Parrot in the Oven does not really say where this is taking place, but it is somewhere near the Sierra Desert in the United States. The time period is around the 1990s. Nardo and Manny describe this place as scorching hot, dry and crisp, and miserable. You can tell that it is summer because they are working in a chili pepper field, in the extremely hot sun, and the insane heat. Compared to where I live, it is extremely hot, and no one would be allowed to go  outside if it was this hot.

Manny is a teenager trying to get on his father’s good side, but nothing seems to work. His father(the alcoholic) thinks  his son is a coward and never does anything. Manny’s dad calls Manny a Perico or parrot. Perico is coming from a Spanish folktale about a parrot that is complaining how hot it  is in the shade when the whole time the parrot was really in an oven. The dad calls him this because Manny is gullable. The reason I mention Manny’s father is because he influences Manny by trying to get him to be someone he is not. Manny is different from me because if my father was not happy for who I was, then I would not try to change myself. I would not change myself for anyone unless it was for a good reason. That is all I have for the introduction of Parrot in the Oven by Victor Martinez, it is a  great book and I hope you will read it someday.

It was a hot, muggy day on Friday, August 25, in Houston, Texas. This just so happened to be the day that Hurricane Harvey hit the southern shores of the United States. Particularly, it hit Texas, Louisiana, and the Caribbean. Harvey was a Category 3 hurricane, and even though it was kind of a medium size hurricane, it still caused extensive damage.

Even though Hurricane Harvey was only a Category 3, as stated above, it caused a lot of damage. This damage was caused mostly by water. You may be asking yourself, how could water have  possibly done that much damage? The answer to that is force. Water has a lot of force when it gets moving, and it will eventually take out anything in its path. Just imagine, if you lived in Texas, what would you do if you came out of your house and the water in the street was up to your waist. How would you feel? Many people have suffered tragic losses such as their homes, many, if not all, of their possessions, and some, even a family member’s life.

Hurricane Katrina is the most expensive hurricane in history, costing 108  billion dollars….. or at least  it used to be.Scientists expect the recovery from Hurricane Harvey will cost 70 to 250 billion dollars. The water damage will be the most expensive because of mold, and anything the water has touched has to be replaced. Houston says that it will take years to recover from this devastating hurricane.

In the first four days of Harvey hitting Texas, it brought 40 inches of water into the southern cities of Texas. This amount of water ended a record 12 year drought. Some may consider this drought being broken a good thing, but most say all of the water has ruined their homes.  Miss Freimuth, who has never been in a hurricane before says, ” My cousins, who live down in Houston, said that nothing of theirs has been affected by the hurricane. They were able to get to high ground.”. This family was one of the very few people that were so lucky.

As you can see, many people are struggling in Texas, and there are some ways that you and your community can help. Even if you are hundreds of miles away, you can still help by sending food, supplies, and any other necessary items needed to survive. If you do live in Texas, you can volunteer for the American Red Cross. As you can see, Harvey has hit Houston very hard, damaging and devastating people’s lives. Find out how you can help Texas in their long and hard recovery from Hurricane Harvey.

On Friday August,25, Hurricane Harvey hit Texas and Louisiana as well as many countries in South America. It was a Category 3 hurricane that devastated many people in the south. The damage it caused was very extensive. It damaged homes, vehicles, and just about anything in its path. But how did Harvey cause so much damage, even though it was only a Category 3? The answer to that is water. According to meteorologists, water did the most damage during the hurricane.  Just imagine, if you live in Texas, what would happen if you came out of your house one and there was multiple feet of water in the street. How would you feel? Many people have suffered tragic losses because of Harvey. Many have lost their homes, all of their possessions, and some, even a family member’s life.

Hurricane Harvey has caused a lot of damage, as you may know. It has caused so much damage that it is expected to be the most costly hurricane in history. While Hurricane Katrina was the most costly hurricane at 108 billion dollars, Hurricane Harvey is expected to cost much more. With extensive water damage pretty much everywhere in the affected area, that is supposed to be the most costly. This money will cover the rebuild of houses, buildings, and all of the cars and signs that were ruined by the hurricane. Houston expects that it will take years to fully recover from Hurricane Harvey.

In the first four days of Harvey hitting Texas, it brought 40 inches of water into the southern cities of Texas. This amount of water ended a record 12 year drought. Some may consider the drought ending being a good thing, but most people say all this water has completely ruined their homes. One victim Tosha Atibu and his family said they had to flee northeastern Houston to get out of the way of the forceful flood waters. Atibu says that him and his family are now living in his broken down house. ” I know its not a safe place to be but… I have no other place to go.”. This is just one example of what people are dealing with in Texas.

As you can see, many people are struggling in Texas and there are some ways that you and your community can help them. Even if you are hundreds of miles away. You can donate food and supplies, and if you do live in Texas, you could volunteer for the American Red Cross. As you can see, Harvey has hit Texas very hard damaging and devastating people’s lives. Find out how you can help Texas in their struggle to rebuild the cities hit by Hurricane Harvey.

At Blackhawk Middle School on Thursday August 24, students were in for some shocking news. Students would soon find out that their school was going to have to wear a uniform. It is supposed to start after Labor Day for the students. Mrs Oaks,  the insructional coach who made the announcement, had just came over to Blackhawk from Northwood. She explained that this uniform will help deal with dress code distractions. She also explained that the other middle schools were doing this as well. According to scientists, studies show that having everyone wear the same thing helps students better focus on their grades.

This announcement had each and every student in an outrage. Some students were so upset that they cried. The students were thoroughly upset at the fact that they did not have a say in this. They think they should have the right to vote on this matter. Language arts class after language arts class kids were mad. Students want to know why the school did not tell them this at registration. Students were also mad because their parents had already bought them back to school clothes.  They complained that they would be wasting money buying these new uniforms. Blackhawk students also said their parents would not buy the uniforms. So what will happen next? We will see soon.