Making the decision to get a tattoo

For a long time I've been wanting to get a tattoo done. I'm not one of thoses people who will get a tattoo just because. If I'm going to get a tattoo, it will be something that means something to me and something that I will always like. Since I was a kid I've always had so many piercings and I've realised that it's kind of pointless and eventually I just took them out. I've been thinking a lot about getting a tattoo and this summer I'm thinking of getting one. Something that means something to me is my Leo and Monkey zodiac signs. The leo sign represents the month I was born and it represents a lot about my personality. The monkey sign represents the year I was born in and it also represents my personality. One other thing is that these two animals have always been my favorites and I think I would love to see that on my body everyday. I wanted to some how incorperate both those animals together in one tattoo, but I would need an artist to help me out with that. Tattoos are something that everyone should think about before getting it permanently on your body. It's something that you will always have to live with and that should be something that means something to you. Of course, I'm still going to do a lot more thinking before acctually getting it done, but that's something I'm still pretty sure about.

Looking nice for grad

So exams are this week, and as we've seen throughout the whole year, time goes by fast, so that'll be done before we know it, and then grad is next. So grad is something special and everyone has to look nice. All eyes will be on us and pictures will be constantly taken. I didn't go to prom so I didn't get a chance to wear a really pretty dress, so I'm going to make it up at grad. I bought my dress at Le Chateau. It's a red dress that goes a little pass the knees and has riples all along the sides. Because I bought it at the time of prom, it's technically considered to be a prom dress so I'm scared that it might be a little to fancy for grad. I think it's really pretty but I feel like I might be a little over dressed. So everybody, please dress nice so I don't feel so much like an outcast. Thanks and see you guys then!

Missed class means missed information

Today I accidently missed my french class because I slept in because of how tired and drained I was from all weekend, and then when I realized the time, I rushed to school and got stcuk in trafic. I asked around to see what we did in that class and somebody told me that he gave us all the questions on the exam and the text. So I regreted missing the class because that was something that I needed to know and that was important, so I went to go see my teacher. He said that I couldn't get the papers because I missed the class and that it was my fault for not being there. To me, I don't think that's right because it's something very important. Yes it was my fault that I missed class, but I made a mistake and he can't keep the exam information away from me.

Anyways, tomorrow during the exam I'm going to try and wing it since he won't give me the information. Wish me luck! and good luck everyone on your exams!

Work is rough!

During the year, so many people have been working to get money and they would always tell me how hard it is to juggle school and work. Last weekend, and for the next few weekends, me and my boyfriend have and will be working with my dad painting for customers. This weekend, we worked really hard painting 3 rooms, the bathroom, the hallway and the entrance, but it's still not finished. After 3 long days of working all day, I am so tired and my whole body is hurting. On top of all this work, I have to study this week for my exams. I never realized how hard it is to juggle work and school and this week is the worst to be doing that. The only thing that makes it worth it is that we are getting money, and money is what I need.

Working and going to school is really hard, and depending on what your doing while you work it can be brutal. Take it from me, make sure you can juggle both before getting into it. It's hard and draining. Have fun to all those who have to work during this week! And good luck on exams!

Grad is coming and questions are arrising...

Graduation is almost near. Wow. I can't believe how fast time has flew by! So prom already passed, our ceremony at the church is done, our practise for grad is done, exams are next week and then finaly, after a long time of waiting, grad is right after. After being in school for 14 years, we have a little less than two weeks left. Unbelievable! Now that school is coming to an end, I'm not too sure I'm ready to leave... I'll admit, I will miss this school and I'm kind of scared to see what happens afterwards.

Am I the only one that thinks about what's going to happen afterwards, or how things will turn out in the end? How will we be in 10, 20, 30 years from now? All those questions blow my mind, but I'm still excited for the journey. One thing I'm excited for is starting my own life, and then 30 years from now, coming back to this school for our high school reunion, that is if there will be one, and seeing how everybody had turned out after high school. That should be a really interesting day!

Well anyways, grad should be exciting as well as our journey to a new life. I hope everybody does well and lives happy. See you for the last time at grad. Bbye class of 2010!

The Bone Lady

For English class, not long ago, I had to read a non-fiction book. The book I chose is called The Bone Lady. It was written by Mary Manhein and the book is about her stories of cases that she had to investigate in her years as a forensic anthropologist.

A forensic anthropologist is someone who examines the remains of bones found after several years of decading. Someone who is found dead and still had flesh on the body, that body gets sent to a forensic lab with CSI's, but when a body is found and only bones are left, that's when they get sent to a forensic anthropologist, like Mary. Mary is one of the most known forensic anthropologist all around Louisiana. Mary is from Louisiana, and later on, after going to college, she started to work at the FACES lab in Louisiana, where she was closest to home.

This book was acctually really good and very detailed about her cases and her life. She had always been interested in puzzles and mysteries, and that's why she loves doing what she does. I've thought about becoming somebody like that, although she does explain how it takes up most of your life. This book had difficult language because of the scientific terms, but if you're really interested, you can read between the lines and get the main idea. I would recommend this book to anyone that is interested in science and the human body because it is really descriptive of how she examines the body and finds the story behind their remains. This book was a 4-5.

Band of flavored tobacco products

Everyone knows that tobacco and cigarettes are very bad and harmful to not only the smokers health but also all those around the smoker. Over the past few years, there has been a lot of issues concerning tobacco and the products used.

Just recently, the FDA has banned flavored tobacco and their products from many stores and will soon be unavailable to buy at all nationwide. Stores are only able to sell their left overs in the store, but there will be no more producing as of June 11. The FDA has banned all flavored tobacco products because they don't want kids and teenagers to become dependent of tobacco.

Over the years, more and more teenagers have been smoking, only because of the certain flavor that attracts them to it and this has been becoming a problem. I personally think that it is a good thing even though I am a smoker myself, because these days, I see so many kids smoking when they shouldn't be, and they don't realize the effect it will have. I regret making the decision to start and hopefully this will prevent more then half of the new smokers to stop and to prevent others from starting. This is a good decision they are making and hopefully it will make a difference.

The Pontiac is now on the road!

So, in my previous posts, I talked about how we were getting the car ready to be put on the road. What a long process that was. Well, now the day has come that the 1996 Pontiac Grand Am is now on the road. Finaly, after getting my licence, buying the car, taking it for the E-test and Safety test, getting the brake lines and drums fixed, getting insurance and plates, I can drive the car! $2,000 later, lol.

As of today, I will no longer be taking the bus to get to school. Me and my boyfriend will be driving in, in the sweet Grand Am. Man does this feel good. I have never felt so free in my life. Getting your first car is one of the best feelings you could have when your a teenager.

I am so happy that now we can go visit mine and Nick's family in Québec anytime that we want, and we can leave anytime that we want. Having a car comes with so many privileges, but to have privileges, you need to be responsable about it. Now that we have a car, I don't want to do anything to ruin it or get it taken away.

This year, I've heard about so many people getting into accidents with theirs or their parents cars, and the consequences were unbelievable. I never want to get into an accident and I hope I never will, but of cource, that's a little crazy to think. At some point, everybody get's into an accident. I just hope it won't be too serious or anytime soon. Wish me luck! I'm free as a bird! woohoo!

The two finalist from the 9th season of American Idol

This year on American Idol, it was a pretty interesting season. It premiered on January 12, 2010 and finished on May 26, 2010 on the channel fox. In the end, the two finalist were Crystal Bowersox and Lee Dewize. Everyone thought that Crystal had the title right in her hand but the tables turned when it came to voting time. It was a really close competition. The winner of the 9th season of American Idol was Lee Dewize and he won by a 2% difference!

That night, the two finalist weren't the only ones under the spotlight. Later on, Paula Abdul returned to the stage to say good-bye to Simon. The season finale was the last night that Simon would be a judge. Ellen DeGeneres had already permanantly replaced Paula Abdul, so who will be the one to replace Simon?

This years season wasn't as good as the others because throughout the night, there were a couple dissapointing moments, like Simon leaving and Lee winning. Normally, I watch American Idol every year, but next year I don't know if I will... First of all, Paula and Simon are now gone, and I don't know if it will ever be the same or as good, and secondly, every year seems to be more of a popularity contest, and the main people to vote are little girls who always crush on a certain guy, and to me this isn't fair. American Idol is not about looks or popularity. It's about talent!

So in all, it was Simons last season and I think it was mine too. What about you? What will you do next year and who do you think should have won this year?

Adam Lambert Biography

Adam Lambert was the seond finalist in the 8th season of American Idol in 2009. Adam was born January 29, 1982 in Indianapolis, Indiana. He is a singer, song-writer and actor from Sandiago, California. Adam Lambert has been a stage actor since he was about 10 years old.

He was cast as Linus in San Diago's Lyceum Theatre's Productions of You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown. Around the age of twelve, he was cast in a production Fiddler on the Roof and continued performing throughout his teenage years including Hello, Dolly!, Chess, Camelot, The Music Man, Grease, and played Captain Hook in Peter Pan.

At the age of 19, Adam left the U.S to tour with Anita Mann Productions for ten months before returning to the U.S to perform light opera in Orange County, California. After that, he was then cast in the production of Hair, Brigadoon, and 110 in the Shade before being cast in the role as Joshua in The Ten Commandments: The Musical. Since 2004, he regularly performed to build up his career.

Adam Lambert auditioned for American Idol in 2009 in San Francisco, California. While on American Idol, the judges gave his standing ovations for almost all of his performances, and was thought to be the next American Idol winner. A little bit before the season finale, pictures of Adam kissing another man was let out and he openly stated that he was gay. Most people think that this statement influenced the votes for the season finale. On May 20, 2009, Adam was announced to be the runner up for the 8th season. Although, upon winning, Kris Allen stated that Adam deserved the title just as much as he did and that he was a great performer all year. At the finalies, Adam and Kris sang We are the Champions with the lead and original guitarist from Queen. After that show, the guitarist offered Adam to be the singer of their band because of his unique and somewhat similar voice to Freddie Mercury. Although this was a great oppurtunity, Adam declined and said that he didn't want to replace Freddie and that he wanted to start his own record and be himself.

Adam released his debut album For Your Entertainement, november 2009 by RCA Records. This came in at number 3 and sold 198,000 copies in the U.S in the first week. Even though Adam came in second in the finalies, he's still doing just as good as Kris Allen, and maybe even better. Adam Lambert has a really strong voice and is no doubt very talented and has a bright future.

Kris Allen Biography

So like I said in my previous post, Kris Allen was the 8th season American Idol winner. Kristopher Allen is a 23 year old singer-song-writter from Conway, Arkansas and was born June 21st, 1985. Kris became interested in music very early in his life. He began playing the viola in elementary school and went on to play this intrument in the Mills University Studies High School orchestra, and eventually he won a spot in the Arkansas All-State orchestra. At the age of 13, he then tought himself how to play the guitar and piano. Kris played publicaly in several places for years before auditioning for American Idol, and he also opened for a previous American Idol contestant, Sean Michel on several occasions.

After high school, Kris attended the University of Central Arkansas where he was a buisiness major, but then soon dropped out to persue music professionaly, by performing in bars and working as a shoe salesmen. Kris planned to go back to college and get a real job, but he decided to audition for American Idol with his broth Daniel and his friend Cale Mills as a last try to persue a music career.

Kris auditioned for the 8th season of American Idol in Louisville, Kentucky with his brother but Daniel didn't make it to go on to Hollywood. Throughout the competiton, Kris received many compliments about his folk styled music and played several instruments throughout the show, such as the accoustic guitar, the electric guitar, the piano and keyboard.

Kris Allen sung many songs throughout the whole season, but the one that won him the title was ''No boundaries'' which was written by Kris and Adam. Kris Allen was shocked when they announced that he was the winner of American Idol and was completely speechless. After winning the American Idol title, he premiered on many tv shows, performing and talking about his victory.

Kris Allen produced two albums so far, one before American Idol, which is self-produced, Brand New Shoes, and was released in 2007 and only sold 600 copies, and the other one that was produced by Jive Records after American Idol, Kris Allen, was released November 17, 2009 and sold 296,000 copies in the U.S. His newest album debuted at #11 on the U.S billboards 200, and his new single ''Live like we're dying'' has so far peaked at #18 on the charts.

So far he's doing pretty good, and hopefully he keeps going. He's very talented and writes good music, and I think you guys should check him out.

Kris Allen and Adam Lambert- who do you think should have won?

Every year I watch the American Idol seasons, and last year was one of the best. In the end, the two finalist were Kris Allen and Adam Lambert. Kris Allen is a country boy, whereas Adam Lambert has always been very theatrical and involved in the music industrie. When it came to the last episode, everyone thought that Adam Lambert would win because of his amazing theatrical voice, but Kris Allen brought home the title of the American Idol winner.

Some people think that Adam Lambert lost because he is gay and others thought that he lost because the voting system was rigged. Newspapers claimed that an American Idol sponsor, AT&T, showed Kris Allen voters how to «power texte», which means that for every vote Kris Allen got, it was multiplied. The resultes showed that Kris Allen had gotten 100 million votes, which set a world record for a televised singing competition.

It was a tight competiton. In my opinion, even though Adam Lambert was clearly the best singer in the whole competiton, he knew that he was good and that he would get a record label anyways. I think that Kris Allen deserved to win American Idol because he is someone that is really talented and deserved to be recognized.

If you know what I'm talking about, then comment on who you think should have won, and what you think about the outcome.

U.S.A taking over Wonderland

Canada's Wonderland is Canada's best and most thrilling amusement park, with over 200 attractions to choose from. There are about 60 thrill rides and 15 rollercoasters, which is the most to have in one park, and there is also much more to do. The park is 330 acres and is located in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada, in the York region and is open from may to october. The park first opened in 1981 and was owned by Paramount Parks from 1994-2006, but then in 2007, the park was sold to Cedar Fair and is now owned by the U.S.A.

This fact really bugs me. Why is the U.S.A. taking over Canadian property? Ever since the U.S.A. took over, they have been changing the prices and the names of the rides. To me this isn't right. Canada doesn't have as many attractions as the U.S.A. does, and we are not as big, and then they decided to take over Canada's best attraction park.

If the U.S.A. wanted an attraction park as good as Wonderland they should build there own. When Canada owned the park, they had around 3.2 million people attending it, and ever since, the attendance is going down. To me this isn't right and things that are built in Canada should be owned by a Canadian company.

Exciting week- Getting the car ready to run

So this week is going to be an exciting one, for a few reasons. On the weekend, the mechanic took our car to the shop to get the E- test and Safety test done. While doing so, they found out that the car needed to have the brake lines fixed because they were starting to rust and this could cause damage in the future.

He told us that the car passed all the test, which would cost around $100 for both, and today we're waiting to go get the car after they're done fixing the brake lines. The brake lines will cost around $500 to fix, which is quite a lot. So in total, this visit will cost us about $600-$700.

After all that, Thursday, we have an appointment with the Insurance company so that I can get Insurance. My Insurance will cost about $275/month, but first we have to pay first and last, so that'll be around $550-$600.

After that, on Saturday, we're going to go get plates for the car. The plates will cost about $75.
I never realised how much a car would cost to get it running. In the past 2 months, I'll be spending around $1500 to have a car, and that's not even counting the insurance payment every month. Even though it cost so much to have a car, I'll be so happy when I have it.

Paying all that money to have a car will be all worth it when I'm able to go on trips with my boyfriend and do whatever we want. Finaly we will be free and be able to have the best time of our lives. And you know what that also means. MORE TRIPS TO WONDERLAND!... AND QUÉBEC! WOOHOO!

Wonderland, May 2nd, 2010

So here is the update on wonderland. There were a couple of changes. The park wasn't opened on Saturday, so we went on Sunday, the grand opening day. Another thing that changed was the price for the seasons passes. They were acctually $69.99 with four or more and to renew your last years seasons pass it was $59.99. They always suck you in by making you think something is cheaper then what it is.

So anyways, we paid for the pass which only took two minutes, and then we went inside to get our pictures done, which again, only took two minutes. I remember that the last time I went to Wonderland and I got a seasons pass, I had to wait more than an hour in line just to pay, and then when it came time to take our pictures, we had to wait another hour. It was ridiculous! So we got into the park with our seasons passes and everything in less than five minutes. That was a first.

On the news that morning, it said that it was going to rain and that there would possibly be a thunder storm. When we got there, there was nobody. We never had to wait for a ride, and if we did, we were the next one's on the next cycle. It was crazy! I have never gone to Wonderland and was able to go on all the rides before night time even came. It was amazing. It did rain in the morning a little, but after a half hour or so it went away and the rest of the day was so hot.

The best thing about going to Wonderland though, was being with my boyfriend. I had so much fun and I was so happy that I could be there with him. We went on almost all the rides except for 4, the behemoth, drop zone, the sledge hammer and the bat. It was awsome and I can't wait to go again with him... FOR FREE! woohoo! Next time, thoses 4 will be the first that we try. OH MY! I'm scared! ... Keep checking in for an update on the next wonderland visit.

So tomorrow, May 1st, me and my boyfriend and our two brothers are going to Wonderland. WOOHOOO! I love Wonderland. Ever since I was four years old, I have been going to wonderland with my family every year, and since not long ago, I have been buying a seasons pass. A seasons pass alows you to go to Wonderland as many times as you want during the periode that it's open, and it's only $60.00 when you buy four or more. That's an amazing deal! To get a day pass to Wonderland, it cost around $30-40 depending on where you go. So when you get a seasons pass, just going two times makes it all worth it. They have so many rides to choose from and they're getting better and better each year. I'm so excited! Come check out my blog sunday for details about my day at Wonderland. Woohoo!

Wow, time flies by!

Wow, time flies by so fast! We already only have a little more than a month and a half left until school is done. I don't mean just for summer break. SCHOOL IS ALMOST DONE! We have spent six years at Garnier and 14 years in total in school. That's a really long time when you think about it. To me, it just feels like this year started not long ago but it's already coming to an end. The only thing that sucks is that this time becomes very stressful. Teachers teach the last of their units, try to fit everything in, and then studying time comes when you have to jam everything that you learned in the semester into your head in a couple days, and then exams. Then later in the summer you find out whether you failed or passed. But I shouldn't have to worry about that problem. Grad is coming soon and I'm so excited, but it sucks that I'm not going to prom. After school, during the summer, I'm planning on volunteering at an animal hospital and then when the school year starts, I need to get a job and start saving. For the year, I'll be working my butt off so that I can get everything that I need. After that, during the next summer, I'll be doing more volunteering before going to college for Vet Tech. I know most of the people in our grade are going to college this year coming up but to me, I don't think it's the best choice because you're not as prepaired. If you really want to do good and have a career you'll go back to school no matter what, so that's why I find it would be better to take a year off and work so that I'm prepaired for whatever may come. Good luck everybody! Time is on our side.

Yesterday night, I was watching an episode of CSI Las Vegas. The episode was about a girl, who was formaly a model. In this episode, you see how models are really treated. They are forced to maintain an unhealthy weight which is portrayed as "beautiful", and if they are not what they consider "beautiful" then they are fired. During their times as models, they developpe so many different kinds of diseases, such as anorexia, bolimia and other psychological disorders. In the episode that I had watched, the girl was so convinced that she had to be semetricaly even everywhere, or else she was not beautiful. This girl would binge on food, write down the amount of calories, fat, and all that stuff and then she would calculate the exact amount that she put in her body and then she would calculate the exact amount that needed to come out. So she would throw up. But it didn't stop there. She would then weigh her puke up to make sure that the exact amount was evacuated. This girl had so many problems. She was even crazyer then that. After she was fired, she was so convinced that she was ugly, that she started picking at her face with beauty tools to make it the way she wanted, but she never got what she wanted. Eventually, she ended up digging so far into her whole face that she ended up bleeding to death. I'm sure that this stuff happens in real life too. The pressures of being beautiful is so severe these days and that's all that most people care about. How does being beautiful make you happy? How can looks give you everything you want in life? It can't. I feel so bad for all these people who think this way and I wish there was something that could be done to help them...

"The Rev's" death-Avenged Sevenfold

So not long ago, I found out that a band I like, Avenged Sevenfold, lost their drummer, James "The Rev" Sullivan. He was found dead in his home on December 28th, 2009 at the age of 28. What an age to be dying at. He was said to of died from natural causes, but his autopsy was ruled inconclusive because they cannot figure out the cause of his death until the toxicology tests were completed. Many people have made up rumors that he died due to drug use, such as Extecy, but there is no proof that this is true, although it wouldn't be hard to believe. These days, rock and roll is all about drugs, money, and girls/men, depending on the person. This band is very talented and could have gone really far, so why waste it all on drugs? James left behind his wife and so many fans all over the world, and now due to his death, the band is unsure as to what will happen next. Like most bands, when a member leaves or dies, they eventually end up splitting up because nothing is the same without that person. Each member in Avenged Sevenfold had an important role in the music that they played and they all worked together to integrate all kinds of creativity, but without their drummer how will they do that now? It's a shame to see such talented people throw everything away because of the pressures and influences of the music industries. Besides writing and composing music, all they do is party to occupy their time. What is this showing for the future artists. Soon enough, there won't be anymore because they will all die. What is happening to this world?!?! GRRR! R.I.P, We will all miss you!

Why are we all sick?

So I've missed a lot of days this year due to being sick, and so have many other people. But why is this happening? In my Kinesiology class, we are studying the nutrition unit, and it's really making me realize why so many people are unhealthy. Although their can be many reasons linked to this situation. Take me for example. First off, I'm a smoker. Smoking can cause so many problems to the body because in every smoke, there is approximately 4000 chemicals, and hundreds that are toxic. One of the sickness's that I've had due to smoking was bronchitis. This happens when your lungs are swollen and full of flem. Another problem that smoking causes is a lower immune system because the carbon monoxide in cigarettes attaches to our red blood cells and then those cells that were affected can't carry the proper amount of oxygen, so when I'm sick, my body can't heal as fast because my cells are deprived of oxygen. Another problem that causes low immune system is unhealthy eating habits. Most of the population, especially minorities, have really bad eating habits for many different reasons, but the most common is financial problems. Fast food is so much cheaper then healthy foods, and that's why most people feel they can get more out of it, but in reality, they're only making things worse for themselves in the future which in turn will lead to spending more money. For me, I've been brought up on unhealthy eating and so by this point, that's all I want to eat, but it's causing several consequences. For a human body to function properly, we need 3 essentiels elements that our body's can,t produce on their own, protein, sugar and fat. We need all these elements but in moderate quantities and most people don,t follow this. Something needs to be done soon to help communities everywhere, or soon, most of the population will be severely unhealthy, and eventually, everyone will be sick or dead. To be healthy, we need to put a lot of effort, but that's the consequence for living healthy and for a long time. You make the choice!...

My first car

So, last weekend I bought my first car. It's a green 1996 Pontiac Grand Am. It runs pretty good but the only problem is i'm a little too short, but that could be fixed. I'm not able to drive the car yet because I havn't gotten any insurance or plates on the car, so I decided to look up how much it would be. Since I went to driving school my insurance won't be as high as most people, but it still won't be that easy. My insurance would cost me about $275/month, then the plates would cost $75 and then the E test would cost about $40. So in total just to get it running would cost around $400 and it cost me $800 for the car. On top of that, if anything goes wrong I have to pay for the repairs. I never realized how much money was needed to have a car or the processes to be able to drive it. Having a car is a big responsability and it's not that easy to have one. I hope that I'm able to keep up with it and take on a new chapter in my life. Although all the disavantages of having a car, I know it'll be worth it when I really want to go somewhere. At least know I don't have to ask my mom to use her car everytime I want to go out and when the summer time comes, I'll be able to go anywhere I want for as long as I want. Having my own car will be great, but let's hope that I can take on the responsability!

Music these days...

Music. Such a wonderful creation. All over the world there are so many different types of music and they're all made with such creativity and individuality. Well at least that's the way most music is made these days. Back then, artists were so talented and they gave so much meaning and inspiration to their songs, but now, artists or musicians are only making catchy beats with pointless lyrics to make money. Music used to be made to inspire and influence people and reach their hearts with meaning and soul but in this generation, all that is starting to fall apart and seize to exist. Recording companies care about nothing more than money, and they will record anything that will do that. People who are actually talented in music are rarely recognized and yet people who have no meaning are all over the radio. All the music that is pointless and degrading is having such a bad influence on the people who listen to it. It's making kids think that it's alright to party every day, not care about your responsibilities or the laws and most of all, it's making kids think that it's alright to give up their bodies. This is wrong and I don't understand how they can be alright with what they're sending out. Each generation is getting worse and falling into the medias false views. Our world is slowing falling apart at our hand. Something needs to be done.

The scoop of March break vacation!

Okay, so today I thought I would talk about how my march break was. Even though I didn't go to Quebec for the march break, it was still pretty relaxing and fun. Well for starters, Nick, my boyfriend, and I decided to paint my basement because it was white and kinda dull. We painted it a nice burgundy that's not too dark but not too light. Ever since, the atmosphere in my basement has changed so much. I feel so much more at home. Renovating you're house really makes a difference about how you feel. During that week something special happened...guess what. I found out I was pregnant.
Just kidding. I got my G2! Once my driving examiner announced that I passed, I jumped for joy and wanted to drive everywhere. I feel so much more independent. Now I don't have to rely on my mom coming everywhere with me just so that I can drive. It's a really amazing feeling, but the only thing is, I'm not supposed to drive until I'm insured. I never really thought about that part much. My mom called and said that it would cost a little more than 100$, and if I get my own car and get insured, it would cost in between 200-300$! I never thought it would be so much! Now I know why my mom is always complaining about the price of her insurance. Later that weekend, my boyfriend got jealous and wanted his liscence so we took him to scarborough to get his G1. And guess what...he passed! After that we pretty much just relaxed the rest of the time and got ready to go back to school. So that was my march break. Even though it wasn't the funnest, I still loved the time off and of course the beautiful sun. Can't wait for the next vacation.

Grade 12 is stressful!

Ever since we were about four years old, we have been attending school. For forteen years, our lives basicly consist of going to and from school and doing our homework given to us. This year is finaly our last, but it's the most stressful. Grade 12 is stressful for so many reasons, but everyone is stressed because of a different reason. For me, grade 12 is stressful because I have my last three classes this semester, which are Kinesiology, French and English, and they are all classes that are very important to me and demand a lot of work. Every day, I have something to do in each class and I'm starting to get a little too overwhealmed. I want to do good on everything and have a satisfying note in each class, but it's so hard to get that when I can't even find the time to do all of my work. Every night I stress about a new thing and I wonder when it's going to end.. unfortunantly, it won't for another three months... To me, it feels like teachers don't realize that we have other classes with other things to do, not counting home chores or even a part time job. They expect so much in so little time, and then when the time comes and we havn't finished our work, they get mad and say that we're not responsable. I'm a pretty good student, and normaly I always do my work and try hard, but this year I'm finding it so hard to accomplish all that. On top of it, I need to start figuring out what I'm going to do after high school and get a job to save money, but if I were to get a job, I really wouldn't have the time to do anything and then I wouldn't have to figure out what I'm going to do next year because I would have to come back to high school. As I said, Grade 12 is really stressful, but I wish it didn't have to be that way and that everyone could figure a way to balance everything out, including teachers. I'm sure that if that would happen, everything wouldn't be as difficult to do and students would do so much better in school, and of course, that would make things easier for the teachers too. Everyone would be happy, but of course that's not the case...

Why is the world a beautiful place?

This world is so beautiful and nobody stops to appreciate it. Every day, I look outside and admire all the aspects of the world, like people, snow, rain, sunlight, the oceans, the trees and their changes, flowers, animals, etc. and I think to myself about how it's so amazing that all this can exist, that every aspect of this world is so important and that we all need to work with each other to keep life going. In my opinion, all these beautiful things give me motivation and inspiration to keep moving on and to experience new things. Everybody should live every day like it's their last. I want to experience anything and everything that I can because every day leads to another and you never know what could happen next or where it could bring you. What would life be like if only people existed? I think it would be the worse nightmare of my life. It would be so boring and you would have nothing to live for. I don't know if this has ever happened to you, but when I see a beautiful setting, it takes my breath away and I relax and just enjoy the view. When something so beautiful is right in front of you, you should take the time to appreciate it, because you never know when it could be gone...

Quebec trip for March break

So as I said in my previous blog, March break starts in a week. I'm personally staying home and relaxing the whole time, but most people in the 12 grade are going to Quebec for the March break. They are leaving next Sunday and staying for 5 days and 4 nights. I admit, it would be kinda fun to go there and be with all my friends and just have fun for the week, but I think that this trip isn't worth the money. They asked everyone to pay about 400$ or so just for the trip, and then you're supposed to bring whatever money you want to bring to go out. Once I get my G2, which I'm going for at the beginning of March break, I could borrow my moms car and go myself with my boyfriend to one of my families up there, and it would cost maybe 150-200$ for there and back together. You would have to pay less than half then what they are paying to go. I think personally that if you want to go somewhere with your friends and have fun, it would be more worth it to go somewhere that you couldn't normally go often unless you have the money for it, like Cuba or somewhere in the Islands. This is supposed to be a trip that's memorable and unlike any other trip and even though it sucks that I'm staying down here for the break, I don't think I'll be missing out on much. Hope everyone has a good time though! Feel free to comment and tell me how it went.

March Break is almost here!

So March break is almost here. As of today, we only have a week left! I can't wait for it to come for two reasons. We finaly get to sleep in and relax in the morning and I have an appointment to go for my G2! Woot woot! The only thing that sucks when holidays are coming up is that in every class there's some kind of work that we need to finish before the break to get it out of the way. Sometimes it get's a little stressful, like this semester, because in all three of my classes I have at least two things to hand in, and they're all basicly due at the same time. These days feel like they're getting shorter and shorter. I don't feel like I have enough time to do all the things that I need in one day. By the end of the night, I'm passing out every two seconds. But I know, that once I get it all done, I'll feel so good to know that I got all my stuff done and I can relax without worrying. Of course, now that leaves me time to think about how there's only 4 more months left of high school after 14 years! It blows my mind, we're almost there! Feel free to comment about how you feel before the holidays and during, and I hope that everyone has a great time and is able to relax.

The two day CPR course at school

So today I thought I would talk about my experience in the CPR course that was held in the library of our school. This semester, I'm taking kinesiology, which is about the human body and health, and it was mandatory that we take that course. It lasted for two whole days of school, and we learned a lot. We learned about how to properly give CPR on adults and babies when they are conscious or unconscious in the most common kind of situations. We also learned about how to be prepared and act properly and securely in any kind of accident, such as burns, cuts, broken or fractured bones, poisoning, chocking...etc. Taking a CPR course is really important and good to know. Accidents happen all the time and can happen to anyone, and when it does happen you should know how to act and properly get the person the help that they need. I admit, it was a little long, but in the end it's really worth it. I suggest to everyone that if you can or have the opportunity, you should take it. Anything can happen and you could help save someones life one day.

Disappointing day...

So today was a pretty unhappy day for me. I went to go for my g2 road test and I was pretty nervous...and guess what? ...I failed :(. I have never felt so disappointed as I did today. I mean, I went to driving school and I passed so I thought that I had a pretty good chance of passing. Getting my g2 would have been so awesome and I didn't feel that I was that bad. But I guess if I failed that means that I just wasn't completely ready to be able to drive alone. The thing is, I don't feel that it was fair in a way because the lady that tested my driving was a pretty big and tall lady and I'm a pretty short and small, so when she sat down she put her seat all the way to the back and I realized that she was blocking my blind spot and I told her that but she didn't do anything about it. As I was backing out of the parking lot, cars were coming from every direction and I thought that I had waited for them all to move but there was still one car coming up behind me that I didn't see and I would have hit it if she hadn't said anything, so I got marked for that. So in exactly a month from now I can retake my road test and hopefully I'll do better then. I realized that it doesn't matter that I failed, what matters is learning from my mistakes and using that experience to better myself the next time. Make sure to check out my blog in a month to find out if I passed or failed once again.

Photo Essay- Buddha

Bearded Dragon is the common name given to Australian lizards of the Pogona genes. Their name comes from their habit of puffing out their throat when they are angry or excited, giving the appearance of a "beard".
There are seven species in total but the most common pet is Pogona vitticeps commonly referred to as the Inland Bearded Dragon which is what I have. Their color varies from a dull brown or gray to a bright yellow or fiery orange-red. They are one of the best family pets because they are extremely gently, they love attention and they are decently small.

Taking care of a bearded dragon isn't as easy as some people think. Before purchasing one, you should make sure that you have the time to give them everything they need and be sure to have all the necessary equipment for a proper living environment. When choosing one, you should pick the one that's the most alert and active, you don't want to pick one that can barely lift up it's head.

For a baby, under 10 inches in length, you should have at least a 20 gallon tank, but they will outgrow that in about 3-4 months. When provided with the proper habitat, heating and UVB lighting, young bearded dragons are capable of growing up to 1 inch or more per week. An adult bearded dra
gon needs at least a 40 gallon tank because it has more floor room and they will need that to be able to properly turn, sleep and to fully grow. When fully grown, they can reach up to 16-22 inches in.

When housing a bearded dragon, here is what you will need:

1) You will need a substrate to put on the bottom of the tank. For a baby, it is preferable to tape paper towel or plain white paper to the bottom of the tank so that they don't digest any little pieces that can clog their intestines. For an adult, it is better to use play sand that you can buy at your local hardware store, like Home Depot instead of sand that you can buy at a pet store because there are more little pieces in it that won't digest properly and that could cause an impaction (a build up of sand in the digestive system). PS, be generous with the sand, they love to dig!

2) You will need to have three kinds of lights. The two heat lights will need to be put on both sides on the tank. You will need to have a basking light that produces heat that's about 150 watts, another heat light that's about 100 watts and a UVB fluorescent light that should be put in the middle of the tank. They will need these two lights at different temperatures because they need one area of the tank that's hot and another that's cooler in case they need to cool down. The UVB light is NECESSARY because it sends out rays that helps the bearded dragon absorb the calcium powder that you will need to give it, which is what helps it grow at a proper rate. These lights should be on for about 12-14 hours a day and all turned off at night.

3) Once you have all the necessary lights, you will need to be able to keep tract of the temperature levels so that your bearded dragon doesn't freeze or burn to death. You should get two thermometers, one on the hot side of the tank and one on the cool side. On the hot side, the temperature should be around 95-105 degrees F and the cool side should be around 80-90 degrees F. At night, when you turn off all the lights, the temperature should not go anywhere below 60 degrees F or else it can freeze to death over night. Bearded dragons need their heat to keep their system flowing and to help digest their food.

4) Once you have all that covered, your bearded dragon will need to eat and have water available for him whenever he needs. Bearded dragons are omnivores, which means that they eat insects and veggies. As babies, dragons eat mainly crickets and need to be fed about 2-3 times a day. As they become adults, their diet consists mainly of leafy greens ( collard greens, kale, and chopped or grated veggies like carrots) and should be fed about 1-2 times a day. Every morning when your about to feed your dragon crickets, you should dust them with calcium powder with vitamin D3 to ensure that your dragon grows big and strong.

5) There you have it, all the necessary equipment to keep your bearded dragon healthy. But one last thing you should know is that, as your bearded dragon is growing, it will shed, just like a snake. Don't be alarmed, this is normal for it's new skin to come in and make more room for it to grow. Your dragon should shed about once a month as a baby and only every few months when it's an adult. If your dragon isn't shedding enough, you can give it warm baths once a week to help moisturize their skin. If you have any worries about your dragon, you should consult a veterinarian that specializes in reptiles.

We need to help the animals from global warming!

To the editor,

Over the past years, global warming just keeps increasing. Every year, researches find new effects on hundreds of species around the world and barely anybody realizes how big of an impact it has. All these consequences are caused by mankind and our technology, like incinerators, oil spills and industries that cause pollution to float in the air. As a result, this has been affecting many different aspects of the world, such as the temperature change which is affecting birds, plants and many different creatures of the sea. In time, more animals will keep dying or getting sick which in time will lead us all to be sick and who knows what else could happen after that.

This is not the best way that we could be living. As human beings, we should work together and find alternative solutions to still keep on living with the help from our technology but in a way that it doesn't harm the animals or the earth. Animals aren't capable of protecting themselves from our technology and still maintain their security, so why can't we help them keep that? Animals also have emotions. Why is it, that if as many people died as the amount of animals have, something would be done to fix it? But instead, in the case of the animals, some people try to help them but it's too hard alone, so they stop and forget about it.

We all need each other, every living species on this earth to help keep the cycle running. Why is it alright to let them suffer? Animals are living and breathing creatures just like us humans. If we don't do anything now to stop it, sooner or later they will all become extinct. What will we do then? The world will become completely out of balance and eventually we would all die off as well. Please, look into the future and see a better place. They need your help! Thank you for your time.

Cristina Lessard

Dream meal:P

In class the other day, my English teacher asked the class to write a journal about what our dream meal would be. I decided I would like to share that with you, although I am kinda picky and my meals are normally pretty simple. My dream meal would have to take place in a nice room with candles and music with my boyfriend Nick. As an appetizer, I would love a couple pieces of garlic bread and a poutine dripping with cheese and gravy, and maybe also a salad on the side if I'm feeling healthy. For an entree, I would love a nicely cooked lasagna with a lot of meat inside and some spaghettie topped with velveeta cheese. To wash it all down, red wine would be preferable but a big glass of A&W root beer would be just as good. For desert I would love nothing more than to have a funnel cake covered with icing sugar and strawberry sauce. Mmm what a delicious meal, I think I'll be making that tonight. :)

Nostradamus- Predictions true or false?

The other night, I watched an episode on the Discovery channel on Nostradamus and I found it pretty interesting. For those of you that don't know who Nostradamus is, he was a French astrologer that supposedly went into a meditative state and had visions of the future. Nostradamus was famous for his book "Les Propheties" that contained 950 quatrains written in the 1500's about events that would happen in the future. This book was famous for predicting many major world events such as, JFK's assassination, the two world wars including Hitler, 9/11 and a supposed third world war and anti-Christ that would come in the near future in 2012. 18 of his 950 quatrains refer to a third world war but they have no indication of when, only that 2012 the third anti-Christ will learn from the mistakes of the first two and will successfully make the world come to an end. Many people believe that his prophecies are false and researchers are just trying to fit historical facts to these prophecies because in the quatrains the information linked to these events can't directly be matched with them. They are only interpretations and they could be misinterpreted. In my opinion, i think that he only had hallucinations and believed them to be real. Researchers believe that he used a form of old witchery and inhaled hallucinogenics and thought they were visions. I believe that these events that they claim to link his prophecies to only happened because it was written and people thought it was really going to happen which made them cause it. For example, researchers believe that Hitler red Nostradamus book and thought of himself as the second anti-Christ and therefor decided that he was the one that could take over the world..or at least try. I believe that these events happened because people were convinced that it would, so they, in result, end up creating it. Here's some numerology that I learned about when doing a project on 9/11, that's pretty weird and makes you think a little...
On 9/11 the first plane to hit the twin towers was Flight 11 by American Airlines.
-Flight 11 had 92 people on board... 9+2=11
-Flight 77 had 65 people on board... 6+5=11
-New York City has 11 letters
-The State of New York was the 11th state added to the union.
...Pretty crazy, but are these prophecies true or false?

Global Warning-What's going on with the weather?

What’s going on with the weather? Every year the weather just keeps getting worse and worse. The summers don’t feel like summer and the winters don’t feel like winter. One day it’s really cold to the point where you can’t even go out anymore because your skin will freeze and the next its so worm that people think they can go outside in a t-shirt and nothing will happen to them, but then it tricks them and then they’re sick for the next few couple of days. This constant temperature change certainly doesn’t have good effects all over the world, like for example, in the arctic there is ice everywhere and the animals that live there, such as polar bears and penguins and many more, are badly affected by the temperature change. Instead of being cold enough to keep the ice frozen like it should be, the sun is getting closer and closer to the earth and therefore getting pretty hot for the area, so as a result the ice is melting and flooding the areas that aren’t made of ice… What will happen to the rest of the animals? So many have already died because of these consequences and it’s all because of humans and our ignorant way of living. When will things change for the better?