Okay, so I just am swimming, having a great time, and guess what? Yea, I know you www......zzzzzz. I woke up. Up to the sound of insults. Can you imagine that? It was horrible. She was saying how ugly my yellow beak was, my precious beak! I think it's beautiful!! (Which it is, of course!) Gosh, who would ever think of insulting someone so...innocent, cute, and helpless? Come on; give me a break!

First it started like that. Then she said my fur reminded her of her old uncle's scraggly beard! Well, I never! I was getting pretty mad. I decided to use my poison spur. But before I could do anything, she said my beautiful tail was hideous. Then I got really mad. I came up out of the water and BAM! hit her square on the forehead. She screamed as I snickered and bubbled under the water. I thought I had really gotten her that time, but then she just went and made me madder! She said my feet looked like bananas. Well....

My hair is like bristles on a long paint brush dipped in black paint waving in the wind.

My eyes are like 2 melted dark chocolate chips dripping onto my cheeks when sad. (tears)

My eyelashes are like small and short black staples sticking out.

My eyebrows are like the little bristles from a squirrel's tail.

My ears are like seashells washed by the rushing water.

My cheeks are like flat, soft mattresses.

My mouth is like a home to my teeth.

My teeth are like cages for my tongue.

My tongue is like a hissing snake who is mad.

My hair is like stiff wire that doesn't want to be cut.

My eyes are like staring fish eyes who are amazed.

My eyelashes are like long grass.

My eyebrows are like stiff pencil marks drawn clumsily.

My nose is like a scalene triangle.

My ears are like big whirlpools.

My cheeks are like Pink Apples which get rosier every day.

My mouth is like a yawning cave.

My teeth are like slightly yellow white pebbles.

My chin is like a pink lump at the bottom of my face.

Why is it

While other people

Are thinking about all kinds of

Important things...

I am thinking about

What it would be like

If all popcorn

Popped in your stomach,

and exploded?

When I got there, everybody was bragging that they won something. I wanted to brag, too. I tried bobbing for marshmallows. If you haven't heard of it, you put applesauce in a bucket, mix in marshmallows, and you dip you face in and try to get a marshmallow. I tried it and got my face covered in applesauce. I won two prizes since I got two marshmallows.

I was running with my two prizes to the boys' bathroom to wash my face. Everybody was laughing because I got applesauce all over my face. I didn't see if it was a girls' bathroom or a boys' bathroom. I only saw a bathroom so I went in. It was the girls' bathroom. All the girls threw their purses at me. I went in the other bathroom and washed my face and went home.

Yesterday my family went to a picnic. People who are Malaysian get to go there. There was lots of good food there. There were no games, but there was a playground.

Last year when my family went to the picnic, there were two games. One was water balloons and the other, an Art contest. My dad unloaded the car. My sister and I went to play on the swing. I sat on the swing and pumped to and fro. We also met new friends. My dad, sister, and I went on the beach to look for seashells. We saw airplanes arriving. Then my family went back to the car and went home.

Yesterday, my sister was all day at day camp. My mom and I went to Home Depot. We went to the gardening station. My mom looked at the big bags full of dirt while I looked at the flowers. It took a few minutes for my mom to decide what bag of dirt to buy; my mom choose one and bought it. Then we went home.

In the evening I went outside. I called my mom to come outside, too. My mom came carrying a knife. She cut the bag of dirt with the knife. I choose three flower pots. I took a pack of pumpkin seeds out of my pocket. I took three seeds out of the pack. I put one seed in a flower pot because, when pumpkins grow, they start out as a small plant. When they grow bigger, I will plant them in my backyard. Then I watered them. One flower pot was not okay; it was too muddy. I reached into the mud and pulled out the pumpkin seed. Today I went out to check out the dirt. It was still muddy. Then Rachel's ma came. My mom dropped me off for my Bay Area Writing Project Young Writers' Camp. Now I am writing in my notebook.

When I went to bed, the room was neat, but, when I woke up, it was a mess. I thought I made the mess. But I said, "Nah!" I wondered if one of my brothers did it. I had to go to school. I walked through the toy forest

When I came home, my mom said, "Do your homework, and then clean your room." I did my homework and tried to open my door, but I couldn't.

I told my mom that the door couldn't open. She tried it, but it still didn't open. She called my dad and said, "Nimer's door won't open." My dad tried to open my door, but couldn't. Right after my dad tried, my littlest brother tried, and he did.

I asked my brothers to help pick up the toys with me. The room was still a mess, so I asked my mom and dad to help us. Now the whole family was cleaning my room.

CHRIS, A BOY WHO WANTS TO GET A PILOT'S LICENSE.

Who wonders why he has to wait until he is 16.

Who hears the airplanes roaring overhead.

Who sees the 737's flying southeast.

Who wants a Lear Jet.

CHRIS, A BOY WHO WANTS TO GET A PILOT'S LICENSE.

Who pretends to fly a Lear Jet.

Who feels the ground shaking when the F16's fly over.

Who worries one of the F16's will break the sound barrier and shatter the windows.

Who cries when he leaves air shows.

CHRIS, A BOY WHO WANTS TO GET A PILOT'S LICENSE.

Who understands he must wait until he is 16.

Who says only 7 more years.

Who dreams about airplanes.

Who tries to learn how to fly airplanes.

Who hopes he will have enough money to buy an airplane.

CHRIS, A BOY WHO WANTS TO GET A PILOT'S LICENSE.

Once upon a time there were two poor girls named Sydney and Kymberly and their dog, Clare. One cold morning Sydney said, "Let's go on an adventure."

"In this cold weather?" said Kymberly.

"Yes," said Sydney.

"Why in this cold weather?"

"Because it will be fun," said Sydney. "Let's go!" Clare said, "Woof!"

So they went on an adventure, but they didn't know where they could go. "Let's go to London," said Kymberly.

"But London is too far," said Sydney.

"No, it's not. It's just 2 miles away," said Kymberly.

"O.K. Let's go to London."

But on the way there they saw a writing camp. "This writing camp starts tomorrow," said Sydney.

"And it's free!" said Kymberly.

"Let's enter it," said Sydney.

"O.K." said Kymberly. So they did. "We'd better get ready for camp."

Sydney saw the sign that says NO PETS ALLOWED. "I guess we have to tie you out, Clare."

Clare said, "Woof! Woof!"

The next day, "Look, I found $100 dollars, Sydney!" said Kymberly. "Now we can buy supplies."

"Come on. Let's go to writing camp!"

"Wait! We need to tie Clare up," said Kymberly.

"O.K.! O.K.! O.K.!" said Sydney. "Oh,oh."

"What?" said Kymberly.

"Where did we put Clare?" asked Sydney.

"Right here," said Kymberly.

"But, she's is not there," said Sydney.

"Oh, oh," said Kymberly. "She must have run away. We have to go find her. Where could she be?"

(To be continued)

Time is an amazing feature in the universe because it's happening everyday, and some people don't pay any attention to it. Time plays a great part in lives. If it wasn't for time, we wouldn't have birthdays; things wouldn't have been invented. Some people wouldn't have been born.

I'm always wondering why each and every day has exactly 24 hours. I mean, why not just 1? Or maybe 10? How come each and every year has 365 days? Why not 296? Or maybe 120? How come every minute has 60 seconds? Hmm?? And how come a century has 100 years? Who invented time and days?

Always think about the unusual because it may lead you to a career. Like me, for example. I was wondering why no cure for AIDS had been invented, so I decided to try and become a doctor because the human body is so cool! I mean, one little brain can control a whole body!!

People were carrying large trays of beer. At first I thought it was Martinelli's, but the crazy thing is it didn't look anything like it. Happy, drunk people were everywhere. The only game that didn't look or sound dangerous, like "Try to fly" or boxing, was bobbing for apples. As it turned out, that was a bad idea as well because the water was beer and apples were more sour than a lemon.

"Try to Fly" was a game for an extremely drunk person. You would take a ladder onto the top of the roof, and, I should say, commit suicide.

There are so many toys all over the floor that I can barely see my floor. All the light bulbs are burnt out. Some of the toys are cars, stuffed animals, and all these other toys. When I walk, there are crunches, crashes, and other noises. The books are all messed up. My cards are all mixed with the toys. The garbage can is overflowing. My sheets, pillows, and blankets are all over the bed. It's filled with toys that I bet someday are all going to burst out of the closet!

My room is the messiest room in the world!

One day I came upon a warthog, which I think was very dangerous, even though it was in a zoo. The warthog was probably the most interesting animal that I saw because it was the most active. When I came to its cage, it stood as still as a statue. Its feet reminded me of a horse's. Its tail reminded me of a zebra's. The warthog's tusks were like a rhino's, and it was as dirty as it could get. Flies were flying around it , and the warthog started to roll in a mud puddle that was next to him. He was an ugly scene, even with a beautiful background behind him. His ears were like a horse's except they were much larger. The warthog reminded me of pumba, who was from "Lion King" even though Pumba wasn't as hairy as the real warthog that I saw.

Suddenly, another warthog made a squeal, and the warthog that was looking at me ran.

My door opened with a small squeak. I stepped one foot in my room and quickly pulled it back. I looked down and saw that I stepped on a prickly ball. I carefully made my way around my room, trying not to step on anything. When I got to my bed, the covers were hanging out my window. All my toys and games were scattered all along the floor, and big piles of books and paper were all around my hamster's cage, so she thought they were big monsters that were going to eat her. In my closet hung pants from the shelves, and sweaters were in my toy chest. I fell back on my bare bed and said, "My room is a mess!"

The place was covered with garbage. Each game you win, you will get a bag filled with garbage. The apple game was ruined. The cake was filled with fish bones, and the plates were made out of garbage tops and cups were made out of cans.

The pinata was filled with candy wrappers and stinky fish and cans. The pinata was made out of bones.

The party bags were filled with dirt. The punch that they gave you was oil. The ice was spoiled milk.

The party was horrible!

Waves rapidly crashing against shiny black rocks that spell your name.

One slug as speckled as a dalmatian sluggishly creeping on my sister's tooth brush.

Gazelles are joyously prancing along jagged, steep cliffs.

Dad's opening his car door with the hinges rusted, squeaking like a mouse with his slick silver key.

Rosy-cheeked Santa jiggling like a seal to water, down the smoky chimney, his beard covered with ashes.

Belts of cherries streaming like an eagle soaring for its dinner.

A valley with a river going through.

Bright lights showing through dark clouds.

A hill with sad memories, so sad they are frozen over.

A child in a stream all alone

A s-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-d---o-u-t hot dog so long that it could wrap around the world.

A thumbprint softly growing up to match the girl.