Out and About with Kate

New York, New York...

2008-11-26T22:14:00.002-05:00

Last year, my mom, sister, friend, her mom, and I, all went to New York City on a bus trip. The whole trip was really for buying purses, but we went to the more exciting things.

When we got on the bus at 11:30 p.m., I was pretty tired. The seat in front of me squished my legs. My friend and I shoved our bags pretty snug. I don’t think they were going anywhere. The bus driver picked me to pull a name out of a jar to win a Coach purse. I pulled it, hoping it was my mom, but it was some lady who was sitting right behind me.

We arrived around 6 a.m., but then we drove around for another two hours looking at things. I was asleep, I think. Then we got out of the bus and stopped to think about where we were going. There were some Christmas decorations, since it was around this time of year. So then, we walked up to the tall Empire State Building. There wasn’t anyone really in it, so it barely took us any time to get to the top. We rode up about 80 levels. You could see everything from the top, and the taxis looked like little yellow ants.

After that, we went to Macy’s which had around seven stories and a fast food restaurant on every floor. We also visited St. Patrick’s Cathedral, which was huge. There were so many people that there was a wedding going on, and we didn’t even know it. Toys-R-Us was gigantic; there was even a Ferris wheel that you could ride. There was a huge section for candy where you could fill a little jar with whatever you wanted.

Then we went to Rockefeller Plaza and we actually had to wait in a line to ice-skate. We had to wait in a huge line for an hour. Then you had to rent skates, and put them on with 50 other people in the same small room. Then these show off workers kept on skating up and down really fast and then stopping. I think they were showing off. We had to get off the ice around an hour later.

I really like New York and I can't wait to go back someday.

The 5th Grade Vote

2008-11-07T19:01:00.001-05:00

On November 4 2008, my class had a mock election in our social studies class. We knew the votes wouldn’t count, but it was for fun. Some of the kids had jobs. One was highlighting the person’s name on a piece of paper to make sure they were registered. Another was handing out the paper ballots. My job was opening the ballot box so the voter could put their ballot in, and then I gave them an “I Voted” paper ribbon.

Many people didn’t fold their ballot in half and I couldn’t help to see their vote. Most of the people had McCain. I didn’t really know anyone who wanted to vote for Obama, so I knew he was going to lose badly. After everyone voted, the three kids who had jobs would take turns voting.

I had to make up a test, so I went to study hall. Three people I knew came in with the ballot box. They started taking out papers and counting the votes. When I finished my test, I went outside for recess. I really wanted to know who won, and then I saw my friend come outside. She went straight to our social studies teacher, and told her something. I knew she was telling her who won. When she was done talking, my friend and I ran over to find out the DL (the down low). She didn’t want to tell us, but I got it out of her. She said that John McCain won, but not by too many. Barack Obama had 40 votes, and John McCain had 51.

A trip to Pittsburgh

2008-09-28T17:27:00.005-04:00

The Cheesecake Factory at the Southside Works
The University of Pittsburgh's Cathedral of Learning
The Pitt Squirrel

The Pitt Panther

A couple weeks ago, I went to Pittburgh with my family. We went to the Cheesecake Factory and the Pitt campus. In the front of the Cheesecake Factory there we're fountains that would shoot up, and you could walk through them. Then we walked on the sidewalk to the bookstore. It had an escalator and many sections for adults, teens, and kids. The chairs were very comfy, and the book pillows looked like a pyramid. Three people could actually prop their books up and read. There was also a thick piece of twisted yarn that you could use as a bookmark. I bought a copy of the book Eleven by Lauren Myracle.

We went back to the parking garage, and drove to the Pitt campus. We were going to go to the Pitt Stop to buy some t-shirts, but it was closed. While we were walking we saw the statue of the Pitt Panther. We took some pictures of the Cathedral of Learning, but all of the nationality rooms were closed. My sister didn't like the inside of the Cathedral because she said it reminded her of Hogwarts.

My First Vist to Shorty's Lunch in Washington, Pa.

2008-09-17T21:57:00.007-04:00

We took these photos with my mom's cell phone.

Today I went to Shorty’s Hot Dogs in Washington, Pa. after my doctor’s appointment. I got out of the car and had to put 50 cents in the parking meter for an hour and ten minutes.

My mom and I walked across the road and saw Shorty’s. There were hot dogs cooking in the window. As we walked in, I noticed it was very old fashioned and dark. A lady who worked there said that it was built for a hot dog place in the 1930s and they never changed it.

We had to go to the restroom so we asked the lady where they were. She told us to go through the kitchen and down the steps. The kitchen was vacant. We walked down the steps to the restrooms and it was SCARY!

Then, we walked back up, through the kitchen, to the booth, and sat down. The waitress came right away and asked what we wanted to drink. I ordered an ice cold Coke and my mom ordered a diet Coke. My mom and I decided what we wanted. She came back right away with our drinks and to ask us the question, “What would you like to eat?”

I replied and said, “I would like a plain hot dog and small fries.”

My mom ordered a chili dog. My mom and I couldn’t even start a conversation before our food got there. That’s how fast they are!

I bought a red Shorty's t-shirt on the way out for 10 dollars. After Shorty’s we went to Popcorn Willie’s and bought some delicious buttery popcorn!

President Bill Clinton's Visit to Washington, Pa.

2008-09-04T09:45:00.002-04:00

My mom took this photo of President Clinton as he was leaving Washington & Jefferson College.

WASHINGTON - It was a cold, winter day when former President William Clinton came to Washington, Pa.

Hundreds of people stood in line Tuesday, March 11 waiting for the doors to open at Washington & Jefferson’s Henry Gymnasium. There was a line of people that snaked through the campus. Everyone was waiting for a chance to hear Clinton talk about his wife Hillary, who is running for President.

People passed out Hillary stickers until noon when the doors opened. My mom and I were lucky enough to get a good seat. It seemed like forever waiting for Clinton to come out from behind the curtain. I looked around and I saw that ¾ of the people were wearing jeans. But, my mom said to dress up, because you’re not supposed to wear jeans to meet the President.

Finally, he came out and everyone stood up, took pictures, and clapped. Lots of reporters, photographers, and television crews were there. People held signs up as colorful as the rainbow, but I didn’t read them. They were too boring.

Almost everybody raised their hands when Clinton asked how many people knew somebody without health insurance. He said that Hillary will provide health care for everybody.

Clinton said that if his wife is president, she will bring our troops home form Iraq. There were many other things he said, but they got too boring for me.

When it was over, my mom and I tried to shake his hand, but we couldn’t squeeze through the enormous crowd. So we went outside and waited for him to come out of the gymnasium. We stood in the small crowd, anxious for Clinton to appear. The state police and the secret service told us to stay on the sidewalk.

As he came out, people ran to him like wild animals wanting to get autographs, pictures, and handshakes from the former President. Luckily, I was able to push my way through the crowd. I reached over two people’s shoulders asking him to sign my notebook, but he was too far away to hear or see me. Finally, some nice guy from the secret service snatched the book, and said, “Hold on to your pen. I’ll give this to him to sign, and I’ll give it right back to you.” Meanwhile, my mom was frantically looking for me yelling my name. I ran to her and we waited for my book to come back. When the secret service man gave it back, I looked at it, and I was surprised to see former President Bill Clinton’s real autograph.

Too bad I’m only ten, because I would really like to vote for the next president of the United States.

A trip to Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater

2008-09-04T06:39:00.001-04:00

My Webkinz panda Beijing enjoyed the scenery at Fallingwater!

Frank Lloyd Wright is America’s most famous architect and I went to see a house he built. It’s called Fallingwater and I went to see it with my family. This house was built over a waterfall in the woods. This unique house was built for the Kaufmann family of Pittsburgh.

There were stairs coming up from the water so they could go swimming or fishing. Their living room’s fireplace was made out of a boulder because Frank Lloyd Wright wanted to use what nature gave him. They used their living room for entertainment when guests came. They had a music box so they could use their whole floor for dancing. Their table had chairs with three legs instead of barrel chairs so it wouldn’t rock on the uneven floor. Each member of the family had their own bedroom, bathroom, fireplace, and balcony. The closets were all wood so there were holes on the shelves to keep the musty smells away.

On the way up to the guest house, the stairs weren’t straight up so it didn’t look too steep, so the stairs were circular. The cushions on the couch were three feet wide so the guests would have more sleeping space. The Kaufmanns thought that the guests shouldn’t have to walk all the way down to the stream to cool off, so they put a swimming pool in. This was my favorite part of the house.