One Halloween night, I was lying awake in bed, trying to fall asleep. I wondered what the next day would be like, the day I counted and sorted all the candy that I didn't eat tonight. Suddenly, I heard a noise outside of my room.

   The noise stopped, but then it started again. I could hear it more clearly now. It sounded like somebody was slashing at the door with a long knife. I shuddered in bed, but the more I ignored it, the noise only got louder and louder... And then I heard someone wailing right next to the door. I couldn't go to sleep, so I decided to try to face my fear. I opened the door...

   There was no one there. I was about to close the door, but then, I saw a pair of yellow eyes in the hall way. It was my cat Chucha! So it was he who was haunting me all night! I opened the door a little wider and let Chucha in. "What a relief!", I said to myself. "It was just the cat!"

     Have a happy Halloween!!!

Hello, Hedgehog

    When you see a hedgehog, you probably think it's a wild, undomesticatable animal- I mean, look at those spines! One of those getting into your hand = major problem!

    But hedgehogs can actually be domesticated! People who were not scared of getting occaisonally poked by sharp quills (a hint that your hedgehog is in a bad mood) and wanted to make some money started capturing wild hedgehogs, picking out the most calm and obidient, training them and breeding them to domesticate them. Eventually, they succeded, and hedge hogs were introduced to the small pet world.
Nowadays, hedgehogs are still pretty rarely found as pets. I, having knoledge of most small pets, was very surprised to walk into the small animal vet building and seeing that they sold hedgehog food.

   If you want a hedgehog of your own, then you will be surprised at what great pets they are! If you are nice to your hedgehog, it will even flatten its quills along its body so you can pet it! But to keep your hedgehog happy, you would need to feed it 1 1/2 tablespoons of hedge hog food ( you can find it on the internet ) and a bug or two ( mealworms, crickets and ecceterra all can be found in Petco or Petsmart). Hedgehogs love to roam, so it's best to get one if you don't have any other animals in the house, or even better, you can spare a room. Im not an expert on hedgehogs though, so it's best to buy a manual before driving off to buy a hedgehog.

   If you want to see hedgehogs in action, you can watch the video on the top of this arcticle: Boogie Boogie Hedgehog!!!

Why Patriotism Stil Matters

 

Think about this: what if we had lost our freedom in any of the wars our country has fought in? America wouldn't be anything like what it is today. We would either be ruled by king or emperor, who could do whatever they wanted to us, rather than a president who we knew would make the right choices.

Only with our burning patriotism we could have won all those wars, including the current victory in Iraq. Because many people wanted to prove their patriotism, we now have a great Army, Navy, and Air Force. Does patriotism still matter? To many of us, apparently it does.

What helped our troops survive and urged them to keep fighting? Their children and families, sending food, pictures, letters, stories, and anything else that they thought would convince the soldiers that even in times of doubt, there is still something worth fighting for. This is pure patriotism: doing anything we can to keep our army people fighting for our country, and maybe for other countries too.

Patriotism is true belief in our country and that with our help,America will always survive times of hardship,and that we can protect ourselves from anything that happens. When disasters hit, patriotism keeps us believing, and because we believe, it's easier to face the troubles we come across.

When you try to reach a goal, it's easier to reach if you believe you can. That's how patriotism helps us: when we start believing, it is easier for us to survive the meanest of wars and the worst natural disasters. You might think it's impossible, but patriotism, just a bit of belief, can help us do amazing things!

So does patriotism still matter? I think it does. A new disaster or war could spring up at any moment, but if we have patriotism, America will prevail. Patriotism is a simple but amazing thing,which helps us through all the tragic points of history, can start simply by one person trying to help. So choose now. When it is time for our country, America to face more hardships, will you prove that you have patriotism? The question isn't “Can you help?”, it's “Will you help?”!

Reflecting on Ralph Fletcher

       Here are some of my opinions about two of Ralph Fletcher's short stories:

   When he wrote "It was just a cheap BIC, the kind with a clear barrel so you could see how much ink was left in the cartridge.", he was using descriptive language. I could actually imagine how the pen would look like!This was a really good closing sentence for First Pen.

   In Last Kiss, he wrote "Even though I was confused, one thing seemed clear-- my father and I had drifted away from each other in a small but important way, a way that I couldn't explain, not even to myself.". This was very deep emotion, and I think he wanted to get it out somehow, so he wrote a story.

   Ralph Fletcher is a great writer, and he must inspire many people to write great narratives!

  

Gerbils - Always Great Pets, Always Overlooked.

   When you want to buy a small pet, what pets do you think of?
We all know the answer - guniea pigs, hamsters, and chinchillas, the rodents that everyone wants. But what about the other small pets, like rats, ferrets, mice, gerbils? Rats and ferrets are talked about as if they are pests, with mice sliding into the conversation here and there. But people rarely ever know anything aboyt gerbils.

    Most people think that like many other rodents, that gerbils are nocturnal. this isn't true. Gerbils react to seeing something move in the enviorment around them, so they will wake up when you normally wake up, so they'll adjust to your normal schedule very quickly, and they wont be sad without another gerbil in the cage.
 

   Gerbils are the perfect small pet for children! Whether or not they are frequently handled, they do not really care, and they leave small amounts of feces and pee, so their cages are easy to clean. The gerbil is the perfect pet fo someone who wants a small pet but doesn't like hairless and scaly tails, because the tail of a gerbil is covered in fur.

    Gerbils are great pets, and you should really give that nice little gerbil alone in the petstore cage a chance in your house, because once you're friends, his life will be a lot better!

The Rapid Growth of Bugs

     Today, on my way back from gym, I saw a crowd of students, looking and pointing at a wall. When I looked at the top of the wall, I saw a praying mantis, and it was at least six inches long!

   What could have caused this giant bug to spring up? Could this gargantutar insect be the result of a mutation or some other cause? But as I came to the side of the school to wait for the bus a little later that afternoon, I saw a crowd gathered around another spectacle: another supersised bug, this time a cricket about two and a half inches long! But weirdest of all, the cricket was missing a leg. This points to the idea of the cricket having a mutation.

   But how could it be possible- two mutated bugs, at the same time, in the same area? Then, another idea creeped into my head: could global warming be causing the smaller insect species to grow? That would be a reasonable explanation, because bugs flourish in warm weather, and this afternoon was warmer than normal. I even saw a monarch butterfly flying around outside, dancing in the breeze while it should have already migrated to Mexico! We can only guess what is happenning, or if it will get worse. Lets all hope that in ten years, we wont have crickets the size of cars!

How I Got Interested In Small Pets

The first time I saw my friend Zachary's pet guinea pig, I felt like I really wanted to know more about that cute little fluffball. At that moment, my small animal craze had just begun. I started reading all types \of small animal books and magazines I could get my hands on! But then I realized why I was doing all of this reasearch: I wanted a small pet, like Zachary's guinea pig, Peebo.

   To get a small pet, I would first need to decide on which pet to buy. First, I thought of getting a guinea pig, like Peebo, but then I came across an arcticle about how rats can be trained to do really fun tricks, and that they have a great ability to love. I started to read more about pet rats, and I found plenty more reasons to get a pair of female rats. So I asked my parents if they could buy me a pair of rats. It was a long debate, but my parents finally made up their minds when they saw that my A.S.K. scores were good enough.

   We went to the pet store, and we selected two young rat sisters, and named the black hooded rat Kusa, and the gray rat with a white belly Peeka. And as two sisters got a new home, I got the best pair of small pets that I could ever imagine. I never really stoped learning about rats, because if you have a pet, you learn more about them every day.

Birds And Squirells Go Into Overdive

    Today, when I went into my backyard, my day started off with a nut hitting me on the head. I looked at the nut and found that half of it had been bitten off, so I looked up. As soon as I looked into the trees of our yard, I saw squirells which were throwing down nuts like crazy, and birds who were flying from tree to tree, branch to branch. In fall, squirells go into food gathering overdrive as they prepare for winter, so don't be surprised to come outside and find a bunch of half-chewed nuts falling on your head. The squirells must store the good nuts and throw down the bad nuts in hope that theyll grow into trees,

    Now the birds, they go crazy in fall! As soon as it's October, the male blackbirds start their mating displays up in the trees, hoping that a female will be impressed. Impressing a female is hard for a blackbird, because the girls will spend hours choosing, by which time most of the males will have given up.

      Do you have interesting displays of real animal incstincts in your backyard? Send an Email to me about it and your arcticle will be posted here! Just remember to tell me your first name only so you and only you will get credit! My Email adress is
metherat@Gmail.com.