Thecheriepond’s Weblog

1945 Hew Wood
Taylorsville, Utah 84118
April 21, 2008

Flowerama #181
1899 W 5400 S
Taylorsville, UT  84118

To Whom It May Concern:

I am writing you to ask for something I have wanted since I was a child.  I have never had one, and although it is a little odd for a fifteen-year-old to be asking you for free stuff, here I am.  My birthday is coming in a few days and I thought you may be able to contribute a plastic pink flamingo to your neighbor’s very bland backyard. I think pink plastic flamingoes are amazing, and the only reason I don’t have one is because my parents think it is a total waste of money. I don’t think they are.
I didn’t realize how much I really wanted a pink flamingo until the other day when I was in English class.  We were talking about what we want, how we could get it for free, or how we could get it from Oprah.  I decided I could get maybe a goldfish from Petsmart, or maybe a new pair of shoes from my parents. Then a kid said he wanted a pink flamingo.  Then I realized how much I wanted one!  I mean I have all kinds of things with flamingoes on them like shoes, stickers, and other things, the only thing I don’t have is a plastic flamingo itself!  Flamingoes are my favorite animal.  I don’t know how I didn’t see this before. I have been so blind.
It could also serve as a good object for my photography.  This would be a good way for you to contribute to the arts.  I am always looking for strange and random objects to place in photographs and a flamingo would fall right under that category.  We could even do a project where I take the flamingo to random places in Salt Lake City and take pictures of  him. He could dress up and go around having adventures in Salt Lake.  Maybe I could give you some pictures to prove what a good home he has, after I get him.
This could be a huge project for your store.  We could maybe hold a competition for best plastic flamingo photography.  It would be a really cool way for your company to get to know the community and help your business.  I think this would be wicked awesome!
And so, as you can see, I have so many plans for a plastic pink flamingo, but I don’t have one.  That is how you can be of service today.  You want to make my wildest dreams come true? You want to support the arts?  You want to love thy neighbor?  I am giving you the chance right now.  Thank You for your time.

Sincerely,

Cherie Adan

I don’t have my first book report up here because I saved it to my laptop a while ago, meaning to post it later.  Sadly, my little brither thought he should write his paper on my laptop as well, and without asking took my laptop.  Last friday my dad found MY LAPTOP hidden under a blanket and a plug was stuck in it the wrong way.  UGH! He fried the whole thing, and so EVERYTHING is gone.  Including my first book report.

OOOOOHHHHH! and all of my music i bought off of itunes.  grrrrr.

Cherie Adan
Matt Thomas
5th Period
March, 27 2008
Morgan
The beginning of Second grade was very difficult  for me.   My friend Bronson threatened to bring a gun to school in my class, so being who I am, I told my mother.  The police came, talked to me, talked to my principal and in a blink, I was out of Ms.Dobler’s class and in Mrs.Berganz’s portable. That’s how it all started.
Morgan, Justin, and Justine became my best friends instantly.  I hung out with them at lunch, sat by them in class, and played with them at recess.  The day I started liking Morgan was when he chose me, when playing house, to be the wife.  So, first recess we were married, second  recess we had our children, and by third, we were divorced. That happened at least once a week.
One day, I was teasing him about the fact that he had a girly name.  So, he gave me a boy name.  He named me Charlie because the way it was spelled was the way how he actually spelled my name, only without the “L”.  I said okay to that because I liked him way to much to tell him he was wrong.  All he knew about my name was it stated with a “C”, not an “S”.
Giggling about my mom being one of the schools soccer coaches and playing on the “big kid”  playground.  Every day was perfect.  We never got in trouble,  we all had good grades, and our little group was loved by Ms.Bergantz.  Morgan and I both were the teacher’s pet. Everything was perfect in our little world for a few months.  Then tragedy hit.
I sat with him on the big hill all recess telling him, even though his parents were getting divorced, and his whole life was falling apart, things would just work out in the end.  Just like a movie.  But they didn’t.  After his mom won the custody battle, they decided that at the beginning of Summer, they would move to New Jersey.  That meant I only had a few months left with my best friend.
The time flew by, and before we knew it, it was time for Morgan to leave us.  On his last day, Justine, Justin, an I sat outside on the schools front lawn waiting for his mom to drive up.  She pulled into the parking lot only a few minutes after school.  He gave us all strong hugs, gave me a fruit roll-up and disappeared into his mother’s car.
He was short.  He had glasses.  We were married multiple times.  I loved that kid.  I only have one picture of him.  He reminds me of Matthew Broderick  for some odd reason. I’ve been thinking about what he looks like now days.  Is he still short?  Is he wearing those same square rimmed glasses?  Does he ever think of me?  If he does,  what does he remember?  Does he remember why he called me Charlie?  I can’t even remember his last name.

Cherie Adan
Matt Thomas
English 9
April 15, 2008
Hmmmmm 15 days until I’m 15. :]
STARDUST
By NEIL GAIMAN
Stardust is about 17-year-old Tristan Thorne who goes to find his “true love” a star that had fallen to the ground when they were walking home together. True to his promise, Tristan goes off to the other side of the small town of Wall, to find the fallen star for Victoria Forester, who promises her hand in marriage if he brings her back the star. On the other side of Wall, Tristan meets new friends, the star, and other people who would do anything, including murder, just to get their hands on Tristan’s gift for Victoria.
For book review number two I decided to read Neil Gaiman’s Stardust. I really love this book. I saw it in theaters this summer and liking the movie so much I decided I wanted to dig deeper into the story by reading the book. Of course it was better than the movie, and it felt more personal to me when I had finished reading it. I was able to get through this book while sitting in the sun all afternoon on Sunday. I am not saying it was below my grade level, it was just really enjoyable.
I liked reading Stardust because it was about Witches, Kings, Flying Ships, and Murder. The plot was brilliant, and magical. I really couldn’t put the book down. It’s almost like the book its self puts you under a spell. Action is flying in from every direction and their is never a dull moment throughout the book.
The characters were well described and it made the book so much better. Although I’ve seen the movie, I now have my own picture in my head of each character, and they are all different than what they look like in the movie. They are more sinister, or more kind, or a little bit stranger than what you see in the movie. Neil Gaiman knows how to get your attention and keep it.
All in all, this book was absolutely amazing, and I really want to go back and re-read it someday. Stardust is not a book you just read and forget, the story will be with me forever. I think it is the best modern fairy tale out there right now. In the mean time, I guess I will go and read some more of Neil Gaiman’s books to pass the time.

:] Have you read this book, Matt?

Cherie Adan
Matt Thomas
5th Period
March, 27 2008

The beginning of Second grade was very difficult  for me.   My friend Bronson threatened to bring a gun to school in my class, so being who I am, I told my mother.  The police came, talked to me, talked to my principal and in a blink, I was out of Ms.Dobler’s class and in Mrs.Berganz’s portable. That’s how it all started.
Morgan, Justin, and Justine became my best friends instantly.  I hung out with them at lunch, sat by them in class, and played with them at recess.  The day I started liking Morgan was when he chose me, when playing house, to be the wife.  So, first recess we were married, second  recess we had our children, and by third, we were divorced. That happened at least once a week.
One day, I was teasing him about the fact that he had a girly name.  So, he gave me a boy name.  He named me Charlie because the way it was spelled was the way how he actually spelled my name, only without the “L”.  I said okay to that because I liked him way to much to tell him he was wrong.  All he knew about my name was it stated with a “C”, not an “S”.
Giggling about my mom being one of the schools soccer coaches and playing on the “big kid”  playground.  Every day was perfect.  We never got in trouble,  we all had good grades, and our little group was loved by Ms.Bergantz.  Morgan and I both were the teacher’s pet. Everything was perfect in our little world for a few months.  Then tragedy hit.
I sat with him on the big hill all recess telling him, even though his parents were getting divorced, and his whole life was falling apart, things would just work out in the end.  Just like a movie.  But they didn’t.  After his mom won the custody battle, they decided that at the beginning of Summer, they would move to New Jersey.  That meant I only had a few months left with my best friend.
The time flew by, and before we knew it, it was time for Morgan to leave us.  On his last day, Justine, Justin, an I sat outside on the schools front lawn waiting for his mom to drive up.  She pulled into the parking lot only a few minutes after school.  He gave us all strong hugs, gave me a fruit roll-up and disappeared into his mother’s car.
He was short.  He had glasses.  We were married multiple times.  I loved that kid.  I only have one picture of him.  He reminds me of Matthew Broderick  for some odd reason. I’ve been thinking about what he looks like now days.  Is he still short?  Is he wearing those same square rimmed glasses?  Does he ever think of me?  If he does,  what does he remember?  Does he remember why he called me Charlie?  I can’t even remember his last name.

Cherie Adan

Matt Thomas

Language Arts 9

January 22, 2008

Commando bear

My epic hero is Commando bear, who once was a normal panda bear who was laid back with not a care in the world. He was a son of a god and goddess, who were killed by a demon. He was one of six heirs for the throne. He was given a power of claws of death which could cut any substance and also he could speak and walk upright like a human. His mission, along with his three brothers and two sisters, was to seek and kill the demon who killed his parents, whoever did this first was the winner, and would claim the rightful position as a god.

One day when Commando bear was sitting watching his favorite soap opera on Animal World, he decided he needed to do what the character Pandima did and get even with the demon who killed his parents. So, he walked out of the bar he where he had been drinking bamboo shots, and onto the crowded trees of Woodland. He climbed for hours, trying to decide how he would find and kill the demon that had killed his godly parents when he was only a cub. Back then he had not a care in the world and he would play with his brothers and sisters for hours and hours.

He decided this was hopeless and climbed into another bar. He wasn’t in Woodland anymore. This place was full of bizarre hairless creatures called humans. He tried to run off as fast as he could, but someone saw him.

“Hey you!”

Commando bear just sat still. Didn’t know what was about to happen and he was scarred. Just then a godly looking figure snatched him up and spoke. “You don’t know why your here, do you? Well, I know exactly what you want to do, and I want to help you.” Commando bear just starred. “You want to kill the demon Herne, don’t you. You know, the demon who killed your parents?”

“I guess.” The whole bar roared with laughter. “I know you want to, I was sent down to give you a few powers, like the talking you just recently discovered, and the claws of death from you father.” “Hmm okay, so I can talk? What’s with the claws of death? What do they do?” “They can cut through any substance, quiet useful in any battle. Oh, also, you get to consult with me any time you need me. Thats what I’m here for.

Just like that, the strange character was gone. Then, an even worse thing happened. Herne was right there. Oh no. Herne spoke. “I heard of your plan,-” Commando bear thought fast. The claws of death. BAM!!!! Herne’s head was on the ground.

So, in the end Commando bear found his rightful place as a god with his family, and stayed in his room watching soap operas all day, hoping to learn some new moves from the lead character. After all, if he didn’t watch that soap on that faithful day, he would never would have seen the distraction move that Pandima pulled.

Cherie Adan

Matt Thomas

Language 9

January 7, 2008

Okay, so I am so excited to start out the new year.  I hope to make this the best year ever, although it will be hard to top last.  I mean who can top a cruise to Alaska? Or my favorite, a whole week with the best aunt ever in Denver.  I would do it all over again! Last year I had the chance of spending time with my family, and for that I feel blessed.  Last year my resolution was to spend time with the family, and I succeeded.  Even when my Grandma Mary Ann died,  it was a blessing because I got to see  all of my mom’s side of the family, all together. For the first time since my Grandpa Jake died, I got to see my cousins Izzy and Emery, and I had the chance to form new relationships with them.  I feel like we are as close as we were when we were all five!  But now that the glorious year, for me anyways, is over I wonder what else I need to focus on to make myself a better person.  At the drop of a hat, a thousand ideas pop into my head, but today I am only going to focus on one of my many resolutions.
To have more patience. I tend to get upset when people take longer than I expect them to.  So, for the new year I decided I would work on patience and try not to get upset when someone takes longer than I would expect them to. One person to benefit from this is my little brother, Christopher.  I am always yelling at him for some stupid reason.  I need to cut the kid some slack, my friends always tell me, so I will.  I am going to be a better sister somehow, and this is a good start. I also realize that I am going to benefit from this as well, because whenever I get in trouble, its usually for getting on my brother for an unnecessary reason.
So now I have to think of how I am supposed to fix this personal flaw.  I know I have to be understanding that Christopher is a little slow, and he is three years younger than me, and he also happens to have ADHD.  I need to understand how cruel I really am to my poor little brother. No wonder my parents get mad at me whenever I pick on him, but in my defense he can be quit the handful sometimes.  Gosh, I’m bad at this.  Okay, okay, maybe my new years resolution can be to understand my brother better.  To understand what the kid is going through. I hate seeing him sad, I hate it how rude I am to him. I got it!  My new years resolution of 2008 is to be a better sister!
Now I know how I am going to top last year.  I am going to try and be my little brothers best friend when he needs someone.  I am going to be more understanding to him and his flaws. I want to be there for him and make this the best year for him. After all, I don’t want to loose my little brother, what would I do without my only sibling?  I don’t want him to resent me when he is older, I want him to know I will be their for him when no one else can.  If he gets arrested, I want  to be the one to bail him out, I want to be their to watch him grow up into the brilliant person he really is.  I just want to make things right with him and I don’t want him growing up thinking I hate him.  Because I don’t.

Cherie Adan
Matt Thomas
Lang. Arts 9
December 17, 2007

Disclaimer:
This paper does not properly reflect Cherie Adan’s view of The Catcher in the Rye.
In fact, she really does like this book and plans on reading it after she is done reading The Scarlet Pimpernel and The Princess Bride.  Until then she is playing the role of a VERY uptight teenager in the following paper.

Should this “American Classic” be read by students? I don’t think so, and I am positive that others agree. For those of you that have not read this offensive piece of literature, this story is narrated by Holden Caufield, a troubled young boy who has just been kicked out of Pencey, the third school he has attended in the last little while.  What is worse, Holden doesn’t even inform his parents of what has happened.  He doesn’t want to go home for a couple of days so he sticks around in New York until Pencey’s holiday break starts. He spends his time hitting on older women, giving money to prostitutes, and smoking and drinking even though he is underage.  Do you think Caulfield is a good role model?  I didn’t think so.
I am in the middle of reading The Catcher in the Rye and can’t help but notice how inappropriate and negative the main character is in this novel. The ordeals Holden must face like his little  prostitutes incident and his continuous swearing make this book is much to complex for a young reader and far too inappropriate to be on school shelves. Although it is an American classic, I wouldn’t want my child reading such filth. Holden Caulfield is a horrible example to today’s children.
This book is much to powerful for young readers.  The strong language and negativity of Holden could be too much for a student who already has enough stress to handle.  This novel could increase the students negativity, itself.  I know because after having this read to me, I can’t get Holden out of my head.  His attitude towards everyone makes me angry and his language annoys the socks off of me.  Man, I already had enough drama before I even met Holden Caulfield.
J. D. Salinger’s tale of Holden’s adventures in New York are a way inappropriate for todays young students.  He uses unnecessarily foul language to describe the way he feels about a lot of things, and it seems like he is only looking for a way to loose his virginity half of the time.  The only thing good about that is he does respect women and their choices.  I know that when it comes down to it, Holden really is a good guy and everything, but the ideas expressed  in this book, once again are much too inappropriate.
This novel is much too complex for a young reader and shouldn’t be in our schools. Although it is an American classic, I do not respect this book very much. Holden Caulfield is a horrible example to today’s children.  And as a closing to this fabulous paper I have prepared for your grading enjoyment, my last thought that I would like to leave you with is although Catcher in the Rye will be banned because of the thoughts of Holden.

Cherie Adan
Matt Thomas
Language Arts 9,  5th Period
December 3, 2007

When I think about Andy Goldsworthy, I think of perseverance.  Some people may think of colorful, amazing,  artwork made from nature, but I think about  perseverance.  Andy Goldsworthy is a brilliant man,  but like most people he has mistakes.  When he is building one of his “seeds”,  whether it is made out of gray rock, red rock, sticks, or ice he could misplace one little piece and the whole thing could crash down to the ground.  What does he do? He picks it up and starts over again.  That is why I was so inspired by this film.  Even though we all fall down at times in our life, we must get back up and begin again.
When Mr.Goldsworthy gets an idea,  it might come to him on a walk, while he is surrounded by nature.  It could come to him while he is daydreaming at the breakfast table or on an airplane trip to his next destination.  That is how I get some of my ideas, too.   Your head is empty and then, WAM!  An idea pops into your head,  just like that. It’s a simple way to help my mind to grow.   I Just wonder around.
Everything Andy does looks magical, almost as if it wasn’t real.  But then, when you watch him construct his artwork, you realize how talented this man is.  If he needs something, like cement to hold the rocks in place,  or glue to hold something together, he finds a naturally made substitute, that might even work better, especially for him.    For instance,  he just stacks the rocks together hoping they won’t fall down,  and if he makes a leaf chain to float in the water,  he uses thorns.
While I was on the bus the other day coming home from school,  I started thinking about Andy Goldsworthy’s art.I love it how he goes to capture the motion of water through icicle sculptures. He does it to feel connected with nature. His artwork is always a repeating pattern,  colorful leaves in a circle leading to a dark black space,  those egg shaped things he calls seeds,  his colorful leaf chains.   I think he repeats things so he can get better.  It reminds me of how I write papers like this over and over again.  I do it to get better.