satire

       Who chose to have Princess Margaret’s school colours, red, black and white?  Those have got to be the most none matching colours in existence.   It must have been Mr. Becker or Mr. Math Genius as we all like to call him. He must be smart because he writes high school math text books.   Yes, it was him.  He is probably colour blind and all he really is concerned about is white paper, black pencils and red “x’s”!    What are the school colours supposed to mean anyways?   White generally signifies purity.  Does that mean all of the students and teachers at PMSS are angels.  Well, some of us are, but I certainly know a lot that aren’t even close to being angelic! Maybe it’s because white is a neutral colour.  It can match anything.   As for the colour red, that is actually a good choice for a school colour.    When I put on my basketball team jersey, it’s like I magically get all fired up.  I am out for blood on the court.   Red is a very appropriate colour to bring out the aggression in the students on the school teams.  The colour black, well, I’m not sure why in the world you would pick black for a school colour, other than it is a very slimming colour.   Maybe the reason black was chosen is because it makes us feel somber.  Just like at a funeral.  We need to take school seriously and study all the time.    That must have been Mr. Killick’s idea.  He seems to like to act serious all the time.  Every now and then his witty little “redness” comes out and he just can’t hold back his fiery, dry, jokes.  Whatever the reason, the school colours for Princess Margaret Secondary School are red, black and white, it’s still the best high school ever.  

Spoken Word Poetry

      What is spoken word poetry? This type of poetry is projected to an audience. It demonstrates a heavy use of rhythm, improvisation, free association, rhymes, rich poetic phrases, word play and slang. Spoken word is more in your face, trying to get a point across then most poetry.
      "Scraps" is a poem by a young poet named Kioni "Popcorn" Marshall. In this poem Kioni is expressing herself about terrible experiences people face like rape, murder and being abandoned, however the main focus is loneliness. She says "[she's] been feeding off scraps of love ever since you left". The mood she sets is strong, and powerful. You can tell she feels passionate about how other children without a family feel and how they get by alone.
    Shane Koyczan is another poet who is very passionate and powerful. He says to " Be confident. Know that now is only a moment, and that if today is as bad as it gets, understand that by tomorrow, today will have ended" in his poem "Instructions for a Bad Day". This is about that you should always look on the bright side, that "Everyone knows pain. We are not meant to carry it forever". The way Shayne speaks his words it very intense and has the audience tuned right in to what he says. He says "Every nightmare has a beginning, but every bad day has an end.". It is easily relatable because most people have had at least one bad day in there life and we should know that life simply goes on.
    Another different poet is Beau Sia. He is different because a lot of the time he brings humor to his poems. The poem "love" that he wrote is simply about love. he uses his humor and witty attitude to project to the audience how important yet silly love is. "[he] just want[s] to be in the arms
of [his] true love, in a house, in a room, in a wonderful, perfect world with [their] two children". In his poems he speaks the truth and lays everything down, It has a really intense mood, however the humor adds a bit of peace to it as well. He says what's on his mind weather it is a good or bad thing.

I Have a Dream

I have a dream.

There are many feral cats in the city of Penticton.  They roam free and wild and scavenge for food.  Someone needs to save them.  Someone needs to save the citizens from them.  Someone needs to stop these furry little felines from digging in our gardens, and scaring all our birds away.   Who can change this?  I am that person.

Some say they are bothersome.  Some say they are trouble.  Some say they can’t stand them.  But I love them.  If I could, I would become the cat lady of Penticton.  I would love them.  I would nurture them. I would free them from their struggles to survive.

There are resources to aid in the rescue of animals. There are resources to feed and house these animals. There are resources to free these animals from danger.  The SPCA and Critteraid are helpful and foster feral cats until they can find forever homes for them. Forever homes to love and care for these innocent creatures.  Many cats have been left by their owners without a thought to their wellbeing.  It’s as though they are nothing.  Their little lives are meaningless.  They are not meaningless to me.  They are special little beings that bring so much into our lives.  Little beings that are there to love us.  Little beings that are always there beside us.  Who in their right mind could not love a cat?

Animal rescue is expensive.  Animal rescue takes a lot of time and energy.  Animal rescue takes dedication and determination.  We look to the public for help save the unwanted cats in Penticton.  But who wants to help?  Who has the funds to donate?  Who can save them?  We need to do more.

I have a dream that one day, there will be no feral cats roaming the streets of Penticton. A dream that people will be responsible pet owners.  A dream that people will spay and neuter their animals and prevent any more unwanted pets.  There will be gardens that haven’t been used as litter boxes.  There will be flocks of birds feeding safely at Penticton feeders and there will be me, living happily with my 25 rescued cats!

Slim and George sat down at the bar. Slim put a hand on George's shoulder and stated, "Like I said, George, sometimes a guy's gotta".   George rested his head in his hands and sighed.


"I've come here to drown my sorrows", replied George, as a tear rolled down is face. 
 
"There's plenty more fish in the sea", Slim said as he patted George's back. "It's better to have loved and lost, than never to have loved at all"

"That's hogwash Slim, She was the love of my life",  George moaned as he took another sip of his drink.

"For the love of Pete, she really had a face that only a mother could love", replied Slim.   "If you love something set it free, if it comes back it's yours, if it doesn't, it never was".

"How can you be so insensitive man, I thought you were my best friend, " George whined.

"Well, true love means you never have to say you're sorry",  Slim responded.

"I know, George sheepishly said, but with love, all things are possible".  "I thought that love conquers all".

"Well, you were wrong George, Slim snapped,  love hurts, love is blind and love bites!  Now snap out of it!" 

"Thanks buddy, I guess it's true misery loves company and I'm so glad your here trying to cheer me up".  George reluctantly replied.


"Way to go George,  a friend in need is a friend in deed, and I'm here for you.   Let's go talk to Bob, he's funny.  He can cheer you up. After all, laughter is the best medicine".  Slim joking responded.

"I guess I'm footloose and fancy free!" exclaimed George as they walked out the door.

 I walked into the hospital waiting room and sat down, desperate for some good news about my best friend. As I sat there, my eyes gazed around the room. The walls were a dingy,  dusty blue color, with what had to be over 50 posters advertising vaccinations and other drugs no one has heard of,  tacked to them. There was a women and what appeared  to be her daughter sitting in the chairs across from me. We all sat in silence listening to the dull hum of all the monitors throughout the hospital.  We flinched with the sound of each alarm from the medical machines.  It felt like I had been waiting there for an eternity.  Anxiety grew within me.  My mouth was dry, it tasted like cotton balls. I moved my tongue around trying to soak up any ounce of saliva that I had. Scents of lemon sanitizer filled the air.   The citrus scent did nothing to mask the putrid smell of the room.  My stomach was queasy.   I didn't know if it was from worry or from the artificial lemon scent that hung in the air.    I could see the young girl trembling as she leaned against her mother.    A doctor entered the room and cautiously walked over to the mother and daughter.   The hushed whisper of the doctor brought relief to their faces.  Tears welled up in my eyes as I watched them leave the room.   Their warmth down my face was anything but comforting.  I sat alone in silence.  The hum from the monitors seemed to turn into growls and began to roar in my head.  My ears were aching and I thought I was going to explode.  I stood up to try to clear my  head, but immediately fell back into my seat.  My head was spinning like a merry  go round unable to stop.  Then a  young doctor peaked inside the room and motioned me to come.  The smile on her face told me that everything was going to be all right.

The Quick Brush Up

        One heartening morning, a heathly baby girl arrives. They call her Callan Cooper. She may seem a bit apprehensive when you first witness her, however as time goes on she will surprise you. Leisurely Callan will go from your quiet companion who keeps to herself to that irritating human being who wont pipe down. Other then talking and being social Callan also enjoys many other things in her spare time. Athletics are an important element in her daily life: Volleyball, Basketball, snowboarding, or just a light jog down the street acopanied by her dog. Being with people adore her. Friends and family are an important aspect in Callans daily grind. She loves to be with her friends from school, nonetheless its also considered a superb day to simply kick back with her 3 cats and dog on a sunday afternoon. Adventurous she does what she loves, aside from those quiet afternoons once in a while. Portrayed as an easy going loud mouth Callan is commonly just your mediocre teenaged girl with dreams she wants to persue. Getting through living life in the fast lane.

The Secret Life of Bees- Part 2

      I like most of the characters in the novel "The Secret Life Of Bees" accept June Boughtwright is sort of strange. She is incredibly negative all the time and doesnt seem like a happy person. She should be setting a good example and have a good mood for her sister May. Mays twin sister passed away which made May completly different, like something in her died as well. 
       June also has a boyfriend who keeps asking to marry her and she keeps saying no when shes been with him forever and she clearly loves him. She gets into a fight right in front of May, and she looked rigvht at her and continued her argument. It sent her sister into a fit. I thought that was completly inconsiderate because she knew that May was listening and that when May hears or sees people upset she gets sad. I think that by her seeing this sparked Mays thought of suicide.
     When Lily and Rosaleen come to stay with the boughtwright sisters June is very unwelcoming. Augest and May are happy to have extra company with the two, however June seems distant. It bugged me when Augest, May, Rosaleen and Lily were outside having a good time and They told June to come out to, but she just stayed on the Porch with a sour look on her face.
     I understand if she is hurt to from the death of her sister April but the rest of the bunch are trying to continue in a good life, she however doesnt try at all. Its frustrating to read because the rest of the women are so full of life and she just distances herself. She could be having a fantastic life with her lovely sisters and a loving husband, which is what everyone wants, however she chooses not to and no body knows why.