American Sniper

Chris Kyle: a man with an extraordinary talent who considered himself just an ordinary man.

            

           Chris Kyle, a Navy seal known for his amazing marksmanship, earned the title of America’s number one sniper. Kyle believed he owed his survival during the four tours in Iraq and the surrounding areas, to a relationship with God, who saved his life on many occasions. He frequently stated that he had a guardian angel and a little bit of luck protecting him from all the weapons with which he had been shot, the explosions by which he had been hit, and the objects that had fallen on him during his time in Iraq.

            Like every human, Chris Kyle had his struggles. He was addicted to alcohol, cussed constantly, and had trouble with his wife Taya.  He picked up his alcohol addiction during his seal years when, after many missions, the team would go out drinking and get in fights. Kyle’s marriage was strained by the four tours he spent in Iraq. After having kids, Kyle’s wife begged him not to re-enlist. After the end of his deployment, he moved his family to Texas to be closer to his parents, and to help a friend who cared for disabled veterans.

            Since the book was written before Kyle died, it does not specify how he was killed. According to the website www.Nyt.com, Chris Kyle, Chad Littlefield, and Eddie Roth went to a shooting range to practice their skills. After Chris and Chad both fired all their ammo at the targets, it is recorded that Eddie brought out his gun and shot Chris seven times and Chad five times. He then took he gun, fled the shooting range without telling anyone, and went and bought two tacos. The fact that he waited till Kyle and Littlefield had shot all of their ammo shows that he did not have any mental problems, but he was fine and wanted to kill the men. Multiple investigations are and were launched into the death of a father, American hero, and Christian.

            I really enjoyed this book for the most part. My favorite part was the way he made the past event look and feel current. What I did not like is that he cussed constantly in the book, but I guess that happens a lot in war. I would definitely recommend this book to every one of my friends who enjoys war books. This book makes me want to watch the movie and learn more about war stories and the sacrifices brave men and women have made for our country. I definitely think everyone should read the book. It’s an amazing account of a strong Christian, with a passion to serve his country, who lived up to the American saying, “Land of the free and home of the brave.”

Article by Fernando.

 "Will you have peace or War?"
"We will have war..."

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

Lake Town is burning. The dragon Smaug is destroying the town and its people. They are trying to get away on boats, but they won't get far. A man stands alone in the rubble as his country man flee. His bow and his arrows are strung around his shoulder. He shoots and hits, but no normal arrow will pierce the hide of a dragon, and there is only one thing that will. A black arrow. His son is running toward him with the only one right now...

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies is the last of a trilogy that has captivated audiences for three years. The Hobbit was a prequel to The Lord of the Rings. After the great success of those movies, Director Peter Jackson thought it was time for another Lord of the Rings trilogy. He split the book, The Hobbit into three parts, An  Unexpected  Journey, The Desolation of Smaug, and The Battle of the Five Armies. Was this movie an epic classic that finished the Lord of the Rings off with a bang, or just a dull battle?

Acting

The acting in this movie was good at the least. Martin Freeman, Orlando Bloom, Ian McKellen, and Richard Armitage. Martin Freeman did an especially good job bringing out the character of Bilbo Baggins. Richard Armitage also did a great job of showing us the inner battle he was having with himself. These characters really showed there emotion well in the most emotional of all six Lord of the Rings movies.

Music

The Lord of the Rings have been known to have very unique soundtracks. This one is no exception. The whole album is very good and it goes very well with the story line. This is an album that also sounds good by itself and can be listened to for its calming and dramatic music. Its credit song was made by Billy Boyd, a star from the Lord of the Rings movies. He came up with a depressing song that goes perfectly with the last movie.

Special Effects

The special effects in this movie are awesome! The town burning, the dragon, the war. They are so real you feel you're right there (especially if you watch it in 3D.) It's hard to even describe how good the special effects were. I think this movie has the best special effects of any movie I have watched! (And that's saying a lot!)

Conclusion

The main thing people didn't like about the Battle of the Five Armies was that it just felt like one giant battle. I think a lot of people felt (Spoiler Alert) that the dragon Smaug died a little to quickly. I can see their point because both movies led up to Smaug being destroyed. But he died about fifteen minutes into the movie. However, this movie was not about Smaug. It was about all of Middle Earth fighting to the death for what they believed in. Characters courageously  fight again all odds, save each other, and die for one another. This was also the coolest battle ever! It has fights on mountains, in land, in ruins, on frozen ponds. They even fight the greatest evil in Middle Earth, Sauron. It really is a battle for everything. The Battle of the Five Armies: elves, men, dwarves, wargs, and orcs.
-Franz

Hello Everyone!

For today's tasty treat I want to give you some recipes to try at home.  There are three fairly healthy smoothie recipes that don't taste healthy at all. #Surprise being healthy can sometimes taste good.  Anyway I will put the recipes in below so that you can try them at home with your blender.

Chocolate Mint Smoothie

2 cups milk (almond, soy, or just plain old dairy)
2 cups sliced frozen bananas
2 tablespoons cacao nibs
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla bean scraped
or
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

This mint chocolate recipe you basically throw it all in a blender and blend until it holds the texture of a smoothie.  It is one of the favorites at my house and is #delicious (recipe found on pp. 58, Going Raw by Judita Wignall)

Chocolate Cherry (homemade recipe)

1 cup milk (any kind)
1 frozen banana
(optional) 2 stalks kale (rib removed)
1/2 cup frozen cherries
1-2 tablespoons cacao nibs
1/2-1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup raw cashews

This recipe is also very good and is very easy to make. Throw it all in and blend away!

For those of you who don't like chocolate as much then I have one more recipe for you.

Chai Green

1 cup milk (any kind)
1 banana cut into chunks
1 cup chopped greens of choice
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/8 teaspoon ground coriander
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
5-6 drops stevia or 1 tablespoon of honey
6 ice cubes (or six cubes of frozen chai green tea)

We love this recipe at home and we can't get enough of it.  It has a very nice taste to it and it tastes like chai. (recipe from pp. 186, The Big Book of Juices and Green Smoothies by Cherie Calbom)

Tazo Passion Honey Tea

     Hello Fellow Humans! So, I am guessing many of you like Starbucks.  Probably most of you.  So I have for you a knock-off recipe (not for coffee though in case your hopes were high for coffee... of course you probably already know what the drink is since it's in the title...), as well as a confession. I have not actually tried Starbuck's version of this drink, it is a recipe I found though, that's supposed to taste like a Starbuck's drink that we have have modified just a smudge. And I also know people who have tried both and say they like this recipe better! This is one of my favorite drinks ever,  it is so cool and refreshing; definitely a great summer drink. So her ya go! Tazo Passion Honey Tea.

DJ'S ARE THE REAL DEAL PEOPLE!!!!!!


What's up everyone? This is Jimbob once again. I was supposed to post on Thursday but I came down with a nasty case of the flu. Fun stuff... Anyway this is cool for you cause this means you get a little bit of awesomeness from me to kick-off your week! So let's get right to it then!

This week I thought I would address a major problem in our community... 
TOASTER STRUDELS!! 
#toasterstrudle
But my parents kinda rejected that idea so here I am talking about... 
DJ'S!!!!!

Right now your thinking,"What the heck Jimbob! I don't want to read about some losers who live in their mother's basements and try to convince their "friends" that playing a DJ set for a 7 year old's b-day party is cool!"  #7yearoldbdayparty

Well let me tell you... THAT IS NOT WHAT A DJ IS!!! That is a huge stereotype and although in some cases it CAN be true, it is NOT true for almost all DJ's. 

IN THIS POST I WILL TEACH YOU THE WAYS OF A DJ!!!

I myself want to be a music producer/DJ when I am older. A DJ nowaday's isn't only a person who plays songs at a club but also someone who produces the music you hear in most famous pop songs on the radio. In the EDM explosion of 2013 people started recognizing that their favorite singers were only SINGING for some awesome and really catchy electronic songs and wanted more of the DJ's. Don't get me wrong though, DJing and dance music production was popular before and DJ's had HUGE fan bases. It was just that in 2013, EDM (Electronic Dance Music) producers were recognized by the public peoples who had not heard of such a thing before. Now, half of our culture enjoys instrumental dance songs with nasty drops and awesome anthem chords, but there is still the other half. Who is the "other half"??? 

The other half are the people who think what you thought at the beginning of this post. You immediately thought of that lousy kid you knew in highschool. That kid who dropped out. Well... you are wrong. Some of those kids who #droppedout are making a good $20 mil. every... single... year... And I say "kids" because that is what they are. The average DJ realized what they wanted to do the rest of their lives by age 14 or 15. Martin Garrix, for example (also one of my personal favorite artists), started being a DJ at age EIGHT!! He saw a very famous DJ named Tiesto perform at the 2004 Athens, Greece Olympic Games. After that he looked at his parents and said "I want to DJ". Since then he has made hit after hit. What really got him on the grand stages of every famous EDM festival out there, was a song named "Animals". This is a very simple song, but it is also very catchy. He made the song in his room like most other DJ's. Little did he know that this song would give him his dream job. At age 16 he was making $17 mil. a year and now he is making over $20 mil. a year. LET'S GET THIS CLEAR!! HE IS NOT A ONE HIT WONDER!! Martin Garrix will go down as one of the greats in EDM history. He has made so many great songs. In my opinion, "Animals" is not his best song. Go look him up and listen to his music. I think you will enjoy it! #MARTINGARRIXPEOPLESSSS

Enough about him though, WHAT DO DJ'S REALLY DO? 

Well, I have explained that they don't only perform but they also create music. I can't really tell you how hard it is to make a great song like them without going into a bunch of nerdy music terms and technical #thingymuhbobbers. SO, just take my word for it. The songs they create aren't repetitive and cheesy tracks, but are beautiful masterpieces. Even the most repetitive dance songs are awesome if you listen to all the detail in the effects of the instruments and the layout of the song. I like to compare dance music to wine. Wine snobs will tell you that you have to savor your drink and taste all the many layers of wine in order to get the full effect. I will tell you the same thing about EDM.

Next question, WHAT ARE DJ'S REALLY DOING UP ON STAGE?

Well now... that is a great question... Do DJ's just jump up and down? Put their hands in the air like they just don't care? Drop the bass? THEY DO ALL OF THESE THINGS!! AND A LOT MORE!!
I want to get this straight first...
EVEN IF DJ's just jumped up and down and entertained the crowd... it would still be a really tough job. Try performing for 80,000 people. Try keeping their attention for two hours. Maybe more... You can't sing like any of your favorite artists. You just stand their with a mic. With the music playing in the background. A select few of you MIGHT be good at it. But probably not. You have to time what you say with the music. You can't say too much or people will get annoyed. You can't say too little or people will get bored.You can't talk during the best parts in the song or people will get mad. Your performing to #PLEASETHEPEOPLE! That makes DJing sound horrible but it's not. DJ's get to do what they love! They love entertaining people! Just like any other musician. Except with this, it is a lot more precise. Singers just have to sing words from their songs and dance and give heartfelt talks in between a few tracks. That is great! But DJing is A LOT harder. 

I have told you how hard it is to please the crowd. But that is not all a DJ does. A DJ has to make songs flow together! If you can't even talk to the crowd you at least have to be able to do that in order to be a DJ. It may sound easy but it is not! A DJ has to take songs in different keys, different tempos, and different sub-genres and moods and mashes them together. It is hard stuff! But DJ's love it. Every time I can make a song flow into another song as if they were one I get the best feeling of accomplishment. Every time I take one old-school song from Journey or another band and then morph a drop into it, I get so excited! 

Also, DJ's are cool for one other reason (that has to do with performance at least). DJ's NEVER play the same set twice in a row. When a DJ is traveling to the next gig he is usually editing his and other peoples songs. Not only that but he MAKES completely new tracks on the road! ALSO, a DJ will usually play 2 or 3 songs at the beginning of a set. Each one from a different sub-genre of EDM. For example, one song that is an melodic anthem, another song that has a hard drop, and maybe another that is not so dancing but just is an experimental track. Then depending on which song the crowd liked the most he will morph the rest of the songs he plays! It requires a good sense for the crowd, and good sense for the music, and some good natural reflexes to pull this off.



#Inconclusion, DJing isn't about performing at a 7 year old's b-day party (unless you have to :P) and it isn't about bobbing your head up and down on stage while just pressing the play button. It's about doing what you love and sharing it with others. I think ANY musician would say that the most rewarding part of creating music is not the money or fame but touching people's lives with their music. DJ's are the same. They aren't fakes or frauds but musicians doing what they love. I hope to be a DJ one day no matter what people think of me! I won't care... Because I'll be doing what I love while sharing it with others.


- Jimbob #jimbob #excessivehashtags #hashtaggingforschool?

Hi Everyone this is Diana Rush. So this week I was thinking about what I should do for my post and I thought of so many things I could do, but nothing was sticking out. I could show ya'll how do do a waterfall braid, or a sock bun, or a fancy prom up-do. But then I though of this fun idea: ideas! I'm gonna give you all some fun seasonal nail ideas for just about every season! #Seasonalnails !!!

Tired of the winter? Let's talk about a summer holiday...The Fourth of July!!! What's more patriotic for the Fourth of July, or Independence Day, than American Flag nails? #Awesome!
 

 

 But what about a nice winter holiday? Yup...My favorite, Christmas! Try these fun designs to WOW your relatives. #IloveChristmas!

Aren't those cool? Also, if you want to "dress for the occasion" but it's after Christmas, you can try these totally fun penguins.

I know those aren't technically "wintery," but penguins like winter weather...plus they're adorable! #adorable

So we've covered a summer occasion and a winter occasion. But what about a fall occasion? The start of school perhaps? Now before you roll your eyes, give me a chance. There are some really neat "beginning of the year" nail designs that you might like to see... #Youmustseethese

Pretty cool, right? Okay... this was originally supposed to be a holiday nail post but...I really want to show you guys these babies:

Well, that's all folks! I hope ya'll enjoyed this post! I have plenty more nail designs, so if anyone is interested, just comment below and ask me for some more! I love doing this and it counts as school! #Hooray

Thank you all for reading this post! Keep following us and don't forget to share with friends! : )

-Diana Rush #Naildesigns

                                         Extreme Sports


Everybody knows those crazy adrenaline rush people who participate in those equally crazy sports.  These sports are often called Extreme Sports and I'm here to offer insight on these sports and how, as crazy as they might sound, some are actually pretty fun.
#Extremesports!

 









1.  Base Jumping      
 Base Jumping is a very extreme sport that requires you to jump off of a building or an object with a high height. Base jumpers wear parachutes and (hopefully before they hit the ground and become a smashed human) they unfurl the parachute to slow their fall and land SAFELY on the ground.
#Peopleareinsane








2.   Sand boarding 
 Think snow boarding but replace the snow and mountains with a giant sand dune!  I've heard sand boarding is much harder and hurts a whole lot more when you take a nosedive into the sand.  #Sandboarding





3. Skate Boarding
This type of skate boarding isn't the regular "after school activity" done by teenagers.  This the all out competitive and pretty dangerous version. #Skateboardingtrick

.

 4.  Rock Climbing
Scaling a huge rock face, hundred of feet up in the air. And that's with or with any ropes to catch you if you fall.  People love it and would gladly do it every day if they could- including my family!
#Trynottofall

 



5. Paintball
Believe it or not this is considered as an extreme sport, and if you've ever played with certain competitive people, then you'll understand why.  Paintball is an awesome experience and tons of fun.  #Keepcalmandpaintball 

6.  Parkour and Free running
Last but certainly not least- this is my favorite extreme sport- amazing to watch and even more fun to do!
Parkour is usually set over and obstacle course and set to get from point A to point B.  Free running is also set over an obstacle course but is more about pulling tricks and doing flips and such to get to the set point.  #Nolimits




Those were only six of the many extreme sports out there!  I hope you enjoyed this post!!

Thanks all for reading,

- Avery

#"You can torture us and bomb us and burn our districts to the ground, but Fire Is Catching! And if we burn, you burn with us!" -Katniss Everdeen

Mockingjay Part 1

The seventifith hunger games is over and Katniss Everdeen has, against all odds, has survived. But not without casualties. Her district was burned to the ground and Peeta was taken captive. Her family is safe though. They were taken in with the remaining survivors of District 13. Now she has to become the face of the rebellion or to let the spark she started die off. She must become the symbol of a civil war to save Panem, whatever the personal cost to herself and her family. She must become the Mockingjay.

Many People were spectacle when they heard that director Francis Lawrence decided to spilt Suzanne Collins book "Mockingjay" into two parts. Lawrence had already had great success with the first two movies of this series " The Hunger Games" and "Catching Fire," but people were still afraid it might drag.  This however, was not the case. The movie flowed very well and ended up being a great five star movie. It brings out a hole new, much more deadly hunger games, that costs everything they have and everything they are. The plot focuses on three main points: The civil war to take over the Capitol, Katniss's struggle to keep grasp on reality, and yes, her love life (#Gross!) as she is torn between her life long friend Gale and Peeta, a boy who sacrificed it all for her in both of her games. This movie seals up its greatness with a insane cliff hanger that leaves just enough closer to keep yourself from breaking the television. 

Acting

The acting in Mockingjay Part 1 is just about as good as it gets. Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Woody Harrelson, and of course Jennifer Lawrence are specular. Jennifer Lawrence was especially good in this movie by really making you feel what Katniss feels. Philip Seymour Hoffman made his appearance as Plutarch Heavensbee and finished his career with a great performance.

 

Music

       The sound tract for Mockingjay Part 1 is pretty normal with the

         exception of "Air Raid Drill". You

     have the three basic theme

           songs from all three movies tide in there nicely. The thing that

really sets this album apart is

Jennifer Lawrence singing "The

"   Hanging Tree." #Epic! This song is taken

       straight from Suzanne Collins book

      and is sang to perfection by Jennifer

                                                 Lawrence. The song is about a man calling our for his love at a hanging tree. It has a catchy beat and is very creepy and very awesome. The credit song is the "Yellow Flicker Beat" and Lorde did a great job of capturing Katniss's feelings.

Special Effects

The special effects are one of the many things that make this movie special. There are explosions, dams bursting, gun fire, fire arrows, etc. And all of them are unbelievably realistic. The only time there was a place where you could tell it was CGI was on some of the wounds in a hospital that Katniss and a group of rebels visited. Besides that it was flawless.





Conclusion

Director Francis Lawrence said the main reason he made Part 1 of Mockingjay was to show Katniss losing a grasp on things. .He did an excellent job at this. The main points of this movie were strong and the actors did a great job of making you feel their emotion. This was also by far the cleanest Hunger Games movie yet with no bad language, though it was definitely the most violent and graphic.

 Instead of changing the story Francis Lawrence improve on some things that were already mentioned in the book. In other words, instead of creating a new story like most people do, he added to it.  Although some people did say that they thought it dragged a bit, the plot was amazing, the acting was superb, Jennifer Lawrence singing "The Hanging Tree" was awesome, and the special effects were almost flawless. Oh yeah, and Haymitch was great too. Instead of 24 kids getting thrown into an arena you have the whole country fighting to be set free. It is definitely the best Hunger Games yet! #MustSee



Melted Crayon Art

Hi everyone! For today's Tuesday Treats I have a really fun craft for you. Melted Crayon Art, yay! It's totally different from any art work you've seen, and it only takes a few things to make. In the summer you can do this outside or in your garage, but if you live where it's cold you'll want to do this inside. There's all kinds of different ways to create crayon art. There's also all kinds of different looks you can get in the end. For one, you can make almost any shape of crayon art, such as a heart or letter. You can go crazy with any colors you desire. Will it be a canvas of blues and greens, pinks and purples, or maybe rainbow? I've even seen people use a black canvas and metallic crayons. That's one of the beauties of melted crayon art, it's customizable. You end up with a totally unique piece that no one can ever replicate. It's kind of like a snowflake, no two pieces are exactly alike. So are you ready to make your very own melted crayon art? Okay then, lets get started! (Warning this craft will get a little messy!)

Supplies;
- a canvas (any size will do but I will be using a smaller one)
- crayons
- a hot glue gun
- a hair dryer
- construction paper (optional)

- a garbage bag or newspaper (This is to protect your workspace from crayon. We will be heating it up so drops of the melted wax will splatter and get on your workspace area. You definitely don't want to spend an hour scrubbing the crayon off your kitchen floor.)

Instructions:

Step 1: First choose the colors you want and take the wrappers off the crayons. You can do this easily by soaking them in cold water for about 10 minutes or so.

Step 2: Plug in your glue gun and let it heat up. Decide which order the crayon colors will go on the canvas. Then put a strip of glue down a crayon and press it into the canvas. Start at the edge then keep gluing the crayons on side by side until you have reached the other edge.

Step 3: Place your newspaper on the ground. Hold the top of the canvas with your hand and lean it back a little.

Step 4: Turn the hair dryer on low blast, high heat. Everyone's hair dryer is different so as you heat the crayons play with the settings and adjust them to what works best for you.

Step 5: Blow the hair dryer straight at the crayons going back and forth until they start to melt. Now tip it down so the heat hits the top of the crayons from above. Focus on one area at a time, working your way across the canvas. You should see the drips going down the canvas now. Slowly follow them straight down the canvas, keeping the hair dryer tipped down a little.

Step 6: Keep doing this until you have the look you want. Then let the canvas dry for a while. You can stop here if you like what you have. If you want to keep going you can take the construction paper (any color you want) and trace a word or name on it. Cut it out and glue it onto your canvas at the bottom.

Step 7: Let it dry and then hang your awesome art work up, give it to someone as a gift, or do whatever you'd like with it.

Thanks for making this with me today. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. If you have any comments or questions let me know in the comment section below.

- Brooke :)