Anton’s Blog

Mountain biking was a difficult but a very entertaining experience. I did the advanced mountain biking course. I ride a bike to school and, I go up very steep hills on the way, so I felt as though I was up for it. When I met up with my group, the instructor, and Dan were there to talk to us a little about Biking. After the talk we got into a circle to do some stretches. Some of the stretches I have never done before, and stretched muscles that I did not even know existed. After the stretching we had assigned bikes. I had bike number 14.

At first we started with the very basics. Some of the things sounded easy, like breaking, and changing gears. But actually it took some time getting used to doing those things. The breaks on the mountain bike were very good. I would barley press down the break and the bike would come to a complete stop. The bike I ride in Yokohama, has really bad breaks. On my bike the you have to press down the brakes all the way for the bike to come to a stop. So if someone got in my way and I had to stop immediately in the city I would press the breaks pretty hard. But the bikes at NorthStar had breaks that would make you stop after only pressing down the breaks a little. We were ridding around NorthStar as a group and, somebody was about to hit me so I pressed down the breaks like I would with my bike at home, and the bike stopped so hard I almost fell off.

We went around cones to get ready for the course we were about to go on. We practiced going down hills and the techniques to keep your balance while doing so. It was a lot more challenging than I thought. After doing some practice we went on the course. We went on a normal path, what I was used to. There was a gray sky and the ground was a little wet from the rain that morning. When we started going through the course which was muddy narrow and surrounded by forest, it became very difficult to ride the bike. The path was not at all smooth like the roads I go on in the city. The path sometimes had rocks which got in the way and made the path feel very narrow. There was a time when the path was next to a steep hill where if you fall you could seriously injure your self. I bumped into a rock and was so close to falling down that steep hill. I was very lucky. What I enjoyed was the nature around us. It was so clean. Not a single piece of trash on the ground.

We went back to NorthStar and on our way, I thought that riding a bike on regular pavement is very easy. Especially after going through a course filled with turns hills and very narrow spaces. When we got back to NorthStar, the instructer did a cool jump, and got high up for a bike. I felt good to do the advanced course and challenge my self to do something difficult.

The environment at NorthStar was very pleasant. Unlike the city, It was very quite at night. In the city there will always be some sort of noise that you can hear. But up in the mountains at Northstar there were times when you just could not hear anything. One night, the group was going to go star watching. Unfortunately the clouds were in the way so we could not look up into the sky for stars. So instead we were told to be silent and try to hear sounds that would come to the forest. I could not hear anything. Not the slightest thing. It was one of the first times in my life where I just could not hear anything. Which was interesting but it felt very awkward to hear nothing.

When we went on our hike through nature, there was not a single piece of trash left on the ground. The air was fresh and completely clean. It was very easy to breath. The only man made thing were the trail. Although it was very cold, it was great to see such a clean and beautiful place. The colors of the leaves were amazing. It was so relaxing to just look at the colors the flow through the trees. Water in the rivers looked clean and looked good to maybe even drink(I am not sure if you would actually be able to though) The group was hiking the whole day. It was more like a walk for the whole day. It got very tiring but it was worth going. After you go back home to Yokohama, you can tell the difference in the air.

At NorthStar there was a game room with a Foosball Table, Air Hockey and a Ping Pong table. The great thing about having a game room was that there was always something to do during free time. The game room was a highlight of field studies. After a whole day of different activities we would all go to the game room and play games. I would play ping pong.

I did not like foosball or air hockey. Foosball was not interesting. The air hockey machine was very old and did not function properly. But ping pong was fun because, I have played ping pong with my friends in the past. Ping Pong was relaxing because you do not have to move around much and there are techniques that can make the ping pong ball spin and change direction. Playing Ping pong at NorthStar was a good activity to do, because it seemed to bring people together. There was only one table so you would have to wait a while to play one  five point game. But if you won you would stay on and play until you lose again. Many people played Ping Pong. We would sit around in the chairs waiting and watching a game of Ping Pong.

It became very competitive. At first we were playing because it was a total joke. Then as people started to get better, more and more people got better because no one wanted to wait for ages to play a single Ping Pong game. I had to wait a lot of the time. I think it was a great activity. We would have music and Ping Pong in the evening which is really relaxing. It was real fun spending time with friends doing something that everybody was capable of doing to a certain degree.

Seiya is the name of one of the staff at NorthStar. The first time I met Seiya was when the group was having dinner on the first night. He sat down next to me and started to eat right away. I had no idea about what kind of person he was at that point. He was wearing glasses and a hat with a flat bill to it, and was eating away. So I just started talking to my friends who were sitting at my table. The dinning room was filled with posters and postcards from Hawaii. Which was strange because, NorthStar was in the middle of Nagano, up in the mountains. My friend who was sitting across from me asked Seiya why there were posters of Hawaii. Seiya did not seem to have heard my friend correctly. He answered “say what”. My friend asked him again, and Seiya said because the person who runs NorthStar (Dan) loves Hawaii and surfing. We got into a conversation about snowboarding, skateboarding, and surfing. Seiya said that he snowboards and apparently quite well. Seiya talked about some of the injuries he has had doing snowboarding. He pulled up his jeans to show all the bruises he had on his legs and shins. They looked very painful. He talked about a funny but really unpleasant injury that one of his friends had, snowboarding. We had a nice meal eating chicken and a entertaining conversations with my friends and Seiya. We were so happy that it was only the first night at NorthStar, so we would get to see Seiya again the next day. But it all went by very quickly and on the last day we all had to say goodbye to Seiya.

 Michael Jordan to me is the best athlete of all time. Even though he played basketball, which is not my favorite sport, Michael is a great role model for people that are trying to achieve things. He has written a book which is titled “I can’t accept not trying”. To me it is almost like a “bible” and what is great is that you can read it over and over.  He has six chapters, which are all very interesting, but I have chosen the ones that I think are good. But the things that I have written are based on what Michael Jordan wrote.

 His first chapter is on goals and it is one of the most important chapters in this book. He says that to accomplish something you should set goals. Short term goals. For me I set goals for football every day to every week to every month to year to your life. He set short-term goals so he could improve step by step. So for example if you are trying to get better in a certain subject and you are getting “C” then you have to get “B” the finally “A”. It’s all step-by-step. Michael would also try to picture where he wanted to be, and stay committed to that goal. You have to stick to it.

  His second chapter is about “fears”.  Michael Jordan says that fear is an illusion. I try to think about that when there is a test or a try out I just think that fear is an illusion. Also you should be thinking how to achieve, not how you are going to fail. After you think you have done well or think you past it’s all out of your hands. Whether the coach or the teacher likes it or not, it’s up to them to decide. So why be afraid about failing in the last couple of important minutes in a game. Why not take that Chance and try 110% to accomplish and get the job done. What is there to be afraid of. 

 Teamwork is what helped Michael Jordan alot he learned that one player’s talent can win games but teamwork wins championships. The Bulls started to win championships when they came together and played as a team. This really is about: “should I accomplish my goal or pass to my teammate so he can score a goal which is more likely to go in. I see it a lot now a day when any teams in any team sport they like to depend on one person to get the job done and they do not work as a team to get the job done. So that’s why in the sports that I play I try to get the whole team better not just myself and that I do not think it can happen without a good leader in the team. That is what Michael Jordan did.  

 I suggest to people that want to get better at something, or achieve something in life read this book it is I think in the school library. All the chapters are great and the book is organized into chapters but not in any order just read whatever sounds interesting. I hope to those that do not know who Michael Jordan is or for those that heard but do not really know who he is please look him up because he is on great person. You can learn a lot from him.              

What do you think about using a blog/ website for learning at school?

I think its really good to put your opinion up about anything. You can criticize something that you did not like. You can be honest about things. Thats what I like about it you can say your opinion about something that I thought was great and something that was not that great. Its great that we learn to use the computer more in this way. I might even want it for other subjects.

What are the best/worst things about using blogs?

The best thing, as mentioned the fact of putting your opinion. But what is the worst thing that can be improved on is that you do not get much comments from others. I get the feeling that not many people look at each others blog so thats what I will try to improve in my class. 

 When I first heard this word “journey I thought that a journey could be your life or a part of it. I stuck to the idea a life. So then I thought how I can show my life on this story, not an autobiography but what my life is about. My life is about playing sports and getting better at what I do. That is a big part of my life. My father he has been telling me some thing my whole life: “Its only natural to improve” what he means by this is that by practicing the right way you will reach you goals and get better. So this is the story I made.

                                          “It is only natural to improve”     Anton J, Bryan 6c

 Michael was born a fat puppy. This was not because he had too much food it was just the way he was. He wanted to run and play like the other puppies but he could not. Why? – The stupid and selfish human family. All he was allowed to do was to walk in the park, nothing more than that. He would always watch the other puppies play with some kind of a ball. He hated how the human family would not treat him like he was anything. All they cared about was all their fancy things. His mother Lisa was a very kind and loving dog. She wanted Michael to play but it was all because of the humans.

One day the human family was walking Lisa and Michael in the park. They saw other dogs playing with a ball. Some of them teased Michael for being so fat but Michael turned away and walked on. He thought to himself: “Well, some day I will play like the other kids”. Then he spotted another group of dogs that were running around. He looked up and saw what fun they were having. The group of dogs looked at Michael and started giggling. Michael frowned and looked down to the ground. He started wondering why he had to be so different. Then he saw a different group of puppies, which looked nice. “Oh… I want to buy some more clothes”, said Nicole. “Okay”, said John. So they went to the store. Then Lisa said to Michael, “Quick! While no one is looking go run away from here!” “But…how about you, mother?” said Michael. “Its okay, I will never let you live your life around these horrible creatures that say they don’t have enough when you are the one that needs it. Now go, go… “  “But… I want to be with you, mother. I love you”. “I love you too, Michael. That is why I want a better life for you”.

They were going into the store and the shopkeeper said to them: “Sorry, no annoying, loud, whatever puppies in this store.” “Okay” said Nicole and the old lady went and tied them to a pole. “Now Michael, remember the four things your father Jimmy told you?” “What were they?’’ “Okay, don’t forget, they can help you in the future: “You can do anything you think your big enough to do.”;  “The main thing is  - stay calm.”;  “Do something! Don’t worry if it’s right or wrong, just do it!”; And, “Have fun!”.

Michael ran off, and he ran as fast as he could, he felt wind go against his face. It was such a good feeling to do this. He had never run in his life. Then he ran into the park and tripped over a stick. He got up and saw all the dogs laughing. He was very sad and lonely. “Hey, why are you going away scaredy cat?” said one dog. “Yeah, you chubby boy!” Michael walked away towards a lake, he looked into it and saw himself and laughed. He was happy, he was not sad at all. He started to run and he decided to run to the big hill and he went up and when he got to the top he ran back and this time into the water! He laughed and laughed, and he asked himself what was so funny.  He thought that this was fun. He was tired and thought, “I think that I should sleep.” He fell asleep.

“We are not going to the park today.” Michael got up and he found himself in the yard of the selfish human family. “Mom!” Lisa was not where she normally was. Michael was shocked. He remembered to stay calm. He decided to run around the house. He wanted to get better at running. “Michael” called Nicole. He almost fell right in front of her but halted. They went out looking for him. He decided to run as much as he could around the house, trying to stay out of sight. He ran so much that he almost could not stop. Seemed to get better and faster. Then he looked over the fence. He saw dogs telling other dogs about a tournament. He asked what it was about. “Who could run faster then Robert, the dog known to be the fastest.” He though: “Well, if I entered I would not be faster than Robert.”

He ran around the house and thought about it. He thought  “Well, if I am not better than Robert than maybe I should not do it at all.” Then he thought: “Do something, don’t worry if it’s right or wrong, just do it. I am going into this tournament”.

Then the worst thing happened. As if he suddenly went blind, he could not see anything. He seemed to be shoved into something. He jumped around and he ripped what felt like cloth. He then saw light. He was not blind, he was trapped in the doghouse with a cage in the entrance. He could not get out. He tried and tried, but it did not work. Then he remembered the tournament and Robert. He wanted to go in, but now he was trapped. He started to cry. He thought that he was the most unfortunate puppy in the world. Why was this family so mean to him? What did he ever do to deserve this?

Suddenly Nicole came to the doghouse and opened the door. Michael ran and the door smashed on him. Nicole laughed and opened the door and closed it on the poor puppy again. Nicole was going to do it, and this time, as soon as Michael saw that door move, he ran the door on Nichole and he ran as fast as he could. He ran towards the park where the tournament was going to be held, he ran into the park and he hurt his leg against a big stone. He went on to the side watching some other puppy lose to Robert. Then Michael raised his voice and said: “I want to run against Robert”. Everyone could not believe their eyes. They looked at Michael. Then everyone started to laugh. They could not believe that anyone like this puppy would even try to race such a speedster. But when they saw the blood coming out of the leg towards the starting line, everyone thought that this puppy was not just any puppy. “On your marks! Get set!” Michael’s heart thumped but he really wanted to do this. “GO!!” Michael ran as fast as he could. His leg was really starting to hurt, but when he saw Robert run past him, he wanted to run. He ran as fast he could. “I am tuff, I am tuff, I am tuff!” And he was beginning to get faster then Robert. He was about to fall to the ground, when he heard a voice that he had heard before.  The voice was in his head. It was saying: “Come on, Michael! You can do it! Just a little more! Come on!” It was his dad Jimmy cheering him on when Michael was just starting to walk.

At that moment he passed the finish line. He had beat Robert and now was the champion. Everyone cheered and Michael was so happy! “Michael!” Michael looked around. “Mom?” “Michael!” “Mom!” “Michael!”   　         

Here are the three links I think are good for task. This is a Website that is a fans 25 most favorite comic strips of Calvin and Hobbes. This is a good website because it shows how Bill Watterson wrote comic strips. They are really simple but good. Heres the link for Calvin and Hobbes This is another link that is good because it has videos that show how to draw any kind of cartoon figure face and it is good because it stops and gives you time to draw. Here is the link. The last link here is good because it has videos and step by step and you can draw many different things. Out of these three I this is the best one. Just go to Learn to draw lessons on the website and you will be okay.Here is the site.

Stand By Me is a good film. It is about this guy that is remembering something that happend when he was twelve. So there is three others. They are trying to find a died body. So its all about this journey and they are camping and trying to work together.

 What is really creative in the film is that all four boys have different personalities. One is scared, and one is really tuff tries to act older, one is really weird and funny and the guy who is telling the story is normal. That is the best thing about the movie that I liked about it. So they all are friends and are trying to find a died body and be on television or in the newspaper. But they got these older kids that are also trying to get or find the body. So it is an interesting film. What I don`t like about it is that there is bad language, at times they said things that really could have been replaced with some other word. So thats some thing to think about before watching it. The film reminded me about this other film called Field Of Dreames. It to is an old movie about making a Baseball field with old players that have died. Why it reminded me? Because the tall grass and environment was not the same size but looked the same. Also becase they are both pretty old films and both are good. The story is exiting because there is two sides to it and the made so the two side would become in to one.

 I think that this film is a good film just remember that there is bad language and you may not be able to watch it but other than that it is one of the best films I had watched.  

I am interested in the characters George from, George`s marvelous medicine. And Willy Wonka from Charily and the chocolate factory. I like George because he is a character that is not weird. He is afraid of his grand mother. That makes no cense at all. She says things like `Don`t grow up grow down`. And George reacts in the same way the reader does. And I want to do Willy Wonka Because he is one of those characters that are weird and unique because he is something that could only come from Roald Dahl.