Category: general news

Stuff having to do with the news in general.

Coming to an End.

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Bye

Whether it’s trying to escape an awkward conversation, a rambling relative or trying to leave an event, saying goodbye is always hard. The hardest goodbyes are separations, the ones that greet the end. The friends you know you will never see again, the faces you will miss and the smiles you will never share again.

As I am approaching graduation, I can’t help but to feel sad. I have said many goodbyes, through my life, and they never get any easier. In fact they probably get harder. This is because the promises with friends you make are often broken: visits never happen, fate interferes and commonalities change.

It’s just one of those things with friendships, people will always grow apart. Being from such a close-knit graduating class I hope that our relationships will remain. Still, things coming to an end are always sad.

Sweet Sting Sunday.

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Bee
I had my first bee sting of the year today, and man it hurt a lot more than I remembered.

So I was casually reading my book as you do on a Sunday afternoon, admiring the view from my porch chair and relaxing in the shade of the huge oaks over head. The birds chirped away singing sweet songs as they played and splashed in the water of the bird bath unaware of the dangers that accompanied them in their play.

Yes, it turns out bees like water too. In fact one may say it is the typical hang out or meeting spot during the spring/ summer months. Little did I know reading my book sweetly would I become a target for their fun.

Now I’m no wimp, and if a bee were to buzz around me I would remain calm and still but when one lodges itself in your finger it’s not that easy to do either of these things.

It was well and truly stuck, chained down by the sting that was embedded in the tip of my middle finger and you know what I was scared to pull it out incase it stung me. Obviously it had done that already but in a moment of panic I just let it stay there wiping it off carefully, after a few minutes, with a pair of tweezers afraid of its next move.

Little did I know its next joke was to leave the sting in me, how cleaver, leaving me deal with the pain for a little longer. I’m sure it sought amusement from that.

I eventually managed to get it out after a refusal for help from my father “because he didn’t have his glasses,” but luckily my Mum came to hand proving her skills on Mother’s Day.

So now I have the biggest swollen middle finger ever. I may just have to go and use it swearing at the rest of the bees.

Universal Studios!

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Today was my first time ever going to Universal Studios. I didn’t know what to expect as we rode the bus there, but I had a lot of fun!

Both of my friends had already been there a time or two before, so they knew where all of the fun stuff was and were happy to show me around.

First, we went on the tour of the stages and sets where many famous movies have been shot. It was really interesting to see how many stages they had and how many interesting sets there were and what it took to create them. When I watch movies, I guess I never really think about the fact that they have to shoot on a set rather than in the real place. We saw outdoor sets from many movies including War of the Worlds, Jaws, Psycho, Desperate Housewives, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Three Amigos, and many more. We rode around in little buses throughout these sets and got to hear a little about each of then. We also saw some cool 3D King Kong preview and car stunts from Tokyo Drift. It was really mind-blowing to see how much goes into these movies!

After that tour, we went on a Simpsons Ride which was really silly, and then we went to the Mummy ride. That one was probably my favorite. It was like a miniature indoor roller coaster. We also went on a Jurassic Park water ride.

Towards the end of our day, we went to a Waterworld show where there was many stunts and tricks done on the water in a performance. There was a lot of action and fire as well. It was a very entertaining show to say the least.

About an hour before we had to leave, we exited the park and went walked through Universal City Walk. There were a lot of shops and we went into a few of them. We got candy from a candy store called Its Sugar, which was really cute inside and they had my favorite candy, chocolate covered gummy bears. We walked around for a little while longer and went into a few Universal gift stores and debated buying dorky souvenirs.

It was such a fun day and I had a really great first time at Universal Studios. I will definitely be going back again sometime soon!

Wear Sunscreen.

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Sun

There are many hazardous, dangerous things in life today: crime, illness and technology are just a few.  Despite these posing threats there is one danger that has existed through the decades of time and presents the biggest risk. The sun.

The sun has the ability to heat, provide and aid life but its power is also potent because it  can also kill, destroy and harm.

Many people are aware of the threat that the  sun poses yet, despite this, they still go out in it’s heat unprotected, getting sun burnt and damaged. With a growing awareness about skin cancer and its causes, many people are trying to be more cautious but there are those that are still taking risks daily.

Although the danger is not an immediate confrontation, the suns rays are still a major hazard.

So be careful, wear sunscreen and be happy.

Gastric acid

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Gastric acid helps digest food we eat, control propagation of viruses. The body secretes 0.5 liter of it, which is the size of 500ml bottle for every meal. When you’re hungry, its acidity becomes very strong that it can even melt metals!!!

But if the acid could melt metals, how does the stomach membrane remain unhurt? It’s because when the acid is secreted, simultaneously it secretes viscous liquid to make a protection of the surface. The viscous liquid is alkalinity, which neutralize the acid!

Makes sense!

RELAY FOR LIFE!!!

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Relay for Life is an extremely amazing event sponsored by the American Cancer Society. I have gone to if for the past 2 years, and I was looking forward to this years event. I had been counting down the days to Relay for Life for a while, and I was so excited when it finally came.

In the weeks leading up to RFL, I had been trying to raise money for the cause and needed $100 to participate in the overnight portion. So, I asked all of my family and friends and within just about a week, I raised the money that I needed. Overall, out school team raised $3,210! I thought that was pretty amazing. For that, we received a Bronze Medal award which means that we were a very valuable contributor.

I left early with my friend Evan to help set up our booth on Buena Ventura High School‘s track/football field. We decorated our booth with colorful paper flowers in support of this years “fiesta” theme, due to Cinco de Mayo. We also had a lot of colorful posters and other decorations. We sold these paper flowers, ceramic mugs & bowls, and auctioned off themed baskets including chocolate, beach, spa, and movie themes, in order to raise more money for the American Cancer Society.

At our booth, we had a lot of fun costumes and hats, and all of the students that came to support the cause dressed up in ridiculous outfits including banana suits and Dr. Seuss attire and walked laps. There was live music, fun games, and many cool and informative booths to visit, with anything from face painting to a bike auction.

In last year’s event, a couple who were cancer survivors had their wedding right on the field. It was a very special event and meant a lot to them. This year, sadly, the man’s cancer has returned. Fortunately, he was able to show up at the event with his wife, and it was very inspirational. He was walking around and having a good time. It was great to see all of the support they had from people at the event and I’m so glad they were able to come this year.

After dinner time, and after returning from a Battle of the Bands contest at Thacher school, my friend Wendy and I returned to the track to walk in the night portion of the event. There were a lot less people walking during the night, and it was very tiring. There were only 5 of us, until at about 12 o’clock, another faculty member and her boyfriend showed up to help us out. I think throughout the night, we managed to keep at least 1 member of our team on the track. Wendy and I took naps in hour increments, but it was too cold to actually sleep, and we would get up from time to walk some laps and warm ourselves up.

It was a very great experience. The Luminaria lit up around the track were very inspirational and a reminder that there have been so many people effected by cancer. It kept me walking and helped me realize how lucky I am to not have been effected too harshly by this disease, and also the importance of the support I was giving to this event.

Overall, the event was really great and I am so glad I have had these last 3 years to support a great cause. Hopefully, with all the money raised through all the Relay for Life events, more progress will be made in order to minimize the devastating effects of cancer and help find a cure. I am proud to say that was part of the OVS team. We did such a great job and I hope we continue this effort in the years to come.

Sleepyhead.

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Sleep

Being tired is sometimes the worst feeling in the world. You wake up early, feeling strangely refreshed after a long day and a short nights sleep. You get ready to go out or to work, really fit and keen to commence with the day. About an hour later this rejuvenated, energized state goes, replaced by overwhelming tiredness.

The urge to sleep has been bugging at me for about 8 hours now, yet I just can’t afford to do it. I have two AP exams tomorrow that I have been constantly studying for, I have homework and I have tasks to complete before I relax, close my eyes and drift into a peaceful dream state.

This sounds heavenly to me right now: sleep, dream, no more tiredness, heaven.

Right now I need to snap out of being a sleepyhead, maybe drink some coffee and continue on my study mission. Sleeping can remain a dream that will happen sometime in the future.

Combinations.

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Beans on toast

There are some combinations that just go naturally together: pancakes and syrup, cookies and milk, and of course the classic all time American snack, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

These are all American traditions, none of which I have adopted. In England we have our own that strangely many people in the foreign country do not know. These are all things that I am unwilling to let go and still today practice on a daily basis.

Here are just a few of my all time favorites: tea and biscuits (yes you’d call them cookies), beans and toast, chips (fries) and mayonnaise, and these are only a few.

Ok these may all seem a bit alien to you but so do many of the things that Americans eat I mean pancakes and sausages, really? But you never know how good they are until you try them. So mix it up try some different combinations.

Summer… School?

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When thinking about the summer, I was always overly excited to graduate, go back home, and spend time with friends and family.

But, recently, those plans have change. I am still graduating, of course, but I am not going back home. Instead, I am staying right here in Ojai and working for OVS‘ summer camp program!

I knew I would need to get a summer job this summer. So, I started looking for many places back by where I live, but not many of them wanted to hire someone just for a few months during summer. My friend had told me that she was planning on staying in Ojai and working for OVS this summer. I figured it would be a really good opportunity and I would also be making a good amount of money.

I am pretty excited about this opportunity! First of all, I love kids and I am excited to work with the younger kids this summer and do fun activities with them.

Secondly, I am happy that I will be around a lot of my friends, since most of them are day students and live around this area anyways.

After I work, I will be able to go home in early August and spend a month at home with no obligations. I can see my friends and family and then, after that, it’s off to college at Cal Lutheran! I am so excited for this summer and for what’s to come after it as well! 🙂

The Avengers

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I can’t even tell you how excited I am for The Avengers to hit theaters!

When I was a little girl, my parents took me to vacation at the family beach house in Ventura.  The bedroom I slept in had a chest of drawers and in the bottom drawer was a mountain of original Marvel and DC comic books.  There were Spiderman and Batman, Justice League and Avengers comics piled so high that the drawer barely closed.  I used to sit on the floor at the foot of the bed for hours, reading and rereading all these strange, colorful stories.

And so I became enamored of the Marvel Universe (Batman was a separate favorite).  Naturally, I went to see all the Marvel movies when they came out.

I absolutely adore Robert Downey Jr.  The first movie I saw that he starred in was Iron Man.  It is one of my very favorite movies, Iron Man 2 was better though.

I saw The Incredible Hulk, Captain America and Thor.  

And those movies were good.  Really good.  I love action movies, attractive people and super heroic snazziness.  And Marvel movies have those three things in spades.

My sisters are  on their first backpacking trip, and they get back Friday.

They’re super cool and they like all the same actors and actresses as I do, so we’re going to have a freak-out party in the theater when we go to see it the night they get back.

Oh yes, Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth (not a fan of Liam but Chris is amazing), Mark Ruffalo, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner and Samuel L. Jackson all in one movie????

It is going to be magnificent.  I can’t wait!!!