My Review of Catching Fire: The Movie

Not so long ago, I watched Catching Fire with my very good friends who also watched The Hunger Games with me, when it first came out. Catching Fire was so amazing, I was blown away. 

If you have read the book, most of the movie will make sense to you, in fact all of the movie will. But on the other hand, if you have not, now is the time to read the best-selling trilogy.

 In this movie, the Capitol decides to have another Hunger Games, like always, but this time, it's between all the remaining victors. Katniss and Peeta continue to play their "love story" act, but President Snow doesn't seem to believe all of it. He does everything in his power to kill her, with the help of a new Gamemaker, Plutarch. During the Games, Katniss and Peeta team up with Mags, Finnick (an absolute favorite of mine), Johanna, Beetee, and his companion. 

Catching Fire, the movie, in my opinion, is WAY better than the first one. It's filled with action, romance, humor, mystery, and more. It's got everything for everyone. This time, I noticed that it was more action packed though. Maybe because the director wanted to show Katniss's agony towards the Capitol...

I would see this movie a number of times, but never would get tired of it. My favorite character is Finnick because I just love his relation with Mags, an old victor who participates. He is also humorous in a sarcastic way. I implore you to see this fantastic movie, it is the best!

My rating for this is 9/10! I just loved the acting, effects, and their creation of Panem. This is a really great movie, no joke. 

Should NASA Send Humans to Mars?

If you had the chance to go to Mars, would you? Before you say yes, think again. NASA shouldn't send humans to Mars because our germs will contaminate Mars and vice versa, life there will be harsh and dangerous, and the mission is costly. 

Firstly, like I've stated before, germs from Earth will contaminate Mars and life on Mars may wipe out for good. NASA believes that Mars has tiny forms of bacteria. And once humans land on Mars, Martian germs may harm us as well. 

Another reason why is because the human body cannot simply function well on Mars. Muscles and bones get weaker and the body produces less blood. This causes hypoglycemia, which happens when the blood sugar levels are low. NASA will also have to provide food, water, and oxygen because just to travel to Mars, it'll take 10 months, not including the time period for the colonization. 

Lastly, again, the mission will take a very long time and will require patience, and it will cost $1 trillion, which is very expensive. 

On the other hand, the technology that NASA creates may improve life on Earth, and we, as humans, will get more information about our neighbor planet. Also, the population is increasing, and people may need more space. But do we have to go to Mars to get a better life here, risking astronauts' lives? Sure, we will receive more information about Mars, but can't NASA send robots and machines on Mars which will be cheaper and won't risk anyone's life? 

To sum it all up, NASA shouldn't send humans to Mars, because of health and cost reasons. Martian germs will hurt us and our germ will harm Mars, humans will have difficulty surviving there, the trip to our neighbor will take up to 10 months, and the cost will be $1 trillion. 

Hello, There!

Hey CityLover Readers!
Just remember that if I'm not posting on my main page, that doesn't mean I'm not posting on the other two pages! Please check my other two pages, Quote of the Week and Favorites!

Thanks,
CityLover

Quote of the Week

"Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value."  ~Albert Einstein

Now, I've decided to make a separate page for quotes! Check out Quote of the Week! It's replacing idioms for now.

Reasons Why You Shouldn't Update to iOS 7

When many people see an update on their device, their first instinct is to update it, whether it's an app or operating system. Last week, several people I know updated to iOS 7. Some were satisfied, others disappointed. Here are some reasons why you shouldn't update to iOS 7.

• Some apps won't work as well because they might not support iOS 7. It might crash or slow down. 
• The battery life will decrease immeasurably. One of my close friends updated her iPhone 4S and she noticed a dramatic difference in her phone's battery life.
• This isn't very likely to happen, but someone I know updated her phone, and her mother's number and her's got switched, so whoever texts or calls my friend, goes to her mother's. 
• If you don't fancy the look/format, there is no undoing it. You cannot downgrade to the previous version of iOS.
• Your iPhone/iPad/iPod might slow down, some apps might crash, and it won't work as smoothly.
• The best thing to do, if you desperately want iOS 7 (Like me), is to wait for another month, because Apple will most likely release another update for iOS 7 to fix some bugs.

Quote of the Week

"Whether you come back by page or by the big screen, Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home."

                                                                                          


                                                                                                                      ~J.K. Rowling

My Review on Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters

A week ago, I watched Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters. If you haven't read the book, the movie is awesome! But like me, if you have read it, it's not that related to the book.

Camp Half-Blood, a demi-god camp, is attacked by a former camper, Luke Castellan, who wants to ruin Mount Olympus. The only way to save the camp is to find the Golden Fleece. Percy and his friends, Grover and Annabeth, secretly sneak out of camp to find the Fleece. Along the way, they encounter furious monsters and Grover disappears. Will they ever find the Fleece, save camp, find Grover, and destroy Luke?

The acting is praisable but Alexandra Daddario isn't very skilled at acting, in my opinion. In the movie, she also looks very different if you compare it to the book. My favorite character is Grover because he is very humorous! My rating for this movie is a 7 out of 10.

Picture source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Percy_Jackson:_Sea_of_Monsters

Twelve-Year-Old Child Learned To Code

Ethan Duggan, 12, learned how to code at Codecademy, built five apps, and speaks SXSW, a computer language. It all started when his mother returned from a huge shopping spree, but without a father or a husband, Ethan was expected to tell her which ones look bad, good, horrible, etc.

Soon he was tired of that, so he built an app called Lazy Husband, which has recorded compliments. Soon Lazy Wife and Lazy Kid were born.

Now, Ethan works at his father's company hoping to become a programmer or build more apps and hopefully a game.


Picture source: http://venturebeat.com/2013/08/14/this-12-year-old-kid-learned-to-code-on-codecademy-built-5-apps-and-is-speaking-at-sxsw/#

Quote of the Week

"I don't let anyone's insecurities, emotions, or opinions bother me. I know that if I am happy, that's all that matters to me."
                                                                            
  
                                                                                                                              ~Demi Lavato

Quote of the Week

"I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear."


                                                                 ~Martin Luther King Jr. 

Picture source: http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/1964/king-bio.html
                                                                                                           

Quote of the Week

"Do you want to know who you are? Don't ask. Act! Action will delineate and define you."

                                                                                                                   ~Thomas Jefferson 

Picture source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Jefferson

My Northeast Coast Trip

I had a one week east coast trip to New York City, Washington D.C., Niagara Falls, and New Jersey. The pictures in this blog post were taken on this trip.

Day 1

We reached Washington D.C. late at night and we got to our hotel around midnight. We didn't get a lot of sleep that night but we knew about the big day ahead of us so we slept as soon as possible.

Day 2

Today we explored Washington D.C. after eating a marvelous breakfast from our hotel. First, we went to the Washington Monument. Because of the earthquake a while ago, the monument is in the process of restoration. Every night, it glows and it's ravishing. After that, we visited the Lincoln Memorial which was huge! The view from it was wonderful; you could see a big fountain, the Washington Monument, and more. Shortly after the Lincoln Memorial, we had a quick lunch, and we headed to the Smithsonian Museum. We saw the Hope Diamond, from India, and one of the most famous gems in the world! Later, we went to one of my favorite parts of the trip, Madame Tussauds. If you haven't heard of it, it's a wax museum filled with all the US presidents and famous people in the past and present. The wax statues look like real people! Once my mom was trying to take a quick picture and bumped into a wax photographer. She thought she was real so she apologized but we all had a laugh after that! Some examples of present celebrities that were there are Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Selena Gomez, Justin Bieber, Will Smith, Beyonce, and much more! After that we had dinner at a wonderful Asian restaurant and went back to our hotel.

Washington Monument--It has "braces" like me!

The Hope Diamond! About 45 carats! So beautiful!

The great Lincoln Memorial!

Selena Gomez at Madame Tussauds!

Day 3

On our third day, we went to the Jefferson Memorial, saw the Pentagon, went on the "hop on hop off" bus tours, and visited the Capitol! Sadly it was closed and same with the Library of Congress. I wanted to see it again (This would be my third time)! It's the largest library in the world! We also saw the front side of the White House! Did you know that in pictures, the side you usually see of the White House is the back side? Weird, huh? Today we also rented a bigger car.

The Capitol!

Thomas Jeffferson

The White House

 Day 4

 Today we went to the National Cathedral in Washington D.C. It's the sixth largest church in the world! From the highest floor, you can get a clear view of downtown Washington D.C. The church is truly grand and marvelous! After that we headed towards New Jersey to our next hotel. We reached NJ in the evening so we were basically in the car for a long time. It was better than our first one in my opinion. The best part was we could see the skyline of NYC! I went swimming with my cousin and we had a great dinner from Chipotle! We didn't explore much today...

The National Cathedral

Day 5

Today we went to the Statue of Liberty! That was my third time! But every time I go, SOMETHING happens. Well, the first time I went I was a baby, so I don't remember anything. The second time, I was sick and I my stomach was upset and the third time, I was REALLY mad at my parents, so I didn't really enjoy it. But at least I saw it right? I had the most exquisite panini for lunch. Later, we went to the 9/11 Memorial. It was really sad for everyone. Just looking at the engraved names left a big hole in my heart. The Survivor Tree was what caught my attention. It has been there for a really long time, even before 9/11. It went through repairs, but it's still standing today. Later, everyone was starving, so we went to the hotel and everyone else had Indian food for dinner while I finished leftovers from Chipotle.

New York City Skyline

Statue of Liberty

9/11 Memorial

Day 6

Today we went to the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum. I'm not really interested in that topic so I didn't enjoy it as much as the others. The museum is literally a boat...no joke! The story of the ship is interesting though. The eating options aren't bad but there's only one place, Au Bon Pain. I had a cold sandwich, and a delicious French vanilla cupcake. After that, we went on the "hop on hop off" bus tours and I saw this super thin triangular building! I wondered what was in it but sadly I never found out. There was a Madame Tussauds in NYC which was much bigger than the one in D.C., but we never went in it. Apparently they have more pop stars, more Hollywood stars, athletes, and even Bollywood stars! Next time I go, I will visit this one instead of the one in D.C. After the Intrepid Museum, we went to the Empire State Building. It was my first time going there even though I've been to NYC three times. The view from the building was spectacular! You could see everything, even a small glimpse of Central Park! A note to visitors: There are two gift shops, the one downstairs has more selection and variety and it's also less expensive. The one upstairs does not have a lot of variety and it's more expensive. So when you visit the building, shop downstairs first, then head upstairs to see the view. There were many things still left to do, but all we needed was time! Instead of the Intrepid Museum, I wanted to see the Ripley's Believe It or Not! in Times Square and also get a studio tour of NBC. But next time, I hope to see more of NYC!

At the Intrepid Museum. The white bottle in the picture is for space use when fruits or vegetables go bad.

The company of that bottle was founded by a close family friend! We were so surprised when we saw one of his amazing products!

NYC

View from the Empire State Building

Day 7

Today we had a seven hour drive to Niagara Falls! Though it felt like three or four hours to me. :-) We left our hotel around 11 A.M. We watched Wreck-It Ralph and Jack the Giant Slayer. Wreck-It Ralph was good but the second one was kind of boring. We got to our hotel around 10 P.M. after stopping for lunch, snack, and dinner. Our hotel was a higher standard but the biggest room they had available for five people was a room with two queens. The lounge was extra comfortable and big! It also had a Starbucks and a TGI Friday's attached. 

Day 8

Niagara Falls

Beautiful, isn't it?

Today was a full day at Niagara Falls! First, we went on the Maid of the Mist boat ride. We were in a part of Canada when we rode to Horseshoe Falls. Don't let the name confuse you--it's more like a shower instead of a "mist". I loved the ride though! The best part was the Hurricane Deck! You get soaked! The water hit my face so hard that my ears started hurting! After that natural shower (haha), we went to the hotel and changed and went to TGI Friday's. My trip was wonderful and I'll never forget it!

My Review on The Cupcake Queen

When her mom decides to open a cupcake business, Penny isn't surprised. She could easily imagine a small cupcake store in the urban streets of New York City. But when her mom opens it up in her hometown Hog's Hollow, Penny feels like her life is over. She has to let go of all her city friends and her dad. Just before school starts, the cupcake business caters for the most popular girl in school, Charity. But everything messes up and Charity starts playing hurtful pranks on Penny every single day. But with her new friends Blake and Tally, she starts to feel right at home. She also watches out for Sam, the dog and the owner, who she likes. But when her parents ask her to make a decision about her life, she's confused AGAIN. 

I really love this book, but honestly, it's the cupcakes on the cover that dragged me to read it. My rating for this wonderful book is a 8.5 out of 10. This is a great page turner for girls or someone who's going through tough life changes.


Picture source: http://sarahbear9789.blogspot.com/2010/03/cupcake-queen-by-heather-hepler.html

My Review on Bad Girls Don't Die by Katie Alender

Bad Girls Don't Die is a REALLY scary book. I couldn't sleep at night because of this, but it was also superb!

High schooler Alexis and her doll obsessed sister, Kasey, have a normal life....kind of. Alexis notices Kasey acting strange, almost possessed. Her sweet adorable eyes turn bright vivid green, drawers open and close by themselves, the air conditioner turns on by itself, leaving everyone cold, her sister uses old fashioned language, and water boils on an unlit stove. Alexis knows she is the only one who can stop Kasey, but what if it's not really Kasey?

I absolutely ADORE this book. This book is really scary, like I said, but the second book isn't as scary, but it's not bad. My rating for this book is a 9 out of 10. This is a page turner and it will keep you up all night!

The Daughters by Joanna Philbin

Now that summer has started, reading has been taking most of my summer. I recently finished a series of books called The Daughters by Joanna Philbin. The chronological order of the books:

1. The Daughters
2. The Daughters Break the Rules
3. The Daughters Take the Stage 
4. The Daughters Join the Party

This series is about three girls, first, Lizzie Summers. She has strawberry blonde/red hair and she models. Her mom, Katia Summers is a supermodel. Second, Karina Jurgensen. She has blonde hair and she surfs, snowboards, and does anything under the sun. Her dad is a billionaire and owns a company. Third, Hudson Jones. She has chocolate colored skin and she sings. Her mom, Holla Jones is also a singer. The first three books focus on one girl at a time. The first book focuses on Lizzie, the second focuses on Carina, the third focuses on Hudson. A new character gets introduced in the last book, which focuses on her. Emma Conway has brown hair and her dad is senator and he plans to run for president. At first, she isn't really sure about her "thing" but when she starts speaking at one of her dad's parties, she steals her brother's spotlight, who is the president of the swim team and the speech and debate club. He's literally the definition of perfect to Emma and her parents.

My favorite book is The Daughters Join the Party. My second is the second book, then the first, then the third. I love them all but if I had an order it would be that. I truly love this series so you should read it!!

~CityLover

My Review on Iron Man 3

Iron Man 3 was a really good movie, but I think I'm being a little biased because I LOVE the Avengers, especially Iron Man.

Tony Stark has been having panic attacks since the alien invasion attack in New York (Avengers). He has been building new technology and new suits vigorously. A new villain, the Mandarin, has been bombing several cities, and after Stark gives him his address on live television, the Mandarin attacks his home, with none dead, but the population believes he is. Stark teams up with a ten year old boy in Tennessee, and tries to defeat the Mandarin, with his best friend,  colonel James Rhode.

My rating for this movie is a 9 out of 10 because of the screenplay and the effects/graphics. In the theater I was at, there were many children, about the age of 10 or 9. The only thing is the cursing and violence, but otherwise, this movie would be acceptable for children.



Picture source: marketsawblogspot.com

My Review on Star Trek Into Darkness

Star Trek Into Darkness was an adventurous movie. I think it would be smart to watch the first movie or the original series in order to understand the world it's in.

After a building is bombed, Captain Kirk and other Starfleet members discuss the assassin, John Harrison, who was a former Starfleet agent. After Captain Kirk is assigned to kill him, his team members convince not to kill him, but to capture him. There is a lot more to this movie, but I don't want to spill the beans.

The graphics were impressive and the effects were stunning. My rating for this movie was a 7.5 out of 10. I've seen better movies, but this was a good one. If I were you, I wouldn't see this in theaters, I would rent it after it comes out on DVD.

This movie is appropriate for children but there is some cursing and Mr. Spock's language is very advanced so they might not understand that. My favorite character is Mr. Spock because he is a very confusing person to understand, he is funny at times without even realizing it, and I admire his vocabulary.

Hello!

Hey CityLover Readers,
Sorry for not posting anything for almost two months! School and other activities have kept me so busy, I didn't get time to post! Here is an overview of the things/events I wanted to post about:

Quick Post #1: Neil DeGrasse Tyson visited my city and talked about space. His speech was kind of interesting and some of it was a bit tiresome, maybe because of the fact that I stayed up until 11 to listen to him. We bought two of his books and got his signature! I even got to talk to him!

Quick Post #2: I was inspired by the video I posted earlier to start coding. I recently started writing HTML and working with simple CSS. At first, it's a bit bewildering, but when you start to get a hang if it, you can get used to it very easily. So far, I can make a simple page, embed a video/picture, create a link, use background colors, and a few other things. You should try coding at code.org.

Quick Post #3: Just a while ago, I found out that a new Percy Jackson movie will be coming out sometime in August. I love the Percy Jackson series, although I was disappointed with the first movie. I watched the Sea of Monsters trailer, and it actually looks really good and more interesting than the first one, so I'm really excited for that to come out.

My Review on Oz the Great and Powerful

During spring break, I watched Oz: The Great and Powerful with my friends. I was expecting a very riveting movie, but to me it was cheesy and, well, kind of boring.

In Kansas, Oscar works in a traveling circus as a magician. Obviously, he's not a real one. A problem occurs and he escapes on a hot air balloon to the land of Oz. After he learns that he's not in Kansas, he also learns that the people of Oz were expecting him and they need him to defeat the evil Wicked Witch. He and some newly made friends embark on an adventure to seek the Wicked Witch but are surprised with the outcome.

I was a bit disappointed with the graphics and how Oz looked like. It looked somewhat animated. I'm not saying it was horrible, but I've seen better. The movie was also very cheesy. If you watch the movie, you'll see what I'm talking about.

Overall, I would give this movie a 6.5 out of 10. The story was interesting, but at times, I wasn't "at the edge of my seat". My favorite part was when they go and seek for the Wicked Witch but are surprised about the truth. I would only watch this movie once, because if you watch it a second time, it will seem insipid.

What Most Schools Don't Teach

Here is a video about what most schools don't teach in the USA. Once you watch the video, visit code.org. I think it's important to teach young students how to code because it will help them in the future with jobs and technology. A few years from now, everything will be technology based, and the children need to be ready for that. 

Pictures

I was outside today and there were these tiny orange and black birds. Taking pictures of animals are my favorite subject! Here are a few! Hope you like them.

My Review on The Truth of Truman School

I just finished reading The Truth of Truman School by Dori Hillestad Butler. It's a wonderful book about cyber bullying.

www.betterworldbooks.com

"Unpopular" Zebby and computer nerd Amr start a school website where everyone can share and post about anything they want. They create this website because they want people to actually KNOW the truth about their school. But suddenly, an anonymous person who goes by the name of "milkandhoney" starts trashing the website with false lies about a popular girl and suddenly, she becomes the school's "weird freak".

I think this teaches you a good lesson about cyber bullying. This book is a mixture of everything: mystery, realistic fiction, cyber bullying, a typical teenager's life, and more! I really encourage children and teens to read it, because there is something interesting for everyone in that book.

I was also given this link about cyber bullying: http://doug-johnson.squarespace.com/storage/cyberbullying77.pdf. It talks about

what is cyber bullying, examples of cyber bullying, why you shouldn’t be a cyber bully, and advice for dealing with cyber bullies. 

Amazing Video

My dad found this video on Yahoo! and I found it an interesting video. An amateur astronomer took this video in twelve days in Indonesia.

Catching Fire Movie Poster Is Released!

As you probably know, I am a HUGE Hunger Games fan. I recently found out that the Catching Fire movie posters have been released. Here are a few I spotted: 



Picture sources:
thehob.org
grodansnagel.deviantart.com

Casino in Linn County: Vote No

In my area, there is a debate whether or not to build a new casino. There will be a special election on March 5th regarding the casino. This might seem like a trivial issue, but there are even commercials about it similar to the presidential election. I think they shouldn't build a casino, because we already have a few, and people will be more addicted to gambling, drinking, and smoking. The gamblers also have a greater chance losing more money.

Meteor Hits Russia

Hi CityLover Readers!

Sorry, I haven't posted for more than a month!

On Friday, February 15th, a meteor hit Russia around 9:20 AM Russian time. About 1,200 people were injured, while 200 of them were children. Fortunately, no one died but the meteor caused a lot of damage in Russia's Ural Mountains.

About 9,000 people are helping with the clean-up and Russia has put $33 million to fix the damages. Below is a video someone took of the meteor. They play this video twice.
Many cars in Russia have dashcams in their cars so that's what this person recorded the video with.  

My Review on the Hobbit

This movie has been #1 at the Box Office for quite some time. Although at the beginning I wasn't too thrilled to watch this movie, it became more and more interesting and I liked it so much that I was willing to watch it again!

To understand the Hobbit better, you will have to watch the previous movies from The Lord of the Rings trilogy and/or read the books. I have seen the previous movies but I have not read the books (I'm hoping to read them soon).

One random day, Bilbo Baggins, a plain and normal Hobbit, gets unusually greeted by a wise wizard, Gandalf. Later, more dwarves, elves, and the elf king come by and offer Bilbo to come with them on an adventure to save the elves' kingdom from a dragon.
               
Also, if you are planning to take your child to see this movie, the lowest age that I think it's appropriate for (they will understand it and won't get frightened) is seven or eight. There is an abundance of violence; slaying, beheading, clashing, etc. 

This epic movie has stunning graphics and, you might be surprised, but there were some dialogues that cracked me up. My rating for the Hobbit is a 7.5 out of 10, and it's worth the price to watch this movie in a theater. :-)

~CityLover

Picture source: http://wearemoviegeeks.com/2012/12/the-hobbit-movie-behind-the-scenes-look-at-creating-the-music-with-howard-shore/