The Boy Who Cried Murder

     House Rules is a great murder mystery, while the Boy Who Cried Wolf is great moral story. Despite their glaring differences (like how one is a novel and one is a fable) they both have similarities. 

     In House of Rules, the story centers around a teenager named Jacob Hunt, who has Asperger’s Syndrome and is a suspect in a murder case. The story is based in a small town called Townshend in Vermont. Jacob is a terrible liar, since his disorder gives him a hard time when he lies, making it blatantly obvious when he does. One time in the book, Jacob called the police and told them that his mother abused him, so that he can go and see his idol, Doctor Henry Lee. When Detective Matsen learns about the ruse, he tells if Jacob cries wolf again, then the police wouldn’t believe him if he really was in danger. Speaking of crying wolf, this leads to me to my next topic, The Boy Who Cried Wolf.
  
     The fable, The Boy Who Cried Wolf, revolves around a shepherd who is a skilled liar. This leads to his downfall, however, because he constantly tricks the villagers into believing that his flock of sheep is being attacked by wolves. When he does tell the truth (the wolves are actually attacking his flock) the villagers don’t come to his aid, and his flock of sheep gets slaughtered by the wolves.

     Both Jacob and the Boy “cried wolf” (although Jacob only did it once; and the Boy did it multiple times) but that’s where their similarities end. While the Boy is a skilled liar, Jacob is a terrible one (people can easily find out when he lies). Another difference they have is the story’s format and genre: House Rules is mystery novel, while The Boy Who Cried Wolf is a story from Aesop’s Fable.

     Even though both stories may be very different in some cases, both are a very enjoyable read, and with both with a moral behind the story. 

Paragraph (Introduction and Conclusion)

Technology has vastly changed and improved our lives. Things we couldn't have done today/things that we use to find difficult to do, is now simplified thanks to technology. But with technology making everything so much easier, it comes with a cost: human interaction.

......

Our lives maybe easier thanks to technology, but is it worth it with the cost of human interaction? Maybe human interaction can be restored if we decrease our usage of technology, so that in the future, we can talk to each other over a cup of coffee without having to look at our smartphones all the time.

Video Games VS. Sports

            Despite their obvious differences, video games and sports have a lot in common. Contrary to popular beliefs, video games can actually be good to you. While sports help you build muscles and burn fat, studies have shown that video games help improve hand and eye coordination. Video games can also involve fitness and also keep you healthy, just like sports. Both are excellent candidates for entertainment and competition. While sports have big major leagues such as the Super Bowl, there is also (surprisingly) the Major League Gaming. Though both

seem to have a lot of positive effects, it doesn’t mean they have any negative effects. Video games can get you addicted, and can also affect you psychologically. It can even make you violent (but that’s not always the case). While playing sports, you can overwork your muscles, which can be very harmful. Sports can also cause injuries, such as breaking an arm or spraining an ankle. In the end, both may have their positive and negative effects, but we enjoy them all the same. 

Should Zoos Exist?

Imagine you are a proud lion, with golden fur and a luxurious mane. Imagine what it would be like to spend the rest of your life, in a small cage, just for the entertainment of humans. It’s sad, isn’t it? Zoos are made for the general human population be able to see the wild animals that they’ve heard of, but is it right to keep them in cages like that? It isn’t right. As I said earlier, keeping wild animals in cages is wrong. By doing so, we have taken away their freedom, and we’ve put them into a small space, which is much smaller in comparison to its own natural habitat. We are taking them away from their homes. We are also ripping these animals away from their families. How would you feel if you were having dinner with your parents, when suddenly, you are taken away from them and put into a small cage? Another reason is that animals kept in captivity lose their natural instincts/aren’t able to follow their natural instincts. It can affect them greatly in a psychological way; some might even become psychotic and maybe attack humans, which would give the public a bad image of animals. Also, zoos “claim” to be saving endangered species by keeping them “safe” in zoos, but that’s not true. Of course, the animals are safer in captivity than in the wild without poachers.

 But, if more and more endangered species are put into zoos, there would be less in the wild. Inbreeding can happen, causing the endangered species to become infertile, or suffer from inbreeding depression (they are not as physically fit as their parents). They are no longer genetically diverse, so that if the animals were ever released back into the wild, they wouldn’t be able to breed; it upsets the natural balance of nature, and pushes the species even closer to extinction. In conclusion, those are the reasons why I think animals should not be kept in zoos. They are better off in sanctuaries, where they still maintain their freedom and get to be released back into the wild, or in national parks. 

My Fall Break

I like to play as Samus Aran and destroy my sister in Super
Smash Bros. Brawl
Over the fall break, I didn’t do much. In the beginning, I spent most of my time using my laptop, and also playing Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Just Dance 4 on the Wii.

                                                                    

On Thursday, I went to Phan Thiet and stayed at the DuParc Resort. (It use to be called Novotel, but it got changed to DuParc). 

Hammack by the beach

We spent our time there swimming and relaxing. When my dad went to play gold, we’d usually go down to the beach and lie on the hammocks and enjoy the scenery and sea air. On Sunday, my sister and I went to the monthly Saigon Flea Market, and we went with our friend, Nanami. We also met an old friend there (her name was Soomi). I also had to study for the History test, but then I decided that procrastination was a better choice J

The Owl

A distant noise rings in the background. I open my heavy eyelids, and I become blinded by the sunlight. I force myself to squint, and saw the small human child standing outside my cage. The hairs on the child’s head were gathered into two strange tails at the base of its head. It wore a peculiar bright pink garment, and it shrieked in delight as its parents stood behind it, guarding the child.

My temper boiled. Humans; Do they have to wake an owl as it sleeps? Owls are naturally nocturnal.

I stretch my wings, and I began preening through my long feathers. I have beautiful feathers in shades of brown, with varying shades of lighter brown and shades of white. Having such beautiful feathers, I was naturally quite vain. The small child gawked and pointed at me, shrieking even more. I am a Barn owl, and I was especially vain about my white heart-shaped face and large, shiny black eyes. I swivel my head around, and notice another human child standing on the other side of my cage, staring and pointing and chatting excitedly with its companion.  I spread my wings and leap off of the branch, and barrel straight towards the child, beak apart and screeching. The human child and its companion scream, backing away from the cage. Just when my talons touch the cage, I veer off to the right and fly back to a higher branch and settled down. I then looked at the small human child in the pink garment and cock my head to one side, as if saying, What did I do? The human child gawked and pointed it's paws at me and shrieked in delight. 

             For most of the day, I usually sit on my branch observing the visitors, feeling insulted as they tried to hoot at me. I'd usually screech at them, with me head forward, and my wings spread out behind me. Humans. Taking animals from their own home and putting them in cages for their own sick delight, I thought bitterly. Sure, it was nice that there was always free food brought to you. But the feel of the natural wind blowing through your feathers, the soft rustling of the leaves, the safe canopy of the trees, and the earthy smell of the forest was a haven compared to the small cage I resided in a city zoo. It was home.
             I shake my feathery head, and stare at the setting sun, and continue to stare as the sun disappeared, and the night took over the day. The full moon rose, basking the zoo in a silvery glow. I look at the horizon, where the city ended and the forest began, and a single word echoes through my mind:
             Home. 

How To Be Cool At CIS

You want to be cool? Then follow the following four steps and you'll be guranteed to go down the path of coolness!

1. Don't even bother to use proper English
Don't say "hi" "hello" or "hey." That's what lame people do. Say "Yo", "wassup," and "YOLO." When you are forced to do some lame assignment from your teacher, ignore all rules of grammar and English. Only lame people do that. Instead of "how are you?" use "how r u bro? SWAG."

2. You gotta dress to impress
At all times you should wear shades. Not tiny ones, but those big gigantic black ones. It'll have you oozing with coolness. Wear them' shades day AND night, cause' that's what cool people do! For boys, where your

You must have SWAG!

baggy pants REAL low. It will make you look COOL. Girls, wear those super short shorts, cause' they're just COOL.

3. When on social networking sites, USE HASHTAGS
Cool people use ALOT of hashtages. You post a picture of you and your friends at the beach on Instagram. What's missing? HASHTAGS! The more the BETTER! For that cool picture of you and your friends at the beach, write hashtags like #SWAG, #YOLO, #beach, #sand, #fun at the beach with friends, #fun in the sand with friends, #breathingoceanair, #sand, #palmtree, #bluesky, #friends, #me, AND #nofilter. Remember; the more the hashtages, the COOLER you are!!

4. Don't care about anything but yourself!
As a cool person, don't care about anything but yourself! It's important that you ALWAYS maintain your coolness. Ignore the lame people, and if they try to talk to you, say "whatever." "Whatever" should be your answer to everything, other than swag, yolo, and bro.

Now that you've learned the steps that it takes to be cool, LEARN IT, LIVE IT, LOVE IT! Embrace the rules, and you'll be SWAGALICIOUS.

Time Capsule Letter

    Dear people of the future,

    My name is Khanh Linh Le. I'm 13 years old at the time this letter is written on August 27, 2013. This letter is part of the time capsule that is supposed to be opened in the year 2033, at the Canadian International School of Vietnam.

  

   Every weekday, I wake up early and ride the bus to school. After coming home from school, I usually use the laptop and check Facebook, 9Gag, and YouTube, or go to the gym to workout. On the weekends, I usually use the laptop or play on my Kindle Fire or Wii. I have a fraternal twin sister named Phuong Linh, and an elder brother named Duy, whose going to college in America right now.

    Most girls at my age like to listen to One Direction, Justin Bieber or K-pop, but I prefer to listen to Ellie Goulding and 30 Seconds to Mars. I absolutely love to read and draw (I spend most of my time doodling in class). My favorite books are the Harry Potter series, the Percy Jackson series, the Heroes of Olympus series, the Hunger Games Trilogy, the Shadow and Bone trilogy, the Divergent trilogy and the Skulduggery Pleasant series. 

    The world in 2013 isn't the best place right now but it isn't the worse either. Things aren't looking to good in Syria, with civil war still happening, and there being a recent chemical attack that has killed hundreds of people. The 2014 Winter Olympics will be held in Russia, but Russia has anti-gay laws. Luckily, many people are angry with the anti-gay laws and are demanding change. 

    I'm hoping that the future would be more peaceful, and not be a war-stricken dystopia. I hope that there is no longer poverty or hunger, that gay-marriage is approved, and that everyone has access to education and healthcare. I wonder; have you guys colonized other planets?

    I hope you've enjoyed reading my letter. Have a wonderful future!

    Sincerely,

    Khanh Linh Le

    

The Time Capsule

Once upon a time, I found a time capsule. I was in the recently re-dug garden of my house when I spotted something shiny in the dirt. I went digging a little, until I finally uncovered a large metal box.

Invasion of Normandy; D-Day
June 6, 1944

I pried opened the lid to find various things with a note inside. The note read:

This time capsule was buried at the end of World War II in the year 1945. The items inside are to help the future generations understand our struggle in a time of hardship, and our eventual victory. Included inside are also items of our daily lives. 

I put the note down, and began sifting through the box's contents. I picked up a couple of dog tags, but they were to badly scratched to see what was inscribed on them. The next thing I picked up was...

"A Coca-Cola bottle? They had Coca-Cola in the 1940s!?" I muttered. 

The next thing I picked up from the box was a black and white photograph of soldiers. On the back, it read:

Invasion of Normandy; D-Day
June 6, 1944

I put the photograph down beside me, and inside the box I found movie tickets to the movie Bambi. The words on the ticket was barely eligible, and the paper was worn down. I continue to look through the contents of the box, finding even more photographs of soldiers and letters sent to them from their loved ones. I picked up one of the letters and unfolded it, but then my mom called me from the house, telling me to go back inside. I put back the dog tags and all of the other items I took out back into the box, and carried it with me back into the house to show my parents and siblings. 

About Me

 My name is Khanh Linh Le. I live in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. I have an older brother named Duy, who goes to college in America, and I also have a fraternal twin sister named Phuong Linh.

Drawing

I absolutely love to draw. During school, I tend to doodle alot in my notebook, or on any spare pieces of paper that I can find. I also like to read, since it can take my mind oof of things. My favorite genres are Science Fiction and Fantasy. 

Ellie Goulding

Some of my other hobbies is playing video games. I usually play on my Wii console, but sometimes I would borrow my brother's X-Box 360, or just use the computer.

I don't really listen to mainstream music very much, although I enjoy listening to Ellie Goulding, Fun., P!nk, and also Florence+The Machine. I also immensely dislike Justin Bieber.

Reading