lorijlewis's blog

                                                 PROLOGUE

“Oh gosh!” Gulligul said. Gulligul is a seagull, but usually hangs out at the barn.

“It’s a lion!” screamed Porky. Porky is a pig who absolutely hates the mud and just washes in the duck pond.

A bunch of animals were standing around a little basket with a blanket covered bottom. Inside was a dark, smoky-gray-colored cat that had a blazing back and tail, up to his head, between his ears (filling all the space between his ears like a crown), and ending at a sharp point above his nose like a birch leaf. In fact, the cat looked like it had been lit on fire! And the little lines and outlines on his fur made him look scorched. That cat was me.

A YEAR LATER

“Finally. I’m two year old. I’ve been waiting for this day.” I said. And then shouted “Porky.” over to Porky.

“What?” Porky asked

“Come over here.”

Porky sighed and came over to me.

“You see those squirrels climbing up that tree, Porky?” I said nodding to a tree.

“Umm. Yes, I do.”

“Well. Do you want to try to catch one? What do you say? Huh?”

“Oh come on Scorcher. I can’t even climb a tree. And besides, pigs are always really lazy.”

“Oh alright. I’ll do it by myself.” Read more »

A farewell, a wave of a white handkerchief,

As relatives and lifelong friends,

Wave good-bye and shout adieu and good-bye,

Not knowing

That this will be the last time they will see their loved ones.

The captain stands at the helm,

With the mate blowing the steam horn for the ship’s maiden voyage.

Everybody onboard blissfully unaware

That they will never set foot onshore again.

As the ship pulls out of the harbor, everybody onshore stays there

Long after the Titanic disappears on the horizon.

Three sentences, that’s all I have to tell you my wish. My wish is that there is no such thing as violence. To save the world from destroying itself. 

Dear Diary: Today my brother Archer and I rode to our first day of school on our new 18^th generation hover boards. When we told the automatic computer at the door of the school our ages, it said that Archer was in the 10^th grade and I was in the 9^th grade, so we were kind of disappointed.

Right before Archer went in the classroom, I shouted, “Wait,” and threw a communicate watch to him. He said, “Thanks,” then disappeared into his class.

I had fifteen minutes before class started so I went in to meet my teacher.

“Hi” I said.

“‘Hello! What is your name?”

“Um, Rafael.” I said quickly.

“Hi Rafael. My name is x2-e7, and I am your new teacher!”

“Nice to meet you, x2-e7.”

The teachers are always robots, so the school doesn’t have to pay people.

School was basics for the 1^st day, but it was fun.

When I got home from school, Archer was already there sitting by the elevator.

“Hi Archer,” I said. He didn’t answer. ‘”i Archer!’”I nearly shouted across the room.

He jerked his head up and said, “Sorry,” before getting up and walking to one of the dining room table chairs. Then I went over and sat across from where he sat.

“Um. hi, Rafael,” he said as soon as I sat down.

“Hi, Archer,” I said for the third time.

‘”hat did you do in school today?” I asked curiously.

“Hard stuff. Really, really hard stuff.”

“Really? We had easy stuff. Just basics.”

“Lucky.” Read more »

A Fairy Tale

This is a story about a rusty armored knight, an evil princess, a dumb wizard, a good and ugly witch, and a foolish king and queen. The rusty armored knight, the dumb wizard, and the good and ugly witch set off on a foolish adventure from which they may never return.

            Once upon a time, there sat a queen at her desk looking into a mirror. “Mirror, Mirror on my lap, which is the ugliest of all the cap?” she asked in a deep and very unladylike way.

            A face suddenly started to form out of the mirror. “The one with the picture of your face on it!” it responded.

“Say that again and I’ll smash you!”

“AHH! PLEASE DON’T! PLEASE!” the mirror cried as the queen glared at it, with her hand clenched into a fist, ready to punch at any moment.

            The queen put her hand down to her side and slammed the mirror down on her desk. “Ouch!” shouted the mirror.

            Meanwhile, down in the throne room, there was a horrible screeching sound as if somebody were scraping a wet piece of chalk against a chalkboard. In front of an old king, with his eyes shut and his hands covering his ears, there kneeled a knight in rusty armor. Read more »

            Once upon a time, before your great-grandfather's great-grandfather was born, there was a prince who ruled over a kingdom. His name was Prince Ferdinand Austanciaious Greatleb the One Hundred and Third. But to all his people, he was known simply as the Prince Who Eats One Thousand Peas for Dinner. Now the Prince Who Eats One Thousand Peas for Dinner was off to war for the hand of The Great and Glorious Galkamor. By suppertime of the very day he set out to war, he came marching back to the castle with the hand of The Great and Glorious Galkamor and with all of his soldiers uninjured (except for one, who stubbed his toe on his spear).

            When the people of the Prince Who Eats One Thousand Peas for Dinner heard that their prince was victorious and had come back with the hand of The Great and Glorious Galkamor they were overjoyed, for they knew that, with the hand of The Great and Glorious Galkamor, the castle wizard could cast many great and powerful spells.

            Four years passed and the Prince Who Eats One Thousand Peas for Dinner was sad, for all his enemies had been defeated and all the knowledge there was to be known was known by the castle knowers. When he had had enough of being sad, he asked the knowiest of the knowers, "I am sad, for there are no enemies to be vanquished or knowledge to be known. What should I do?" Read more »

All he asked for was love.

It was the sound of heartbreak.

It was twilight when they came.

He kept running from his fears.

They came to take me home.

They danced through all the night.

They walked among the everlasting stars.

He walked along the path whistling.

Another obstacle out of the way.

The knife bit into his flesh.

We used to, now we’re not.

“It’s time for my rest, eternally.”

He got there and found it.

I have luck but need more.

I stopped in my tracks, horrified!

I’m from Mars, what about you?

Punch me and I’ll punch you!

Running from his fears, never stopping.

She was old, maybe even ancient.

They finally, actually believe in me!

They see me, they see you.

A piranha ate dad, too bad!

Cool, hot, I’m everything you’re not!

Sit, I will read to you.

He committed the murder, not me!

I could feel my heart pounding.

My dead brother lay before me.

“Time is running out,” he said.

“Praise the Fathers!” he said joyfully.

“WHY ME?!! WHY ME?!!” I cried. 

“This is the funniest story I’ve ever heard!” I said after I’d read the article in the newspaper when Griffin handed it to me. “Yeah I know, right?” Griffin said while eating his English muffin.

Griffin is my 14-year-old brother whose birthday is in August. He just got accepted at a really good high school. My brother is really smart, even for a 14 year old. He’s strong and just lost 20 pounds in almost one and a half months, and now he’s only 161 pounds. And he’s 6 feet tall!

Our family is a very tall family, except for my dad who is 5 foot 2.

My name is Zief, and I just turned 12 years old in June. Now it’s July. I’m strong, I’m smart, and I weigh 120 pounds and I’m 5 feet 6!

For my birthday I got a big Swiss army knife and a cell phone from my dad, a green waterproof shirt and waterproof pants with pockets all over them from my mother. My brother, Griffin probably wanted to annoy me so he got me a first aid kit. Mom said that it was always good to have a first aid kit. But then he pulled the Lego Death Star out of the closet! Griffin and I collect Legos but the Death Star is our dream Lego to own. I’m surprised that he didn’t just keep it for himself.

But then Griffin had one last present for me. Guess. A joke book with riddles, jokes, funny facts, and funny stories!

 At this very moment I take out my joke book and see if the funny story in the newspaper is in my joke book, and sure enough it is!

     "This is the funniest story I've ever heard," said Evan walking into the kitchen, his fiery orange hair looking like somebody zapped it with a taser while he was sleeping.

     "Not now, poopsie tootsie," said Mom without even looking away from the eggs she was scrambling. Mom calls Evan poopsie tootsie, because when he was a baby, he had to have his diaper changed every two hours and you would know it was time to change it, because instead of crying like most babies, he would let out a five-minute fart.

     "It's really funny, I swear; listen to it, please, just this once?" Evan said, the same as every other day.

     "Fine poopsie, but make it quick, or I'll be late to the hospital."

     At this point you may ask why I haven't said a word or made a sound. Well, it's because my family goes through this routine every morning, Evan thinks of a “funny” story and has to tell it to us while we eat breakfast.

     "So there was this elephant, right, and he met this gazelle and the gazelle said, ‘So, I met this lioness the other the day and she was a real hottie but it turns out all she wanted me for was my haunches!’" At this Evan cracks up, at his own joke. See what I mean? Definitely not funny and definitely not the work of a normal nine-year-old kid. Read more »

I sat up straight out of bed after a nightmare, forgetting about the slope in the ceiling, and hit my head. “OW! OUCH, ouch, ouch! My god, that thing hurts!” I said. The nightmare was about eternal darkness and night.

I looked out the window and said, “WHAT? It’s STILL night?” I looked at my clock. “It’s 9:30 a.m. though. That’s weird.”

I went downstairs. Yep, there she was. “Hey, mom, don’t you notice something weird about today?” “Yes, I do. It’s very dark outside, like it’s night, but it’s only 9:30 a.m.” Okay, so it is 9:30 a.m. That was good information. I wasn’t quite sure if my clock was failing me, but what wasn’t good is it’s still dark out even at 9:35 a.m.

I finally ate breakfast, and later ate lunch, and then dinner. And still it was dark.

 The next day when I woke up in the morning, it was still dark out. “WHY, WHY, WHY! It’s 11:41 a.m. It shouldn’t be DARK!” I didn’t know what was going on. The first thought that came to my noggin was that aliens were taking over the world. The next thought to flit across my mind was that the world was coming to an end because it was so old. I told my mom all my thoughts, but she had the idea that it was nonsense, yet I was convinced. Read more »

As I yawned and stretched, I glanced at my red LED digital clock, which read 8:45, and said, "Holy cow, I'm going to be late for school!"

     After a second of thought, I remembered that it was Saturday, and, therefore, I didn't have to go to school. I got dressed, made my bed, opened the window curtains, and said to myself, "That's funny, it's still dark out." I looked at my clock again and saw that it was 9:00. I checked my watch, which I had just put on; it also read 9:00.

After I brushed my teeth, I went downstairs to make myself a piece of toast with nutella on it. As I walked through the kitchen doorway, I saw my mom sitting at the table intently watching the news on the TV. Which was funny in itself, because I didn't even know we owned a TV!

"Mom, we own a TV?"

"Of course we do, you dolt," said my younger brother as he walked through the door. "Just because you've been asleep for three years doesn't mean you have to be a complete and total moron!"

When I looked at my brother more closely, I noticed he had had a growth spurt! "Wait a sec, Z, how old are you?"

"I'm thirteen, of course," replied Zebiniah with a smirk.

"Hold on, so what month is it?"

"December," replied mom without even looking up from the TV set.

"So that must make me sixteen! But, that means it's 2024!!"

"Wow we have a real Einstein here mom." Read more »

Once upon a time my dad decided that he wanted some fish. So he went to the local fish store in Essex where he bought a huge fish tank and plants and rocks for it. When he got home, he set the tank up, put the rocks on the bottom of the fish tank, and put the plants on top of the rocks. Finally, he added the water, but when he tried to pick the aquarium up, he realized it was too heavy for the upstair’s floor. The floor wasn't strong enough to hold all that weight.

So he had to put it in the basement. All this took an entire weekend. On Monday my dad went to the fish store to buy some fish. He was gone for hours, even though it was just a twenty minute drive from our house to the fish store. When he walked in the door, my brothers and I saw that he had two plastic bags full of water, and, in each bag, there was one angel fish.

My dad hurried down to the basement, with me and my brothers following close behind. As soon as he put them in the tank, guess what they did, they started fighting! When my mom came down and saw the two fish, she said, "Robert, you can't let these two fish kill each other. You have to take one back."

My dad felt depressed but took out a plastic bag, filled it with water, scooped out one of the fish, put it in the bag, and headed to the fish store. He was gone for hours and hours and hours. All of us started to worry because we all knew it didn't take that long to return one fish. Read more »

Once my mom collected tree frogs. Really, really, tiny, weenie tree frogs.

She used her dresser for a habitat by taking out her clean socks, putting grass in her top drawer, and then putting a bowl of water on the grass.

One day her mom (my nana) went into her room to put clean socks in my mom’s dresser drawer. She opened up my mom’s sock drawer and all the frogs jumped out on her! My nana almost had a heart attack.

She was so mad she called my mom’s school and told them that she needed my mom at home at once. My mom came home and my nana yelled at her. She made my mom take all the frogs (all the ones that hadn’t jumped out already) out of the drawer and put them outside.

My mom was very sad. She took the frogs out, said good-bye and good luck to them, and then set them on the ground. One after the other, the frogs began to hop away. One even looked back before going.

One day my mom found an old dead dried-up tree frog and realized that it was one of the tree frogs that she had had in her dresser and that had jumped out of the sock drawer. She was very sad again. And cried a little.

So that was that. She just told me that story today Thursday, February 07, 2013, for the first time.

Three letters,

Limitless possibilities,

Three letters,

Numberless options,

Three letters,

What should we think?

What should we say?

What should we write?

Three letters,

With infinite worlds spread out before me to explore.

So, too, words undone

We must part here.

I was walking up a beach last week, and suddenly a bottle flew out of the water and hit me right on the side of the head. I thought someone had thrown it at me because it flew through the air really quickly. Of course it felt faster to me because I was the one being hit in the head with it. As soon as it hit me, I shouted, “HEY!” and then I looked at the water and noticed the waves were really intense. “It was probably just the water,” I said quietly.

 I picked up the bottle and noticed there was a piece of paper in it. I tried to take the cork off, but it wouldn’t come off. So I decided to smash it to get the piece of paper out. I went over to a big rock and held it up, and, then right before I brought it down on the big rock, the cork flew off and hit me in the eye. “OW!” I shouted and fell down, only to have the bottle come crashing on my forehead. “This thing is obsessed with hitting me in the head,” I said, rubbing my eye and forehead.

I was afraid something else might happen to my sore head. Anyway, it was time to go home, so I put the cork back in the bottle, walked up the beach, and headed home.

When I got home, I said in a loud voice, “Mom I’m home!” Then I walked into the living room and put my bag down. I went into the kitchen to see what my Mom was cooking. As soon as I stepped into the kitchen, my Mom said, “You’re late!” (My Mom is very strict about being late and stuff.)

 “What are we going to eat?” I said, partly to change the subject and partly because I was hungry. Read more »

I like classical music,

I like Lake Champlain dark chocolate,

I like the feel of the violin in my hands,

I like looking at the colors of fancy cars,

I like watching other people play video games and then beating their high score,

I like the feel of a book in my hands,

I like watching movies,

I like playing with computers,

I like the bend and swish of foils,

I like the exhilaration of fencing,

I like the swoop and dive of birds of prey,

I like caring for injured birds of prey,

I like the beauty of Vermont,

I like playing with my friends,

I like the smell of my grandfather's barn,

I like the feel of rosin dust on my fingers

I like the shock of swimming in cold water,

I like Ben & Jerry's vanilla Heath Bar ice cream melting on my tongue,

I like the thickness of New England clam chowder,

I like the rasp of crickets during the summer,

I like the sound of waves crashing at the beach,

I like the feel of my dog’s fur under my fingers,

I like the satisfaction of performing on my violin,

I like watching my little brother eat like a bird,

I like watching my dog watch my little brother eat,

I like to enjoy my food,

I like the letter G,

I like the number 10,

I like to listen to classical music and imagine playing the piece,

I like to write lists of what I like.

I like doing Taekwondo.

I like the smell of my grandfather’s barn.

I like swimming at the YMCA.

I like blackberry ice cream in ice cream sundaes.

I like how the sections of clementines burst in my mouth.

I like skiing down really steep slopes like Allen (one of the slopes) at the Snowbowl .

I like the letter Z.

I like the brightness of the sun.

I like the majestic glow of the moon.

I like the shapes of the continents.

I like the color in the stars.

I like watching my brother wolf down his food.

I like the number three.

I like building things with Legos.

I like playing Playmobiles with my brother.

I like the element electricity.

I like the way Gobstoppers last in your mouth so long.

I like the sourness of Lemon Heads.

I like using my imagination with my stuffed animals.

I like the wind in my face when I ride my bicycle.

I like having snowball fights with my friends.

I like the brightness of the color blue.

I like the speediness of horses.

I like how snakes slither.

I like writing in the Young Writers Project.

I like sweet apples .

I like how when you bite into peaches sweet juice dribbles down your chin.

I like the Bach Cello suites.

I like classical music.

I like my whole family.

I’m a rat and my name is Queetis Zileinos Liewall, or, in the Animal Spy Intelligence Agency, Agent ZQ2. The A.S.I.A. is an organization with animals who are secret agents. The agents help mostly other animals, but also humans. We animals help by defeating and torturing bad people and bad animals to get the truth out of them. I know that it sounds cruel, but it’s actually not as cruel as you think it is . . . ish.

Every animal has a special action they can do; for instance, the monkey has hands and feet for grasping items. And I can chew through things, like wires, to cut the power. I can also climb on walls and sometimes even the ceiling. And I can fight like the dickens. Read more »

The sound of my key turning in the metal lock echoed throughout the plastic house,

shaking plastic clocks hanging on plastic walls,

and startling the plastic mouse.

It bounced off the plastic walls, windows, and ceilings.

It echoed many times more and then finally stopped.

But everybody in that plastic town heard that sound.

The plastic town felt it rock the plastic ground

because the sound was so loud in that quiet place.

All the plastic people had scurried home already,

so I didn't try to hide the noise from the plastic men or mice,

but, if I had known that, when the rolling finally stopped, one plastic boy would shout, "Again!"

then I would have tried to hide the sound.

No matter where you are,

you'll never find a more difficult place to be,

where heartbreak or sadness or happiness never come to live or die,

because plastic is more rigid than they say.

People say plastic bends and twists---it doesn't,

so I am leaving this cold, old plastic town

where smiles mean the same as frowns.

Plastic is hard on hearts,

but when you melt it down,

plastic isn't anything anymore.

I believe in equal and fair shares and treatment.

I believe in supporting and publicizing good music and art.

I believe in getting a good education.

I believe in succeeding in life.

I believe in rising above all of your obstacles.

I believe in helping others, even when other people do not.

I believe in supporting local growth.

I believe in loving people, even when they don't love you.

I believe that you must forgive to truly live.

I believe in trust.

I believe in friendship.

I believe in cheering everybody on, especially those that need it.

I believe in changing the world for the better.

I could not live without my cello. It has been the most important thing for me ever since I started playing at three years old. My older brother Gabriello plays the violin, and I really wanted to play the violin, too. Until I was three I kept asking my mom when I would get my violin. My mom said, "Why don't you try a different instrument, like the cello, just for two months?" I argued, but in the end my mom won. So I started to play the cello, and I lost track of the two months. When I finally realized that more than two months had passed, I couldn't stop playing the cello. My cello teacher is Anne Brown, and she is the best teacher ever. 

The beautiful sound and the vibrations produced by the cello are wonderful. When I play my cello, it seems like I am in another world. My brother still plays the violin, and I couldn't live without my cello!

On wings of starlight,

I found it descending from the skies.

I knew that it was perfect.

One glance at it was enough to tell.

Nothing I had ever known

Was anything like it.

As long as it is near me,

There’s nothing I can’t do.

Heaven-born, earthbound,

My love, it’s always owned.

Constantly, repeatedly,

It’s magic that brings me home. 

In the night, there are wonderful things.

I like to imagine that the man in the moon

Is cleaning the stardust off himself.

I imagine that there are people swinging from star to star,

Singing the song the wind sings every night.

I like the way the moon gives just enough light

So you can see everything.

If you don’t believe the man in the moon is real, then he gets sad,

And it rains during the night,

With the big fat drops of water soaking up all the stardust.

The night is beautiful.

I was climbing Mount Everest when suddenly the mountain started to shake violently. I was helplessly thrown off the steep mountain and fell in a bunch of dead leaves. I made sure I didn’t have any broken bones, then I stood up and examined my surroundings.

I saw five huge, pretty blue butterflies, millions of plants from the prehistoric age, three velociraptors, and a bunch of other dinosaurs I didn’t even know about! They all closed in on me; then suddenly a surviving tyrannosaurus rex came charging out of the forest toward the spot where I was, and all the dinosaurs near me ran away and so did I.

It was nearly 9:30 p.m. when I got to a place that I thought was safe and sound. I was so exhausted and hungry. I noticed a humongous patch of clean moss, and I started making my bed. After I had finished making my bed, I saw a large berry bush, and I dug in.

Later, I heard whimpering in my sleep, and I felt something hard hitting me. I woke up to see a newborn ankylosaurus hitting me in the head with the club on its tail! I wondered if it had a home. Read more »

On the chair lift,

Rocking in the breeze,

 I can see ice crystals

Sparkling on the tips of trees,

Twinkling in the sun.

The forest,

Towering like a crystal fortress,

Glinting in the bright blue sky.

The swoosh of skis beneath my feet,

The gentle humming of the lift,

And the fingers of wind

Touching my face like an icy caress.

This is what makes winter beautiful. 

“Shhh, what are you trying to do, wake the whole neighborhood? And besides, if we want this to be a surprise breakfast we have to be quiet, okay Isaac?”

“But I gave her an extra sleeping drop before we went to bed, Jake!”

“I told you not to! And stop licking the inside of that eggshell, it’s so gross.”

“Hey Jake do you think she would like milk or orange juice for breakfast?”

“Orange juice, and you should probably flip that egg before it catches on fire!”

“Yeah, well look at your cinnamon toast, it is actually on fire!”

“Oh my god! Where’s the fire extinguisher!”

“I don’t know, ask mom!”

“But mom’s asleep and you gave her that extra sleeping drop.”

“Ooh. Whoops.”

“Moron, now what do we do.”

“It’s not my fault.”

“Yes, it is Isaac. Wait, doesn’t water put fire out?”

“Yeah, there’s some in the cupboard above the microwave!”

“Huh, I wonder why it’s in this fancy bottle.”

“C-H-A-M-P-A- G-N-E. Maybe it's sports water. Just pour it on the toast.”

“Here goes.”

“Ahhhh!”

“Call 911, quick!”

Blue is water and wisdom,

As green is to life and freedom.

And the earth we stand on,

Brown and rich with green life

Reaching to the golden light,

Going through and coming across

The bluest sky and ocean.

A skirmish repeated every day, in every nook and cranny.

A fought-out battle of good against evil,

black against white,

day against night,

and light against darkness.

No matter how many times it is acted out,

the result will always be the same.

For without this constant war there would be nothing,

just a space devoid of everything and anything.

The light never wins,

it just holds the darkness at bay.

But the hardest time is when the battle enters our hearts.

For that is when the darkness,

anger and sorrow and pain,

makes prisoners of our happiness and joy.

I was flying over the countryside when I heard a distant plane. As it came closer, I saw a huge flock of birds right in front of it! The plane was going so fast, it was just a blur. (I'm going to quickly explain to you what I am and what I can do. I am a person with super powers. My super powers are one, flying; two, super speed; three, super strength; four, I can shoot lasers through my eyes. Yes, I am basically SUPERMAN, the MAN OF STEEL. Okay back to the story.) The plane was going so fast that it was just a blur. The plane was going to crash into all of the birds. Most likely, most of them would be killed. I had to stop the plane! I flew as fast as I could to the plane, then I pushed as hard as my super-strength arms could push. It was hard to push the plane because it was going so fast. But I managed to push it sideways fast enough. The birds were saved! 

Meanwhile in the plane . . . "The plane is going out of control. Something is pushing it over!" said the pilot of the plane. Then he saw me. I was flying past the windshield. He stared and then said, "Oh, Mother of God, I must be dreaming!" Then he shook his head. I waved, and when he opened his eyes and stopped shaking his head, I was gone.