Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie

        Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie by Jordan Sonneblick is about a 13 year old boy named Steven that has a 5 year old brother named Jeffrey who is diagnosed with leukemia. As Jeffrey's sickness kept getting worse, the more Steven realized how much he realized how much he loves his brother and couldn't live without  him. He realizes that there's more things to life than drums, girls and dangerous pie. 
        In the beginning of the story Steven says, "Having a brother is horrible... having my particular brother , Jeffrey  is an relenting nightmare." Steven is saying that Jeffrey is annoying and preventing him from doing certain things. Steven also says, "He may not play the drums, he may not pretend the symbols are shields and he is a knight." Steven does not let Jeffrey go anywhere near his drums. Its like Steven cares about the drums more than Jeffrey. Towards the end of the book, Steven invites renne Albert, the hottest girl in school, to his house to tutor him in math. When he opens the door to let her in she tells him that she has a cold. Steven slams the door and refuses to let her in. He can't risk Jeffrey getting any more sick than he already is. 
        In conclusion, this message relates to many teenagers in the real world. Many teenagers having younger siblings hat annoy them and can't do certain things because of them.  But that doesn't mean you stop loving them. It's their Job to annoy the old sibling. That's what little siblings do. Family is family, no matter what.

Diary Of A Wimpy Kid

     Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney is about  how Greg Heffley's best friend ditched for a new girlfriend named Abigail. Every time Greg tries to hang out with Rowley, Abigail is always there. Since Rowley has a girlfriend he has no time for Greg.  He struggles to find new friends in a tough year in middle school. I think that Rowley's girlfriend shouldn't get in the way of his friendship with Greg. 
     In the book Greg says, "Back in the good old days, it was just me and Rowley, and we hung out and did whatever we wanted. If we felt like blowing bubbles in our chocolate milk at lunch, then that's exactly what we did. But now that there's a in the picture, things are totally different." Now that Rowley has a girlfriend Greg  and Rowley can't do the fun things they used to do. In the book Greg also says, "Wherever Rowley is, his girlfriend  Abigail is too. And even if isn't there, it seems like she is. I invited Rowley to my house for a sleepover last weekend so the two of us could spend some time together, but after about two hours I gave up trying to have any fun." This means that Greg and Rowley can't spend any fun time together because Rowley is caught up with his girlfriend. Another thing that Greg says in the book is, " When the two of them are in same place, its even worse. Ever since Rowley and Abigail got together, its's like Rowley got together, it's like Rowley doesn't even have his own opinions anymore." Rowley isn't the same as when he didn't have a girl friend.
     This connected to teenagers because it shows how relationships can take over your life and stop ditch your best friends.Having a girlfriend shouldn't get in the way of your friendships. You can't let a girl change you as a person. You can let a girl mess up your friendships.A girl isn't as important as your friendships.           

What are Different Heroes' Versions of Justice

       Every hero has a different versions of justice. Some heroes fight minor problems. Some heroes fight major problems. Every hero has a different personality which can affect their version of justice. Every hero is different.
       For Example, Captain America usually is the one to deal with the major crimes such as war. You don't usually see Captain America saving a cat from a tree or catching purse-snatchers. Those are considered minor problems. Another hero that has a different version of justice is Spiderman. He's usually the one help a cat from a tree or catch purse-snatchers. You don't usually see Spiderman as a soldier fighting in war. Spiderman version of justice is within the his community and neighborhood. Another hero would be Green Arrow. Green Arrow is a modern day Robin hood who gives to the poor and takes from the rich. Green Arrow focuses on fighting justice of the lower class. 
      This made me think deeper about humanity because it shows how every hero has a different version of justice. Spiderman teaches you that no matter how small the problem is, a hero is a hero no matter what. Captain America teaches you that you should never hesitate ti fix a problem no matter how big the problem is. Captain America doesn't usually fight minor problems, he fight for the good of mankind.

Rethinking Juvenile Justice

        "Rethinking Juvenile Justice," by John schwartz is about how juvenile offenders being prosecuted as adults. Many states are now making it harder to try teen offenders in the adult justice system. I believe that juvenile offenders should't be prosecuted as adults. Kids don't act the same as adults do. Adults know how to control their actions more than we do. Juvenile offenders should not be treated as adults. 
        In the article, the writer says, "Now we realize that to ensure that kids are protected, we have to recognize that they are actually different from adults." Kids are a lot different from adults. They should not be treated like them. The writer also says, "The realization, along with a sharp drop in violent crime and new scientific research  showing that teenagers' brain are fully developed, began turning the tide away from the get-tough approach."Juvenile offenders should not be treated like adults because they don't think like adults. The writer also says, "In 2009, 85 percent of the 1,800 cases in which juveniles were tired as adults over a 10-year period involved middle- to low-level felonies like robert, assault, and burglary.
         This connects to teenagers because it shows how juvenile offenders are being prosecuted as adults for many of the wrong reason. For  example, 2009 only 15 percent juvenile offenders in 1,800 cases were involved in homicides. Only 5 percent of the juvenile offends were involved with first-degree murder. This means that juvenile offenders are being prosecuted as adults for the wrong reasons. Juvenile offenders should not be prosecuted as adults.

Airport Mutts

Airport escort dogs

            "Airport Mutts" is about how dogs are being escorted to greet passengers at airports reduces stress from the passengers. Dogs can will help reduce stress from people waiting on hectic securtiy lines and rushing to catch their flight. I think dog escorts should be added to every airport becuase they help reduce stress. They can keep people calm and relaxed. They can also help many problems in airports caused by stress.
             In the article the writer says, "Its program has expanded to 11 dogs, whose owners volunteer to take them around the terminals to greet passengers." This means that these escort dogs are starting to become more popular and are spreading to many airports.  The writer also said, "Los Angeles International Airport last was voted the second most stressful airport in the U. S after Chicago O'Hare- now has 30 stress relieving mutts. This means that now airports are becoming a lot less stressful because of the dogs. Another thing that the writer says is, ' Studies show that people who spend time with dogs have lower blood pressure and less anxiety. This means that dogs because people to act more calm and less anxious. 
            This made me think deeper about humanity because it shows how important dogs can be towards human stress. like it said in the article, dogs can lower blood pressure and less anxiety.This can help people be less stressed and more calm. Without dogs in airports, people will go crazy!

Character Change

               Middle School: How I Survived Bullies, Broccoli, and Snake Hill by James Patterson is about   a boy named Rafe Katchadorian who tries to survive his 8 week sleep away camp. It's not just summer camp. It's summer school camp. Character change helps show their feelings change towards other characters.
               In the book Rafe says, "It was true that I couldn't wait to get away from Georgia, even if we would just be on two sides of the same camp but now that Mom and Grandma were about to take off, some teeny, tiny part of me was glad that Georgia would be around. I don't know why. I just was." All of a sudden Rafe's feelings about Georgia change because he knows that even though he doesnt have his mom, he has Georgia by his side. 
              Character change made me think deeper about how people change in real life. Sometimes characters can change based on how they react towards other people after a long period of time.    

Brooklyn Bulldogs vs. Huskies

It was 3:35 pm when I leaped into my car. My mom asked me how my day was and gave me her phone. I took the phone and looked at the screen. It was an email from the Brooklyn Bulldogs Travel Baseball Organization. They wanted me to come and join their team . I would have to make the decision of leaving the SFX Huskies, a team I had been on since I was 8 years old.
          I couldn’t believe the Bulldogs wanted me. A few years ago, my dad told me that other teams are going to start looking at my skills and watching me play and are going to want me on their teams. The time had finally come.
         After I read the email, I looked at my mom indecisively. 
       “What should I do?” asked her. 
       “I can’t make that decision. It’s your life.” She responded. 
         Later on, when told my dad that I was thinking about joining the Bulldog his eyes were wide open and his jaw dropped to his knees. He couldn’t believe what he had just heard.  After about 20 minutes of thinking he  told me that I had to make my own decision.  
          The next day, as I was walking to school, I saw all of my friends wearing Brooklyn Bulldogs hoodies. I felt like I was the only Husky, in a park full of Bulldogs. I felt like I had to be a Bulldog like everyone else. Would the Bulldogs help me get into a good high school?
          As I thought about my decision. I started to remember all the great times I had with my current team, the SFX huskies. The players, the coaches and the even the parents. The Huskies were my family.
        It was now between the Huskies and the Bulldogs.. In the e-mail, it said that the coaches from the Bulldogs had connections with Poly Prep, Xaverian, Midwood, Berkley Carroll all have great high schools baseball teams that would like to play for. I don’t know if staying with the Huskies will help me get into these great high schools.
       I’ve made the decision to go the Brooklyn Bulldogs. Even though the Huskies are my family, I have to pick the team that will help me get into a good high school. When I made this decision, I knew I wan’t a kid anymore.