Laurels

In Ancient Greece, the winner of the Olympics would receive a Laurel, which a wreath of golden leaves in which you ware on your head. It's like being crowned victor. Using our nolege of Ancient Greece, we thought it would be fiting to have a series of hard projects for each subject we have this year. We each have to do a really difficult activity for each subject. For example, our Laurel for P.E. is a 25 mile walk. We have a couple weeks to do 12 miles at home and 13 miles at school.

This is my Zine about pets, which is my writing Laurel!

Dear Reader,

You are about to begin reading my zine about pets. I chose the topic of pets because I think that they are an important part of a family, and can perk up any bad day. I’ve also had a lot of fun experiences with pets that you will read about! Having a pet is great for company, friendship, and exercise. I love my pets and I tried to show that in my zine. My first piece is about one of my first pets, Butesta. Butesta is a story about little fish I won at school, and the epic story of how he got a new home. My next piece, my persuasive is about the importance of having a pet and their benefits such as health, exercise, and much more! Then, is my descriptive. My descriptive is about what happened when my hamster escaped and the hectic morning that followed. After that, is my expository. My expository is about how to take care of your hamster. Lastly, in the addendum is my play “Toxic Love” about a high school girl named Tracey, and Tracey’s controversial relationship with Nick the Nerd, and her efforts to hide it from her popular friends. I’ve worked hard on my zine and I hope you like it! Enjoy!

Yours truly,

Brennan Leach
It all started with Froggy. My whole class loved Froggy. Then one day, poor little Froggy passed away, and it was time to get a new class pet. We decided on two beta fish. Beta fish are known for being Siamese fighting fish, killing any other fish in sight. We kept them in separate tanks the size of shoeboxes. One was blue and the other red. The blue one passed away before we could name him. That left the red one, witch the boys in my class wanted to name “Butesta” after a wrestler. Butesta lived the whole year in his tiny little tank. Then, at the end of the year, I asked who would take care of him over the summer. My teacher decided to pic a name out of a hat. A couple days later was the moment of truth, our teacher plunged her hand into the hat, moved it around, and, slowly pulled out a name and…………….. It was Jake. I was heart broken. But, all hope was not lost, because the next day Jake brought back the fish and said his parents would not allow him to keep it. I was chatting at the other side of the room when I heard my name. It was my teacher calling me, holding up a slip of paper with my name on it. I had won Butesta. My mom was reluctant to keep the fish, but dad won that argument, and the fish was mine! And boy did I love him. We all did. He was cute as could be in his little tiny tank, swimming around his little tiny plant in the center. Then one day, something went wrong. Mom was cleaning the tiny tank as usual, tilting it until half the water came out into the sink, then filling the empty part with fresh water. Butesta would always stay in the corner of the tank while it was being poured out. He would have enough water to breath and swim around in till it got filled. Today, it was different. When mom was pouring out the tank, he went right on out with the water, into the sink. I started to scream and cry, because, after all, he was mine and I had grown to love the little fella. I didn’t know what to do. I was frozen, as I watched my mom stick her hand into the drain, and moving it around. Finally, out flew her hand and in it was Butesta. She threw him into his tank and filled it to the top with fresh water for him as fast as she could. I still couldn’t move. He was alive, and as if nothing ever happened, he swam about as usual in his tiny tank. From then on I always was protective about Butesta. I fed him ever day, and made sure to check on him every now and then. Then, after months of Butesta in his tiny tank, my dad couldn’t take it any more. We headed off to the pet store, and asked for the biggest tank they had. They showed us one foot, two foot, three foot, and there it was. A four-foot tank, the biggest they had. There was much discussion over the big tank. But inside, we all knew that this was the start of a new adventure. And we were right. We got the tank. Four feet and twenty-nine inches all for Butesta. But it wasn’t that easy. We had to fill it with LOADS of water, buy rocks and decorations, get a filter-water system because just pouring half the water out of a four foot tank wasn’t going to work, and most of all, a place to put it. The decorations were easy. We got a coliseum, a bubble wall, bamboo, and some cool rocks for the bottom. The water system was less easy, but we got it done. Then we had to deal with where to put it. It would break the counter because it was so heavy. We had no room for it! But eventually, after clearing a big space, we decided on putting it in the kitchen. The only problem was we didn’t have anything to put it on but the floor. So we called up Dave, a repairman, and had a base made for the tank. Finally the big day came. Everything was ready, the water, the décor, and the little fish that was going to have a new home. We held up his little tiny tank to the big HUGE one, and let him go. He plunged into the cool water. Slowly he explored every corner of his new dream home. He swam at the top, went through the bubbles, and slept in the coliseum. He was perfectly happy with everything until, dad thought he was lonely. Keep in mind; he is a Beta fish who kills any other fish in sight. But we were going to give it a shot. We got two little shrimp, and a couple fish and let them into the tank. They swam around exploring, and Butesta was right there to welcome them. He was an excellent host, and there was not once a fight between any of them. Butesta was a peaceful, courageous, and wise little fish that lived a long and happy life. Butesta changed my life and I loved him very much.

I think that every family should have a pet. Having a pet has so many benefits. They are great for companionship, safety, and even health! Pets are like another human, a best friend, like part of your family. In fact, they are part of your family. They bring everyone together, and make the family complete. I love having a pet, and you will too!

I’d like to tell you about cats. Cats are one of my favorite pets because of their personalities. Whenever I sit down to watch TV, my cats are right there to warm my lap, and cuddle into the blanket. They even snuggle in with you at night, and make the softest teddy bear! They are the best companions, and are very easy to take care of. Let’s say you like to travel, or even just have a day job. You can leave your cat home for any amount of time, a day or a week, and they will be perfectly fine with enough food and water! Not only are they quiet, and easy to take care of, but they will always be a great pet and will make the perfect companion!

Next, there are dogs, the very helpful, loyal, and super fun friends. Not only are there dogs for the blind, deaf, but also even rescue dogs that work for the police! Dogs for the blind and deaf can change a life forever. They can lead you and help you get through life on your own, which you would definitely not be able to do by yourself. Dogs are also great for police work. They help firemen rescue and help citizens out of a fire. They can also help police by smelling anything dangerous or chase down a criminal! But one of the best qualities of dogs is their sweet, loyal personality that makes them a great playmate. Your dog will always be there for you, through thick and through thin, and they always have a good spirit.

Last, but certainly not least, are fish. Fish are a beautiful, calming pet that are super easy! Fish are known for their bright beautiful colors. They are used for decoration and are great for brightening up a dull room. Also, it has been scientifically proven that fish lower your blood pressure and watching them can calm you. It’s very healthy to have low blood pressure, and fish are one of the easiest ways to do it! And on top of that, fish are super easy! All you have to do is put them in a small bowl of your choice, and feed them once a day! Fish are great pets for people who don’t have much time for cats or dogs, or any other pet that requires much care. Fish are great pets and I love having something colorful to come home to!

Pets are friendly, fun, helpful companions that can change your life forever. I love my pets and they are a great addition to my family. If you are going to get one, not only will they make you healthier, happier, and make great décor, but they will be a best friend!

I remember the morning when Heva-Hava escaped. It was 5 am and I heard the shrieking of my mom and the yelling of my dad as Justin and I ran down stares. We raced into dad’s study were we herd the noises coming from. Mom was in shock sitting on the couch and dad was on his hands and knees. Then it hit me. All of a sudden all of us where on our hands and knees. The hamster, Heva-Hava, had escaped. On a regular day this would be bad, but not like this. The smell of peanut butter filled the room as my mom tried to lure him out from hiding with food. We were all in a hurry. Our flight was leaving at 7:00am.

It was now 5:30am, and as we watched the hazy orange sun bounce across the sky I groaned, now realizing how tired I was. We had half an hour before leaving. We still had to get dressed, get the bags in the car, brush our teeth, and much more. Heva-Hava could be anywhere, in the room, in the house, outside the house. He had never left the study before, but the door was open all night. You could taste the fear in the room. Then we all new what had to be done. Justin started to panic and cry, and I knew this was going to be a long day. The big decision had to be made: miss our flight and stay and look for the hamster, or go on our trip and leave him alone, and probably never seeing him again. We were going on a two-week trip. Mom wanted to go, dad wanted to stay. And the decision was made. We were going to stay.

As I felt across the smooth glass of his cage, looking for any clue of where he was, I could see the empty food bowl and the messy ground. Looks like when (if) we find the little guy we have to clean his cage. Great. I went back to looking when I heard someone scream that sounded like a siren I was almost deafened by this and flew back onto the couch. All of the sudden, my mom was holding up her finger, which was now as red as the morning sun, and my heart stopped. On it, was Heva-Hava! She was almost in tears, her finger bleeding and swelling. He was hanging on to my mom’s finger with his teeth. My dad lunged on Heva-Hava and threw him into his cage.

After that there was dead silence. I could hear the deep breath of relief everyone was letting out. At last I broke the silence with “we got him!” And my dad leapt to his feet to clean the cage. Almost immediately my parents started yelling, because dad wanted to clean the cage, and mom wanted to go. I didn’t blame her! It was now 6:15! We grabbed the bags and jumped into the car. Dad stayed and cleaned Heva-Hava’s cage, much to our dismay. Then we were off to the airport. We arrived at the airport at 6:30. As we dashed through security and baggage, we stopped. Dad was hungry. So Mom, Justin and I kept going to our gate while Dad headed off to get a soft pretzel. It was 6:50 when we got to the gate. They were finishing up boarding and we came just in time. It was perfect, except for one thing. Dad was not there.

Now it was 6:55. Still no dad. The flight attendant said that if he didn’t come in 2 minutes, we could not come on our flight. It was 6:57 and still no dad. The same fear of hearing my mom scream crept back into me. This little hamster caused all of this! Then I saw it. At first I smelled it. The warm, salty, soft pretzel in my dad’s hands. He was running as fast as he could, flying past people coming toward us.

We hopped on the plane as fast as we could, and when we finally got there, we realized that the drama was not yet done. Our bags had been left behind in Philly, but at this point we didn’t care. We would get them later. It was over. All because of the little hamster, Heva-Hava! The end Pets are great Pets are fun I’ll play with them till the day is done I love my pets They love me too I’ll play with till the day is through I take care of my pets They are my friends I’ll play with them till the day ends The sun has left And now we creep Up the stares were we will sleep The sky is dark And together we’ll stay Through night and through day I love you pets You are the best You are better, than the rest!

happy all the time pleased to meet new folks sleeping all night, snuggled up in bed, happy as can be!
 * P ** retty and playful
 * E ** ager and engaging
 * T ** he way you run and play,
 * S ** leeping quietly at night