wiki 5 20/20 - Interesting that you caught the Psalm thing! I think he got lost in his powerpoint print out on that one. You made several good points in here!

11/6/09-Friday Chapel

Friday's chapel was okay. Though he did cling to the podium a bit which i didnt really mind, he lacked alot of hand guestures which again i didnt really mind, nor did i notice toward the end. Other than those two things he did well. He didnt stumble over words or seem to forget lines... other than at the start where he had that long pause before he started reading the Pslam and everyone was slightly confused. He seemed to have rehearsed or at least loked it over a few times. He knew what he was going to say or faked really well. Though he worried me when he started to tell a story i thought he was going to read at us but he still looked up from the page so that was good. Over all another pretty good chapel.

 

wiki 4 - 20/20- good post... the bird was a hoot, wasn't it?

10/30/09 -Wednesday Chapel

On wednesday the chapel was okay, pasotr clausing always knows what he's talking about and always seems to try and involve everyone in chapel and talk to everyone with out pacing the entire chapel. Thogh i did notice that he paces back and forth from the pulpit but other than that he did a good job. Though on the same token, the bird that was there stole his spotlight. I payed more attention to the bird when he started reading at us, becuase i was not interested in the story so much because it didnt involve any thing of real intrest to me, like cool fire fights or an awesome sword duel.  Pastor Clausing was always a good public speaker when it comes to chapel because he usually has somesort of story. So overall he did good.

 

wiki 3 - 20/20 Good entry.

10/23/09-Monday chapel

Monday's chapel was by Mr. Mizel his message was pretty good, he had a nice story that followed along side of the passage very well and it made it a little more interesting and more relatable. His voice and pitch seemed to be on key, as far as i could tell, in the right places and what not but his movements... I'll be honest they bugged me, he seemed like he was really over using them, he also seemed to me like he had a small pattern with his footwork. Like he was pacing the same couple of steps right, left, back, front and repeat. I'm not saying the message wasnt good or that i dont like that guy, since i dont know him, but it seemed to rehearsed. Like he planned every motion and step and hand movement. Though he delivered his speech well, he didnt fumble over words or take really long pauses trying to remeber what he was going to say next, so he seemed to have hand his speech down which was a plus, so overall it was a pretty good speech.

 

wiki 2 - 20/20 - I agree - he DID do a good job.

10/15/09 -Thursday Chapel

I think that as a whole the chapel people did a good job. Escpecially Mr. Kuhlman, he seemed very comfertable and didn't stumble over his words. I also didnt notice any filler words like Um, or, uhh. He also seemed like he was really trying to get the crowd into the chapel, escpecially when he was asking about talents. He also did a great job with guesturing to the corwd and emphiziing points with his hands. He also didn't over emphazise, at least i didnt think so. He also had a pretty creative ay of putting it all together. He seemed to have took a long time thinking out his plan, and it seemed htat he even memorized it, so he must have put alot of time into it. And when he added the demonstration in to his speech he seemed to be very fluid in his transition of, "Here let me show you this" and his "Here's the actual message." So overall i think he did a very good job.

 

wiki 1 20/20 - great response work!

10/08/09- Monday Chapel

I think that the pastor did a fairly good job of public speaking, he seemed rather comfertable with his audiance, while his voice definatly match his age... he sounded like he had a good grasp of what he was going to say and how he would deliver it. He tried to look at the whole of the auidance. WHile i couldnt tell if he had much if any inflection of his voice It did sound like he tried, it was subtle but i think it was there. The voulume of his voice was definitly more quiet than most of the presentors. His movement from side to side of the gym did seem like a good idea, it wasnt like pacing but like he was trying to get closer to his auidence and relate to them. Overall i think he did a fairly good job.

 

 

 

The Grim Reaper

           The child looked at the night sky, an abysmal sight to see. The darkened clouds rolled into place blanketing his sight. “Hey, hey daddy is it going to rain?” the small child asked with a curiosity and sorrow in his bright blue eyes. The little kid hated the rain, it had always frightened him. He was a small child, only up to his father’s waist, his light brown hair was a jumbled mess from playing all day.

           “I think it is supposed to rain, son,” the father’s voice was strong and deep, a man that could easily scare away any other little child, but it had a calm caring tone to it when he spoke so kindly to his son.

           The child whined. “Daddy! I don’t like it when it rains,” the child frowned in an over exaggerated way.

           The man smiled in such a big and warm way, you would have never guessed what he used to do. “You know if I could stop the rain I would. I would yell at it to never come back, just for you.” The dad ruffled the child’s hair a bit.

           “Daddy, tell the rain to go away,” the child smiled back. He pointed toward the sky. “I bet you can make it go away.”

           “Oh you think so?” He asked warmly. He reached both arms out and lifted his face toward the sky. “Rain, I command that you go away forever!” The father screamed. He picked up his son and put him on his shoulder. “We both command it!”

           “Yeah!” The child chimed in. “Listen to daddy or he will be mad!”

           The father laughed along with the child’s innocent giggling. The man put his son back down on the ground as he slowly put an end to his laughter. The man took the child’s hand as they left the street corner that bathed in a street lamp’s warm glow. The child happily pranced on the sidewalk while staying connected to his father’s hand. The child would periodically look up and smile at his father’s strong face. The man was a strong well built body, he was commonly referred to as “The Brick“ among most people.

~~~~~~

           “Who is the child?” A static unembodied voice passed through a walkie talkie on another man’s shoulder.

           “Just his son,” the man responded back through the walkie talkie. He stared at the boy laying prone on the floor. “Yo, Grim don’t be nervous. Nothing changes just relax a bit.”          

           “How can I relax?” The boy responded. He took a deep breath and tried to steady his shaking hands. The man began humming a low melodic tune. It got louder and louder as he grew more familiar with the old tune. The boy looked over at him, “That’s… my song,” He stared. His mind felt at ease and his hands steadied as his heart stopped racing.          

           “Yup, we used to sing this song to you ever since we found you. That first night you joined you didn’t sleep at all until we just started humming.” The man chuckled. “What a child you were back then.”

           “I’m not a child. I’m eighteen for Pete’s sake,” he grumbled. He didn’t know why but that song reminded him of something, something that was there but only briefly it was a fleeting memory. It was a smooth tune that seemed to rock him gently into a lull of his sense.

           “Well, all better?” The man asked, with a warm smile on his face.

           “Yeah… thanks Ted,” the boy responded.

           “Anytime,” the man smiled as he stuck a cigarette between his lips. He covered the tip of the cigarette with his hand and snuck in a lighter. He dragged out a long breath of smoke. “Ah man… that’s good” Ted smiled happily as he pulled the binoculars out and looked down from the roof of the building into the dark street night below. “Oh, they made it here pretty fast. Just ignore the guards he’s got and take out the traitor. Roger that?”

 “Roger,” the boy responded.

           “Good, get ready Grim.” Ted said as he laid down on the hard brick of the roof. “Don’t hesitate when you get a good shot. I know this will be your first time but he deserves this, after betraying our organization and killing some of our good friends to get out, then starting his own gang, such filth, all the filth he has done he deserves this, he deserves it!” Ted repeated.

           “He… deserves it?” Grim questioned.

           “Yeah, he deserves it. Right? He does deserve it.” Ted chanted.

           “Do we have the right to choose?” Grim asked timidly.          

           Ted shot him a cold look. “What did we tell you Grim? We have all the right to choose. I thought we also told you never to think like that,” Ted said, with a malicious intent rising within him. “We can’t let him get away with what he’s done and… after this guy we’ll definitely find the murderers you want,” Ted smiled, he knew his Ace card would work.

           “That’s right… ” Grim repeated in a monotone voice. He gripped the rifle and adjusted it to a more comfortable position.

           “Good boy,” Ted rewarded as his face returned to a friendly gaze. He looked down his binoculars once again. “The filth is in range. Whenever you’re ready Grim.”

           Grim looked down the scope of his rifle and placed the crosshair seal of fate on the man’s forehead. He tried to move his finger to pull the trigger but couldn’t.

           Ted noticed his hesitation. “Grim, this guy is weak. Remember what the old man told us, If you’re strong you live if you’re weak you die. So he must die. Right?” Grim nodded in response. “If you’re strong you live, if you’re weak you die. If you’re strong you live, if you’re weak you die,” Ted whispered into Grim’s ear.

           The emotion from Grim’s face drained. “If you’re strong you live…” Grim repeated as he moved his hand toward the trigger. “If you’re weak…” Grim pulled the trigger and a monster roared out to claim what was now his. “You die…” Grim completed the chant.

~~~~~~

           The child lifted up his face, when his dad had fallen he had gone down with him. “Daddy…” The child stood up and rubbed his face. “Did you trip?” The child walked over and stepped in something. “Eww… The child looked down at the small pool by his father’s head. “Daddy, get your head out of that stuff; it’s nasty,” the child walked over to the front of his dad’s body and lifted his head up. “Daddy I said…” The child froze mid sentence when he saw the empty horrific stare of death’s cold face. “Dad… Daddy?” The child wailed out into the night sky and ran.

           “Son wait!” A bodyguard called out as he grabbed the child and pulled him behind a brick wall.

           “What happened to Daddy?” The child bawled trough tears          

           “It’s because he left that evil organization to lead a normal life. He didn’t do anything wrong, he just left. So they sent an assassin to take him out… I’m sorry, I couldn’t do anything,” the child grasped the man’s black suit pants and cried.

           “Good shooting Grim.” Ted cheered.

-------

           Grim stood in front of his parents grave, he was the only one left. The priest and two other guests, who Grim didn’t even know, had already left. The sun was setting as the 10 year old child stood in a large black coat, which he had taken from his father’s closet for this occasion. He stared at the stone blocks that marked his parent’s resting place. They had been murdered, the police had their suspects but since they were a poor family they did not devote much effort into the case. They assumed the suspect was part of some mafia around town and left it at that, they broke an empty promise of vengeance that they once guaranteed to this child. He was spared because when the murder happened he had been out on the streets begging for money so he could help provide for his parents. When he got home he remembered the foul stench of blood and a sense of something evil. He had discovered his parents both killed, it was gruesome and scarring for a child.

           A large black car pulled into the parking lot just outside the cemetery and three men stepped out. One was a older man with his large belly and greying hair taking hold of his youth. He and the two other men walked into the graveyard with a bouquet of flowers in each one’s hand. They stopped a couple tombstones down from Grim.

           The group placed flowers on two graves. Each closed their eyes in a moment of silence. The older man glanced at the boy standing motionless. He slowly walked over to the child. “You know, my wife loved sunsets,” he said staring off into the red sky. “But I highly doubt that’s what you came here to do, right?” The old man turned toward the child, his voice was like his hair, it showed signs of age.

           “No, both of my parents were murdered, and one day I will have my revenge,” the boy clenched his fist tightly. “If it’s the last thing I do. That way I can put the best red roses on their graves, ones that have been made from that murderer’s blood,” the boy growled.

           “You know you shouldn’t think about revenge. All revenge is, is a non-stop spiral of murder and hatred,” the man sighed. “Though I know my words will do nothing, I even know how you feel. When they took away my Lucy…” He drifted off into thought.

           “You’re right… your words will do nothing. I will have vengeance,” the boy said clenching his fist even tighter before releasing his hand. The man strolled back to the original grave and picked up one of two of the bundles of flowers and strolled back to the boy, he placed one group on each grave.

           “That should do for now…” The man smiled gently. “How about you join my group, I made this group to get rid of evil people, like those who took away my Lucy, and your parents,” the boy stared at him. “Now it won’t be easy,” the man said looking back at the boy. “But I will give you a home and train you.”

           “I’ll do whatever it takes,” the boy responded with an eager will.

           “Good, I’m Don, but you can just call me Father. How about it?” The man stuck out his hand.

           “I’m Will,” the boy grabbed the man’s hand and shook it.

           “Well, Will, I hope you don’t mind, but you will become my Grim Reaper,” the man said with a warm smile that hid something behind his teeth. At that time, Will had no idea what that meant.

           Will turned to his parents grave again. “Mother, Father… I will avenge you and I’ll never forget to bring you back those red roses” He told them before he turned and walked with the men back to the car.

-------

           Grim regained emotion in his face and started breathing heavily. He looked around to see where he was. He looked at Ted and thought everything was alright. “Ted… where?” He stuttered out.

           “Where what? The bullet? You hit him right between the eyes,” he tapped his finger between his eyebrows. “It was a great shot. That guy got what was coming to him,” Ted smiled in delight.

           “Bullet?” Grim responded he looked down the scope again and saw the man body laying on the cold ground surrounded by a red vibrant glow reflected from the streetlight above the body. Grim’s heart stopped. “Did I?” His eyes wide with pain.

           “Yeah you… are you alright?” Ted asked as he looked into Grim’s frantic gaze.

           Grim’s entire body was shaking frantically he looked at his hands, or more like the blur of them. He was shaking badly. Grim let out a loud cry which was quickly suppressed by Ted’s hand over his mouth. “You moron do you want them to hear us?” Ted growled angrily. Grim mumbled something unrecognizable through Ted’s hand. “I understand this was your first kill, but it’s no problem, what happened to if you’re strong you live and if you’re weak you die?” Ted slowly let his hand drop from Grim’s mouth.

           Grim took deeper breaths as he looked at Ted. “Ted…” Grim whispered. “I know it… I know now we have no right to decide who lives and dies,” Grim had set his mind to it, no matter what would happen he knew he would not live like this.

           Ted stood up. “Grim…” Ted mumbled as he took the cigarette from his lips and dropped it to the ground. “I had hoped it wouldn’t have come to this.” He reached to his hip and drew his gun, a black revolver handgun that was engraved with ’Mother’ on the barrel which was wide enough to fit the word., it was there to remind him why he was here; to revenge the murder of his mother when he was a teenager. “Sorry, but I was ordered to murder you if you broke mentally,” he aimed his sights at Grim’s head. “You know, I really wanted you to make it in this organization, you remind me of me.”

           “I… I don’t want to” Grim whispered. “Die!” He shouted as he jumped at Ted to push away the gun. When he jumped up, it took Ted by surprise and he stumbled backward, dropping his gun on the roof. He bumped his heel against the edge of the roof. His eyes were full of surprise as he realized this would be the end of him, his face left him no justice. He was known for being a great shooter, never lost a draw nor was he intimidated, but as he fell to a foe he could not beat, fear shattered his cool complexion. The worst part was the Grim could do nothing, Ted was his only friend in the world and now he had watched him fall from sight. Ted let out a screech of terror before the thud of his death. Grim walked over to the spot where Ted had fallen and peered over to see his mangled corpse surrounded by a red vortex of blood, that was slightly illuminated by a halo of light from the streetlight above.

           Grim reached down and picked up Ted’s gun and gripped it tightly before putting it in his own gun holster. This gun would be a reminder, and proof that Ted existed. “May you make it in whatever lies ahead of you, Ted,” before Grim could finish looking, a shot rang out, and a bullet whizzed by Grim’s head. He whirled around to see a bodyguard peering out from the corner of a building with a gun drawn aiming at him. Another shot rang out and Grim fell to the roof with a stumbling fall.

~~~~~

           “I got that murderer! Don’t worry son, I got him!” The bodyguard patted the boy’s head. The child still cried, his eyes and cheeks were red. “It’s okay I know where you can live son,” the bodyguard rested his hand on the child’s head and guided him back the way he came. They left his father’s bloody body where it lay, the police would sort it out.

~~~~~

           Grim laid on the floor of the building for a little longer. He waited before peering over the edge. He watched the two walk away, it was best if both thought he was dead. He didn’t want that child to turn out like him. He stood up and walked to the stairway to get out of the building. His long black coat billowed as a night breeze rustled along. He followed the stairs to the ground below. He walked over to Ted’s body he knelt down and touched his palm to Ted’s fearful face.

------

           Grim opened his eyes. He saw rolling green meadows with beautiful rows of flowers that lined the road. He looked to his left to see his friend Ted driving the car. “Oh so you’re finally up eh?” Ted smiled widely. “We’re almost to my hometown. It’s such a nice place, I’m so glad we got together to leave that world behind, before we became corrupted like so many of them, isn’t that right?” His eyes were bright with kind thoughts. “You’ll love this town,” he said as he drifted off into memories. “Hey… don’t you think, I should have forgiveness?” Ted’s face turned more serious, “Even if in just a dream, I think I can find it.”

           It should have ended like this, Ted’s smiling face in a beautiful scene, where neither had a past full of murder and stealing of lives.

-----

           Grim stood up, he looked down at Ted’s face, Grim had closed Ted’s eyes and mouth. Ted’s face looked almost at peace. Grim let  a tear fall onto his cheek, which he wiped away. Grim pulled out a knife and made a slit in his finger and dropped a dab of blood into Ted’s pool of blood. “It’s the best rose I can give you…” Grim said as he put his knife back. “Don’t worry mom and dad, I’ll still bring you roses, but not of blood. I will find the man who murdered you, but I wont kill him. I will keep this gun and name, given to me by my best friend. Since I deserve the title, I will stay as The Grim Reaper.”

The Grim Reaper

 

 

 

8/28/09 

 

Edgar Allen Poe has such a creepy style of writing. But it's still pretty cool it was actually pretty spooky. When we talked about how the story could have been from Roderick's point of view i was confused. But anyway the story was still cool and I think that this song (Called Perfect night from the Trigun Soundtrack.) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPUXsqshayk) Fits it pretty well if it were more modern day. This song is pretty dark so it makes me think of that kind of dark spooky atmosphere like there is some sort of horrible secret right around the corner. I found another creepy song and just thought i would post it. It's called Blood from the Samurai X Soundtrack. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0VKTep-tz0A&feature=related) And this song from the Trigun Soundtrack called Blue summers (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4AcnrGlekE)

Good job on Wiki 2! I appreciated your frank opinions! Thanks for the link... I checked it out and I agree with you. The howling wind sort of sound at the beginning is EXACTLY what I imagine for Usher!!! Cool! Wait till you read Usher TWO... it even fits that one better!!! How's project #4 coming, by the way?