max+journal

//Boy Of The Painted Cave

September 28/06

1.I am good at computer games. 2.I feel like I am awesome, and able to beat anything or anyone. 3.I would be very sad, and lay bored in my room listening to the radio all day everyday.

October 3/06 Chapter 1 1.)what are some problems presented in chapter1? a.)Tao loves art, but it is taboo in his tribe. b.)There is little food for the tribe

2.)Predict the resolution of these problems. a.)Tao becomes tribe leader b.)They find a mammoth

Chapter 2

1.)What two important things happened in this chapter a.)He helped the wolf dog with the bone stuck in his mouth b.)He went into the Slough

Chapter 3 1.) Tao and Ram learn to hunt together in the slough 2.)He decides to live in a cave alone, and hunt alone, bringing home all the food he finds 3.)i think that boy is insane. he is deformed and he doesnt listen to me ever! now he thinks he is going to hunt alone? hah. more importantly, he thinks he can live alone, and provide food for himself and the clan? he wont last a day out there. but this will test him and his intellect well. maybe by the end, he will have learned his lesson. but if he comes back a slacker like before, we will send him to the slough and let him face the demons. or worse yet, saxon the bull.

chapter 8

1. a boy is about to go to college. he wants to get a degree in communications so he can work on the radio, his lifelong dream. but his father wants him to major in physics, and get a docterate. his father says he is disssapointed in his son for not living up to him. he argues he will make alot of money, but His Dad wont budge.

2. He should be able to do he wants.

Chapter 9 1.Graybeard changed his mind because he identifies with tao. as he was a child he probably loved to draw too. 2.It means he is generous and kind. He could be killed just for showing tao how to draw well. but he did any way. i call that nice.

Chapter 11 1. Yes, because he is stern and doesnt budge untill somthing is done right. 2. no, because i do not react well to those kind of teachers:).

Eragon(free reading book)

Chapter 1

Quote: Eragon was fifteen, less then a year away from manhood....A hunting knife with a bone handle was sheathed at his belt, and a buckskin tube protected his yew bow from the mist.

Comment: I picked this quote because it reminds you of how different the times are from the book and now.When I picture a knife with a bone handle, it sounds primative. When I think about the fact that at sixteen you are in manhood, it's a little hard for me to relate to. The life expectancy was less than half of what it is today so it makes sense that Eragon seemed more mature.

Chapter 2

Quote: "Well, the mighty hunter joins the rest of us mortals. how many did you bag?"

comment: Sloan, the butcher said this sarcastically to humiliate Eragon. The funny thing is, when you think about it,had Eragon not angered this person, the person would not have ratted him out to the Empire, and then the Empire would not have killed his family. The story pretty much starts with him wanting revenge. Had that one conversation gone differently, it may have been a completely alternate story.

Chapter 3

Quote:" Whoever shaped it used tools I have never seen-or magic. Also, its hollow."

Comment: It's hard to believe that what they thought was just a pretty stone that they could sell for money turned out to be the dragon egg which led to Eragon to discover this anceint legacy. It was really what started the whole adventure.

Chapter 4 Quote: Eragon could imagine no worse way for the truth to come out, so he decided to preempt it by explaining everything to them.

commentL: In this quote he is talking about his family finding out about the fact that he now owns a dragon. He is saying it would be best if he told them, rather that letting them find out on their own. This may have caused them to be afraid and also feel hurt or betrayed.

Chapter 5

Quote:" At first the riders were intended merely as a means of communication between the elves and the dragons.

comment: I really couldn't believe that at first dragon riders were just basically mailmen. Later they evolved into warrior/police/mailmen. They were made into kings, warriors, mages, lawmakers,lawkeepers. They were highly respected.

Chapter 6

quote: " Do what you will; it is yours." said Garrow "I've nothing else to give you but a fathers blessing. take it if you wish, but it is worth little."

comment: Unforunatly, he is not talking about Eragon's dragon (so far, I don't think they ever will) he is talking about Eragon's cousin, Roran, who is moving to work in a mill. I think Garrow was somewhat right, but a fathers blessing is worth something,peace of mind. If you leave with your dad angry because he said no and you left anyway, you would never live it down. Because he gave his blessing, Roran could have a clean consience.

Chapter 7

quote: "Uncle!" Eragon ran to the wreckage, hnting through the destroyed rooms for Garrow. there was no sign of him.

comment: This was a really intense part of the book. Eragon was terrified and feared the worst. Although Garrow was his uncle, he was just like a father to him. He didn't want anything bad to happen to him but couldn't deny what had obviously happened.

Chapter 8

quote:"Who are you?" demanded eragon, suddenly bitter "how come a mere village story teller happens to have a riders sword?"

comment: He is talking about Brom, who later turns out to be a rider. He was getting really frustrated because Brom kept saying mysterious things. He would say something but not explain it all the way so Eragon became suspicious of him and didn't trust him.

Chapter 9

Quote:"before I can truly answer your question, you need a basic education on the subject of dragons."

comment; Eragon got sick of Brom talking iin circles. He started getting really mad and demanded to be told everything immediately, which made Brom upset. If you see it through eragons eyes, his village has burned down, this story teller has a riders sword, and instead of explaining it, he teaches him about dragons.

Chapter 10

Quote: what does our existance mean wen it can end like this? a wave of hopelessness over came him

comment: After his uncle died Eragon felt reallly confused and kind of lost. He was very sad. He never knew his real parents. It made me kind of depressed. it is interesting though.

Chapter 11

quote:" I feel like i've been thrust into a world with strange rules that no one will explain."

comment: He kind of felt overwhelmed. And because Brom wasn't being really clear about what his destiny was and telling him everything he needed to know, he didn't know what to do. It was really frustrating even reading it. Chapter 12

Quote:"He took a deep breath and reached into the farthest corners of his consciousness, trying to find where his power resided."

comment: I thought this was a cool part of the story. He was being guided to tap into his powers that he didn't even know he had. He was new at it and struggling to figure it out. Who wouldn't want to have some kind of magical powers?

Chapter 13

Quote: Every time I learn something new about magic, I grow more wary of it.

comment: When Eragon said this he was referring to the power to break into a persons mind. I think he was pretty impressed with the things he found out he could do. He was getting a little bit of a power trip but also slightly scared by the possibilities of what these powers could mean.

Chapter 14

Quote:"Like diamonds in a pig trough" said Brom

comment: I think this is an analogy about how impossible this rare oil was going to be for them to find. They needed this information in order to find the identity of the people or person that killed his uncle and destroyed his village.

Chapter 15

Quote:"Who are you calling an old man? The last time I saw you there was no gray in your hair. Now it looks like it's in the final stages of decomposition."

Comment: Brom is saying this because his friend, jeod said some thing along the lines of "how you doing,old man." they are two friends who have not seen eachother in a lon time, joking around. This quote tells you how old brom is. last time he saw his friend, their was no gray in his hair, and now it sounds like his friend is balding.

The GIver

Chapter 1

quote: " it was one of the rituals, the evening telling of feelings.....Their parents, of course, were part of the ritual; they, too, told their feelings each evening...."

comment: I picked this quote because I can relate to it, as it is like the ritual me and my family have. We tell about our days, usually getting into things like "how did that make you feel?", so it is like a more complicated version of theirs.

Chapter 2

quote: ".... her father had already gone to the shelf and taken down the stuffed elephant which was kept there. Many of the comfort objects, like Lily's, were soft, stuffed, imaginary creatures. jonas's had been called a bear."

comment: there are so many things wrong with that quote, i can't name all of them. but I can name the obvious ones. imaginary? if i haden't already finished this book, i'd be weirded out. it turns out that animals don't exist in the communitie. exept for fish which are more sanitary than cows, so they are a econnomicaly-safe food.

Chapter 3

quote: "... the piece of fruit- well, this was the part he didn't adequitly understand- it just changed. just for an instant...."

comment:When you've finished reading the book as i have, you would know the change was him seeing color. If you are at this point in the book, you are wondering every second of your life, what it is, untill you get to the answer in the book. they have a lot of those inThe Giver. I think thats a good quality in a book.

Chapter 4

quote: " The freedom of choice where to spend those hours had always seemed a wonderful luxury to Jonas; the other hours of the day were so carefully regulated."

comment: If Jonas thinks that is so good, imagine when you are out of school and have all of the day as free hours! Although, I could use a little (ok, a lot) of structure. Structure is good, in a learning environment, and in our day to day lives.

Chapter 5

quote: " ATTENTION. A REMINDER THAT STIRRINGS MUST BE REPORTED IN ORDER FOR TREATMENT TO TAKE PLACE."

comment: It really stinks that people have to take pills so they can't love(if you could call it love.). Acctually, i think it kills all emotions. that really stinks.

chapter 6

quote:" like the matching of spouses and the naming and placement of newchildren, the assignments were scrupulously thought through by the committie of elders.

comment: by now in The Giver you'd be used to wierd stuff. accually, it's like online dating sorta. they find a perfect match for someone and they get married.

chapter 7

quote: ".....'I want my smack'... the disipline wand....whistled as it came across ashers hands...'snacks' he whispered."

comment: it is bad that they hit 3 year olds with wands for saying smacks instead of snacks. just hitting kids is bad, but 3 year olds! they only want the kids to grow up smart and raise kids. they don't really care about emotions.

chapter 8

quote: "... if during the process, an elder reports a dream of uncertinty, that dream has the power to set a candidate aside instantly.

comment: that shows you how important the job is, if a dream of uncertanty is reported, that they need a new one. that is very wierd. if you are just reading this, than you need too keep reading. it is because of the fact that there are a lt of those that made me finish on the first night, instead of with the class (sorry mrs. zana).

chapter 9

quote:".. 7. you are not permitted to apply for release."

comment: when i read this, i remembered it, because why would something like that be in the rules for no reason?( for any one wondering, they do tell you.)

chapter 10

quote:"... we have hard and painful work to do..."

comment: i thought, "wait, if he is in a small room with an old guy, how is it hard and painful??" well i was suprised, and anyone who reads this will be, about what happens

chapter 11

quote: it wasn't a practical thing, so it became obsolete when we went to sameness.

comment: although it sucks to say it, it probobly is more practical to have no weather.

chapter 12

quote:... you are begining to see the color red."

comment: so he was seeing color when the things just change. he sees color. weird. and no one else can, because of sameness.(dont ask me how they do it.)

MARCH READING JOURNAL

Free Reading book: House of the scorpions

Quote 1

quote: ..... and reached for the needle that would blunt its intelligence. "Don't fix that one,"....

comment: Still, where I am in the book, which is pretty far, they still haven't explained why the clones were given shots to make them stupid. Although that redeems Matt all the more, as he was the only clone ever to keep his brain. It is a quality that makes Matt seem better, like a color with another contrasting color in the backround.

Quote 2

quote: " I didn't think anyone was allowed to live in the opium fields."

comment:At this point and time I realized they were drug manufacturers, although I should have pieced it together when he talked about the poppy fields, as poppy plants are what make opium. It was pretty weird when you think of it as a drug cartel, later in the story. It really made me lose respect for them. They were too intelligent to do something so dumb.

Quote 3

quote: "This is creepy! The window's nailed shut. What are you, some kind of prisoner?"

comment: This is the point in the plot when you realize something is amiss. What you thought was a little boy being raised and protected by his guardian in a reasonable way turns out to be much more complicated. Extreme measures are being taken bordering on paranoid. I understood how valuable this clone must be.

Quote 4

quote: "That's disgusting. Clones aren't people."

comment: I think it's strange that there is such a hatred for clones. People didn't know that the clones were being injected with some kind of drug that affected their brains and wiped out any intelligence. They thought of them only as animals.

Quote 1

quote: "That's what dirty beasts get to live in."

comment: This character was talking about big mounds of saw dust she had spread all over Matt's room, like litter in a cat box. I was shocked by this treatment and thought it was really creepy. The caretaker obviously resented having to take care of him and she treated him really badly.

Quote 2

quote: "...his skin condition I would say, comes from a combination of dirt and a allergic reaction to chicken litter."

comment: The doctor is talking about the rash that Matt had all over his body because of the contaminated conditions he was forced to live in. This is how El Patron knew his suspicions were true about Matt's caretaker treating him badly. He was really upset and fired the caretaker right away.

Quote 3

quote: "An eejit is a person or animal with an implant in its' head."

comment: Matt was thinking his teacher was really bizare and he was confused. Tam Lin, Matt's personal body guard, is explaining to him why his teacher is only able to repeat the same lesson over and over robotically. It was funny because he just said exactly the same things every day.

Quote 4

quote: "This is a place of shadows and evil!"

comment: El Patron's grandson is saying this because he doesn't want to be kept alive by using body organs from clones. This is just another clue about all the bad things going on under the surface. The more I read the more I see a whole other side to the wealthy uperclass setting.

Quote 5

quote: "El Patron is 143 today."

Comment: This one really freaked me out. It also freaked out maria, who matt was talking to.

Quote 6

quote: "It's the law. Don't ask me why. I can't tell you."

Comment: Celia is reffering to the fact that clones get their brains destroyed when matt asks her about it. I am compairing this to quote 1 because it backs my theory why the clones get their brains destroyed isn't menitioned in the book. oh, wait, I remember why. more on this later.

Quote 7

quote: "How can you possibly apologize for killing her dog?"

comment: When you first read that he plans to drug and kidnap a girls dog, you start to realize he is 11 now and getting older, to do something like this. It makes you have a little (not a lot) less pity for him when he is framed for killing the dog.

Quote 8

quote:" Felicia poisoned furball."

comment: see! Matt was framed! ( Furball was maria's dog's name) no one expected frail, alcoholic, drugged up felicia would kill a dog, just for fun. that is sick.

Quote 9

quote: A more evil, vicious, and self-serving man could hardly be imagined.

comment: this is esparonza's ( a writer) opinon of el patron. matt was deeply desturbed when he read this. but reading on gives him info that he will use to piece together what is happening, and save himself.

Quote 10

quote: "It's a shame a school bus pulled up at the wrong moment," said Hugh. " The blast killed twenty kiddies."

comment: He's talking about tam lin. if matt was shocked when they revealed he was an ex-terrorist, imagine what happened to him after this.

Quote 11

quote: "In the end, they're only rocks."

comment: El patron on diamonds. I've thought like that before, like why do people kill each other over gold, which is basicly just a pretty stone. Then I thought, not because of the gold, but because of the money it sells for. El patron is so rich, he nows sees it as a shiny rock, worthless compaired to what he has.

Quote 1

quote: El patron had created clones to provide himself with transplants.

comment: At first this sounds like a big thing, and it is. but the second I was done with this sentence, I knew ahead of time what revelation matt would realize next. Although realizing and believing are different things, with only the difference of cold, hard facts. and those took a long time to appear.

Quote 2

quote: "Be Felipe for him."

comment: This is when you remember how old El Patron is. he is forgetting who he is, (not forgetting he is matteo alacran, forgetting what time in his life it is.) and calling matt "felipe", who was El Patron's now long dead son. when matt asks celia what to do, she tells him to be felipe for El Patron. She says the old man can't handle any surprises or shocks.

Quote 3

quote: " He's considered good enough to marry me!" Maria said.

comment: This all happened when matt was saying mean things about tom. Maria then blurts out she is being forced to marry tom. she won't get to back out of it, as tom's older brother had an erranged bride. she said she would rather drink cyanide then marry him. then they drugged her untill she didn't know what was happening, and now they're married.

Quote 4

quote: "No you can't. He needs a new heart if he's going to survive, and there's only one place to get it."

comment: Maria was having a conversation with Matt after he witnesses El Patron having a massive heart attack. Matt was telling her that if El Patron survived he would be free to come out of hiding. He was hiding because he finally discovered the true reason for his existance....to harvest vital organs. Maria is telling him to stay in hiding so he won't be destroyed. Matt felt betrayed but still wanted to hold out hope that this wasn't true despite the facts facing him. He wanted to believe that El Patron loved him and would never hurt him.

Quote 5

quote: "... Don't you think i'm owed those lives?!?"

comment: El patron was telling the same old story to matt, about how is 8 siblings died. then, he screamed this. Matt was also about to give the transplant, so he can't back out.

Quote 6

quote:" So I began feeding him arsenic."

comment: So celia poisoned matt, not enough to kill him, but enough to make his heart unuseable. it's at ths point in the book whered you realize that tam lin and celia were in on this the whole time.

Quote 7

book: catcher in the rye

quote: Sometimes I act a lot older than I am-I really do-but people never notice it. People never notice anything.

comment: The main character bitterly viewing the fact that everyone notices your mistakes (Not acting his age, in this case.) but no one notices your acheivments. I think this is true, and intelligent

Quote 8

book:house of the scorpions

quote: He had no backpack,no money, and he was covered from head to toe in black slime.

APRIL READING JOURNAL

comment: matt, saying he will have no trouble convincing the people that he was a refugee. I feel that he is correct, as normally, having lived the life of the son of a billonare, he wouldn't fit in.

book: house of the scorpians

quote:"Crot the good of the people." comment: this is a boy at the place where the kids go if their parents are killed by the farm patrol. he is being rebelious. crot is a swear their, meaning zombies, or eejits. I feel this is bad, as these kids should feel privileged to be here, alive, but I also understand, because these kids also have not had good lives, and, in their sadness, lash out.

quote: "you mean they don't feed you here?!? "sure they do, if you produce enough work..."

comment: when i read this i was appalled. this is like a slave factory, only no slaves, just orphans. If the kids are slow, then they might starve.

MAY READING JOURNAL

Date: may 1 Book: charlie bone Author: page number quote 1: "no, but you said someone wanted to adopt me."

comment: The evil head of the acadamy is forcing a seven year old orphan to spy for him, saying he will give the boy parents. At first I didn't like the boy, but then I realized that he is being tricked. the head doesn't even remember he was going to get billy (the boy) adopted.

Date:may 2 Book: charlie bone and the time twister Author:jenny nimmo Page Number: 63 Quote 2: "Hold on," he said."D'you mean you can hear whats going on in photographs?" Comment: that is charlie bone's power. a little wierd. wouldn't you give the main character a cool power like super strengh or mind reading? well, at least it's origanal.

Date:may 3 Book:same Author:same Page Number:271 Quote 3:".....Your uncle was run over!"

Comment: when it turns out it was one of charlie's aunts who did this, you realized that they are really evil. before you just thought that they were mean. now you find out they are just..evil.

Date:May 21 Book:westing game Author:ellen Page Number: Quote 4: each pair will recieve $10,000 Comment:i wondered why he gave them that, i guess because they all were going to work hard to win. then i relized that the murderer was in their, and he just payed the murderer, who i guess will be caught, which is a point of the game.

Date:june 4th Book: Half-moon investigations Author:Eoin Colfer Page Number:102 Quote 5:" im an arsonist? me?" Comment: fletcher moon went to a girl he know's yard to get her camera and take a photo of some evidence. he found the yard on fire, then he was knocked out and had the torch in his hand when he woke up. this is the major event that sets up the basis for the whole book.

Date:june 5th Book:charlie bone and the invisible boy Author:Jenny Nimmo Page Number:83 Quote 6" Yolanda is now more than a hundred, and she can still take the shape of a twelve year old girl" Comment: this means that charlies great great aunt is back, and she is the one who made his aunts evil. that means bad things will happen. a lot of bad things.

Date: june 6th Book: half-moon investigations Author:Eoin Colfer Page Number:220 Quote 7:"no, im not going to jail..." Comment:this is the dad of the sharkey family, basicly a crime family in lock. even the 10 year old steals and ditches class. it is very bad, and they are fighting about whether they should straiten up, at least with the 10 year old.

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Hinduism and Buddhism: Religions of India

Hinduism and Buddhism are two very large religions that started as long ago as ancient India, the place they were made in. Despite the fact they were both from the same place, around the same time, they are very different. But they also have many similarities, which you will read about in the next part of the essay. Buddhism is a large religion. But some people believe Buddhism is a lifestyle, not a religion. The truth in this statement depends on your view on what qualifies as a religion. If your idea of a religion is the belief in a god or gods, Buddhism is not a religion. It has no gods, or beliefs on creation. But, if your definition of a religion is many beliefs that define the lifestyle, than it is. More people must believe in the second one though, as Buddhism is the fourth largest religion in the world, behind Hinduism. With such a large following, Buddhism has become a major religion. And all of the followers are very dedicated. They can’t hurt or kill any living thing, and they must be vegetarian, so they can’t eat any meat, just plants, like fruit and vegetables. Some Buddhists are so devoted to their religion, they become vegan, which means they not only won’t eat animals, they won’t use animal products at all. And you would be surprised, the number of products you can’t use when you make that choice. One more thing Buddhists focus on is meditating. Meditating is when you think deeply or focus your mind, sometimes in silence, or with chanting. They feel that if you meditate enough, you will reach enlightenment, or happiness through the knowledge of deep truth. Buddhists have many values. They follow the four noble truths and the eight-fold path, which was recorded by the Buddha himself, prince Siddhartha Guatama. He reached enlightenment through following these, which is the goal of all Buddhists Hinduism is the other religion of ancient India. It is larger than Buddhism, as it is the third largest religion in the world. It has many similar beliefs; such as both religions believe people go through many lives. In Buddhism, when you are enlightened, you stop having more lives. In Hinduism, when you have learned enough from your past lives you stop going through lives, or samsara. See any similarities? They are similar, probably because Hinduism came first, and the Buddha, Siddhartha Guatama was born and raised Hindu. Many of the beliefs in Buddhism reflect on that.

Hindus believe in karma. But to understand it, you have to first understand the caste system. The caste system is what they use to determine jobs, and it also made prejudice. The classes of caste are Priest, Warrior, Merchant, and Workers. The higher up they are, the more respect and money they get. And you always married and stayed in your caste. If you were the son of a warrior, you have no choice; you will be a warrior, and the same for the rest.

Karma is the Hindu belief that all is fair. They believe that if you are good in one life, you will be rewarded in the next, like being born into a higher caste. But if you are bad, you will be born in a lower caste, or worse, as an animal. Hindus also believe in dharma, which just means the values they follow. Hindus also have gods, a creator, a preserver, and a destroyer for the universe. And they have many other gods as well. To wrap this up, Hindus and Buddhists both have values, beliefs, many of which are similar. They make up a large portion of the world, as they are the third and fourth largest religions. But they aren’t all alike, as they differ on many points. So from ancient India to current times, Hinduism and Buddhism are popular religions with a rich history.

THE END Bibliography

1.Bahree, Patricia. The Hindu world. Morristown, N. J: Silver Burdett company, 1986. 2.Bancroft, Anne. The Buddhist World. Morristown, N.J: Silver Burdett company, 1985. 3.Frey, Wendy. History Alive!. Palo Alto: TCI, 2004. 4. Wikipedia ,