Outside Reading #15

Like every year, last Wednesday my family and I went to the holiday show on the 8Th floor of Macy's downtown. This year it was "A Day in the Life of an Elf", which wasn't all that good, but, like always, I enjoy the little gift shop once you get though the maze. I went strait to it and found that there was a theme of being environmentally friendly. I found a book, "When Santa Turned Green", and showed it to my mom who thought it was cute and then bought it. It wasn't until today that I opened it up. The point of the book was to tell children about the serious issue of global warming. I really liked the idea of the book, but it think the author, Victoria Perla, used a few words a kid might not understand. Some words were, millennium, hybrid, and  energy sources. Those were the words she did not explain very well, but, apart from that, she sent  a good message out to kids.

Outside Reading #14

This weekend I was away for TEC, so I didn't have much time to sit down and read, but on Saturday night the leaders gave us all a general wheat bag. This bad was filled with letters from my friends at TEC and from my family. I spent half an hour reading letters that were filled with love and compliments from people who mean so much to me. I loved letters so much because they reminded me how much I am loved, and it gave me joy to read all the nice things they said about me.

Outside Reading #13

I just watched a clip from the Sunday news show, 6o Minutes online. The entire hour was featuring Barack Obama. I saw the part when he and Michel were describing their daily life. It was surprising how it compared to my family. As a Senator, Obama had an apartment he stayed in Washington. My dad use to work in Lacrosse, Wisconsin, and he would stay in an apartment during the week and drove back home for the weekend.

Outside Reading #12

Article- "Obama says thanks on last day as Illinois senator"

CNN.com

Now that the election is over, it seems like people can't get enough of our new president. I was surprised to read that CNN did a full article on the letter Obama wrote to Illinois them. They included many quotes from the article. Usually, the new president doesn't resign until they are sworn into office, like what Joe Biden is doing, but Obama already had his last day in the senate. I think the reason is that he wants to get a head start preparing for his new job, and i also think it's because they want to get a replacement for him before the new senators come in on January 6th. 

Outside Reading #11

Article- "Let's take some time and savor this moment"

by Garrison Keillor

My dad showed me this article in the Editorial section of the star tribune, and since it's been a while since i've picked up his book, I thought I would do a post on his article. Keillor writes about how great america is right now because of the election, and he commented on how great it is that other countries like us now because of the new elect. I just wanted to mention how much bias is in this article, but Garrison Keillor is a very bias person so you should be surprised by him stating his mind.

Outside Reading #10

Lake Wobegon Summer 1956, Garrison Keillor
Chapters 1 and 2

The book begins with a 14 year old boy, Gary, at the beginning of summer. In summary, it describes how Gary's family is religious, how he is a nerd and how he hates his older sister. She is annoying, and she gets mad and frustrated simply because he didn't do his chore of drying the dishes. She brings all of her anger out on him because she feels life is easier for him. For me, one interesting part of the book is what they mention about the setting, Minnesota. Although Lake Wobegon is a fictional place, they talk about the misquitos and how the days are getting longer. In one part they mention Gary's mom reading out of the " Minneapolis Star" news paper. It is very interesting being familiar with the charaters lives.

Endorsmement Letter

My Not So Hard Decision

There are many characters in the epic The Odyssey, by Homer, that it can sometimes be confusing to keep straight, but they are all important and all have a purpose. There are characters meant to trick and to be an obstacle to the protagonist, and there are figures that are friendly and lead the significant characters’ direction. A true hero finds any way possible to assist a good person in need of some extra help. I endorse Goddess Athena to be the Odyssey National Hero of the Year. Athena guided Telemachus through his own journey to secure his father’s homecoming.

“Odysseus journeys home- the exile must return! While I myself go down to Ithaca, rouse his son to a braver pitch, inspire his heart with courage…” (I, 103-105), Athena proposed to her father, Zeus, from Mount Olympus. Since the beginning, Athena showed her compassion towards Odysseus and his son’s success. She stepped forward to finally bring the odyssey of Odysseus to an end after ten long years. She was determined to help Telemachus to summon the Achaeans to an assembly, and to give him confidence to speak his mind to all the suitors that she disguised herself from. She descended amongst the mortals, disguised as Mentes, lord of the Taphians, to give Telemachus the guidance he needed, and she also sailed with him to Pylos to keep his ship safe. The ending of the epic occurred because of the help from Athena.

Without Athena’s compassion, the gods would not have paid any attention to Odysseus, and Telemachus would have never become the man he ended up to be. She shows the exact qualities a hero must have, and she sends the characters off with the strength that they need. Because of her assistance and compassion, I endorse Goddess Athena to win the Odyssey National Hero of the Year Award.

Thesis Statement and Topic Sentences

Prompt: What is the most important thing that Odysseus does and why?

Thesis-
Listing: The greatest achievement of Odysseus was when he escaped from the Cyclopes, Polyphemus, because he was clever, quick thinking, and saved his crew from all being devoured.
Open-Ended: The greatest achievement of Odysseus was escaping from the Cyclopes, Polyphemus, because of many reasons.

Topic Sentences-
#1: Odysseus is known for his clever thinking, which he proves his brilliance when he creates a plan for escaping Polyphemus.
#2: Odysseus had to be quick thinking when Polyphemus interrogated him with questions and started to eat his men.
#3: The reason Odysseus proved why this is the greatest achievement and most important thing he did on his journey home was because his mind saved his crew from all being devoured.

Outside Reading #9

Today I began to read a novel, Lake Wobegon Summer 1956. Having only gotten though the first chapter, I do not yet know what to think of the book. The reason I chose to read this book is because of the author, Garrison Keillor. I have many reasons to like him, and trust that this book will be worth wild.

To begin, I enjoy his radio show. My dad and I often listen to A Prairie Home Companion in the car, and laugh to his dry humor. When I was little, I didn't like when my dad turned it on, but as I got older and started to understand the jokes Keillor told I enjoyed when my dad turned it on. I mostly enjoy the sound of his voice. It is very unique and calming to my ears.

This is a clip I found that Garrison Keillor does a voice over in for Honda: