Fire Dolphin Recap Blog

This week we formed team Fire Dolphin; a group of Liam, Derek, Dallas, Jerrin and I. We're making a video based on the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. We're going to go over themes that were in the series by making a mock talk show. Derek (as Percy) will appear on the show to talk about his past adventures with his friends Anabeth (Jerrin) and Grover (Me). A couple themes we will be going over are family and mythology.

This week in team Fire Dolphin we worked on the write-up for Ms. A where we had to describe what we will be doing. We also divied out the roles to each person, Dallas is the talk-show host, Derek is Percy, I'm Grover/Percy's Stunt double, Jerrin is Anabeth and any woman we need, while Liam is going to play some of the monsters! Yesterday we started, and are still currently working on the script for the movie. We probably are about half-way done as of right now.

The Dark Fields Final Recap Blog

(SPOILERS!!!)



The Dark Fields was quite the book; it's easily my favorite book I've read this year. It was hard to get into though, to be honest, especially after seeing the movie beforehand. I wasn't expecting totally different things to happen, but they did. Even though it was tough to get into at first, the book really was intriguing, and a very captivating read.

 The Dark Fields also touched on some very contemporary and controversial topics, such as drug addictions and secrets. If The Dark Fields wasn’t one thing, that thing would be sugarcoated. Everything is right there, all of the alcohol, sex, drugs, and violence; it was a no bars type of read, and was very satisfying.  

 On the topic of drug addiction though, it approaches this problem is a different way. Most of the time, drug addicts in books are always taking hard, bad drugs like heroin and methamphetamine. These drugs don’t really give people anything except this “fix” they’re looking for, it may feel good as well, but it doesn’t really offer anything else. MDT, on the other hand, seems to be more like a medical miracle rather than some drug.

 MDT allows people to tap the 75% of our brain we allegedly don’t use. I say allegedly because it’s proven that we use all of our brain, just not all at once. Back on topic though, this drug allows people to perform things better than they ever have, to learn things faster than they normally would, and to remember even the most minute details over years’ time. There is another layer beneath though, that still gives people dependency, like these other hard drugs do.

 In a way I think that MDT is an allegory on all drugs, how they offer this seemingly good thing, but really have deeper consequences that aren’t worth it. Unlike the movie, at the end of the book Eddie dies, but I think it was satisfying if you take the book as a warning more than entertainment like you would the movie. I do prefer the movie’s ending better though.

 Another thing the book showcases are secrets. Everyone in the book keeps secrets, which end up ranging from non-essential, to life threatening. In the book, the Russian mobster really dreams of being an actor, and getting a big hit. Eddie, obviously, has his secret of MDT that he keeps from everyone, even his on and off girlfriend. At the end of the book there it even hints at the notion that the president is on it. As Eddie lies in a motel room dying, he looks into the president’s eyes on T.V. and sees the familiar hint of MDT in his eyes.

 I think that The Dark Fields was my favorite book I read this year because of how fast paced it was, but how it still took time to cover all the details and really delve into it. If you enjoyed the movie, I recommend though book, but be warned that you are probably not going to get what you expect. Anyone else who just enjoys a good thriller or sci-fi book would probably enjoy this as well.

8 PostSecrets

This picture really struck me because I know I've wished something like this would actually happen. Everyone has mistakes that they wish they could take back. This person may not actually be washing the mistakes away, but to them it feels like it, and thats kind of what matters. There's never anything as easy as this to get rid of your mistakes. Usually you just have to face up to them to get over them. Maybe its for the best you cant just lose your mistakes, because you learn from them, and they make you what you are today. No matter if mistakes are good or bad, I know I've definitely felt like this before.

I chose this one because POKEMON!!! Not enitrely, but for the most part. I do like the picture though, cause it kind of reminds me of being younger. It always seem we'd pick on those that we had a crush on when we were young. Now-a-days its all about flirting and dates though, even though sometimes we still pick on our crushes. If you look at young kids though, you can easily tell who their crushes are just by looking to see who the pick on. We had it pretty easy as kids, didnt we?

I chose this picture kind of for the picture again, but not as much. I love the sunset and the view though, it's really something. I also like this one because of the message it portrays. It shows that this guy/girl moved on after finding out they were cheated on. Moving on is always something that us, as human beings, have a hard time at. Be it moving on after death, break-up, or anything else, we never really are quite good at it. Everyone moves in in different ways, maybe this persons was nature or photography. This person could also just goes out into the wilderness to think. It also hits another thing dead on, that life is beautiful (without the you though).

I chose this picture because old people! Now the real reason why I chose this was because it was kinda cute, but also true to pretty much anyone. Most all of us want to grow old with someone, and still love them as much as we start out loving. Sometimes things get in the way, but I know it always makes me happy seeing old couples, like my grandparents, who still live a happy life together. We all look for comfort in someone else, and when you find that person why wouldnt you stay with them? This secret can apply to the most amount of people I think.

I chose this picture partyl because of how sad it is, but partly because of its messages too. Its sad to know that their are people who grew up living with a mother or father who couldnt care for them as well as they should have. It's especially sad when a child becomes orphaned because of a parents unhealthy habit, even though its just as sad about the parent dying as well. I think this is also a hopeful secret though, since it says that he keeps the author going. We all have something(s) that keep us going when the time gets rough. Some people have a loved one, some people have goals, but everyone has something that helps us through tough times.

I chose this one cause its how I feel a lot of times. When I grow bored with small town life, and look to the future, I mostly long for interesting, new things. Its kind of idealistic, to just walk and see interesting things, even though it'd be hard to do that in small town Iowa. This picture makes me want to travel the world more and see everything that life has to offer. This one isn't that sad to me, I dont really know what it makes me feel, besides traveling. I think its also a comment on growing restess with the normal, and I think everyone feels that way sometimes. Everyone longs for new things at different times in their life.

These last two are probably the most gloomy and sad, but I think they are necessary. This one is so sad since it can really hit home with a lot of people in wake of the wars and terror attacks that have happened over the last decade. It also gives off a somewhat strong message to. Be thankfuly for what you have, not everyone gets it. Not everyones brother/mother/cousin/uncle is going to return home; be it war or work. You need to be thankful for what you have and feel sympathy for those who dont, because you could just as likely be in their shoes the next day. Life is uncertain.

This last one I cant really relate to, but it talks about something that I know a lot of teens think about and have to deal with. They always tell teens, and really anyone, contemplating suicide to think about how it would make their family or friends feel. Even if people dont think so, they always have someone who cares for them, even if they dont know it. This is why they bring in counselors to schools or work after someone in the school or work community commits suicide. That person can start a chain, since someone who really cares for them has to live with it every day, and then sometimes they just cant take it anymore either. No matter the reason, suicide should never be the option, and its unfortunate that sometimes it is.

"The Truth Shall Set Your Free: Reflections on PostSecret": My Thoughts

After reading through different PostSecrets this weekend, its much easier to see how much of an effect this could have on people. I saw secrets ranging from topics about suicide to love, fear to depression, there are secrets on their touching ever subject. Everyone has their secrets, but its way easier to tell them when you're anonymous. That's what PostSecret seems to be to me, a device to get things off of your chest that you otherwise wouldn't have the strength too. The article I'm going to talk about helped me further understand this website.

The thing that really drew me in about this article was how it was a story, and not just recollection of secrets from the site. The narrator talks about going to church as a child and how it was a magical experience. I can recal times when I was younger where I've seen these grandious things and just was awestruck, such as fields upon fields of towering windmills near my old house in California, or of my first view from airplanes above the clouds. Everyone has had these moments, and they are what dominate our interests and thoughts for weeks after.

The narrator goes on to talk about how during a confession when she was young she confessed that she "told lies sometimes." While I laughed at this, I cant help but think that its so true, and so child like. I know I cant speak for everyone, but I recall simplifying everything when I was younger, just like the narrator did when she "told lies sometimes." Even though this confession was simple, lies are the base for many other confessions that people have. They really are the root of all evil, lying to others, lying to ourselves, without this we would be much better off.

The narrator then has the creator of the website give her permission to use the secrets for her sermons. The creator of the site even comes to church to attend one of these PostSecret sermons. Some of the pictures in the article show the process of selecting and putting the secrets on the site, and it looks very long and tedious. One picture shows people sitting around a table looking through a pile of secrets to review and put on the site. This makes me have so much more respect for what this site does, not only does Frank Warren (the creator) go around and do presentations to thousands of people, he also has to spend loads of time sifting through secrets by hand to put on the site.

Some of the secrets that are in this article are really deep, and some are really funny, but theres one I want to focus on specifically. The first secret says "I still can't grasp the concept that I won't live forever. " Wow. What a way to start out the article! I completely can relate to this, I mean, just thinking of dying now is so weird, it seems like the average death age (what is it, 78?) Is so far off, but I've already been through 18 years of my life. I know that no one wants to die, but everyone does. Its so hard to think of that someday, a long time from now, you just wont be here anymore. It's weird thinking that you'll stop waking up and performing daily rituals, that you wont be able to experience certain things in life anymore.

Secrets can touch on many things, but all of them are personal. PostSecrets is one awesome website allowing people to share secrets anonymously, but still allows them to get things off of their chest. I think everyone can benefit from just lookin through a bit of the site sometimes, to see recent secrets someone decided to share. Who knows, maybe you can relate to it.

Six Word Story

The Dark Fields #3

Sorry for the late post. My internet is down and i waited a day to see if it would come back up, but it hasnt yet so im doin this on my phone.

Eddie increases his intake of the drug as time progresses, as he grows accustomed to the speed he works at he begins to feel too normal and wants the feeling of working faster and faster. To me, this seemed like an obvious comment from the author on society now-a-days. Our society has became so accustomed to gettig everything quickly and when we want it. For example, gone are the days when we had to wait for our movies to come in the mail, let alone go get then from the video store! We can press one button and have a movie streamed to us on netflix. Communication is another good example. Try to imagine your life without the ability to instantly get a hold of someone through a text or a call.

Do you think Alan's comments ring true? Is this a problem with society in this day and age? Think if our internet or phones failed for a week ( kind of like mine), how would you, and our society, survive?