Blog 6

Dolphin Facts

          One of my favorite animals is the dolphin. Dolphins are the only mammals that give birth with the tail first, instead of the head. Dolphins do not smell very well. Young dolphins will remain with their mother for a period of 2 or 3 years. Dolphins have two stomachs, just like cows. The first one stores food for them. The second one is where the digestion takes place. Some dolphins are able to dive up to 1,000 feet.

          The dorsal fin on every dolphin is very unique and it can be used to identify them from each other. Dolphins can swim at a speed of up to 25 miles per hour for a long time. That's about three times faster than the fastest humans in the world! The average lifespan of a dolphin is 17 years. Some of them that have been observed good, lived about 50 years. Most species of dolphins live in saltwater but some of them thrive in freshwater. A dolphin needs to get air at different times. Some need air every 20 seconds but others only need it every 30 minutes.
          A group of dolphins is called a pod. They have been observed carrying the sick,the elderly, and those that have been injured with great care. Even though they are very mild tempered, dolphins can be aggressive. They are able to see well in the water. It is possible for a mature dolphin to eat up to 30 pounds of fish daily. There are about 100 teeth in the mouth of a dolphin. All food is swallowed whole. The Killer Whale is the largest member of the dolphin family. They can be up to 30 feet in length. A dolphin's skin is very delicate and it can be easily be damaged with contact with other surfaces.
          The Boto is the largest of the dolphins that can live in freshwater. They can be up to 10 feet long. Only one side of the dolphins brain sleeps at a time. This allows them to be able to breathe and to be able to watch for threats even while they are resting. Dolphins enjoy socializing and playing. They play with seaweed or with other members of the pod. Global warming continues to be a problem for them as it has reduces their food supply significantly. Dolphins can be mirgrational for food. Not all pods of dolphins migrate.
          Dolphins are known to engage in a variety of different feeding methods in order to be successful. Most of them involved cooperation and being in sync with other pod members. It is very rarely that they will try to get food on their own. The smallest dolphins are about 4 feet long with the longest being 30 feet long. They can weigh from 90 pounds to more than 11 tons. The fluke is the name for the tail on a dolphin. All dolphins have a blowhole at the top where they can take in air when they come to the surface.
          There are 43 different species of dolphins that have been recognized. 38 of them are marine dolphins which are those that we are the most aware of and the other 5 are river dolphins. Dolphins have 100 teeth. Most of the species of dolphins live in saltwater. But, there are others that are able to do well in the freshwater locations. Those are mainly found in the freshwater of the Amazon River. They are easily seen by humans.  The body of a dolphin is designed to help them move through the water quickly and without exerting huge amounts of energy. They rely on their pectoral fins and tail (fluke) to help them navigate through the water.

Blog 5

The Most Popular Sport in the World

          Do you know what the most popular sport in the whole entire world is? When watching a soccer game or actually playing soccer, you may find a few interesting things about the sport, itself. Here are a few things you may not know about soccer: Most soccer players run an average of six miles during every game. Soccer is the most popular sport in the world. Over one billion fans watch World Cup Soccer on television. 

India withdrew from the World Cup in 1950 because they weren't allowed to play barefoot. Soccer facts reveal that only the United States and Canada actually call soccer "soccer". 

          Over 40 million watched on television as the Women's Team won the World Cup in 1999. That same year of 1999, over 35,000 fans competed in the largest soccer tournament ever in Bangkok (The capital of Thailand). The first soccer games ever may have originated in China. Historical soccer facts indicate The World's First Football Club was the English Sheffield Football Club, founded in 1857 by Colonel Nathaniel Cresswick and Major William Priest, two British Army officers.
          The World Cup is played every four years. The fewest number of fans to ever watch a soccer game in the world cup was 300 in Uruguay in 1930. The most fans to ever watch a world cup soccer game was 119,850 in Brazil in 1950. Another pretty interesting fact is that the very first basketball game was played with a soccer ball.  The most World cups have been won by Brazil (5). Association football, most commonly known as football or soccer. It is a sport played between two teams of eleven players.  It is played by more than 250 million people in over 200 countries.
          The teams switch sides after each half so each team has to play slightly uphill for half the match. The first American professional soccer league, the USSA, played from 1919 to 1921 and paid its players 35 cents for every goal they scored. Many 3rd world villages cannot afford soccer balls, so they play soccer with balls made from rags and such. Queen Elizabeth II was a natural athlete and dressed in disguise was a frequent participant in soccer matches in her teenage years in the late 1930's, early 40's. Until 1908, soccer balls were made from the inflated stomach tissue of executed Irish prisoners.
          In most countries, a soccer player's uniform is called a "kit" and the cleats are called "hooves". The national sport of Canada is soccer. Soccer was illegal in Mississippi until 1991. In 1998, a bolt of lightning hit an 11- man soccer team from the Democratic Republic of Congo. The first soccer nets were wicker baskets. Germany's national soccer team was banned from participating in the World Cup of 1950 at Brazil for Germany's aggression at World War II. In 1964, a bad referee call in a soccer game in Peru caused a riot that resulted in 300 deaths.
           In 2002, the Madagascan team Stade Olympique L’Emryne scored 149 own goals against AZ Adema.  They repeatedly scored own goals were in protest of a referee’s decision in their previous game.  Imagine watching a team repeatedly score their own goals 149 times! As you can see, Soccer is a very popular sport. It is the most popular sport in the world. 
            

Blog 4

Summer

          Summer is my favorite season. You can do more things in summer than what you could do during any other season. Also, you are out of school during summer. You don't have to worry about doing homework or anything. You could spend more time outside. Summer has more advantages, same with spring. I don't really like Winter because of the snow, that's one disadvantage for me. The snow stops you from doing other things, and going places.
          During Summer, you can do many more things. You have more privileges. You can go swimming. Well, you can go swimming anytime but it's better during summer. Also, you spend most of your time outside. At least, i do. Next, you can play sports outside or do anything outside that you're not able to do during any other season.
          No School! You already know what that means. During the summer vacation you do not have to come to school. You are free from all the stress. I personally do not like school. No school means, no homework, no projects, no worries, or anything! I also, think it's unfair because we have to attend school for almost a whole year. Well technically, nine full months. The part that i think is most unfair is the fact that we only get about two and a half months of summer break. Also, the rest of the breaks that we get in between the whole school year, are also pretty short.
          For example, Thanksgiving break; that's like a few days. Winter break is only two weeks. Two weeks is not enough time to spend with your family during Christmas and New Year. For Thanksgiving break we also need more time with our families because you're suppose to give thanks to what you are thankful for. Next, Spring Break is like a week long. I think we deserve a longer break because of all the testing we do before before break.
          Summer is better than any other seasons for me because it has more advantages. For example, there's no snow. Snow keeps me from doing things, in Winter. In Summer, you can be outside all day. That's what i like to do. I love being outside in summer. I like to play soccer, volleyball and softball/baseball. Also, the only time i go swimming in during summer. The best part about summer is being able to go to Elitches.
          I love to go to Elitches. Elitches is the funnest place ever. I love going there with my cousins especially. It is a lot of fun when we all go together. Last year and the year before that, we went in like June i think. First, we went to the Water Park (even though i kind of like going to the actual Theme Park first). When we got there, there was a lot of people. There always is a lot of people at Elitches. Anyways, Summer is my favorite season. Summer Break equals no school! Summer break equals let the fun begin... 

          

Blog 3

Softball

          My favorite sport is softball. Softball is similar to baseball but it is played with a larger ball and the field where you play at is smaller than baseball fields. Softball was invented in Chicago, Illinois in 1887 and was originally an indoor sport. It got it's official name of 'softball' in 1926. In 1933 a softball tournament at the Chicago World's fair, promoted a lot of interest. That same year the Amateur Softball Association of America was founded. 

          Even though softball might not be a very popular sport, it will always be my favorite. Softball came from George Hancock. He is credited as the the game's inventor and the inventor of the bat and ball. The name 'softball' was coined by Walter Hakanson in 1926 at a national recreational congress meeting. The first rules of softball were published in 1889. Sometimes they called it indoor baseball, mush ball, and kitten ball. It had been referred to as 'ladies baseball' because it was generally played by women. There are two types of softball; slow pitch and fast pitch. Slow-pitch softball is the most commonly played. In this type of softball, the ball must arch in the air when it is pitched. There is no stealing or bunting allowed. In fast pitch softball, the ball is thrown fast. Bunting and stealing are permitted. There are nine players from each time on the field at a time. 

          When playing softball, the ball must be pitched underhand. A softball game is only seven innings instead of nine like at a baseball game. Although its called "softball", the ball is not soft, at all. It is larger than a baseball. The infield is smaller than one on a baseball field. The bases are 60 feet apart, where in baseball the bases are 90 feet apart. A very interesting fact, is that at the 1996 Olympics every softball game was sold out. The first World Championship game was played in 1965 in Australia. It was a women's tournament. Softball became a women's Olympic sport in 1991. In 2006, softball was removed from the Olympics by vote. The United States won the gold medal in the Olympics in 1996 and 2000.
          My dad also plays softball. He's playing right now during the spring season with some random guys i don't even know. Then during the men's summer softball league thing in Brighton, he has his own team and its only family members. They have all been playing baseball for years and they're really good. We've won 1st place out of 8 teams during the summer season 3 years in a row. I believe they have been playing for 5 years now. Most of the games they get really intense especially when they are doing super good and then they start playing bad and sometimes none of them have good sportsmanship. But when they are in a really good mood they help each other become better players. That's what i like about our family team.
          I really enjoy watching my dad play at his games. His team is amazing. It's really fun when we cheer them on. Sometimes, my cousins and i make t-shirts fro ourselves and make them seem like jerseys to try to match our dads and the other players on the team. I also like how the team orders their personalized jerseys. The team name is 'MOTAvation'. They also get to pick whatever number they want and their last name. Ever since my dad started playing i started to like baseball but now i like softball. When i was 8 years old i would always play catch with my cousins. Then they started liking this sport too. Then i kind of ignored it and moved along with soccer. Then i got bored of soccer and went back to softball.
          This summer, will be the third year in a row that i play softball. I love softball. The first year i actually played on a real team, i was kind of nervous because i had never played on an actual softball team. I was always playing but with my family. Then, i was getting the hang of it and realized i shouldn't get nervous. The first year i played, i wanted to be the 2nd base person. But, each game we switched positions, so we never really had a permanent one. The second year i played  (last summer) i was first basemen for mostly all the games. Sometimes we played real good, and other days we were doing horrible. I hope this year can be one of the best softball seasons yet. Softball is life.   

Blog 2

 Four-Wheeling 
Accidents 

          I've been in a lot of four-wheeler accidents. My cousins used to own two four wheelers. Then they would always flip and get hurt. One time my cousins and i all went to their house and we decided we wanted to ride them. We took turns since there was a lot of little kids wanting to ride them too. As soon as i got off of one of the four wheelers my cousin handed it over to one of my other cousins. Then he made a turn and it seemed like he was going to crash right into the fence! 

          Well like i said, they used to be my cousins' until their parents got mad at them and my uncle gave them to my siblings and I. I personally thought they weren't old enough or responsible enough. One of them was 7 years old back then and the other one was 9. Now they are 8 and 11. It all started when the youngest one didn't know how to control the four wheeler and he flipped over with one of my other cousins, and she was only 5 years old! They both flipped and ended up with bruises and scratches all over their faces. The bad thing was that only one of them was wearing a helmet. 

          Another bad story behind all this four wheeling stuff is that one time at the same place, one of my older cousins was using a four wheeler and he tried to make a left turn when something bad happened. He literally just crashed into the fence like no other! As i saw that he crashed into the fence, i was shocked and even more shocked when i saw that he flipped backwards. As he landed on the ground, he quickly stood back up and started yelling pretty loud. All i saw then were his parents running to him asking him if he was ok. Then, i walked over there and saw his arm and you could tell right away that it was broken. His bone right above his wrist (basically his whole arm) was lifted up and it was like popping out! Anyways after that they just took him to the hospital and it turned out to be that his arm actually was broken, so he got a cast right away.
          Now This accident, i was involved in: one day after school, my sister went to go get me from the bus stop at my house and as we were going back home we flipped over too. I don't remember exactly how it managed to happen but i just remember that i was sitting in the back backwards and we drifted somehow and the four-wheeler flipped over. I actually kind of was able to throw my self the other direction so the four-wheeler wouldn't land on top of me, but it still landed on my knee all the way down to my ankle. My sister actually face planted right onto the ground where it was all dirt and rocks. Next thing you know, she gets up, starts crying and her face was covered in dirt. Her whole face was covered in cuts.
          Last but not least, i remember one time my brother was driving one of our go-carts and he still didn't know how to use it but he used it anyway and ended up crashing into one of my dad's trucks. Also, one time a friend of ours came over during the Summer to visit and he was using the go- cart. Then,  my brother ran across and at the same time the guy was coming the same direction to my brother and he didn't stop in time so he ended up running over his leg. This was a pretty bad one too.
          Although, four-wheeling may sound pretty fun, it can be a super dangerous thing too.