavern. They put the blame on Sam, and he is taken away to a jail. The crime for this is death and Sam is sentenced to be shot. This does not really solve the problem, seeing as he died, but it also helps the family turn to the side of the Patriots. The whole book is one big problem for Tim and his family, because nothing ever goes right for them. First, his father dies. Then his brother leaves for war leaving them running a business by themselves. Then of course the end of the book when Sam dies. It never seems to end.
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
The Adventures of Phillip
Phillip walked out of McDonald’s 12 pounds heavier. He felt extremely proud of himself knowing that he could live the rest of his life without any problems. Phillip was a retired cashier who had worked at Pick ‘n Save. After winning the lottery, he bought a mansion on a lake, and was living the good life. Two years later, he retired at age 32. Since then, he has been nearly assassinated 6 times, lost his house, everything he owns, and was forced to live in a cardboard box outside of the local McDonald’s. Phillip is now 37. He thinks that things can’t get any worse, but he is very wrong.
It all started to go miserably wrong about 5 minutes after he walked out of the McDonald’s. Phillip noticed that the assassin who had tried to kill him twice before was standing next to his cardboard box with a bazooka at his hip. He quickly crossed to the other side of the street hoping he would not notice him. Phillips instincts told him that he had been spotted, so he dove onto the cement as he felt something sail over his head. Just as he tried to get up, a car ran over his arm. He cried out in excruciating pain and stumbled to his feet. Barely able to see he sprinted as fast as he could across the street. He didn’t make it. An SUV rammed him from behind into his back and he flew 50 feet. Phillip hit the ground with a smash and passed out cold.
When Phillip awoke he was in a dark room. He still could not see very well, and when he tried to move he screamed as loud as he ever had before. His arm was so badly broken that it looked like a paralyzed snake. The only good news was that he only had bad bruises on his back, so it was not broken. Phillip was realizing all this when a door opened somewhere behind him, and light flooded into the room. He was tied down standing up to a partially tipped over table that was nailed to the ground. He was also in the middle of a circular room with no decoration whatsoever. A man walked up to him, and with a surge of panic Phillip noticed that it was the assassin. He pulled his hand out of his pocket and for an instant he thought he was going to be shot dead right there. Instead the man pulled out a cheeseburger fresh from McDonald’s. He grabbed it with his teeth and began to chew. The man left. Phillip finished off the burger and passed out again from fear. The man had come back with a gun.
After passing out Phillip woke up almost instantly. The man raised the gun and was pointing it directly at his head. On instinct he ducked, and the bullet slammed into the rope that was holding him down. It fell down to the floor, and he could now run away. He heard the man curse multiple times. There had only been one bullet in the gun. Phillip ignored the still aching pain in his left arm and sprinted out the door straight into a pack of Rottweiler’s. Instead of stopping in terror, he sprinted up to the fence surrounding the dogs and climbed over. He got up again and ran all the way back to his cardboard box. Phillip was uncertain if the assassins would come back, so he picked up his small pile of belongings and ran towards the Pick ‘n Save he used to work at. Finding a comfortable spot behind the store, he dropped down the box and looked around for the assassins. They were nowhere to be seen. The pain in his arm was gone, but once the adrenalin wore off he would be hurting for a while. After realizing what he had gone through that day, he walked back where he had come from to the McDonald’s. He walked inside and ordered a cheeseburger. After taking a few bites, he suddenly flopped onto the floor and lay still.
Phillip had weighed almost 400 pounds. All the sprinting around had made his heart slow down until it finally stopped. Phillip had avoided being assassinated twice in a day. He had been hit by a car, and had gotten his arm run over. He had survived a pack of bloodthirsty dogs only to die eating his favorite food in the world at his favorite restaurant in the world. This was the way his life had gone in the last few years, and this was how it ended.
It all started to go miserably wrong about 5 minutes after he walked out of the McDonald’s. Phillip noticed that the assassin who had tried to kill him twice before was standing next to his cardboard box with a bazooka at his hip. He quickly crossed to the other side of the street hoping he would not notice him. Phillips instincts told him that he had been spotted, so he dove onto the cement as he felt something sail over his head. Just as he tried to get up, a car ran over his arm. He cried out in excruciating pain and stumbled to his feet. Barely able to see he sprinted as fast as he could across the street. He didn’t make it. An SUV rammed him from behind into his back and he flew 50 feet. Phillip hit the ground with a smash and passed out cold.
When Phillip awoke he was in a dark room. He still could not see very well, and when he tried to move he screamed as loud as he ever had before. His arm was so badly broken that it looked like a paralyzed snake. The only good news was that he only had bad bruises on his back, so it was not broken. Phillip was realizing all this when a door opened somewhere behind him, and light flooded into the room. He was tied down standing up to a partially tipped over table that was nailed to the ground. He was also in the middle of a circular room with no decoration whatsoever. A man walked up to him, and with a surge of panic Phillip noticed that it was the assassin. He pulled his hand out of his pocket and for an instant he thought he was going to be shot dead right there. Instead the man pulled out a cheeseburger fresh from McDonald’s. He grabbed it with his teeth and began to chew. The man left. Phillip finished off the burger and passed out again from fear. The man had come back with a gun.
After passing out Phillip woke up almost instantly. The man raised the gun and was pointing it directly at his head. On instinct he ducked, and the bullet slammed into the rope that was holding him down. It fell down to the floor, and he could now run away. He heard the man curse multiple times. There had only been one bullet in the gun. Phillip ignored the still aching pain in his left arm and sprinted out the door straight into a pack of Rottweiler’s. Instead of stopping in terror, he sprinted up to the fence surrounding the dogs and climbed over. He got up again and ran all the way back to his cardboard box. Phillip was uncertain if the assassins would come back, so he picked up his small pile of belongings and ran towards the Pick ‘n Save he used to work at. Finding a comfortable spot behind the store, he dropped down the box and looked around for the assassins. They were nowhere to be seen. The pain in his arm was gone, but once the adrenalin wore off he would be hurting for a while. After realizing what he had gone through that day, he walked back where he had come from to the McDonald’s. He walked inside and ordered a cheeseburger. After taking a few bites, he suddenly flopped onto the floor and lay still.
Phillip had weighed almost 400 pounds. All the sprinting around had made his heart slow down until it finally stopped. Phillip had avoided being assassinated twice in a day. He had been hit by a car, and had gotten his arm run over. He had survived a pack of bloodthirsty dogs only to die eating his favorite food in the world at his favorite restaurant in the world. This was the way his life had gone in the last few years, and this was how it ended.
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