5 Levels of Reading; 5 favs

1) Literal-> Freedom Writers- the movie was compelling and moving. It pulled me in and I was amazed by the fact that real people did not know about the Holocaust.
2) Emotional-> Sense and Sensibility. I truly connected with the characters and storyline of this novel and felt it was beautifully written. It took me on its journey and kept me thinking about it long after I finished it.
3) Moral-> A Little Princess- this novel gave the lesson to never stop dreaming and hoping in your life. It was a great story with wonderful
4) Symbolic-> Life of Pi. This wonderfully crafted novel was full of symbols and
5) Hyperbolic-> Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events. this was a fantastic movie! i loved the exaggerated characters and scenarios! this movie was right up my ally!

The Encounter

I’m walking along in mid-October, the sky is bright and the leaves are changing. I have my big coat on and have my hands in my pockets. The wind is blowing, and it’s pushing my hair all around my face. I’m headed for the train station to pick up a friend of mine, we had been close long ago, but we had lost touch, and so we decided to catch up. I am elated, despite the brisk wind coming at me. Along the way I stopped in a bagel shop and bought us each a New York style bagel with cream cheese, our favourite. While in the shop I see a girl my age with dark brown hair. I’m not really worried about it, so I continue out. The warm bagels are heating my hands, and I just remembered that I didn’t have any breakfast, I'm nervous for some, reason, I don’t know how my encounter will play out. Wonder if…BAM! Ouch! Someone just walked into me! Oww, I’m on the floor, oww my hip! She’s still on the floor, oh dear did I hurt her? “are you ok? I did not see you coming, actually I didn’t see you at all,”
“Ya I’m ok, oww,”
“I know my hip hurts too,” it’s not really funny but I’m chuckling right now.
“Is some thing funny?”
“No,” oh dear I’m still laughing “I just…well actually didn’t I see you in the bagel shop?”
“I don’t really know what you’re talking about”
“What? No, no I saw you in the bagel shop!”
“You couldn’t have”
“And why is that?”
“Because you’re not supposed to see me”
“What?! Are you sure you’re ok?” she isn’t answering, what is going on. Oh, I’m staring at her. “Well I have to get to the train station, so if you’re ok, I need to get going,”
“But you’re not going to the train station, are you?”
“Lady, look, I don’t know who you are or what you are talking about,”
“Sure you do. I’m Zaba.” Zaba? Do I know this person? How does she know me? School? No. Work? No.
“Like I said, you’re not going to the station; you are coming with me.”
“wow there, I’m not going anywhere!” Run feet, run. I just have to keep moving forward. The bagels aren’t warm anymore. The stupid wind is still blowing. I cant see. BAM!
“AHHHHH!”
“Hey! Sorry, the train was late! Wow, you are that excited to see me?” sigh. It’s him, thank goodness.
“Oh my goodness, some strange girl was totally creeping me out, she whammed right into me.”
“Do you mean her?” He is pointing behind me. Oh no, she's standing right behind me, isn't she? Oh my god! It’s her! I probably look like a fool right now, with my mouth agape and clutching my friend. But I don’t care I’m scared! Zaba, or whatever she said her name was, is creeping me out! Am I holding his hand? Am I running? Yup, this is clearly a matter of survival. Let's just hope I survive to laugh this off some day!He’s yelling something at me I think he said ‘where are we going?’
“I don’t know, just run!” ahhh she has us cornered. "Stay away from me, zombie girl!"
"How did you know?"
"AAAAAHHHHHH!"
"Quick let's run into the park! What stops zombies?"
"I don't know!" Great isn't he helpful.
"Let's go." I need to whisper to him to go in opposite directions. I know I'll text him! Where is my phone? Oh goodness, I picked the wrong day to bring my fashionable but huge bag!
"OK" Good, we're both running. Now I just need to figure out a way to kill zombies, ya piece of cake:S What about water? OH shoot, or was that for witches? Well, it's worth a shot.
"Over here zombie girl!" I just need to lure her to the pool. SPLASH! ok I'm in, now where's...SPLASH, FIZZ. AHH, there she is now get me out of here! WOW, i guess water and chlorine did the trick.
"You did it!"
"Huh?!I guess I did. Now what did I do with those bagels?"
" Aw, you got me a bagel? We'll go get more, my treat. Let's go?"
"Definitely." Ya, piece of cake. ;) I should totally get paid for that!

inanimate objects tell it to us: their one and only chance to complain

EVERYBOBY “loves” me and songs were even created in my honour, such as “Black Socks Never Get Washed” and people make sock puppets all the time, there’s even that old sock puppet dude that used to be on Much Music, everyone loved him for his saucy attitude ( that’s my cousin just so you know!). But also, everyone wears me and I don’t like it. I mean think about it, I have to go around people’s feet! Besides that, you people make me stink, yes, I am talking to you, gross young boy who thinks I’m your lucky sock, would it kill you to put me in the wash? Which isn’t a pleasant experience, but I suppose it beats being all gross of humanly fluids. I mean I'm only made of cotton and some spandex, I don’t work miracles! Oh, and people constantly seem to “loose” my other half. How do you “loose” half of me, what, are you blaming it on atmospheric phenomenon? It has to then go on a life all by itself and let me tell you, we HATE being alone.

Day after day people like you take me off after a long day, which is horrible because I’m cooped up all day. Then without even the slightest hint of remorse (or thanks) you toss me into the hamper! Rude much?! From there a whole other journey begins. I get squished by all the other disgraceful pieces of clothing. All of us smelly and unwanted, packed into that hamper until no more can fit and then...the wash! Words cannot describe the dreadful feeling of going from hot smelly feet to soap and water. Well I’ll try anyway, you feel sticky with bubbles (no not the fragrant bath kind) at least until the rinse cycle; and then it’s into the earthquake tumbler to dry. Then I am finally shown some tender loving care: folded and placed nicely in the basket. Ahhh, relief. This vacation, however, does not last long due to the fact that soon the people have exhausted all the rest of their sock piles, and must replenish them by returning to me. LUCKY ME.

Besides all this former action, is the wear and tear you people put me through. Most times, you put holes the size of Saskatchewan through me and then have the nerve to get angry at me, often mumbling not so appropriate words at me! Me?! YOU are the ones that think your feet are clubs and the ground is the big bad wolf!! So could you try being a little gentler to us socks, ‘cause my life stinks- literally.

Sock P. Stocking

mad words thrown at you whilst trying to write a short story

You never would have guessed what happened. I was travelling in the jungles of South America, below Peru, in the 1500s. We had just landed a week before; on a quest looking for treasure: unconquered land and the glory that comes with finding it. We had everything we needed: bubblegum, food, water, tents and courage. As we walked along in the inexhaustible humid jungle using our swords to cut a pathway for ourselves, I stopped to look at my clock, it was half past three. We needed to get a move on if we were to stop somewhere safe for the night. After a few hours we heard a rustling in the leaves but continued on, thinking it was just a small animal. Then when we finally stopped in a very small clearing, an unusual smell escaped the trees surrounding us. The men were frightened and no one could sleep. I kept a fire going and we sat around, all too paranoid to sleep. Sometime during the night, we had all fell into a deep sleep and it was dawn when I awoke, all of us had forgotten how we had fallen asleep when we were all too scared to before. The air was still crisp and damp from the night. Then again came a strange smell and the sound of shrieking. All of a sudden a huge carnivorous plant with razor teeth stomped out into our clearing. The men all reached for their swords, but it was too late, one was already picked up and eaten with one bite. I reached into my pocket and grabbed the only thing in there, a potion a small gypsy woman gave me at the port where we landed. I hoped this was somehow the key to keeping me standing on this earth. As more of these ferocious plants came out, I pulled the cork with my teeth and whipped the bottle toward the first plant. As the liquid spilled out on the creature, it shrieked back and made the most horrible sound I had ever heard. It immediately dropped the man currently in his hand like a hot cupcake and stomped off back into the forest, followed by its other companions. The men were all stunned into a state of terror and paralysed; no one moved not even to get further away from the edge of the clearing. After a few minutes I checked if I still had my compass attached to my belt and then got up, as if nothing happened, to continue on my journey to the new lands. And I swear to you that is exactly how it all went down!

Mmmmmm.....books

Some books are sooo scrumptious you could eat them: plots as slick as lollypops, characters as complex as dark chocolate truffles and themes that leave you as stuffed as that crème brule with the perfectly candied surface and a juicy strawberry to top. These are the 5 books I would eat if I could.....

• the Luxe series, Anna Godbersen- sumptuous novels about the life and times of New York's elite class in the 1800s. These books have perhaps the most addicting filling of all: drama. These books equal the hors d'ouvres of any fantastic party. completely yummy and they pick your appetite for dinner
  


• Mansfield Park, Jane Austen- this novel is so wonderfully, emotionally like carbs: it stays with you for a while. Its "complex carbs" include a very shy character named Fanny and her wonderful cousin Edmund who secretly holds her heart. However many distractions come along. it is the peculiar story of how this timid girl kept her morals and was rewarded for it. I would like to eat this book, so that it will always be with me.
  




• The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett- the frosted cupcakes of all books; this is the book that made me love to read. Just like the effects of an overdose of cupcake sugar frosting, this book transported me to a world unknown and made be crave even more sugary goods!




• The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho- Probably one of the most meaty books I have ever read. I had to stop to think with almost every page. Its story of a journey is eternal, and just makes me want to ingest this filet mignon even more! Too bad it’s not bigger;)
  

However there are some books I would like to eat solely for the purpose of destruction.

• One such of these books is The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner; not so much for the fact it was a bad book, I loved it, when I was done the moral was so great and deep, but it was the hardest book I have ever read. It was like trying to get through your 16th slice of triple fudge brownie your grandma is pushing down your throat. Delicious but maybe too rich. The read was so complicated I had to devise a system to get through the book: read in increments of 5 minutes. The satisfaction of finishing this book, though, would make grandma equally as proud

25 things I like to write or write about

1. life
2. songs & about music
3. emotions
4. love
5. pain
6. the world
7. the world through the eyes of a specific character
8. my life experiences
9. my feelings
10. my family
11. my friends
12. strong characters that have influenced me (fictitious or real)
13. on facebook
14. on scraps of paper
15. on old napkins
16. on abandoned desks
17. notes for my friends and family to find
18. about movies
19. about novels
20. about lost things that have been found again
21. on computers and notebooks
22. beauty
23. someone’s inner beauty
24. the image someone or something leaves behind
25. all the things that make us human, life complex, and my life meaningful

Welcome and happy reading my writing!

My full name is Letizia D’Alimonte. I am a grade 12 student at Orchard Park Secondary School. I love to read, and often find myself needing to express myself through journals, songs, and sometimes yelling ;). Since I love reading so much I jumped at the opportunity when I heard there was a course offered at OP that I thought was all about reading, all day long! Little did I know it would be one of the most challenging courses I have ever taken, and quickly found that my writing skills needed improvement and careful guidance. Hence, my eye flashed to the course code of EWC 4U1.

I believe taking this course will greatly improve my ability to express myself and find my own “voice”. Next year I hope to be in the faculty of humanities at a university.