KC3 Final Draft

     Think about the paradise of Hawaii. Nice beaches and everybody's relaxing, surfing and just having the time of their lives. But, there's a price to pay to live here. A very high price to pay. You have to think of the cost of a house and how expensive how expensive houses actually are in Hawaii. Hawaii is #1 for most expensive houses in Hawaii, you have to pay for utilities, too and there are people who are constantly making Hawaii even more expensive. The costly prices of houses in Hawaii causes a major problem for struggling local Hawaii residents.
     Hawaii's houses are very luxurious. They can be right next to the beach or have a breathtaking view outside their window. This is why Hawaii is #1 for most expensive houses in the nation. According to "Huffington Post", it stated, "Housing is perhaps the most critical element of the cost of living in Hawaii." Hawaii's most expensive houses in Hawaii contributes a big role in why Hawaii is also the #1 most expensive state in Hawaii. Also, "Huffington Post" also stated, "Hawaii residents continue to spend a higher percentage of income on housing than anywhere else in the nation." Now, Hawaii is #1 in most expensive houses, most expensive state and most percentage of income used on housing. These categories are not good to be #1 in.
     Houses are really expensive in Hawaii. These houses are so expensive that "Huffington Post" did some research and found that, "A single family home in Hawaii is $665,000. The national average is $257,000." Houses in Hawaii are more than two times more expensive than all of the other states. But, after you buy the house, you have to pay for utilities also. "Huffington Post" also said, "The people of Hawaii pay the highest electricity rates at 37 cents per kilowatt hour, triple the national average of 12 cents per kilowatt hour." Adding this makes Hawaii the most expensive housing state by a landslide.
     Houses are not just expensive in Hawaii for no reason. The reason that makes Hawaii's houses the most expensive in the nation is the rapidly increasing population. More people means more houses bought, more houses bought means less houses for sale, and less houses for sale means those houses' prices are increased. If the population increases, so does the prices of the houses. According to "Huffington Post", "Since 1993, electricity got four times more expensive and housing costs have doubled." And as I said before, this increase in pricing is because of the increasing population. "Huffington Post" showed, "Population in 1990- 1,108,229. In 2003- 1,257,608." In those 13 years, the population has increased about 150,000. At this rate, Hawaii's housing prices will skyrocket even higher.
     In conclusion, the prices of houses in Hawaii are ridiculous. It's #1 in the country, houses also come with utilities you have to pay for, and houses are constantly getting more expensive by the day. The costly prices of houses in Hawaii causes a major problem for struggling local Hawaii residents. This is a very hard problem to fix in Hawaii and it is not something that you like if you live in The state of Hawaii.

Querencia Final Draft

     Living in a house with 8 people and being the youngest one can be very stressful. Everybody can boss you around and their excuse is always, "I'm older than you." If the house has to be vacuumed or if our dog has to be taken out, guess who's doing the job. So sometimes I just want to be alone, but at home, there are no "me" places when you share a room with your brother and you have 7 other people on the other side of the door. My "special" place is outside at the baseball field. There's no one even near me who can yell at me and this is a place I am very familiar to.
     Baseball has been in my life for a huge part of my life. 9 years to be exact. The baseball field has become my second home without the 7 other people in my house telling me what to do. It's just me, my baseball stuff and a big open field. Just standing out on the diamond makes me think of every single time I played on a baseball field. Whether it was a good memory or a bad one, it stays in my mind to always comfort me. Out of all the options of things I can do to relieve my stress, I choose hitting off a tee into the towering backstop in the back of the field. Every swing takes away a little bit of stress off my shoulders and the sound of each ball smashing into the metal fence makes me a little more happy. 
      Since I could go to the park by myself I would go to the field every now and then and clear my mind of all the stress I have by hitting countless buckets of balls. Even when I was really little, my dad would take me to the same field and pitch to me buckets and buckets of balls. This baseball field, diamond or whatever you want to call it is really important to me because it has been my "special" place since I started going there with my dad. I cherish this place and will always remember the good times I had smacking balls.
     Going to my "special" place always made me feel a lot better and less stressed. Just being there on the field makes me feel relaxed. But, I can't stay at my "special" place forever. I always regret going home from the baseball field because I know that I won't get the peace and quiet I get at my "special" place. But, I know that I won't always get what I want. That's why when I go to my "querencia", it is really special to me.

Picture Frame Paragraph

       Rain trickles down the window beside us, but the Joy we have on Christmas Eve helps us forget about all of our surroundings. Although it is only 70 degrees outside, the laughter and hot cocoa fills the room with warmth as if we were covered in a hundred blankets. Mom tells us that it is time for bed, but our excitement for Santa's arrival keeps us up all night. We can't wait for the upcoming events that we have been waiting for for the past 365 long days. It seemed as if this day would never come. Dad finally dials down the Christmas tunes that has been playing since Black Friday. My eyes start to get heavy and I drift away into what seemed like an everlasting slumber.

      The sound of the loud footsteps from my siblings racing to the Christmas tree wakes me from my peaceful sleep. But as soon as I take a look under the Christmas tree for my presents, I am shocked to only see two small boxes with my name on it. My body abruptly explodes with anger, but it quickly fades away as I remember what Christmas is all about. We gather around the breakfast table and thank God for all of the blessings that he gave us throughout the year. I stuff my face with my Mom's world famous Turkey that she saved from Thanksgiving Day. The festivities that we undertake throughout the day completes this truly magical Christmas Day.

Special Querencia Draft

     Living in a house with 8 people and being the youngest one can be very stressful. Everybody can boss you around and their excuse is always, "I'm older than you." If the house has to be vacuumed or if our dog has to be taken out, guess who's doing the job. So sometimes I just want to be alone, but at home, there are no "me" places when you share a room with your brother and you have 7 other people on the other side of the door. My "special" place is outside at the baseball field. There's no one even near me who can yell at me and this is a place I am very familiar to.
     Baseball has been in my life for a huge part of my life. 9 years to be exact. The baseball field has become my second home without the 7 other people in my house telling me what to do. It's just me, my baseball stuff and a big open field. Out of all the options of things I can do, I choose hitting off a tee into the towering backstop in the back of the field.
      Since I could go to the park by myself I would go to the field every now and then and clear my mind of all the stress I have by hitting countless buckets of balls. Even when I was really little, my dad would take me to the same field and pitch to me buckets and buckets of balls. This "special" place is really special to me because it has been my "special" place since I started going there with my dad. I cherish this place and will always remember the good times I had smacking balls.
     Going to my "special" place always made me feel a lot better and less stressed. Just being there on the field makes me feel relaxed. But, I can't stay at my "special" place forever. I always regret going home from the baseball field because I know that I won't get the peace and quiet I get at my "special" place. But, I know that I won't always get what I want. That's why when I go to my "querencia", it is really special to me.

Special Place

     Essays, projects, blogs. All due tomorrow. Stress is building up inside of me. There's only one place where all of my stress temporarily disappears. That very special place is the baseball field. I grab my bat, glove, balls, and a tee and hurry out the door as my mom is yelling at me to do my homework. I'm out the door and I'm standing at the backstop of the baseball field. A towering fence where all of my balls will be hit at. Buckets and buckets of balls are hit, and the scorching sun evaporates the sweat of my head. But, I'm okay with this. This is what goes on at my special place. Endless buckets are being hit, and in my head I know that no one can bother me here. And then there's the ring of my phone. "Mom" is calling and I know what she wants. I have to leave my special place until another day. And back I go to the sleepless and homework filled night.

Words From the Heart Final Draft

MONKU, MONKU, MONKU BY ZAK TACHINO c/o 2019
   "Monku, monku, monku," said my mom as I refused to get up from bed. "I tell you this everyday." And she's right. I am the worst of all of my siblings. Although my mom says it to all of her kids, she says it to me the most. This is because as a child, I complained a lot and I didn't want to do things she told me to do. It could be for complaining about homework to how my whole body hurts. My mom's answer is always "monku, monku, monku".
     Monku is a Japanese word that means "grumble". So basically, when my mom calls me this she is saying that all I do is grumble all the time. My mom tells me this whenever I'm grumbling or if I don't do what she's telling me to. She told this to all of her children, but it is more important for me because she didn't tell my brothers this as much as she had to to me. But, I like when my mom tells me this because and it makes me feel special because this is the only phrase that my mom tells mostly me and not any of my brothers. She has been using this phrase since she had her first child. But, she didn't make up this phrase herself. She learned it from her mother, my grandma.
     "I said that to my children," my grandma stated. My mom took after her mother and that's why she says it to me and my brothers. But, even my grandma didn't make up this phrase. She learned it from her parents who used to tell her this, and they are from Japan. When they migrated from Japan to Hawaii, they carried along their Japanese language. Now, my grandma only uses some Japanese words such as "monku, monku, monku" and "ikimashoo" (let's go). These are phrases that have been used for at least three generations. But, I chose "monku, monku, monku" because this phrase was used on my mom and now she uses it on me. It shows how our family passes down things to the next generation such as phrases.
     Another perspective on this is from my brother Kaz. "I've heard mom say this, but mostly to you Zak." He said that our mom says this because I grumble all of the time. He also said that he has been hearing this phrase since he could understand words. But, since Kaz is the "good child" he isn't told this nearly as much as I am. That's why this phrase is so important to me. When I hear it, I automatically think they're talking to me.
     Nowadays, my mom doesn't have to tell me this because I'm in high school and I don't grumble that much. But, once in a while when I'm having a bad day, she tells me this and it teminds me of when she used to have to tell me this everyday as a little kid. "Monku, monku, monku" was used for at least three generations and I will definitely use this phrase on my children. It is really important to me because it is from my Japanese culture and I know I have one thing that has been used by my ancestors. I will never forget this phrase and I will certainly make sure it is passed down to the next generation of Tachino's just like how my grandma and my mom did. 

CNN News Chunky Paragraph

Isis is an Islamic terrorists group that recently destroyed a nearly 2,000 year old temple in Syria and they should be stopped immediately. "They destroyed an incredibly important architectual structure," said Abdulkarim, Syria's director of antiques and museums. Isis has destroyed a very ancient and cultural structure and they are not going to stop until they get what they want. Also, Irina Bokova, the director of UNESCO stated that this was a, "new war crime." Isis has been causing commotion all around Syria. They have blown up the temple and two shrines so far. These acts are a critical loss for the Syrian people and a disgrace to humanity. These people are hurting innocent people's culture and structures. In conclusion, Isis should be the number one priority for the world.






http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/25/middleeast/syria-isis-palmyra-ruins-temple-photos/index.html

Words From the Heart

     "Monku, monku, monku," said my mom as I refused to get up from bed. "I tell you this everyday." And she's right. I am the worst of all of my siblings. Although my mom says it to all of her kids, she says it to me the most. It can be for complaining about homework to how my whole body hurts. My mom's answer is always "monku, monku, monku".

     Monku is a Japanese word that means "grumble". So basically, when my mom calls me this she is saying that all I do is grumble all the time. My mom tells me this whenever I'm grumbling or if I don't do what she's telling me to. She told this to all of her children, but it is more important for me because she didn't tell my brothers this as much as she had to to me. She has been using this phrase since she had her first child. But, she didn't make up this phrase herself. She learned it from her mother, my grandma.

     "I said that to my children," my grandma stated. My mom took after her mother and that's why she says it to me and my brothers. But, even my grandma didn't make up this phrase. She learned it from her parents who used to tell her this, and they are from Japan. When they migrated from Japan to Hawaii, they carried along their Japanese language. Now, my grandma only uses some Japanese words such as "monku, monku, monku" and "ikimashoo" (let's go). These are phrases that have been used for at least three generations.

     Another perspective on this is from my brother Kaz. "I've heard mom say this, but mostly to you Zak." He said that our mom says this because I grumble all of the time. He also said that he has been hearing this phrase since he could understand words. But, since Kaz is the "good child" he isn't told this nearly as much as I am. That's why this phrase is so important to me. When I hear it, I automatically think they're talking to me.

     "Monku, monku, monku" was used for at least three generations and I will definitely use this phrase on my children. It is really important to me because it is kind of from my Japanese culture and I know I have at least one thing that has been used by my ancestors. I will never forget this phrase and I will certainly make sure it is passed down to the next generation of Tachino's.

Meet Zak

     Hi, my name is Zak and this is my blog, "THAT'S WRITE!" I named my blog this because writing can make you emotional such as making you yell, THAT'S WRITE! In my background, I chose to put  shiny diamonds all around because in life you have to shine bright like a diamond. Also, I put bright colors in my overall design of my blog to make it stand out and so it's not boring. 

     The world I come from has no breaks. Most of my life is strictly baseball, and I don't mind it. I've been playing since I was 4 and breaks were very limited. I play year round with no time for other sports. Occasionally, I have a whole weekend to myself and it feels really good to just stay inside my house all day. I eat mint chocolate chip ice cream and Flamin Hot Cheetos because those are my favorites. 
     But, sometimes my breaks are the worst. Such as when I have to clean the house and when I have to eat vegetables. Eating vegetables can make any food taste bad. If there's tomatoes on my pizza, I'm gonna take it off.