Writting Prompt

It was last year on a warm day and I was sitting in English when a note from West High had come to IGCG for me, and I knew exactly what it was about. The other day I had given one of the teachers at West a promission slip to go into the gym and donate blood. I had never done it before but I thought it would be a once in a life time experience. We were getting called one by one to go, so when I noticed my friends werent going with me I started to panic a little, because my friends and I were planning to donate blood together. They all wished me good luck as I packed my things and headed off to West. When I finally arrived at West I headed into the gym and to my relief there were other students there. But then i saw the blood and hospital beds and I started to feel nauseated. I wanted to turn back but it was too late, the nurse at one of the tables told me to step forward to have me give her my infromation. She gave me a few instructions then handed me a clipboard with a piece of paper and told me to bubble in yes or no. I sat there and watched people come and go as I filled the bubbles.

When I was done they had me go and sit down somewhere to verify the information, they then pricked my fingure to test my blood. But just when i thought I was over my fear of donating blood, I went to sit on the bed and for about five minutes I watched as the needle sucked an ounce of blood out of the student who was laying down right infront of me. The a different nurse came up to me and asked me a few questions, about how I was feeling and what i had ate for breakfast that morning as time went by I became more realixed. Finally when the nurse stuck the thick needle in me it stung for a while then the pain went away. Soon enough I went back to class with a t-shirt and proud of my self that I had gotten over my fear. The next month they had sent me a letter explaining that it was very nice of me to have donated and that they wanted me back that Friday and this time i didnt have to face it alone my dad and my sister decided to go with me.

Oscar & Pride

"Oh man... this hobby is going to be wet!"
Literally this hobby I had adopted during freshmen year was wet, because normally when you take care of fish you need water. This hobby started when I won seven goldfish at an elementary school festival. I vowed to let these fish live past a week because from past experiences, these cheap goldfish die within the first few days of keep them inside a fish bowl. Thinking one step ahead of death, I made a wise decision to buy a ten gallon aquarium.

"Ha-zah!" I yelled as I found to see that the fish had survived the one week. I proudly gazed upon the lively fish, proving my friends wrong as they told their sad stories about their deceased aquatic pals. It was time for me to put my amateur fish skills to the test as I had agreed to maintain a livelihood tank for a month. Unfortunately, too much success leaves open room for failure and I had lost one of my beloved fish.

Once I had moved on, I noticed that I grew tired of the same old goldfish in the same small tank. I found this new want and urge to have something more unique. A friend of mine had introduced me to his Oscar fish (Photo of what one looks like, however not his). In amazement I glanced at his enormous fourteen inch fish swimming along side the tank walls. Its fire red scales illuminated its surroundings putting me in a momentary trance. Okay, well not really a trance but it looked really, really cool. One thought came to mind, "I must have one."

I did my research and gathered the fact about the Oscar fish and was amazed by the amount of work that was needed to take care of this large fish. Although there were some benefits because I never really knew that a fish could be taught tricks. Unfortunately, too many factors were obstructing my goal and this hobby had come to a halt. I had no money... and little time.

This hobby has not completely left me because I still have five of the seven goldfish alive and healthy. I was also given a thirty gallon aquarium, also in the process of awaiting a fish to home. This hobby has taught me how responsible I had become and that hobbies can help practice creating goals.
One day... I will own my very own Oscar Fish.

I would say freshman year was fun, partially beacause of marching band. I remember my friend, Chiristine and I skipping practices because they were so ling and boring. We only played scales and reviewed songs for football games during that time. Then afterward, we'd head outside, form a square and march arounf the school playing The Thunderer. There was one time when it started raining on us during practice. In stead of letting us go inside, the teacher made us continue the march. My friend and I disliked him for doing such a thing.

The weather was usually hot when it came time for performing. Especially since we were in our cowboy looking uniforms. I hated the way the thick fabric felt against my skin and how the itchy hat was too big for my head. Fortunately, playing wasn't so bad. Although, I remember feeling my flute slowly slipping out of my sweaty hands from the nervousness building in my body and the tickling sensation on my cheek when a strand of hair would fall out, we made it through the song without any squeaks or instruments falling on the ground. I couldn't help but feel accomplished and proud for the group I was in.

Yo

As the wind brushes across my skin, my body makes a sudden jolt and begins to tip. The pressure in my stomach makes a sonic wave up to my skull causing a quick whiplash. My arms fling out ahead of me and my knees buckle as my feet slip off the concrete edge. Floating amid the steam covered water, my skin tightens up and my nerves begin to numb. The heels of my feet gently skid and eventually penetrate the water surface seconds later. I sink knee deep into the silk filled pool. The soles of my hands glide across the surface, feeling the bit of water seep through my fingertips. Water meets my neck and begins an ongoing flood into my head of hair I hold my breath as the sound of laughter is drowned out. My eyes close as the very tip of my head is down under the water. Sitting there a moment, i let the warm sensation of bodily water around me bounce off my skin, My hair sways in the motion of a tree and for a moment i feel weightless.

I come back out of the water to be greeted with laughters and cheers. The re-enactment of the Sparta kick was a success. With three seconds left to get into the water before i had to do push ups for water polo, I wanted to enter the pool in the most interesting and creative manner possible. Even though I was in the pool in time the coach made me get out of the pool and do one hundred push ups along with my accomplice who kicked me in the pool. As long as I creative a few laughs and started the in a fun manner, the Sparta kick was worth it completely.

The Unfamiliar Noises of the Night

Truly terrifying movies do not always involve a great deal of guts and gore. They do not have big hairy monsters chasing you down the streets of an abandoned town. The scariest shows need only have one character. This one character, need only sit all alone on a dark, clear night listening to the small sounds when the lights go out that seem infinitely magnified in both volume and meaning. The real terror, the real fear is the fear of the unknown. The unknown is enough to make even the sturdiest of veterans quake in their boots. On just such a dark evening there was a character sitting at home, listening to the strange, unfamiliar noises of the night. This lone figure was me.

Never before had I thought to curse my parents for installing so many windows with merely decorative curtains. Never before had I wished so much that my dog would cease his incessant barking and howling. Never before had I wished the moon would show itself in its full splendor. Never before had I wished my imagination was far less vivid. Never before had I been more tense, more cold...more afraid.

Every crunch of gravel outside sent electric shivers raking up and down my spine. Every roaring bark of the dog inside sent me leaping out of my skin. Every passing shadow that flitted near sent my head whipping around. Every moan of the wind sent me further into the security of the couch. Every thought of what evil lay in wait in the world sent my mind reeling.

My white knuckles clutched the blanket around me, holding so tight for so long. My fingers began to ache. My legs curled tighter to my stomach, tucking myself smaller and smaller. My body began to tense. My mouth pinched shut, daring not to breathe. My mind began to grow fuzzy.

More than anything I wanted to revert to the childish act of pulling the blanket over my head. More than anything I wanted to succumb to the urge to cry for my Mommy. More than anything I wanted to perform the oldest magic trick in the book and disappear.

But I dared not move; I dared not utter a single sound.

My whole body, tensed and ready for flight, quivered ceaselessly. I desperately wanted to end the agonizing silence and turn on the television- make some noise, provide some distraction- but how could I risk alerting anyone of my presence? Why wouldn't that dog cease its raging?

Just as I mustered the courage to extend my icy fingers and grope for the remote, my resolve crumbled. My concentration was shattered, my nerves severed and set free. It was more than just the crunch of gravel this time. This noise was so loud and rumbling- a grumbling unknown... but wait, not so unknown.

Could it be? Yes! It was! The garage door!

Leaping to my feet I hurtled to greet those that promised to end my petrified solitude. All thoughts gone of lurking strangers in the night. All thoughts gone of the drifting, morphing shadows.

Blame it on too many horror films or an overactive imagination. Blame it on...wait. Why was the dog barking?

disneyland!

"Do you think this hotel looks nice? Good price, right?" said my mom. "looks good to me! But where are we going?" I asked back. "You and your cousins are going to Disneyland for three days! Go hurry up and pack! Your leaving tomorrow!" my mom said excitedly. I started to scream! I was so happy! My red heart was beating so fast that I thought it would beat right out of my chest and lay next to me, still pounding.

I hugged my mom and kissed her a billion times. I WAS GOING TO DISNEYLAND!!! Best of all was that I was going with my cousins. Nothing could spoil these next three days. I left my moms room, giving her another kiss on the check and went to my room to pack. My cousins would be coming in the morning to pick me up, so I had to be prepared. I packed my black jacket, two of my favorite t-shirts, and two jeans. While I packed, I started thinking of all the cool rides we would be going on. I finished packing and went to bed early. But I was so excited that I could not fall asleep. I picked up my book and barely read six pages and I don't even know when I dosed off.

My cousins came to pick me up in the morning. Since there were so many of us, they had brought both Yukon Denali's. One was white and the other was black. The boys were in the black one and the girls were in the white one. I kissed my family adios and hopped into the white Denali. We got onto I5 and blasted our music. Both Denali's finally pulled up to the hotel after five and half long hours of driving.

We unloaded all of our luggage from both Denali's and checked in at our hotel. We stayed in that night and had fun in the hotel. We went to the guy's room and watched movies, ate pizza, and talked about how much fun we were going to have the next day. All fifteen of us talked about what rides we wanted to go on and what shows we wanted to see. We (the girls) finally went to our rooms to sleep, but none of us could sleep because we were so excited about the fantastic day planed ahead for us.

The eight of us got up and got ready to go to the happiest place on Earth. We met the boys downstairs and got into the Denali's and headed for Disneyland. All of us decieded that we were going to stick together for all the rides up until lunch, after lunch we could seperate if we wanted to. The fifteen of us decided that it would be more fun if we just stayed together the whole time. We went on Space Mountain. I think that was all of ours favorite ride. Our other favorite ride was Splash Mountain. We went on 95% of all the rides that we wanted to go on. Our least favorite ride was the Jungle Cruise. My favorite ride was Indiana Jones.

California Adventures was saved for our next trip to LA. The next day we got home after five and a half hours (which flew by fast). We got home and told our families how much fun we had had. I can't wait to go again with my cousins!!!

The Water Slide of Doom!

The Water Slide of Doom! The longest and tallest water slide in Summer Land. Summer Land is the most extreme water park in Japan. I was eight years old at the time. The minimum height limit, well I barely passed.

Walking upstairs to the peak of the slide was scary itself. I could hear the yells of hopeless victimes sliding through the tube, until their voices fade away. Climbing the stairs were like climbing Mount Everest. I was precautious with every step. My knees would rattle each time I elevate. Even if there was a rail to hold on to I still felt unsafe on top of a thirty foot staircase.

Once I reached the peak of the slide I could see the entrance of the Slide of Doom. It was like a throat of monster waiting to engulf you. All you can hear is the faint cries of poor helpless beings. The sound of the water running through were the growls of the beast calling forth its next victim.

When I was finally next in line I could feel the cool shivers down my spine and the nervous feeling in my gut. My goosebumps formed while I was face to face with the slide. I slowly walked closer to the mouth of the demon. Out of my taste for adventure I forced myself to dive into it.
The first seconds were frightening and I was panicking because it was pitch black. I felt myself swiftly and smoothly sliding through.

I was headed for a bright light! I thought to myself, "this must be the entrance to heaven," since I knew I was dead. But, as I got closer I crashed into a cool body of water. I swam up the surface and realized I was alive. All the excitement and adrenaline rush felt good. It made me go again adn again and again. It was entertaining. Now, the Slide, seems merely a slide.