Synchronous Diaphragmatic Flutters

I don't know about you guys, but I am plagued by hiccups almost daily.

Sadly, this is not the hiccup I'm talking about.

I'm talking about synchronous diaphragmatic flutters. Boy, that's a mouth-er...keyboard-ful?

Anyway, a hiccup is an involuntary contraction of the diaphragm.

Once this reflex is triggered, the diaphragm contracts sharply and is followed by closure of the vocal cords 0.25 seconds later, which is what causes us to make the "hic" sound.

The exact cause of hiccups is still up for debate, but most people believe it has something to do with the pace of our eating.

There are countless remedies for hiccups including:

1. Drinking water whilst upside down. (In reality, all this does is get water up your nose. Not very effective, if you ask me.)

2. Holding your breath for as long as you can. (This is actually very helpful. Holding your breath builds up your carbon dioxide levels which helps your diaphragm relax or something weird like that. IDK.)

3. A spoonful of peanut butter. (This doesn't help. At all. If anything, it makes the situation worse because you can't really chew peanut butter but you can't just swallow it whole like that and it hurts when it goes down because it's just like AHH PEANUT BUTTER so I don't recommend this.)

4. A spoonful of sugar. (I don't know why this works, but it does. And it's delicious too so. Win-win.)

Summer can't get here fast enough.

I think we can all agree that we have had some amazing weather these past few days. It's warm and sunny and bright and it feels like summer is almost here, right? 

Wrong.

There is currently 96 days, 7 hours, 19 minutes and 12 seconds until the summer solstice, which is more relatively known as "the first day of summer."

This is a...well, for lack of a better word, it's a bummer. 

I'm really looking forward to summer this year. I don't know, it just all feels different. It feels like this summer can finally be about letting go and having fun with some of my best friends. 

Summer only lasts three months. Then it's back to school and monotonous routines. No more spur-of-the-moment plans. No more chasing after the ice-cream truck. No more late-night swims.

That's why this summer I'm making it a goal to have as much fun as I possibly can. I'm talking sleep-overs, pool parties, beach trips; basically anything and everything I can do to make this the best summer of my life.

Summer is about making new friends, growing closer to current friends, and reconnecting with old ones. Summer is about making a fool of yourself and not caring what people think. Summer is about shooting for the stars. Summer is about conquering your fears. Summer is about swan dives off the highest diving board. Summer is about midnight Skype calls. Summer is about afternoon iced-coffee get-togethers with your best friend. Summer is about your stomach hurting from laughing so much. Summer is about ice-cream fights. Summer is about running barefoot in the grass. Summer is about holding your breath as you jump into the pool. Summer is about singing loudly in the car with your friends. Summer is about fireworks. Summer is about long, warm nights. Summer is about roasting marshmallows around a bonfire. Summer is about the butterflies you get when he/she smiles. Summer is about mis-matched shoelaces. Summer is about popcorn and movie marathons. Summer is about chasing your dreams. 

Summer is about never wanting it to end.

Summer is about living. Summer is about you.

Bionic Bloodhounds

Setting: a Paraguayan dog-show
Tone: Joyful
Genre: Action
Written by: Jordyn, Logan, Madeline, Bonnie and Joel

(Jordyn) The year was 2461; a great year for middle eastern countries. (Well, great when it came to dogs. The rest of the country was almost completely wiped out.) Paraguay had spent most of its funds on a secret experiment involving dogs and computers. They hoped to combine the two to create what they hoped would be the world's smartest dog. You wouldn't have to teach it to sit or stay, or not to bark when you have company over; it was built in to it. It wouldn't be instinctive or impulsive. It would always be the ideal dog. But something happened... something terrible. No one would tell is what happened, so my friends and I decided to get to the bottom of it. We spent weeks- no, months planning. We had finally made it in...

(Maddie) ...to the Paraguayan dog show when we were attacked! The building that the dog show was held in had been taken over by the fearsome computer-dogs. It was very exciting to be attacked by the dogs, I was thrilled to have been a part of the experience. There were very few people left alive in the building. Those who were living had locked themselves into a very large bathroom. My friends and I fought our way through the halls of the building, trying to find a way to stop these ferocious dogs!

(Bonnie) The dogs had become so smart that they were updating themselves. It was amazing how some of them became surgeons adding all kinds of gadgets. We finally made it to the bathroom where an army of dogs now stood. Some were trying to get into the bathroom; others were at-the-ready. I smiled as my friends and I attacked. Our computer genius was outside trying to hack into their programming to shut them down. But me and my friends had to save these last people. We fired away; one of us was down, then two. But the dogs were falling faster. I saw my best friend die, those dogs were dead meat. I felt more alive than ever...

(Logan) ...as I ripped the metal head off one of the dogs, screeching my triumph. Another one jumped at me from the side, its razor-sharp claws swinging at my neck and face. I leaped to the side just in time, causing the dog to smash into the wall behind me. I was blind with fury now as I charged...

(Joel) ...toward the bionic bloodhounds. I spun with fury, my legs taking out dogs two at a time with effective round-houses. My fists flew like pistons as wave after wave of robot dogs poured out of their kennels. The room was a whirlwind of sparks and bolts as the dogs shattered against my thrusts. I felt as though I was being controlled by some outside influence. As I looked down at my hands choking a Doberman to death, I realized my skin had melted away to reveal black gun metal where my bones and flesh should have been. Confused, I looked back to my computer genius who I thought was trying to hack the system. He was sweating with excitement mashing buttons on a Play Station controller that was controlling my fists and legs. Behind him, a crowd of thousands of spectators were cheering ballistically. The scoreboard above me had me in the lead. I was a robot built for bionic battling and I had three more dogs to go before setting the high score for my creator.