Cats are mammals that do not like mice. Cats eat lots of food including dry cat food, wet cat food, mice, and lot's more. They often eat their pray such as chicken. Cats will mate throughout the year as the breeding season is running as early as February and as late as December, although the average season is from March, to September. Cats have several needs that require humans.
Aside from needing food and water, cats also need litter boxes, scratching items, toys, and safe snuggly sleeping spots. There are many kinds of cats. There are: tigers, lions, leopards, cheetahs, bobcats, and panthers. I like cats. I like dogs too. Ashleigh
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I found another interesting writing prompt today that I thought I'd enjoy writing about. The prompt is called 'memory lane', and asks you to visualize and then write a bit about what your 'memory lane' would look like (based on your own mind). I encourage my dad to follow this prompt with me, as I believe he'd be able to give a well-thought description of his own "memory lane". Below is my description of my own.
I like to think of my memory lane as more of a mountain trail. At the very beginning of the trail, there are no trees, no rocks, and the trail is paved. As I walk along this trail, there are flowers blooming along the sides. Chipmunks dash in and out of bushes that start to spring up as I walk towards a woodline that I can see in the distance. The path is flat, smooth, and without bumps. The incline has not yet begun. As I draw closer to the woodline, the path turns to dirt, and the incline begins. Past the woodline, the trees seem to swallow me whole. Roots come up from the ground and there's barely any tread here; it's clear to see that this part of the trail is seldom used. Thorn bushes grow close to the sides of what little trail that's left, snagging on my arms and legs as I hurry to get out of this uncomfortable place. I escape the thorn bushes and continue up the trail, only to come face to face with a rocky cliff. There appears to be no way around it, so I begin climbing- even though there are barely any places to put my hands and feet. This is the hardest part of the trail. As I continually pull myself upwards, I cut my palm open and my arms begin to feel as though they are going to give out. I can see the top of the cliff and the continuation of the trail, but I beg to question if it's worth continuing with the amount of pain I'm in. My foot begins to slip, but as I feel myself fall I continue to pull myself up, knowing I'm almost where I need to be. I pull myself up from the cliffside. The trail is gone, and I'm in a field of flowers. The sky is clear with only a few fluffy white clouds, and there's a soft breeze. I look off in the distance and I see a lake with houses around it- so I begin to walk through the field, with the hope of reaching home. Stingrays are a type of fish that are found in the shallow waters. They bury in sand to hide from predators. Their flattened bodies are joined with there fins their head and with their tail trailing behind. The stingray's eyes peer out from its sides and the mouth is on its belly. Many rays have sharp teeth to eat clams, oysters, and mussels.
When stingrays move, they flap their sides like wings. The stingray's spine, can have a sharp point which includes venom. Venom can be deadly to humans, and which can remain deadly even after the stingray's death. Though if you pet the top of one you will be fine. Just don't touch the tail or the belly. Ashleigh 0ne day a girl named Ashleigh wondered what would it feel like to have magic seeds. The next day, on the way home from karate class she stopped at a garden shop. She looked and found pink seeds. She took them home. Her talented and beautiful sister named Maddie helped plant them.
Months past quickly and slowly it began to grow into an apple tree. From then on when ever she took a bite of one of the apples something magical happened. For example, the city was colorful instead of gray, no spiders roamed anywhere, and nothing had to be cleaned because everyone was tidy. That sure made Ashleigh's dad happy. Ashleigh In today's search for prompts, I found a writing prompt called the 'Hello' prompt. The idea is to write a letter or poem that begins with the word 'hello' and run with it. I figured I'd give it a shot since I love writing poetry, and I encourage both my dad and my sister to take up this prompt with me. This post is a bit short, but I put a lot of time and effort into my poem and I hope you enjoy it. I promise a lengthier post tomorrow.
Hello Hello, old friend I see you're coming to an end You've let the hell inside you win It's hard to see where you begin A broken mess upon the floor A shattered heart, a slamming door You've let opinions take their hold You believe them all, they have you sold You can't ever be enough Someone will always call your bluff Please don't believe that that's your truth You're so much more than wasted youth I've seen your dreams, I've seen your fears You've beat them back throughout the years Don't stop now, you're almost there Show the world how much you care Hello, old friend- please take my hand I'll help you through this final stand I'll show you that your life has meaning All I ask; don't stop believing Everything now is all on you I know that you can make it through Don't lose faith, it's in your heart Show them you're a work of art Show them what true happiness means Become the product of your dreams. I've written about quotes along the same line as this in the past, but I'd like to re-visit the topics of fear and perception once again to talk about change in life (and some of the changes that have been happening in my own life). In the upcoming year, I'll be entering my junior year of highschool and with that, entering into a new chapter of my life. I'll be turning 16 in October, in which I'll be old enough to get my license (if I ever get myself to sign up for driver's ed) and hopefully after that, I'll have my schedule together enough to get a job.
All of this aside, I've also been training to become a sensei for my karate school. Becoming a sensei entails lots of helping out with classes, standing in front of classes and teaching, helping students out, and in general a lot of things that I'd consider pretty nerve-wrecking. Nonetheless, I'm enduring it and gradually getting used to being in front of people more because earning a sensei title is something I've wanted for a long while. In late September, I'm going to also be going through a workshop to earn my Muay Thai/Kickboxing instructor certification. Everything in the upcoming year that I'm striving for are things that have previously scared me. Believe it or not, driving used to scare me. Now, I've got 20+ hours under my belt and I'm looking forward to classes so I can be licensed. Teaching karate, or even helping with classes, also used to be an object of fear to me- my anxiety kept my teaching skills at bay, and I'd avoid the front of the class. Now, I'm slowly losing my fears and I've become more comfortable in front of a class. Balancing college courses is also a stressful thought, but I have confidence in myself that I'll be able to handle them. My dad always tells me that perception is everything, and that how you think can make all the difference. As I've gotten older, I can see that he's right. If you look at everything in a negative light, then all you're going to end up with is a negative result. I've been trying to look on the bright side of things lately, in order to set my goals high and my dreams even higher. The quote I used to title this post is 100% right- fear won't stop death at all, it'll only restrict your life. This year, my goal is to beat back my fears and achieve more than I ever have before. I hope that you can find yourself capable of the same outlook. - Maddie A mouse is a small mammal that is often called a rodent. It has a pointed nose, furry round body, large ears and a long hairless, tail. There are hundreds of types of mice. There are deer mice, house mice, field mice, wood mice, dormice, spiny mice and zebra mice, to name a few.
Some people think mice and rats are the same thing. They are actually different types of animals within the rodent family. Rats are larger than mice, and they can be scaly and round shaped. Mice are hardy, and found in nearly every country. They can live in forests and grasslands. Mice can burrow if they're in the wild. Their burrow helps protect them from predators. Their natural predators are cats, birds, wild dogs and foxes. Ashleigh Ducks are birds that can swim in water and walk on land. Most wild ducks eat underwater plants. Some ducks will eat small fish and insects. They also eat grain and seeds. Ducks are freshwater birds.
They like places where the food is easy to get. Ducks make nests which help protect them from dangerous predators. Ducks spend most of their time in warm water. Ducks live in different countries, depending on the species. I think ducks are cute. Ashleigh In my hunt for prompts today, I found a strange one- "write about the color grey". It seems obscure, but I want to attempt it. I invite my dad to follow this prompt with me- since he's a part of what I'm about to write about.
When I think of the color grey, I'm reminded of the colors black and white, primarily. I'm reminded of black and white thinking- happiness vs. sadness, anger vs. peace... I'm reminded of the grey cloud of no emotion that visits from time to time. Grey to me, is not a color. Grey is a state of mind that comes about when all else has left you. Grey comes after times of hardship, to numb you from everything going on in your life. Grey comes when the black hole of sadness swallows you so deep, that you can no longer feel. Grey comes about when your happiness begins to fade away. Grey begins in the same place where your realization of just how insignificant you are in the universe begins. Grey is the emptiness in your heart, in your mind... and the only reason I've bothered to talk about grey for so long is because the color grey reminds me of a conversation I had with my dad awhile ago. Sometime last year, my dad and I were on the way home from one of our late night coffee runs. We had been talking about something emotionally distressing, and we began talking about perception and how emotion can play into perception. I spoke of how my emotions changed from extreme highs to extreme lows quickly, while my dad talked about a shade of grey he seemed to be caught in. The way he described it sounded like emotional numbness, and almost a discontent with where he was at in life. When I think of the color grey, I remember his description- that color grey is something I strive above all else to avoid. I'd like to believe my dad has since pulled himself a bit out of that shade of grey. He seems to be somewhat happier, recently. He's back to making healthier choices in his life, and taking care of himself- and I'm proud of him for it. Right now, he's got a lot to take care of- me, my sister, his work, the house, karate... and he balances it all with grace. Life isn't always easy, but it doesn't last forever- why waste it living in the grey? - Maddie Recently, my aunt Michelle came to NH for a visit- and while I'm sure that most of you already read my little sister's post about the trip, I'd like to add my own thoughts. Primarily, this was the first trip my aunt has really had to New Hampshire recently that hasn't been filled with stress. With my grandmother's illness and passing, everyone had been upset and in a stir for the past few visits. This visit was laid back and enjoyable for everyone, and filled with well-deserved good times and laughter.
Highlights of the trip included a trip to the New England Aquarium in Boston, going swimming at a local pond, and my aunt's amazing lasagna. I was also able to demonstrate my improved cooking skills and make a nice dinner with the help of Seth on the first night of her stay. It was good to be able to sit down and enjoy a meal without having to deal with the stress of tomorrow's possibilities, if that makes any sense. Instead, we swapped memories and funny stories and in general had a good time over the course of the night. The next day, we all decided to go swimming, since the weather was gorgeous. There's a swimming location called Gilmore Pond about 20 minutes away from my house, and I'd swear that it's the most beautiful pond in the area. It has a white sand bottom, the water is crystal clear, there's seldom anyone there, and you walk a short trail through the woods to get to it. Moreover, there's not a lot of direct sunlight where it's located, so the water stays cool and refreshing and you can usually avoid nasty sunburns. Over the summer, Seth and I hadn't had a chance to swim there, so we decided to take my sister and aunt there. It was a good choice- we left early in the morning and were the first people there. We had the pond to ourselves for about an hour before a few other people showed up, but it ended up being alright because of how spacious it was. Everyone enjoyed themselves thoroughly, and we finished our outing by eating lunch at Athens (a local pizzeria with some of the best pizza in the area). On the last day of my aunt's visit, she took Ashleigh and I into Boston to visit the aquarium there. Instead of taking the train like we normally would, we opted for a car trip in hopes of avoiding a lot of foot traffic. It was a nice day, and the city was crowded with the last flood of summer tourists. We were lucky enough to avoid most traffic and made it into the city in just under an hour and thirty minutes, and we also got an excellent parking spot in a garage right next to the aquarium. The aquarium in and of itself was beautiful- it was 3 stories high and featured a gigantic viewing tank that ran the entire height of the building with a ramp around it. We worked our way through all the viewing tanks and then came down the ramp to finish our trip. To end the day, we ate lunch at a small but good restaurant called the Chart House. If you're ever in Boston and are looking for a good place to eat, I highly recommend it. That summed up the trip! I'll be adding photos to this post at a later date when they're transferred to my laptop- my wire is acting up right now and I had trouble switching the photos over. Check back in a week, and I'll have all of my photos posted. - Maddie I'm having a good week. It is because my Aunt came up and had some surprises. The surprises where: a ball, some chalk, a stone owl that I can paint, and fun science called The Walking Rainbow. Now it is morning and we are going to the lake to swim. Tomorrow we are going to an aquarium that is in Boston.
When we got back from the lake, we checked on our experiment called The Walking Rainbow. It was working, slowly. The colors were starting to mix. The red, and yellow were starting to mix into orange, the blue and yellow were starting to mix into green and the red and blue is hard to tell what color it is making. Ashleigh Squirrels are mammals that climb trees. Squirrels are only five inches long from nose to tail. Others reach sizes to those who are only familiar with common tree squirrels. The Indian giant squirrel is three feet long. Like other rodents, squirrels have four front teeth that never stop growing.
Tree squirrels are seen gracefully scampering and leaping from branch to branch. Other species are ground squirrels that live in burrows where they hibernate during the winter. Ground squirrels eat nuts, leaves, roots, seeds, and other plants. They also catch and eat small animals, such as insects and caterpillars. These small mammals must always be aware of predators. Sometimes groups of ground squirrels work together to warn each other of approaching danger with a whistling call. Ashleigh Panthers are mammals that eat meat. Jaguars are the largest of South America's big cats. They once roamed from the southern tip of the north to the U.S.-Mexico border. Today numbers of jaguars are found only in remote regions of South and Central America particularly in the Amazon Basin. These beautiful and powerful beasts also lived in Native America.
Unlike many other cats, jaguars do not avoid water. They are quite good swimmers. Rivers provide prey in the form of fish, turtles, or caimans. Jaguars also eat larger animals such as deer. They sometimes climb trees to prepare to jump and kill their prey with one powerful bite. Ashleigh Today I read a new book called '' Magic Tree House: Vacation Under the Volcano''. One day Jack and Annie went to the tree house. They had to go to the Roman era to save a story from a volcano. When they got there Annie did not like the place. Jack loved it.
They met a soothsayer there that gave them a warning when she first saw them. Then, when she knew them better, she showed them the way to the library. Once they found the story, a rumble came from the ground. It was the Volcano! They ran and ran until the road stopped. The road had already been destroyed. Jack and Annie fell until a man lifted them into the air. It was Hercules! When they were back on the other side of the road, they ran to the tree house and went home. Mission accomplished! They then went on a vacation. Ashleigh While I know that readership of this blog has dropped significantly since there's been a lack of writing lately, I'd still like to use it as a platform to market some of my own endeavors recently. As mentioned in my last post, my boyfriend and I have been going to the Rietta flea market in Hubbardston MA every weekend in an attempt to clear out items that have been collecting dust in our garage for far too long. In this post, I wanted to talk a bit about the flea market so everyone knows what I meant by that.
Currently, we have too much stuff. I know, everyone says it- but we REALLY have too much. Roughly 3 households full, actually- we have our own junk, plus my mom's, plus my grandmother's now. It all must go. Every Sunday now consists of leaving at about 3:00AM to drive to Massachusetts and get into Hubbardston, get some breakfast, and then line up so we get a good spot to set up our table. We tend to aim for shady places near the front of the flea market, so we're the first table some people stop at while remaining cool for the full day. The flea market is held out in a wide open field, so the sun really starts to beat down as the afternoon hits. Many people do tend to migrate towards the shade, so we end up at an advantage (usually). There are room for 600 vendors, and roughly 450 usually show up each weekend- so there's always a wide variety of people coming through to check out everything. It's the largest flea market in New England, and some people travel all the way from New York to get some of the excellent deals. That being said, I'd be so appreciative if anyone would stop by and say hi. The flea market opens at 7AM, and usually is functioning until about 1:00PM. We're there AT LEAST until 1:30 each week- so if you'd like to drop by and check out our wares, please feel free to. You can find directions on google- just search for the Rietta Ranch flea market. Thanks! - Maddie This past week, I've been trying to organize the house more. When my grandmother passed, our schedule for the day underwent drastic change and unfortunately didn't leave much time for cleaning and organizing the house. Recently, I've been trying to pull everything together and get the house looking good again with the help of my boyfriend. We've been flea marketing every weekend at Rietta (the largest flea market in New England) to clear out some of the bins of clothing and other junk that are sitting in the garage and mudroom. The mudroom has now been entirely cleaned and cleared, and is back to functioning.
I've also been re-arranging some furniture around the house to make more space and to better utilize some of what we have. The library got cleaned and organized yesterday, and in my opinion looks better than it ever has. The living room is also slowly coming together- I moved the couches around and added an endtable. Today is going to consist of helping my sister clean and organize, and starting to work on the office (which is one of the larger rooms in the house that needs cleaning). I'll be cleaning out my old desk for my sister to use, and also cleaning off an old armchair in the office. Eventually, I'd like to get it re-upholstered- but first comes cleaning everything around it. After the office is clean, I'd love to start working in the garage. My personal hope is that once everything is clean, my dad will allow me to use the workshop half of it to experiment with spray paint and old furniture- my boyfriend and I want to buy old furniture and renew it, and then add unique/psychedelic art to it using spray paint. That idea is a work in progress, and naturally I'd like to experiment with the paints before actually using them on furniture... however, I'd need a place to do so and I hope that once the garage is clean, it'll be a good place. Naturally, the garage is a large project that'll probably spill over into next year... but I do intend to complete it. In any case, the next week may be a little hectic for me with all the cleaning I've been doing, but it should be fun nonetheless. My aunt is coming up next week, so I'm pretty excited to see her (and for her to experience some of the cooking I've been doing recently). I'm going to end this post here, as I need to shower and then start my cleaning for today. - Maddie Leopards are powerful big cats that are mammals and closely related to lions, tigers, and jaguars. They live in northeast Africa, Central Asia, India, and China. Female leopards can give birth at any time of the year. They usually have two cubs with barely visible spots. Cubs live with their mothers for about two years.
The mother hides her cubs and moves them from one safe spot to the next until they are old enough to begin playing and learning to hunt. The leopard is so strong and comfortable in trees that it often drags its prey that is dead into the branches to eat. Leopards can also hunt from trees, where their spotted coats allow them to blend with the leaves until they jump out at the animal they want to kill. Most leopards are light colored with distinctive dark spots that are called rosettes, because they resemble the shape of a rose. Black leopards, have black spots that are hard to see. They are called black panthers. Ashleigh Wolfs are mammals. Wolfs have sharp teeth for eating meat. Wolves live in the woods and the forests. A lone wolf howls to attract attention of the pack. Some wolves also howl to send territorial messages from one pack to another.
Wolves are the largest members of the dog family. Gray wolves are the most common of all the wolves that live in all of the Northern Hemisphere. Though they almost never attack humans, wolves are actually one of the most fearsome animal. Wolves live and hunt in packs of around six to ten animals. They are known to roam large distances. About 12 miles in a single day. Ashleigh As always, I was searching for prompts online and I came across an interesting one. It challenges the writer to create a story and a poem, each using only six words. I decided to attempt this challenge, but write 5 short stories and 5 short poems. I encourage both my dad and my sister to participate in this with me, since it is a short prompt... but one that requires a good brain.
Stories You loved me. I loved myself. Roses without thorns make pointless muses. My better half stopped reflecting me. Reflect your past, and history repeats. You were my lifeboat. I drowned. Poems Headlines are read, freedom is dead. Having no voice, leaves no choice. We tried, hearts lied, truth died. Open your mind, seek to find. Not dead, just in my head. This was actually challenging for me- it's harder than you'd think to attempt to tell a story in JUST SIX WORDS. A lot of summarizing is needed, and then it's up to the mind of your readers to fill in the blanks... so I hope I left you all with something to ponder. I'll leave this post here- if you'd like, leave me your own six-word stories or poems in the comments! I'd love to read them. - Maddie I've written a post like this before, on one of the phrases I'll be mentioning below. The phrase I used was "blood is thicker than water", and I showed the origin of the phrase along with what it was meant to truly mean vs. how society has warped it to their own convenience. I was recently reading an article along the same lines as the one I wrote, and I found in the comments a bunch of other phrases that have been shortened and misconstrued over time. Today, I'm dedicating a post to listing a good handful of these phrases and to writing about what they actually mean.
"Curiosity killed the cat" VS. "Curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back" The original saying ends with "but satisfaction brought it back", but the commonly used phrase is better known for its first half. The meaning that we've given to the phrase is that sometimes, being curious is a bad thing that can end up hurting you. For example, listening in on a significant other's phone call and discovering they're cheating... however, the satisfaction that could come from this scenario is realizing that your partner was being unfaithful and getting out of the bad situation. There is always some form of satisfaction to be had when finding out something you never knew. "Jack of all trades, master of none" VS. "Jack of all trades, master of none, but better than a master of one" The meaning that has been brought to this saying over time is a negative one, making it out as though being okay at multiple things is bad if you can't master any. The ACTUAL saying means almost the exact opposite- that being okay at a lot of things and not being GREAT at any is better than only being good at one thing in general. I like the positive connotation. "Great minds think alike" VS. "Great minds think alike, but fools rarely differ" Great minds think alike is a saying I'm pretty sure we're all guilty of using. It's so common today, but no one seems to remember the full meaning to the saying. The idea is that it's awesome to have shared ideas and to be understood, but the actual meaning of the phrase winds down to stating that if everyone thinks alike, there isn't much diversity and you end up following the crowd (like a fool). "Birds of a feather flock together" VS. "Birds of a feather flock together, until the cat comes" This phrase is often used to signify friendship- people with similar interests do indeed tend to get along well. People with similar beliefs often enjoy being around others who share their beliefs, and so on and so forth. However, the original meaning behind this saying warns against fairweather friends... who may share your beliefs until the cows come home, but will leave you when the first sign of hardship appears. "The early bird gets the worm" VS. "The early bird gets the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese" This saying is often used to remind people to be early and to keep on time- at least the first half of it, anyway. Instead of singling people out and making them feel bad, this phrase was actually meant to say that it's okay if you're late, it's okay if you're early- there can be benefits to both, and at the end of the day it really doesn't matter. That's all that I've found for right now, but I've always thought it was really interesting how these phrases have been cut down over the years... and how different they've become. I think it's funny, too, how all the cut-down phrases seem to encourage similarity and fitting in, while the full proverbs often seek individuality and personal choice. In honesty, most of the full proverbs seem to promote a message of living life your own way- and I appreciate that. - Maddie |
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