My Name Is Jonas

Today was the 3rd time I have participated in a cross country event. I finished with the outstanding time of 16:11(ish) and 50th place. (No, this is bad, no kidding) But since Coach Hawley was there and since I have discovered my "theme song" for cross country I figured I should blog about it. I think I will follow up this post with a another post entitled "Cd Player" but that is yet to come. I don't have an Ipod but I do have a cd player, so on the way to the meet I listened to my cd player. The disc in my cd player is the first album to be realeased from Weezer, it is entitled "Blue Album." The first song on the Blue Album is called My Name Is Jonas so everytime I leave from Westbury Christian with my cd player that will be the first song I hear. I don't know why but that song just sticks out to me at 7:00 in the morning. Maybe its the visions of grandeur I get when I listen to the lyrics and imagine us running. Maybe its just because its so early in the morning and it just sounds good, but whatever the reason this is my theme song for cross country. For now at least.

"My name is Jonas I'm carrying the wheel Thanks for all you shown us This is how we feel"-My Name Is Jonas by Weezer

On the Way Down

Last night a manga I have been reading for nearly a year came to a very abrupt end. It ended on chapter 162 and I didn't see it coming for one minute, I thought it still could go about another 50 chapters or so. The manga is called to-LOVE-ru (this is the actual title of the manga. If you spell out the title in japanese it means "trouble") and is the story about a boy who finds an alien in his home named Lala (she comes from the planet of Deviluke and they have a human appearance, the only difference is that they have a black tail and are stronger than humans) She is being pursued by people of her home planet because she is a runaway princess. Well...The story entails the adventures of the boy (Rito), Lala, and a bunch of other characters. When I first read it I thought it was hilarious. It was still very funny except the last few chapters. 162 leaves the story at somewhat of a cliffhanger. Rito tells his two main love interests that he loves both of them (idiot) -_-...And the last two pages basically say "Well, this is where the story ends, but it goes on..." And I just kind of sat there and was like...ARE YOU SERIOUS?! I hate endings like that. Oh well, off to find new stories and better endings. I've been waiting to do a blog on this song so long but I told myself I would only do it when to-LOVE-ru ended.

"And on the way down I saw you and you saved me from myself"-On the Way Down by Ryan Cabrera

Everything You Want

Finished a manga today called Akuma Jiten. It had an alright ending, better than what I've read recently except for the last manga I read called Mayu Ayu in which I really enjoyed the ending. The story is basically about a girl demon named Milky Way who one day comes into the human world and meets a boy named Hiroyuki and wants to make him her servant. After some stuff he agrees to it. Comedy Romance junk, you know how it goes. Near the end there is like an ultimate showdown between Hiroyuki and the Demon Lord who both, yup you guessed it, love Milky Way. Which ends in Hiroyuki getting thrown off a cliff, I started laughing because that has to really stink. But Milky Way saves him and the Demon Lord decides to go away, marching off back to the "Netherworld." Well I wasn't very happy with that part I wanted blood and guts, ya know fight to the death so I was already bummed out about that. Then there was an ending that ok, I could have lived with it. But after that there was an epilogue which gave no hint at which way their relationship had gone...So I'm gonna be moping around for a while about that. I need to find another good manga but I've been reading one called Onidere which has shown much promise. For every manga I usually "assign" a song that I play when I start reading that manga. This started with either To-Love-ru or Ai Kora. I usually let the song just fall into place and I just think, wow this is great. Then I went through a short stint where I actually just picked out a song and was like, Ok this is this manga's song...That didn't go to well so I went back to the first style. I was on the last chapter and the song wasn't playing but yet I heard it in my head. I really like this song and I've been waiting for the perfect manga to put it to, guess I found it. The song is about a guy that does all the right things by this girl but she doesn't even notice him, GREAT song.

"He's everything you want He's everything you need He's everything inside of you that you wish you could be He says all the right things at exactly the right time but he means nothing to you and you don't know why"-Everything You Want by Vertical Horizon

Pork and Beans

Today I went to the Bishop's storehouse and helped give food to people who need it. The Bishop's storehouse is like the foodbank. People fill out orders and then come to pick up their food. The shelves are lined just like a very small grocery store. Theres canned food, milk, eggs, fruits, vegetables, etc. My job most of the time was to stock the shelves when the food ran low. I stayed there from 8AM-2PM. Its tiring but you always feel like you've made a difference when you leave. One food that comes in a can are pork and beans. Whenever I see that this song always comes to mind. To me the song is about people doing what they want to do and not what others want them to do, or the world's standard of things. I seriously need to get back in the habit of doing this.

"Ima do the things that I wanna do I ain't got a thing to prove to you I'll eat my candy with the pork and beans excuse my manners if I make a scene"-Pork and Beans by Weezer

Fine

Hey, its been a month jeez. Alright I'm just really posting this so I can get back into the habit of blogging. A lot to say but I don't think it will be good for this post, I'll put it in an upcoming one. Alright I'm a little nervous about some stuff thats coming up, Scouts and School mostly. I have to start reading soon or basically im stuck between a rock and a hard place. Uh, found a new manga. I been wanting to yell at it since I resumed reading it today. Just really not going in the right direction. The band that sings this song is Lemon Demon. Lemon Demon is kinda special because on Myspace I looked up their space and found out that one of their influences was They Might Be Giants. (One of Three of my current favorite bands) And when I really got to thinking about it, Lemon Demon is really just a fresher They Might Be Giants so its all good. I'm worried about stuff but its alright I'll just sit back and have a nice afternoon, it'll be fine. There can't be good without the bad. (Below is the link to a video that contains the song. Its a really good song that I enjoy and this is how I first heard it. If you look at the comments mine is 2nd from the top and was made at least a YEAR ago.)

"I know that every bomb has a silver lining I know, I know it won't be long until everything works out nice in the end the sun will marry the moon Why don't we sit back mellow again and have a nice afternoon"-Fine by Lemon Demon

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUVre6JaVl0

D-Day

On this day 65 years ago, one of dozens of defining moments took place in World War II. On June 6, 1944 Allied soldiers took part in the invasion of Normandy, a strip of coast in France. 160,000 soldier participated in the landings, over 195,000 navy personnel and at least 5000 ships supported these soldiers in their landings. Landings took place on 5 different stretches of beach, each designated with a code name. American, British, and Canadian forces were designated for these beaches. The Americans landed at Omaha and Utah. The British landed at Gold and Sword. The Canadians landed at Juno. The most heavily defended beach was Omaha, 5000 soldiers gave their life there. 50% of total losses from the Normandy Invasion. Many objectives set to be done on D-Day were not achieved, so progress was slow getting out of Normandy but the invasion of France continued and ultimately ended the war. For many this is where the story of D-Day ended, however the story of how it began started many years ago. From the time Russia switched to the Allies side to the time of D-Day Stalin had told the Allies to open a second front. However Allied leaders did not have the proper planning for an invasion of that magnitude. Also the U.S. had just joined the war and did not have the experience that the British had. So while forming the plans for an invasion of France, the U.S. landed in Africa under Operation Torch and later the Allies invaded Italy in Operation Husky. It was hoped that Germany could be captured from Italy however this proved improbable because of the easily defendable Italian Alps. So finally the plans for D-Day were set and put into motion. Large numbers of Allied troops were transferred to the U.K. and begun special beach landing training. At this time paratroopers also began training for landing behind the German lines and taking certain towns and other objectives. Months before this up to D-Day Allied bombings had turned from strategic bombing (the bombing of factories, cities, refineries, and anything else that helps the warmaking industry) to the bombing of sites in France, mostly transportation hubs, such as railroads. All the movement on the ground was easily noticeable so the Allies also took precautions to camoflauge all that was going on. "Dummy" tanks were also created, inflatable devices that look like tanks from the air. The art of deceiving also came into play. Somehow the Allies conveyed to the Germans that any landing at France would occur farther up the beach, not at Normandy. Therefore many German defenses were moved and not present at Normandy. One of the last deciding factors for D-Day was the weather. If there was a storm than the Higgins landing craft wouldn't be able to make it to the beach. If the clouds were too low aircraft wouldn't be able to find their targets, this included not only the fighters and bombers supporting the troops but also the planes carrying paratroopers and commandos. It also had to be done on a night that would have a full moon since paratrooper landings would take place at night and so would the preperations for soldiers getting into landing craft. The original plans for D-Day were for the invasion to take place on June 5. Weather however didn't comply. On June 4 the weather deteriorated and June 5 the weather was no better. In an emergency meeting of the commanders Eisenhower's chief meteorolgist Stagg forecast a brief improvement on June 6. Eisenhower was the supreme commander of all Allied forces. The defining moment of his career took place on this day. Finally Eisenhower gave the go-ahead. Eisenhower was still doubtful though about the invasion and that night he wrote a note for a possible speech of the failure of D-Day. Everyone began to get in their final positions before the invasion. Eisenhower went to go see members of the 101st Airborne. The planes carrying the paratroopers took off and the paratroopers landed in areas that were not their drop zones. Despite this they tried to accomplish their goals and many did. Ships began bombarding the beaches of Normandy. Than at 6:30 A.M. the D-Day landings as we know them today commenced.

"You are about to embark upon the great crusade toward which we have striven these many months"-Dwight D. Eisenhower

Climbing the Walls

Its nearly here, my next big fear...Philmont. Now I'm sure many of you are asking what is Philmont? The answer a place extremely famous among Boy Scouts in New Mexico. You hike up Mt. Baldy to reach the peak, then you come back down. The place is filled with wild animals, your out there for a total of 12 days with a backpack on with everything you need. Ive been told on average it weighs 40-50 lbs. All in all its a total of 80 some odd miles. On a lighter note...I've found a great new manga!!! Although I've been reading it since before school ended. I'm currently on chapter 115 out of 167! Again though its one where the main character can't choose the girl that he likes which really gets on my nerves. It has been really good though, that I will give it credit for. Not much else to say, just been sitting at home playing on the computer, oh, just cuz I didn't get to tell her at church I'll put it in here. Happy Birthday Naomi! Man if I'm not careful I'm gonna get bored and start climbing the walls.

"I can't talk I gotta go Don't call me back I won't get the door Got to focus on the job cause I got a new job climbing the walls"-Climbing the Walls by They Might Be Giants

Jesus He Knows Me

Another great song by the infamous band Genesis. Well today was the last day of 8th grade, which is both frightening and amazing to me. So many friends are leaving, I'm sure many people are coming to Westbury so theres a chance there will be new friends to make. Even some of our most beloved teachers are leaving. I think the most influential of the teachers leaving are Mr. P and Mr. Semanek. With Mr. P we liked the same things and he made me think in ways I never have. Mr. Semanek has been more of a positive aspect in my spiritual life and I hope to be more like him when I get older, but I also consider Mr. Semanek a good friend of mine. Frightening to me because next year I will be in 9th grade which means the work only gets harder! Not to mention I might not even make it to 9th grade considering I'm going to Philmont! I don't know why but to me my life is lived in series of worrying, I'm always in 3 stages of life: Worrying about something, doing that something I'm worried about, Have absolutely no worries. (These are few and far between) However I think I may be changing my ways, I saw a bible verse I think that said "If it is not worth praying about, then it is not worth worrying about" I've already tried applying it to life and I think it works! I'm excited though because next year...FRESHMAN!!! Jeez though, Its amazing that the year is already over, it feels like it just began. Honorable mention, its the 3rd anniversary for one of the best mangas I have ever read, To-Love-Ru (It means trouble in Japanese) Today our last exam for the day was Bible. I've been wondering how I did on all my tests. I don't know about them...but Jesus, he knows me. (Heh I didn't know what this song was even about until I looked up the lyrics)

"Jesus he knows me, you know"-Jesus He Knows Me by Genesis

Say Anything (Else)

So much to say. Well we'll start with manga, of course. Today I found out that this is around the 3rd anniversary for to-Love-ru, which means trouble in Japanese. Happy Birthday To-Love-Ru!!! Its a really great manga, and I will blog about it when I finish the series, so far its got 148 chapters and running strong with no end in sight. Next up is the manga I'm reading now, called Ichigo 100% (The alternate name for it in English is Strawberry 100%) Like nearly all manga I read its a comedy romance where the main character is totally clueless. The boy is currently heartbroken from being dumped by his girlfriend. However a new character has been introduced who was his childhood friend. I can see a love triangle about to sprout up from this. Excluding his ex and childhood friend there are two girls that Manaka likes (the main character) one is named Aya (who he likes more) who is a smart and attractive girl but he just doesn't know what to say around her. The other girl is named Kitaooji, she is very attactive and outgoing. So far a very predictable but still good manga. Sadly there have been no updates on several other mangas I've been reading, most and foremost of all is Ai Kora, someone needs to upload it please!!! However the most important thing that happened today is that I told my crush I like her. I don't think it went amazingly well, but hey, what can I say, when it comes to me I scheme and my plans go to crap. Only good scheming my brain is good for is military tactics...Maybe if love was more like war?...But then there is Love is a Battlefield by Pat Benatar...I didn't even think about putting that for my song quote...Hey I went off topic here!! Anyway I guess I want to get it out why I like her. I'm constantly asked by my closest friends whom I have told why I like her. Its not for her brains (Not calling her dumb) and its not because of her looks (I think shes cute, but thats not the reason) it has more to do with whats inside. When I've been around her I haven't heard her say a bad thing about someone. (unless its someone I would have said the same thing about) And from what I've seen I think she is a very kind person. We were once on a school field trip and this one girl was being left out of the group. I had just stood up to go over there and talk to her when I saw my crush go over and talk to her. I made a mental note of this. There have been other times when acts of kindness have shown, but I can't bring any others to my memory. Actually, I think I'm just really happy I was able to tell her, even if the answer is no (which I fear it is) I'm still happy I was able to get my feelings out in the open about someone. Last day of school tomorrow. I'm so proud of myself. (not in a bad way though)

"Someday you'll sing it out loud, one day this'll make you proud I know, I know is never good enough"-Say Anything (Else) by Cartel

Superman

Well, if I said I had one goal I wanted to achieve while living on Earth it would be to make a difference. For a long time, the only thing I've wanted was for people to think that I'm a good person. I think its working. When I'm gone from this place I just want to know that I made a difference in someone's life. I suppose thats a lot of the reason why when I grow up I want to become a history teacher. I'm not sure if history teachers have all that much effect in a student's life, but even if only one is changed because of me (for the better) I will be happy forever. I think this goes along with a pretty well known short story about starfish. I'm just gonna paraphrase it, it goes something like this: A man was walking along the beach when he saw a girl also walking along the beach, sometimes he would see her pick up a starfish and throw it into the ocean. The man tells her there are miles and miles of beach and thousands of starfish, so really she isn't making a difference. The girl replies to him, "it makes a difference to that one." I suppose thats all I really want...I'm that girl (don't anyone dare think a single word) and the starfish are like future students (If I really do become a teacher) When I go I don't want to be remembered for my money or political power or being some great athlete (Ha, as if) but as being someone that made a difference in the lives of those around him. I guess you could say I'm really trying to be a superman.

"So here I am doing everything I can holding on to what I am pretending I'm a superman"-Superman by Goldfinger

The Iron Giant

I really want to write about this manga I just finished reading but it will have to wait for something I deem even more important! Talking about the movie The Iron Giant!...Yeah I know what your thinking right now but!...Well...Theres no excuse. The Iron Giant is one of my favorite movies. The movie is about a giant iron robot that crashes into the Earth and meets a young boy named Hogarth Hughes, I won't go into the entire movie, that would be very tiring to type out! However there are a few key points in it I would like to cover. One of my favorite serious scenes in the movies is when the iron giant sees hunters shoot a deer. The giant does not understand death so Hogarth explains it to him. "I know you feel bad about the deer, but it's not your fault. Things die. That's part of life. It's bad to kill, but it's not bad to die." I think this is very important in life, dying is a natural part of life, it can't be avoided. Later on in the story the Army is trying to destroy the giant. Hogarth stands underneath the giant's arm which is not a giant laser that is powering up to fire and says "It's bad to kill. Guns kill. And you don't have to be a gun. You are what you choose to be. You choose. Choose." The iron giant than cools down and enters his usual peaceful self. However the main antagonist Kent Mansley orders a Nuclear Missle shot at the giant, which is standing in the middle of a town in Maine. Everyone prepares for the worst to happen. The giant though takes off to destroy the missile before it hits Earth when Hogarth tells him what will happen if it does. While the giant is flying to the missile he thinks about when Hogarth told him he is who he chooses to be. Just before he hits the missile he says aloud "I Superman" (something that is mentioned several times throughout the movie) and then collides with the missile. Months later a staue is erected in the town that the iron giant protected. Hogarth recieves a jaw screw from the iron giant sent by the general of the army that was trying to destroy the giant but realized that the giant was ok when not being shot at. (the general is NOT the same person as Kent Mansley) The screw is thought to be the only remaining part of giant. That night Hogarth awakes to find that the screw is trying to get out of his window. He opens the window to let the screw out and then goes back to bed. The final scene in the movie shows the giants head with an antenna sticking out of his head beeping. Coming towards him are several of his parts, such as his arm and a leg. Then it ends. One of my favorite funny scenes in the movies is when Kent Mansley leaves the Hughes home and while driving in the car thinks of Hogarth's name. (I'm just going to paraphrase this) "Hogarth? What kind of name is that we may as well call him Zeppo...*he looks at a broken BB rifle found earlier in the movie the rest of the rifle is missing so the only words you can read are Hog Hug* Hog Hug?! Hogarth Hughes?!" I don't know why but the Iron Giant is just one of those movies that you really get something out of...to me at least. Thats what I've come to believe and I think thats enough.

"Things die. Thats part of life. Its bad to kill, but its not bad to die"-The Iron Giant

Fireproof

Yesterday at approximately 8:30 I got home from Washington D.C. My plane landed at 5:30 and I won't forget that the first thing I felt when I got off the plane was this sudden blast of...Heat and humidity, Houston's welcome to me. Well I wanted to blog before I left for D.C. however I never got the chance due to timing. Well my trip to D.C. was full of many memories and I also regained some memories from my prior trip to D.C. Great times. We went to go see Jamestown, Williamsburg, the presidential memorials, the war memorials, some museums, the White House (from the fence), the Supreme Court, and the Capitol. My favorite part of the trip though was going to the World War II memorial. Not only is it amazing to me because of my history knowledge but also because of seemingly embedded people and memories in it. When I was there I felt like it wasn't really a memorial to people long ago, but that they were still there. I guess most of that feeling came from a man who had fought at the Battle of the Bulge in the Ardennes Forest. At the memorial there was a fountain-like area that had on the edge all the major battles of the Atlantic or Pacific front depending on which fountain it was. This former soldier sat down on the wording "The Battle of the Bulge" when I saw this a cold chill ran through my spine. This man had been at one of the most famous battles of World War II...This man had been part of perhaps the greatest war in history. However this was not my first run in with a World War II vet. My other run in also happened at the World War II memorial. This man had flown carrier planes (I cannot remember what kind but I'm leaning towards Dauntlesses) in the Pacific Front. How great that I would meet two World War II veterans, on two occasions, who had fought on different fronts. I bet that during their time...They were feeling pretty fireproof.

"I know where I stand and what'll happen if you try it I am fireproof I know my heart and I just can't deny it I am fireproof"-Fireproof by Pillar

Ripples

I have at least 2 favorite bands. The first being of course, They Might Be Giants. However the other band is called Genesis, their most known singer is Phil Collins. Genesis has had quite a big impact on me I would say. Out of any band (including They Might Be Giants) I have heard more of their music and actually liked it more than any other band. (Where Genesis has quantity, TMBG has quality) Some of my favorite Genesis songs are: Jesus He Knows Me, Keep it Dark, Turn it On, No Son of Mine, Many too Many, Invisble Touch, Land of Confusion, Trick of the Tail (Which I have blogged on) and of course Ripples. However Ripples I think is very special too me, besides the fact that it is a whopping 8 minutes long. Earlier this year and during Summer I would have my computer play music while I went to bed. Ripples was always the first song I would make it play, so anytime I hear Ripples I think of going to sleep. I'm also very excited to announce that I have finally gotten my hands on They Might Be Giants music for my computer! I have completed one video which is to Don't Let's Start. Next time I am able to get internet on my computer I will upload it onto Youtube...However that will be in about 2 weeks, I am also working on a Climbing the Walls video.

"Sail away, away with me Ripples never come back Gone to the other side Sail away, away"-Ripples by Genesis

P.S. If you go back to my post on Trick of the Tail which was on February 26th if I'm not mistaken I actually mention Ripples in it quite a bit

Numb

It has been another 2 weeks can you believe it? Jeez, I really need to get back into the habit of blogging again. Since I last blogged I have finished another manga and an anime. First we shall speak of the manga which is called MxO. MxO is by the same writer of Pretty Face which I was amazed to find out. (Pretty Face was an amazing manga that I will one day blog about, however Pretty Face and MxO both came to abrupt endings because of lack of fan support) MxO is the story of a boy named Taiga Kuzumi who stumbles upon a magic school. He is allowed entry into the school even though he failed the examination, he is allowed in because of very special circumstances however I can't go into the details, its much too long. Anyway he falls in love with a girl named Aika Hiiragi and learns that her wish is to be able to see her dead mother again. Kuzumi then sets out on his goal of being able to become a great magician and being able to bring her mother back. Very good manga, but like I said before, a very abrupt ending. MxO still had plenty of gas left. The anime I don't want to go to much into because it was very hard to understand. The story follows a boy named Naota Nandaba who is one day hit by a woman on a Vespa named Haruko Haruhara. I will say no more about it, other than it is one of the funniest, most random, and strangest animes I have ever seen. The series contains a whopping 6 episodes. I am hoping to soon be able to find a new manga to read. Its very upsetting that I find perfectly good manga series and then there is nobody to translate/upload them onto the site I use. Very upsetting indeed. Honorable mention, I got 3rd place in Ecology ono the recent Science Olympiad trip to state. I need to be more like the real me and not the jerk one.

"I've become so numb I can't feel you there I've become so tired so much more aware I'm becoming this All I want to do is become more like me and less like you"-Numb by Linkin Park

One of Those Girls

Wow its been over 2 weeks since I last blogged, I'm so disappointed in myself. Alright, time for business. Late Saturday night I finished a manga I was reading called I"S. The manga was funny but was also very upsetting. The main male character is Seto, he has a had a crush on a girl named Iori for a while, and the manga is basically the story of how those 2 finally get together. What is upsetting to me though is that he can't keep his eyes on any one girl! At different points in the story he meets 3 other girls who he considers having relationships with, and me, Mr. Armchair Match Maker is screaming at the computer "NO!!!!!! NO!!!!!!! NO!!!!!!!" terrible, terrible indeed. The story finally concludes in chapter 143. However let me give some background information before that. Iori has always wanted to be an actor, finally she has her big break but she is having a hard time at acting. Many believe this is because of the relationship with her boyfriend Seto (OH MY GOSH do you know how long it took or them to just get to that stage?! Like 100 chapters, I was again screaming at the computer "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! YOU TWO OBVIOUSLY LOVE EACH OTHER JUST GO OUT!!!") Seto is contacted by a famous japanese director who is Iori's director. He tells Seto to break it off with her so that she can go on and be a great actor. Seto considers this, then Iori walks in and he takes the idea to heart. He says to her that they sould break up. She does not know though that he did this for her sake. Sometime before or after this there had been a death threat from someone named the Marionette King. Before her big production Iori is doing an interview in a radio studio. Seto, who can't bear to come out ever since the break up, was finally convinced by friends to come out and tell her his true feelings for her. When they are going there Seto breaks away from the group when he notices a familiar face (A man from Seto and Iori's school who had on 2 occasions tried to take advantage of Iori, but was twice thrwarted by Seto) He goes up stairs onto the floor right above the radio studio, he is however still on the balcony. Seto is following him when he goes around a corner, just before Seto follows him around the corner the man comes back and smashes the back of Seto's head into the wall. It is then revealed that this man is the Marionette King and is there to rape Iori. (O_O) Of course Seto won't have any of this. It starts out looking pretty bad when Seto is beat around and then stunned by a Stun Gun. Seto still wanting to protect Iori gets up and kicks the man in the knee, he then elbows him in the face which knocks him off the balcony. Police walking by notice the man and take him in to custody. (I don't remember why, it might have had to do with drugs) Seto, having his body spent, falls back into the snow, lying in a puddle of his blood from when he was smashed into the wall. Slowly his conciousness fades away...Eventually he is found and taken to a hospital by his friends. It is revealed he has a serious concussion and might not come out of it. They also realize that he has no reason to wake up since he thinks Iori no longer loves him. Seto's friends rush out to try to get Iori to come to the hospital, but its the day of her big production. They tell he about the entire situation, she is unable to come to the hospital because her agent intiates a lockdown and she can't escape. Iori does call the hospital and they place the phone next to the unconcious Seto. She tells him to "Wake up Seto!" Slowly his eyes open and he says "Iori?" The manga concludes when Seto for the first time tells Iori that he loves her. Yup. I put this song because he can't seem to get one or another girl out of his mind >_> which often gets him into trouble...

"She's one of those girls nothing but trouble, just one look and now you're seeing double Before you know it she'll be gone, off to the next one"-One of Those Girls by Avril Lavigne

P.S. I got a new manga I'm reading, very interesting.

Chasing Cars

Late last night I finished a great basketball manga called Cross Over. The story follows a boy wanting to get into Fujiwara academy because it is the greatest basketball school in all of Japan. He goes to the try out and does pretty good (on offense) but is terrible at defense. He then goes to a basketball game between Fujiwara and a team from a school called St. Mariannju. The game is about 26-134, Fujiwara winning. Later it is found out that they are playing against the 3rd string players, not even the regulars. It goes from bad to worse when one St. Mariannju player is injured and there are no players left to sub for him. The coach of Fujiwara tells them that the game is over since it is 4 on 5, no real competition. But the team manager of St. Mariannu (I'm gonna call it St. M now cuz St. Mariannu is really annoying to type), Mizuki argues that they had put so much effort into trying to organize this game with them. Thats when the coach of Fujiwara backhands Mizuki (what the heck? since when can you backhand someone, a girl at that!) Thats when our hero, whose name is Ogata Natsuki, has enough and joins in the fray on the side of St. M. The final verdict of the game is 28-134, which is amazing really considering that Natsuki is 159cm (5'2 I believe) and that everyone underestimates him. Even though he passed the tryouts Natsuki no longer wants to go to Fujiwara after what he witnessed, so he sets out with the St. M. basketball team to defeat them! In their first official game against Fujiwara the score ends 66-63, with Fujiwara increasing their lead from 64 to 66 in the last 10 seconds of the game. The turnout might have been different had our hero not pulled a muscle in his leg. After much hard training and well fought games, St. M. and Fujiwara are set to face off again. (BUT THE MOST MESSED UP PART IS THE MANGA DOESNT GO INTO THE GAME! It shows the second to last game against Houtei, the second best basketball school in Japan, but then completely skips this Fujiwara showdown!!) Even though the game isn't shown, it is revealed to the reader that St. M. was the victor. I'm not sure if I have any sort of real reason for posting this other than I told Coach Hawley I would and that its a neat story, now I have to find a new manga to read. Its like chasing cars, here and gone in a flash.

"Lets waste time Chasing cars around our heads"-Chasing Cars by Snow Patrol

Memory

This is the story from one of my earlier posts (The Journey Home) that I promised I would put up when I found the story and I finally have. This is a story entitled "Help, Anyone" the story is a true experience that was submitted by a man named Keven P. Coyle (callign: Hitch and aircraft: E-3 Sentry), this is just one of many great stories in a book compiled by John Bytheway.

"Every good aviator's story must begin with these words 'there I was' This story is no different. There I was in the middle of what was shaping up to be an arduous night of operations in Iraq. Significant responsibility had been placed on my shoulders the minute I took over the tactical command and the control role as the Senior Radar Element in the area. My primary was to provide safe deconflication of aircrage, both manne and unmanned, throughout the entire country. This is a feat of engineerying and requires four radars and multiple radio stations thoughout the area of operations in order to be successful. In addition to aircraft deconfliction is the responsibility to provide safe and effecient airspace management, which includes the allocation of some of the most in-demand airspaces in the world.
I am an air battle manager with the burden of making sure that everything-up to the release of a weapon, the deconfliction of that weapon flying through the air, and the effect of that weapon when it strikes its target-is efficiently coordinated and communicated to the persons given the authority to allow for these amazing events to occur. I am not a pilot; however, I am responsible for the safety of all pilots flying in the airspace I have been delegated authority to manage. I consider myself to be the wingman of every aircraft within the sound of my voice. In Iraq, multiple frequencies are used to communicate with aircraft, ground parties, operations centers, and forward operating locations. This night was shaping up to be one I would never forget. As I was assigning aircraft to work with ground parties around Baghdad, one of my radio receivers picked up a faint voice. Thinking nothing of it, I continued trying to keep up with the feverish pace of operations as they were unfolding that night. Suddenly, we lost power to our system and many of our radios, our lifelines to these fighters, were down. Frantically we reset the system and began loading radio frequencies into our radios to reestablish contact with the aircraft under our control. After tuning the VHF radios I faintly heard the words, 'Help, anyone, help.'
I was currently listening to three Ultra High Frequency (UHF) radios, two Very High Frequency (VHF) radios, two satellite communications (SATCOM) radios and three internal net radios and had a hard time determing which radio frequency the sound was coming from. Somthing inside me told me to look at my communications panel at the VHF radios. Suddenly I saw the 'active' light illuminate as a voice said again, 'Help, anyone, we are under attack and my gunny us unjured!' You could hear the gunfire in the background and the urgency in the voice of the soldier. I responded on the radio with my call sign and the radio crackled to silence. I began doing what I had been trained to do and immediately coordinated with the Combined Air Operations Center 2,000 miles away to reprioritze nearby fighters to suppoer the 'troops in contact' or TIC (pronounced 'tick') as we called it. After getting approval I worked with the Air Support Operations Center to pull the fighters back onto my frequency to initiate the support operations. Once the fighters checked in and I received their 'playtime' information (the amount of time they could support the operation before having to get gas), I realized fuel would be an issue for the jets. Simultaneously I coordinated the airborne refueling aircraft into deconflicted airspace over the operation and the fight commenced the total time for these actions was less than two minutes and weapons were being released from two F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft supporting the contingent of marines pinned fown by enemy gun, rocket, and mortar fire. Once the F-16s called the situation under control and the area secure, I coordinated with the forward operations centers for the immediate launch of the recovery helicopters.
Once the helicopters were overhead and the situation seemed completely under control, I looked at my radios and neither of my VHF radios were operational according to my system's monitoring functions. I was confused; I knew I had heard something. I dismissed this as a glitch and went on to complete my shift. Once off of the console, I relayed my story to my superiors and they responded that they had heard the UHF traffic and were pleased with my coordination efforts to affect the recovery of these injured warriors. I told them about the VHF radio glitch, and maintenance reported to me that all the VHF radios were down and were expected to be operation again in a couple of hours. I had a comforting sensation engulf my body and I felt that things were made right.
The next day I went to volunteer in the makeshift hospital at my deployed location. I came across a young man whose chart reported his status as 'injured in combat.' He was awake and we began to talk. I don't remember his name but I will never forget his story he relayed to me about how the Lord had answered his prayers the night before. He told me of his marine unit being pinned down by the enemy and how his immediate superior had been hit by a mortar, causing severe injuries to his midsection. He relayed how their vehicle had been damaged and the radio did not appear to ve functioning. He converyed how he had pleaded on the radio for help and heard nothing but a garbled response, then static. He said a prayer, thinking it would be his last, and suddenly there were jets overhead and the sweet sounds of explosions in the distance. He said there was an eerie silence when it was over, and the last thing he remembers was the helicopter landing to transport him and his superior.
The same feeling I had the night before had returned to my body in force. This brave young marine asked me what I was doing in Iraq, so I explained to him my job and told him my radio call sign. He broke into tears and said that was the name he thought he had heard on the radio that night. He introduced me to the man he simply called his 'gunny,' quite possible the bravest man I have ever met. I never told him the efforts that went into executing their recovery. The Spirit was strong, and I was humbly happy to have been a special instrument in the Lord's hands that fateful ending"

This first time I read this story I cried, what are the chances that these men would meet each other? What divine force could have possibly made this chance meeting possible? The answer: Our Heavenly Father. It was very touching. I reread this section on Saturday and although I didn't weep, I still felt very emotional over it. I hope that my memory doesn't forget this touching story. Theres also some other stories I wish to never forget.

"This may never start Tearing out my heart I'd be your memory Lost your sense of fear Feelings disappear can I be your memory?"-Memory by Sugarcult

My Little Girl

At 2 o' clock in the morning I finished reading the manga known as Karin, AKA Chibi Vampire. I can say without a doubt this is one of the best written mangas I've ever read. The ending however I can say, left me with a tear in my eye. The story of Karin Maaka (a vampire whose blood increases and instead of sucking blood she injects it) is a little different in the manga then in the anime (which was my last post) In the manga Karin turns out to be a Pushuke, or a savior of the vampire race. Vampires would suck he blood and then become very fertile in times when birth was rare. However the Pushuke was a sacrifice, her blood would be all sucked out and then she would die. Karin is abducted by some vampire wishing to do this, however her family and Kenta Usui (a human who knows of the vampire secret and is in love with Karin) save Karin. Shortly after her resucue Karin's blood stops increasing, meaning that she will live a longer life (if she had continued with her blood increasing her life would have been substantially shortened since it is her life) When this is learned her family puts a plan in motion that will change her life forever. They erase her memory of vampires, meaning that she will no longer remember her family. (This is the point at which I start to well up with tears) They did this because she was practically human now and also because she had admitted she could not choose between them and Kenta Usui. Her family believing it was best for Karin turned her over Kenta with his promise that he would keep their secret and protect Karin. Karin awakens in a house with Kenta by her side. Soon after he asks her about her family and she replies "I don't have a family" (This is finally where the tears start flowing, even now just remembering it makes me cry) However even though she doesn't truly remember them she starts to cry and doesn't know why. I think this means that deep down, some part of her hasn't forgotten them. But what makes me cry is the fact that her family made such a sacrifice in order to make Karin happy. After this Karin and Kenta get married and have a child named Kanon. One day Kanon while walking to school sees her aunt (Karin's sister) whose name is Anju (of course Kanon doesn't know about her vampire family either). Anju walks by her and thinks "We've always been watching over you and all of your happiness" To me this is the ultimate tear jerker. I don't know if I could possibly make the same sacrifice that the Maaka family made when it came to Karin. Even if it is in her best interest. But at least Karin's family will watch over her for eternity. I hope this manga remains treasured in my heart for the rest of my life.

"Go on, take on this old world but to me you know you'll always be, my little girl"-My Little Girl by Tim McGraw

Mou Hitotsu No Birthday

Today I finished an anime series called Karin/Chibi Vampire. Its a romantic comedy about an "unvampire" that falls in love with a human and vice-versa. You see the girl whose name is Karin comes from a vampire family but instead of being a traditional vampire she actually produces blood and instead of sucking blood, she injects blood into her "victims."These vampire also have specific tastes, Karin likes people who have unhapiness and when she bites someone she drains their unhapiness (people don't die from the vampire "attacks") Due to her sister allowing him to find out, Kenta finds out about Karin's secret. The story goes on and the two slowly start falling in love (seriously SLOWLY I wanted to strangle them) At the end of the series a vampire hunter appears by the name of Victor. He tries to kill Karin's family while they are completing a ritual that will make Karin into a "full fledged vampire" When Karin has a sudden bloodlust and goes after Victor, Kenta comes and tells Karin to bite him instead. She does and Victor watches on in horror. Karin finishes and Kenta falls to the ground motionless. Victor goes on and on about how vampires and humans can't live together and how what she did has destroyed Kenta. Kenta soon awakens and tells Victor that he loves Karin no matter what she is. Victor is then defeated by an unexpected attack. The point in this is that Kenta had an unconditional love for Karin, even though they weren't the same "species" and that they were told constantly should have had no chance. It was a great anime. My song quote is the credits song, its in Japanese but I will put the Japanese lyrics and the English translation. Its a beautiful song and always reminds me of the series.

"Kimi ni au toki ga ichiban ureshii Kimi ni au toki ga ichiban kurushii kedo Afurudasu omoi wo moshi uchiakete shimattara ne Donna mirai ga kuru kana? Suki na hito ni Suki to ieru Kirameku tokubetsu na yume Kizutsuku koto mo Nani mo osorezu Kakedashite yukeru no nara Suki na hito ni Suki to ieru Sono hi wa atarashii BASSUDAY Kinou to chigau Watashi ni natte Mayowazuni toki hanatsu yo MY LOVE FOR YOU"-Mou Hitotsu No Birthday by Fm.Theta (I think)

"The times I get to see you are when I feel the most joy The times I get to see you are when I feel the most pain though If I were to reveal these bursting feelings to you...Say...I wonder what kind of future they would bring Telling the one I love that I love him...Is my precious sparkling dream If only I could take off running...unafraid of being hurt or anything at all Telling the one that I love that I love him That day will be a new birthday I'll become someone different from who I was yesterday...and I'll set free with no restraint...my love for you"-Mou Hitotsu No Birthday by Fm.Theta (I think)

Sunshine

Well Sping Break is closer to being over than the beginning, so I'm starting to get a little down. I can't complain though, I did what I wanted to...sit around all day watching anime, reading manga, and playing games on the computer. Wow...sounds so depressing and terrible but its what I like. Yesterday I was doing something on the computer, reading manga I think. When a Benadryl commercial. Usually commercials go in one ear and out the other but this one was different. I literally dropped what I was doing to listen to the song to make sure my ears weren't deceiving me. It sounded like they weren't...but just to make sure I youtubed the song to make sure it was what I thought it was. And it was. Its a song called Sunshine by Matt Costa. For a while I was really into songs that Matt Costa did, Mr. Pitiful and Cold December I listened to the most. I'd also heard Sunshine but didn't listen to it as much. When I looked up the song I was amazed to find myself singing the lyrics perfectly when I hadn't heard the song in months! Incredible to me considering I listened to this song less than the other two. After this I tried to sing Cold December but failed horribly. Later on that day I went to Wal-Mart and saw on some of the fake I-pod pictures that Sunshine by Matt Costa was on one! Wow I thought this guy has gotten pretty popular or something. I discovered Matt Costa one night while watching David Letterman, the song he sang was Mr. Pitiful. However I have already used this song before and so I will do Sunshine, which is a great song also.

"Sunshine I'd really like to tell you Oh my sunshine even though your skies are blue You're drying up my bed How can I get any rest now?"-Sunshine by Matt Costa

Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue (The Angry American)

Yesterday I was watching soap operas with my mom while playing my PSP (Playstation Portable for those electronic illiterate) One of the soaps I was watching was All My Children which has a character that is an Iraqi War veteran who is scarred with burns (The scars are not fake, he is an actual Iraq War veteran) After thinking about him I remembered one day that he had been on Oprah telling a little about his lifestory, where he came from, how he got the burns etc. However one thing he said just made me sick to the core. One day he had been walking on the street when a woman walking past him told him that "He got what he deserved" Now to any person thats just terrible, why would you say that to someone who went to war? But I take it real personal when you consider that I am a huge war historian and to me someone that serves in the military should not be looked down on, no matter how unpopular the war is! (good example is Vietnam, soldiers were called babykillers, that also makes me sick) If you have something against the president for initiating the war thats one thing, but to go up to a burned soldier and tell them they got what they deserved is just absolutely morally WRONG. To top it all off I have an uncle who is currently in Iraq and another uncle who will be going to Iraq within the next few months. I imagine someone going to one of my uncles and saying "You got what you deserved" (knowing my one uncle he would probaly beat the tar out of her) How can you live with yourself knowing you told another human being that went to war to protect someones rights that they get whatever they deserve while being there. Leave.

"My daddy served in the Army where he lost his right eye but he flew a flag in our yard til the day that he died He wanted my mother, my brother, my sister, and me to grow up and live happy in the land of the free"-Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue (The Angry American) by Toby Keith

The World

I spend a lot of time thinking about things that don't even matter. I wonder if my former teachers even remember who I am. I wonder if my friends from years ago remember me and the fun we used to have. I wonder when the last time they thought of me was but...The strange thing is that I don't often think about the people around me looking out or especially caring for me but today, that was a different story. I was outside of school walking to a chain fence where I sit down and read my book when my mom is late picking me up. Today was unusually cold and rainy and as I was walking to the fence I saw a white SUV turn around and drive up next to me (something that scared me a little since earlier I had seen 2 teenagers messing around in their car after school, so I thought this was another pair of teenagers looking for something fun to do) however, when the window rolled down I saw it was Annie asking me if I needed a ride home. It made me really happy to have her ask me because really I didn't know she would do something like that for me (or technically her mom who was driving but...you know what I mean) I told her no and that my mom would be along any minute. Not 10 seconds later another car stops and Chad gets out! He too asks me if I needed a ride home! I give him the same response. I sit down to read my book and in a little while a car drives by and beeps at me. I didn't understand until I saw that it was Coach Hawley. He drove down a little ways then stopped...and threw his car in reverse. You can see where this is going...Coach Hawley asks me if I need a ride home and when I decline him he offers to give me his coat! Again I say no and he drives away. However a few minutes later when I was freezing and my mom still hadn't showed up a story came to mind about a man sitting on the roof of his house when a flood came. A motorboat drives up to his house and a man inside asks him if he wants to get on. The man on the roof says no, that he should put his life into the hands of the Lord. Soon another motorboat comes up and the same thing happens. Now the flood water is up to the man's feet. A rowboat comes by and the man rowing asks if he would like in. The man on the roof gives the same response to the man in the rowboat...Eventually the man on the roof drowned when the floodwaters got to high. When the man died he talked to God and said Lord why didn't you save me? I placed my life in your hands. Heavenly Father replies What are you talking about? I sent you two motorboats and a rowboat didn't I? In my eyes I'm just another person in a world of billions but to those three I guess that I'm something more. Especially to God I'm more than just "some person out of billions"

"To the teller down at the bank your just another checking account To the plumber that came today your just another house At the airport ticket counter your just another fare At the beauty shop at the mall well your just another head of hair Well thats alright, thats ok if you don't feel important honey All I've got to say is to the world You may be just another girl But to me baby you are the world"-The World by Brad Paisley

Action

Today I got to read one of my favorite manga which is about a boy who has a love for the parts of women, Eg: "perfect" legs, eyes, voice, hands, lips, curves, neck, etc. Even though he does act kind of perverted at times and swears every now and then, he has a good heart. When he is around the girls with his perfect parts (Usually while stalking them or walking with them home) and something comes along that can hurt them or especially that certain part he likes he goes into a superman mode to protect them (often times at the expence of himself) an example of this is when a baseball was about to hit Tenmaku (girl with perfect eyes) he jumps out of nowhere (while stalking her sadly) to catch the ball. His dedication to those girls is extremely devout and he doesn't even care what happens to himself as long as they are ok. In one chapter a gang starts picking on him and making him do embarssing stuff such as run around like a dog, give up his money, etc. Then Tenmaku steps in and tries to get them to stop. The gang leader picks up a handful of dust and throws it at her. Hachibei (the main character) then seeing that she has her hands over her eyes goes into berserker mode and trashes the gang. He goes up to Tenmaku after the literal 5 second destruction and asks her if shes ok. Thats the kind of person I want to be. I just have to know when to step in and take action. *sadly when I looked up the lyrics to this song I found out that there is an edited and unedited version, the unedited version having terrible lyrics, I still enjoy the song seeing as how I listen to the edited version, but I thought it was worth a note*

"Fate fell short this time Your smile fades in the summer Place your hand in mine I'll leave when I wanna"-Action by Blink 182

Kids

Today I got back from Science Olympiad (I earned a gold and silver medal, Westbury sent two teams, one tied for 2nd and the other team (the one I was on) won 1st overall.) It was a lot of fun. I can't really say I got to meet new people because to be honest, I didn't. Going also helped me get closer to a goal of having nearly all the Ace Combat games (I bought Ace Combat X:Skies of Deception, all I need now is Air Combat, (Ace Combat 1) Ace Combat 2, Ace Combat 3, and Ace Combat:Advance. This was a good expierience for me and a morale booster seeing as how last year I didn't go to Regional Sci. Olympiad but instead to State Sci. Olympiad where Westbury was soundly crushed. That was Sci. Olympiad in a nutshell, not much else to mention besides the bus ride, waiting, eating, and trying to spark up conversations with my crush (Yes I have finally mentioned that I have one.) Well all of that was good except for the last one where I was mediocre at best, but I tried right? Moving on...I couldn't help but feel sorry for the ones who didn't get medals, even though I'm really happy about my medals that was a real downer on me that they didn't get anything for their work. Without them though we could not have gotten 2nd and 1st place. I'm not going to say any names but thank you. *the song is about Autism from the little research I did about it*

"You were a child crawling on your knees toward it making momma so proud but your voice is too loud We like to watch you laughing you pick the insects off plants no time to think of consequences Control yourself take only what you need from it A family of trees wanted to be haunted"-Kids by MGMT

The Journey Home

My favorite game series ever is Ace Combat. (with Kingdom Hearts coming in a close 2nd) I have played Ace Combat so much I can pretty much tell you most of the missions, recently I haven't played but I have amassed nearly 40 something hours I believe on Ace Combat 5 (thats a lot of flying for a game where the longest missions are only about 20 minutes!!) I don't know what really captivated my love for it. I don't know if it was because my uncle played it and I wanted to be like him, or that I liked the airplanes, or just the awesome gameplay. Whatever the reason is, this mere game sparked an amazement for airplanes, especially those of war. To me just the thought that something is able to fly in the sky just seems so amazing and impossible to me! When I'm "flying" in the "skies" its just a great feeling, to be able to move in 3 dimensions! Like I've said before though, I'm scared to death of being a pilot. If I had to sign up in the military, I've decided that I would go into the Air Force, but most likely as a radio operator or a WSO. (weapons specialist officer) I was captivated by a book called Supersonic Saints. (a compilation of Mormon pilot stories by John Bytheway) One story in the book made me cry when I read it...In part that story is why I chose a lesser combat role. If I can find the book I will write the story into the blog that day. Anyway, long story short for this blog, Ace Combat sparked my interest for air craft, without that game, I'm not sure if I would be the fanatic I am today. My song quote today is part of the credits from Ace Combat 5. Oh one last thing before I finish off this blog, my name is taken from a story book character in Ace Combat 5. In Ace Combat the first mention of Razgriz is during a mission in which the pilots must fly to sink a submarine in an area comparable to the arctic called the Razgriz Straits. There the story of Razgriz unfolds. Razgriz appears and apparently tries to take the world under its control (everything in parentheses are quotes from the game "Amidst the eternal waves of time From a ripple of change shall the storm rise Out of the abyss peers the eyes of a demon Behold the Razgriz, its wings of black sheath" (before you start to go 'oooooooo Cody names himself after a demon!!!' hear out the rest of my story) Then the demon Razgriz appears, and rains death and destruction upon the land.Man unites to destroy the common foe, Razgriz, or as the game puts it "The demon soars through dark skies Fear and death trail in its shadow beneath Until men united wields a hallowed sabre In final reckoning, the beast is slain" (kinda going for the, becuz Razgriz existed man worked together to destroy it, but hold on its not done yet, it gets better) Things don't go smooth forever though "As the demon sleeps man turns on man His (mans) blood and madness soon cover the earth From the depths of despair awaken the Razgriz Its black wings ablaze in majestic light" For those who can't tell what it means, it means that Razgriz basically comes back, this time as a hero, to stop man's petty squabbling and wars. This is why I named myself after this fictional fairy tale. Done.

"If a man can fly over an ocean And no mountains can get in his way Will he fly on forever Searching for something to believe"-The Journey by Mary Elizabeth McGlynn

Give Me Your Eyes

Today in chapel Mr. Semanek (Favorite teacher like ever) talked about who our real enemy in life is, of course Satan. After Mr. Semanek was done with his talk (which I only spaced out during once, proud to say it) he played a song called Give Me Your Eyes by Brandon Heath. It had such a deep meaning to it, and the music video was so great it would be a shame if I just didn't make it my song tonight. Often times when I'm bored my mind wanders about pointless things. When I walk past people in a store sometimes I wonder will I ever see this person again? What kind of life has this person lived? Are they going through a hard time right now? How does this person view me?...Just little things...Sometimes I wonder if I got the chance to help someone (especially some cute girl) would I step up to the plate and do it? My biggest fear though is that I will finally get that chance, and then let that person down. I hate to let people down.

"Give me your eyes for just one second Give me your eyes so I can see Everything that I keep missing give me your love for humanity Give me your arms for the broken hearted the ones that are far beyond my reach Give me your heart for those forgotten Give me your eyes so I can see"-Give Me Your Eyes by Brandon Heath

Boss of Me

One of my favorite TV show's theme song just happens to be one of my favorite band's song. The TV show which I speak of is called Malcolm in the Middle basically the life of a teenager that is the 3rd out of 4 children (eventually 5). His family is the most dysfunctional out family there ever could be. His dad often has crazy fantasies including winning shoes with springs from one of those packet things that you have to sell stuff. (like cookies) His mother (Lois) often explodes on the children and gives them insanely cruel punishment. His younger brother Dewey rarely does things to his brothers but he is often the target of their pranks (he has a compiled record of every bad thing they have done to him) Malcolm's 2nd oldest brother is Reese who is about as dumb as a plank of wood, but is mean and basically tortures Malcolm and Dewey. (often though Malcolm gets his revenge and just as often Lois punishes both of them) The oldest brother is named Francis and is adored by his younger brothers because he had been the worst out of all of them, and so was sent to military school. There are many great episodes such as one where on Lois' birthday a clown calls her wide load at a batting cage and the whole family goes toe to toe with a bunch of clowns. Another great episode is when someone in the family goes to court and Lois goes insane with making pig-like creations out of bleach jugs. Or when the family goes to a casino and Malcolm's dad (Hal) loses a lot of money so him, Malcolm, and Reese end up in the desert running from the casino security just to find out they have entered a military artillery range. A true favorite for fireworks lovers would be when Malcolm's family goes out to the ranch where Francis works. While there Francis, Malcolm, and Reese decide to go shoot fireworks at night. Well the grand finale of the fireworks show was the "Komodo 3000" which literally (seriously the place lit up!) turned the night to day for a full 5 seconds. The brothers stand there for a minute and one says "when does our vision come back?" another replies "the label said 3 days" after which they all begin to stumble around blindly. However my favorite line comes from an episode where Reese joins the Army underage and gets sent to Afghanistan. Lois goes to the recruiting center and gets intel on where he is. As she comes into the house and announces her plans to the family there Malcolm turns to look at the camera and says "I'm not sure if shes afraid that he could be killed or that someone else is going to do it." What motherly love.

"Yes no maybe, I don't know, can you repeat the question? Your not the boss of me now, your not the boss of me now, your not the boss of me now and your not so big"-Boss of Me by They Might Be Giants

A Trick of the Tail

Phil Collins is one of my favorite singers, along with his at one time band, Genesis. I like him for his use of clean lyrics. (at least in the songs I listen to, I might be mistaken) At the beginning of 8th grade I couldn't go to sleep without Ripples by Genesis playing in the background. Ripples isn't exactly what people nowadays would call entertaining (being 8 minutes long with only about 3 minutes actually being lyrics), but I liked it. Another one of my favorites by Genesis is A Trick of the Tale, a story of a beast that could talk and lived in a city of gold but left its home for our world, however humans imprisoned it and eventually it broke free and offered to show its captors the city of gold. The conclusion is my "lyrics quote" at the bottom.

"And so we set out with the beast and his horns and his crazy description of home after many days journey we came to a peak where the beast gazed abroad and cried out we followed his gaze and we thought that maybe a spire of gold, no a trick of the eye thats all but the beast was gone and a voice was heard. They got no horns and they got no tails they don't even know of our existence am I wrong to believe in the city of gold that lies in the deep distance"-A Trick of the Tail by Genesis

Hero

Today Turkish Airlines Flight 1951 crashed 2 miles from its destination airport in Amsterdam. Now for those that don't know it, I'm a huge fan of airplanes. (but not a fan of flying in them) It seems strange to me that recently there have been airplane accidents seemingly at least once a month. In December there was the flight that crashed on takeoff in Denver. In January Captain "Sully" was in the news about his daring landing in the Hudson. Then earlier this month a plane crashed killing about 50 people. Today as stated above the airplane that crashed in Amsterdam. The story didn't really catch my eye or attention until I heard that 9 people died, including the Pilot and Co-Pilot. Now a big reason I don't want to be a pilot is because I have the lives of other people in my hands. Its one thing if I get myself killed but its not fair to those other people on the flight. However I really got to thinking when I heard this. Even though 7 others died besides them, are the pilots of that plane proud that they were able to bring that plane down without a lot more fatalities? I think they should be. It could have been a lot worse. Those pilots should be honored just as much as Chelsey Sullenberger. They died trying to save others' lives. Thats all anyone could ever ask of them as pilots...or as ordinary people.

"And they say that a hero can save us I'm not gonna stand here and wait I'll hold onto the wings of the eagles watch as we all fly away"-Hero by Nickelback

Lighted Up

Two years ago I started on a road that millions of other have gone down...The road of making videos (with the intent of uploading it to youtube) For a year I spent time making videos, 12 I think. Yet I knew that I couldn't upload them. I still don't know why. However when I got my own computer in December in 2007 nothing stopped me from finally bringing my dream to fruitition. March 17, 2008 my first video was uploaded. 8 out of 13 of my videos are done to music sung by Brad Paisley. (in my opinion the greatest country singer, with Tim McGraw in a close second) However my very first videos were done with sample music that was already on the computer. This is one of those songs, I never knew who sang the song or what the name of the song was but less than a month ago I was able to find it and add it to my list of favorite songs on playlist.com. 2 years after I heard this song I was able to find it and still love it, I'd say thats pretty devoted.

"But I believe theres a need for separation and I can't see I need to find another way to keep me lighted up"-Lighted Up by Gabriel Mann

One Week

One trait of my personality is that I watch people to see what really upsets them. Then when the time is right, I do that thing that upsets them to set them off. Its pretty bad to do and some of my friends get mad at me but I get kicks from it. Whenever I do it though I always tell them that I'm just joking but sometimes they take it personally and don't talk to me for a while. As for me I'm usually (USUALLY!!! not always) slow to anger and don't take things personally. Even when I am angry its not even something that was said or done to me, but another. So sometimes I don't know where to draw the line and get people very mad at me...but sometimes its those people that take one little thing to set them off that makes it fun. Although working to upset someone also has about the same level of fun to it.

"Its been one week since you looked at me cocked your head to the side and said I'm angry...How can I help it if I think you're funny when you're mad tryin hard not to smile though I feel bad I'm the kind of guy that laughs at a funeral can't understand what I mean you soon will I have a tendency to wear my mind on my sleeve I have a history of taking off my shirt"-One Week by Bare Naked Ladies

Why Can't We Be Friends

Today I got an e-mail from a girl in South Africa named Zandria. The story of how I met her goes back to 6th grade when I went on a trip to Washington D.C. on a program with an organization called People To People that was created by President Eisenhower (one of my heroes) I was put into a group of kids, their names ( if I remember) and their states (if I remember again) are as follows: Keegan (MA), Grace (NV), Kaitlyn (AZ), Jeremy (TN), Malia (HI *still in touch with her*), Joshua (SC or NC), a boy and girl from MA who were schoolmates of Keegan *I will put in their names if I ever remember them*, Briana (NY), one other girl I think who I have forgotten the name of, Shawn (or possibly Sean) (VT *he was not in my group but while we were out there we were basically inseperable, sadly though I didn't get his e-mail*), and last but not least Zandria (South Africa). I think that really the first time I talked to her was on the bus we traveled on to get around in D.C. if I remember right she was sick and no one was sitting next to her so I went over and sat with her. (As nice as this makes me look I really didn't want to sit next to her, just to be honest) We got to talking and became friends. She soon went to sleep. (and nearly or did sleep on my shoulder O_o) I used to get e-mails from here at least once a week, but lately e-mails have become a rare occurance. At one point months ago she hadn't replied in months, this got me worried about her. However when she did reply I was overjoyed, this taught me not to take things for granted, and especially today when I saw I had an e-mail from her I was glad. This is the last line of the e-mail from her: Well i hope to hear from u soooooon......................................................just rememba, u will always be my fwend!!! I sent my reply after reading her e-mail and I hope she responds soon, I hope that she too will always be my...fwend...

"Sometimes I don't speak right but yet I know what I'm talking about Why can't we be friends? Why can't we be friends? Why can't we be friends?"-Why Can't We Be Friends? by War

Ana Ng

On Coach Hawley's blog for the past couple of days his posts have all been about "The One" which is based off of John asking Jesus if he was "The One." But in this format the question is: is there only one person for us? Now for me I would have to say yes, one would be great seeing as how no girls like me. Ha did you like that?! (inside joke with Jonathan) In all seriousness though, I'm not sure whether to believe that there is one person for us or anyone. I'm a very superstitious person but this is one that I just can't place my finger on. *the song (by one of my favorite bands!!!) is about two people who have never met and live on opposite sides of the world, but yet are perfect soul mates*

"Ana Ng and I are getting old and we still haven't walked in the glow of each others' majestic presence Listen Ana hear my words they're the ones you would think I would say if there was a me for you"-Ana Ng by They Might Be Giants

My List

Right now my life as it is isn't balanced. My basic day starts with going to school, coming home, doing homework, maybe sleep somewhere in there, and then I jump on the computer, or some sort of gaming system. I think I need to do something to change. Tomorrow I will write a list of things I want to get accomplished in that week. *the song I'm going to put up is a tribute to firefighters or the heroes during 9/11, if you watch the music video, you understand*

"Wouldn't change the course of fate but cuttin' the grass just had to wait 'Cause I've got more important things like pushin' my kid on the backyard swing I won't break my back for a million bucks I can't take to my grave So why put off for tomorrow what I could get done today...Under an old brass paperweight Is my list of things to do today"-My List by Toby Keith

The Invisible Man

Scatman John is someone I hope that I can be like. I don't think many have heard of Scatman John but he was born John Paul Larkin on March 13, 1942. This is his life story:

Born in El Monte, California, he suffered from a severe stutter "since [he] started talking", which led to an emotionally traumatic childhood. Even at the peak of his success in 1995, journalists reported that during interviews he "hardly finishes a sentence without repeating the phrase at least six or seven times". At age 12 he began to learn piano, and was introduced to the art of scat singing at 14 through records by Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong, amongst others. The piano provided him with a means of artistic expression to compensate for his speech difficulties. He remarked in a 1996 interview that "playing piano gave me a way to speak... I hid behind the piano because I was scared of talking."

He became a professional jazz pianist in the 1970s and '80s, playing many gigs in jazz clubs around Los Angeles. In 1986, he released the self-titled album John Larkin on the Transition label, copies of which are now extremely rare. He claimed to have "hundreds of them lying around in [his] closet at home". Around this time, alcoholism and drug addiction were also beginning to take a hold of his life. When fellow musician and friend Joe Farrell, who also had a drug problem, died of bone cancer in 1986, Larkin decided to beat his habits. He eventually did so, largely with the help of his new wife Judy, also a recovering alcoholic. "You have talent", she told him. "I'm going to make something out of you".

Larkin was mainly scared that listeners would realize he stuttered, so Judy suggested that he talk about it directly in his music. He recorded the first single, "Scatman (Ski-Ba-Bop-Ba-Dop-Bop)", a song intended to inspire children who stuttered to overcome adversity. He adopted the new name and persona of Scatman John.

He later went on to release three albums total, the last one he worked on though he had a serious illness. December 3, 1999 Scatman John died in his LA home from lung cancer...sad to think that is 4 days before my birthday.

I love listening to Scatman's music, all of it is clean and most of it has some sort of moral to it. He overcame his stuttering to become one of the greatest muscians (in my book) in the world. So I devoted this post to him. Even though he is not here, his decisions continue to affect people. Rest in peace Scatman John.

"Im the invisible man, Im the invisible man incredible how you can see right through me Im the invisible man Im the invisible man Its criminal how I can see right through you"-The Invisble Man by Scatman John

Some Might Say

All of today I keep getting examples of when only one side of the story is told. This started early this morning in choir when we were watching West Side Story. Everyone was mad at Maria for being in love with Tony, the man who killed her brother, Bernardo (or something like that)...the little interesting side note though is that before that Bernardo had killed Tony's best friend, everyone seems to forget that little detail. Another example is today in Bible when Angelica pointed out Ryan for ignoring her in front of his cousins when he saw her at the movie theater...The behind the scenes with Ryan interview reveals that the day before Ryan had told her when, which movie, and which theater he was going to (she made no reaction that would suggest she was going)...So in fact he was being stalked...She did not reveal this minor detail. The final one is a Pokemon reference...I know what your thinking. Well in this one people were building a dam, but a mole-like pokemon called Diglett kept stopping trucks from getting through, however it is revealed later that the Diglett do this because if the dam is finished not only their homes, but the homes of other pokemon in the area would be destroyed, so that was the other side to that coin. (That was probaly a very true comparison to what humans to do animals sadly, but in the episode they stopped building the dam once this was realized) So I think after the repeated lessons this day on not to judge something by what is heard first, I think I will take the time more often to look at the story from both sides (even though this is what I usually do, and often times pick a neutral state) *One of the only times I will allow the h word in any kind of form, I detest it but I think it fits well for this topic*

"Some might say that sunshine follows thunder Go and tell it to the man who can not shine...Some might say they don't believe in heaven Go and tell it to the man who lives in hell"-Some Might Say by Oasis

Dashboard

Today turned out to be an OK day. Nothing too bad, but nothing terribly good either...other than the fact it was kinda a free day throughout the whole day. I messed up though, I should've been better. Gosh. Tomorrow maybe I can start over.

"Well it would've been could've been worse than you would ever know"-Dashboard by Modest Mouse

Save Tonight

Well my first post in a while due to horrible internet on my computer so I've had to break down and use my mom's computer. I have been watching videos from a website called megavideo for approximately 72 minutes...How do I know this? Because the site has a 72 minute limit and then you have to wait 54 minutes in order to watch another 72 minutes. When you really start to think about it there are a lot of limits in life. No not the impossible ones like, you can't run 100 meters in 2 seconds, or that you can't fly without the aid of something. I'm talking about the simpler ones. The limit of 60 seconds in a minute, or 24 hours in a day, or 120 years in life, although for most its quite shorter. Life is based off of limits. Its also based on knowing when to draw the line and knowing those limits, but thats for another post. On a lighter note (but a sad one fore me) I have no Valentine. I know!! Woe is me. But thats ok I guess yesterday I went to a church dance that was neat. Tomorrow...Ought to be interesting.

"Save tonight and fight the break of dawn come tomorrow tomorrow I'll be gone"-Save Tomorrow by Eagle Eye Cherry

Who Can It Be Now?

I forget where I've read this before but someone once wrote, life is a series of rooms. When you meet someone, they just happen to be in the same room. I thought about this for a while. I still think about it everynow and then, thinking how true. Sometimes I think it may have something more to do than just being in the same room, because sometimes some pretty incredible things happen because of people you "just happen to be in the same room with." Right now I'm reading a Pokemon manga (basically a japanese comic book, translated into english of course) and there was a preview of the next volume and there was a girl and the name Blue was mentioned on the page several times so I'm wondering if this Blue person will somehow meet up with Ash (called Red in manga but...I mean really...we all know its Ash!!) Anyway if they do, I just wonder how it will turn out. I don't want her liking him or vice-versa, like I've said before Ash (Red w/e) is meant for Misty (who showed up earlier interestingly enough! but they separated) Its just impossible for me to picture him with anyone besides her!...OR maybe this "Blue" person will be a better match O_o only time will tell. I have a feeling they will converge in the same room.

Is it the man come to take me away? Why do they follow me? Its not the future I can see Just my fantasy Who it can be now?"-Who Can It Be Now? by Men At Work

Moving Along

When I was a lot younger I, like many other American kids, was swept away with Pokemon. Although I no longer watch the show for a couple of reasons (1. No time 2. Pokemon keep getting weirder 3. Don't have the channels required to watch it 4. Misty isn't there, whats the point of Pokemon if Misty and Ash can't get together?!) Well, I've started to watch it online and its actually a lot funnier than when I was young, I understand a lot of the messages better, like puns and times when the characters are lovestruck. Although it may be uncool now to watch Pokemon, I just can't tear myself away from it, I guess its just something that will take some time before I get moving along. (waiting to see hidden Ash and Misty messages >_^)

"When all you got to keep is strong move along move along like I know you do and even when your hope is gone move along move along just to make it through move along"-Move Along by All American Rejects

Grown Men Do Cry

I don't know who coined the phrase "Grown men don't cry" but I know that they do. I hope that I never get so stone hard that I can't cry. Its something we do when we just have unbearable sadness, we were meant to do it. Don't hold it in, let it out, ya know?...I have, I do, and I shall.

"And everything weighin on my mind disappears just like thatWhen she lifts her head off her pillow and says,I love you dad I dont know why they say grown men dont cry"-Grown Men Don't Cry by Tim McGraw

Rising Above This

I was watching tv today when the internet gave out on my computer. The show that was on was iCarly, which comes on Nickolodeon, it has Miranda Cosgrove and Jeanette McCurdy. (who I think is really cute) On the show they do their own webcam show and just do weird and funny things. This one girl claims to be their biggest fan and ends up stalking them. (very creepy in the episode...VERY!) And it just got me thinking...plenty of people will say they are fans of people, or bands, or things, but how many say they are God or Jesus' biggest fan? Its just something for the mind to mull over. In the end though the girl ends up stalking a local band next claiming to be their biggest fan, so she wasnt true to her word. Maybe with a little help she will be able to rise above this, hopefully me too.

"Call your name every day, when i feel so helpless I'm fallin' down, but I'll rise above this, rise above this doubt"-Rise Above This by Seether

Deleted...

Wow...Ok whats really got me down about now is when people you used to talk to a lot just...Delete you I guess...I can think of several of people that have "deleted" me. It just nearly breaks my heart thinking about it. Well this is my first blog, trying out this whole thing. At the end of my blog I'm going to put lyrics to a song, the Artist, and most of the time the song because this is what I do on other websites. Even my blog is named after a song I like, which is called "In the Middle" by Jimmy Eat World.

"I wish you wouldn't worry, let it be Have a little faith and you'll see If I could write a letter to me...To me..."-Letter to Me by Brad Paisley