Monthly Archives: March 2025

Rivals By Tommy Greenwald

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Rivals, by Tommy Greenwald, is a great novel for teens for love sports. Two star basketball middle school boys feel the pressure to perform: a pressure many playing at an elite level feel. It is totally relatable, and as an AAU basketball player, I can really sympathize with what each boy is experiencing.

For Austin Chambers, basketball is starting to feel like a job. He must deal with his father’s legacy and worries that he’s not good enough to live up to it.

Carter Haswell, across town, is brilliantly talented and stressed to stay on his school’s basketball team to help them win and get a scholarship for college to ease his family’s financial situation.

Carter and Austin’s schools are traditionally rivals, and competition between those two middle schools is fierce. Neither school wants to lose, and Carter and Austin each do whatever it takes to win. However, the competitive spirits go way too far, and a few players get seriously injured. Through this, Tommy Greenwald shows how it’s good to compete in sports, but not to let it escalate to the point where people get hurt. Winning shouldn’t be a priority over health.

By the end of the novel, Carter, Austin, and the rest of their teams realize the same thing: at the end of the day, these sports are supposed to be for fun. This is something important to keep in mind because whatever sport you play should be to have fun and be competitive. Austin’s dad also sees that his son just wants to play for enjoyment, and that he shouldn’t force his legacy on him. He lets Austin have fun at the park simply playing ball, and Austin feels like basketball is his friend once again.

This book was totally enjoyable and relatable. The reader can really connect with the characters and learn an important message: sports should be competitive, but never forget that they are supposed to be fun.

Rivals by Tommy Greenwald is available to check out from the Mission Viejo Library.

How to Reorganize and Decorate Your Desk

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Most of us use a desk for…everything. Watching videos, playing games, doing hobbies, finishing homework. Desks tend to get cluttered easy, but with some good organization and decoration it becomes easier to direct your focus to the right things!

Cleaning

When cleaning, it helps to start with one place at a time. Try just doing one desk drawer or picking up one type of supply. You don’t even have to clean everything up in one sitting, you can do it over a day, over a week, etc.

Putting markers back in boxes, stacking papers, and throwing away scraps are good ways to start that aren’t too overwhelming. Do whatever works for you!

When deciding whether something should be thrown away, consider whether you might need it later or if it has sentimental value to you. Loose papers and plastics should be recycled, if possible.

Now for the redecorating!

Storage

Desk drawers get easily cluttered. It helps to divide them with trays so you can easily sort, say, pencils from pens, or highlighters from erasers. If your desk doesn’t have drawers, keep your supplies in a bag or container that’s nearby and in view. If your supply storage is somewhere harder to reach, you might get lazy and just leave things out on the table!

If you have a lot of cables to your devices, try separating them using a cable organizer to avoid tangles.

Desktop

If you find that your desk gets a lot of scratches or marks, you can try getting a protective deskmat that can withstand some blows.

Lighting

Lighting is a great way to enhance the mood of your work area. Maybe you want to try hanging fairy lights for something cozier, or desk lamps. Different colors can also change the feel of your desk, so try them out!

Wall Decor

Besides just the area on your desk, the walls around or behind it can be decorated! Try hanging up posters, prints, or if you dabble in art, even drawings of your own. Just make sure that whatever you use to hang them off won’t damage your walls, and you’re good! You can also hang up objects or props you love, as well as plants (real or fake!).

Habits

Cleaning your desk one time won’t solve the problem forever. When you take something out, put it back when you’re done. Plus, doing small sweeps regularly to rid your desk of trash is easier than letting it pile up.

And that’s it! Redoing your desk can help motivate you to finish work and make the space feel more comfortable. If you want more ideas, try looking up references, as they’re a great place to start. Good luck!