Month: January 2015

To Each His Own

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Photo Credit: core0.staticworld.net

When it comes to believing in God, the range of emotions and opinions that people have on the subject is enormous. Although it technically depends on one’s religion, opinions tend to have similarities.

Personally, I don’t believe in a tangible God who lives up in the sky or on some mountain and watches everyone intently. At least according to science, it’s inconceivable for a man to live perched in the clouds. Even if he managed to survive up there, he would have to be pretty darn old and quite observant in order to listen to and respond to everyone’s prayers.

Some believe that God represents more of a presence, which is a more comprehensible notion. I am not religious at all, but if I were to affiliate myself with one theory, it would be this: rather than some all-knowing man, God could be everything, or just something that surrounds everyone. Although it may not answer to prayers, it is the prayer itself, as well as the response, and even the words spoken.

As far as the Big Bang Theory is concerned, the world was created naturally. On the other hand, many still believe that a man generated everything there is in the world today. People are entitled to their own beliefs, and should never be discriminated against – it’s simply fascinating to see the motives behind different ways of thinking.

The Old, The New, The Better

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After attending Catholic preparatory school for the past two and a half years with a number of my closest friends, I never imagined I would have transferred to a quite liberal, low-key school with such a relaxed environment.

Because of the many negative experiences I had at such a strict and old-fashioned school, I decided that it was necessary to make a change in my academic life.

One of my best friends and her older brother advocated highly for the school they went to; Ojai Valley School. Sounds like some tiny, boring school in the middle of nowhere.

Boy was I wrong.

Photo Credit: thelavenderinn.files.wordpress.com

The second I arrived on campus for an interview with admissions, I was taken aback by the breathless view from the top of campus.

Not only can you see a majority of the Ojai Valley, but as I looked around I noticed the extent of beauty around and on campus. Horses grazing among the green, lush hills, the large and obviously eco-friendly solar panels that consume the top of a hillside, and the relaxed social environment.

Boring? Too small?

Absolutely not.

Intuitive, environmentally aware, fresh, clean, warm, friendly.

These are the words I would use to describe this new school I call home.

 

Everything It’s Cracked Up To Be

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Trivia Crack a game that’s taking over smartphones worldwide. Trivia Crack is an online trivia game very similar to the board game trivial pursuit.

There are six question categories: science, art, history, entertainment, sports, and geography. Win 3 questions in a match to earn a crown, and you must get six crowns to win a match.

You are afforded three lives and your lives are replenished one per hour. When the game opens, you spin a wheel to randomly select your topic.

The question is presented in multiple-choice fashion with a thirty-second time limit to answer it. If you answer the question wrong, the right answer is flashed on the screen momentarily.

This game is not only addicting but educational as well. Most students and teachers on campus are challenging each other with questions all through the day.

While I’m sure at some point this game will fade out like all other iPhone trends, but as of now, the widespread rush of trivia knowledge is ever so present.

Photo Credit to: http://www.whatishub.com

 

Puppeteer

raining17

My right hand raises, slowly, until it is pointed directly at the sun, extended toward the heavens and the stars above.

My left is drawn across my face, deliberately blocking my view of the earth surrounding me. Silhouettes dancing over vast, open plains are shut out, blocked from sight, from sound.

Slowly my feet move forward, step by step, moving toward an unknown location. I have lost all physical senses – I cannot tell where I am.

Controlled by a puppeteer, I have no power over my movements. There are strings attached to my every joint so that each microscopic movement is mastered. Over time, every motion becomes second nature, and the puppeteer has succeeded.

The conductor of conscience, and courier of communication, the puppeteer invests hours of time, meticulously perfecting its puppet. The strings bind them together, and until they are cut, the puppet moves as it is controlled – each and every motion, forever and ever.

Photo Credit: 2.bp.blogspot.com

A Night to Remember

kennyroo

Tall, talented, and terribly handsome G-Eazy is hands down one of my favorite artists.

This man is a lyricist like no other.

He reigns from Oakland, California, which is only a mere 7 hours northeast of Ventura County.

He has come to Southern California to perform for the past few years, but the timing has never worked in my favor – until this year.

The arrival of the concert could not have come sooner, because the anticipation was killing me.

It was the last night of the “From the Bay to the Universe” tour, and it was going to go out with a bang.

After waiting in line we finally got to enter the venue. With friends in tow I walk all the way to the pit of the concert hall to prepare for the night of my life.

A DJ appears who plays a potpourri of electric music and classic rap remix’s to get the crowd excited for the opener.

Two hours after we entered and watched three different opening acts, the curtains finally close so they can get the stage ready for G-Eazy.

The whole theater starts chanting his name in bubbling excitement, and then we begin hear a countdown from 60 seconds.

Three, Two, One…

The curtains open and the night has officially begun.

The set list he created was unreal, and every single person was dancing more than they ever had in their entire life.

I wish I could go back and rewind time so I could experience the immense fun I had last night at the show all over again.

I have been to many concerts, but this was like nothing else.

As the last song of his encore ended, confetti and smoke rained down on the sold out crowd.

Walking out of there with a smile, last night will go down in history.
http://pushtotalkteens.files.wordpress.com/2014/08/gggeazy-2.jpg?w=644&h=368

If I was President

kennyroo
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Photo Credit to: http://uanews.org/

The world would be a better place if I were President.

I’m well aware I’d be a little bit over my head with some topics, but let me tell you what I would change right off the bat.

Let’s talk foreign affairs. Let’s talk Women’s rights.

How about we make sure that fewer kids go to bed hungry every night, in our own country.

When you’re on a plane, an educational video comes on the screen before you take off.

The video tells the passenger to put on their own oxygen mask before helping their child – or anyone else, if the plane was to go down.

The same standard should be held to certain aspects of foreign affairs.

Women’s rights? Where do I begin? There needs to be more women elected into higher positions so we have both genders represented on Capital Hill.

If I was President, I would make sure I practice what I preach.

So, watch out election of 2033, because I have some big plans.

News or Not?

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Photo Credit: http://www.boonepickens.com

I often find myself on Yahoo! News, whether it’s to find information for a news quiz, or just to laugh at the ridiculous articles I find. What I see on there really makes me question the relevancy of the website.

Although there are current pending issues like Ebola, and controversies like the Ferguson case, Yahoo! News still chooses to broadcast articles like, “Ohio family recovers missing Sasquatch statue” or “In Wisconsin, Black Friday shoppers come for beer.” Although that Sasquatch statue may be very near and dear to the Spence family, I am unclear as to how this makes national news.

On the other hand, Black Friday is an event created specifically for shopping deals, so why shouldn’t people of Milwaukee, Wisconsin get their beer? People spend hours in line for a toaster, or the newest shoes, so why not stand in line for something that at least holds a food value?

However, I don’t see why this makes national news either. Why is 800 people waiting outside their local brewery a bigger deal than thousands of people waiting outside their nearest Apple store for the newest iPhone? And why is a town and their beer relevant to the rest of the world?

Lastly, however concerning “Austria fire explodes in wood stove”  might be to the people whose stove exploded, and maybe the manufacturers, this issue doesn’t seem more, or even equally as important as Ebola.

Granted, Yahoo! News keeps producing interesting articles, but I feel like they might be grasping at straws here.

Food for Thought

raining171 Comment

All those controversies about what’s in your McDonald’s Big Mac or chicken nuggets are disturbing, sure, but it’s just as disturbing to have other’s unwanted opinions shoved in your face.

Super Size Me, for example, is a grotesque documentary following a man while he eats nothing but McDonald’s for a month. This proves a significant point, and is absolutely worth paying attention to.

However, for people who can’t afford healthier food than McDonald’s, hearing the fatal effect of their only food source is beyond depressing.

Wealthier members of society are parading around, throwing around argument after argument about how harmful McDonald’s is, yet providing no solution for those who have no choice but to consume it.

I agree that McDonald’s is unhealthy, and shouldn’t be eaten, if given other options. However, for those who have no other choice, I think that it is wrong to tell them what they’re doing wrong and provide no help. That is just as unhealthy.

Photo Credit: pbs.twimg.com

 

I Have No Idea What I’m Doing

indigoshell

This is my fourth year at Ojai Valley School, and I’ve taken an art class every year here. My freshman year I took Photography, and my sophomore and junior years I took Ceramics and Ceramics II. My senior year, this year, I recall signing up for a drawing class.

Never would I imagine that I would be put into AP Studio Art.

Yes, I may have had three years of art, but none of those three art classes involved hand-drawing anything. Now, in AP Art, we have to produce 24 art pieces to be put into our portfolio, which is a staple if you want to get into art school.

Which is not where I want to go. But I took it as a challenge and went with it anyways.

12 of the pieces are our Concentration, which is “a body of related works that demonstrate sustained and thoughtful investigation of a specific visual idea.” Basically 12 pieces of art related to one topic, such as drawing a 12-piece short comic.

12 of the pieces are our Breadth, “a variety of works demonstrating a range of conceptual and/or technical approaches.”

There’s more than just drawing with pencil and paper. There’s black charcoal, white charcoal, oil painting, oil pastels, color pencils, watercolor painting, things like that, and our Breadth section is basically us showing off what we can do in as many different ways as we can. (My favorite so far is white charcoal on black paper.)

Apart from “art” classes in elementary school, I’ve never taken art before, so since the beginning of the year, every time I sat down in our art studio, my first thought was always “I have no idea what I am doing.” To be honest, I still don’t know what I’m doing.

But that’s alright, I guess. Most of us don’t know what we’re doing there anyways.