People and "True" Love

               Okay, a secret about me: I enjoy watching a show called The Millionaire Matchmaker. It’s an entertaining show because it’s about all of these people who seek the matchmaker, Patti, to help them find true love. The people that come in though, always seem to think that they are all that and that it other people’s problem that they haven’t met their “true” love yet. There is usually something wrong with them though (mostly involving their attitudes), and Patti finds it and then uses it to deflate their egos a bit (plus teach them a lesson) leading to them being more desirable to women. Watching the guys change though is a hilarious rollercoaster. However, only some of the couples end up lasting more than a couple of months. They believe that they have true love, and then the relationship ends so quickly.

                I don’t really think that I believe in true love. I find it a nice dream to have and I am always so ecstatic for people that I know when they find their dream soul mate, and I believe it possible for them; however I have never thought it possible for me. I know that it is a strange way of thinking, but that’s what I have always thought/believed. What adds to my disbelief is that when kids today say how much they are in love with their boyfriend/girlfriend, I immediately want to laugh at their foolishness. For kids these days, to believe that they are in love and only in high school is hard to believe, I mean it is high school and we are still so young, so how is it possible to know who we want to spend the rest  of our lives with? The word “love” is used way too casually in our everyday conversations. How are people supposed to realize that when you tell them that you love them that you mean it like you love a sweater or that you actually like them for who they are. Also, it’s not as big of a deal these days if you don’t love someone and your married to them, because you can just get a divorce, compared to in other societies and cultures, you are stuck with that person till they die.

                All in all, I feel that love is not a good word to use because of its common everyday usage. Its common usage is based off of our society and how as people become more dramatic, then they also look for more meaningful words to replace the everyday words. So I feel that the major lesson of the day would be to not use words unless you are prepared for their real meaning and that you sincerely mean what you are saying. 

Hypocrisy Involving Truth

            People can be so hypocritical when it comes to telling the truth.  There are situations where humans desire to know the truth, and either they receive it or are lied to about it. Then there are other times where they think that they want to hear/discover the truth, when they would actually be happier not knowing, or believing a false truth. I dislike the hypocrisy surrounding the concept of truth, but it is perfectly understandable to me about why it exists. A classic example would be a girl asking a guy if an outfit looks good on her. If it doesn’t the guy could either tell her the truth and face the consequences or he could say yes and lie about it to keep her happy.  The girl may desire the truth about the outfit, however most off the time, the people might just think that they want to know the truth however ignorance is bliss to them.  

It is human nature to try to keep people happy, and if that means lying and not telling them the truth, then so be it. The people that are brutally honest usually get a bad reputation in society because others view them as being mean and cruel, because they are not censoring their thoughts. They just say what comes to their mind, leading to them being very blunt and honest. It might be human nature to survive, which is why people deceive others when it comes to the truth. People don’t want to hurt others or burden them with reality, so instead they tell false truths to help others survive in today’s world as best as they can. However much society would like to believe that they are truthful, in reality by believing that is just adding to the lies surrounding truth, and is proving human nature to be very hypocritical and cowardly because they don’t want to own up to what life actually is.  

Life Without IB (Shout Out to Tori AND Katie!)

Okay, so I was slightly procrastinating on homework the previous night, and I was flipping through some people’s blogs (awful way to procrastinate because it is still homework related) and I saw one on Katie’s that was a shout out to one that Tori did, and I really liked the topic that they wrote about. So hopefully they won’t mind that I am going to use their topic as well. I don’t know if I could see my life without IB. However I feel that if I wasn’t in the IB program I would probably be doing as many AP classes as possible, leading to a slow and painful death. At least with the IB program, the classes are planned out so there is a slightly smaller chance of not overworking myself. I feel though that if I was taking AP courses, I would not be friends with a lot of the people that I am friends with now. Granted, I would be able to spend more time with my older friends, but I am always one for new friends. Plus I feel that with AP I might have had more of a social life (strange concept…a social life…huhhh…).

 However AP courses are not as much my style because it is more memorization then comprehension and I have one of the worst memories possible. Plus, I wanted to improve my writing and since we do so much writing in IB, it’s a great way to improve my writing. Without IB, I would have more time for my extracurricular and volunteering activities. Plus I would possibly be able to get more sleep. Though IB takes a lot of work and there is so much stress, I feel that it is a great experience and I am enjoying learning new things about different people from teachers to students. All in all, I really like IB (and I feel that so does everyone else), no matter how much we all complain and whine about it! 

Dreaming about Sleep/Sleeping

           Sleep…also known as the elusive dream of a high school student. Or at least the elusive dream for an IB and AP student, and I guess anybody else who works really hard. I know that for me, at least during the school year, getting sleep is difficult. A good night’s worth of sleep is 6 hours. It’s so little because between the extracurricular activities, school work/homework, stuff to be done at home, and then friends and all of their problems, it’s hard to get everything done. Yet it’s what we as students do to continue doing what we are doing in our lives. Still, it’s hard for me to see some of my friends change as they lose sleep. One of my friends has gained bags under his eyes and his temper has become worse because he is not getting enough sleep, as he instead studies and does sports.
           I read an article today about how teenager’s brains are chemically wired for the teenager to sleep more than an adult or a little kid, as they grow at the crucial stage of almost like a halfway point. The article proves that teenagers need more sleep, yet I know nobody who gets the nine hours of sleep a night. To me, that’s insane. It would be nice, but there is just so much to do, and we are at a crucial point in our lives right now, so how could we spend nine hours sleeping and not doing homework? However, I know that on weekends many people crash as they get about 12 hours of sleep a night. I remember when I was younger, I would always think that those types of people were storing the energy away for the week, so that that way they could continue functioning properly.
           Personally, during the week I can’t wait for the weekend to get some sleep but even then it’s difficult because of the homework received on Friday and then due Monday. I find it ironic then when we come back to school on Monday and in for example, Spanish class, Señora Foster would always ask us what we did over the BEAUTIFUL weekend. The weekend that nobody enjoyed because of homework, she is always so surprised.  It’s just entertaining to me to see sometimes the teachers surprised by the amount of work that we do. Even my dad, was shocked by the amount of homework that we can sometimes get. Well, I kind of got off topic however I can’t wait for college to get some sleep! (Just kidding, college will probably equal double the work load of now…Yay! *please note the sarcasm*)

Sword Fights and Chivalry...Two Long Dead Concepts

                My sisters were fighting with these new light saber toys that they got (granted they are 13 and 15 years old…but their mind set are that of little children’s), and it brought to my mind the Middle Ages. In English class, we had just finished discussing the Middle Ages, as well as I had a discussion with my friend Zach involving the subject. Sword fights back in the Middle Ages, always made me laugh when we discussed it in class because of all of the rules that went along with it. It didn’t even seem like fighting anymore. Chivalry too, is a long dead concept. You don’t really see guys constantly idolizing girls anymore (or at least displaying it openly in public), nor do guys place their jacket on a puddle on the ground so that the woman could step on the jacket and not in the puddle (funny idea brought up by Zach). It’s not practical in the modern day society, but the fact that the concept used to exist is really interesting. The world has changed so much since that time period. I wonder how much the world would have changed from now till…for example 2020, I mean, just 10 years could make such a major difference.  When you think about the concept of the future, kids in the future won’t have the same stuff that we have today. So just like we don’t have sword fights (no matter how interesting they might be!), or chivalry, the future generations won’t have CD players or the ability to play outside because the concept to them is abnormal and uncommon throughout their society. It’s depressing to think about, to think about how much the world will have changed in just such a short span…maybe humanity is too technologically savvy/forward thinking. 

Observation About Black Friday

          In my family, it is a tradition to go Black Friday shopping. I haven’t gone the past couple of years, but I decided that I wanted to go this year; however I had forgotten how hectic Black Friday is. Previous to going shopping, I had been talking to my boyfriend about it and he had been making fun of my mom for making a list of where to go, when the stores opened, and what she wanted to get from each one. If you don’t make a list though, it’s virtually impossible to get to everything. It’s twice as difficult because each store opens at different times and they all have different sales, so you have to walk in knowing what you want and you have to be able to leave really fast before the lines for the cash register get really long. Our family is not hard core Black Friday shoppers (for example sleeping outside the store the night before), but we got up at 2am on Friday. Personally, I love the atmosphere of Black Friday shopping because everybody is all happy and excited to be up and to get what they want/need. However as the day wears on towards the afternoon, people get tired and cranky, and that’s when it becomes obvious that the day’s over. Some people just get really rude, and it spoils the concept of having fun shopping and talking with other people as you wait in line. However the sales are usually alright, but these days the greatness of the sales have decreased, which causes me to wonder why people still continue to go shopping on  Black Friday. I mean, we are in a recession, the economy is down, people are unemployed, and yet everyone is out shopping and spending money. It’s quite contradicting. However, I think that the whole reason that people do it is because they need something happy in their lives, something to look forward to, when all the future seems to present them is uncertainty and sadness. The fact that us as humans do that, to me is like a little glitch in our system, however without it, more people would probably be looking at a bleak and dismal future and they would be left with no room to hope for improvement, so I guess glitches are best for the world! 

Actors vs. Crew/Techies

                In every show, actors can get so particular about various insignificant things. It is an old running joke amongst the crew and techies about whether or not actors could manage without us to help them. It’s a joke because there are some actors/performers who act like they are so much better than us because they are actually in the show and we are not; however we always sit back stage wondering how badly the show would crumble without us. I don’t think that it’s an arrogant way to think because we appreciate what they do and we realize how difficult it is, and that we would never be able to do what they do on their level. However, the actors like to complain a lot about little things, like someone not having a prop that they need when they are perfectly capable of getting it themselves or being tired. The crew and techies build the set, take care of lights and audio, paint and design the set, move it during transitions, and plan everything out to go smoothly.  Crew learns the harsh lesson of blood (you aren’t a real crew member until you have bled on the stage while working and not cared), sweat (if you don’t get sweaty while working, then something is wrong with your body), and tears (alright, maybe not tears because I’ve never seen anyone cry, but it goes with the flow…you should want to cry from annoyance, frustration, and exhaustion by the time everything is done, because everything is never all done). All the actors have to do is to take all of the pieces that we have completed and make sure that they combine it to look as effortlessly as possible, and because that they are able to do that is amazing! To me though, it just shows a difference in talents because I would be hopeless as an actor, but I was able to take apart one of the old six foot tall boxes from Bye Bye Birdie in a jiffy with a power drill, and not many girls know how to use one properly these days. I feel like everybody’s differences make them who they are, and I am who I am today because of stage crew and I’m proud of it! 

Rant About Hell Week

This is delayed. I meant to write out my thoughts about hell week during hell week, but the week was too busy for me, and I ended up not having the time to sit down and write this blog till about a week or so after it. I guess that proves my point of how insane hell week is though. Hell week for theater shows is almost impossible at times. For Noises Off, it was dreadful, but in a good way. During hell week, everybody involved acts like the walking dead because of the sleep deprivation, some teachers cut some slack on assignments but others seem to just stress the due dates more, leaving no lee way. However at the end of our self inflicted nightmare, I know at least I came out with a sense of pride about how the show did and a little bit involving how I handled the drama that always comes with being involved in theater. Drama is always apparent during hell week because for example, I would not go home after school. Instead I would get ready for rehearsal for that night, try to do some homework, maybe eat, and then help everyone else with everything possible. It was insane. Then everyone else would show up at the school and we would all be at the school till 10pm or 10:30pm (occasionally 11pm). Then I would go home and do homework for a couple of hours, and not get to bed till 3am, and then get up again at 5am to finish up my homework. But seeing the same people every night for an extended amount of time, and out of tiredness and sometimes boredom, drama would always flare up. It makes it interesting though. I enjoy hell week because of how busy our lives are, but I was so happy to be done with it just because of my slacking on my grades, forgetting things as my memory became worse, and I was exhausted. Plus I felt like I had accomplished something. However now that it’s done, I almost feel like there is nothing in my life. We have a saying in stage/tech about how we sell our souls to theater, and it is completely true. After shows are completely done and we have been given back our souls and free time as a reward, it’s almost amazing how not busy life is. My boredom level seems to have increased, and I find myself wandering back to the tech booth like a lost puppy. It’s quite disconcerting actually. I am excited to find something new to do with my time though, however it won’t last too long because the musical preparations are starting early this year, so I get to enjoy that as well. 

Topics and Emotions

Coming up with topics to write about in these blogs have gotten repeatedly more and more difficult. I am not really a person who enjoys blogging about my personal life, nor will I ever be. Just writing about random stuff is hard. Unfortunately it is really stretching my mind to continuously do these, although that is probably the point of these. In fact, that’s the point of the class it seems like. The class is constantly causing at least me to look at things from a new perspective. For example, we had discussed last Tuesday, about emotions and how in reality emotions do not exist because they are just how we interpret how our body reacts to various situations. I had never really considered that until it was presented in class, and it makes so much sense to me now.  We had even taken an EQ test in class, and the results were surprising because of how low our class was on the scale. I received a 10/20, which to me makes sense. It makes sense for there to be lower scores because in the modern world, feelings are apparent and we are able to recognize them, however I feel that it is rare for the negative feelings to be discussed in our everyday lives. To me, for our generation I feel that we have been told since we were younger to not display emotions unless we are verbalizing them jokingly. However emotions should not be something that we are embarrassed to display. Emotions should be something to be proud of because it is what helps separate us from others, even if they are not “real”. 

Where Rum Cake Can Lead One's Thoughts

Okay, I had this amazing rum cake at the Old Spaghetti Factory a week or so ago. It was the best thing in the world! However, by eating it, it caused me to pause and wonder who thought of creating such a pastry that involved alcohol. Then that thought process caused me to think of how obsessed the world is, when it comes to alcohol. I mean alcohol is good in small doses, yet it has become a societal norm to drink at parties and social events. Somebody had to have started that trend. Plus drinking alcohol is not good in bulk because of its short and long term affects. Alcohol is legal though, despite its side effects. Because alcohol is legal, there is the debate going on about legalizing marijuana. If marijuana was to be legalized, I feel like the world would become more tumultuous. Yes, it would be legal so that would mean there would be less people in jail and getting in trouble for using it, however more people would start using it, and how would they know when to stop. Plus America does not need to start doing more drugs, which would happen if marijuana were to be legalized. The only reason that makes sense to me when it comes to legalizing marijuana would be for medical purposes. Beyond that though, I don’t see the point on even arguing about it. It should be obvious that we want to increase our country’s intelligence, not decrease it by legalizing marijuana, and causing kids to then think that it’s okay to do it since it is not against the law. However I know that a lot of people do not see it the same way that I do.      

Traditions

     Traditions are everywhere in the world. There are the simplistic holiday traditions that are celebrated every year. Plus there are everyday traditions or various other traditions celebrated at different times. Traditions are kept alive by different people throughout different countries and the whole world. Traditions are a good thing, because they keep alive different cultures and beliefs. Plus they usually bring people together happily for at least that time period. However, I would be curious to see how many people in America do not know WHY some of the traditions are done, but have always followed along because that is what society does. For example, Christmas, I wonder how many people celebrate Christmas to be religious vs. the amount of people that could care less and celebrate because they get gifts or because everyone celebrates it. Traditions are good because it forces others to recall parts of their lives or teachings, but they are slowly becoming irrelevant as more and more people could care less about why they are celebrating but as to the more materialistic side of the matter. 

Feminism/Being Single

     My parents are divorced, and my custodial parent is my mom. My mom and my dad have been divorced for quite a while now, and so my mom has been trying to date again. I put her on a online dating site, with the hope that she could meet somebody nice. She goes on dates, but she always comes back disheartened. My mom has trouble at times, getting along with my friends parents too. Both of these situations though, were caused by my parent’s divorce. My mom had to work hard to support my sisters and I, causing her to only believe in herself and us. She is an atheist, because of what God doesn’t do, leading her to not believe in one. She fights so hard every day against society, because some people do not like the fact that she is a very independent and strong woman. She now considers herself a feminist because of who she is. Yet, a lot of people do not care much for her because she is unafraid of voicing her opinions on a subject. She knows when to bite her tongue, but she is usually pretty brutally honest. I admire her for it. She doesn’t enjoy asking for help unless she needs it, and I respect her for it because I know that she is part of the small like-minded minority in America. Feminism is a slow growing movement, but it really needs to hurry up because women need to band together and voice their thoughts to stop the judgment of others!

A World Without Emotions

     A world without emotions would be quite emotionless. Obviously. A world where people don’t express their feelings would be quite interesting. The question however that would come next would be if whether or not people still had feelings and they just didn’t express it, or if they have no feelings at all. If they had feelings and couldn’t express them, I feel that there would still be some form of society left. There would still be a working society because nothing could emotionally affect the people that they could verbalize. However they can still interact with each other. If the world was completely without feelings, I think that everyone would walk around like zombies, not caring what happened to them. If their hand was accidently cut open, for example, I don’t think that that would affect people without emotions. Yet if the society was taught to do certain things if they ever saw blood, since they couldn’t feel it, then humanity might have a chance at survival. If not, then humans would get killed off really fast because they would not know their limits. In general, a world without emotions would be a very boring place, that would eventually die off. 

Drugs and Alcohol

Drugs and alcohol, I feel, are more prominent in today’s society than previous older societies. Drugs are all over the news, as talks about finding drug stashes in schools to people growing and selling. Drugs are now seemingly common in our everyday lives. Alcohol is part of the growing trend, because it is not as big of a deal if you drink compared to previously. Alcohol is almost a prerequisite or a must for every major and “good” party. To me, it seems like society is lowering their standards or people in the world just stopped caring about the welfare of the next generation. However, the younger generations of kids are looked down upon by their elders because they rebel against society and are not always conforming to what is “correct”. What causes the defiance of these rules is that there are so many different ways to portray your inner self in these times than before. There is something for every type of person. By having this though, causes kids to disobey what others say because they want to be different. Alcohol and drugs are just the number one way to be cool and different at the same time, yet that is still not an excuse for using either. 

Popularity and Conformity

     Popularity is one of the most common words heard in today’s world. Kids want to fit in and be cool, so idealizing what’s popular is the best thing to do. Whether or not they agree with what it is, or if they actually like what they are pretending to like is debatable. I don’t usually like things that are popular, because it seems to consist of too much conforming to society for me. When I was little, I recall how everyone was different, but as they slowly grew up, people changed to fit more into society’s view of how the world should be. I remember thinking how everyone is like a clone of each other. I think that conforming to society is alright, but to a point. I enjoy standing out, but yet there are times when conformity is the best way to go, just because it’s something important and you don’t want to be judged off of how you act or look. Conforming to society is one of my fears though, because I think that each person needs to retain their individuality.    

What is the Point of Working Hard?

     All throughout elementary school, kids are told to learn the basics and do well in school, while still having fun. In middle school, kids are told to strive harder for better grades, and to not get too involved in the drama of other kids. Also, to work on building good study habits to be prepared for high school. Plus, middle school classes affect the classes taken freshman year of high school. Then finally, the long awaited four years of high school have finally come. High school is made out to be the best four years because everyone is attending parties and maintaining good grades, while still having a social life. Everything leads to these four years. Then those notions of good times are slowly replaced during freshman year, with the concept of hard work. High school ends up being one of the most stressful times in kids’ lives. The student is expected to get good grades, do what’s right, participate in extracurricular activities and/or sports, volunteer, take care of responsibilities, and have some sort of a social life. Everything leads up to college then, where everything becomes tougher then in high school. There’s time where I wonder what the point is. Why do we strive so hard to achieve? It just seems like a never ending cycle, which causes me to wonder why humans put up with it, beyond feeling like they did something with their lives.    

Music's Affect on Moods

     Have you ever listened to music and have become more depressed, happy, sad, or angry, because of that music? Music changes the moods of humans because music is proven to relieve stress and help people relax. Music is also used for motivation and there is such a thing these days known as musical therapy. Music is a great elevation of one’s mood because it also alters one’s brain waves so then the mood becomes happier even after the person is finished listening to the music. I think that also what type of music listened to helps with moods. For example, screamo music helps with anger, while orchestral music is soothing. Plus the perception of the music playing, I feel also, affects one’s mood. I can make this conjecture because if someone is listening to music that they don’t like, then it’s going to put them in a bad mood because they are bored and dislike the music. The opposite will also occur. I just believe that music can be uplifting for one’s mood based off of that person’s perception of the taste of the music. 

Twenty Years Into the Future...

     To think that in twenty years, I will be thirty-six years old. The amount of things that can change in that time period is amazing! To think that sixteen years ago, a lot of what is considered normal today, would not have existed back then. For example, email and iPods had not even been thought of back then. I remember the popular thing back then was to own a Walkman, or a ear clip, where a song cartridge was place in it, and you listened to the same song over and over again. To think of how far and more advanced society and technology as a whole, has become, is mind blowing. Then, to imagine what 20 years in the future will be like is almost impossible. I feel that in twenty years, it could be highly possible that we have flying cars or that scientists are working on the concept of living underwater or on other planets beside Earth and the moon. It's amazing how more and more advanced humanity becomes each year. I wonder if we will hit a limit on the amount of advances that we can have, or when we discover everything about everything, if a full circle will be created and we will go right back to where we started. 

Significance of Our Lives

     What is the significance of our lives? Why are we living in the world that we are living in? I have always wondered the answer to that question. I mean, what is the purpose of humans on Earth? Were we put here to provide some entertainment to some higher being? Or were we just an accident that started with a speck of dust on a miniscule planet, but then slowly evolved to the human beings of today?  I mean, people work their butts off in their everyday lives to change the world and make an impact on it. They want to leave an impression, so that they will be remembered when they die, however by working so hard, are they really getting a chance to live their lives? To spend time with their families and enjoy one another’s company? I wonder how many people just take the time to relax and enjoy themselves, others, and their surroundings. I feel that our lives are significant in the lives others, but in doing what we do to live our lives, I think that we often forget to love living life, which in itself is the significance of our lives. 

Weather and it's Affect on Mood

     I am the type of person who loves rainy days. On rainy days, I just feel like going back to bed or spending the day indoors. It basically is the perfect excuse to not do anything. However on sunny days, if there is no homework to be done, then I love to go outside and do something. The sun causes me to be more energetic and feel like doing something with my life. One time, it was a little before nine o’clock in the morning on a day off from school, and I was walking to school to help with set construction for the play, and when I had gone outside, I noticed something. It was one of those mornings where I just wanted to go back to bed and sleep, however once I had walked outside, my whole mood changed. Granted there was a slight rainy drizzle, but there was a rainbow! I had never seen a rainbow like that, so I was so happy and excited that I woke up my sister so that she could enjoy it too. She wasn’t as happy with me, but it changed my whole outlook on my morning. It almost was like a sign that the day would be a good one. Just seeing the rainbow really affected my mood, which displays how the weather affects moods and energy levels.  

Time Flies!

“Time flies when you are having fun” is how the old expression goes. I feel that what the old expression says is completely true. Not to the point that time is literally flying, but that time seems to go faster when you are having fun. For example, IB History class vs. IB Physics. When I’m in history class, time seems to go by a lot faster than when I’m sitting there in physics class. I think that it’s because when you are doing something that you don’t care much for, time just seems to drag on and on. However others might disagree because time does not speed up or down. Which I agree with, but how fast time goes is all based off of perception of that person. Plus whether or not time flies, also depends on whether or not you like and want to continue what you are doing. I remember excitedly waiting for holidays that seemed to take forever, yet when the holiday actually arrived; it seemed to go by too fast. I felt like I was being unfairly cheated out of time by someone, when I had to go to bed.  To me, time is an irritating concept that is annoyingly based off of perception of events. 

Don't Ask, Don't Tell

The Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell is a debated piece of politics that I have been frustrated with every time that I hear about it. I feel that the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell (otherwise known as DADT), should not even be debated about. There is such a large controversy surrounding it, yet to me I just can’t seem to understand why. Currently before the DADT, lesbian and gay people are not allowed to come out of the closet if they are a part of the military. People who have come out of the closet are not allowed to join the military because they are openly gay. The DADT would allow closet gays and lesbians in the military to come out of the closet. However, the people against this are claiming that they don’t want their butts to be stared at or to suddenly start seeing pink boas all over. They keep claiming about how offensive that would be to them. However since gay people are in the military, then butts have probably already been stared at, and it is highly unlikely that someone would bring a pink boa to war or training. To me it just seems unfair that there is so much prejudice against those who like the same gender, when they are people too and have the same rights as heterosexuals.

Opinion on Facebook

Facebook. An internet sensation that has slowly taken over the world. It is impossible now for most kids, teenagers, and adults to live without it. It had a great idea behind the creation of it; however I think that has grown out of control. What is a great site for chatting with far away relatives or friends, has become a website where everything is posted. Nothing is private anymore. Instead everyone knows everything about everyone. Yet nobody finds that notion creepy or disturbing? Why would people want to know if you had brushed your teeth or got a haircut? It’s fun to go on occasionally, but it’s overwhelming with the information overload about stuff that before people would not care about. Facebook also owns anything and everything posted on there. It seems like a violation of rights to me. It wouldn’t be that bad if the whole world was not obsessed about it. If people used it less and for more significant things, I feel that the Facebook would be a better site.

Online Schools

Online schooling is becoming more and more popular these days. I find the concept of it at great one, but I don’t really care much for it. It’s perfect for kids who can’t go to public or private schools or just can’t manage the atmosphere at the schools, but kids are missing out on a major part of public schools. A social life. Having a social life is an important part of growing up and maturing from a kid to becoming an adult. Kids also gain responsibilities as they grow throughout high school.  Without the interaction with other kids, parents are raising the chances that their kid might be socially awkward as an adult. Children need the interaction with others so that they can learn how to cope with the world, as well as reinforcing what’s considered good and bad in society. Plus, things are taught differently online, and there is not interaction between student and teacher, causing the student to not be as much of an open minded thinker. I think that the concept of online schools is a great one; however kids that do attend online schools appear to be more sheltered and more socially awkward then kids who attend public/private schools.

Kids of Today vs. When I Was a Kid

When I look at younger kids today, and how their growing up, I feel that the world is changing so much. I remember growing up and playing outside after school and riding my bike and having fun with friends. Now, kids these days are always playing video games and they are very technology orientated. There is no more board games, but instead games played on the computer. I feel like they are almost missing out on a vital part of being a child. I feel like the world is becoming too technologic, causing kids to miss out on the traditional, what it’s like to be a kid, stuff. Kids are just so different. Even parents discuss how they used to walk or ride their bikes everywhere, where now instead everyone is driving or parents are constantly driving kids everywhere. I know that when I would tell kids during the summer that I walked to school, to the movie theater, or to a friend’s house they look at me like I’ m insane. As if I had just told a huge lie, because for anyone to walk anywhere these days is considered to be crazy. I just feel that the times are changing so much, and that maybe not all of the technologic change for younger kids is for the best.

The Perfect Age

The perfect age…when I was young, I remember thinking excitedly about being older. Old enough to drive, old enough to make money, old enough to do and eat what I want, and be the boss of myself. I remember my parents telling me to slow down and enjoy life. That I would be older soon, and that I should enjoy being young. Back then, I thought that that was the stupidest thing to say. However, now that I am sixteen years old, I look back at my younger self, and wish that I could go back. I wish that I could go back to a time of no worries, but to just have fun. Back to when homework took an hour tops, and then everyone would be outside in the neighborhood playing. Back to the good old days. I’m not sure now what the perfect age is. I love being sixteen because I’m a teenager and I get to go out and have fun with more freedom. Although I have at least double the responsibilities that I had when I was younger. I think that the perfect age cannot be determined. It is based off of everybody’s perception on when they most enjoyed their life, and what is more important to them.

Stigma Against Mental Illnesses

There are so many topics to choose from that could be blogged about! I have finally decided to write about what is foremost on my mind right now, which is this event that I am taking place in on October 2nd. It is a charity event known as NAMIWalks. NAMI is the National Alliance on Mental Illness. I am taking part in it because my younger sister has various mental illnesses. Her illnesses became more prominent in the previous year, and it's effects are still occuring in our everyday lives. She has gone places that you read about but you would never imagine the place actually being real. I love my little sister deeply, and I'm trying to help her out as best as I can. I feel horrible that she is going through stuff that any adult would have trouble coping with, yet she is a kid and she has to learn to cope with it to live her day-to-day life. I learned about this group, NAMI, and I am starting to become really involved in their organization. I have learned a lot because of her, like that having a mental illness is common. 1 out of 10 children have a mental illness. Yet people look at my family in disgust when they hear about it. You think that adults more so would be more understanding about this issue, but they are not because they don't comprehend it. Also stigma can be stopped if words like "crazy" or "insane" would not be used in a normal conversation about mentally ill people. So if any people read this and want to help out and fight stigma, then visit this website for more information:

http://www.bringchange2mind.org/index.php

If you feel strongly about this issue, then please visit this website and join us in our own fight against stigma on October 2nd:

http://www.nami.org/walkTemplate.cfmsection=NAMIWALKS&template=/customsource/namiwalks/walkerpage.cfm&walkerID=141369

America vs. England (My Point of View)

Well, this is my first blog for my TOK class, and I have been thinking about this subject, America vs. England, for a while. Over the summer, my mom and I went to England, because she wanted me to have the experience of a different country. England was amazing! When I came home to America though, I noticed so many different things between the two countries. The majority of Americans are overweight, especially compared to British people. They give you similar portions food wise in London compared to America, but I think it comes down to the lack of exercise in America. British people walk EVERYWHERE! They rarely use cars, but instead they use the Tube (Underground Subway) and public buses to get somewhere if needed. You still have to walk though to get to the public transportation, and you have to walk pretty fast to keep up with everyone. Plus on the escalators down to the Tube, they have a system of everyone stands to the right and people in a hurry to their jobs or other places can run up or down the escalator on the left. It's a pretty efficient way for the people in a hurry to not have to wait for those not. In America, we are unfortunately too chubby to do that. The majority of Americans would take up the width of the whole escalator, which in England would hold two. I don't recall seeing obese people in London, and it seems like a big contrast to America, especially when we came back and we took the escalator in the airport and realized that we couldn't get past the lady in front of us. All in all, I feel that if Americans don't want to be looked down upon by other countries then we need to start actually caring about our health.