The night before the research paper: "Lol it's okay, I still have time..."

I fell prey to the mind of the masses after reading the rampage of Facebook statuses complaining about this paper. Granted, this was no easy task; no one could finish this paper in one night and expect a good grade. However, it wasn't as bad as our teenage minds portrayed it to be: when browsing my sites on LiveBinder, I began to appreciate the annotations I previously raged at, and I was pleased to have an outline to dictate the direction of my paper as I constructed my rough draft. Yes, it was tiring - I spent a lot of time on this paper that could have been directed at sleeping or watching random Youtube videos - but now that I no longer have to slave over such a demanding paper, I can objectively say it increased my research and writing abilities that I will definitely be utilizing in the future.

Of course, this positive reflection may change depending on my grade, but that's another story...

Valentine's Day: A Day of Love or Failed Expectations?

Valentine's Day has curiously turned into a day that is no longer about love, but rather a day where high expectations are set for your love life: are you in a relationship? Will your significant other give you flowers? Chocolates? Teddy bears? What have you done to properly display your relationship to the public?
This holiday really breaks down into two segments: "single awareness day" and "lovey-dovey day."

Section One: Single People
Although every other day, single people walk around living their daily lives, today is the day where people suddenly realize their apparent loneliness from not having a special companion. Because the idea of couples in love are forced in front of their faces, single people wallow in despair and resign themselves to the fact that "at least I have my _____" (whether the blank is filled with friends, food, or video games.) They have been labeled  inferior today, so they join together in "forever alone" forces and scorn those who are in love. How disgusting, to feed into this commercialized holiday, they say. Now, it is important to note that not all single people are in fact secretly eating away at their desire to be part of these couples; some are in fact, vehemently opposed to this holiday. To each his own, and so we move on.

Section Two: Couples
If two people are deemed "lucky" enough to be in a couple, this might be the very day to show it off, as today is the one day where it is okay to show off how in love with each other they are without being shunned. Of course, high expectations are set in place for this special day: it no longer becomes a question of how much they love each other, but how much they are willing to show it. The pressure is on to be the best girlfriend or boyfriend - everything has to be perfect, from the flowers to the restaurant. To fail is to fail in front of everyone - and who wants to be negatively judged?

So who really benefits from Valentine's Day? The answer is easy: Hallmark and all of those corporations out to eat your money because you desperately needed to appease yourself or your significant other.

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone <3

Obama Causes Three Years of Aging in One Year?

Browsing the popular satirical website The Onion, I came across this article:

http://www.theonion.com/articles/new-photos-reveal-stress-of-obamas-first-term-in-o,27311/

Now, just in case you're too lazy to click on that, here's a quick rehash: so "photographic comparisons" have shown that the American population have significantly experienced major stress under Obama's term, experiencing accelerated aging. The article cites one of the reasons for this: "Think about it: You're a United States citizen who has to live with the decision to elect Barack Obama every single day, a decision that constantly affects the entire planet. You'd only sleep four or five hours a night, too."

Of course, this is a bit crazy, but with further contemplation: that is kind of true, isn't it? While many citizens won't be voting in this year's election, they're missing out on a crucial opportunity to shape not only their futures but the world's future as well. America is always experiencing stress because the president is doing a bad job with the economy, foreign policy, the environment, etc.

Conversely, this article also emphasizes the impact the president has on his constituents, in kind of a backwards way. Because despite the lightheartedness of the article, it's somewhat true - the president can affect the health and even the health of his constituents. So be wise who you choose for our leader for the next four years! As the article cheekily concludes, "Medical experts agree the overwhelming stress of a Mitt Romney presidency would kill the entire populace within seconds of his inauguration."

I really love the Superbowl!

Except not at all - hence why I'm doing a blog assignment instead of watching it. I mean, once I have football explained to me, it becomes this whole new game that's so intense and suspenseful. At the Georgia Dome last year when our school got the state championship, I only have my friends to thank who actually knew what was going on and took the time to explain it to me. Without them, I would have been lost in translation (points for referencing to a movie title?).
The Superbowl itself is actually not that bad - the commercials are fun and the halftime shows are mostly crazy (sometimes in the good way, sometimes in the bad) - but I feel like I would have to be more into football to enjoy the whole "SUPERBOWL YEAAAH GO [PATRIOTS/GIANTS]" effect.

Huckleberries~

There's a lot in this book to reflect on - more than just one blog post can handle.  I had read this book previously when I was little, if you could even call it the same book. Sure, it had the same plot and everything, but it had completely different language that was fit for a child my age - it sure didn't have any of the "southern touches" in either Jim or Huck's diction. Reading the real version of this novel in high school was a completely different experience than skimming over a watered down abridged copy; I (hopefully) could capture all, if not most, of the nuances depicted in the story.

I'd previously read Tom Sawyer, so I was curious to learn more about his friend. It turned out that I liked Huck much more than Tom - while both boys matured in their respective stories, I had a deeper attachment to how Huck slowly progressed from "Oh, Jim's just a piece of property" to "Jim's actually my friend, and not only do I want freedom from him, I want freedom for myself."

It wasn't all just serious morals, though. Their colloquial way of speaking really brought a sense of informality to the novel, so I could enjoy the comedic effects Twain cleverly inserts in the book - the scene where Huck pretended to be a girl was hilarious. Although this book address some serious issues about racism, the hypocrisy of those who claim to be civilized, and the creation of personal morals, it does so in a way that I don't want to bang my head on my desk screaming for it to end (believe me, it wouldn't have been the first time.)

Marco Tempest: The magic of truth and lies (and iPods)

In his presentation about deception, Marco Tempest uses the trickery of magic to discuss lies in common life, art, and music. Most of this doesn't focus on him speaking, but rather on the presentation of iPod screens to depict what he discusses. It seems as if he is casually discussing this with the audience, as he is easily relatable with lies like "I'm stuck in traffic, sorry." Utilizing a variety of examples from everyday white lies to war strategies to display the ubiquity of lies today, the iPod presentation kept me interested with still able to absorb the meat of the content. Although I was free to do what I wished, I felt trapped underneath the spell of Tempest's words and illusions.