Friday, April 8, 2011

Short Story Twist Ending Final

Kyle Anderson


Hour 2

It was just another sunny Wednesday in Jacksonville, Florida. Jake Sorenson is a senior at Jacksonville High. He’s a popular kid with a lot of friends and has a lot going for him in sports. Jake got picked up by his friend after football practice on this nice sunny day. He loved where he lived because off the scenery everywhere, he loved how every road seemed to give you a perfect view of the oceans that surrounded the pan handle state on both sides. As Jake was waiting at a red light he could hear something unusual. He thought to himself and by the time he looked up and his mind had comprehended the sound it was too late.

Jake woke up in his bed the next day feeling fine as if nothing had happened. He woke up and followed his daily schedule of showering and get ready for school. Everything seemed dark that day but it didn’t affect Jake being the optimistic person he is. He got in his car and drove to school. Everything felt slightly out of place but Jake figured it was just an aftershock of yesterday’s mishap. He talked to his friends and even the girl he had always wanted to talk to, Sara Nelson, came up and talked to him! No matter the gray skies, Jake was already having a good day. He sat through class and flew through every test his teachers threw at him. As he was sitting in class he looked outside and noticed the sky had changed color, but nothing out of the ordinary. After what seemed like a short day at school the girl of his dreams confronted him again and asked him if he wanted to go to her house. Jake was shy and nervous but nonetheless accepted the rare invitation. They hung out and hit it off immediately. Jakes life was going as he had only could’ve imagined.

He drove home late at night because he had so much fun with this girl. As he was driving home he couldn’t wait to tell his family about this amazing girl. When he got home he went straight to bed since everyone he wanted to brag to was already asleep. He woke up the next day and his first thoughts were “What should I do on this fine Saturday?” He decided to go for a run to start the day. Running seemed easier than ever but Jake blamed it on his great mood and series of fortunate events. Jake saw Sara around the corner from his house which was weird since she lived a couple miles away. He jogged up to her and asked her what she was up to. She responded saying that she was just going over to his house to see what he was up too. They decided to hang out all day and that night Jake went got in bed with a smile again.

Jake was trying to sleep after a whole day with Sara but something was irritating him. He got up and decided to just step outside for some fresh air. Outside he looked at the stars which were brighter than he had ever seen before. He turned to look at the moon which was noticeably larger as well but Jake’s mind was so clouded by something else to pay much attention to it. Jake walked around some more and eventually got tired enough to fall asleep. He climbed into bed and left reality into his dream world.

The next thing Jake knows, he is dazed and confused. He opens his eyes to bright white lights and a stranger standing over him with the biggest smile. Jake’s mind is so scrabbled and confused that he seems to be speechless. The smiling woman says “Welcome back Jake.” Jake asks what she means and the lady tells Jake that he just woke up from a coma of 2 weeks. When Jake hears the women say that his memory begins playing replays over and over. Before he can fully comprehend the situation his family is running through the door, tears of joy streak down their faces. His mom told him how he was in a car crash and was really lucky he wasn’t killed. After a long time with his family he begins to try and recount what happened. It all begins to come back to him bit by bit. He starts to remember having school and football practice as usual. He then remembers how he heard a loud roar of an engine but before he could see it everything went black.

Jake realizes how lucky he is and after a couple of weird days in the hospital he was released back to his own home and family. When he got home everything was different. He was so used to his own dream that reality was no longer fun for him. He moped around, depressed, and wondered what he was going to do with his life now. It was the weekend so Jake didn’t have to see all his friends at school and hear there apologetic worries. Jake was sitting outside when Sara came up to his door. Jake was shocked and nervous and didn’t know what to do. Sara came up to the steps where Jake was standing. They looked at each other in the eyes for what seemed like forever. Jake asked what she was doing there and she did only one thing. She looked at Jake, kissed him ever so lightly and said, “You can rest happily now.” Sara left immediately after that. Jake didn’t understand what it meant and stammered around trying to figure it out. That night Jake had trouble falling asleep but when he finally did, he never woke up. His days of dreaming were over.

Thursday, April 7, 2011

Constructive Feedback

Positives- I honestly walked into class the first day of the quarter and thought wow this is going to be a boring class. As we progressed throughout the quarter I began to realize that writing isn't that bad and I found myself enjoying it at times. I think it helps being on computers too rather than hand writing everything. Either way I learned a lot about myself through writing which is without a doubt a positive thing. I also read that stream writing, which is basically what we do with daily journals, is a good way to workout and expand your brain. Lyrics was a good idea as well. People enjoy sharing their interests, I know I did, and it's good to branch out to different styles of music. You never know if you like something until you give it a go. Overall I liked this class a lot more than I thought I would.

Things to improve- There isn't much I would change except for the end of the quarter. I think giving more time between the two short stories would help. When students rush to finish their Sci Fi story and immediately jump into another short story it can be stressful. I think that the lyrics assignment should be more lenient when it comes to bad words and what not because some of the greatest songs have swear words and such. Set those two things aside and you've got yourself a great class.

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Daily Journal 4/6

Looking back I honestly can't think of a bad experience at a restaurant. Sure I've had bad service sometimes but that's nothing serious, it happens. I have had a lot of good experiences to say the least. Now that I think of it I have had one time but it wasn't at a sit down restaurant... it was at McDonalds. It was a cold winter night and myself and a couple friends decided to go grab something to eat. We sat in line, finally ordered our food and paid. As we were waiting for our food we began to notice how unusually long it was taking. People behind us started honking, leaving the line, and even getting out of their cars to see what was going on. This whole time my friends and I were sitting there helpless as no employee was at the drive thru window. We sat there for a good 5-10 minutes before someone finally came to the window and said "Sorry, it'll be just a minute"... after 10 minutes already! You may wonder what took so long to cook up for us but it was only 2 McChickens, a McDouble, 2 small fries, and 4 waters. I guess you could say we have good luck when it comes to getting stuck in line at fast food joints. Finally we got our food after nearly 12 minutes and didn't even get anything extra for waiting so damn long. I haven't been to McDonalds since but not because of that one reason. It's just because there food sucks and only makes you fat. Go Taco Bell!!! They may have fake meat and its not actually authentic mexican but at least they always have good service and good food. No matter who's working from Andrey to the scary black lady(?) who stares and wears a lot of makeup.

Monday, April 4, 2011

Daily Journal 4/4

To explain this picture I'll tell you the story behind it...

One stormy night old man Jenkins was awoken by a loud bang. (When you're half asleep things can get a little weird too). The old man gets up and figures it was something caused by the storm as any person would first assume. He begins walking around looking for something out of place but finds nothing. As he goes outside in the pouring rain he leaves his door open so he can run out and right back in. After looking outside for 5 minutes he runs back inside and figures that it was jsut his imagination playing tricks on him. He goes peacefully back to bed but something wakes him up again only a few short minutes later. He looks at his clock and notices it has only moved 3 minutes. He gets up again, worried that something is going on. He grabs his hunting rifle and walks around again, this time on his toes ready to shoot anything that moves. When he looks outside again he hears footsteps up stairs. Old man Jenkins lives alone. Now the old man's heart was beating faster than its capability and his nerves were on end. He tells himself not to go upstairs but his instinct forces him up each step. He turns the corner into his bed room where a black figure jumps out and knocks his rifle away. The figure disappears into the darkness and the old man hits the lights. All of the sudden a large figure under the carpet was headed straight for the old man. He grabbed the only thing in sight, a wooden chair, and hit the object as hard as he could. It lay lifeless and still. The old man hits it again just to make sure the intruder is dead. He began to move the carpet and he saw a small squirrel that must have escaped the storm when he left his door open.

Friday, April 1, 2011

Sci Fi Final Story

     We all have our opinion on what the future has in store for us but no one of us can actually predict what will happen. Five of the most elite soldiers in the world were selected for that very reason. World War 1, World War 2, Vietnam, the Cold War, September 11th, and now what. Our government has been hiding something from us known as cryogenic technology. The world’s top scientists have been working together since the late 1950’s in search of a cryogenic freezer just like the one’s seen in the movies. Now in 2011 they have a hybrid version and are willing to “ice” five elite soldiers for what the future may bring them. We all are witness to the events going on around the world today and some even fear an apocalypse. Well that won’t be happening anytime soon. Not on Strike Forces watch.

     5... 4… 3… 2… 1… the doors to the cryogenic freezers open revealing men that no one knows or have ever heard of. Out of the first door steps Captain Anderson. He is tall and toned, very handsome in other words. The second door releases from its frozen clutch and out steps Captain Nilsen. He is the oldest member of the squad and known to be the wisest of all. The third door slides open revealing Sergeant Schultz. Now this guy is very tall and skinny giving him and odd appearance but who am I to judge, he’s here for a reason. Out of the fourth comes Lieutenant Jacobson, the small, quick, mixed soldier. Out of the fifth and final door steps the last member of the elite task force. He goes by Private but formally known as Private Hanson. These five men all seemed to bring different characteristics and traits to the table making sense that they are the greatest task force known to man. They call themselves, Strike Force.

     Being cryogenically frozen doesn’t sound too tempting but when it’s to save your beloved country it’s worth it. Members of Strike Force described being frozen just like sleeping forever. They say you wake up as if it were all a dream, try to stretch but it’s as if they forgot how to use their limbs. It will take some time for these men to get back to 100% but that’s what base camp is for. The men still trying to gain balance begin to get briefed immediately. “Welcome to 2111” was the first thing the mysterious man in the white lab coat said. He briefed the squad on the current events and issues. Do you remember when you were young and you always pondered the thought of extraterrestrial life and ultimately aliens, well I think I have an answer to all your questions. “E.T. forces have begun a full scale invasion on the last standing fortress in the Midwest. The fortress of New Minneapolis won’t stand for much longer and it’s simply a given. We have awoken you men because we need you to retrieve one thing.” Strike Force looked around and at each other like it was a joke. Anderson raised his hand and said, “By E.T. forces, do you mean what I think you mean?” The man in the lab coat looked at him as if he were in some way mental. Now coming from the year 2011 and skipping one hundred years can be quite a change and really quite a shock. Strike Force being the elite team they are accepted the fact and continued with the briefing. “It’s really simple.” says the scientist. “We need you men to gear up ASAP and retrieve the quantum solace.” There is only one more question after that. Private stands up and asks, “and who might you be?” to the man in the lab coat. “Who me? I could be the last president to ever walk this earth.” There was a long pause but it helped the men understand the necessity of re capturing the quantum solace.

     The squad did exactly as they were told which made them such a loyal task force. They headed out to Camp Valley where they would receive some basic training to get the feel for the future. Air and oxygen was different here. The air was thick, you could feel the pollution run in and out of your lungs. But as usual, that wasn’t enough to discourage the squad. Anderson asked to see what he was fighting being he nor had anyone with him had seen or fought an alien. The president gave the ok and the men found themselves shocked. Anderson and Nilsen made no gesture keeping the confidence as Schultz let his fear seep through his eyes. Jacobson and Private Hanson flinched, showing how brave they really are. Nilsen turned to his men and said few words. “You know what to do.” And he walked away. Jacobson, Schultz and Hanson all went to their quarters to get a good sleep before the assault of New Minneapolis. Anderson was the only one who remained staring at this creature. 4 am; the squad awakes. As they clean up their stations and get dressed no one says a word as the tension in the air says it all. Anderson and Nilsen both being the oldest and the Captains spent the night before devising their plan of attack. At breakfast they briefed their comrades. Dawn approached and the crew geared up. They went down to the hangar as they would be dropped by airplane into combat. On the plane to New Minneapolis the men gathered their thoughts and calmed their thoughts. The captains gave their men and friends what they all thought would be their last fight together. As camp Valley was only a couple minutes from Minneapolis the pilot said over the intercom, “prepare for drop.” The men suited up in their diving suits and jumped. They parachuted safely to the ground but immediately into combat. E.T. forces seemed far more advanced than the human race at this point but that was something Strike Force wasn’t informed of only because no one wanted to ruin their morale.

     Their plan of attack was to be stealth but with such great technology it seemed impossible. The men were bemused by the amazing technology of the aliens. There was a difference that separated us humans from aliens. Aliens fought off of pure knowledge and technology. What they forgot is that we human beings fight with more than just our knowledge, but with our hearts. The men were hit with wave after wave of enemy forces yet their strategy and will power overpowered any alien force that headed their way. The quantum solace was located in the center of the old Mall of America and heavily guarded. Schultz came up with an idea to get inside but his plan stopped there. Once Strike Force got inside it was up to the captains to take it from there. There were cameras but moved around leaving certain intervals to get past and hack them. Anderson watched and timed perfectly. Once the time was right Anderson gave the signal to Jacobson who, being the fastest got behind the camera in time to hack it making it safe for the rest of the squad. The mall was far emptier than anyone had expected leaving the men on their toes. They walked up to the quantum solace as if it were a walk in the park. As Hanson reached for the solace E.T. forces surrounded the men. They all took cover as fast as possible but they knew there was no escape. The biggest alien any of the men have seen stepped out and began talking as if Strike Force was expected to know there language. This whole time Strike Force is looking at one another and thinking all the same thing. They knew their objective was to destroy the quantum solace so that’s exactly what they would do.

     The alien leader stopped talking and that’s when the men knew to act. Jacobson sprinted from cover to cover drawing enemy fire away from his friends. Hanson and Schultz fought hard but were killed within the first minute of fighting. Nilsen dove for the solace but got hit in multiple places leaving him helpless in the middle of the battle field. Nilsen, still able to move his arms, threw the solace to Anderson. In what seemed like minutes but was only seconds Anderson looked to his last remaining soldier. Jacobson looked back with a look that Anderson knew. Anderson destroyed the solace. The solace was so powerful it blew up the size of 2 atomic bombs killing every being around for miles. When the remaining human forces saw the explosion they all knew what happened. Human forces regained their strategic points and in a years time they had pushed alien forces all the way back to the African coast. The battle was won in months time after that. The famous Strike Force that had been raised for one last battle was never forgotten. A statue as grand as any wonder in the world was built in their honor. Anderson, Nilsen, Jacobson, Schultz, and Hanson rested peacefully for the rest of eternity.

Behind her the noise escalated...

Behind her the noise escalated... the girl began to walk faster, then skipped into a jog, and then into a full on sprint! All of the sudden the street cut off and she fell into the next morning as she awoke sweating and trembling in her bed. She was so frightened that she had to tell someone to get it off her chest. She went upstairs and immediately told her roommate about the terrifying dream. She began, "I was laying in my bed and the next thing I know I'm walking down a street and it's pitch black outside. I'm walking along contemplating all of my surroundings when I get this weird feeling like my conscious is trying to tell me something. All of the sudden a clown jumps out and chases me until I fall off the street and wake up."