Hittin the Slammer

They call it the rock, or they did 45 years ago when a bunch of criminals were headed towards Alcatraz island. The rock received all the hard core villains like Al Capone, Creepy Karpus, The Bird Man, and Machine Gun Kelly. My family and I got to go to San Francisco this Thanksgiving to get a taste of what these men went through.

These men had absolutely nothing. The area they were allowed to be in was extremely small and limited. Their choices for free time were reading only philosophical books (boring), outside where they could play games like baseball or handball (lame), and time in their closet size cell (claustrophobic).

What really makes Alcatraz considered one of the best federal prisons is it was inescapable. Only three men ever escaped but were never seen or heard of again. It's highly un-likley they survived because of the crazy currents around the island, the freezing water temperature, and the great white sharks in the dark murky water below. To think of how prisons have become now, people escape all the time, and prisons are a luxury rather than a punishment. When Alcatraz was around everyone felt safe. Only the worst were sent to Alcatraz and there they remained.

Inmates said ," If you break the rules you go to prison. If you break prison rules, they send you to Alcatraz." (Not positive I quoted it with 100% accuracy.) Imagine that all of the worst criminals you can possibly think of are on an island where escape is impossible and death awaits those who attempt. The men on the rock were maniacs. If they caused trouble during their time, they were forced to remain in "the hole". In "the hole" people like The Bird Man were placed in a cell where there was no bed, bathroom, or light. I went into "the hole" for a few minutes and the darkness was so thick it felt as if life itself were non-existent. An inmate said that to entertain himself he would spin around, throw a button, and then spend the rest of the day finding it over and over again.

I loved my trip to Alcatraz and I've always found the island such a mystery. It's creepy to know that places you were standing, the most terrifying criminals of the 1920's like Al Capone and The Bird Man, were there not that long ago. I was in the prison cafeteria where men stabbed fellow inmates through their backs like a knife goes through butter. I was standing where a riot occurred and an officer was shot and killed. I stood where the military threw hand grenades because of a riot and saw the marks on the floor it left behind. I saw the hole that three men made through a cement wall with only the use of spoons. I walked down the empty, echoing halls where the worst men alive once stepped and where all chances of freedom were abandoned. Only a mile away from San Francisco I visited what these men would say was a living hell.

Halloween

I don't really celebrate Halloween but I don't mind the holiday. I'm all about cute little kids in their costumes knocking on my door. I also am a huge fan of the free candy. It's pretty sweet! (See what I did there?) My only complaint is that my neighborhood is a crowded mess on Halloween. The reason why is because I live in the neighborhood right by Harper Park. There is this house in our neighborhood where every year they go all out  for Halloween. One year they had real camels, the other year they had a fire breathing dragon, but my favorite year was when they decorated their house to Star Wars. They had a legit X wing fighter, C3PO, R2D2, and the Darth Vader they had looked like it came right out of the movie! It's been a fun tradition and I feel kind of cool being part of this iconic neighborhood in Fountain Valley. But with super cool events comes mobs of Halloween fanatics. I get really uncomfortable when people I only see at school are knocking at my door and now know where I live. Tonight is Halloween and I'm wondering what it's going to be like this year. Apparently there was a fight on our street last Halloween and the police were involved. I have a feeling it's going to be out of control this year. I will end what I am saying right now and finish this post with a report on how it was tonight.


(Three Hours Later)

Well I was right! We got a lot of interesting people. There were the usual girls in their skimpy outfits, crazy parents with their screaming and crying kids, and party adults with their beers. Apparently there were two people that got arrested, and there was no room for parking on any of our streets, not to mention our park got trashed with candy wrappers.  To be honest, I was a little disappointed by this year's decorations. The theme was the Wizard of Oz. It felt super last minute and I was bugged they weren't handing out their usual full sized candy bars, or at least I didn't get one, rude! I still enjoyed it and was impressed that they pulled it off. It didn't matter in the end because I was able to hang out with friends and get on a sugar high. I had a great Halloween and it was probably my best one ever!

Surf's Up

 I love the adrenaline rush I get from surf competitions.Our team shows up to the beach when it is pitch black and freezing cold. We quickly throw on our wetsuits in order to escape the chilly air. I usually grap my board and place a thin layer of wax on it just to make sure I won't slide off my board during my heat. Once it is more visible we walk to the shore line and stretch. While I'm stretching I'm watching the waves and picturing where I want to be and how I am going to take the waves. I play over and over my plan of attack. Once the competition starts I look at the competitors in the heat before mine to see where the swell is and  where the other guys are positioning themselves to get into the waves. Pretty soon I go check to see what color rash guard I have to wear. Our rash guards tell the judges what team we are representing. Once I throw that on I grab my board and head towards the water. When the horn blows I run into the water and quickly paddle out past the break. Now it's game time.

I'm constantly watching the waves to make sure I am right were I can catch them. When I see one I paddle towards it, position myself, and charge. It dig deep into the water to make sure I gain enough speed to drop in. Once I feel I have caught the wave I snap up and turn quickly to ride the wave left or right. It's the same process over and over again. After my fifteen minutes is up I head out and my dad tells me how I placed. I then get myself pumped up for my next heat. Even when I'm not competing, surfing gets me going.  My friend Dave told me why he loves surfing one morning when we  were out waiting for sets to come. He said, "Aly, your are riding moving water, that makes you like God." I don't know if I would consider it godly but it is perfectly described in one word, rad.

Cell Phone Envy

I feel so technologically behind in such a technological world. I see everyone with their fancy smart phones and i phones that I can't help but want one. They are just so remarkable I can't even process the idea of owning a computer, camera, video game system, GPS, and phone all at once! It's amazing the amount of things a cell phone can do. My mom has the i phone 4s so we like to use syrie a lot. In a way I find it a little creepy that my mom's phone can talk to me and I can talk to her. There was a kid in my Geometry class last year who asked syrie "where can I hide a dead body?" He did it just to see how syrie would react. The scary part was syrie said, "what are you looking for? Swamps,dumps, lakes, forests, etc." I find it alarming that our phones have become so advanced today that they could help us commit a crime, even murder!

I'm jealous when I see my friends texting or sending cool photos using their instagrams.
I wonder why I am the only teenager that doesn't have an i phone or smart phone. My phone is prehistoric and when I say prehistoric I mean it doesn't have texting or a camera, it's simply just for calls. The worst part about my phone is that it is pre paid. I hate pre paid phones! Once my phone runs out of money it starts to speak Spanish and it won't work until I pay for more minutes. This has happened to me at least four times. I remember talking with my good friend and I was in the middle of my sentence when all of the sudden my phone shut down. I tried calling again but my phone wouldn't let me. I checked on my account and my balance was zero dollars. I had to text my friend on my mom's phone that my phone ran out of money and it was all their fault. He told me that he tried to call my phone to see why I hung up but when he did the voicemail was some guy speaking spanish.

 On the bright side, I have an antique. My phone can flip up and down! I've had people ask me "why do you carry a brick?" I feel honored that I am educating other kids on technology from the past! It's pretty awesome because my "brick" is indestructible. I had a kid chuck my phone like a baseball across the park and it still works like a charm. I can't even tell you how many times I've dropped that thing on the hard wood floor. It doesn't break! The other bonus is I will never have to worry about my phone disappearing. No one will ever want to steal it!

Do you Mind

I've already made two posts but Mr. Ziebarth mentioned we could write a post about our blog and what it's all about. I have a friend who even said," you're blog is really random." To be quite honest, I really can't tell you what it's about. I pretty much write what ever is on my mind or what I am currently interested in. I consider myself a random person at times which means I tend to do random things. I have a hard time focusing on one thing for too long and writing this blog has helped me get out what has been on my mind. For instance, I wrote about dancing above because I had just watched my favorite show, So You Think You Can Dance, and was super excited by this one really good number. After seeing that dance, nothing but dance was on my mind.  So I guess in order to define what my blog is about I would say it's about the mind of Aly Johns. It sounds weird saying that but it's true. I don't have one thing that I could go on and on forever about. I am not an expert in any area where I could tell you everything I possibly know.

What's funny is I never imagined even having a blog. I have a hard time writing in my own journal so  keeping a blog sounded like a chore to me. In a way I'm enjoying having a blog because I am just dumping everything out of my head and typing it out on the keyboard. This blog is basically the waste disposal of my mind. My mind is a crazy place and I think it could be better organized at times. Perhaps this blog will help me organize my thoughts and inspirations. My inspiration right now is to finish up this post because it is getting boring and I have nothing else to say.