On Your Mark, Get Set…GO!

Here’s a shout-out to East Liberty, Homewood, Friendship, and Shadyside on Sunday during the Pittsburgh Marathon!  I am particular to them because they carried me through all 6.1 miles of my relay leg.  Everyone was out enjoying the beautiful weather, cheering us on as we thundered through their neighborhoods in our running shoes and sweat.  Music blasting from the street corners, lyrics joining the cheers and encouragement as it pounded through our blood.  Even now, a few days later, I am still affected by the support of the neighborhoods, and as spectators they certainly deserve 1^st place!

As you may have already guessed, cross-country running is my go-to, but it doesn’t stop me from enjoying many other recreational sports or activities.  (WARNING: I like them but it doesn’t mean I’m any good ) What’s got you hooked, your heart-racing adrenaline taking over?  As a spectator or a contender, the emotion of an event can be rather exciting!  Whether it is basketball, football, hockey, golf, tennis, volleyball, or some other cool activity, you’ll be sure to find fans and players alike are all rooting for the big WIN!  If you are the type that prefer to do computer whiz fun, getting artsy, or gaming (don’t worry, I didn’t forget you either) check out the sweet things that will get you up and running, too!  (Well, maybe not literally…)

Ultimate Sports: Short Stories by Outstanding Writers for Young Adults edited by Donald R. Gallo

  Sixteen original sports stories featuring young men and women playing basketball and football, running track and cross-     country, and training for the triathlon, as well as participating in water sports, raquetball, tennis, boxing, wrestling, and the ultimate sport of the future.

 

Guide to Outdoor Sports edited and written by Jonathan Hanson and Roseann Beggy Hanson

   All you need to get started camping, dayhiking, backpacking,
mountain biking, sea kayaking, canoeing, river running,
cross-country skiing, and climbing. 

 

 

“An athlete cannot run with money in his pockets.  He must run with hope in his heart and dreams in his head.”  ~Emil Zatopek

Teen Review: The Extraordinary Secrets of April, May and June

Tawnya – Hi, I’m sixteen and currently attending cyber school as a sophomore for the first time. I like to try new things and express myself in creative ways. Writing is something I’ve always loved to do in school, and i adore reading, so this volunteer opportunity was a calling for me. It’s great to meet new people, and I’m glad to share a little bit about myself. I’ll be giving you the most honest reviews I can, and i hope you can trust my opinion. My friends tend to call me a bookworm, but you can call me Tawnya

The Extraordinary Secrets of April, May and June by Robin Benway

The Extraordinary Secrets of April, May and June is a great book. If you like to read books with a teen voice, complete with slang and down to earth personalities, you’ll love the writing style. It’s about three sisters named April, May and June who discover that they have amazing abilities. Throughout the story, you get to experience the perspective of each sister, which is something unusual about the book, but it keeps the reader entertained. This was written for the female teen crowd; so naturally, there’s drama, boys and lessons learned through each sister.

The book also has an element of humor. If you like sarcasm, May is definitely your girl. If you’re smart and responsible, you’ll love April. If you just like shopping and having a bunch of friends, June will feel like a best friend. If you can relate to all three, that’s even better!

I suggest you pick this book up when you have an open afternoon, because I finished it in one sitting.

Teen review: No and Me by Delphine de Vigan

Caroline – I am a 16-year-old from Point Breeze and a junior in high school. Along with reading and listening/singing along to music, my hobbies include journaling, chemistry, and fencing.

No and Me by Delphine de Vigan

begin blog:

As the weather gets cooler (well, it’s not yet, although it should be!), we open up our drawers to reveal stacks of sweatshirts, jeans, and bright fuzzy socks. We toss on our Northfaces, pull on our Uggs, and turn the heat up. We dread waking up for school in winter because it means getting out from under the covers.

Imagine if you had none of that. No heat, no fresh pair of socks, no nothing.

Thirteen-year-old Lou is your everyday girl on the surface. She’s shy, English presentations give her chills, the boy sitting next to her, Lucas, fills her with that warm excitement of love, and she dreams of the day when being popular will seem like second nature. Deep down, however, quirks abound. Analyzing peoples’ emotions at the train station, keeping her things in order, and comparing the labels of frozen food packages are only a few of her hobbies. These quirks come into play when she decides to do her English presentation on the homeless. At the train station that day, a girl who calls herself No (short for Nolwenn) unexpectedly strikes up a conversation with Lou, who realizes that No is homeless. The timing couldn’t have been more perfect. Lou talks almost every day with this girl to get the information she needs for her English project. Gradually, the girls become friends, and No reveals her day-to-day life – having to constantly move about, the trouble with soup kitchens and emergency shelters, the difficulty finding a place to sleep, and even doing nothing all day. Lou begins to mull over the fact that, despite how incredibly advanced the world is, even with all our fascinating scientific discoveries, we can still let people live and die, freezing on the street. Recognizing her once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, Lou takes the leap and invites No to live with her. Permanently.

I’m sure you can guess how the rest goes. Everything goes well – No gets a job, Lou’s overly depressed mother starts to come back to life – until something goes wrong. No, having no experience, is struggling with her horrible new job and constantly loses hope. Lou’s father tells No that she has to leave, so Lou sneaks her over to Lucas’s house, and No stays there until she loses her job. Afterwards she does nothing but sleep, drink, and grow more depressed. Eventually she runs away and Lou never sees her again. Feeling abandoned, Lou has to come to grips with the fact that you can’t do everything. You can’t save the world, and it will never be perfect. You can’t force people to go against their nature, and it’s hard to change their habits. Lou did the best she could and that’s all she could have, but she learned a valuable lesson in a unique way. It’s a lesson that could have been pounded into her head, but she had to see for herself to believe it.

A few notes: first of all this book is set in France, and there were a few things that I noticed. For instance, there was mention of an abortion law – apparently if you are past your first trimester you aren’t allowed to get an abortion in France. There were also plenty of mentions to Parisian landmarks that I had never heard of before. It was a great aspect of the book though because it knocked you slightly out of your comfort zone without the usual references to Rockefeller Center and such.

Also, I thought the best part of the book was the characterization and portrayal of emotions: When someone was upset, you could picture exactly what it was like, and it was easy to bond with the characters. I especially loved Lou’s quirks and almost wish I had them. If you like non-shallow characters, definitely take a look at this book. Even if you prefer shallow characters with no emotion or personality (umm….) check out this book, as it is highly enjoyable.

So the next time you find yourself groaning because you have to get out of your deliciously cozy bed, think of No. Step outside your own world and do it for her.

end blog.