Brady L's Blog

I landed smoothly, I had hit this jump so many times it was getting boring. It was Monday we had off for the teachers to plan, and Austin had just got a new bike so we decided to test it. We had already run it through our local trail (which led us to some açaí, must have been a sign) and had gone to our local little league where there is a mound of dirt we have formed into a jump. Which brings up me about to try and tweak it. I peddle my bike back to the beginning of the run up and wait. It’s hot and dry, the energy from a Gatorade I had earlier is gone, but ignoring all this I kick some mud off my pedals and go. I shift up and push harder, and then again. The lip of the jump is approaching, it’s just shorter then me standing up on my bike. I stop pedaling and start to pull up. My wheels leave the ground and I twist my handle bars to start the tweak. I just stopped going up and am now falling. I try to get my tire back straight but it’s to late. My tire lines on a diagonal and I get flung over the bars. My head slams into the dirt and my bike bounces to the side and rests about 3 feet away. I get up and grab my bike thinking it’s about time for a break.

Oh who to choose, out of anybody, who would I put at my table for the perfect dinner. First, I would invite Tom Brady. As a very successful NFL quarterback, he could not only help me with football but also the process of failure. Brady was not a starter in college yet played for roughly 20 years with 7 super bowl wins, and he is very wise. Another person I would invite is Max Verstappen (4 time Formula one champion). I would invite him as I want to get into racing and he is one of the best to ever do it. Finally, I would invite my dad. I love spending time with my dad and he could help me understand some of the wisdom I could get from the other guests.

In the Month of march I read Project Hail Mary, by Andy Weir. The book opens with the narrator waking in a odd room with no memory. He explores the room and finds a ladder and robot arms, as well as two other beds with corpses. As he finds more he regains his memory. His name is Dr. Ryland Grace, an American scientist and junior high teacher. An alien single-celled organism called Astrophage, that feeds of the energy of stars, has infected the sun and dimming its light. In order to stop this, All of the governments have given temporary control to Eva Stratt for Project Hail Mary, A plan to send a ship to Tau Ceti (the only nearby star that doesn’t have the Astrophage problem) to find a solution. Grace is on this mission and tries to find a solution as his memories return.

I highly recommend this book because it is very interesting and informative. Weir somehow fills the book with science yet keeps the plot insanely captivating. Twists, gut wrenching and somber moments, and a perfect conclusion left me barely able to put this novel down in the end.

Rocky, our little Eridian friend, is one of my favorite characters. Being an engineer, he can effortlessly solve many problems with his inventions, but what I really love the way he talks. His awful grammar makes his dialogue sound like a baby, which brings an innocent feeling to the book

One of the best quotes from the book comes at the very end and is, “Twelve kids raise their claws.” This quote amazingly wraps up Grace’s story. It does this by pulling something he loves from his life on earth (teaching), and brings into is new life on Erid.

If I could choose any job, I would choose to be the owner of a baseball training facility. One reason I would want to do this is I can help kids develop quicker and compete at higher levels. Also it would allow me to stay in sports.  For me, sports are a place where I feel comfortable and I could use this facility to help people have that same feeling. Moreover, it would help the community. Baseball costs a lot of money and finding places to practice is difficult. My facility would bring an extra place where people can train without having to find a field or a bullpen.

I woke up this morning and went to move my blanket away but my arm was gone. Still, the blanket moved. I went to the mirror and thats when it hit me. I was invisible. I began to think of what I would do. First, write a note to my parents explaining the bizarre situation. Then I would go to all of my friends houses i could reach before school and hide all of their things, such as Ipads, phones, books, pens, etcetera. Once that business is done, I would sneak into school to make sure I don’t get any absences by marking my name present on my teachers computers. After that, I would just chill. While I think all of their freedom would be nice, I’d just rest and use it as an off day.

For the month of February, I read The Martian, by Andy Weir. The Martian tells us the story of Mark Watney, an Ares III astronaut. The Ares program was supposed to consist of 5 missions to Mars. Unfortunately, on the sixth sol (Mars day) of the third Ares mission, a powerful dust storm forces the crew to evacuate. During the storm Watney was struck by a flying antenna from the communications dish. While the crew left, believing our protagonist dead, Watney survived and was alone on Mars with no way of contacting Earth. For the rest of the novel he has to find ways to survive, with zero help from the unforgiving Martian environment.

I love this book as it is insanely comical. I would pay to see if you can find a page without a joke or pun, mostly due to our amazing friend, Mark Watney. However, there is so much science and math thrown in with it that the time you spend laughing is almost equal to the time spent learning.

One of my favorite lines in the book has to be, “Duct tape is magic and should be worshipped.” Watney says this after a crack in his helmet almost killed him, and his solution was duct tape. This shows perfectly how he, without fail, turns everything into a joke.

The best character Weir came up with for this book is Mark Watney. I have already talked enough about this character’s humor, so what else does he have? Well, it never ends with this guy. He shows us his impeccable problem solving skills, “botany powers”, and dedication throughout the novel.

 

Life on an abandoned island is empty. This island has nothing. It is about 15 yards long and 5 wide with only three trees and no other life, not even grass. For the first few weeks I used the long leaves of the trees to make a shelter, cut one tree for tools, and scavenged the boat for supplies. Oh yeah, the boat. I was on my merry way to South America when my fuel tank leaked and the engine stopped, leaving me here. In the beginning, it wasn’t that bad as I could live of the food from the boat, but now I have to fish for hours upon hours daily. The good thing about zero life is I don’t have to be worried about anything eating me, bad thing is there is nothing on land for me to eat. Besides fishing and turning the sea water into freshwater via boiling, I spend the rest of my day trying to reboot the communication system on my boat, and then rinse and repeat.

For the first month of this year I read Scythe, by Neal Shusterman. Scythe is a novel that follows the story of two teens, Citra and Rowan, in a world were humanity has conquered disease, sickness, and even death. In this utopian society the only ones who can end life are scythes. The story shows Rowan and Citra’s journey as apprentices to H.S. Micheal Faraday. As the story continues, Citra and Rowan start to grow feelings for each other, which makes them even less want the role of a scythe.

This book is amazing as it as some dark topics are shown but it doesn’t go to far, making it good for young readers as it can help transition them to more serious novels. Another thing I love is the journal entries Shusterman puts at the end of every chapter. These really help with the world building and to show us more of Scythe Faraday, Scythe Curie, and Scythe  Goddard’s personality.

I love how Shusterman wrote Rowan. In the beginning, he is this kind, lighthearted guy that is just misunderstood. Then when he starts his training he becomes more disciplined, and once he is twisted by Goddard he turns into this strong, almost terrifying force.

My favorite quote from the book has to be when the author wrote, “‘Good evening, Rowan,’ said Scythe Faraday.’ Close the door, it’s positively arctic outside.” I love this because it gives Scythe Faraday an ending where he isn’t tampered with one bit. He is still the strict and wise but friendly man he has been since the first time we met him.

My hands flew around the keyboard but didn’t hit a single button. I looked to the top left corner of my computer to see the time change to 11:10. 50 minutes left and my document looked like scientists had discovered an even darker, more light absorbing black. My brain swam, going through every topic  I could to find something to write but nothing came through. I looked at my keyboard and the letters seemed to disappear. I could have done this days before but no, I decided to go out with my friends.  Then it I got it and the buttons started clicking. I wrote, “My hands flew around the keyboard but didn’t hit a single button.”

One of the wisest characters in all of fiction is Dumbledore from Harry Potter. An amazing quotes he said that sticks in my mind is, “We must all face the choice between what is right and what is easy.” This quote helps me remember that if I make the easy decision I am only hurting myself. Knowing the fact that doing what is easy can only poison my success repeatedly aids me to make the right decision.’