How I Spent My Summer Vacation of Traveling Through the Imagination of Endless Wonders.

Well, the time has come to say goodbye to summer and hello to the fall semester of school. Goodbye freedom, hello books! Whatever you see it fits, I guess. Well, I know that I had pretty much an exciting summer vacation to say. My definition of summer vacation is not going to awesome places and doing crazy, cool things. My vacation begin and ended right here at home.

During the summer I have finally completed a goal that I've been trying to do for a long time now. I finally got to read books and I didn't just read one or two or even three. That would have been impressive though. I read seven books, baby!

I know what you’re thinking, why is it a big deal? Well, back when I was in high school I use to read books non-stop then when I went to college, which kind of went down quite a bit. I might have read at least one book that wasn't even assigned to me for class but that book was stretch out for more then what was worth, say almost a year.

But anyway, my goal of reading more than two books has been complete. This summer I read “The Fault in Our Stars,” “Labor Day,” “The Hunger Games,” “Catching Fire,” “Mockingjay,” “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” and “Divergent.” 

The plan was to read one book for one week, starting on Monday and ending it around either Saturday or Sunday. I read six out of seven books within a week but the last one, “Divergent” took me longer than I expect because I got distracted and it threw me off. Reading that book took me three weeks to get done with it. I did enjoy it though and agree with what others are saying about the book.

I think now, my goal is just to keep reading more and more but not pushing it. Since I’m taking a Literature class, I think maybe I should take it easy since there will be a lot of reading going on in the fall.

Also this summer, I got to really see some awesome films in theaters. Films like “Captain America 2,” “The Amazing Spiderman 2,” “The Fault in Our Stars,” “Lucy,” “Guardians of the Galaxy,” and “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.” 

All of them blew my mind away. CA2 was way better than the first film. I don’t understand what other people are saying about Amazing Spiderman 2, because I saw it with both of my little brothers and we thought it was amazing. Even my brother is a huge Spiderman fan and supports Marvel comics, and still loved it. 

"Lucy" was just mind-blowing to watch. "Guardians" was just flat-out hilarious to see. I think of it as more of a comedy action film than just a action film. Probably one of the best Marvel comic turn to film I've seen along with Amazing Spiderman and Captain America. Chris Pratt is amazingly funny. If you haven't seen him on NBC's Parks and Recreation, you need to see it now. He's like Woody Harrison of our generation. 

What can I say about "Ninja Turtles?" That it's flat-out amazingly awesome!!! Cowabunga all the way dude!!!! I'm a huge fan of the turtles since the cartoon series from the late 80's to early 90's and the live action films in the early 90's. 

I thought that the Shredder was totally bad-ass to look at and that Megan Fox was outstanding as April O'Neil. The writers really mixed the story up just a bit. Will Arnett was great, I never really seen him in an action film before. Raphael was also totally bad ass and my favorite ninja turtle. But I'm considering since the Nickelodeon cartoon series that Donnie is moving up there. 

From accomplishing some reading to seeing some awesome movies, there's gotta be room for some television. One of the best new series that I've seen is "The Night Shift." Finally, a medical drama that deals with life and death situations. I haven't seen this kind of medical drama since "ER" and "House." This  isn't the crappy soap opera drama of "Grey's Anatomy."  

Also I've been catching up on Netflix with both the best comedy and drama series ever to air through online, "Orange is the New Black" and "House of Cards." It's really a must see to die for. They are probably going to take away most of the Emmy's next week. Who knows? 

With all of this going on, I've never had this kind of family story arch like this before. For the past year, my mother has been trying to find a house so that my brothers can go to a better school (they really do). Since the summer started they've had some houses that they had in their grasp but suddenly it was taken away from them due to something that the owner was trying to get away with or someone else bidding on it. 

This was really driving me crazy. My own mother asking me about the housing markets is something that seemed desperate to know, since I don't know quack about it. 

But finally this past week, they finally got a house. They maybe moving a bit farther than where they were living but at least three out of four are happy. 

My beloved Chicago Cubs are in dead last, what else is new, right? The news maker was Javier Baez, who has been climbing through the minors this year and was brought up to the majors. The kid can hit and will be a big star down the road, he's only in his early 20's.  I've seen fans calling for the firing of Theo when they saw Baez for the first time striking out a lot but then came when he finally hit the game winning run. Boy, I love being a Cub fan, the emotions are just so high. 

Football season is just around the corner. I don't care about preseason, it doesn't mean anything to me at all. I'll watch some of it but it doesn't prove anything expect what's going on with the team and players. Can't wait to see how the Bears will do this year. Forecast is calling high expectations maybe a 12-4 team, I'm going 11-5.

So what a summer it has been this year. This fall might turn out to be all right. I haven't had a good fall season in a year so let's hope this year will turn out to be a good one. 

A Change of Mind

Let me just say that the past three weeks, I have completed a book series that I'm very proud of reading. That series was The Hunger Games trilogy. I'm very proud of reading this series and how would I say this, it literally blew my mind away both literally and visually.

Reading The Hunger Games two weeks ago, I never thought that I would fall in love with it. I've heard and seen that it was such a huge hit with other readers, both young and old, that I thought to give it a try. Well, it wasn't disappointing at all. I couldn't stop reading The Hunger Game that I would keep reading for a couple of hours and then read at night that went all the way til middle of the night around 3 am. I just couldn't put it down.

Then came Catching Fire, which I have to say is my favorite book of the three, that had a lot of things going for Katness. There is a method to stories like this and it happens in movie trilogy most of all that when you read the first book that you are riding a roller coaster and when you are on the second book you are riding it all the way up and as soon as you get to the top you are at the tip toe of the edge to go down but the down part is the final book.

And then this past week I finished Mockingjay, the final book, which is had a long storyline to follow but I thought it was still good and had some twist and turns that I didn't see coming. Like when Katness was going to shoot President Snow and then shot President Coin. I didn't think that would happen. And the ending of it all just made me feel a whole lot better for Katniss and who she ended up with: that I think she should ended up with in the first place. I just couldn't believe that mental status of her. I just felt so sorry for Katniss.

Besides just these books, the movies were just as good as the book. I love it when a book turns into a movie because I can see it visually better than what I can imagine because I might see it different than what the author had in mind. For example, the part in the book in Catching Fire when Gale was getting wiped I didn't have a problem with it even just reading the details but when I saw the scene in the film version, that made me sick to my stomach.

I can't believe after reading the first book that I got hooked on it right away. As I said last week about Never Judge A Title, that I was never interested in reading what others were reading let alone now reading a book series. I hardly read any book series but I have read the Temperance Brennan novels, but I'm only like five books behind of it all. And now, I've had a change in mind about reading book series.

Now, I'm on to my next book, this time another book series (Divergent) and hope that it's good. I hear a lot of good things about it and the film too.

Here's to the next one!!

Never Judge a Book By It's Title

When I was a kid, let's say around grade school, I never really understood the meaning of reading what other kids were reading. I mean why would I want to read what every kid around the world is reading like Harry Potter for one. I readied what I wanted to read. I readied books like "Harriet the Spy", "Space Jam", "Walking with Dinosaurs", "Frog and Toad" just to name a few. But then this summer has pretty much hit me like a wrecking ball without having Miley Cyrus riding on it.

This summer has been the first time in a while since I read more than just one book let alone some good books. Most of the time, I've been busy handing personal stuff that I won't discuses about on here but it took away my time to read a book. The only time that I had for reading would be during school and most of it would be books on subjects for class and also some mystery, crime, fiction novels and one book would last more than a semester because it would take that long to read it.

But as I said, something hit me that really never hit me before and that was reading what other people were reading. I never liked reading what others were reading. It wasn't the that kind of person I was.

Reading Harry Potter...that was a no.
Reading Twilight....that would be a never.
Reading The Hunger Games....nope.  
Reading Divergent.....I don't think so.

None of these books really caught my attention as something that I have to read because you couldn't put it down once you start it.

Well, I'm here to confess that I'm eating those words right now. This summer I've started to read books that others have said that they loved and can't put down. I've taken some of the books that my friends have read like "The Hunger Games", "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" and "The Fault In Out Stars" just to name a few and let me just say that both of them were outstanding to read and that I couldn't put it down.

So far right now I've been reading "The Hunger Games" series (the first two series) for the past two weeks and so far it's the best two books that I've read so far along with "Fault In Our Stars." But I will saw that "Catching Fire" has to be my favorite so far that it had a lot more effect in the storytelling and that starting this week I will start on the "Mockingjay" and see how it will end. Also I'm planning to start reading the Harry Potter novels so never late than never I suppose.

I think I've finally see what other see in these books. In my mind, it's kind of like high school, when you don't do anything during your time there and years later you wish that you could have done something there, wishing you could relive it over again. Like Harry Potter, I wish I could go back and read those books when they started coming out in bookstores.

Well, I do regret not reading some of these books that my friends and others so helpless recommend on reading. It's the same way with me and televisions shows. And the lesson for this is probably never judge any book by it's title or how someone reacts to it. It could be something that you would read over and over again.

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

In the film “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, there are a lot of different characters that are different and some however stand out.

One of the characters that I’ve had a scene was from Nurse Ratched. I think when Louise Fletcher portrayed the nurse in the move, her physical had this quiet, calm and yet a look that maybe she isn't that all nice. In her voice she has this way of calm yet being in control. 

For instance, when she was talking to Mr. Scanlon about why he was given his medication to Mr. Frederickson and when he didn't respond she asked again in the same way but in a different tone which has Mr. Scanlon nervous to say. I think that the Fletcher portrayed to character very well. 

This character is supposed to help the mentally ill but in her own way that she has her own way of helping that she doesn't want anything to change. Her physical and voice in the film had me scared just watching her, but also that she was trying to show to the audience that she was trying to help these people and not by torching them mentally. 

Fletcher’s portrayal of Ratched was retain throughout the film until near the end after McMurphy trying choking her to death that she came to a sense that she should be nice.  

Another character in the film that interested me was Billy Bibbit who was portrayed by Brad Dourif. Billy is portrayed in the film as a shy and quiet boy, who is in mental ward after he had attempted to commit suicide more than once and also that he stutters when he talks.

I think that what Dourif did gave us a scene that this is a kid who has some self-esteem issues and who

later comes out of his confront zone after McMurphy has been in the ward for some time. I think the scene that made the character was when Nurse Ratched was asking him what would his mother think if she told her what he did to Candy in the other room. 

He showed a lot of emotions in that scene. He went from being upset and begging Ratched not to tell then went from anger and a bit of rage, I think, when Washington was taking him to the Dr. Spivey’s office.

Another character in the film that I that gave me some interest was Randle McMurphy, who was portrayed by Jack Nicholson. Of course, McMurphy is one or should I say the main character in the story that goes into the ward to be evaluated to see if he is faking mental illness or not just to get out of jail and work. 

I think that the character that Nicholson played was someone up his alley. This character likes to act up, gets upset pretty much easily and that he makes inappropriate jokes now and again in a scene. I think that Nicholson had an effective sense of the character in the film. 

His portrayal of the character stand within the dramatic form of the story. He should his emotions where he needed and he should his humor side when sometimes there should have been or not. When he was with the group after learning that he was the only one being commented by the hospital and that the others were only there as volunteers, that they could go when they are ready. 

Nicholson should his emotions on how upset he was and thinking that everyone was playing him. I think that the character that Nicholson tried to create in the film that he retained it throughout the entire film.

It's personally one of my all time favorite movies. The depth in character and writing made this one of the classics for years and years to come.

More Than Just a Night At The Cabin

EAST PEORIA — Audience got a real thriller with the latest production playing at Illinois Central College.

 On April 18, the ICC Arts and Communication Department Theatre Program presented “Humpty Dumpty” in the studio theatre of the Performing Arts Center.  The story focus on four friends who decided to stay a week at a cabin to get away from it all without using technology, but when all of a sudden something happens and it makes them stay a bit longer than they’ve had planned.

“This play had a bit of everything from drama to comedy and even thrilling that had me saying ‘wow,’” said Johanna Carter, 45, of East Peoria, about the play.

The setting of the production was set in a half of one side of a cabin, that’s like looking into an open dollhouse, with furniture, kitchen, and upstairs and a fire place. It was like watching a bottle episode of a television show; everything was in this one setting.

The lighting of this production was spooky as the lights gone dimmed during some of the dramatic thrilling scenes and also helped the audience tell from what was night and day. Also with the support of music it added some dramatic and thrilling scenes to it's storyline.

There were a few characters that really stood out. The character of Max, played by Ryan Groves, was the calm, cool and the reasonable person until near the end. He had some real intense scenes with his wife Nicole, played by Arianna Morgan. For example, when Nicole was angry at Troy, played by Ethan Johnson, about not washing the dishes the right way, she tries to do them and cuts her hand. She gets upset, loses it and really wants to leave.

Another character was Spoon, played by Hannah Gidcumb, was another that stood out in this production. Spoon is this sweet, quiet and wants to just have fun but all that seems to be gone and find out a little bit more of her character.

For one, she can’t drink any alcohol because she will go wild and also when Troy and her get into and he yell about her past life. But we see her stick up for herself and fight back or yell back at Troy. And another one is when she gets a bit close to Max whenever they’re alone and both Troy and Nicole are gone.

“I felt really sorry for her,” said Carter. “When I saw her yelling back at (Troy) I felt relieved that she told him.”

And there was Nat, the maintenance worker of the house, played by Logan Henderson, was probably the most interesting character throughout the story. He first comes in and fixes the stove and soon when the power goes out, he comes by and gives the gang food, water and other supplies along with updates about the power outage. Nat gets real nice to everyone even Nicole and they have a couple of moments that turn out to be romantic. From funny, thoughtful and has an anger side once you see it.

There were a couple of mistakes during the performance as a couple of actors stumbled on a couple of words but they didn’t lose their character.

One audience member mentions that in the story that some of the things that happen weren’t realistic. He mention that when one of the characters put a bottle of wine in the freezer, also the sun shouldn’t rise from the west to the east and that when Max got the peanut butter out of the cabinet that there was no jar.

“Humpty Dumpty” is a psychological dramatic thriller that deals with survival of the fittest when it comes to something that their not use of not having with them. As the classic nursery rhythm goes" Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall. Humpty Dumpty had a great fall. All the king's horses and all the king's men couldn't put Humpty Dumpty back together again."

And in this case, a night at the cabin turned out to more of a fall than expected.

ER: The Five Years After The End

  

 On this day, it was five years ago that I said goodbye to what I call the “Citizen Kane” of TV medical dramas. That would be the longest running medical drama “ER.”

Yes sir, I can’t believe that it has been five years since we saw the last trauma coming to County General. Also just to put it out there that on this same day that Jay Cutler was traded to the Chicago Bears for Kyle Orton. So yeah, it was a big day for the folks of Chicago.

“ER” was the show that changed the landscape of not only medical drama but television drama itself. It started as a feature film by the late, great author Michael Crichton.  It took 20 years to make it as a television series and become the crown jewel of Must See TV on Thursday nights and gave way to other medical shows like “House.”

I put together a list of my top ten favorite ER episodes of all time. Well, maybe not all time, I love every episode of the show and I would watch it again over and over and over again. But for this list, I would list the episodes that I think make the show what it is.

10. Homecoming, Season Seven: When a high school homecoming football game goes too far, the battle doesn't stop there. When one player gets taken down and is sent to the ER, we see a pattern that others players from the same game came too. I love this episode because it has it action and that not only that the doctors and nurses have to deal with this but they have a union strike with the janitors on their hands.

9. Hell in High Water Season Two: It’s the classic boy fell in the well and needs to be rescued. But this is the George Clooney episode that made him the star that he is today. I really don’t have to say more than that.

8. And in the End, Series Finale: the finale episode takes place as it did for the pilot of the series. It has heart, laughs and will bring a tear to your eye. And for the first time in it's show's history that we get to see what the entire outside hospital looks like after 15 years.

 7. The Healers, Season Two: When two paramedics are called to a fire and only they are the ones there with a couple of kids still there, they risk their lives to a save them. This episode centers two paramedics who risked their lives to save a couple of children, even if it suffers second to third degree burns. It becomes an emotional story of two buddies facing life and death.

 6. Take These Broken Wings, Season Two: I consider this season two episode the one I would rewatch it over again. Dr. Lewis has gone through some tough personal times when she lost her niece, Little Suzie, because Lewis’s sister decided to move to Arizona after months of leaving her with Lewis. I would demand a recount and give the Emmy Award to Sherry Stringfield for her performance.

5. Be Still My Heart/All In The Family Season Six: These might be two separate episodes but it’s really a two part episode. When Lucy tries to treat a patient who she thinks has mental disorder it’s too late for both her and Dr. Carter as they are both attacked. It becomes a huge, emotional roller-coaster for their colleagues to help save them hoping they will make it out alive.

4. Blizzard, Season One: In season one, this episode is so perfect to watch that it has everything a movie has. It’s nearly Christmas and with a huge blizzard hitting Chicago and the ER is empty, soon a massive trauma of a huge accident on the highway becomes a chaotic event.

3. On the Beach, Season Eight: In this episode we see the last few days of what will be Dr. Mark Greene’s life. We see him writing down some goals and the one thing that he truly wants to do is fix his daughter and they take a trip to Hawaii. This turns out to be an emotional episode from the beginning to the end. 

2. Love’s Labor Lost, Season One: This is where the writing of this story hits its mark. This is about what would happen to a doctor, Greene, on the worst day of his life. This episode won a lot of awards including best writing in a drama series and directing. This showed its true meaning of what ER was and that Anthony Edwards should have won Best Actor at the Emmys that year in 1995.

1. 24 Hours, Season One: This is the episode that started it all. The day in the life of ER with doctors and nurses of what they go through. Yeah, it might by 1994 but this was something that no other television series has done before. And even Carol wasn’t supposed to live in this episode but thanks to the help of Steve Spielberg that all made it better in the end. I always wonder, if this wasn’t a television series, what would it be if this was a film? Also before this aired, Jurassic Park was made and I would have to say it probably gave it the boost to help make it a blockbuster series.

"ER" has been part of my life ever since I was just a little kid. This TV series was the first show that I got to watch with my mother and grandmother, who were big fans, and showed me what family time is about in a certain way. And since it's been gone for five years it’s still being missed by fans and I like other shows from Friends to Cheers. Like those shows ER is and will always be a national treasure of TV medical drama.

An Ending that Comes Full Circle



Photo: CBS.com

After nine years and 208 episodes it all comes down to the ending that comes full circle. "Last Forever" might not be the greatest series finale of all time but it was in one way a naturally perfect finale that has some problems.

As the episode begin, we see the gang at the ceremony of Barney and Robin's wedding and Ted sees Tracy McConnell (The Mother) playing the bass for the band at the party.

After Barney thinks that Ted should meet her, he declines and was going to head out before going to Chicago but not leaving without saying goodbye to everyone which in this case felt emotional.
But it all changed when Ted was at the train station in the rain and an older lady was perusing him that he should go back and talk to Tracy and given him that it's probably destiny.

24 hours later we see that Ted hasn't moved to Chicago and that Marshall and Lily think that the reason why he didn't go was not good. But Lily realize that this might be different than the rest.
Jumping forward in the timeline we see that Marshall and Lily were going to be parents for the third time and that Marshall would be get to be a judge in Queens, known as "Judge Fudge" and later run for New York State Supreme Court, with the name "Supreme Fudge."

The most difficult or one of the most difficult issues with this finale was that after spending an entire season of focusing on Barney and Robin's wedding that three years later that they can't work on their relationship and got divorced.

What a waste of storyline of two characters that we thought they were happy for each other.
Barney on the other hand after the divorce he still acts like the same old playboy he is until he went for "the perfect month" and turns out that "Number 31" is pregnant. Probably the most emotional moment was when Barney meets with his daughter and finally falls in love. Telling her, "You are the love of my life. Everything I have and everything I am is yours...forever."

As with Ted and Tracy, we see that they are happly engaged with two kids and after seven years of engagement that they finally get married and the whole gang comes back at the bar.

Years later after their wedding we find out that Tracy got ill and died. And we soon come back to the present time six years after Tracy's death and we see Ted (played by Josh Radnor in makeup and not Bob Saget) telling the end of the.story.

As soon as his children realized that the "long version" was not about how he meet their mothere but how he still has strong feels for.their Aunt Robin and told him to go after her.

We see that Ted goes yo Robin's apartment and rings her buzzer. And as she looks outside, Ted is out there holding a blue French horn (which is a call back from their first date in the pilot episode).

The creators (Bays and Carter) have thought of the final since season one. What a sense of direction that they gave these characters to make it all the way for this finale.

There might have been some disappointments in this series finale but not all finales are in a way perfection. But in this case it was probably perfect in a natural way. This is not just a story but more of a journey that in a way that life sometimes has its own ways.

To some fans and viewers that might be a slap in the face of a goodbye. If we look at it Ted and Robin were suppose to be together and that she wasn't the mother we all came to think to be, but the step-mother. They have a relationship chemistry that still carries on even after her marriage to Barney. In the end, this whole series was one life's journey of friends, family and mostly being with the person that you care for the most.

And with a finale like this one we did get some closer as this story comes full circle.