Painting Places Paragraphs
Name: 


A red asterisk (*) indicates required questions.

  1. There once was a sunny day on the shores of Lake Michigan in Chicago, Illinois. The year was 2008, and the month was July, during the heart of summer. Parents would run around with their kids laughing on the beach having an ice cream cone in one hand and a volleyball in the other hand. The sand would blow around as the waves would crash into the shore, one by one. That was a time when all was good, many had fun, and problems seemed so far away. However, things have changed a lot, and it isn’t like that anymore. The beach is empty, the water is still, and the sky is gloomy.*
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  1. Down the block from the glowing white Hollywood sign is Hollywood Boulevard. Bright with lights of inner city bars and trendy outfits, this street is always the spot to be. The latest fashion of bright neon colors hang in the glossy windows of the shops. Wobbly drunken people stammer off to find the person they will be with tonight. Here this flashing city never sleeps. *
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  1. Cold Morning
    I wake up in my warm and cozy bed. I don’t want to get up. I look outside to the dark and damp morning. I walk into my bright yellow bathroom, and it reminds me of the hot and sunny days that are in the summer. When I’m done getting ready, I walk downstairs and turn the lights on low so I don’t bother the snoozing dogs. I get my bookbag and my shoes, and I go out into the half dark and half light morning. I walk to my bus stop and wait for the big yellow bus. I look back into the snow that is so smooth that when I walk into it I can see the imprint from the bottom of my shoe. The bus arrives and I walk onto the bus with the darkness that hides everyone staring at you getting on. I take my seat on the hard bus seat that squeaks when I sit down. Then I look forward to the rocky bus ride. I get to school and walk in wondering if this day will be a good day that I wish for everyday.*
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  1. When I first entered the place, the smell of butter filled the air. There was overpriced colorful candy and buttery popcorn everywhere. There were tons of people waiting in line, heading to the theaters, and in the game room. There are always crowded bathrooms and crowded theaters. Refreshing drinks and Icee’s in the cup holders. It’s dark in the theater but bright everywhere else. During previews, everyone is talking and texting about the new movies coming to theaters near you, but when the movie starts, everything gets quiet, and we watch. After the movie, everyone gets up and stretches, and heads to the clean bathrooms that will be filled with trash and popcorn at the end of the day. People are tired of sitting and want to do something like walk around the mall or go to the game room. No one wants to eat popcorn and candy for a while, and everyone goes home smelling like popcorn.*
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  1. It was a cold winter day in a nice town of Bird Money. Everything was quiet. The streets were dark and scarce, and every house on the block was quieter than corn. The only thing you could hear was the sound of the wind blowing, and every once in a while, you could hear something fall from the old junkyard a couple blocks down the street and a pack of dogs barking at each other as if they are planning to meet up later. *
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  1. The Flawless Finish to a Perfect Half
    The constant buzz of the rambunctious audience kept our minds on a frantic edge. The up-tempo of the wild dribbling on the slick oak-wood floor kept our teammates' hearts beating in rhythm. It was as if we all moved as one just like a geese formation in the late autumn sky. We all crashed the orange stainless steel rim once the ball was swifted through the air. I launched a kangaroo leap into the air and jammed the spherical object through the double rim. The clock wound down to 0.2, and we all grinned with optimistic satisfaction, as we waltzed into the locker room with a grand lead of 13 points.*
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  1. The Court
    Walking into the gym is like walking on a cloud. As soon as you walk through the doors, you are in heaven. Whether it’s the sound of your brand new Jordan brand tennis shoes squeaking against the brightened hardwood floor of the basketball court, or the excitement of a guy slamming down a dunk on his defender that makes you want to get right into the game. Whistles are blown after the sound of a smack to an arm as a player tries to hit a lay-up, so that his team can get on the scoreboard. Silence then fills the air as the multitudes of people discontinue their conversations to see the player shoot his free throws, which could make or break a game as we know it. But when the final buzzer sounds off, the game is no longer the battle field it once was just a few seconds before. The players shake hands and say their good-bye’s, knowing that they will play again, maybe in a few days or maybe not until the next year. *
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  1. The porch
    On a gray groggy summer afternoon, I slid the white cool glass door open. The rush of warm air touches my skin diving into the very core of my bones making me shiver. I step onto the cool rough concrete. I walk slowly to my white wicker settee that hangs about a foot above the ground. I sit on the comfy green flower patterned pillow layered out upon the swing. I look out to my back yard and see a big murky pond. There’s a weeping willow tree growing outward toward the middle of the pond just at the edge of the water. The air around me is growing thick with static making the ends of my hair stand up. In the distance I can hear a growing thunderstorm. Everything is almost at a stand still waiting for the summer shower to appear and drench everything in its melancholy glory. This is what appears to me on the porch.*
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  1. Red Garden
    The red roses smell so glorious from the pedals of the flower. The garden has many different red flowers, which blend in the green of the leaves. There are really delicious strawberries in the garden too, but what catches my attention is the gentle breeze of the wind as it flows through the leaves, making a wonderful and amazing sound. *
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Mrs. Miceli
English Teacher
Indiana Connections Academy
Indianapolis, IN