Really Important Please Read

Hello everybody, it's me. I am here to let you know that unfortunately for all of you (and me in a way), I am finished for the summer. I have school in exactly a week, and this means summer is unfortunately Summer is about over. Fall will be kicking in soon, but seasons don't matter, this is my last week of summer before I start a fresh new year of school, with LOADS of homework that I will have to complete. I am glad to have been able to entertain you all, but I'm afraid this might just be my last english essay. I am aiming to get into french law school to let not only the english, but the french when I graduate that I am open to help them out as a lawyer. I was asked just yesterday if I would be okay moving to the quebec side of this country. I said yes so I could be put into a french learning environment to improve my french speaking, and writing. Therefore I will probably be writing french essays from now on, and alll I have left to say is... well, bye.

Mayans

                Mexico is a great place to go for vacations, but honestly, are there only Mexicans in Mexico? Of course not, there are the Mayans. Now who the Mayans are will be explained later, but there is one touristic place to find a bunch of the Mayans in Mexico: Chichen Itza.

                First of all, it is important that everyone knows just who the Mayans are. They are their ancestors. The Mayans came before the Mexicans, but how can anyone tell them apart? The Mayans have more almond shaped eyes, and they also have longer necks. Mayans also have darker skin than the Mexicans. The Mayans had a very strong military and quite some intimidating sports. But the Mayans led a peaceful life with each other, which is not the case of people of today. People today are always fighting, there is a huge infestation of bullies that pick on smaller people because they are insecure, and neighbours can be extremely selfish. Those were only three of what could have been said. Honestly all the possibilities could probably fill up these entire two pages. The Mayans lived in harmony, and worked together to live peacefully, feed their children, etc. The life could have also been scary.

                One of the greatest homes where the calendar was built, and many Mayans live, is Chichen Itza. Chichen Itza (or as some people like to jokingly say Chicken Pizza), is actually one of the Seven Great Wonders of the World! There are 364 steps on Chichen Itza. There are four sides to it, and each side has 91 steps. Multiply that by four and that make 364 The calendar was created from the steps of Chichen Itza. Notice how there are 364 steps on Chichen Itza? That is how many days are in a year. Each step of Chichen Itza represents one day of the year. Now there is one extra thing that represents the leap year. It is believed that there are 364 steps, but there is one final step at the top that represents the leap day: the 365^th step. There is a second calendar they believe in though, which is shortened to 220 days in a year. This one is tied to rituals, while the one believed in by everyone in the world is tied to Astronomy. There is a trick at Chichen Itza (this has nothing to do with the calendar anymore), that is when a pole that is not connected to the roof is found, it represents a Mayan Warrior guarding that area of Chichen Itza.

                Remember the 2012 rumor that the world is going to end, well that was created by the Mayans. The Mayans believe that on certain years, there will be a day where the world will end. Such as this year on December 23^rd. This theory was made by the Mayans on August 13^th 3114 B.C. It is believed that in order to stop it a Mayan warrior must be sacrificed. There are other sacrifices made as well. When touring Chichen Itza be sure to look at the Sacrificial Pit, which when someone is pushed in they disappear and never come back out. This occurred when there were droughts so that it could rain again and their crops could grow. So the sacrifice would go to the Chac god, their god of rain and lightning. They did it so that he would accept the sacrifice, and make it rain again. Without their crops they had no vegetable, which was a major part of their food system. It is also predicted that only virgins were thrown in as sacrifice by Bishop Landa.

                The Mayan sport was tricky, and something anybody smart would not like to be involved with it a part from watching. Anybody who played in that sport had guts, were honourable, and were extremely strong. There was a rubber ball that they had to somehow get to the captains, who were higher up on the ball court, without using their hands or feet. They hit it up because slightly below the captains were the hoops in which they needed to somehow get the ball into. This game was sometimes played to the death, and the winning captain would present his head to the losing captain, who would then decapitate him. This though, for the Mayans, was honourable, because he would automatically be sent to heaven instead of doing the usually thirteen steps. When the games begin though, how can everybody hear the ruler? He turns around, and speaks into his sitting area, which is like a bullhorn.

                So now, more ancient history is known. The Mayans can be found in Mexico today, and Chichen Itza is a fascinating place to see. It would be nice to see one of the Seven Great Wonders of the World. Be sure to check it out when visiting Mexico.  



Why Buy the Cottage Now?

                It was about a couple of weekends ago, we were visiting my dad’s old boss. He owned a really nice cottage. He had satellite, his house looked very modern (close to contemporary actually), and he had an entire lake he could swim in. Because of those really nice features my parents decided “Hey, why don’t we buy one too?”

                First of all, the lake was huge. We actually could have an entire party in that lake with like, 500 other people. Believe it or not it is actually a reasonable guess. That lake with solid ice in the winter (I actually almost put down summer. Oh laugh all you want) could actually serve as a nice skating rink. While we were there we actually did one of the most fun things ever, we went fishing. My dad’s boss caught a mini boss, as did I. The only problem was that it got fully hooked, and things didn’t end very well. I honestly was crushed with guilt that it had to narrow down to what it did (I know you are probably begging me to tell you what happened but you honestly don’t want to know.) We still got it in the water and we hope the fish gets better. My dad’s boss also had one of those pedal boats (didn’t use it at all), and one of those humongous islands that can fit probably 8 people. It also comes with a cooler to hold your drinks when you are in the middle of the pool/lake so you don’t have to go back.

                At night we gathered around a fire and we just talked and ate cheesecake. We had so much fun but imagine if there were marshmallows on some stick and we roasted them over the fire and ate them. I actually like to look at them catch fire and melt, and if we could do that at our cottage that would be really cool. I think the last time I actually did that was like 2 years ago, so I honestly haven’t done it in a while. I actually remember something really nice we did at cadets. Here’s what you do: first get an orange, some tinfoil, a pair of oven mitts, and some chocolate, make sure you also have a spoon! Next eat both halves of the orange, and leave some juice inside. Take the chocolate, take off the wrapper, and put it in the orange. Next wrap it with the tin foil and throw it in the fire. Do you know where I’m leading to yet? By the way the tinfoil is to prevent the orange from burning and catching fire. Next after a while, 5-10 minutes, take out the orange with a stick, and take off the tinfoil with your oven mitts. The chocolate should have melted et voila! You have a chocolate orange! The chocolate will be melted and you scoop it out with your spoon. I actually learned this at my cadets bush weekend. Quite the clever recipe eh? I actually never would have thought of that, and I was so astounded you could have predicted I thought they really were geniuses.

                If my father were to buy a cottage today, then we would be able to settle in much sooner, and get what we need. If we were to settle in much sooner we would be able to start going more often in a place that is not completely empty. We need to buy a stove (I think), some beds, some furniture, some appliances; we need to buy many things before we are able to get settled in all comfortable into the cottage. Buying a cottage now gets us all the benefits much sooner, the lake, the view, everything. I personally cannot wait to go fishing just me and my dad. I have done it one before but we unfortunately caught nothing. I want to go fishing, catch a big one and bring it home for dinner (even though I don’t like fish that much). We could then eat it and say “Thank you for being such a GREAT fisher! You brought back the best dinner ever!” Oh yes I know that it probably won’t happen. Heck, I’ve only gone fishing three times, and all I’ve ever caught was small fish like a mini bass. But I definitely love to fish, and I would love to do it again. Last time I went fishing I actually pretty much did it all day long I had  that much fun. So give me the rod, the bait, and the hook and let’s go because I really don’t think I can wait much longer.

                If we were to buy that cottage now we would have it for sure. The longer we wait the bigger the chance that we don’t get the cottage because it was sold to someone else. Then we would have to go looking for another one and that would be a complete disaster. Honestly my dad would probably get very disappointed if he were to not get that cottage, because he lost a really good one before and he was not happy. Dad if you are reading this this alone should be convincing enough for you to stop waiting to buy the cottage, because you really never know what will turn up. Think about it are you really ready to risk losing this cottage? I didn’t think so. Look at all these benefits; all I can say is that I want them as soon as possible, and you should too.

                On the holidays, it would be the perfect getaway. Summer, winter, anytime (I especially would appreciate it during the school year ;D )! Maybe during the summer we will be able to go because you saved up some extra days and used some holidays to stay at the cottage on the weekend. It would be nice to get away from home once in a while. Sure we have a pool, but at the cottage we would have a LAKE! I really do not want to pass this opportunity because I have been to two cottages, and I enjoyed being there, and I will not hesitate to do it a third time my friends. Our main getaway recently has been Mexico, and this year we are going to Punta Cana, but to have a getaway in Canada as well, I just can’r wait to charge into that cottage, because there are also probably going to be less mosquitoes thanks to the dragonflies. The dragonflies will minimize the amount of mosquitoes which is good for me because believe it or not I attract a LOT of mosquitoes.

                I honestly have nothing else to say about why to get that cottage today, but I’m sure you all think these are good points, and that my dad should just by the cottage already! Ignore the “Good thing happen when you wait!” because that just won’t be the case. I can’t wait to get it, we already have some things we can use as some appliances! I actually have a lot of perfect ideas, to save as much money as possible. How? Why, because I, my friends, am a GENIUS!

Excited for High School

                Am I excited for school? Yes, but is it for the right reasons? Absolutely not! Throughout this whole summer I have been writing all of these essays for you. I had many good ones (I think), but some were just too far off. Now let’s get started on why I am excited for school.

                Well, let us start off why I really AM excited for school. I just want to see my friends again. I have many friends I haven’t really kept in touch with this summer, especially during the week. During the week I was not allowed to go anywhere or have anyone over. This most of the time left me pretty lonely at home and I was left to talk with people I met on Call of Duty, rather than the people I really KNOW. I do not have the phone numbers of many of my friends, therefore I couldn’t call them. School is basically the only way I can spend time with my friends and enjoy their company. I am a bit excited my cousin is coming into grade 9, but I don’t think I will talk to her that much this year. Admit it, the main reason people were excited to go back to high school was because of their friends.

                There are some pretty fun clubs at my high school like R&B Band and D&D (Dungeons and Dragons). Yes many people say those are for nerds and geeks, but despite that fact, it is fun. I am not saying people at my school make fun of me for it, but some may experience it. There are also great sports at my high school like snowboarding, the French ski trip, concert band (every few years they go on a band trip. Last year was to Boston) or intramurals. Intramurals was explained on the “My First Year at West” essay. What you put into West, is what you’ll get out. Although it is not really a club, before getting on the busses after school is actually pretty fun because it gives you the opportunity to talk to your friends one last time before leaving, and it is actually really enjoyable.

                Last but not least, I cannot wait any longer to stop writing these essays. I am extremely happy to have made you all happy, and I am glad you enjoyed reading these essays (and I also must thank you). These essays though are pretty hard to write, and when it comes to the two day essays, these become really hard to write, such as the “How Life on Earth Started” essay. I actually got so frustrated with it; I stalled so long that it to a week to write it. Honestly I was going crazy over that essay that I pretty much through a party when I finished it. These essays can wear you out, and when you have a due date, you become extremely stressed. Honestly these essays were probably the worst part about my summer I’ve actually said I can’t wait for school to start all over again.

                 This will probably be a big shock, but at school I actually can’t wait to see some of the teachers. My teachers from grade 9 were actually pretty cool, and there wasn’t one I didn’t like. All of my teachers were so nice, unlike the ones I had in grade 4&5. I was pretty beat up every day in that grade, and honestly teachers if you are reading this bad review of your sloppy work, you now know why. You did absolutely to help me through my troubles, in fact to my grade 4 teacher: You gave up on me 4 weeks in because I did not know how to speak French, and I kept asking you to repeat yourself for confirmation of what was said. From that point on all of the teachers at “Katimavik” you all hated me because of my grade 4 teacher and I know it. I liked very few teachers at that school. I used to come home bawling my eyes out each day because of how I was treated at school. But the teachers of my high school are really fun to be around, and I look forward to seeing some all over again. I am giving my favourites: Mr. Emond (Mr. E, Music, most chill teacher on the earth), Mme. Brule (Geography, the nicest, forgiving geo teacher you will find on this planet), Ms. Pert (Most cheerful math teacher ever), Mme. McColeman (The coolest, funniest teacher I know who is obsessed with Middle Eastern food), and Mr. Battye (coolest gym teacher I know who is completely against swearing, try not to or he’ll make you do 10 push ups). Thank you for making this one of the most memorable years ever. Thank god all of you are staying for next year.

                Of course what I’m not so excited to go back to, starting off with the popular: class. It is way too much work for me to go back to studying and doing homework. You get piled with homework, and you are expected to do it by the next day. So I have a lot of homework, but to top it off I have to study each subject for 45 minutes, did I mention each? I am not allowed to play any games during the week, and on the weekend I have 4 hours a day. Honestly, this is going to be one of the crappiest years of school for me, because what is going to happen when I am finished studying? Me neither! I also get extremely bored during class, which makes it very hard to concentrate because I become very sleepy, and when I become very sleepy, it gets to the point where it feels like it is impossible to concentrate

                I really don’t want to have to go back to all of the school bullies. I have bullies at my school and I have had it. I honestly have been working out all summer long just to make sure that when needed, I can stand up for myself and be left alone. I was the second weakest in my gym class, and by far. I do not want this to happen again this year, and I will do whatever it takes (except drugs) in order to make myself fit. I do not want to be bullied anymore, and I have faced it for 8 years now. I have been pushed too far, and things may not end well if this keeps happening (I’m talking snapping and getting suspended over beating someone up). I have been holding in my anger and frustration for so long that all these people that I meet do not take into consideration how I feel, and continuously pester me on “You’re ugly”, “You’re stupid”, “You’re weak”, “Look at that mole on your face”, or the tackling that begins to happen. Yes, I have sort of amole (more like a birth mark) on bottom middle of my left cheek. It is sort of big, but it does not protrude that much, it is actually almost completely flat.

Now you know why I love school, but I also sometimes really hate it. I usually ignore the bullies, but there are times where I snap. My last snap was at the beginning of 8^th grade. I honestly love high school, and I really care about my friends, and even if we get into a pretty big fight I forgive my friends (though sometimes I push too far with what I say). Kids, believe it when your parents say that you will love high school.

Tectonic Plates

               This is the planet Earth, the homeland to all of mankind, a lot of animals, and a lot of plants (like said in the last essay). But get ready for another plunge into the world of Geography. This is not about Earth, but the tectonic plates inside of it.

                The earth, like any other star or planet, started off as a gas planet with lava in the middle of it. That lava released immense heat as it was white hot. All the particles were being compressed in the center of the planet, and that is why it was white hot. As it cooled down, the earth stopped spinning as fast. White, yellow, red, it kept changing colours until there was no light left. The earth had cooled down, but what effects did the cooling have on the earth? When the earth cooled down, the crust was made, but cracks in the crust were being formed. There was water that formed underneath the earth’s crust, and with those cracks it escaped, leading to the fact that water vapour was released into the atmosphere. This lead to clouds. There was already water in those clouds though so gravity pushed down, and down came the first ever rainfall on this earth. Later on heat pushed up solid portions of the earth’s crust, and the continents were formed.

                How did this earth even start off after the earth’s crust cooled down, and water was brought into this planet? It started off as a great supercontinent, the first ever, called Rodinia, surrounded by the ocean called Mirovia. This happened about 1 and 1.2 billion years ago, this is way before Christ (also known as B.C). The supercontinent was formed by 4 continents colliding, which not only made this super continent, but mountains as well. When two lands collide, one land will partially fold underneath the other one. While the one piece of land folds under, the other forms a mountain to relieve the stress being put on it. So in one zone, there is a mountain that is formed, while underneath an earthquake prone area is formed. After a while this continent separated, and created a new layout of the continents.

                The layout of the continents were not always the same as they are today (as noted in the previous paragraph), in fact, the will not be the same in the future either. But that topic is not for now. The continents after the supercontinent kept moving around. Due to the tectonic plates moving, so do the continents. There have been 3 supercontinents for certain: Rodinia, and Pangaea. There is a possibility that there has been one more supercontinent between Rodinia and Pangaea: Pannotia. But there have been many layouts before today’s layout.

                It is true that the continents are still moving, and they always will be moving until something happens that disperses the earth, such as the theory that the sun will devour the earth in around 3 billion years (so do not worry, everyone is safe... for now) A fun fact is actually that every year the continents shift 4 centimeters? The future layout of the earth is already coming, just at an extremely slow rate. The Earths diameter is 12 756.2 kilometers, the circumference is 40 075 km, and the volume is 1,083,210,000,000 km³. The earth is so big, that is surpasses the billions in circumference! In the future, it is predicted to have even more supercontinents; the next one is called Amasia. There are many land formations to come and this one will just be a part of history. Some fun facts: the Pacific Ocean is shrinking while the Atlantic Ocean is expanding, and it is predicted that the Mediterranean Sea might soon close up. As will it is predicted that in 60 million years Australia will actually have moved so far north to about the equator. These are actually fascinating facts, and that was just a glimpse of what is to come in the future.

                                 

                What effects does tectonic movement have on earthquakes and volcanic activity? Well they are what cause earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Earthquakes happen when two tectonic plates grind past each other, and catch each other. From there they are being forced to move right, so they stretch and pull the rocks around it and when they reach their elastic limit, they break like any other thing. Now when they break, the pressure building up inside of it is let loose. Now when there is not much pressure, only a little shaking happens, but when there is a lot of pressure, that is when it is likely to create a ripple in the ground. When it comes to volcanoes, this contains an issue with both types of tectonic plates. The two are the continental plates, and the oceanic plates, and when those two collide, the more dense plate (usually the oceanic), slide under the more dry plate. But the initial collision actually causes the rock to bunch up and crush up, making cracked mountains. But as the more dense plate slides underneath, it also pulls down water from the ocean with it, creating water vapour. The magma from the earth’s mantle then rises into those cracked mountains with the water vapour, making the magma rich with silica and water vapour. The gasses in the chamber will then force the magma out of the mountain making it explode, and that how a volcano is made.

                A couple of examples are the two states California and Hawaii. Now Hawaii relates to volcanoes because Hawaii is filled with them, and actually is one itself. It is said that Hawaii will soon one day erupt and destroy the world, leaving earth once again empty with no life forms. California gets plenty of earthquakes; in fact it has to do with something called the San Andreas fault. Now a fault is a break in the rocks that make up the earth’s crust. Now when that movement is sudden it releases an energy that creates an earthquake. The San Andreas Fault is situated in California. It actually runs 810 miles in a diagonal direction, and it is divided into three segments: the northern, central, and southern segment. It is actually the tectonic boundary between the Pacific and North American plate.

                Now it is understood what tectonic plates are, and their dire importance to everybody, and everything on this earth. Tectonic plates might not always do the best for mankind, but it definitely serves an important role on this earth.

How Life was Created on Earth

               Earth, the home of mankind, the home of many plants, but what is important is how it started? How did life start on the planet earth, and what was earth like before it got all green, and filled with dirt and water?

                Earth is green, it can be hot in some places, it can be cold, it can be wet, it can be completely dry, there could a tornado, and there can be no clouds in the sky! The earth is fascinating, it is the home to many things (even though we are destroying it), and it is believed to the only place in the galaxy called “The Milky Way” that actually has life form on it. But before it was all green and prosperous, what was it? A ball of dust and gas, then a blob of lava. Ever wonder how the moon was created? The truth is that the moon is actually a part of the planet earth. Earth was lava that was being compressed and turning to rock, but while that was happening, another planet came and the two planets collided to make one. This sent a huge chunk of lava into space which is now known as the moon. While it was in space it formed a ball and hardened, and it became as smooth as can be. The moon then got all of its craters from meteorites smashing into it to this day. The earth then cooled down and became rock, with an atmosphere. In fact today the core of the earth is still lava.

                How could anyone live on the earth though without the atmosphere? They wouldn’t because there would be no oxygen therefore nothing would be able to breathe and everything would die. The atmosphere is 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, and 1% others (carbon dioxide, water vapour and ozone). It surrounds the earth to so we can live but its quality is gradually degrading because of all of the pollution.  The atmosphere created the weather, and with all of the rain, the oceans, lakes, ponds, and rivers were formed. This is life started.

                At the beginning, the planet surface was covered with water,  In some places, there were ponds of chemical soups called amino acids.  It is believed that elementary life formed when the amino acid was got struck by some lightning.  This, scientists believe, created the first life form to be born on this planet, the most simple, basic, and some hated: bacteria. Bacteria was the first species on the planet, and it signalled the first geological era: the Precambrian Era. This is when there was only bacteria and plants on the earth. Some bacteria stayed the same in the era, and some evolved into plants and trees, which is what turned the earth green. But in order to survive, all the life forms stayed close to a so that when thirsty they could drink water. The Precambrian Era lasted about an eon, it is not even known how many years it lasted. After that was the age of the plants, plants dominated this earth, and bacteria was minimized. This is truly when the green planet was formed, and animals like fish and chickens and all those other animals were formed. That was known as the Paleozoic Era, it lasted about 325 million years. That is an extremely long time. After came the rule of the dinosaurs, that was known as the Mesozoic Era. A fun fact is that dinosaurs were at first no larger than chickens. That is CRAZY! As the dinosaurs were born, the larger they got. This why they got HUGE, then they died It is unknown some say it is because a giant meteorite hit the earth, others say it because of the first ice-age, but no-one is certain. Mankind was made in the Cenozoic Era, or more popularly known as: now.

                The theory that humans were evolved from apes is an extremely popular explanation, many scientists believe it is true. This theory was created by Charles Darwin. It is believed that humans were apes, but gradually over time, a fascinating evolution occurred and after a bit, they became humans. Since they were apes, they still knew what they knew when they were apes such as how to survive, and what and how to breed. From there, the famous cavemen were there, and from there they discovered new things, such as how to build houses, how to create traps, how to connect to a water source etc. Mankind kept evolving and after a very long time, today arrived.

                From here on are the religious beliefs. First off is the belief that Jesus (Christians), or Allah (god, Muslims), created Adam and Eve. Adam was created from dust, and Eve was made from one of Adam’s ribs. Eve was destined to be Adam’s wife, and from there they had babies, and they discovered new technologies. Adam and Eve is a really old story, and is believed by many religious people today, this is one of the religious explanations.

                The second explanation was created by Greeks in Greek mythology. It is believed there are more than one god. It is believed there are many gods, each in control of specific things. For example the big three: Zeus, the god of the sky, Poseidon, the god of water, and Hades, the god of the underworld. In Greek mythology it is said that the titan Morpheus and the god Athena made humans from clay. This is because Morpheus was told to create humans. Morpheus created the humans from clay, and Athena breathed life into them. From there man had most of its advancements, with a little bit of help. It is also said that they had to make sacrifices to Zeus from their foods. Morpheus got in trouble for tricking Zeus and was severely punished, but that is off topic.

                Now it is understood how life was created, and a bit of before it was created as well. A bit of Science mixed in with a bit of Geography et voila! This essay has been made by those two important topics, as if they bred, for the billionth time (exaggeration). Geography and Science are both important topics, and they created this earth, like god created Adam and Eve. Remember, great things come in small packages, you could say a lot of the recent essays have morals… but that does not matter.         

Evolution of Music

               Music, what is the world without music. What would be the point of iPods, mp3s, Discmans, without the glorious music? Music fills up life, adds mood to even the most boring dinners, in fact without music there would not be such a thing as dance. When people here music, their natural instinct is to sing along, dance to it, or do all of the above.

                Before anything else, what is music? It is a bunch of sounds being put together to make tunes. Music does not have to have lyrics, quite the contraire (though people do prefer it with lyrics).  A lot of people say music is life, and in a way it is true, because without music, life would be dull, and boring. Anything can make music, for example police sirens. Police sirens, or the sound of a warning sirens can create music, maybe not by themselves, but add them into music et voila, music! Music can also set moods, picture a boring dinner, and then somebody gets sick of it and turns on the music, and then everybody gets happier and when they are finished dinner they get up to dance (okay not that happy, do not picture the Brady Bunch).

                So most people (teachers usually) say that the first ever instrument was a recorder, but no, it was the flute. The oldest instrument is a 35 000 year old flute made from the backbone of a vulture.It is a surprise it has not crumbled to dust. After that came percussion, because all it takes is a couple of rocks and there is a percussion instrument. Percussion is one of the most important parts because the percussion instruments are one of the most important. Percussion instruments keep the beat in the music so that nobody goes off beat (get it? Off-beat?!). From there instruments kept evolving getting more complicated, but after a while, came the recorder.

                The recorder used to be one of the most important instruments. The recorder was invented in the late middle ages, but it is not known exactly who invented it. The recorder was chiseled out of wood. The most similar instrument to the recorder is a clarinet. The clarinet is more of an elaborated recorder. It is slightly more complicated to play because there are around three octaves on it (octaves are more like pitches, every 8 notes the player goes up one octave). Although it is more complicated to play than the recorder, the clarinet is an extremely easy instrument to play (talking from experience). The next most similar instrument is the bass clarinet which is an octave lower that the regular clarinets. In fact the 35 000 year old flute was more like a recorder. Music has come a long way from what it used to be.

                In the Medieval ages was where many instruments were made. The most popular was a strings instrument called: the violin. Yes the violin was extremely popular, in fact it has been extremely popular to this very day. The violin was played in places like balls (hardy har har very funny to those of you with dirty minds), at banquets, or simply when just sitting in throne. Why? Music adds flavour into life, it is not fun just sitting in a throne doing nothing, listening to peacekeepers and all them. Just sitting and listening to music can be extremely entertaining, people of today have stereos or iPods and do it all the time.            

                The most important time for music was the Classical Era, when there was Mozart, Bach, Beethoven, and all those famous people. Sure it wasn’t famous for its advancements, but many great pieces were written. Examples are Ode to Joy (Beethoven), Air on the G String (Bach), or Das Veilchen (The Violet by Mozart). The Classical is where the piano music was mainly written, and where it became popular. The Classical Era actually had an impact on music because that is when most songs were written. It must be when music spread its fastest as well.

One of the most important times for art and culture, was the Renaissance Era, but it was not just important for art and culture, it was also important for music. 200 hundred years, 2 centuries of advancements from 1400-1600. Music had its biggest advancement in the Renaissance Era; it evolved most, and turned into something even bigger after the Renaissance Era. The Renaissance is also when a lot of instruments were, from brass, percussion, woodwinds, and strings. Examples are the viola, the popular bagpipes, the basic tambourines, and the famous trumpet, one instrument from each class. The Renaissance was possibly the peak of the advancement of music.

Now that a couple of Musical Eras have been covered, it is time to talk about what different countries had to do with music (please note it is one example from each major group for the examples). The Egyptians really  got involved with Music at around 3100 BC. They believed in Musical gods and played different instruments from all the major categories like the lyre (rather plucked than bowed), flutes (single or double reeds), or rattles. The Greek used the piano, guitar (plucked), and the Pan pipes (also known as the syrinx). It is believed that they got involved with music from the start, in fact it has to do a bit with religion. It is believed that the gods Pan, Hermes, Apollo, and Orpheus all created music first, and taught their own students how to play like Daphnis, and Amphion how to play.  Muslims actually had no effect on Music, they just hated it. Allah (god) would not prohibit anything that would not hurt the human race, and it is proven that music can. Music can effect one’s bodily movement, and emotions, so if there is an angry song, someone may get up and hurt someone else. As well it may affect someone’s future (especially with the usual topic of drugs, girls, and freedom). For that they declared music haraam.  Italy had a great impact on music because they created operas. Operas are where the singers sing with powerful voices while acting, almost like a musical. Instruments are the guitar and the Ocarina (yes like the Ocarina of Time from Legend of Zelda).

                Here are two example genres: Rock and Rap. But hey, what are they? That will be explained (well duh!). Rock is a more explosive type of music, loud, but not EXTREMELY loud like metal. Rock has good music and solos. Led Zeppelin for example, the singer was Robert Plant, the guitarist was Jimmy Page, the bassist/keyboardist is John Paul Jones, and the drummer John Bonham. Rap is less tune and more beat, their voices usually stay monotone (one pitch only), with the occasional raising it from one beat. Rap can be considered gangster music as gangs prefer to listen to it, but many of the teenagers of today listen to it (believe it, talking from experience). Rap usually adds techno into it, but it is mainly someone just twisting up the sound of the words, sometimes people when they want to try to rap they just go “yo yo yo!” kind of like Sylvester Stallone.

Music really became popular though when electricity was put into control. People starting making recordings instead of playing live, though they did that as well. That was when bands were made by themselves. Music started to split into different genres, and radios were made. This led to Discmans, and iPods. From iPods came the iPads, which is the most recent invention of apple today. Music has also had a huge impact on technology as well. But back to bands and radios. Back then the only way to listen to music electronically was through the radio, but more importantly amps. Other than that people held concerts and people went to listen to them, but that was only possible because the amps amplified the music so more people could here it. Kiss, Rolling Stones, Metallica, all of those bands started to come in and play great music.

Music has really changed greatly, it all started with a flute from the backbone of a vulture, and has come to techno sound, DJs, like Skrillex, or many others making remixes. Music really has come far, and Music should not be taken for granted (although the music of today is getting really crappy due to the fact that all the singers sing about boyfriends and girlfriends. Examples are Boyfriend by Justin Bieber, or Call Me Maybe by Carly Rae Jepson.) Music should go backwards a bit back into the old days because of the crappy music, music was real back in the 1900s, like Ray Charles, or Led Zeppelin. This is true rock, and should be appreciated more because the children of toady have been poisoned by this boyfriend girlfriend garbage.

Dogs in General

          Dogs are a man's best friend, it has been put on a lot of these blogs, and this is why this blog is on dog's in general (not Skipper). What is a dog's main attribute, in what way can they all relate just by being dogs even if they were from different animal groups, what is the first thing to do with a dog? These are all going to be answered in this essay.

         
        
         The first thing to know about a dog (especially a wild one) is that it travels in a pack. From there it is like a brother hood. In each pack is the alpha male, the leader, and the other ones which obey it. If one dog believes it is tougher, and a better leader than the alpha male, it will challenge it in a fight to the death. If the alpha male wins he stays alpha male, but if the challenger wins, he will become the alpha male and lead the pack.

         A dog's main attribute is the loyalty to the owner, it knows the owner is the alpha male of the pack. It will either bow it's head to show loyalty, or show the soft spot of it's belly to show submission, because it knows the in a second the alpha can burst it's belly (yes, it is gruesome but it is true). Dog's will stand by it's owner side no matter what happens, and it will always love (though it can be extremely stubborn and not listen like Skipper). A dog will protect it's owner, even if it is a little mini chihuahua.

         There are different breeds of dogs, such as golden retrievers, poodles, chihuahuas (as mentioned earlier), cannot forget the miniature schnauzers, there are many kinds, including mixed like golden retriever-poodles, or husky-labs. They all are cute, and good dogs (with proper training). Some are smart, some are stupid. The smartest breed of dogs in the world though is the Border Collie. Though it may be the smartest of all dogs, it only has the brain of around a two year old so it still is not extremely smart. As well, all dogs are mammals. They are like humans, but not exactly. They breast feed like humans, and give birth like humans.

            Dogs are in one way the exact same breed, and only one way. Each dog has a bit of wolf in it, whether it be male or female. Even the smallest and cutest of all dogs have a bit of wolf in them. They all have survival instincts, and have the ability to fight when needed, when threatened. And boy, do they know how to fight. Using only their teeth and bodies, dogs fight to protect either themselves, or the alpha male of the pack. In fact there are types of dogs such as coyotes and foxes which kill and eat mankind (not saying this for anyone to go hunting them to extinction). Though they are vicious, there are people who actually respect wolves, and want them as pets.

              So, to anyone who just got a pet dog/dogs , this is the o thing to do it: spend as much time with it while you can. Pet dogs do not know who their mama is, so what an owner needs to do is get their “imprint” on their dog. When that happens the owner will become the most important thing in the dogs life because it will think the owner is it's mama/papa. Imprints will do great things because the dog will always listen, fllow the owner around, cuddle the owner, and do much more that others will not be able to get. The imprint only works for 1 person so make it count.

               

               Now dogs are really nice, believe it. This should have inspired people to get a pet dog, save it from a pound whether it be old or just a little unwanted puppy. Dogs are not vicious, and will only attack when hurt a lot (do not learn it the hard way). Remember, it will stand by it's owner's side no matter what happens.

Global Warming

It is one of the most dreaded years, the year that is said to end everything on the planet earth: 2012. But of course it isn’t the year, it is global warming. Yes it is bad, but forget the great flood that is supposed to happen, and just look on the bright side, there are some good things to look forward to about global warming.

Global warming, in a lot of people’s opinions (such as teachers, and me) is real. It has a lot of evidence to prove that it actually is real. Such as in Canada the temperatures are hitting around 30 degrees and all that. In fact sometimes it is put on the weather forecast that it is going to feel like 40 degrees when it actually is 30. Global warming also has other effects such as the fact that people burned more easily now which is not good (every heard that the sun is what makes people wrinkly when they are older?). It is also believable that it is caused by humans because people do litter, and cut down forests, people drive cars which creates fumes and so do cigarettes (the main things that are littered) It is extremely evident that there is global warming, but it is very hard to believe that the Mayans predicted that the world would end on the 21^st of December, and couldn’t it have been a few days after Christmas instead of before? Everyone does enjoy Christmas.          

Sure it will possibly kill everybody, but it also keeps everyone warm. There is probably less snow in the world than there used to be, especially in winter. Yes it is also bad in way though, with every up, comes a down. Everyone may get heated, and there may be less of that dreaded snow, but Antarctica is melting, and that is what is going to cause the great flood. Snow is basically the same thing as water, and when to cold, water turns to ice. Snow is a bunch of flakes of ice, and when it melts it will create water. Now imagine a whole continent of snow being melted into water. No wonder there is going to be a huge flood, right?

Now what is the cause of pollution? Wait I mean global warming darn I just gave away the answer! Where does pollution come from? Fossil fuels (such as the gas from your car), litter (everyone does it at some point), and cutting down forests (Curse lumber-jacks that oh-so willingly cut down forests for money). All three of those weaken the ozone, which allows more sun to pass the atmosphere and shine down on everyone. That is actually pretty much what global warming actually is. Remember this: the three Rs: Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle! Help save the planet! Have a green thumb (plant trees), do not litter, definitely do not smoke (for health and environmental reasons and try to stop lumberjacks from cutting precious forests. Tick tock the clock is ticking, each second wasted is a second closer to what could be doomsday. Now though it destroys the ozone, it also gets everyone more sun, so if anyone wants a nice tan, well then go outside and get some because there is more than there would have been without global warming. Once again, with every up comes a down (except this time it is inverted!)

With global warming, more children are allowed to go outside and play with their friends, whether it be hockey, soccer, American football, or (a personal favourite) swimming in the backyard pool. Instead of rain there is shine, which is great for everybody because now they get to outside to chat with friends, play games, or just sit down and enjoy a nice quiet afternoon staring at the sky. Perhaps a picnic would be nice for a change. Pack those wooden baskets, get that table cloth, and go outside to eat some of those classic sandwiches.

Weeds cause it (in a way). Weeds are known for choking plants, and usually killing them (if not removed from the ground). This is why people need to start picking their weeds, because if they don’t, there is going to be a huge issue of plant shortages on a nice little planet called earth. If not, the rivers will rise, pandemics will break loose, humanity will be wiped off the face of this universe. Fortunately that is probably not going to happen, and pray to god because anything is possible right? Weeds can also look nice though; there are some that can be mistaken for a flower (which is both good and bad). Weeds can help make gardens look nicer, which will definitely put a good impression on people such as friends, neighbours, and bosses.

Finally, is the great flood believable? Very. Mankind is digging its own grave, and it is doing it willingly. One of the main causes is laziness. People do not want to waste any energy to throw out some paper in the recycle bin, so they throw it in the garbage. This is a whole paragraph on landfills. Landfills take up a certain amount of space, and they are rapidly being filled because people do not finish their dinner, they throw anything unwanted in the garbage even if it can be recycled, and instead of selling that thing, they think it is too much trouble and they would rather sit down and watch TV or play Call of Duty whether it be on the Xbox 360, Wii, or PlayStation3. So lumberjacks cut down trees in order to make space for landfills (or houses including using the wood as resources, or dump garbage in the river (water pollution which kills fish).

So now everyone who was smart enough to read this knows the good side of global warming, and the bad side. Remember this: With every up comes a down, and with every down, comes an up. When life gets anyone down, they will be repaid because it is like Newton’s third law of motion: With every reaction comes an equal and opposite reaction. Think about what one person can do to help the earth, and the examples of what they can do in order to help. One final quote: Just one flap of a butterfly wing can create a whole tornado.

NOTICE

      Just letting everybody know I have started a french essay blog so now I will not be writing english essays every day anymore, though I will continue to write them. The link is:

http://kenaanhamzehessais.blogspot.ca/

Ramadan

                Happy Ramadan everybody! What is Ramadan, what is it about? Ramadan is there for people to be respectful to others (such as not lying) and understanding the feeling of what it is like to be hungry. That is why there is fasting.

                To get by the day when fasting, those who chose to fast wake up at three thirty in the morning, and stuff their faces on food until they cannot eat any more. They then go back to and wake up in the morning as if a magic spell had been cast on them and had a specific timer on it so that they cannot eat until the specific time. This gives everyone an idea on how the people in the poor parts of Africa feel when they are extremely hungry with no source of food. It teaches everybody not to complain about their food, and appreciate what god has given them. So next time when a boy complains about not liking his food, he thinks about the feeling of being extremely hungry. When the specific time comes (The time decreases by 1 minute each day) they can eat anything they want (that is not prohibited by religion). So it is a great feeling when that time comes because usually they come across something they wanted to eat during the day but could not because they were fasting.

                It is also about being respectful to others. One form is lying. Lying disrespects others greatly because you are taking advantage of the fact that they trust you to get your way, whether it be to get out of trouble, or to get something you want. Lying is like using others. As well, when someone comes and talks to another, they do not disrespect them by saying things like “Shut the f*** up little kid” (Online gaming is a really good example).  It shows you how people would treat you if you were respectful to them, and how good you would look. It is not to say that is the only time you should be respectful to others, because it is not. Everyone should respect everybody else around them.

At the end of Ramadan, comes Eid. That is like the Muslim Christmas, without the trees and the snow. Gifts are given such as money, and toys. When Eid happens is the last day to be extremely respectful to others. When Eid happens though Muslims no longer have to fast. It is all about celebrating, in fact, some people keep their children home as if it were a holiday. It is about celebrating with others like you would on Christmas day, except instead of turkey dinner you get Arabic food dinner. So this is why it is known as the Christmas for Muslims.  Eid is basically the conclusion to Ramadan as if it were a story. As Eid is the conclusion to Ramadan, this is the conclusion to this explanation of what Ramadan is.

My Dog

                Hey, do you have a dog? I sure do, and his name is Skipper. He is a Miniature Schnauzer. I’ll let you know quite a bit about him, his good qualities, and his bad qualities. And I will be sure as well to explain why we named him Skipper.

                Now, my dog loves to jump around. Whether it be for his treat, or someone comes home that isn’t me. He jumps the most when my sister is around, because he is mostly loyal to her. He was bought for her so I can understand. In fact when my sister gets home he jumps on her. At some point I called him a ladies man, and she said I could learn a thing or two from him. I told her “What? Like this?” and started jumping like him. The only time he really listens is when my sister tells him to do something. Now you might think he likes her because she is young, but she’s turning twenty-two this month. So no matter what happens he loves her, whether she grooms him (which he hates) or she takes him for a bath (he hates that as well). He can always listen to her, and he’ll also jump for guests. Once the guests come, he goes to them.

                My mother came up with a nick name that suits him well, but we say it as a joke, and we really don’t mean it to hurt him if it does. I would rather not say it though. This reason will probably give you a clear idea on what it is. He always runs to the ladies. It goes my mom, then my sister, then the female guests. He will sit there and let them pet him, and whatever. Then he decides to lick them in token of appreciation, why don’t I get that special treatment. So no matter what he’ll run to the ladies, and leave them men sitting in dust because he ran to the ladies like road runner (Yes he would if he was that fast). He always runs to my sisters room at night to sleep with her at night, and if she isn’t home because she’s at university, he’ll run to my mom who kicks him out so he is forced to come to me.

                I honestly believe he needs to learn discipline. My mother says he is too old, but he really needs to learn to listen to me. Here is the chain of command for him: King/Queen, My sister & him, count/joker, Parents, everyday person who has no power, me. My mother says I can’t be forceful on him anymore because he is twelve, but he really needs to listen to me. He knows that I can’t lay a hand on him. This is where he is wrong. Since a couple of days ago, I’ve been starting to rain down on him, he has to learn to listen to me. We got him when I was three, so I was about his size. This is where he decided he was the alpha male of the pack. But I am going to show him that I’m the boss, I‘m the alpha male. He believes the only time I’m the alpha male is when I’m home alone so there is no one to protect him, pamper him and make him think he is the alpha male.

                This is my best friend no matter what happens. Nothing replaces him (I call my cousin my brother instead of my friend, and the other ones are just my cousins. I have a few other cousins and a couple of friends I consider brothers, just like Skipper). I love him, and like I said in my “Millionaire” blog he’s my best friend, but am I his? I do not care whether he likes me or not though, and I don’t mean any bad things I say about him (except for the joke). I look at him sitting alone, with a lonely look in his face, and I’ll come snuggle him up.

                One of the most annoying things about my dog, he howls like a wolf if he thinks no one is home, we have to close him up in a room. So in mornings like today, no one locks him up so he howls in the morning. He howls in the hall way so even though my door is closed, I wake up to his howling. Three times this week (or month) he has howled and woke me up, and I am getting sick of it. So this morning I had to call my parents to ensure that they would start put him in a room, any room as long as he shuts up and I don’t wake up because of him. I would prefer sleeping to the usual 10 – 10:30.

                Whenever we lock him up in his room, where is one way he repays us, by tipping over his food and water bowl. Guess who gets to clean up the mess he makes, me. So we come home to a wet floor with dry/soggy dog food because he decides to tip them over. I have even seen him try to tip over his bowls before he achieves his goal. So whenever we leave we have to leave his food and water bowl out of his reach. So we have to feel bad over the fact that he has to go through a whole day with no food, and no water. We got new bowls, that are even harder to tip, and he still found a way to tip them. So we are lucky he has stopped, but even then there are those days where he knocks over some food that gets mouldy, and I have to clean from under the washer. On top he is already a slob so when ever he drinks water he gets it all over the floor and we have to be careful not to step in it and get our socks all soggy and wet.

                So you have met Skipper, mainly his bad side, but there isn’t much for me to say about him that is actually good. But he has also done worse things like peeing on other peoples pants, or legs. As well he has pissed on other peoples dogs. So he didn’t have a good reputation for a while. But Skipper can be a good dog, he knows tricks like play dead, shake a paw, and roll over (the last thing he knows is how to high five others, developed it off of shake a paw). So I love my dog no matter what he does, I hope you love your dog as well!

The French Revolution

               Remember the Middle Eastern Revolution? Well, there have been other revolutions in the past, such as the French Revolution. This was a 10 year revolution from 1789 – 1799, which is quite a long revolution. The King and Queen were Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. Although it was long, the length does not matter, it is the effects, the impact on the humans of today.

France was not the best place to live in. The people were treated very poorly, yet they still put up with all of the unfairness they had to endure.  There was no such thing as happiness among the villagers. That was the cause of the revolution though. The villagers had to pay in three ways, money, labour, and kindness. They had to pay the fee to live in the house with the gold they earned from working. They also had to manage farms for the landlords, and last of all, they had to send the landlords corn, and other food they produce. When there was a problem at night, the villagers who lived in the house of the landlord being disturbed had to get up, and resolve the problem. Such as if the frogs were croaking too loudly they would have to get up and beat the waters. If the villagers did not complete any of these three payments, the police would come to their home, and pay a very heavy fine. Then the police would take all of their possessions, send them to jail for them to be flogged, and possibly tortured. I was as if that if they did not pay one out of three payments, they got at least three punishments. The way the French were treated was awful, which is the reason why they started a revolution; the landlords did nothing while they did everything. It was as if the French were slaves. Not only were they paying heavy fines, they were paying heavy taxes as well, and they couldn’t even get much food. Imagine a villager standing in a small house while hungry, and taxes need to be paid. They have to pay, but they don’t get much of a benefit except that they get to live. Their well beings were thrown out of the way to make the landlords happy, and then when they need help while hungry, the landlords turn their backs on them and treat them like animals.

                The three things the French wanted out of the revolution were liberty, equality, and fraternity. Equality was wanted because while they were doing the work and being treated like dirt, the landlords sat at the castle getting their demands. The French believed that everyone should be doing an equal amount of work, which is the case of today. They also believed that it was not fair that they had to make three payments, otherwise they lose everything.  As well, they wanted to be free, they didn’t want to be slaves, they wanted to get paid well, and they wanted to live in prosperity with each other. The landlords/rich did not pay the villagers well which sis not make them feel happy.They didn’t want fights; they wanted to be like family. Notice a pattern being portrayed?

The thing that initially set off the revolution was the short-wages, and shortage of food. This caused the “Réveillon” to riot. 25 deaths were caused by the troops. From there, the French Revolution started. On July 14, was “The Storming of Bastille”. Bastille was a prison which represented authority, and by the end of it, Bastille had fallen. On the 14^th of July there is now a holiday called “Bastille Day” for the French. This was only part of the introduction of the war.

The French people fought like the Syrians: they didn’t give up unless they achieved their goal. They died fighting, instead of happy like the people of today. They wanted freedom so bad that they put their lives on the line to get a better way of living. It was either win it, or die trying. This is why the French of the 1700 deserve a lot of respect: they wanted it bad enough to die for it. It brings a whole new meaning into “It’s to die for”. It is the true meaning of that saying. In fact that just might be where it came from.   Louis XVI dies on January 21 1793, being accused of destroying the liberty of the French. He had his head cut off by the executioner, in which after the executioner lifted it up by the hair, and showed it to the whole crowed who all yelled “Long live the republic!”

                During the revolution, something began called “The Reign of Terror”, spooky huh. In this time that was the war between the Jacobins and the Girodins. There were a bunch of death by a lot of executions. 16 594 people were killed by the guillotine (the thing that holds a blade up with rope, and when the rope is cut, it comes down and slices the victims head off.) 2 639 of them were in Paris. 25 000 others were killed by summary executions. This occurred from the 5^th of September 1793 – the 28^th of July 1794. This is almost a one year war. It is also after the death of Louis XVI.

At the end of the revolution in 1799, the French had achieved everything they fought for. They were treated equally. In fact, this is the long term effect. This revolution is the reason why there is actually something called “human rights” right now, this is why there is peace among others, friends are made, this is why everybody to this day has lived in peace. So when someone says “I have human rights”, they should be sure to look back on the fact that it wouldn’t exist without the French Revolution. The French Revolution is an important part of history, and without it today, almost nobody would be happy, everyone would still be working for landlords, and paying for their houses in three ways. A message to all those who fought for their rights: “Thank you for helping shape mankind to this day, and giving everyone else what almost nobody had in the 1700s. Rest in Peace.”

California

                California, the nice sunny place you want to go to right? Of course, California is full of pleasant things to do. You will discover a bit of California just like you did about Scotland. Cities you should go to, things to try, prepare yourself for an adventure.

                I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream! They produce some of the best ice cream in the world. Coldstone is amazing, and it is hard to find a place that serves better ice cream. You might be thinking “What does ice cream have to do with California?” Well try it, and you will understand why. They have a lot of nice, tasty flavours and toppings. I personally recommend you buy a banana split. Add the bananas, and all that, and you are ready to go (*Note I do not know the topping anymore as this was in 2005. For further information on the toppings contact my dad, OH WAIT, YOU CAN’T! AHAHAHAHAHA! Ahem back to business) they also have the option of cones (regular or waffle) or putting it in a cup. I seriously recommend you have it.

                The beaches, amazing, and if you like rough waves they are perfect for you. There are currently two beaches in California, Manhattan and Redondo Beach. My personal favourite is Manhattan though, because the waves are high, and rough. I prefer rough and high waves. The bigger, the better right? For me of course, the more dangerous it is the better. You might think “what an idiot, does he try to get himself killed?” Well I’m just telling you now, I am not crazy, so you don’t have to worry about it. When you aren’t in the ocean, there are fun activities, and as well you should build a nice sand castle and see how long it can survive without being completely destroyed (yes you repair in between, in fact improve as well.) I remember being at a beach that had a rollercoaster in San Diego (I was sad I wasn’t allowed to go on it!)

                 Disneyland, I have to warn you, if you bring your children, prepare for a bunch of endless whining that your children want to go to Disneyland to meet Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Pluto, Goofy, etc. Disneyland is a great experience, and if you love thrillers, there is a special area in which you take a monorail to go to it. It has an arcade, the prestigious California’s Screamin’, and wonderful thriller rides. When you enter I also personally recommend you try Space Mountain, one of my personal favourites. Disneyland will be great, and if you feel tired from all of those rough rides, there are rides where you sit down and you get lifted into the air and just sit there where there it is as if you are flying through California. As well there is a ride where it is a quiz demo, where if lucky you get picked to participate in a trivia game, and there is another one where you sit down in a Star Wars vehicle, and it is as if you were flying to a different planet, like Coruscant, home of the Jedi. You will thoroughly enjoy Disneyland; in fact it is better than Disney World! My uncle went, and he described it quote on quote like this: “Half the size and double the price.”

                A great city to go to is San Diego. San Diego is filled with great places to go to: San Diego Zoo, the restaurants, etc. We especially love the Mexican restaurants there because we do not get to eat Mexican food everyday (Mucho Burrito does not count!) We stayed at the Marriot Hotel, and they have a nice hotel, let me tell you that. A pool in the back, with quite some nice rooms. We also went Sea World, in which the two highlights were seeing Shamo the killer whale, and going on the Atlantis ride. Now I’m a clever guy (I was a clever boy as well) so I got the ride person to allow us to go to the front, by acting all cute, and making sure she couldn’t resist (yes I know, hahaha the puppy eyes trick, I knew how to use it). We went on the Atlantis ride about 4 or 5 times. San Diego also has this cool place that has shirts that get colour in the sun, but when in the shade, the colour leaves, and it is left white with the black outlines.

                  The temperature is always hot and sunny, maybe on a special occasion it might rain, but it is always sunny. I was told it never snows there, which I find a miracle being a Canadian seeing as we put up with at least four months of snow. Be sure to bring sunscreen because it will be hot, and you can get sunburn. The temperature is one of the main reasons to get that tasty ice cream from Coldstone. California is also known for being sunny, and you can imagine the clothing stores having their clothes based on the sun. You don’t find all that yucky winter equipment, no jackets, boots, gloves, scarves, hats, etc.

                They have a mall in San Diego where you can get about anything.  We got this thing where you strap it to a chair and it massages you. As well, my mom got hooked on this place called Bath & Body Works, they honestly don’t have that bad of soaps. You could get souvenirs, electronic toys, video games, gummies, that place has everything! It is one of those open malls though, I can’t remember what it is called (I realize then it is stupid to describe it if you can’t even go there, but I was 8 back then in 2005). All I remember is that it had everything and that the walls were kind of a bright orangish. It is best to go out at night though.

                So like in Scotland, you got the basic tutorial. So pack your bags and head down, because there is no way you do not want to go after what I put down. Check into the Marriot, and discover more about California, I guarantee it is ten times better than I put down. You never really know until you try it right? So go, and have fun!