Really Old Stories.

Two years ago, we had an English assignment: Write a story which includes Flashbacks. Sounds simple enough. But honestly, I can't believe that I wrote this emotionally weird story back then -.-'. It gets more ... dramatic/emotional/weird as the story goes on. I'm proud of this work, but it still feels weird whenever I read it.

"Flying By"

I can't believe how many useless junks piles up without anyone noticing! I know I promised to clean the garage but now, I was having second thoughts; the whole room is covered with dusty boxes and torn envelops from long ago just waiting to be thrown out.

I started with the ones closest to the door. There was junk after junk after junk. Out the door it all went. Twenty minutes later, I picked up a box with the words "Tommy's Memoirs" scrawled across the front side in messy handwriting. That caught my eyes instantly, which then triggered my nagging curiosity. So, what else? I ripped open the tape which sealed the top and the first thing I saw was a Super Ball; the really bouncy balls that they never make anymore. I took it out of the box and examined it. It had a green mark on the black covering.

Curious, I bounced the ball on the floor. It flew straight up and hit the roof…

∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

"Thanks, Dad!" I screamed, hugging him, "It's so cool!" I couldn't say how cool it was and what it meant to me that he spent $10 on this Super Ball. I've wanted it for ages! We were in the garden, and he was holding up the Super Ball. I looked up from his belly.

Dad's cheeks were pulled back in wide beam, his white teeth visible under his open mouth. His eyes smiled even brighter than his mouth could. "Hey, no problem! Just don't lose it, okay, kid? It wasn't easy finding one of these! I just thought it would be a good present for your big one-O birthday," He said, still smiling from ear to ear. "I heard that a kid in California bounced it and a kid in New York lost an eye!"

"Ok, ok, so can I test it now?" I asked, bouncing on my heels. There was no better present that he could have bought than the legendary Super Ball! My mind whirled with ideas on how to use it: Cover it with paint and throw it at someone was top of my list. Maybe chucking it at Amber wouldn't be such a bad idea. She did give me a wedgie yesterday.

"Alright, fine but make sure you don't hurt anyone with this," he handed me the ball.

Excited, I threw the ball on the floor. It rocketed straight up. Up, up, up. I couldn't see it anymore! It was already gone! Three seconds holding it and I already lost it! I was scared stiff. Dad had JUST bought that! Suddenly, a loud laughter filled the air.

"Best 10 bucks I ever spent!" he looked at me, "you want to wait till it comes back down? Or would you rather go eat hot, steamy burgers until you're too fat to stand up again with me?"

I love him! We actually did eat until we couldn't stand that night. Mom had a fit; the ball had gone straight into the neighbor's greenhouse and destroyed her precious plants. They found it next to the neighbor's unconscious dog which had a big red mark on his head.

∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

The ball bounced off my head and fell right into the box. I choked slightly. I still miss that smile. It was stuck in my memory. I stuff the Ball in my back pocket, pushing away that thought for now. I turned my attention back into the box's contents.

There was a small blue book with a red ribbon neatly tied around it. Untying the ribbon, I flipped open the pages. It was damp, with a slight orange tint spreading from the center.

The first page had pictures of me and my family when I was 17, near a waterfall. Flipping through the page, I saw pictures of friends, family and faces I haven't seen in any of my albums. I stopped at one picture. I touched the face next to mine in that photo.

∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

"Are you ready yet?!" Mom shouted from downstairs. Seriously, she rushes way too much. I usually don't take much time to dress up but…

I heard a car skidding to a halt outside. "Yo, Tommy! Come on, man! You're going to be late!" barked a familiar voice. I opened the window and saw Jonny, my best mate. He was wearing a bright pink tuxedo and amazingly, he had his hair combed neatly. I guess even the wildest of beasts could be tamed. He was standing on top of a Jeep. "Come on in, man! I'm gonna get some snacks first!" I shouted back. He gave me a thumb up and jumped off the Jeep.

I rushed around the room, flinging clothes roughly. I had to find it! There is no way I'm leaving without it. I closed my eyes and tried to remember. My mind became a recording, looking back at what I was doing that day. Flashes of the previous 18 hours played clearly behind my eyelids.

After a minute like that, a knock knocked the door. "Dude," came Jonny's voice, "your mom told me to drag you out of there, naked or not. Hurry and dress up man, you naked is not on my must see list!"

I had to grin at that. That scum outside my door would actually break down the door if I didn’t come out soon! I quickly got up and unlocked the door. "Come in, man, I'm looking for something, dressed."

"And that would be…?" he drawled, peeping through the door slightly. He came in after he made sure I wasn't naked. He had a yellow stain on his pink tux, on his right collar. Looks like he didn't wait for me to stuff our face together: typical Jonny.

"It's that thing we need; I can't remember its name, man. It's like Coh-something. All I know is if I go without it, she'll be upset! Just look around over there," I pointed to a spot where I haven’t messed up yet, "and look for something out of place."

He huffed slightly and started digging around. After nearly 5 minutes of hard searching, we found it. More like Jonny nearly sat on it. I held the small item high. "Thank god," I sighed.

Jonny seized me under my arm and practically threw me outside the room. "COME ON! You made both of us late!"

∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

A loud honk filled the dead silence. I jolted back awake. Shaking my head, I look back at the picture and sighed. It has been more than 12 years since that day. There is no way I would forget that day. Then, I notice a small scrawling right underneath the picture. It read: Life Changing.

I smile slightly when I read that. I guess 12 years ago, I was pretty corny. But I can't say I was wrong; that day truly changed my life. I smile even more as I recall where the orange tint came from. That's what happens when you share a room with Jonny Cash and he just had too much to drink.

Putting my old scrap book aside, I carefully began to look for that small item. I was sure it was in there somewhere. I went past broken toys, bent certificates, old school yearbooks. And there it was.

It was hidden nearly all the way at the bottom of the box, underneath my old college hat. It still looked so beautiful. I held the thing lightly in my hand and stared at it. I can’t believe it that long ago since that event.

∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

I was knocking on the door of Number 18, Jangon Street. My heart beat wildly. This was a very important day. A day I cannot, will not forget. My hands sweated heavily. The small item slipped slightly from my hand. The door opened. And there she was.

Amber had let her flowing golden hair fall behind and around her face. She wore blue eye-shadow and a lighter blue eye-liner. Her startling lips were colored slightly red with a bit of a blush on her cheeks. Her eyes sparkled blue as she looked at me. That night, her face was carved from angels themselves.

She wore a simple, ocean-blue, elegantly cut dress with one sleeve, covering her small frame perfectly. Her feet wore slippers that would have made Cinderella jealous. On her arm was the silver bracelet I had bought her on her birthday. On her neck was a silver necklace with the letter T hanging from it.

"Wow," was all I could get out. My heart had stopped completely for a few seconds.

"Wow yourself, Tommy," her sweet voice danced in the air, "I can't believe you actually dressed up this nice for me!"

Blushing, I gave her the small item. "Oh my god!" she shrieked, "A corsage! This is so sweet! I thought you said it was too romantic."

"Shut up. I still think it's too romantic but since you wanted one since we were kids…" I trailed off, not able to continue. Gathering my thoughts, I quickly said, "I just want you to know what you mean to me."

I knew then that I had said too much. My heart was going wild, trying to jump out my throat. Then she leaned in. I could smell her breath. I could make out every bit of detail on her nose. We were an inch apart.

"TOMMY! AMBER! WE'RE GONNA BE LATE!" came an enraged shout.

I sighed. That man really does have perfect timing. "Well, Amber, I guess it's time to go. You ready?" I said, my ears burning.

"Before you go," said Mrs. Quentin, suddenly popping up, her face flushed with excitement, "I want a picture of my daughter and her date!" she wiggled a camera. "Come on," she began dragging us towards the porch, "stand next to each other on the porch."

∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

It began to rain outside. I had just finished clearing up the store room and was playing with the Super Ball on the floor when a friendly "I'm home" rang through my late dad's house.

"I'm upstairs!"

Footsteps echoed up the stairs and Amber came into view. She beamed and sat down next to me. "Hey, handsome," she said, pecking me softly on the cheek, "did it take you long to clear up the store room?"

Relaxing, I gazed at her and smiled.

"Na, time just flew by."

Again With The Names!

Yeah.. I once posted before about meanings of names and how I couldn't find mine since it's really strange. (Faidhi Fudzail) Neither my first or last names' meanings can be found!

At least not when spelled like that. That's when I realized that maybe I had to tweak my name a bit... Just a tiny bit.

For example, when I took out the silent 'H' and the first 'I', I get Fadi.

The result I got from http://babynamesworld.parentsconnect.com is this:
Gender: Boy
Origin: Arabic
Meaning: Sacrificer; Saviour.

There's also Faidh, without the final 'I' which means:
Gender: Male
Origin: Arabic
Meaning: Superabundance; Favour.

Since I know a bit of Arabic, I can tell you that if you add the 'i' sound to any word in the Arabic language, it becomes 'My "something"'. So, Faidhi would mean My Favour.

Okay. So I'm getting somewhere at least. So if you want to find out about your name's meaning, and still can't find it, try seeing any other names that SOUND like your name. There might be a clue to the puzzle that is your name.

Here are some of my friends' names meanings:

Anum: Fifth Born Child. Or if spelled like Anaum: The Blessing of Allah.
Najwa: Romantic Intimate Conversation.
Alaudeen: Servant of Allah
Nasruddin: Protector of Faith. (Sorry guys, your names were harder to find, so I had to tweak it a lot)
Muaz: (Tweaked) Brave man
Haziq: Skillful, Intelligent
Amjad: Worthy of worship
Nabila: Born to nobility
Nabil: Noble
Aizad: Sweetness
Ali: Sublime
Farhan: Merry
Amir: Prince
Agnelo: Pure
Indraneel: Sapphire
Michael: Like the Lord
Elena: Light
Reem: Beautiful Gazelle
Rana: Royal
Kinza: Hidden Treasure
Hamim: Friend
Mumin: One who believes.
Farida: Turquoise/Unique
Jessie: Rich
Chad: Protector

Websites used:
http://www.special-dictionary.com
http://www.meaning-of-names.com
http://babynamesworld.parentsconnect.com
http://www.google.com

Marks =(

Exaaammmmm Maaarrkkkkssss!!!!

Okay, so I woke up early somehow or rather this morning. Got ready, prayed, printed out the poem homeworks, then relaxed. I had no idea that we were getting our marks back today. -.-' Seriously speaking, the teachers need to warn us WAY beforehand.

I got to school late, thanks to Muhaimin waking up later than usual, and when I got to my first lesson (English) the whole class was buzzing with excitement. I asked someone what was up and they told me: We're getting our results back today! I asked when, and the reply I got from everyone was: I have no idea! Uselessness Maxed.

Anyways, I found out that we were getting them at the end of the day. So the school day passed by normally. And I won again against Anum :p:P! She's terrible at hiding. I'm thinking... to make it more interesting, why don't I hide this time... You try to find me, Anum?

Back to the results. I got them later than the end of the day. I got it 10 minutes after the end of the day. Thanks you so much of so reliable conductors -.-'.

The results are as follow, but before I begin, I have to remind you, I NEVER STUDIED for ANY of these subjects:

Arabic B
Biology A*
Business C
Chemistry B
English A
Physics A
ICT C
Maths C

So, it's not a completely bad result. Especially Arabic. I only started studying that for a month!

The one I seriously don't believe is the ICT one. A C IN ICT?! There's just no way. I'm going to make the teachers recheck! So wrong. As for Business and Maths.. well, I accepted a long time ago that I wouldn't get higher than a C in them. Unless of course, I tried harder. Which I intend to do for the real IGCSEs.

Hear me now! This is my oath: To get more than half of my paper filled with As! *I'm not promising ALL As because I might just get an A* by accident*. ;)

Poems

Yeah. Poems. I know this isn't like anything I've ever posted before, but since it was homework and I've already done it, added with the fact that I have nothing else to post about, why not post it here?

Before I post them, I have to say: these poems are not completely originals. They are not the best of poems nor will I ever try to make the best of poems. So do not expect me to post a lot of poetry on this blog.
They are also Love Poems. They are part of an assignment in which I had to copy the style of other poets.

This first one is called I Wanna Be Yours. It's made up of mostly metaphors.
I also feel like saying some of these lines out loud. They are kinda corny but still originals.

Let me be your special napkin,
Absorbing all your tears.
Let me your container tin,
Shielding you from seers.
If you don’t ever want to feel down,
Meet me in a wedding gown,
I’ll never let you drown.
I wanna be yours.

Let me be your Chanel purse,
Trust me with everything.
Let me be your favorite verse,
The one you always sing.
Let me hold your hand,
Walking across the sand,
We’ll fly off the land.
I wanna be yours.

Let me be your warmest bath,
Helping you relax.
Let me be your surest path,
I promise, there will be no cracks.
If you wanna travel worldwide,
Let me be by your side,
It’ll be one heck of a joyride.
I don’t wanna be hers
I wanna be yours…

I'm not sure how far your imagination can stretch, but please bear with me. This poem is packed full of metaphors that need explanations.. Like a Chanel Purse. Well, I was thinking: what do girls really trust? The answer was a purse. They stuff EVERYTHING down there! And Chanel because most girls I asked what brand of purse makers they trust most answered Gucci. But one of them answered Chanel. It fits better with the poem.

The next one is even lamer. It's called "Love Is" and it's practically trying to explain what Love is. Or something along those lines.

Love is waiting for you patiently.
Love is fighting for you furiously.
Love is dreaming about you endlessly.
Love is.

Love is not wanting to fall asleep.
Love is a cliff that’s really steep.
Love is falling down oh so deep.
Love is.

Love is the heaviest burden.
Love is all my days brighten.
Love is the world’s luckiest omen.
Love is.

Love is the greatest of dreams.
Love is waiting with melted ice creams.
Love is filled with crazy schemes.
Love is.

Love is a cactus.
Love is losing focus.
Love is only us.
Love is…

The thing about the last lines is that it's describing itself. Losing focus, so the lines are getting smaller and shorter with less of a descriptive nature.

Poetry is an awesome way of expressing how you feel. That's the only reason I think people like poetry. Songs are made by the same techniques poems are made from but only with music in the background. However, I think that the absence of music in poetry emphasizes the beauty of the words itself a lot more. I'm not a big Poetry Fan myself but I understand why people like poetry.

It's an freestyle way of telling people how you feel... Now I'm thinking: If that's true... Shakespeare is a nut job!

Review

Reviewing how the exams went:

Biology: Easy, but I forgot some of the Hormone's names-need to revise.

Physics: Practical paper is a piece of cake - just needs to bring in proper equipment. Theory paper needs more work done from my part.

Chemistry: Needs a lot more studying.

Maths: Revision needed twice over.

ICT: Too easy.

Arabic: Need more practice.

Business: Learn proper key terms and study more finance.

Overall: Studying is needed. Vital.

Finally! A break!

It's been so long since I've posted! The last one was about New Year'. Unfortunately, I had exams soon after and had to concentrate on them rather than think of things to post.

And yes, I said that only to make myself look like I'm actually concentrating on them. I haven't actually studied for any of the exams thus far and as such, I would not be getting any As. Or at least I don't expect to get them. I mean, getting a C would be like a miracle!

The last one I'll be having is on Sunday... ICT practicals. People say it's easy and I'm very inclined to believe them, but for the sake of not failing, I've been using all the Microsoft Programs over and over again. Now, I'm all set.

Owh but I didn't want to talk about the exams. I just wanted to post about my school life. And how it's about to end.

4 years ago, I started schooling at Sheffield Private School. I saw some huge guys in year 11 and back then, it never crossed my mind that we would be like them. Now I am in their grade; a senior to the rest of the school. Some year 6 student might be looking at me and thinking: he's so old and (delusional self) so cool! He/she wouldn't have ever imagined themselves a senior in a few short years, going through fun and hard trials and meeting a whole variety of people along the way.

An old friend of mine was talking, yesterday, about precisely this. It was during a free period after the Geography students did their exams. He says that he will honestly miss this school not only because of the teacher, not only because of the students but because of the school itself. It's the place he grew up in... it's the place he grew attached to. And each and every one of us there agreed with him. It will be such a sad moment when we have to leave the school.

But then again... It's the new beginning. At that moment, when we graduate (yes, "when" not "if"), we won't feel that much sadness. It will be a sensation that is unexplainable by a singular word. Something close to a combination of joy and relief tainted by a few regrets and perhaps sadness. Joy because we'll know then that we have done it; we've GRADUATED! Relief since all our life so far was building up to that day and it actually came. Regretting that we may have not done our complete 100% to getting to this point. Sadness because there's a chance we may never see each other again.

We've done something for the end of semester every year since we started at Sheffield Private School. We're going to have to plan something huge for this year.