Everything You Didn't Want To Know About Climate Change

Climate change. Ugh, even the word sounds like something you don't want to hear about. I was never a science girl. I was always an English lover. But, last year my class watch An Inconvenient Truth, a documentary about climate change. Climate change never left my mind after that. It was always on my mind, and I knew I wanted to do something, but I didn't know how. Writing a blog post about it isn't going to help, unless there's some way that my blog post, a speck in the electronic universe, can get to President Obama in the White House and get him to think more about climate change. I was on Facebook a couple days ago, looking at the 2014 Climate March in New York City, and as I scrolled through the comments, I saw many different types of people. I read some comments that carried the tone of, "Screw this shit. Climate change is stupid." or "Climate change, my ass." I apologize for my language, but THAT pissed me off. But on the other hand, there were some comments like, "I don't support climate change. I'll be at the march." or "I'm marching for my children, my grandchildren. I'll be there." I wanted to go through all 5,000,000,000 comments and like every single one in which people talked about hating climate change. I wanted to punch in the face the people that said that climate change is stupid. Climate change is making drastic changes on our planet, our only true home. There may be another planet out there that bears a distant similarity to Mother Earth, but nothing like Earth. Nothing like our home. Think now about the polar bears, the polar bears that are loosing their homes because ice is melting because of decisions WE'VE made. But it's not too late. There are many things you can do to slowly reverse the devastation climate change is having. You can help reverse climate change at your house, your office, your school, and in your car. If you need help getting started, visit this website for some tips: http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/wycd/ They have tips for your home, your office, your car and your school. They're not big things, but in the long run it'll make a big difference. Stand with me and the rest of our country in the fight against climate change.


If you want to learn more about the documentary I talked about, visit this website: http://www.takepart.com/an-inconvenient-truth/film


If you want to learn more about the Climate Change March in New York City, find the event on Facebook, videos on YouTube, or visit this website: http://peoplesclimate.org/#host-iframe

Just a Reminder...

Hi guys!

I'll still be posting on here every once in a blue moon, but I would REALLY like it if you would check out my new blog, which I'll be posting more frequently on. Please, please, please spread the word to your friends, your family members, your professors, your boss, even the people you meet on the street.

Thanks!

xoxo,

TGS


http://liveitloveitwriteit.weebly.com

This Blog Has Expired...

Hey guys! I decided to leave Blogspot and continue my blog on Weebly, another blog that seemed like a better fit for me. So, if you want to continue reading my blog and reading new chapters in my book, you can find my blog here:

http://liveitloveitwriteit.weebly.com/


Thanks!

~TGS~

Some Places...

Some places on this Earth are better than others. For example, sitting by a creek and listening to the water trickle is better than sitting in an office building or a factory listening to the machines. There are so many places in this world that I have been to, and have felt different than I normally do. For example, I'm a student, so during the school year life is very stressful. But when I go out in the country and sit and listen to the birds, and the flowing water nearby, I feel at peace, like there are better things to do than worry about school, and grades, and all that jazz.

But what I'm about to tell you to do is hard for everyone, even me. Every once in a while, it's good to take a break. Good to take a break from the iPhones, the iPads, the hectic work days, whatever is occupying most of your time right now. And go to somewhere serene, maybe a place that doesn't have cell phone service, or a place that you can get away from your kids or work, and take some time to calm down, and release the stress that has been building up inside of you. It's not always easy to give up something that you enjoy doing, like playing Flappy Birds and trying to beat your high score, but trust me- it's worth it.

-Share this post on Facebook, Pinterest, Email, or word of mouth and get people to realize what they're missing out on-

Chapters 2, 3, & 4

Hi! Sorry its taken me such a long time to get these chapters on here... but here they are!

~TGS~

Chapter Two

When the Wills family departed from the jet at the US Missions Base, they were astonished by what they saw. The US Missions Base wasn’t what anyone had expected. It looked like the Empire State Building, except shorter and fatter. It had ninety-five floors, and could comfortably hold at least five hundred people.

“Wow!” Matt says, the first thing he had said the entire ride to the base. “This place is ginormous! I hope they have a room that I can play video games in,” he says, looking around skeptically.

“I think they will, sweetie,” says Mary, obviously tired from the plane ride.

“Let’s go meet Charles Duncan and see what he needs us to do,” says Christopher.

As the family makes their way through the base and all of its ninety-five-floor glory, they saw lots of different kinds of people. People that looked like secret agents, people that looked like they belonged painting in an art museum, and people who looked like genetically mutated giants- and in fact, they were genetically mutated giants. The scientists that stayed at the Missions Base had been performing experiments on which kinds of substances best wipe out the villains that people like the Wills family would be fighting. From the outcomes, it didn’t look like finding the right substance had happened yet.

Finally, the family arrived at the door to Mr. Duncan’s office. The door looked like it was made out of steel, almost as if it was a door to a vault in a bank. Hesitantly, Mary stepped forward and knocked on the door.

“Come in,” responded a booming voice that belonged to Charles Duncan. The family pushed open the door and entered the massive office.

“Ah, you’re here!” Charles exclaimed, standing up from his desk so he could meet the Wills family.

“How was the jet?” Charles asked. “I hope you didn’t have too much trouble getting here,” he said.

“No, the jet was fine,” says Christopher. “The kids really enjoyed the movie selection on the TV’s,” Christopher said, with a chuckle.

“That’s good,” Mr. Duncan said, bending down to greet the Wills children.

“And who might you be?” Mr. Duncan asked Daniel, with a sparkle in his eye.

“Daniel Wills, sir,” Daniel said, standing up straight and saluting Mr. Duncan

. “On our way up here, I tried to find where you keep the video games, but I couldn’t find any,” Daniel says.

“You do have video games, don’t you?” Daniel asked, a little bit skeptical of the bald man that was standing in front of him.

“Of course we have video games, Daniel! What mission’s base would we be if we didn’t have video games?” Mr. Duncan said with a laugh.

“I’m sure we can find the video games later, Daniel,” said Christopher.

“Mr. Duncan, these are my other children, Daniel, Lillian, Matt, and Sierra,” Christopher says, gesturing to each one as he says their name.

“And this is my wonderful wife, Mary,” says Christopher, reaching around to put an arm around his wife.

“Pleased to make your acquaintance, Mrs. Wills,” says Mr. Duncan, shaking Mary’s hand.

“Nice to meet you as well, Mr. Duncan,” says Mary.

“Now, tell us about this necklace that we need to save, Mr. Duncan,” says Christopher.

“Right,” says Mr. Duncan.

“Please, take a seat, everyone,” Mr. Duncan says, gesturing to the conference table in the corner of the office.

Mr. Duncan and the family sit down, and Mr. Duncan proceeds to pull up a power-point on the projector in front of them. A picture of the necklace that Mr. Duncan described on the phone pops up on the wall.

“This is the necklace that I told you about, Mr. Wills,” says Mr. Duncan, gesturing to the picture projected on the wall.

        “And this is where we think it is located,” says Mr. Duncan, flipping to the next slide.

        “We haven’t been able to send anyone down there to confirm a location, mostly because we don’t have the crew to do it,” says Mr. Duncan.

        “It’s sad, not a lot of people want to save the day these days,”

        “They would much rather sit in their comfortable recliners and be couch potatoes,” says Mr. Duncan, shaking his head.

        “Well we are more than happy to do the job, sir,” says Mary.

        “I’m very glad to hear you say that,” says. Mr. Duncan.

        “There are just a few more details that we need to go over,” Mr. Duncan says, pausing for a moment to look for some papers that he had set down inadvertently.

        “The US Missions Base and I have already set up an agreement with the children’s schools, and arranged to have them homeschooled until you return from your mission,” says Mr. Duncan. The children groan, disappointed that they weren’t missing school.

Mary, Christopher, and Mr. Duncan chuckle, observing their faces which clearly showed disappointment.

        “Abiding by our rules, all of you must be trained for three months before you can start the mission and go in the submarine.

        “What kinds of training will we be doing?” asks Sierra, clearly annoyed at the fact of even having to be here.

        “You will be trained to endure pressure on your lungs when you are submerged in water in the submarine, how to manually operate the submarine in case anything should happen while you are in the submarine, and how to live your typical life on the submarine- things will be just a little bit different,” says Mr. Duncan, ticking off each thing on his fingers as he goes.

“The submarine is robotically operated at all times- you will just need to know what to do in case of an emergency,” added Mr. Duncan.

“We understand,” says Christopher.

“When will we start training, Mr. Duncan?” Mary asks.

“It is currently Tuesday, so let’s say you will start training on Friday,” Mr. Duncan says.

“That should give you time to return home and retrieve any belongings you want for the training session and the month in the submarine,” Mr. Duncan ads.

“Until tomorrow, when you can return home for your belongings, we have reserved two rooms in the hotel across the street for you,” Mr. Duncan says, motioning for an office worker to come help the Wills family with their bags.

“We cannot thank you enough for your hospitality,” says Mary, before she leaves the room with the rest of her family.

“It is our pleasure,” replies Mr. Duncan, shutting the door after the Wills family.

As the family left the room, they all wondered, “What if this is all just a big trick, and we’re going to be trapped in a submarine for the rest of our lives?”

Chapter Three

The Wills family woke up the next morning, and received word that they were supposed to get back on the jet and collect the items they would need on the submarine and for training. So, they packed up the things they brought with them, walked back over to the Missions Base, and boarded the jet back to their home to get their belongings.

“Wow, our house seems so small compared to the Missions Base,” said Matt.

“It sure does, buddy,” said Christopher, patting Matt on the head while unlocking the door to their house.

“Well, we have today and Thursday before we have to go back to the missions base for training, so lets make the most of it,” said Mary.

“I know what we should do,” exclaimed Dylan.

“We should go to Disney World!” exclaimed Dylan jumping up and down.

“Actually, if you think about it, that’s not such a bad idea,” said Christopher.

“The Missions Base is really close to Disney World, so we could pack up our things today, and leave for Disney World and the Missions Base tonight or tomorrow,” said Mary.

“Is that okay with everyone?” Christopher asked.

“Yeah, I guess, since I’m already missing my date with the hottest kid in school to be stuck in a stinking submarine for a month,” grumbled Sierra.

“Young lady, this is a great honor for our family, and you’d better treat it like it is,” scolded Christopher.

“Fine,” grumbled Sierra.

“Lets go to Disney World,” she said, sarcastically putting her hands in the air.

“YAY!” exclaimed Matt, Lillian, Daniel, and Dylan in unison.

“Well, then,” chuckled Christopher.

“We got ourselves a trip to Disney World, and a month in a submarine… this is going to be an interesting year,” said Mary, shaking her head in disbelief.

“I’ll call Mr. Duncan and tell him our plans, then get on the computer and order our tickets for Disney World,” said Christopher.

“And the kids and I will go start packing up our things,” said Mary, leading the kids out of the room.

As Christopher stepped into the computer room to call Mr. Duncan and reserve the Disney World tickets, he couldn’t help but wonder to himself like many other times, “What if this guy’s a phony?”

Chapter Four

*RING* *RING* *RING* *RING* “Hello?” said Mr. Duncan as he picked up the phone.

“Hi, Mr. Duncan,” said Christopher.

“This is Christopher Wills, we met with you earlier about the necklace we’re going to recover?”

“Ah, yes,” Mr. Duncan said.

“Hello Christopher,” Mr. Duncan added.

“Sir,” said Christopher.
“I’m calling to let you know of a slight change of plans for our family,” said Christopher.

“Okay… what is it, son?” asked Mr. Duncan.

“If it’s okay with you, my family would like to leave our home tomorrow, and spend a couple of days at Disney World before coming to the Missions Base to start training,” Christopher said.

“Our kids have never been to Disney World before, and it seemed like a good opportunity since it’s so close to the Missions Base,” he added.

“Well Christopher, I myself am a big fan of Disney World, so I guess I can’t deny the opportunity,” Mr. Duncan said.

“You and your family can go to Disney World,” Mr. Duncan added.

“Thank you, sir,” said Christopher.

“It is my pleasure,” said Mr. Duncan.

“Have fun at Disney World,” Mr. Duncan said, before hanging up the phone.

“Oh kids,” Christopher said, yelling upstairs to where the rest of his family was packing up their things.

“Yes?” they all replied.

“WE’RE GOING TO DISNEY WORLD!” said Christopher, excitedly.

“Yay!” screamed the kids.

“I’m going to reserve our tickets, and then we will be on our way,” said Christopher.

Christopher got online and reserved everything for Disney World. That night, the family left their home and boarded the plane to go to Disney World. The family spent two wonderful days there, riding all the rides, and eating all the food they could eat. When their time was up, they packed up and went to the missions base to begin their training.

Background Information & Chapter 1

Characters

Charles Duncan- Head of the US Missions Base

Hugo Isaac- Arch Enemy of the US Missions Base, currently Head of Valedictorian Missions Base  

Christopher Wills- Father

Mary Wills- Mother

Sierra Wills- older daughter; 14 years old

Matt Wills- oldest son; 10 years old

Lillian Wills- younger daughter; 8 years old (twin)

Daniel Wills- younger son; 8 years old (twin)

Dylan Wills- youngest son; 5 years old

Background

A few years ago, my family took a weekend trip to Baltimore, Maryland. While we were there, we rented and rode paddle boats around the area of water located near our hotel.

While we were paddling, my mom gave me an idea for a story about a family that goes on a secret mission to save a million dollar necklace that is hidden at the bottom of the area of water(the same area of water that we were currently paddling in).

Chapter One

            *RING* *RING* *RING* *RING*  “Hello?” says Christopher. “Hello is this Christopher?” says the voice on the other end. “This is he,” Christopher replies.

“What can I do for you?” Christopher asks.

“Well, sir, I am Charles Duncan, out of the US Missions Base in San Diego, California. We have just gotten word that a million dollar gold necklace is at the bottom of an area of water in Baltimore, Maryland, and we want you and your family to investigate the case- possibly recover the necklace if at all possible.”

“Sir,” says Christopher. “We would be greatly honored to investigate the case and save this necklace. What do we have to do?”

“Why don’t you and your family fly from your house to our headquarters in San Diego and we can give you all of the details there.”

“My family and I can do that” says Christopher, a little bit skeptically. “When would we fly out?” he asks.

“Tonight. We have to get to the bottom of this case before Hugo Isaac does.” Charles says. “Sir, if you don’t mind me asking, who is Hugo Isaac?” Christopher asks.

“Hugo Isaac is our arch enemy from the Valedictorian Missions Base out of North Korea. They are also trying to get this necklace, and our naval base wanted to get the best of the best to recover this necklace before Hugo gets it and does something bad with it.” Charles replies, his voice cold.

“Well, sir, we would be happy to fly out to California and meet with you about this necklace.” Christopher says.

“Great. Our private jet will be waiting for you and your family at the airport tonight. Goodnight.” Charles says.

“Thank you, sir. See you soon.” Christopher says. “I hope this guy hasn’t lost his mind and is pranking me into all of this,” Christopher mutters to himself, as he hangs up the phone.

            “Dad, who was that?” Daniel asks, full of curiosity and excitement.

“I’ll tell you in a little bit, son. I have to discuss something with your mother first.” Christopher replies.

“Sure, honey,” Mary says as they walk into their bedroom and close the door behind them. “What was that all about?” she asks.

“That was Charles Duncan from the US Missions Base in San Diego. He wants our family to investigate a case about a necklace that is at the bottom of an area of water in Baltimore, Maryland. He is bringing his private jet out here to fly us to San Diego to meet with him, and we leave tonight.”

“Well, we’re going to do it, right?” Mary asks, skeptically.

“Of course we’re going to do it. The only problem is telling the kids.” he says, running his hands through his hair. “Alrighty then, let’s go ahead and tell them so they have time to pack. It’s going to be a long night for all of us.” Mary replies.

            “Kids,” Mary says, as she sits down on the couch in the family room. “Your father and I have something to tell you.”

“Ooh! Are we going to Disney Land?” Dylan asks, excitedly.

Christopher chuckles and twiddles his fingers. “Not right now, Dylan, but maybe.” Christopher says.

“Your father just got off of the phone with someone from the US Missions Base. They have a case that they want the entire family to investigate, and we leave to fly to San Diego tonight. They have a private jet coming to pick us up at the airport.” Mary says.

“Whoa! A private plane? That’s awesome!” Daniel and Lillian exclaim, excitedly.

“What?! you can’t make me leave. I have my first date on Saturday with the cutest boy in school and you’re going to make me miss it to go investigate a mission about a necklace?! I’m not going, and you can’t make me,” Sierra says, angrily, as she stomps up the stairs to her bedroom.

“Well, young lady,” says Christopher, calling up the stairs as Sierra slams the door to her bedroom. “You’re going whether you like it or not. You can reschedule your date for another night!” Christopher says, obviously not fazed by his daughter’s behavior. “Well, are the rest of us okay with this idea?”

“Yeah, dad! We’re completely fine with it!” The kids exclaimed in unison.

“Okay, then,” Christopher says, chuckling. “Go start packing, and your mom and I will talk to your sister. We have a very long night ahead of us.”

A chorus of “Okay, dad!” and “Goodnight, dad!” and “Love you, dad!” were heard up the stairs as the three youngest children went to go pack their clothes for the surprising, and out of the blue trip to San Diego, and no one knew what to expect.

The Story of The Hidden Necklace

Creative name... I know. My English teacher gave us an assignment of writing a fiction story, and when I got the final draft back, she said she wanted more of the story. So, I'll be posting chapter-by-chapter on my blog until I finish writing the book. Bear with me, it could take a while.

-TGS-