Sometimes it seems like the world should just stop moving, so why doesn’t it. Why is it that the world has such little regard for the daily goings of its inhabitants.
Like the saying justice is blind, maybe the world is too.
But we the inhabitants don’t have the liberty of being children, because the world won’t just stop being a mother. So guess what childhood’s over.
It’s time to put away all those guns synonymous with a child’s pea shooter. To put away all those stink bug bombs, all those parking lot fist fights all that sibling hate.
The monsters in the closet are real. That hand wrapped around your ankle leading off into the dark under your bed. Hate and brutality is etched into the dry papery skin of that hand and arm. The monster in the closet is made up up of apathy and fear.
Watching the race for president this year has been painful. We have two especially… interesting candidates; Dr. Ben Carson, an extremely close-minded neurosurgeon, and Donald Trump, the crazy businessman.
Dr. Carson… where do I start?
His opinionated mentality continues to remain one sided as he plows through in the race. He has openly expressed his opinions on some of the most popular topics at the moment, which includes transgender and gay rights.
In reply to the suggestion that transgender men and women should be able to use the bathroom of their new sex, Dr. Carson said, “It is not fair for them to make everyone else uncomfortable,” which, as I would imagine, is frustrating to transgender men and women everywhere.
He suggested that there be a separate bathroom made for transgender people.
Yet again, history repeats itself.
The second candidate of the terrible two is Donald Trump.
I could write for hours about how ignorant he truly is, but instead I shall focus on the most recent issue he has struck the U.S. with: Starbucks cups.
Yes, Starbucks coffee cups.
In Trump’s opinion, Starbucks coffee cups should say “Merry Christmas” rather than “Happy Holidays.”
What?
Is there only one holiday celebrated this winter? Nope, there are three major holidays celebrated in the U.S during the winter holidays; Kwanza, Christmas, and Hanukkah, NOT JUST CHRISTMAS.
Although my family celebrates Christmas, as I am assuming Trump’s does too, it is ridiculous to insist that there be one of these three holidays publicized by companies.
I am disappointed in how narrow-minded both of these Republican candidates are.
I don’t like sitting starring at a delicate browning page reading words that always get lost in my head
photo credit: athome.readinghorizons.com
Now, I know I have probably offended more than 75% of the populations, and if my English teacher is reading this than you are probably deeply saddened by my epiphany.
I don’t exactly know why I don’t like reading books
Maybe its because when I do read its for all the wrong reasons. I never read for fun, I read because of an assignment.
Maybe it dates back to when I was first learning how to read. There was a lot of throwing, and crying and screaming. All around it was a traumatizing experiencing for everyone involved especially me.
Now don’t get me wrong, I take a dive into the world of books every now and again. When a book catches my eye I look on audible and get listening, but somehow reading a jumble of letters on a page coming together to create a story doesn’t tickle my fancy.
Now this being said I don’t think that reading is evil. If you enjoy it all the more power to you, but please when I say that I don’t like it, don’t look at me like that, you know exactly what look I’m talking about.
When I was scrolling through my Instagram this morning I ran across a photo that was a link to an article Vogue had posted.
The article was about an Australian couple who are renovating a gorgeouschâteau in the South of France. So I decided to do a round of up of the most amazing Châteaus France has to offer. (Let’s be real, pretty much all French Châteaus are winners.)
5. This Winter Wonderland Château
Photo Credit: Pinterest
It reminds me of the house in Taylor Swift’s Blank Space music video. Enough said.
4. The Château that Inspired this Post
Photo Credit: Vogue
Between the creeper vines growing up the house and the amazing driveway, I am envious of the owners of this estate.
3. This Grand Château
Photo Credit: thegoodlifefrance.com
This Château is majestic in the grandest sense. With the light layer of snow all around and the beautiful architecture, I am having serious house FOMO.
2. This Beauty
Photo Credit: green-landscape.com
Though this picture is worth a thousand words, LOOK HOW MAJESTIC. This should be in a Disney movie.
Valentino Garavani’s Château de Wideville
Photo Credit: iTunes/ E!
Remember on the Keeping Up With the Kardashians episode of Kim and Kanye’s wedding when the whole clan casually were invited to Valentino’s Chateau for a celebratory wedding brunch?
Well I do, and I must say GOALS. This Château is jaw dropping. From the beautiful interior, to the amazing gardens, Valentino’s Château definitely secures the place as #1.
And since this is the #1 Château here are some more amazing pictures of the grounds and of my favorite episode of Keeping up With the Kardashians (no regrets).
Photo Credit: iTunes/ E!
GOOOAAALS
Photo Credit: iTunes/ E!
And of course, Versailles is amazing in every sense, but if it was in the list, there wouldn’t be much competition.
During my psychology class my editor and friend, Kendall Shiffman, and I watched a video about a man who can see using his “sonar” abilities.
Daniel Kish is completely blind and has zero sensitivity in his optical nerves. He has been blind since he was 13 months old.
Because of this he has a “freedom stick”, which is a much longer cane than most others, that he uses to sense the objects around him.
Although he has his freedom stick, he has developed another ability which allows him to be even more aware of his surroundings; clicking, a form of echolocation he has developed to sense the world around him.
Discovering this, I attempted to click my way up the stairs to my next class…which didn’t end well.
His echolocation abilities, much like a bat’s, develop an image in the mind that can distinguish shapes, giving Kish the ability to walk, ride a bike, and run without a stick. Rather, he just needs his tongue.
This beautiful ability Kish has created fascinates me. I wish I could, for a day, see what Kish sees; find sight in the darkness called blindness.
Throughout the past hundred years, a multitude of advancements has been made by man kind. We have iPhones, cars, super thin laptops, and jumbo jets that can fly 400 passengers across the Atlantic in ten hours.
Photo Credit:. iytimg.com
Self-driving cars and hover boards are some of the latest innovative items being produced. Although these items are incredible; what is next?
I feel as though something incredible is about to be revealed. Something is being worked on somewhere by some company that will change this generation – but I have no clue what it is.
I have a couple of ideas as to what this new revolution will be; cars that hover above the ground, computers that have holograms to type, or locks to our doors that scan our fingerprints to allow admittance.
I ponder about what is to come soon, hoping it will exceed my expectations.
I want to live a life with permanently dirty feet.
The assertion that one is obligated to be confined in shoes, at a job, where you sit in the same spot, and do the same thing everyday.
When I was younger I would play for hours on end without shoes on my feet.
I’d like to think of my dirty feet as an accomplishment. You’ve connected with the earth for so long that is has had time to change you.
The wicked cycle of an endless suburbia is keeping our feet much too clean. The same thing every single day.
Switch it up, take those damn shoes off — forget about your work emails for half an hour and take a minute to be alone.
Uninterrupted, just you and the earth. Breath it in. Feel the dewy grass tickle to spaces between your toes. Feel the rough asphalt grind away at your skin.
I would like to live a life with permanent dirty feet. In this technological age, people are seeming to forget that they’re washable.
You can get as dirty as you want because you can be cleaned. You can wash away the silt from your socks but you can’t replace the feeling of truly connecting with the earth.
Stop checking Twitter and take a look around. See the life that you’re missing out on being glued to the screen of your phone and go get dirty.
You’re too busy Instagramingat the tops of mountains for the likes rather than the memories and sense of accomplishment.
Whether you hold this true to yourself or not — this time we’re living in feels so artificial.
So, disconnect from the screen and go connect with what’s green.
After years of mentally preparing myself to endure the most mentally draining four-hours of my high school career, I have just completed taking a second SAT test.
I have so many thoughts about this tedious task that every high school student in the United States is required to do.
I think it is ridiculous that a standardized test score can determine a student’s future. A good student with a high GPA and a lot of extra curricular activities can get an average score solely because they might not be the best test taker, but that one test score has a large weight on which colleges accept them.
I do not fully understand why standardized tests have become a way of determining students academic careers for such a long time, or why they have become of such a high priority. Although most colleges look at students holistically, California State schools consider students purely on GPA and standardized test scores.
However, I understand the reasoning behind standardized testing; giving students a chance to show the general academic knowledge they have accumulated in high school.
But why does a test have to be the only thing that proves a student has gained knowledge? Why is it that the pressure to get a high-test score can consume a student’s conscience for months so that they focus all of their time studying for one generalized, tricky test?
There is a strong double standard in today’s culture.
For a woman, it is considered “improper” to show as little as show her bra strap. Yet, I see multiple men and boys sagging their pants, walking around shirtless, and more.
Most people today, including myself, don’t give it much thought when this happens. It’s normal for a guy to be able to show most of his body, while a woman is reprimanded or judged for showing a strap on their shoulder.
CBSwrote a very interesting article about the dress codes in work places, and the “dress codes” seem to transition into people’s personal lives too.
There also seems to be an uproar when a woman asserts herself in her career and lays down the law, and she may be called some less than polite words.
I’m not calling anyone out here, or placing blame. But, the expectation for how men present themselves is, in some cases, much lower than the expectation for women.
Of course, this double standard goes both ways. Men aren’t expected to be emotional or sensitive, and in some cultures, are judged for it.
Men are also though of as “weak” if he is a stay at home dad, does the laundry, or cooks dinner because it is thought to be a woman’s role.
Why should the public be able to judge two different genders completely differently, on the same subject, and have it be thought of as OK?
Just the other day I was browsing some dank memes on Reddit.
I got really bored so I went to “reddit.com/r/random/” which directs the user to a random subreddit.
After three attempts I finally stumbled upon a decent-looking subreddit that I had never even heard of: /r/urbanexploration.
I spent the rest of my evening on that subreddit. The subreddit is dedicated to exploring ruins in urban areas. It’s all about people’s findings of abandoned monuments frozen in time.
Spanning from secret basement doorways that lead to a massive tunnel system that were likely used by Al Capone, to old Yugoslavian monuments from the 1960s.
Photo credit to Michael Mehrhoff
The subreddit is mostly crap, but every few posts is an amazing story. The stories are really just a bunch of captioned pictures in the order of their findings.
My favorite was the post titled “Bad Ass Bunker.” The album is a series of 31 pictures with detailed captions.
The person who explored the bunker was visiting his old friend in northern Germany, which was formerly GDR.
They found a massive bunker. Some of it was already explored and had been tagged by teens. But the further and deeper they went, the more they found.
Eventually, the bunker was flooded and they had to turn back.
Photo credit to Johnny Joo
Urban explorers find a thrill in going through these abandoned buildings. Some even travel around the world.
They love it because the building tells a story and they get to be the ones to figure it out. Like what is this place, who was here, why was it abandoned?
Urban explorers are each like a modern-day Indiana Jones. Some of the explorers are photographers that actually take photos of abandoned places for a living.
Photo credit to Daniel Barter
For those who want to get started, the subreddit is a great place to get advice and learn of new locations.
Keep in mind, in most cases breaking into abandoned places is trespassing, and a lot of people on the subreddit have been arrested.
But there are websites that can be found on the subreddit that help avoid this issue.
OVS Journalism Blog 
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