Traveling Sucks the Life Out of Me

March 1, 2022February 25, 2022 treefroggyLeave a comment

I’ve been traveling a lot recently, and it’s just reminded me how terrible traveling is for me. I really can’t ever travel healthily. It always ends up with me needing days to recover and feeling completely out of it both mentally and physically.

Mostly I hate flying on planes. The altitude really affects my ears, so I’m popping them for even weeks after I fly sometimes. Not even eating something or chewing gum helps. I have to be wearing the special pressurized earplugs and chewing gum to even feel somewhat okay when the plane takes off or lands.

Besides my ears hurting a ton, I get super swollen from flying. My fingers get too big for my rings to fit on them and my feet swell up so I have to loosen my shoeslaces a ton for them to fit into my shoes. Probably because I don’t drink enough water, but I lose my appetite and feel sick when I eat or drink anything when I fly, so I can’t really force myself to drink. Also, nobody likes going to the bathroom on planes. I avoid it if I can.

When I get to my destination, I’m always so exhausted that I can barely even remember the events that happened when I look back on the memory. I get overwhelmed so easily when I travel that I’m on the edge of having a meltdown. It’s not super fun to go through a ton of pain just to forget why I was even there and only remember being agitated.

When I get back home, I need several business days to rest before I really feel like myself again. It takes a long time for my body to readjust to being home, but it takes my mind even longer. I have super realistic dreams every time I sleep, and when I’ve just traveled they’re even worse because I wake up and don’t even know where I am. It’s hard for the fact that I’m home to register in my brain, and I’m still in fight or flight mode from the new environments freaking me out, so I just end up in a terrible mental state for a week or two after traveling for even just two days.

Needless to say, I need a good few months of being strictly at home again. Honestly, that was one part of lockdown that I didn’t mind- I didn’t get to travel anywhere.

My Chatty Self

February 20, 2022February 15, 2022 bartholomulethegreatLeave a comment

I talk a lot, as many of my fellow journalists and my teachers know. I am quite the talker in most circumstances. During class, I used to consistently be sent outside for being a disturbance for talking in class. But somewhat recently I have learned to control my outbursts of vocal engagement. For example, recently the OVS journalist participated in THE ONE CHIP CHALLENGE, where three of the journalists ate chips that were very spicy. There were many times when I wanted to comment on what was happening, but I was able to make myself just shut up for the duration of the filming of the event. I find that I will speak without thinking and say something stupid that I don’t mean. People don’t realize that about me until they get to know me. I have made great strides in not speaking in class and even just being more of a quiet person in general. I hope that I continue on this path and it allows me to not be as intrusive to the class time.

I Want a Pet Opossum So Much

February 19, 2022February 15, 2022 treefroggyLeave a comment

It’s no secret that I love opossums. I would do anything to have one as a pet. If I could wake up and be holding an opossum’s little toes, I would never have any problems for the rest of my life. I seriously am obsessed with those little guys. Every day I dream about coming home to an opossum and kissing its little forehead and petting its soft fur. I fantasize about finding an opossum on the side of the road and getting to hold it on my lap while I drive it to the vet. I just want to love on an opossum.

If I had an opossum, I would spoil it so much. I would give it little hats and feed it all the food it wanted. Any opossum that lived with me would live the best life ever. I would give my opossums cuddles every day and take them on walks so they stay healthy. Seriously, just give me a chance to have one of those little guys. I would take amazing care of them. I think I deserve a pet opossum.

Instagram's Latest Pet Trend Is Giant Tree Rats with Spiky Teeth — https://video-images.vice.com/articles/59357d2a4efb6642b870d1b9/lede/1496852688508-sproutcrown.jpeg

Putting You on (to Anime)

February 18, 2022February 18, 2022 jared315Leave a comment

In my years, I’ve watched a lot of anime. From finishing 12 episode shows left right and center, to watching 718 episodes of One Piece (I’ll finish it one day), I would say I am well versed in the world of anime. So, I figure why not give recommendations. This list has some pretty mainstream options so if you’re new to anime, this index is for you.

Hunter x Hunter

Hunter x Hunter follows a talented young boy named Gon, and his friends through the Hunter exam. The Hunter exam tests applicants from around the world to become Hunters. Hunters are given access to information, locations, treasures, and auctions that normal people don’t even know about. The group explores this magical world, discovering people and powers that are hardly imaginable. This show has amazed me every time I’ve watched it. It’s slick and well put together animation makes the show look consistently clean, with not many scenes being too rushed (unlike some other animes *cough* Black Clover *cough*), the complex and detailed storyline also leaves the viewer in awe as the viewer feels such an affinity towards the characters. Hunter x Hunter is definitely on my list of top anime, and it will not be moving any time soon.

9.8/10

Cowboy Bebop

Cowboy Bebop is a legendary anime. This neo-noir/science fiction world is invigorating. Its fantastic, flowy, and dramatic animation style is something modern-day animes struggle to compete with, the protagonist is a hopeless nihilist, and the soundtrack… don’t get me started. This show follows a talented, yet disastrous bounty hunter group. The lead character, Spike, is a smooth talker and an even better fighter. Spike’s past is shrouded in mystery, which is slowly revealed. Spike is also accompanied by a few characters, Jet, his mechanic, and a few others introduced later into the show. I would recommend Cowboy Bebop to anybody that has already seen a few animes, rather than it being the first anime, but I would definitely put it on the Must Watch list.

9.5/10

Samurai Champloo

For lack of a better word… This anime is goated. The story isn’t the greatest one I have ever seen, but boy is this anime special. The animation left me starstruck and the characters pose a strong yin yang duality. The characters Mugen and Jin are samurai during the Edo Period, however, this twist of the Edo Period has elements of hip hop culture entwined. This anime is really something to behold, with excellent character chemistry and fantastically coordinated fight scenes, I would recommend not overlooking this show.

9.5/10

One Chip

February 14, 2022February 8, 2022 jared315Leave a comment

Recently, we sat down to do a Hill Talk Podcast where we partook in the One Chip Challenge. We didn’t do the real challenge of eating the whole chip because our teacher is liable for our health and safety, but I must say, that shit still hurt. I can’t even describe the chip as spicy, it was just painful. As soon as I bit into the chip, I tasted a disgusting flavor of heat and pepper. The chip was thick, crispy, and dry as hell. Thus making it very hard to chew. It resembled eating sandpaper in my mind. My first reaction to the heat was to hiccup. My diaphragm began to convulse with the power of 1,000 stampeding wildebeests. I could’ve sworn I was gonna throw up. This all happened in a blink of an eye, and as time progressed, so did the pain. The chip lit up my spice receptors like a Christmas tree, it would be safe to say that the only thoughts on my mind were the exponentially increasing pain, and the chocolate milk I was thirsting to chug. Breathing became a difficult task, and speaking became an unintelligible blabber. This one chip fucked me up. If it wasn’t for the lemon juice chemically neutralizing the capsaicin, I’d be a goner. Even with this bitter miracle of fruit juice, the chip still put me on my ass. I could’ve sworn I contacted IBS, I mean, how could a healthy intestinal circuit feel like it’s moving shattered glass all because of one chip. I will rue the day that I participated in the Paqui One Chip Challenge.

Amazon.com: Paqui Carolina Reaper Madness One Chip Challenge Tortilla Chip — https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FPaqui-Carolina-Madness-Challenge-Tortilla%2Fdp%2FB01M748NRN&psig=AOvVaw2H6tlDP3Wis_qjLB5n8KQZ&ust=1644354821226000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCND4-pnB7vUCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAF

My Favorite Mobile Puzzle Games

February 7, 2022February 6, 2022 treefroggyLeave a comment

A year or two, I had a puzzle games hyperfixation. Instead of going on TikTok or watching YouTube, I would listen to music and play puzzle games for hours. They’re actually super fun. Here’s my favorite ones.

Connect

The connecting games are definitely my favorite ones. When I got a new puzzle game, I would be done with every single tier of difficulty (each having around 100 levels to play) within an hour or two. They’re super fun and I don’t know why. There’s just something so satisfying about figuring out the way that they all go together after thinking about it and trying different combinations.

Car Parking

The car parking puzzles are addicting. There’s a game I have that’s just car parking puzzles and as far as I can tell, it has an infinite amount of levels. (I’m on level 1,466, so I’m pretty sure there’s not an end to the levels.) The escape games can be included in this category since it’s exactly the same game, but I prefer the ones where you’re moving around cars instead of just blocks.

Tangram

I first played with tangrams in, like, second grade. Tangrams seriously felt like a fever dream until I found a game that had a tangram category and I realized that I hadn’t made up the concept and gaslit myself into thinking it was real. Anyways, they’re fun.

Blocks/Hexa Puzzle

These are kind of the same as the tangrams, but a little different. I like them. That’s all.

Word Shatter

For some reason, I really like word puzzles. The word shatter kind is my favorite since it’s like a word search but less frustrating. An honorable mention is the word soup kind of game where you make words from a certain collection of letters.

I play most of these on apps that have a collection of different puzzle games. My favorite apps like that are Puzzledom and Numpuz (not sponsored by them, but I wish). I play my car game on an app called Let Me Out, which is just the car puzzle. Go check the apps out, but be warned- they’re addictive.

Reasons Why I Hate England

February 1, 2022January 28, 2022 treefroggyLeave a comment

I’m from the U.S., so it shouldn’t be surprising that I have a vendetta against England. There’s literally no way to explain how it started other than that I’m from the U.S.. I’ve just uncontrollably despised England since I was born. Anyways, here we go.

They drive on the left side of the road

Driving on the left side of the road is just fundamentally wrong. It doesn’t make sense. The majority of people in the world are right-handed, so theoretically, people should drive on the right side of the road. Also, pretty much every country other than the ones that used to be controlled by England drive on the right side of the road. By the law of “majority rules,” England is incorrect.

Chart: Which Side Of The Road Do You Drive On? | Statista — http://cdn.statcdn.com/Infographic/images/normal/9261.jpeg

They use Celsius and kilometers per hour

Hear me out on this one. Yes, the metric system makes a lot more sense for generic measurements, HOWEVER– using kilometers per hour is stupid. I know that pretty much all of Europe uses kilometers per hour and Celsius, but this article is about England specifically so I’m gonna pick on them. Using Celsius and kilometers per hour is dumb because they have no standard of what’s too much or too little. Hang in there, I’ll explain. 0 degrees Fahrenheit is way too cold, and 100 degrees Fahrenheit is way too hot. And 0 miles per hour is too slow while 100 miles per hour is too fast. Celsius not only doesn’t apply to the human body, but it has no reasonable standard of being too hot or cold. Like 0 degrees Celsius isn’t incredibly cold, but a human would die at 100 degrees Celsius. Celsius was a measurement system created for water, not humans. And I think it’s convenient that there’s the same metric of what’s too big or too little between Fahrenheit and miles per hour. This reasoning might sound stupid, but I’m sticking by it.

Kilometres per hour - Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia — https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/91/Northern_Territory_130_speed_limit_sign_P6210051.JPG

They have weird accents

This one is really dumb. I’m not even gonna try to defend myself. I just think their accents are unattractive. Australian accents? Wonderful. Scottish accents? Great. German accents? Really pretty. English accents? Gross. The only good thing about their accents is that they’re really easy to mock.

Learntalk | Different English Accents From Around the World | Learntalk — https://learntalk.org/photos/blog/header_photo/219/Learntalk_BlogPosts_02-12-2018_Accent.jpg

They still have a monarchy

Like, in this economy? Something’s gotta be wrong with them if they think having a monarchy and a democracy at the same time is a smart idea. I mean, I don’t know much about how a monarchy works, but I know that it didn’t work out well for France, so I’m gonna assume it’s a bad idea overall. Plus, the royal family mostly works as a publicity stunt. They should just get rid of it.

British monarchy: The Modern Era, 1901-today - Discover Britain — https://www.discoverbritainmag.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/CROP-Winsdors.jpg

Their Prime Minister is the worst

Boris Johnson sucks so much. To be fair, I’m pretty sure that a good amount of people in England agree with me, but I’m still gonna hold it against them. I don’t like him.

Boris Johnson in Commons fight as No 10 parties report looms - BBC News — https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/976/cpsprodpb/159E6/production/_123005588_gettyimages-1366804875.jpg

Since I’ve already hated on them so much, I guess I’ll put in something I like about England.

Russell Howard is from England

Russell Howard is a comedian with his own show from England. He’s really funny. I love him. He’s probably the only good thing that came out of England.

Russell Howard storms out of comedy gig after five minutes because of woman filming him | The Independent | The Independent — https://static.independent.co.uk/s3fs-public/thumbnails/image/2020/08/13/15/russell-howard.jpg?width=1200

I hope you enjoyed reading my passionate ranting about hating England. I don’t get super patriotic very often, but I definitely whip out the stars and stripes when England comes up in conversation. I will never stop arguing for why I don’t like England.

Why Fear Death?

January 31, 2022January 27, 2022 jared315Leave a comment

Death is one of the many anomalies of this world, and with this lack of knowledge comes an innate fear of dying. People have feared death for ages, so to combat this trepidation people created images of afterlives to live on so their consciousness never truly disappears. This is my idea of why heaven and hell were created. Personally, I find more comfort in believing that there is nothing past death. You and whatever your consciousness is just disappears. From this assumption, I can live a generally stress and anxiety-free life, because in my opinion nothing actually carries meaning, worth, or consequence. I’m just here kickin it. I have a firm belief that if everyone thought a similar way, and cared more about living their actual life rather than worrying about their life after they die, then the world would be a happier place. People need to live in the moment, not in the afterlife.

Where Does the Concept of a “Grim Reaper” Come From? | Britannica — https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.britannica.com%2Fstory%2Fwhere-does-the-concept-of-a-grim-reaper-come-from&psig=AOvVaw2nmkjSKaMMzL6vgczA-WTX&ust=1643411148529000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAsQjRxqFwoTCLiqqOCF0_UCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

Pets I Want

January 30, 2022January 23, 2022 treefroggyLeave a comment

I’m a big animal person. When I’m an adult, I’m probably going to have a ton of pets that I either own or am fostering. Here are some of the pets I want the most.

A cat (hairless or otherwise)

I’m allergic to cats, so if I get a cat in the next few years, it’ll probably have to be a hairless cat or a cat with hypoallergenic hair. I recently started allergy shots, but it’ll take a few years before I get to a point where I can actually have a non-hypoallergenic cat without problems. In the meantime, I’ll keep feeding my neighborhood cat so that my house is his favorite house on the block.

How to Care for a Hairless Cat — https://www.thesprucepets.com/thmb/bQOVEZj0UFxFyh4K9RmoDtUciEQ=/1333×1000/smart/filters:no_upscale()/GettyImages-528925876-b27e1609b74e43eaa56d5a2b8bdc1064.jpg

A Study Linking 'Girls' and Cats Draws Jeers, Then Disappears — https://undark.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/GettyImages-1199242002-1-scaled.jpg

More dogs

I have one dog right now, but I want to have a lot more in the future. I really like bigger dogs like retrievers and shepherds, so I’d love to have a few when I have my own house. Small dogs are super cute too, though. Honestly, I love all dogs.

Labrador Retriever Dog Breed Information — https://www.akc.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Labrador-Retrievers-three-colors.jpg

Opossums

This one shouldn’t be a surprise. I wouldn’t keep them as pets, but I would like to care for disabled opossums that can’t live in the wild. Besides, opossums actually live longer in captivity than they do in the wild. I’ll give them fun outfits.

Rats

Rats are really cute, and they actually make pretty good pets. They usually have to live in bigger groups so they don’t get lonely, so I’ll have a rat colony. They don’t live super long, which is really sad, but I still want to give them good lives.

Lizards

My best friend has leopard geckos and crested geckos, and I’m in love with them. Most lizards actually live for a really long time– leopard geckos live about 15 years and crested geckos can live 15-20 years. They also have pretty dynamic personalities. Some of my friend’s lizards like to be left alone in their enclosures, and some like to be held and played with. I think they would make for really fun pets.

Honestly, I could keep going on about the pets I want, but I’ll probably have my hands completely full if I end up getting all of these animals.

74 Cute Leopard Gecko Compilation That Will Melt Your Heart - ExoPetGuides — https://exopetguides.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/cutest-leopard-gecko.jpg

The Moral Code

January 26, 2022January 18, 2022 jared315Leave a comment

What is right or wrong in the world? Who decides why people harbor certain emotions and reactions to anything? Who designs the moral code? If I were to kill a person, many people would agree that I am inherently a bad person. Why is that? I understand there is a uniqueness to life, and I would never want to kill another person, but in my mind nothing actually has any true consequence or meaning. So why can people decipher what is right or wrong. Its a real mind-fuck to be honest, and there really isn’t an answer. I suppose I’ll have to decide my morals as they are questioned, hopefully I choose right.

Seven moral rules found all around the world

https://phys.org/news/2019-02-moral-world.html

OVS Journalism Blog

Students reporting from the front lines of the Upper Campus

Category: confessions

Traveling Sucks the Life Out of Me

My Chatty Self

I Want a Pet Opossum So Much

Putting You on (to Anime)

One Chip

My Favorite Mobile Puzzle Games

Reasons Why I Hate England

Why Fear Death?

Pets I Want

The Moral Code

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