Split Splat

Inspired by Milton Resnick's East is the Place

Split Splat
Split splat
Split splat
The sounds of not caring
Just letting things go the way they are
Doing one, mindless thing, and just letting it go

Basketball

There is nothing more calming then hearing a basketball hit the wood floor as you set up the offense. The noise of the squeaking shoes, people shouting to guard the weak side, or the noise of the ball being passed from person to person. There’s the noise of the crowd in the background, cheering, booing, and chanting. Then you hear the dribbling suddenly stop and the next thing you hear is swish, as the ball tumbles down through the net. You hear the crowd go silent, while the other side of the gym seems louder than front row tickets to metal concert. Your players are swarming you like a pack of wolves, surrounding their kill. You go through the line, and shake hands with the players on the other team. Seeing their face is like a reward, the look of adversity on their face.

Speak Essay

Speak Essay

Did you know that it is estimated that over 3 million teenagers between the ages of 14 and 17 have problems with drinking? Or that 9.7 million teenagers between the ages of 12 and 20 are drinkers? For some teens, drinking alcohol is unbearable, and for others it’s just another thing that they do in life. While drinking is not only a problem itself, it also causes many other problems.

Imagine, you’re at a party. There’s alcohol there, and before you know it, you’ve had a few. Next, there’s videos being taken, people doing stupid stuff, so you want to leave. Unfortunately, when you’re driving home, you get pulled over, arrested, ticketed, and taken down to jail. Next thing you know, you’re suspended from school, suspended from sports, you have fines to pay, your parents are mad, and you ruin your chances of getting into college. This is just some of the few possibilities that could happen when you drink.

Now many of this think that would be extremely hard to do, but it’s not that hard. Something like this happened to Melinda. She goes to a party, has a few drinks along with mostly everyone else. Before she knows it, she’s out in the woods, dancing with a senior. It starts out great, she’s going to start high school with a boyfriend, to look out and protect her. Then however, it takes a turn for the worse, as Melinda gets trapped and pinned on the ground, and raped. Still stunned, hurt, and drunk she calls the cops, and flees. Her friends get busted, mad, and don’t talk to her for basically the whole school year. Just because of a understanding, her life has taken a turn for the worse.

This is just one of the many examples of that drinking is not only a problem alone, but can cause many other problems.

Money

Money. When I think of that one word there, I think of green. However, when I think of green, I think of acres and acres, of thick, long, fresh grass. Yet, money is the exact opposite of this. Money is one of the main issues, with today's world. Some people complain about not having enough money, and some people take it for granite. 75% of NBA players go into debt within 15 years after their retirement. This goes to show, just how greedy people can be. They spend their money so carelessly, as if each million is some worthless penny. A lot of people then think that all these professional sports players are just in for all the money. I won't lie, I think that some players are. However, this past summer, three of the NBA's top players, Lebron James, Dwayne Wade, and Chris Bosh, came and joined the Miami Heat for less money. This shows that some people are actually in it for winning, and the love of the game. Now many people complain about money, but I think that that it is mostly their fault. They choose not to study in school, get a good degree, thus creating their money problems. In my sight, there is no explanation, to what will happen with all these money issues. The end to money issues could be near, but how far away really is it?

Patrioism

I think patriotism still matters, but it's not one of the most important things in life. We should have a day for it and be proud of who we are and honor those who have put their lives before us. However, it is not as big as some other things such as the 4th of July or things to that affect. Be proud of who we are, and support the people who have helped us get us there.

Greatest NBA player

Imagine you’re in a NBA championship game. Last game of the series and the series is all tied up at 3-3. You’re down by two with 4 seconds left. They inbound the ball to the point guard who passes it to you and sets a pick. You run around the pick and you’re open with 2 seconds left. As you rise and take you’re jump shot, the clock is at .4 as you see the ball leave your hand. The buzzer rings as you hit nothing but net, and have won. To me, this would be my dream. For some however, that is reality. There are many greats, but in my eyes as of right now, Michael Jordan is the best.
Although Michael Jordan is the best, there are many people who come close. In a current time the best are LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Dwayne Wade, and Kevin Durant. To me, Kevin Durant won’t be close to the best because he is still young and there are bigger stars. Dwayne Wade has one a championship, but that was a few years ago and he will start to slow down. Kobe still dominates the west but he’s getting old. LeBron James is still young, has a MVP, is predicted to win at least 4 more MVPs. When his career is over, I will have probably changed my mind and say he’s the best.
While current players rule now, a few years ago and the 90’s and 80’s were great too. The good players then were Shaquille O’Neal, Larry Bird, Earvin “Magic” Johnson, and of course, Michael Jordan. Shaq has had 4 championships and maybe one more this season with LeBron, and an MVP season, but he is to old and wasn’t the MVP the enough. He is one of the best big men of all time, but not the best all around. Larry Bird is probably the best shooter of all time, to go with 3 MVPs as well as championships under his belt. Just being good at shooting though, won’t get you as far as you need to get. Magic Johnson was the best all around player in the 80s and has 3 MVPs and 5 championship rings. Then, there is the legendary Michael Jordan. 5 time MVP, and 6 championship rings. A lot of people say he is the one who made basketball famous, and is known as the best player in history.
While you may think that Michael Jordan has it wrapped up, players from the 70’s and older gave him good competition and set the bar high. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar may have more MVP’s then Michael, he wasn’t as good all around as Michael. However, he still has 6 MVPs as well as championships. Then there was Wilt Chamberlain. He scored 100points in a game once, and often averaged 50 points per game in a season. Also, he clinched the MVP award 4 times, and 2 championships. Around the same time, there was another great. His name was Bill Russell, who won 11 championships, the most in NBA history. Along with that he won 5 MVPs as well. Now these players may have won more, but Michael was better all around. Michael didn’t have as good of teammates like others around him.
In conclusion, a few people have come close to being the best. Michael however, sticks out from the pack. He is the best of the best in my eyes, and many others.

Watertown Baseball Scrimmage

We had a baseball scrimmage at Watertown yesterday, which was bad from the time we left. We didn't get there until it had started, because the field was hard to find. We were driving around Watertown for 45 minutes until my dad finally decided it was time to call someone and ask for directions. When we finally got to the park, I had to warm up real quick. At one of my at bats, the pitcher was what the coaches said was one of the fastest pitchers we would see this year. He threw the ball at me so I tried to dodge out of the way but it hit me in the back. Some of my teammates said they could here the ball hit me. It hurt like crazy, and when I showed it to my dad, he could see the seams of the ball on my back. We kept on playing until 8 and it got cold, and then my coach made me pitch, and my arm really hurt after that. The final was something like 15 to 4 and we lost. Other than that it was a good game!