Snow Week #wintersuccess

We had what I would have called a "snow week" this school week. Usually when you think of a school day, it is a day off of school due to weather conditions that can become dangerous for students getting to school or coming home. The snow can be extremely dangerous, along with the icy roads and streets.

That is why we had a lot of school days this week, making it a school week. Our school has a systematic schedule giving the students, teachers, and faculty every other wednesday a half day. This week just happened to be one of those. While we went to school this past Monday, it was a drag. If there was anyway we could have a little mini vacay in the middle of this dreadful Winter, it would be great. We did! That night we got around four inches of snow. The road to school was slippery (I live a few blocks away from school). There was no way we were having school, let alone a two hour delay. And the snow only continued. We got Wednesday off as well. It could have been a two hour delay, but with the early out already in place, what would have been the point? That night, I was happy to find out that the city's school district cancelled school for the next day. And Friday, we got a two hour delay. It was a magical week, full of chores that didn't get done the previous weekend, and homework that was caught up on.

There was no better week in my school career than this one. I think that it was great that the schools didn't take chances with accidents and family situations. Someone could have lost their life. We have to be careful as a society, especially in the Mid West, where there is erratic weather. Hopefully we can have another week like this, but spring break is on the verge. Plus, we really don't want to still be in school until June because we are making up days from January. You have to have oh so many school days in as a district. I think it is around 180 days. Hopefully we don't have to go in June because of the snow week, but it was well worth it, if we did. I hope everyone stayed safe, and had a great snow break! #hotcocoa #movies #blankets (400)

Pitch Perfect (2012)

A movie that seems to be sweeping the nation, especially girls, is Pitch Perfect. Pitch Perfect came out to the public around September of 2012. The movie is just starting to make an impact. Almost every girl, and guy, I might add, has seen it. The movie is incredibly well known.
The movie can be comparable to the Hangover, except it is not so vulgar and raunchy. It is about an acapella group, which is trending now a days. The show is definitely a comedy, from "Fat Amy" to the "puking scenes." I think kids, especially the girl's basketball team that I'm on, like it so much is because of how funny it is. There are parts of the movie that are laugh out loud funny. Some girls even watch it because they like the lead Trebble Makers' star, Jesse. They think he is attractive and a great singer. Other kids like it because of the musicality. There are lots of renditions of present day songs in the movie, incorporated with dance moves in competitions.
I would definitely recommend watching it, whether you are a guy or a gal. Whether you like to sing or not. If you liked Bridesmaids (the English woman living with Annie) you will love this movie, because the same actress plays "Fat Amy." One of the characters asks "Fat Amy" why she calls herself "Fat Amy," and she replies that she does it so "twig girls don't do it behind" her back. The acapella auditions that the college singers sing and compete in to get into a group at Barden University is also hysterical. The singers have to sing their own rendition of Kelly Clarkson's "Since You've Been Gone" song.
The movie is rated PG-13, so I think almost all of your friends could watch and enjoy it. It doesn't have a lot of nudity or cussing in it. There is some critical reception that has gone with it about the "shower scene." While nothing explicit is shown the viewer can definitely tell that they are nude and, in fact, taking a shower. I think this adds to the comedy of it. The girl is being intrusive, going into the shower to recruit a Barden Bella for her acapella group because she overheard Becca singing in the shower. I hope that you go out and rent it, fall in love with it, and then buy it! It truly is one of my favorite movies. "I'll Pitch Slap you so hard, your man boobs are going to concave." (422)

Super Bowl 47

Super Bowl 47 was exciting to say the least. It was full of momentum swings, a brother rivalry, and so much more. Did I mention all of the halftime show buzz?

The Super Bowl was played in New Orleans, Louisiana for the tenth time in National Football League history. The San Francisco 49ers and the Baltimore Ravens played against each other, but more importantly their coaches played against each other. "Well, duh," you might say. But there is a special relationship between the two pro coaches. They are brothers. Jim Harbaugh for the San Francisco 49ers, and John Harbaugh for the Baltimore Ravens. You may ask, who is older? Jim is. And while they both told reporters that the other one was the better coach, it still remains a mystery. Some say that their father, Jack Harbaugh, was the best of all. The post-game exchange between the two of them was awkward, to say the least. I'm sure that the younger one just wanted to let his older brother celebrate with his team, and they would discuss it later... possibly at Ma and Pa's house.

While it was a hard act to follow (Madonna's attendance record breaking the previous year, surpassing Michael Jackson in 1993) Beyoncé still did a fantastic job. All the tweets and Instagram photos were directed towards her, her music, her dancing, and her body. Everybody was envying her and her husband. She was simply the best part of the game for some people. Other viewers had to disagree. The outfit was said to be too revealing. The dances were too provocative. And the songs weren't her best, well-known songs; did she even sing that much either? The critics from Obama's January 20th Inauguration were also asking if it was even her singing. The lip-singing/synching scandal didn't really help her viewer rate, but she did redeem herself. It was a little too rough for my personal tastes, but I usually enjoy her music.

Ok so who actually won? It would have been easy to guess after the first half, Ravens up by quite a bit, scoring at will against the 49er's defense. But after a Beyoncé performance and a power outage for around thirty minutes, the 49ers came back with vengeance. They made a terrific comeback, and at the end it came down to a touchdown or field goal. Needless to say, it was one of the best comebacks in a Pro-Bowl in all of history. It was a memorable one. The Ravens were definitely lucky to win. (421)

I'm a writer/reader/love doctor.

Some of you are readers, some writers, some neither, some both. I, personally, am neither.

No offense to you book thumpers, but I would much rather be lazy on the couch, watching the screen of white, red and yellow t.v. bulbs that flash up a story, then waste energy holding up a book.

Left... right... Left.... right... Left.... right.

Boring.

I admit I do enjoy orchestrating a literary piece every now and then, when I am in the mood, but hardly ever am I in the mood. What gets me through the writing process is being able to do this. The freedom I get from my teacher to write about whatever I want in a weekly blog!

Being the science/mathematics person that I am, I want a definite answer. But with the English, you can be artsy and creative. I guess I just struggle with it, that's all. I confess, I am jealous of you authors, painters, and dancers out there.

God bless your talents and creations. (167)

How To: Register for Senior Year

Wow! I can't believe my Senior year is almost here in less than half of a school year. That's right. Time to register for classes. This can be a tricky process, especially when you get into what colleges want, what your career calls for, and what can allow you to relax a little, kick back, have fun, while still getting prepared for your future.

So how do we do this? Simple. Here's my how-to:

1) E-mail some of the colleges that have shown interest in you and you have shown interest in them in return. Find out what classes they want you to take and what they require to get in.

2) Talk with your guidance counselor. He/she would know best. After all, they have been organizing senior schedules for quite a while now.

3) Talk with your parents. They aren't as old as you think and might be able to give you some advice on some classes that you don't want to waste your time with.

4) Remember to have fun. I'm not talking about taking Wine Making 101 because your goofball, upperclassmen friends said it was a guaranteed A+, boost to your GPA. Do something out of the box, something that you wouldn't have dreamed of doing. For example: I'm the typical jock. I play sports, and am highly focused on math and sciences. It would be totally cool if I could take an art class next year! I used to love drawing cartoon characters as a kid, so why not?

5) Even though you aren't taking that Intro to Note Taking or Studying Habits Advanced, you ARE allowed to take more than just the required Senior English and 12th grade P.E. It's not illegal! Push yourself with lots of A.P. (Advanced Placement) classes, get prepared for freshmen year at the University, and then take a chill class to reward yourself.

6) When in doubt, go with what your current teachers recommend. They won't feed you to the wolves, I promise!

Good luck! Have a rockin' Senior year. It'll fly by. (343)

"Miss Rep... wait a minute! What's with all the men/boy stats?"

Although, I thoroughly enjoyed the Miss Representation documentary, I had some doubts on some of the stats. Well... not really some doubts, more like questions. Why would you put this in the movie? You are just contradicting your claim and purpose! The statistics that I was most worried about was the ones pertaining to men vs. women or boys vs. girls. I could understand if they alluded to the fact that women were taking a back seat to men ALL the time and that men were simply breezing through life easier than women, but the percentages and numbers stated differently.

 

1)                          While girls are twice as likely to think about suicide, boys are four times more likely to actually die from it.

 

This is a statistic shown in the documentary "Miss Representation." A documentary centered around women's portrayal in the media and how women are affected by the media.

What my question about this stat is: Why? Why would they want to put this fact in here? If you ask me, it seems to completely downplay media's effects on girls and, instead, up-plays the effect it has on boys! We can come to the conclusion based on the context that the reason for girls thinking about suicide is the "media," but is it the same reason for boys?

I feel that this statistic hurt the documentary and its prose. It made me think, "Oh, yea. Girls can have media-rooted self esteem issues and think about suicide, but it's even worse for the boys. Why wouldn't they make this movie about the boys?"

"Miss Representation" got this statistic from a website titled "Teen Suicide Facts." http://www.teensuicidestatistics.com/statistics-facts.html

After looking into this statistic a little bit, I found a website that is called "Teen Suicide." http://www.teensuicide.us/articles1.html. Here I found that girls are, in fact, more likely to attempt suicide, but boys are more likely to go through with it. This does parallel the statement revealed in the documentary, and after a little separate research of my own, I can safely say that it is true.

I still don't understand why this would be in a documentary about women suffering from media effects. I feel like this statement distracts the viewer and transports them into a questioning state of mind. They might ask why they aren't making a film about the effect the media has on boys?

I feel that the information is credible and true word for word, but it simply is not fit to be in the video.

 

2)                          54% of men want a boy if they only had one child. 26% of men have no preference for the gender of their child. 19% of men want a girl if they only had one child. (These stats have not changed since 1941.)

 

Again, I'm not entirely sure why the directors of this movie "went there" with the men/boys, but I may have a hunch. From this stat I know that most men prefer to have sons as opposed to daughters. My hunch is that the producers of this film wanted the viewer to recognize the conclusion, and assume that most men, as the media has "portrayed," struggle understanding women/girls. They would much rather have a special bond with their little buddy, take them fishing, teach them how to play sports, and so on. That's where my hunch stops. I have no clue where the women's portrayal and hardship trying to live up to impossible expectations comes in.

As for the source of this statement, I couldn't find a listing of it on the Miss Representation website: http://www.missrepresentation.org/

But I did find another website in my further research called Ingender: http://www.in-gender.com/XYU/Gender-Preference/ It said that women were virtually equal in their preference of getting a boy or girl, while men were 2.5 more likely to hope for a son. It was tested by the Gallup Organization in (interestingly enough) 1941 and had not changed in over 50 years (the same time frame as the Miss Representation stat). This stat from the website also parallels the original statement.

I could understand the documentary statistician using men and women work force and political stats in favor of men; to make it appear that women are suffering from pop culture and media, but the two statements above were completely in favor of women. Maybe I could do some further research into suicides and parental gender preferences. (729)

Pretzel M&M's

Pretzel M&M's can be easily one of the greatest alterations to the best chocolate coated candy ever. Who would have thought to put little pretzel balls inside M&M's? Something tells me that it wouldn't work with Skittles... So please don't try.

I had some people over a few nights ago to hang out and watch some movies. You can't have a movie night and invite your teenage girl friends without having some snacks to crunch on. My mom ran to the store for me and got a bag of Snyder's Cheddar Cheese, BBQ potato chips, caramel corn, puppy chow, and last, but not least, Pretzel M&Ms.

She called me while there and asked to list it all off to her. I quickly rattled off where everything was, the shape and color of the box, and roughly the price. She had a little trouble with the M&Ms. I told her it should be medium sized... like bigger than the $1 grab and go bag near the check out line, but smaller than a package of halloween treats. You know? Like the movie theatre size. She said, "Well, they're pretty expensive!" I told her I'd pay her back thinking it would be around $3.

She brings all of the stuff home, and I take it all out of the grocery bags to get it ready for the get together. She brought home the friggin' two pound bag of M&Ms... You know what I'm talking about? The big bag with a Ziplock seal that you get for filling treat bags and snacks for like twenty-some people! Yea... That one!

I said, "No wonder it was expensive." She said that I owed her $8 for them alone.

That's ok, though. Because the peanut butter and jelly combo of chocolate and pretzel is worth it! #heaveninmymouth (301)