My new composition

This is my third and fourth quarter music composition.

 

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My Manual (How to keep life going in 10 easy steps)

This is the first page of my manual. What this page says is if you eat all of your prey, something with go wrong, and you will die because of it. Everything is connected to everything.

 

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My mandarin reflection

I have really enjoyed Mandarin, but I think I could have enjoyed it more. My goals are to not space out in class, and to do the best I can every time I try. I think I definitely have some work to do, but if I try a little harder, I’ll get there. Mandarin is really complicated, but it is very interesting and fun. For example, the Chinese New Year. That is really fun. I still need to stop looking at the clock on really nice mondays because I want recess, but I think I have that sorted now. Overall, Mandarin is great, but I could do better. I think I really need to work on having the right character and stroke order in my head,, but I think I am at least okay at pinyin. My goals for the last quarter are:

– Studying with my textbook and workbook more

– Quizlet tests becoming 100% correct every time

– Get a cho mao sticker on a test

– Try my best and not have to retake each test 3 times

I think I’ll get there if I just try a little harder and stop spacing out when I am really tired,, because I come out of it a little confused. I think that if I get these things done, I will get to a higher level, and that is my ultimate goal.

 

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My Fiction Story

The Impossibles: The First Plot

“Thelma,” I said. “ You need to hear this! This is crucial!” Why was I calling Thelma? Oh, right. You don’t know who Thelma is. I should back up and tell you who I am. Hello. I’m Theodore. Theodore Cindy Tananka, but you can call me Thia. I am proud to say that I  stopped the war that would have destroyed the world! Now to tell you what happened. I was 12 at the time. There were these villains who were crashing planes, and making the government so  angry, that they were about to start the war that would kill everyone in the world! I was the only one who knew how to stop it. One day, I finally decided that I had to tell someone. So, I called my best friend, Thelma, who helped me found a club called The Impossibles, where we do crazy things that seem impossible, though we haven’t done that yet. “Thelma?” I said. “You need to hear this! This is crucial!” At that point, I checked to see that we were alone. As far as I knew, we were. [Yeah, like we were that lucky.] Uh.. did I say that out loud? Oops. So, anyhoo, I told Thelma how to stop the war. No, I am not going to tell you. Not yet. Not today.The very next day, my mom said we had to get on the plane because we had a family crisis in New Hampshire. The first section of the flight was smooth. When the captain turned on the seatbelt sign, things started to go bad. The plane rocked around in the air, and the ground was rushing up to meet it! Then, with a terrific CRUNCH, the plane crashed into the ground, smashing a crater in the earth. Then, my eyes rolled back in my head, and I probably passed out. I’m still not sure.

When I came to, I was hanging by my hands over a pit full of… well, I wasn’t really sure what those fish-thingamabobs were. I was in a small cavern. “Oooooooohhhhhhhh…” I heard echoing in the darkness. I swung in my bindings and CRACK! I hit my head and knocked myself out. A blazing heat on my face woke me up with such a start, that I swung in my bindings and hit my head on a pole that just happened to be right there. “Thia!” It came from right next to me. The voice sounded relieved. I looked next to me and gasped! “Th-Thelma?” I stuttered. My voice sounded so weak! Indeed, Thelma, of all people, was hanging by her hands right next to me! The heat that woke me was caused by the young man stepping back from the fire he had lit underneath us. The fish things had been removed. Strange, but he looked just like my dad!

“Thia.” The strange man said. “We have been waiting for you for some time.” We brought you here when the boss crashed the plane, so that we could interri-” “EDWARD! Never tell a prisoner your plan!” A woman’s voice rang out in this cavern. I saw her marching towards us, more specifically, at the man I supposed was Edward. So they were going to interrogate me and Thelma. Just perfect. [That was sarcasm.] “So,” I said. “What’s the fire for, may I ask?” “No, you may not ask,” The lady

said. “Well, she already did,” Edward pointed out. “So we may as well tell her. That fire is for the-” “Edward…” The lady growled.  “-The interrogation I-” “EDWARD!” She bellowed at the man, but he did not seemed at all fazed. “-That I mentioned earlier.” He finished.  “So we’ll just leave you two there until you’re ready to talk.” The woman told us with a grin. They left me and Thelma alone hanging over a pit of what looked like piranhas. “Okay, so… what now?” Thelma asked me. I didn’t have anything helpful to say, so we waited for our captors to return.

Three hours later, the small fire that Edward had kindled under us had burned out long ago, and still no sign of anyone but us. “Oy, Thelma! When do you reckon they’ll come back?” I called. “Do you think they’ll just leave us here until we starve, or our blood circulation stops, or- what was that? Thelma screamed, just as a bullet came zipping past my face, and barely  missed me! “Duck!” I yelled instinctively, even though we couldn’t. I then saw a figure with a gun, hiding behind a large box that I didn’t think had been there before. “Shush! The boss will be back any minute now!” He hissed at us so  loudly, that he was almost screaming. Why do adults make more noise than the noise that they are trying to stop? “So their boss will be here soon.” I whispered to Thelma. “At least we’ll have some company, right?” Thelma responded. We laughed weakly at that. “SHHH!” The fussy guard behind the box seemed to be leaving, but he turned to shush us, like we needed much encouragement.

One moment we were hanging over a pit, the next moment, we were hit hard and knocked unconcious, again. These people really had a thing about knocking people out. When I regained conscious ness, I was being chained to a… I think it was a wall. I felt really groggy. But I absolutely refused to be chained to a wall! So I kicked and struggled as hard as I could, but all I managed to do, was seriously annoy my guards. Looking back on it, that was a bad idea. That’s because they chained me even more securely, but not by much. I was chained to a wall, and I was opposite from Thelma. Okay. Maybe I was a slow learner, because this was when I realized that this was a trap. It was a very suspicious trip. We have never had a family crisis since the days when my great, great, great grandparents were young. I looked around and saw a guard walking away from us. We were in a stone room that I thought seemed deep underground. I heard a small clank, and something landed on my foot. The guard’s keys! I could escape with Thelma!

When the guard left, I snatched them. Then I took a risk and hissed at Thelma, “Pssst! The guard dropped his keys! I’ve got them! We can escape tonight!” “Perfect!” She responded. How did we know when night was? Easy. There was a small hole in the ceiling. It was the size of a large pizza, but not big enough for us to climb through. When the hole was as dark as… well… as midnight, I made my move. I unlocked my hands first. Then my feet. I crept silently over to Thelma and freed her too. “This is exciting!” Thelma squeaked. “Shhh!” I hissed at her. “Someone might hear you! That would be bad, yes?” She nodded and we crept to the entrance. It was a small hole and that’s all there was to it. Somehow, I knew what to do. I reached into the hole and felt around on the outside of the cave. My fingers found a lever and I pulled it upwards. With a small pop, it came loose and the door swung open. Thelma started to loudly say “Yes!” So I clamped my hand across her mouth and she quieted immediately. We crept down the passageway, each with her own thoughts. I was thinking, where in the world are we? Why were we brought here?  Thelma, who was walking in front, turned back to look at me. That turned out to be a big mistake. I saw a woman with a club rising behind her when she looked at me. “Run!” I screamed at Thelma, but she didn’t understand! She started to turn, but the woman clubbed her on the back of her head, and Thelma sank to the ground, unconscious! Throwing caution to the winds, I ran to her side. “Thelma!” I shrieked. I looked up, filled with rage, but the woman was gone! I figured that guards would soon be on their way, so I would have to get Thelma out of here. But first I checked her pulse. Good. She was breathing.  “I’ll get you out of here.” I muttered to her still form. I retraced my steps until I came to the cave we started in. We only had one chance now. The hole in the low roof.

I laid poor Thelma on the floor, and took the guard’s keys from my pocket, where I had put them earlier. I chipped away at any loose part in the ceiling that I could find. Within a short time, I had made the hole big enough to escape through. I grabbed Thelma, and with some difficulty, I heaved her through the hole, and onto the ground outside.Then I secured the chamber, `and clambered up to where I had left Thelma. But she was gone! Where is she? I thought desperately. A high, cold laugh interrupted my thoughts. I slowly turned around. There was Thelma, her body bound by many ropes. and standing next to her, holding a rope tied to her neck was… my dad? My dad and mum were standing by a black pit with rocks jutting out from the sides. My dad held Thelma’s leash, my mom held a jug of ice water. She splashed it at Thelma, who woke with a start. She sputtered and gasped, and then realized where she was. My parents prodded her over to the pit. “Mum? D-dad?” I stuttered. “Yes.” My mom smiled smugly. “Your father was against us. So Bill here killed him and took his place before you were born. I was with them all along. I heard you tell Thelma that you knew how to stop us. That’s when I knew that the boss would be interested in you.” A rough pair of arms grabbed me and held me. I couldn’t reach Thelma! Then Bill spoke. Become a spy for us or-” “Or what?” I growled. “Or- well, I shouldn’t tell you that.” “I refuse.” I said as stubbornly and bravely as possible, even though I was shaking in my awesome combat boots. I have to get to Thelma! That thought was the only thing running through my head. “Very well.” Said Bill. “If you won’t submit, suffer the punishment.” I fought with all my might to free my arms. My mom grabbed Thelma. “Leave her alone!” I shrieked. “Get off of her!” I managed to free one arm, but before I could get to Thelma, my mom… pushed her over the edge! “THELMA!” I screamed, and almost burst my eardrums. Despair overwhelmed me. I sank to my knees, crying hard. The guards hauled my up. “Take her to the chief.” Bill ordered them. Suddenly, I felt more angry than sad. My dad was killed and replaced by a phony, my mom was a traitor, and now my best friend had been murdered! This was taking things too far. This may be my only chance to save the world, I thought. I decided to stop the war, now. I had been spacing out, so I was rudely jerked out of my thoughts by being flung to the floor of a cell. “The boss’ll be here shortly.” A gruff voice informed me. I reviewed what I would have to do to stop their boss. I waited so long, that I must have dozed off at some point. I was woken by the door banging open. A man strode in. “I am the boss of the great rebels.” He said. “Become a spy for us or we will kill you.” This is the time to do it, I thought. “I refuse.” I said firmly. “Then we will kill you. Any last words?” He asked. “A last song.” I said. “Very well. Sing.” He replied. So I did, and this is what I sang. “I sing a song of a woman, imprisoned, about to be killed by her husband. He is before me, she is in america, and she will die with everyone else. The husband is you, and your wife is alive, in prison, yes, but alive, she will die with all of us if you do not call off the attack.” It was true, because if he started a war, his wife who is imprisoned in New York, would die with everyone else. “Ella! She’s alive? Really?” The chief asked. “Yup.” I replied. “I know her. She is so nice to everyone.” It’s true. I really do know her. “I’ll stop the war! You may go free!” He said. So I strolled out the door. I got myself a ticket for the next plane to New York, and here I am. This is a true story. I am proud to be here telling you this story, and I hope that you all do not ever have to go through what I had to. This has been my honor to tell you. Thank you all, and goodbye.

THE END

 

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