Tag: mint girl

Fictional Characters I Admire: Riley Oh

I smile through tears as Riley finds her sister. It’s been a heartbreaking journey, but so much has been gained from it. Riley Oh is from The Last Fallen Star by Graci Kim. She’s kind, strong, and determined.  I love her story and here’s some reasons why.

Riley is very determined. When her sister began to die, Riley went on a huge quest to save her, even if it meant connecting with dangerous people. She knows how much her sister means to her and believes in her all the time. They have such a sweet relationship and I love the way that they’ll both do anything for each other.

Riley makes sure to get friends that she can depend on and trust. She has two sets of families who love her very much- one is from the Gom clan, the family that raised her, and one is from the Horangi clan, her true family. SHe’s also made friends from many different clans and they are there to support her when she needs help. She loves and works with them all, even when it seems challenging.

Riley Oh will always be one of my favorite characters, because of how determined she is and how she friendly she is. She’s such a great character and I love reading about her and the person that she is.

Easy Pasta Recipe

I recently made a delicious turkey spaghetti with my Ninja Foodi. It came out really well, so I thought that I’d share it with you!

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 lb ground turkey
  • 1/2 of a chopped onion
  • 1 tsp Italian seasoning
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/8 tsp pepper
  • 3 fresh basil leaves
  • 1 clove of garlic, chopped
  • 4 oz spaghetti noodles (broken into halves or thirds)
  • 7 oz can of diced tomatoes
  • 12 oz jar of marinara sauce
  • 1/2 cup chicken broth
  • 1/2 cup water
  • parmesan cheese (to garnish)

DIRECTIONS:

  1. Turn the Foodi on to the Sauté setting. When it is hot, add the ground turkey, 1 tbsp olive oil, and the onions. Break apart the meat by stirring.
  2. Add the salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, and basil. Cook for a few minutes, while occasionally stirring until the meat is mostly done.
  3. Add the garlic and cook for around a minute.
  4. Scatter in the spaghetti noodles randomly.
  5. Pour the diced tomatoes over the noodles as evenly as possible and don’t stir.
  6. Pour on the spaghetti sauce completely covering all of the noodles (exposed noodles may not cook fully).
  7. Pour in the broth and the water down the side of the Foodi, so the sauce doesn’t wash off of the noodles. Do not stir.
  8. Close the lid and lock it in place. Set the steam release knob to the Seal position and cancel the Saute setting.
  9. Press the Pressure Cook/Manual button and set the time to 7 minutes.
  10. Wait for the pressure to release naturally. Once all the pressure has released, you can open the lid.
  11. Stir the spaghetti well, so that the sauce and the noodles can blend. Garnish with the parmesan cheese.
  12. Enjoy!

First Week as a Seventh Grader

I just started school! This is my first week in person and I was so excited to meet everyone and see everything that I missed out in my virtual year. Here are some of the things that I experienced during my first week as a seventh grader.

  1. Passing Periods
    I have 5 classes each day, most of them being on the second floor (our school has 3 floors), though some are on other floors. We have 5 minutes to get to each class and after that you’re tardy. It can sometimes be a big race to get to your next class before the tardy bell rings, though I have been on time for everything so far.
  2. One Way Hallways/Stairs
    Because of COVID, our school has added one way hallways to the first and second floors. This can be a bit challenging, especially if your class is two doors down, but you have to walk all around the school in the crowd to get to it in only 5 minutes. Luckily, the crowd thins out as you walk around. We also have one way stairs, so you can only go up certain staircases and down certain staircases.
  3. Homework
    There’s a lot more homework than what I was expecting for the first week of school! A lot of it were only forms to sign, but I did have homework in my Science, English, and Social Studies class. Luckily, the homework is pretty easy, though it will most likely get harder as time passes.
  4. Computers
    We are given school computers to use for the tests and projects we do in certain classes. I got mine on Friday and have already used it in the second week quite a lot (for the beginning of year tests). It’s handy to have a second computer specifically for school work, where you can keep all of your assignments.
  5. My Favorite Classes
    My Favorite Classes so far are Theater and Science. I love theater because of all the fun activities we do and all the chances we get to learn what we like and how we do everything. Our teacher’s also very nice. I absolutely love our science teacher and the energy that she gives off. She makes learning much more fun and I’m really glad I’m in her class!

    What’s your favorite part of school?
    Also, due to school starting up, I will now only be publishing blogs on Wednesdays.

Top Reads of August

Here are my top books for August!

  1. The Best Worst Summer by Elizabeth Eulberg
    This is a story about Peyton, who has recently moved. In her backyard, she finds a time capsule from 1989. There seems to be a mystery behind the contents of the box and Peyton decides to find out what it is with the help of her new friend Lucas. The story alternates between modern day (with Peyton and Lucas) and 1989 (with Melissa and Jessica). I really enjoyed this story and all of the little clues along the way.
  2. The Adventure is Now by Jess Redman
    This book tells the story of Milton, a socially awkward boy, with not many friends. The only time when he feels free is when he plays Isle of Wild. That summer, his parents send him to Lone Island to live with his Uncle Evan. At first Milton isn’t happy to be there, but then he discovers the secrets of the island. I loved this book and the themes behind it. All the characters were written really well and I enjoyed every part of the book.
  3. Flight of the Puffin by Ann Braden
    This is a story told by 4 narrators- Libby, Jack, Vincent, and T. It starts with Libby drawing inspiring messages on postcards. These postcards begin to travel, helping the other kids through their hard times. I loved the way that all the kids were linked up and the way that the story flowed. This is such a sweet book.
  4. A Thousand Beginnings and Endings by Ellen Oh and Elsie Chapman
    This was an anthology with a lot of authors that I enjoyed. The stories were retellings of Asian myths and legends. I have always loved retellings and I really enjoyed these stories. They were all so imaginative and I loved them all. Some of my favorites were Still Star-Crossed, Daughter of the Sun, and Girls who Twirl and Other Dangers.
  5. Time Traveling with a Hamster by Ross Welford
    This book is about Al, who gets a mysterious letter from his (dead) dad on his 12th birthday. The letter tells him to travel back in time to save his dad and change the future. I loved the way that the book was written and i think it handled the concepts of alternate universes really well. Al is such a great character and I also enjoyed the way that the other characters were fleshed out as well. This is such a great book!
  6. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
    This is a dystopian trilogy, set in a world where every year, a boy and a girl are chosen from each district to fight in the Hunger Games. It’s a fight to the death and there’s only one victor until the 74th Hunger Games, where Katniss and Peeta (the two main characters) both win. I loved the characters and the plot. I found the theme very interesting and loved the type of dystopia!

Top Books of January: click here
Top Books of February: click here
Top Books of March: click here
Top Books of April: click here
Top Books of May: click here
Top Books of June: click here
Top Books of July: click here

Fictional Characters I Admire: Annabeth Chase

I’m starting a new series- Fictional Character I Admire. In each post, I’ll be telling you about one of the fictional characters who I love reading about. Today, I’ll be telling you about Annabeth Chase.

I pick up Percy Jackson and the Olympians and get lost in the fantasy world of Rick Riordan, especially the tales of Annabeth Chase. Annabeth is a demigod (half god, half human). Her mother is Athena, the goddess of wisdom and she always plays a crucial part in all of the quests she goes on. I love her story and here’s some reasons why.

Annabeth is such a strong female character. She’s great at fighting and can take down many Greek monsters with her dagger. Her life as a demigod is hard, but she perseveres through it. Annabeth has faced many monsters throughout her life as a demigod. Despite the type of problem, she easily comes up with a logical plan and deals with the toughest of them. Annabeth has been through Tartarus, the Greek version of hell. Even when she was trapped down there with her boyfriend, Percy, she was able to think logically and helped them get out as quick as possible.

Annabeth faces so many real problems throughout all the books. While she battles fantasy monsters, she also faces real ones with her emotions. I love seeing her weaknesses, just because it makes her more human. During the first series, she faced intense jealousy towards a later friend of hers, Rachel. It was interesting to see another, more real, side of my favorite character. During the second series, she has extreme self-doubt about her abilities. While all of her friends have powers, she has none, leading herself to doubt what she is capable of.

Annabeth Chase will always be one of my favorite characters, because not only is she strong, she has weaknesses that make her more like an actual person. She’s such a great character and I love reading about her and who she is.

Bridges: A Poem

Bridges are a marvelous thing
Sometimes magical and mystical
Sometimes unnerving

Used to transport things
One point to another
Maybe because we don’t have wings

Strands of wire, rock, or steel
Beautiful designs and
Colors too! From orange to teal

Amazing things, so many ways
To create a brand new design
I must give praise

Blueberry Limeade

Summer is almost over! It feels like those three months with no school have flown so quickly and now, school’s starting soon again. I’ve made a lot of food over summer, but one of my favorites was a blueberry limeade concentrate. It’s tart and sweet, and is such a great drink for summer. I really enjoyed this drink, especially when chilled or frozen.

INGREDIENTS:

  • 2 cups of fresh blueberries
  • 1 1/4 cup of sugar
  • 2 cups of water
  • 3/4 cup of lime juice

DIRECTIONS:

  1. Put the blueberries, sugar and water in a saucepan. Cook them on medium heat.
  2. When it starts to boil, start breaking down the berries with the back of a spoon until the sugar is fully dissolved and the berries are crushed.
  3. Strain the syrup using a sieve, extracting as much juice as possible by pressing down on the berries.
  4. Allow syrup to cool down slightly, then stir in the lime juice. Keep in the fridge
  5. To make a drink, fill 1/3 of the cup with juice and 2/3 of the cup with water.

Serving Suggestion: Make popsicles. You’ll still have to dilute the mixture with water, and it comes out really well!

Postcards- a poem

Page upon page upon page
From all around the world
The paper is their stage

Pages worn and curled
All of the colors, red to white
The cards still unfurled

All of them are a marvelous sight
Full of beauty and dazzle, uniqueness and more
The date and giver written to the right

On one a monument, on another a bookstore
Even more with jungles and houses
And even a beach shore

The postcards are diverse, every color and size
They truly are the most elite prize

This poem is written in the form of a Terza Rima! This type of poem is originally Italian and follows a unique rhyming pattern (aba bcb cdc, etc.) I hope you liked my terza rima!

World Building

Recently, I did a WITS writing class (I wrote this story there). We did a few mini activities, one of them being world-building writing prompts based on artwork around the Rice University campus. World-building activities help you create a brand new world and develop it. It’s a common exercise writers use to be more creative. These are the questions asked and what answers I gave based off of the artwork.

Questions:

  1. Imagine that the artwork is deeply important to people on an alien land. Why? What do they use it for? What significance does it have?
  2. Imagine you are the size of an ant and the artwork is as tall as a skyscraper. What goes on inside of it?
  3. Imagine the art is small enough to fit in your hand. Why would you give it to someone and what for?
  4. Imagine the artwork could talk. What would it say? Would it be happy with its location?

The Questioning Column:

  1. This is where rainbows come from. Colors are churned, releasing their vividness and making rainbows brighter. This is how the colors seem to blend together as well.
  2. You can slightly see the churning of the rope-like strands of colors, twisting and turning together, eventually falling into place and forming a bright and colorful rainbow.
  3. If you need something to cheer you up, you can create rainbows with the small rainbow maker. It’s easy to give as a gift and can help anyone perk up.
  4. There are many Rainbow Makers around the world, some small, some big. They are all stationed in areas with desperate need of color and they do their job quite well. They would most likely be happy where they are.

Movement at the Edge of the Land:

  1. These aren’t just piles of dirt. They help the government. Piles of dirt and holes in the ground can easily track movements around an area the way that normal cameras could never do.
  2. You can’t see any action. The government made sure that the tracking was discreet. They couldn’t let anyone know what they were up to.
  3. The government gifted these piles of dirt to anyone who they though was suspicious, tracking them as they wished. No one ever realized what the piles were actually used for.
  4. The government would never let the dirt talk. If they even tried, they would be silenced forever right away. If they could talk, they would say that they hate their job.

James Turrell Skyspace:

  1. This is a hangout for astronomers, meteorologists, and others who use the sky and space for their line of work. Though the government doesn’t trust their kind and has banned them, some still meet here day and night to practice their work. At night it is lit up to resemble a party, so the government doesn’t get very suspicious. In the day, there is a special forcefield surrounding it. It is a sign of resistance and perseverance.
  2. Inside, astronomers and more scurry around, trying and succeeding to practice their art. It can be messy and dangerous sometimes, but it’s a safe space for the “sky lookers”
  3. It wouldn’t be given as a gift, but as a signal from worker to worker signaling a meetup in the skyspace. They are usually very small, to avoid drawing attention.
  4. The skylight would be pleased for being used in such a noble manner, though sometimes it wishes that its job wasn’t so dangerous and life-risking.

Barn Raising:

  1. These ribbons are a festivity, or at least, that’s what most people think. As soon as you step into the forest, you’ll doubt yourself. Something about the rustling of the ribbons sneaks up on you and makes you wonder if you made the right choice (spoiler alert- you didn’t). Slowly, without the ribbons doing anything, you’ll start to lose your mind. You mind will turn against you- starting with self-doubt and ending with complete insanity.
  2. The ribbons blow with the wind. Something about the way they move so gently, but with a ferocious demeaner is frightening to people. In the end, not many know that the ribbons are the villains in this story.
  3. Only true villains who know the power of the ribbons gift it to others. Though it’s smaller, it works in the same ways.
  4. The ribbons would just laugh gently, with a slightly horrifying edge. They don’t have and conscience and therefore don’t care.

How would you build a new world?

5 Places to Visit in Chicago

There were many wonderful things in Chicago and I loved visiting all of them. 5 of them were really great places and I enjoyed them a lot. These are my top 5 places in Chicago.

  1. The Science and Industry Museum
    This museum is filled with all the types of science- from physics to patterns (Fibonacci, Golden Ratio, etc.). There were so many cool experiments and it was a really fun place. Some of my favorite parts were the Physics section, the Mirror Maze, the Model Railroad, and the Science Storms section.
  2. The American Writer’s Museum
    This Museum is filled with information about famous writers in America. The way that the information is presented was spectacular and I loved the way that we got interactive and fun exhibits while still learning. Some of my favorite parts were the typewriters, the games (fill in the blanks and write a story), and the Children’s Gallery.
  3. Shedd Aquarium
    The aquarium is a fun place with so many animals. I usually love aquariums and this one wasn’t any different. It was amazing to see so many marine animals close up. Some of my favorites were the penguins, the otters, the Color Exhibit, and the beluga whales.
  4. The Art Institute of Chicago
    The Art Institute has many wonderful artworks. They’re all very varied and diverse and are really amazing to look at. At the time we went, we could see the Obama Portraits, which were amazing. Some of my favorites included the Greek Mythology section and the Indian Mythology section (every place represents the gods differently and it was interesting to see the different representations).
  5. Tribune Tower
    I really liked Tribune Tower because of the outside. There are pieces of stone from all over the world- from Egypt to China. There are 149 rocks on the wall, which I found super cool. Each rock has a different texture and shape, so you can compare them. Some of the rocks are from famous landmarks while others are not.

Have you been to Chicago? If so, what’s your favorite place there?