Valerie Echegaray's Blog

     It’s a typical school night, it’s late and I’m upstairs in my room doing homework. Like every night, right in the middle of doing homework, I get on my laptop. I turn it on and I start listening to music. My parents and little sister are downstairs sleeping. So I can have my music loud as ever, regardless if my brother is sleeping since his room is down the hall from mine.

     So my homework lies on the floor unfinished, and my eyes start getting heavy, but still on the computer and texting. Then all of a sudden I hear scratching on my door, so I pause the music and I ask “who’s there ?” but no response. So in my head I’m thinking that’s just my brother trying to scare me like always. I sit back on my bed, playing the music and I hear the scratching once more. Still no response when I asked who was there.

   I decided to call my brother to see if i hear his phone ring, he answered but said he was at work. So I bravely opened my door, and it was my dog, Tracie. I felt so relieved ! Tracie happily comes in my room wagging her tail, and I continue with the music. As soon as it started playing, Tracie said “could you please turn the music off, that’s the reason why I’m up here. I can hear is from downstairs.”  I was so shocked; I was speechless ! I said ” you can talk !”. “Yes”, she replied, “I actually can and that’s not all I can do.” “If I was to shake myself , I can go anywhere in the world.” “Wow”, I said in amusement. “Yup,when you leave from school and everyone goes to work, I’m not really alone at home tied up,I’m somewhere in the world.” I laughed.

     So I tell her that we should go somewhere. She askes where and I said China, because I’ve never been there.When she shook herself; in the blink of an eye we were standing by the Great Wall of China. I was amazed,Tracie and I took a walk, we kept walking and I was getting tired. I suggested to go somewhere else and so we went to Egypt. It was so hot but the sand felt nice. Then I noticed I forgot my phone and I wondered If my mom noticed if i was even gone and called. I told Tracie, she said “not a problem.” She told me to dig in the sand and I would find it my phone. So i  dug a little with my hands and I found a bone shaped box with my phone inside. I said “wow you do magic too”. She said “somewhat”. My mom had called, maybe wondering if my homework is finished.

     So Tracie suggests to go back home so I can finish my homework. Tracie shakes* and we are back in my room again. I said “what an adventure !”. “Yes I agree, maybe when you actually finish your homework, we can go to other places”, Tracie responded. I smiled and told her goodnight. “Night, see you in the morning”, she said. After she left downstairs, I thought to myself ” Was I really talking to my dog ?” .  It was the next morning, I woke up to my mom’s “wake-up call”, after I hunged up the phone, I’m still laying in bed, and I wondered if last night even happened. I thought to myself  ”no way, impossible, all just a dream.”, I began getting ready for school.I’m out the door, and Tracie is usually outside in the yard in the mornings. I put on my hoody, and I noticed I had sand in my pocket. I think to myself  “why would I have sand in my pocket when I had it on through the night ?” I look back and Tracie winks at me.

The End.

     Ever thought of what is going to happen after  high school ? Well it’s never too early to start thinking. There are unlimited choices after you graduate high school. One option is ROTC ,or Reserve Officer Training Corps, a training program which prepares you for a commission officer. You will take courses  in military values, history and leadership. There a numerous benefits about joining the ROTC program.

    Join the ROTC and you will be commissioned as an officer in armed forces. Guaranteed a career after college. If you receive a ROTC scholarship, you’ll earn full tuition and academic fees or room and board, up to $10,000 per year. Cadets also receive $1,200 per year for books and a monthly stipend between $300 and $500 depending on year in school.

      Joining does not mean you have to stop being a normal college student or enjoying extra-curricular activities.From attending a meeting each week.Wearing your ROTC uniform at special events and meeting days. Members still continue  with a regular college schedule. From an advanced education, you are also gaining job experience at the same time. So its twice the good stuff !

    After graduating and completing the ROTC program, each member who goes active duty starts at a management level, or as an officer . It allows members to take what they have learned and put it into action in their career fields.The skills and education gained through an ROTC program can be beneficial and exciting. In the process, you can make college a much more fulfilling experience and have a positive attitude for your of future career.

“To be right is not always popular..”  - you’re not always liked or accepted for doing the right thing.

“To be popular is not always right.” – doing what other cool people do cause they’re popular, not always a right thing.

1. Yung Chun.  His laugh is contagious.

2.Family Guy.  Stewie Griffin is so funny because since he is just a toddler, he’s so evil and tries to rule the world.

3. Kidane Rutty. This kid is so hilarious, he can say any little thing and it’ll just put on a smile on my face and I’ll laugh.

4.  Being Tickled. When someone tickles me like for example on my neck, I laugh.

5.  My Dad.  It’s so funny when my dad says certain words because he has an accent.

6.  “Scary Movie”.  My favorite movie ever. In my opinion, I would have to say it’s the funniest out of all 4 Scary Movies.

7. My Mom. She has a great sense of humor. She always has funny jokes.

8. Tripping People. When people trip and fall, I honestly find it quite hilarious !

9. When Someone Laughs At Their Own Joke.  When you make a joke you’re supposed to make other people laugh not yourself. So when someone tells a joke, and it’s silent (like a cricket moment) and noone’ s laughing; that’s the funny part !

10. When People Are Confuzed. When a person has no idea what’s going on, it’s very funny.

One thing I’ve discovered is how to change your Gravatar on your wordpress account. You first highlight on the top left hand corner, the tab that says My Account  then you click Edit profile. After you clicked Edit Profile, on your right hand side, Click Change Your Gravatar. Then Upload.

Vaccine markers already been shipped out on Thursday. 600,000 Doses were shipped to 21 states and cities including, Washington; New York; Chicago, Illinois; and Los Angeles, California, said Dr. Anne Schuchat, director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.The first deliveries will be nasal spray. It is suggested for people ages between 2 to 49 who don’t have any health issues. The nasal spray is stronly not recommended for women who are pregnant and children under 2 with health issues.”Schuchat urged the public not to be alarmed if expiration dates for some of the liquid Tamiflu have passed, because the Food and Drug Administration extended them “after careful testing” to ensure they are safe and effective…But Schuchat said it is not clear how the impact of H1N1 on pregnant women differs from that of seasonal flu, because the H1N1 outbreak is being more closely monitored than seasonal flu has been in the past.” Schuchat says not to fear if the expiration dates have passed due to the Food and Drug Administration because they were well tested.

The reason why I came to SMHS was because my parents decided for me to attend. For my freshmen year, I was going to CHS, its a very large school, perhaps has about 4 buildings to it. The school system there is not the greatest and its very over packed. My parents did not really want me to go there for the reason of not having a high discipline. So they chose Saint Mary’s because its a small school and has good discipline. Saint Mary’s is a good school, its very high spirited when it comes to having sporting events or pep rally.

1.”Keeps bones and joints in the correct alignment so that muscles are being used properly,Decreases the stress on the ligaments holding the joints of the spine together.. “

http://my.clevelandclinic.org/healthy_living/Back_health/hic_Posture_for_a_Healthy_Back.aspx 

• 2.”A straight line from your ears, shoulders, hips, knees and ankles
• Head is centered
• Shoulders, hips and knees are of equal height

Some of the most common posture mistakes include:

• forward head
• rounded shoulders
• arched lower back..”

http://exercise.about.com/cs/abs/a/coreandposture_2.htm

3.”The muscles do not have to work hard to maintain balance; therefore the body feels less fatigued and can work more efficiently. When you slouch, you cause unnecessary strain, which can lead to backache, stiffness, and muscle fatigue. “

http://health.abqjournal.com/TextItem.aspx?id=1118

4.”Posture is the position in which you hold your body upright against gravity while standing, sitting or laying down. Good posture involves training the body to stand, walk, sit and lie in positions where the least strain is placed on supporting muscles and ligaments.”

http://www.spineuniverse.com/displayarticle.php/article2022.html

5.”When you hold any body position for long periods of time, your spine is gradually reshaped into that very position through an adaptation of the connective soft tissues,”

http://newsok.com/proper-posture-while-using-computer-lessens-back-pain/article/3397078

This article is about Osama Bin Laden, the leader of terrorists’ organization. ’Bin Laden’ says “Obama is an vulnerable man, who will not be able to stop war, as he promised, but instead, he will drag it to the maximum possible extent.” He blames President Barack Obama for not keeping his promise by taking out United States troops out of Iraq. He has recently put an audio message on an Islamist websites. In his audio message, explains the reasons behind September 11, 2001. He has posted this two days after the eighth anniversary of September 11, 2001. For the reason of the terrorist attack,he states “From the beginning, we have stated many times ;that the cause of our disagreement with you is your support of your allies, the Israelis, who are occupying our land in Palestine. Your stance along with some other grievances are what led us to carry out the events of 9/11.” In my opinion, the most important about this is that if Bin Laden keeps accusing Obama, their problems will increase and possibily have another terrorist attack.

A ll

Smooth

Dances

From

Jabbawockeez

Kill

Lol

; )

It was the summer of  ‘99, when my family and I will always go to the beach. I remember it like it was just yesterday. Early Saturday morning, mommy waking up my brothers and I, around 8:00 am to get ready. I was always excited to go to the beach. I was too anxious that I couldn’t even eat my breakfast, I just wanted to get there soon as possible. We usually met my aunt, uncle and cousins over there. The minute we got there, we set up the beach umbrella, towels and lounge chairs. At the time I did not know how to swim, but I always watched my brothers and cousins swim in the deeper level as I stood playing in the sand.  Since I was very anxious to swim, my uncle took my hand as we went in the water, I got so excited. When it became a little deeper, he carried me and help me to float. As he was helping me float, he told me to start pedaling with my hands and feet. Before I knew it, I was swimming! Then my uncle and I went back to shore and I ran and told my family ” I know how to swim now!”.  I will never forget the day I learned how to swim. I was so happy and proud.