The 80's

There are obviously so many options to choose from going back in time and choosing which time period I would want to see. But I think that of all the choices, I would like to visit the 1980's. Mostly because of the famously known 1980 Winter Olympics. These Olympics changed American lives. The game known as the "Miracle Game" occurred, this game brought peace to Americans and made them live easier. The "Miracle Game" for those who don't know was the very game where the USA defeated the Soviet Union team. The most improbable win brought the Americans to closure. Mainly because there was a ton of tension between the two countries. Other big things that gone on, well the famously known game or toy called the Rubik's Cube, and the game Pac-Man game was invented in 1980, both big games today that are very entertaining. The current President at that time Ronald Reagan, was being attempted for assassination, but he was luckily able to get away unharmed. The NBA had a new star and boy was he a sight to see. Michael Jordan became arguably the greatest player ever to play the game in this decade. These years were his big ones, the ones he is known for. Michael Jordan graduated from North Carolina and immediately showed he could play with the big boys right away in the pros. The 80's are a time known for a lot of change around the world and wealth and production became easier to find and helped a lot of people out. I think that I would love to see what life was like back in this time, with all the different music and sports and wars and culture. I think it would be really awesome and to see all of the adults that were in their teens and 20s back then.

How Long?

There are many problems going on in the world, and most of them are unable to be changed.  I think that the most important of the problems, is the homeless and jobless population.  There are way too many people in the cities and downtowns that do not have homes.  It is ruining society and if I had the chance that would be at the top of my list.  The jobless population also is affecting many people throughout the world.  The main reason for these problems though, has to be the economy.  The economy has gotten so bad and people cannot afford anything anymore.  I think that if I had a chance to change the world it would be to lower many prices of anything and everything.  I know that this task would not be easy but it must happen for these goals to be accomplished.  The worst part is the economy and the jobless and the homeless populations are triggering other downfalls to our world.  For example, world peace and bullying and the ability to be equal are all still big problems we cannot change.  As much as we think it is all gone it will not go away.  I hope that one day is able to realize what is happening and all of the problems will be erased.  It will take a lot and a long time but who knows what will happen.  Maybe one day a bully starts to become nice and wants to change.  Maybe many people will follow him.  It only takes one to start a chain reaction, as we learned a few years ago in the Rachel's Challenge assembly, hopefully the world can accomplish this one day.  It will take many to want to change but I believe that one day something big will happen.

Jessica Insinna

So Mr. Currin set up the entire class to interview one other person and get to know them a little better, or learn who they are.  Well I was originally assigned Emily Cole, but some changes were made and I had the great opportunity to learn about the very nice and loving young lady in Jessica Insinna.  Jessica is currently a junior here at Alden High School, and is very excited about her upcoming senior year.  Now obviously she hasn't really decided on what she wants to do when she's older and is undecided on college, although she is very excited.  Jessica was born on June 27th, and has an older sister named Emily who is also in our school.  I didn't really know that much about Jessica aside from the fact that she does go to my church which is St. John's on Sandridge Road.  But during this interview I discovered so much about her.  For starters, in her free time she loves to read, and watch movies.  Her favorite book is Diary of a Wimpy Kid.  A series that is huge around the world especially for kids and teens.  It is a comedy that is illustrated with some funny pictures to keep people interested.  Also while at home, Jessica loves to cook and bake, as long as she has a recipe and knows what she’s doing.  She also enjoys pizza, but not from the pizza shop, she likes to make her own.  In school, she loves English, mainly because she loves her teach, the one and only Mr. Currin, who also teaches this very class.  She loves him and so do many other people. I had a very nice time getting to know Jessica Insinna and hope that I can learn more about her and other classmates in the future through this class.

First and Last Loss

For my choice blog I am writing about the disappointment of our first loss against the Cleveland Hill Golden Eagles.  More importantly the fact I have never beaten Cleve Hill in the 7 games I have played them in basketball, which dates back all the way to 7th grade.  I am very unhappy with this and with our effort against this team in the last few matches.  Honestly, I can't even tell you the last time the game has been within 10 points.  We always seem to stick with them going into halftime, sure we'll be down by a couple buckets but it always seems like were right there.  And then the margin gradually gets bigger and bigger.  Last night we were able to get it down to about 6 or 7 and we would have the ball, and the next 3 possessions would all end up in turnovers and they would score and all of a sudden the lead would be back up to 10 or 12 and the game would be out of hand.  I am very disappointed with myself and the team from this game but we are going to have to buckle down for the rest of a long season, starting with the Eden Raiders and Friday.  Eden usually isn't the best team but we always have to take a very long drive which affects our play.  Last season we played the same team, and we ended up losing the game.  A very disappointing game which from then point on out our season down the drain.  Hopefully we are able to avenge this loss and turn the Cleve Hill loss into some inspiration for the rest of the season.  We will be able to get back at Cleve Hill late in January, and we will come back for them.

Miner Island

The last choice blog is about my favorite place to be in the whole wide world, where I dominate, Miner Island.  You may be wondering what’s Miner Island?  Well Miner Island is the backyard of the Zach Miner's house.  The place where we play football, Al Darrow, Austin Zelasko, Zach Miner, Leyton Miner, and myself.  It is always the Miners versus the Austins while Al plays all time quarterback.  Miner Island though comes from the nickname of New York Jet cornerback, Darrelle Revis.  It is called Revis Island because he is such a good cornerback and shuts down the best receivers in the game.  And so receivers are supposed to be scared to go into Revis Island.  Now Miner may not be a great defender mostly because I dominate him and I cannot be stopped.  But, he seems to think he shuts me down, hence the name Miner Island.  Every weekend I am usually at Austin's house and MIner Island is the place to be in the morning no matter what day.  The most recent game we have played was the Turkey Bowl.  The day of Thanksgiving a ton of kids come the Zach's house and we played a big 7 on 7 football game, in a game where I had 4 interceptions off of Darrow and 5 touchdown receptions.  Probably the biggest game in my career, even though we ended up blowing the lead late.  It was a very disappointing ending especially since we had a two touchdown lead and the ball.  Well I guess I will have to wait another year for my Turkey Bowl Title.  But, on the positive side, it will give our team a want for revenge.  Hopefully we will come out with the intensity on the field and we will come out on top.

My Team

For my second choice blog I am going to write about my favorite college basketball team, the Syracuse Orange.  I have been a Syracuse fan since at least 5th grade and each year my passion for them grows stronger and stronger.  Almost to the point that I am a diehard fan, and I watch every game I can.  Syracuse is off to another phenomenal start ranked number 3rd in the country and currently at 9 and 0.  Their big win coming against the then ranked number 9 team, the Florida Gators in the Big East/SEC Challenge.  The only problem this season is off the court.  Former assistant coach Bernie Fine was accused of rape charges on former ball boys over 20 years ago.  Fine was removed from the coaching staff, but no charges have been filed.  On the court Syracuse has not skipped a beat, and hasn't looked to be bothered by any of the allegations.  The Orange will participate in 4 more non-conference games before Syracuse takes on the Seton Hall Pirates on Wednesday December 28th, the first of their 17 straight games against Big East opponents.  Syracuse has 10 players returning including stand out forward Kris Joseph who is leading the team in scoring.  Coach Jim Boeheim has a very deep team which is what it is going to take to get through a long season.  Syracuse is looking to win their 2nd National Title, the last one coming in 2003 with Carmelo Anthony running the show.  The Orange next play on Saturday December 9th, against the George Washington Colonials at home at 7 pm.  The Colonials stand at 4 and 4 and may have a rough time against a lanky Orange team that forces over 15 turnover a game, Syracuse should cruise to a 10 and 0 start.

Cinderella Story

Well since this week we have to write three choice blogs due to Bill Penny, my first one is going to be on my fantasy football team.  My team has made the playoffs on a miraculous comeback.  First of all it looked like it was going to be another below average season but my team came up clutch and proved they were the "comeback kids" in the league.  It all started when for the first year we decided to have an offline draft at league owner Al Darrow's house.  Well this was going to be great right but there was one problem.  I had a baseball game that day and forced me to miss our draft, another reason why I was not excited for this season.  The amazing thing is my first 8 draft picks from that day are not even on my roster.  And after starting the season off at 0 and 3 I decided there were a lot of changes to be made.  I made an 8-player trade with Zach Miner which changed my entire season.  In this trade I got my leading scorer who carried my team to victory each and every week, rookie quarterback, Cam Newton.  A playmaker an athlete who can run, throw and even catch.  After my 0 and 3 start I got back into the race winning 3 in a row putting me at 3-3, after some up and down games I finished off the season on a 3 game winning streak and snuck into the playoffs after a very close race.  4 of the 5 teams in my division going into the final week stood at 6-6 each team with a chance to make it to the playoffs.  This might have been the closest race ever; at least that I've seen.  Cam Newton was clutch and ripped off an astonishing 42 points and put the team on his back.  Now I have to prepare for Al's team who is 12-1, team full of the Green Bay Packers and is led by Aaron Rodgers the number one player in fantasy and this year has already recorded 61 points.  It will take everyone on my team to play their best to have a shot in this two-week long matchup.

2011-2012 JV Basketball

For my choice blog this week I am deciding to write about my basketball team and the fact that we have our first game today that takes place in Iroquois in the Iroquois Tournament.  I am really excited for this season’s team.  We have a lot of new comers to the team and hopefully I can lead the team to a very successful season.  Nick Kibler and I have been honored as captains for the season; we are both experienced sophomores and have been playing the game since 4th grade.  I feel like we should have a great season and I am excited and am confident in us.  We are playing in an 18-game schedule and will run through early February.  We are taking part in two tournaments, the Tip-Off in Iroquois, and the Holiday Tournament in Akron.  Another reason I love basketball season, is dressing up.  On game days our team is required to wear dress pants a nice shirt and a tie if you would like.  Some kids hate and I do not understand why.  It makes you more professional, and also makes you look better as a team.  Our Coach, Jeff Scutt has come up with some good plays and has left it up to us to play.  We have the offenses, the defenses, but it's up to us to make the shots and execute.  I would love to have an undefeated season and will give full effort every game to make that possible.  Hopefully we can achieve our goal as a team.  Our starters to start off the season are Tyler Glaser, Nick Kibler, Austin Zelasko, myself, and Phil Zobrest.  We have a lot of size and should have an advantage over most teams.  I am really looking forward to a fun and long season and am expecting big things.

Will There Be a Miracle?

If I was able to have three wishes the world would be in much better condition than it is now.  For one wish I would have to wish for me to be the best baseball player in the world.  I dream about pitching for the New York Yankees playing in the World Series in game 7.  The pressure is all on me and I come through in the clutch.  I would give anything to have this happen to me, I dream about this all the time and it makes me want to become a better pitcher and have the determination.  A second wish would be to win the lottery.  Do you know how much fun it would be to have all that money? I would probably keep my job and begin building my dream house.  It would be a very fun place to be where my kids would want to bring their kids to hang out.  I would want an indoor basketball court and a nice weight room and a Jacuzzi and infinity pool.  If I won the lottery I would build my dream house while helping out my close family and friends if they needed some financial help.  For my third wish, I wish that the world never had any politics and we were able to do our own thing, keeping in mind that the world would still be very safe for people; I wish that there would be no more crime and no more homeless people.  Everyone had a nice family and living conditions and there were no poor people.  I hope for world peace and everyone got what they wanted, not too much so that it got out of control, but enough that the world was a great and safe place to be.  Although all three of these wishes have a very slim chance of happening, stranger things have happened.  We can always hope.

Pop and Hip-Hop

I usually don't like to change the genre of my music while I listen to the radio or my iPod or computer.  At the top has to be either pop, or hip-hop.  To me they go hand in hand they seem like the same music to me and I like them both equally or it really depends on what kind of mood I am in.  The station that this kind of music come from, which is my favorite without a doubt is Buffalo's #1 hit music station, Kiss 98.5.  I also kind of like some rock here and there especially during football season.  Songs like Thunderstruck by AC/DC and New Noise by Refused.  The only music I could easily live without is country music.  And even though it seem as though everyone here in the small town of Alden loves country, I really do not like it at all.  I don't really see how it is that good; all it is, is people pretty much talking in their songs.  They call it singing for a reason not talking.  Sure there are a couple good songs here and there but for the most part it’s ridiculous.  I really enjoy listening to music and it puts me in a good mood and pumps me up when I am on my way to a sporting event.  My favorite time to listen to music though is when I am cleaning my room, I'm not sure why but it just makes cleaning so much more fun.  And since my room doesn't even take that long to clean it makes it even better.  So pop and hip-hop are my favorite and I don't know if that'll ever change.  Music changes a lot of peoples’ lives in a way, and that is for the better, I don’t think music could die.

My Favorite Movies

I have seen some very good movies and it has been a while since my last one.  The last one in theaters I watched was "Dream House" about a month ago.  I went with my cousin to see that and overall I thought it was a pretty good movie, it had a lot of irony in the movie though as how it turns out the man is not who you thought he would be.  But aside from that my top 3 movies have to be "The Rookie", "Friday Night Lights", and "Hurricane Season".  All three of these movies are sports movies, but they all are true stories, which is what I love about them.  "The Rookie" is a baseball movie about this coach of a Texas High School Baseball team and his road to the major leagues.  He earns a second shot at the big leagues and lives his dream.  It is a very emotional movie and teaches people a lot about never giving up.  "Friday Night Lights" is a football movie about a Texas High School and their long and tough road to the 5A State Championship.  The team must overcome the loss of their star running back, after they barely squeak into the playoffs they play the best team in the state and you would never believe the result.  "Hurricane Season" is a basketball movie that takes place in the state of Louisiana.  It is about the disastrous storm, Hurricane Katrina, and how a high school basketball team must overcome the worst of all situations and find a team, a new gym, and other teams to play against.  The storm really affected a lot of the players and some of them even became lost or moved away.  I really enjoy watching movies especially if I see them at the theaters.  My favorite movies are either true stories or comedies.  I cannot wait to go again soon.

Heat

I used to read all of the time, but since then I have slowed down a ton.  I used to read for book reports and also just for fun.  I don't really have a certain favorite book but I do have a favorite author, and that is Mike Lupica.  Mike Lupica is a sports reporter and has written many books.  My favorite book of his though is Heat.  This book is about baseball and the journey of a boy and his brother.  The young one is 12 years old and his name is Michael Arroyo, his brothers' name is Carlos, who is 17 years old.  These boys are from Cuba and escaped to New York City and are living on their own.  Michael has some serious baseball talent throws really hard.  Michael and his brother have to dodge bills and people as if they are caught living on their own they will be separated from each other.  The fact that Michael is so good at such a young age worries people and make them think he actually is not 12, so they are looking for a birth certificate which they do not have.  It is a very complicated situation that could go very wrong.  Michael is on an all-star in New York City and they are underdogs and they must overcome a lot of adversity to become one of the top teams as well as being able to play in Yankee Stadium.  Michael leads his team to victory and feels very good and is happy and for that one moment all the obstacles and problems he has had to overcome, went away.  It is a very good book I think, and I would recommend this to most kids.  Mostly sports fans that are teenagers, because this is their life and this happens to some kids.

Thanksgiving: The Time for Family

Thanksgiving is a time to be with your family and enjoy the good times and thank god for your life and your health.  Thanksgiving I go to each of my grandparent's house at different times throughout the day.  I am truly grateful for this and appreciate at the fact that I have two great and normal sides of my family.  The main traditions of Thanksgiving besides being with your families and the great food, is football.  The football games have sometimes been disappointing, due to the Detroit Lions always having bad years and getting beat on, the Dallas Cowboys usually have some great games but you can't always get what you want.  This year though things will change.  No more turning off the TV due to blow outs.  The Lions are 6 and 2 and in second place in the NFC North.  They will be playing divisional rival and 8 and 0 Green Bay Packers.  I am really looking forward to this game as well as watching the exciting big play offense, led by star wide receiver, Calvin Johnson Jr., or as most people call him by his nickname, "Megatron."  He may be the best in the game and cannot be stopped.  I think the Packers should be on upset alert; it will be a great game.  Of course though, the dinner is the best tradition of all time.  I love the homemade cooking of my grandma and it is phenomenal, the turkey, the mashed potatoes, and the stuffing.  All of it is great and I am very excited for this year and will be the first in line.  Thanksgiving is a great holiday and one of the best, it's a great day to spend more time with my family, to catch up since the last time I have seen them.

Mr. O and Me

On the first day of school I came in looking good. I went to all my classes and the day was going phenomenal. Then I had gym class. I walked in, and much to my surprise, standing there in front of me, was me... actually a man that looked exactly like me. I thought to myself, "Did somebody clone me?" No, was the answer. I had not been cloned... this man was Mr. O.  Mr. O was a student gym teacher. He student taught in my gym class and every time I looked at him, I had to take a second look because I always thought it was me. I always got harassed. Everyone would say to me, "you look exactly like Mr. O!" At first it was really funny. After a while it got annoying. It was weird whenever I saw him because he knew that I looked like him as well. Not only did people say I look like Mr. O, they would call me Mr. O.  On top of that, they would call poor Mr. O, Hopcia. One time, in online publishing, Mr. O walked in and everyone just started to laugh. Another incident is when Mr. O and I got a picture taken together. This picture, of course, ended up on Facebook. I can't lie, it is a very funny picture and so I decided to make it my profile picture. So many people liked the picture and found it humorous as well. Now, unfortunately, Mr. O left. I kind of miss seeing him and laughing. I wonder to myself, "Will I ever see him again?" I hope I do in a few years, and see if we still look alike. I will always treasure the picture of Mr. O and me. I will never forget the beginning of my sophomore year and my second block gym class.

Christmas: The Best Time of Year

Of all the holidays, I like all of them, but a couple stands out to me and that is Easter and Christmas.  Now even though these are the main two, I do have a favorite.  I think Christmas has to edge out Easter for various reasons.  Easter is fun in the fact that the kids get to enjoy going on egg hunts and then on the morning of they get to search around the house to find where the Easter bunny hid their baskets, as well as discover the nice gifts and candy he has left.  It is more towards a religious holiday but so is Christmas.  This is another reason why this holiday is so great.  Christmas is a time to spend time with your family and give.  Sure the kids love to get their presents and that is what they worry about, but that is not the big picture of Christmas and they one day hopefully will figure that out.  My Christmas starts out by going to church on Christmas Eve in the evening and coming home and watching a movie with my family and my grandma.  We have been doing this for a while and I enjoy it and have a good time, this is when I really begin to realize what Christmas is all about.  I wake up Christmas morning and my sisters and I run downstairs to open our presents when the family is up.  After this I spend the rest of the day with my family on my mom's and dad's side; brunch at my mom's side, and dinner at my dad's side.  I really enjoy spending time with my families and it really helps that we all get along.  This is why I love Christmas, the family, the caring and sharing and the weather and playing in the snow.

Rough Ending Gives Promise

For my second time around in the choice blog, I have decided to write about our JV football season that ended yesterday.  We have finished with a 6 and 3 record, losing to the St. Mary's Lancers, Depew Wildcats, and the Cheektowaga Warriors.  We hosted the Warriors last night, on a very rainy and muddy night.  This game was our last game of the season and the last JV football game for a lot of us, including me.  Cheektowaga had too much speed unfortunately as they defeated us in a very close and entertaining game, 24 to 21.  Our season was all about being the underdogs.  Most people doubted us, said we were too small and lost too many players.  We did lose a lot of players from our undefeated season last year, but we overcame adversity and beat the odds.  We had some kids step up big time, Phil Zobrest and Erik Feitshans were monsters on defense, Ryan Richards and Dylan Dussault had huge games offensively when we needed them.  Freshman Alex Schweitzer, Chris Lamb, Aryton Blankenberg came in and were big contributors in their first JV season.  Honestly I think that if a couple big plays were prevented we could have and should have gone 8 and 1.  Against Depew we played awful and they played great in my opinion.  If we came out a little more ready to play maybe we are able to make it a game.  I was very happy with our season, even though it had a rough ending it gave me some confidence for the future when I am in my senior year and this group of guys are back together again.  Maybe if we all get bigger and better we make a solid run in the playoffs and surprise a lot of people.

My Bright Future

I have considered my future a lot, and I think I have a pretty good idea of what I would like to do.  I have for the most part thought about two potential careers.  One is what I really wish to do and that is to play baseball beyond high school.  I play a ton of baseball in every season whether it is practicing or actually playing games.  Baseball is definitely my favorite sport and I try and improve my skills everyday as much as I can to make myself better in the future.  I'd love to go to a division 1 school and play baseball somewhere.  I know that the chances of me making it professionally are not high but that would be very cool and I am going to continue trying to excel in that sport.  My other choice is to become a broadcaster or a journalist.  I really enjoy writing which is why I have been involved in the Newspaper Club and writing for The Bulldog which is our school newspaper.  I'd like to go to a very nice school preferably a Division 1 school so I can enjoy and a cool atmosphere like at football games and basketball games.  I think about my future almost every day and honestly I cannot wait for college and life to come because I am excited for the opportunities I am going to come upon.  If all goes well, I think I am going to have a very successful life, and career.  I think that if I keep accomplishing my goals in high school, like making honor roll every quarter, and staying involved in clubs and sports, I will be able to do what I would like to do.  I feel that I am very capable of accomplishing my life goals.

Without Question

So far in my sophomore year, I have been happy and also having some success in all of my classes.  This year I am taking; Geometry, Earth Science, Spanish 3, Online Publishing, Global 2, English 10, and Sports & Entertainment Marketing.  All of these classes are unique in their own way whether the class is interesting, or fun, or even boring.  I am pleased with my teachers and their styles of teaching.  Now, although I like all of my classes, everyone has to have a favorite.  Online Publishing has to be the unanimous vote, even though that there is only one vote, which would be me, so in that case it is obviously unanimous.  Online Publishing is my favorite because for one, it is the "BEST CLASS EVER!" as Mr. Currin says every day when he walks in the door.  This class is meant to make you a better writer, and I think it has been making me one.  It gives you that actual work office atmosphere as if you were actually in an office where you just write and write every day.  When I grow up one thing I have been considering has been to become a journalist or maybe a broadcaster or something in that area.  This class gives me a great start on to my journey of journalism.  This class has helped me develop in my writing skills.  I am currently writing for our own Varsity Football team, I write for the online school newspaper, The Bulldog.  I also have published articles for the Alden Advertiser, which will possibly help me in my future.  I wish to continue taking this class into next year, as there is an Online Publishing II.  If everything stays intact with the budget class sizes, I will be signing up once again.  These are only a few of the many reasons of why this is my favorite class.

My Hero

I am currently in 10th year of schooling, and I've had some awesome teachers and coaches.  I have played three sports every year since 7th grade and every year and coach has been good to me.  I think one that stands out to me as a coach and a substitute teacher has been Andy Smith, or as many people would know him, Coach Smith.  He is a coach of the JV Boys Soccer team, Boys Varsity Basketball team, and also coaches the JV Baseball team.  I have been around Coach Smith since the winter of 8th grade which was the starting of modified basketball.  This was when I really got to know him and how cool he really is.  Since this season, Coach and I have become really close, and I have enjoyed this because the fact the he is a little younger than most and is able to connect with me and all of the other kids he has coached.  For example, he is able to practice and interact with his players, he's one of the few coaches that actually knows a quite a bit about the games he coaches because he played them.  In fact, he still plays those sports today in his free time.  I think he has made me a better player in my specific areas of sports, along with making me a better person.  He knows how to have fun, but most importantly when it is time to get serious, he gets the job done.  When the going gets tough in the game, he takes the blame for it and makes adjustments.  He wins games and that’s all that really matters and he was rewarded, with a chance to coach a varsity sport this upcoming winter.  He is a phenomenal person and a coach, and I hope I am able to keep in touch with him for a long time.

Another Case of Bullying

 This article about the young 14-year old boy Jamey Rodemeyer committing suicide from bully is a very sad and reoccurring event.  As it says in the article there is no law in New York State for bullying, and that is a huge problem.  If they do not try and put a stop to this it is going to continue.  Jamey for the most part had this problem his entire life, and just after starting freshman year at WIlliamsville North High School, he took his life.  The support he got from family and friends was not enough, even though they all thought he was strong enough.  Kids in his school made anonymous slurs to him on a social-networking website called formspring.  Jamey made some videos on YouTube trying to help other kids with his same problem with bullying, and hopefully his ideas and positive thinking have helped other people.  Jamey killed himself after writing a final farewell.  Lady Gaga has been attempting to help out in this situation as well.  It was only fitting that Lady Gaga being Jamey's idol and favorite singer.  She tweeted about it and said that she personally would like to speak to the president to try and stop bullying and make a law for it in New York State.  The police are trying to investigate and trying to figure out if there should be any consequences to the kids who may possibly be involved in the death of Jamey.  Since bullying is not illegal in New York, they have to check how old they are.  Pending on if the kids involved are 16 or older will decide if they even have a chance at going to juvenile court or not.  Bullying is an awful thing and must be stopped as soon as possible.  Maybe if they are able to make a law about bullying then there will be a stoppage in it.

Best Restaurants

I think that there a lot of different and unique restaurants in the town of Alden.  A few that stand out to me though, are Darrow's and McGavin's.  These two restaurants have some quality food and are pretty popular around here.  Darrow's and McGavin's are both relatively new here.  Darrow's used to be the old Alden Bar&Grill, and McGavin's used to be the old Cricket Club.  Both places in my opinion are fantastic, the people are nice and like I said the food is phenomenal.  I was just at Darrow's the other day with my mom and some friends and I felt as if the service was great and my food was too.  I had a B.L.T. on bread I haven't had before.  So I hesitated as some people would trying new things, but I'm very happy I did elect to take it because I thought it was pretty good and would definitely do it again.  At McGavin's just like at Darrow's the service is very good.  I haven't been there in a while but when I do, I am usually pleased with the food there and the different selections I am able to make.  Now even though those are my two favorite restaurants, my favorite food has to come from the local pizza place: Carbone's.  By far the best pizza I've had in Alden and around Western New York.  They never put too much cheese on the pizza and just enough sauce.  Their subs are amazing there as well.  If I can I try and buy a sub before every sporting even I am participating in whether it's football, basketball, or baseball.  I always buy a turkey club sub with lettuce tomatoes and mayonnaise and it is always of high quality.  These restaurants all have great food and service quality and I am very pleased with them.

Lunches No Match for Tacos

I have been starting to buy mostly every day since 6th grade, but now I'm starting to bring my lunch in my sophomore year.  Although that is happening I have had a couple great school lunches.  In the middle school I never really bought any of the pizza, it was either salad or the main lunch.  But coming into the high school and this whole new kind of pizza, I felt I had to try it.  The first day of freshman year I had it and I thought it was very good.  It is called Big Daddy pizza here, and in the first semester of sophomore I would say that it still has great quality for the most part.  I do still buy it every now and then.  Salad has also been a huge part of my lunch buying and that usually never disappoints.  Last year I think I had my best salad by far.  Spaghetti days are awesome too.  Mainly because of the best snack I think I've ever had in school and that is, "The Big Cookie Day."  Humongous chocolate chip cookies that is soft and warm and very delicious.  Everyone rushes into the snack line just to get there and they ran out very quickly.  Although these lunches are all very good, in my book Taco Day is by far the best.  Soft-shell tacos, beef, topped with cheese, lettuce, tomatoes and sour cream.  They have recently also gave you the option of the taco in a bag which is good as well.  This day will never get old and I look forward to it every other Thursday.  Taco Day is amazing, and when I know that tacos are for lunch I do my best to never miss a day.  This will probably always be my favorite; to me it never gets old.

STOP

Over the summer, in July, my Facebook wall was blown up with posts from over 80 people telling me to stop... that’s more than the amount of birthday wishes I received.  Why? You might ask?  Well, no one really knows why.  The three masterminds behind this, Matt Schaefer, Dan Rehac, and Matt Shields.  It all started last school year in gym class; these three people were in my class.  And out of nowhere they just started telling people to stop.  Of course, I for a reason we do not know had the target on back for being told to stop 24/7.  It became so popular to tell me to stop that Schaefer decided to make a very popular Facebook event, the "Tell Hopcia to Stop Day."  I appreciated all of the people who love me enough to tell me to stop.  This event was so big there are people who added me on this day just to tell me to stop.  Everyone was so excited for this day to come.  I'm sure that there are people in this class who did tell me to stop or still do today.  It has gotten so out of control, we still do it today.  It has almost been 6 months since this day of telling people to stop in Miss Wieand's gym class has started and every time I see the Matts or Dan we all tell each other to stop.  One time I got an anonymous letter that was stuck in my locker that told me stop in a very long letter.  I bet that this will continue to go on for a long, long time, maybe by the time I graduate people telling me to stop will end, hopefully.  Overall, when I look back at being told to stop, it's funny and something I will never forget, ever.

Drama Filled Tournament

My life has had a ton of high points, but also some low points.  Sports are basically my entire life, so I feel it is appropriate for one of my great moments in life to come from that.  Baseball is my favorite sport which is why my greatest moment in life is coming from baseball.  In this past summer I played for an elite baseball team, the A-Turf Titans as I blogged about earlier.  I had a great opportunity to meet new people and make some new friends, while playing baseball and having the chance to let people get a look at me.  We played in many tournaments but this one stuck out to me.  The New Era Cap Classic which takes place locally at schools like St. Joe's and Canisius College.  This tournament, I thought was by far my best tournament.  My team didn't make the final round which was surprising, because we won 3 out of the 4 games and should've been in.  In this tournament I made a huge contribution to my team.  We lost the first game of the tournament 1 to nothing, but the second game is where the magic happened.  We were playing a team called Coach Tony's who is a legit team in the WNY area.  I came into the game late and gave my team a spark.  I came in the 5th inning to pitch with the bases loaded and walked the first kid so that one run.  I got the next hitter out and we went in to hit.  When I got up there was a man on second base and he was the tying run.  On the first pitch a got a hit up the middle and the run scored.  I tied the game up and was the go-ahead run on 1st base.  I stole s1econd which put me in scoring position and the next hitter got a hit in the outfield and I scored.  Going into the 7th inning there was a lot of pressure on me to close it out.  With two outs, the tying run on second, their best hitter came up to the plate.  On a 0-2 pitch I threw a curveball in the dirt and struck him out.  I felt so proud of myself.  The next day my hot streak continued.  My team was getting destroyed, but a couple bounces went our way and in the 7th inning we were back in it after a huge comeback.  I came up to the plate with two outs tie game and the winning run on second base.  On the first pitch of the at-bat once again I had a base hit up the middle the winning run scored and I hit a walk-off single to win the game.  My team mobbed me and I was so excited, as were my family and friends for me.  This tournament got me out of my shell in baseball and it felt so good.  Definitely a great moment in my life.

Fun in the Sun

Of the four seasons, winter, spring, summer, and fall, my favorite season is summer.  Summer is the time to usually relax, have fun, and enjoy the nice weather.  I am a competitive baseball player and baseball gets heated up in the summer.  I play over 50 games in the summertime to improve my skills and hopefully get looked at by some college coaches so I can play at the next level.  Summer is the time to relax from school, get your tans, and hang out by the poolside with your friends.  When I wasn't playing or preparing for any kind of sport, I was either enjoying my time with my family or my friends.  The 4th of July is in the summertime where you remember America and have a good time with your family.  There is always some kind of good events going on around too.  Alden has a very well ran carnival every summer for a weekend.  It attracts many people from other towns and they have their annual parade and the Taste of Alden, people come to enjoy the great food that businesses around town come to showcase.  The Taste of Alden is the opening day for the Alden Carnival.  After the carnival ends and after the 4th of July, football season comes around.  Football is very to Alden and the people expect a lot from all of the teams here.  Mid-July starts the preparation for a big football season and a month later in mid-August is when the real practice and preparation begins for the hope of successful seasons.  Overall, my favorite season is summer because of the nice weather and all of the relaxation.  My biggest hobby in life is playing sports; summer is the time where you can practice almost all sports.  I am a three sport athlete, football, basketball, and baseball.  In summer I am able to practice all three and prepare for the upcoming school season. 

Not Going Anywhere; Facebook

I have had a Facebook for almost two years now and I have no problem with it.  I think that it is a great and fun social networking site.  It is a great way to connect with your long lost high school or college friends.  You could meet new friends.  Also a new thing on Facebook is the group chats you can have as many people as you want whether it's a two person or a hundred person chat.  Facebook is the latest and so far most popular social networking website on the web today, so popular that they decided to make a movie about it.  The Social Network came out in October 2010.  The movie is about how Facebook really came about.  This kid from Harvard, Mark Zuckerberg, who is also the actual creator of Facebook, has this idea out of nowhere that he wants to start a social networking or blogging kind of website.  After a long process of legal work and it becoming globalized, Mark Zuckerberg becomes the youngest billionaire's in history.  Some negatives to this website though is, that it could turn out to be the old MySpace, as a new thing in the social networking world is twitter.  Also there is a ton of cyber-bullying that goes on in the world.  You can easily pretend to be someone you're not.  There has, already been a couple cases of this happening in the past.  There isn't much people are able to do except do not add people that you do not know or if you are going to add them, don't talk to them.  Facebook is a really fun and cool thing to do and many people are on this website 24/7, it is very popular today.  I feel that Facebook will run good and consistently for another couple years or so, it is way too big at the moment to go down anytime soon.

Possibilities of Topics

This is my second year in the newspaper club. Last year I wrote about our Varsity Golf team, Girls JV Basketball team, and our Varsity Baseball team.  Now so far my topic for the fall semester is the Varsity Football Team.  I would prefer to write about sports, because I play and have played a lot of sports.  My life is and biggest hobby is sports, I feel like I know a lot about the major and a couple non-major sports.  Now even though I'm writing about sports I feel I could relate to some clubs or any other extra-curricular activities.  I am in two clubs, the newspaper club, and Athletic Association.  I could write about those or any big events going on around the school.  For example, the homecoming events and spirit week start next week, I could write about that as well.  I could write about some of the events occurring locally or world-wide.  For example, I could do a piece on my cousin, David Shields who used to live round the area in Rochester.  He is a hockey star who was drafted in the 6th round of the 2009 NHL (National Hockey League) draft by the St. Louis Blues.  He has signed with them and is currently on their farm team the Peoria Rivermen, located in Peoria, Illinois.  Hopefully one day he will be able to play in the NHL.  As the school year moves on, more and more opportunities will be heading my way to consider writing about.  Now like I said, my fall semester is taken up by Varsity Football, but when winter rolls around I will have to choose a new topic.  Basketball possible?  Or will I have to choose a different thing once again.  Also the spring semester I hopefully once again will be able to do something around baseball.

Fabulous Freshman Year

Of all my years in school so far, I think my freshman year has been my favorite.  I felt as if it flew by and with all the excitement coming into a new school, I had fun and and it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be.  The teachers were all nice and as were most of my peers.  I loved the block scheduling and hope we will continue it through the rest of my years in high school.  Now so far in my sophomore year, we have continued block scheduling but this year it is every other day. Seven days in, I don't think it has been a problem and it gives students a chance not to fall behind in their classes.  My freshman year, I got to be exposed and try new things.  I played JV Football, Basketball, and Baseball.  I also got moved up to Varsity Baseball for the second half of the season.  I had the chance to take part in a great football season where our team went undefeated.  I was able to be in two clubs which was the newspaper club, as well as the Athletic Association.  I wrote for The Bulldog which is the student newspaper.  I wrote about the Varsity Golf team, the JV Girls Basketball team, and the Varsity Baseball team.  I had great attendance, missing 0 days of school, but due to five tardies I was not able to receive an award.  I kept up in my schooling making honor roll all eight times.  Biology, and Integrated Algebra were my only concerns of holding me back from accomplishing honor roll, but I was able to overcome all my struggles and get the job done.  Overall, my freshman year, I feel, was the most favorite of all my schooling years so far.  Hopefully, I can keep accomplishing my goals as the rest of my years come and go.

New Year, New Challenges

I am in my sophomore year of high school and it is one of the biggest years in my 4 years here.  Last year I was able to keep up with all my classes and make honor roll all 8.  This school year I am hoping to make honor roll all four making periods.  Now with the new every other day block scheduling it may be a little more complicated, but I accept the challenge and feel I can conquer it as well.  I feel I am an above average student and should live up to, and surpass my own expectations.  School is the most important thing in my life after family even though it may not be the most fun thing to do, it has to get done so I am able to accomplish my goals after I graduate from high school and go to a quality college.   Sports is my biggest hobby, and a big part of my life, I play three sports through school, Football, Basketball, and Baseball.  Now I am already in the thick of football season and have already accomplished my goals of being a captain and the starting quarterback.  I hope my teammates and I can live up to the 18-game winning streak that is currently going on in the JV Football program.  We are already 1-0 by defeating West Seneca West and hopefully we can continue this success in the rest of our season.  Basketball isn't my strongest sport but I still have fun doing it and compete at a high level.  My goal for basketball is to have a solid season and become captain of the J.V. team as well.  Baseball is what I think my best sport and my expectations are very high for that.  Last year I was pulled up late in the season and found some playing time.  This year my goal is to be on varsity full-time.  I have big dreams and I need to try and accomplish my short term goals one by one and I feel I am ready to do so.

Busy Summer,Yet Exciting

This summer I spent most of my time in late June and all of July playing baseball in different areas in the country.  I was given the opportunity to play for a travel baseball team in the A-Turf Titans.  This is an elite program that travels around from the start of June to the last week in July to different showcases.  I was able to travel to Pittsburgh and stay right on and visit the University of Pittsburgh.  We traveled to Columbus, Ohio and in early August made a long trip down south into the Appalachian Mountains and stayed on the campus of Appalachian State and were able to play on the baseball field.  We were located in Boone, North Carolina right near the border of Tennessee and my team and I went on an adventure and went zip-lining up in the forest and it was a very fun and exciting event.  I was given the chance to play a lot more in the last couple tournaments and made the most of my opportunities and excelled in pitching.  Also I tried out for next years 18U Showcase team where you have college scouts looking at you every game and if I do well hopefully I will be able to play baseball at the next level when i graduate in two years.  August was my month to relax and enjoy summer, as well as getting ready for a big season of football.  It has been a long 3-4 weeks since the start of football and we got off to a great start by beating a AA school in West Seneca West 22-15.  I have been given the opportunity to be the starting quarterback as well as co-captain with Erik Feitshans.  I hope I can lead my team to a very good season and extend the winning-streak the JV football teams in the past few years have created, the streak is currently at 18 games.  It was a very busy but fun summer, but I am ready to get back to school and start my sophomore year and see what new opportunities I will have to be looking forward to.