Polar Bear Plunge memoir

Today. Was. AWESOME!!!!!!!!! Now you may ask, why was today awesome? Is it because it's 2012? Or maybe I had a great time at the beach with my semi-extended fam? Well, if you guessed either of those, you would be wrong. Here is why today was awesome; my (awesome) cousin and my sis and I did the Polar Bear Plunge today! If you happen to not live in the pacific northwest you probably don't know what the heck I'm so excited about. But, you will soon find out.
         So here's how it went down: I had heard a commercial for the plunge on the radio on the drive to my Grandma's second house in Birch Bay, and I almost shouted
        "There's a Polar Plunge in Birch Bay!?!?! I have GOTTA DO THAT!" And, lo and behold, my gracious mother said yes just as we were pulling in to the driveway. Then my cousins got there and I told them about it and all three of them said "Nah... *does something else*" but then I showed them a video of it and they saw the tremendous mob mentality and Alex agreed to take the plunge. So then, come 11:30 the next day, my oldest cousins were boarding to the beach and they're parents, me and my immediate family where going to meet them there (we were driving). So my mom dropped my grandma, my sister, and me off a block and a half away from the beach, and went to find parking. As I walked toward the mob of people I asked one for the time.
            "My watch says smack on 12:00, but you've got about 15 seconds" I sped my already fast walking. As it turns out the lady's watch was about 3 minutes off. As I took off my pants and shirt to reveal a old blue bathing suit, my grandma and sister and walked up to me. My sister was soon in her green-yellow one-piece and had joined me at the waters edge. I dipped my foot in and jumped back. Was I crazy? Apparently. I waited for a minute that seemed like 15 until finally I heard the count down and jumped in along with all of the other crazy thrill-seekers. I waded in until it was deep enough to dive and did just that into the freezing water. I stroked in my usual way, pulling my arms towards my body and flipping my legs like a dolphin, and was, at first, refreshed. Unfortunately that feeling was short-lived.  I pushed my head out of the water and ran back to the shore. I looked over and saw that there were still people in the water. I broke away from my grandma's grasp and dived in again. This time when I came up, I felt a pounding in my head. As I walked out, doubled over, I felt like screaming a long list of every choice cuss I knew. I refrained myself and merely said
         "That is- flippin -COLD!" As I sat on one of the many logs and  began to dry off, I saw my cousins, they're parents and my mother approaching. Poor Alex, I thought, he didn't get to do it. But as my aunt approached she said,
         "Will you do it again with Alex?"
         "Sure. Come'on" I said as I lead Alex to the waters edge.
         "One..two...three...jump" I heard him muttering under his breath.
         "Are you ready?' I called over my shoulder to my aunt who was taking a video of us.
         "Yeah, anytime." Was the response.
         "Okay, one two THREE!" and I dived in a third time. This time the pounding in my head was supreme. I ran on shore, were Alex was clutching his foot. My oldest cousin, Justin, muttered something I couldn't distinguish, but which my aunt apparently could,
         "Hey, don't call him that. At least he did it. Which is better that you."
         "He hurt his cut in the saltwater" Justin half muttered to me.
         "Hey, he went IN." my auntie Bonnie said in response.
         "I-I-I forgot my shorts." Justin said while shaking his pants, as though to prove his point.

Chapter 2 of Lissa and the mall

Chapter 2

Well, the mall wasn’t really hers, par say, she just liked to think it was hers so that she wouldn’t feel so lonely.  Lissa’s only “friend” was the old man at the used book store who, apparently, never noticed that she wasn’t particularly popular with… well, anyone. So he leant her books and she read them as much as she could during the time when she wasn’t stealing leftover food from empty tables or out in the alleyway trying to find a half decent sleeping bag or-even better- an old mattress. Her favorite was a historical fiction novel called The Invention of Hugo Cabret. It was about a boy, about her age, who lived alone in a 1920’s Paris train station. It was one of the first books she had ever read and the boy, Hugo, had reminded her so of herself that she soon found her doing much the same things as he had done.

        Lissa smiled and clutched the small rubber ball she had been holding. She looked down and realized what she was holding and realized that security must really hate her to go to so much trouble to save a rubber ball as insignifigent as this little thing. She never really stole anything; only stuff that people would toss out anyway. Like food left on café tables or the things that people returned to the big department stores because they had some defect. That was the type of thing she stole. But security didn’t like her because she made them the laughing stock; they always came so close to catching her, but each time she slipped away. It was like living in a bad dream. For both her AND the security guards.

She shook her head. It didn’t help anyone to think like that. Lissa glanced down and saw that the security guards had all left, finally giving up on their hopeless chase. Her stomach rumbled. She looked down and realized how hungry she was. There was a leftover wrap sitting on a Starbucks table. “Huuh” Lissa sighed aloud and pressed to “1” button her elevator door.

Chapter 1 of Lissa and her mall

Chapter 1

        The unhealthily skinny 12 year-old stopped her frantic running when she reached Macy’s. She had a high hairline that was no doubt born of the tight ponytail her hair was perpetually tied up in.  Her shapeless, oversized gray-purple sweatshirt swung around as she looked franticly around. She had on straight jeans with worn knees and sun-bleached creases. Her fearful eyes finally found what they were looking for as an overweight, huffing mall security guard came charging through the confused shoppers. The small, but lithe, girl ran the moment she caught sight of the man. The people riding on the escalator shouted at her as she ran through them, accidently knocking down a small boy of about five. She momentarily stopped to help the boy but then caught sight of the guard and ran off and cried

“Sorry!” over her shoulder. She finally found the door out of Macy’s and then ran past countless clothing stores, a couple of restaurants and a jewelry store As she ran towards the elevator positioned smack in the middle of the mall. When she finally reached, after what seemed like hours, she pressed the up button as fast as she possibly could, hoping that it would come before that illiterate man caught up with her, and that when it did come that it would be empty. The glass elevator finally came and -thank god- it was empty. She ran in and pressed the “close door” button before anyone could come in. Then she moved her gaze upward to the “3” button and pulled out her Swiss army knife and began to pry the “3” button off while pressing the “close door” button every time someone tried to get in. After a minute that seemed like an hour she finally got the button off and then proceeded to move one of the wires over so that it touched its neighbor. Her hand automatically replaced the button then pressed it. As the elevator moved past the 2^nd then 3^rd levels she rewired underneath the button again and had just replaced the “3” button when the door dinged and opened to her secret room. She looked down and saw about a dozen security guards staring up wondering where the heck she went. She had baffled them once more. The young tween looked around at her little room and wished she had someone to share this triumph with, for this lonely girl had never had any parents she remembered and had never had any peers, teachers, friends, or any family she could remember. All Lissa had, was her mall.

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Haven't Met You Yet by Micheal Buble

Eugene stared longingly at Adela Rodgers as she passed him in her desperate chase after that despicable Dylan. Garr, the mere thought of his baby wanting to interview both Dylan and that stuck-up prince Alek and not him made him want to do something drastic. He felt like running after her, screaming “UM HELLO!!!  IMPORTANT MIDSHIPMAN HERE!!!!”  He thought about what Mr. Rigby would say. He could hear him now

 “You haven’t even met her!”

He imagined his own response “Yet.” At this point Mr. Rigby would sigh and go back to whatever he had been doing. Eugene wondered to himself; why the heck do I always have such vivid conversations in my head?!?

“Maybe I’m a child of Aphrodite” He muttered with a half-amused chuckle and continued walking towards the wonderful Miss. Rodgers. 

Space Oddity by David Bowie

Dr. Barlow sat watching Mr. Tesla’s elaborate display through her fingers. And thought Martians… honestly. This man was so obviously mad it was hard to watch Alek stare at the Clanker boffin with such admiration in his eyes. The scientist thought about asking Dylan to tell him that this man was most likely completely insane (or at least very ignorant). But then looked in turn at both Alek and that Tesla and decided that she was a scientist and would not dash one boy's most earnest wish without even proof. No she wasn’t that cruel. Alas she still hoped that Count Volger (for he was far more heartless than she) would try to discourage him. He won’t break she thought sadly as she watched the ridiculous display how I despise a stubborn personality.

Paradise by Coldplay

Deryn stood skylarking on the topside with the engines at half-speed. This was barking fun! She was (in theory) exercising her hurt knee. But her knee barely hurt. She closed her eyes and was immediately plunged into paradise.  Deryn sat down thought why would anybody not want to fly? This was paradise. This inexplicable feeling was worth all the lies and secrets. When that bum-rag Malone snitched her secret to the World her life would be thrown into a blur of despair.

        “Don’t be a dummkopf” she said aloud. Alek had said that woman in America flew in hot air balloons. But hot air balloons just weren’t the same as standing topside, feeling the Clanker engines rumbling beneath her feet, the feel of the cilia waving along like mini waves. Deryn shook her negative thoughts out as Alek walked toward her. At least she had him.

Norwegion Wood by the Beatles

Alek was having a pretty darn good day. That is until Dr. Barlow ordered Deryn to go on a mission to Norwegian wood. She had asked them both to sit. Alek looked around and saw that there weren’t any chairs.

“Have some wine.” The lady boffin said while offering them both a glass. Alek sat on the rug and took tentative sips of the wine, biding his time.

“I have a mission for you” she stated clearly, looking at Deryn. Alek’s eyes widen. They’re first mission!

“Ooh!” Alek said. Dr. Barlow looked at him sadly.

“I’m afraid this one is only for our young Dylan” The famous granddaughter of Charles Darwin said sounding sincerely sorry for Alek.

“B-but” Both Dr. Barlow and Deryn looked at him pityingly

“I’m sure you’ll have your mission soon” Deryn said looking both excited and sad.

“But what will I do here!?!” Alek asked looking desperate.

“You will continue your work here”

“Without you or Deryn?!”

“Yes”