I do enjoy summer, but fall will always be my favorite. People often tie joy to summer–the longer days, tanned skin, and a feeling of endless freedom. But for me, summer triggers a sense of impending doom. The constant expectation of making it “the best one yet”, and the never-ending worry of what’s to come next.
Fall is calm and steady. Cozy clothes are a necessity and I can stay inside without feeling guilty for missing out on the high UV rays, or social events. There is always something special to look forward to: Holidays, winter break, tasty food, and familiar traditions. Whereas with summer, I dread beginning the school year, giving farewells to faraway friends, and saying goodbye to my sweet freedom.
Although Fall doesn’t give you blazing heat, it somehow feels warmer. No matter how old I grow, where I am, or who I’m with, it will always feel nostalgic. I get giddy just thinking about the feeling of the crisp air and the dark nights. Fall asks nothing of you–It lets you breathe. No fuss, no pressure–just fall.
The Twilight Zone serves as one of my favorite television series of all time due to its disturbing psychological horror atmosphere, its exploration of morality, and its thought-provoking social commentary, which often proved to be well ahead of its time. But by far, what I and most fans of the show are most drawn to are its brilliant use of ironic twists. The series is acclaimed for its clever and unexpected twist endings that not only shock the audience to their core but also leave them reflecting on the deeper themes and implications.
While modern horror works, such as those directed by M. Night Shyamalan, often rely on a shocking twist, the 20-minute run time of The Twilight Zone ensures its signature impactful delivery, making each episode feel like a complete experience with no intention of wasting the viewer’s time. An issue with the modern reboot of The Twilight Zone in 2019 is that the episodes typically range from 40 to 60 minutes, two to three times the length of the original episodes. The prolonged runtime gives the audience more time to put together the twist, resulting in a much weaker lasting impression.
Everyone has always told me that senior year will be the most exciting time in a high school career. Now that I’m finally here, settling into my classes and routines, I keep waiting for that excitement to hit, but all I can think about is how close I am to being done. With the pressure of school, sports, capstone, and college applications, I feel like this is the most stressed I have been so far. I can’t wait to experience graduating and moving on with my life. I can’t wait until the day the pressure eases and senioritis gets to me. Everyone has told me to soak it in, but why is that so hard? It’s bittersweet knowing that this time next year, I will hopefully live in a new city and experience things I have never experienced. Knowing that this is the last year I will be able to laugh and run around in the halls with my best friend. So I am trying my best to absorb it all and remember every moment.
Most weekends when the sun is out I drive to the beach. I set up my towel, put on sunscreen, and braid my hair. I lay in the heat and let the sun bite my skin. I get so pale in the winter, so I cherish the sunny days and tan skin I get in the hot months. Sweat beads on my forehead and my skin feels like it’s on fire. I get up from my sandy towel, and run as fast as I can to the water. The scorching sand feels like glass cutting into my feet, but the cool ocean water brings me relief. Usually I don’t swim because its such a hassle to have to then wash my salty hair and sticky skin. Recently though, the heat has been unbearable. On this day, I dive into the water letting the salt dry out my skin and tangle my hair. I feel the sand crabs wriggle under the sand as the water recedes. After splashing and diving for a while, I make my way back to my towel. I let the sand coat my wet feet, and I let the water sink into my refreshed skin. I sit on my towel while my soaked hair drips onto my legs. I’m relaxed and happy. Once I actually get into the water, I never seem to care about my salty hair or sticky skin; I don’t feel as dirty as I expected. The longer I lay the hotter I get, and I prepare to run to the water and do it all over again.
Being a senior is such a bittersweet feeling. I am so excited to leave and hopefully go back to the city, but I am not ready to leave my friends. This year is the last year all of us will be together. After graduation, it is going to be hard to meet up; some of us are going to be across the country, and some of us across the world.
I am so excited to have senior privileges! This year is the first time they are giving the seniors their privileges so early in the year. My class is like the guinea pigs for future classes. I hope our class doesn’t mess it up. But the requirements for keeping our privileges are pretty easy, so as long as we elect responsible class reps, our privileges will stay.
Also, I’ve been thinking a lot about the future. Times are hard for almost everyone right now, but looking at my friends gives me some sense of comfort, because they are our leaders of tomorrow!
Choosing a college is more difficult than I thought it would be. When I was younger, I thought it would be really easy, but not anymore. Holy crap, I didn’t realise how many things you actually have to take into consideration.
Things such as location, size, and population. Another undeniably important thing is cost, like can you actually afford to pay 100k a year in tuition, plus the cost to live for the next four years? Compared to the beginning of high school, my expectations for out-of-state college have slowly diminished, and I am more inclined to stay in-state.
If you do find a college you like and that suits you, and you believe you can afford, there is also the acceptance rate. Yes, you might like college, but does the college like you? Out of the x number of people who apply, what exactly makes you special? There are plenty of people who have the same classes and extracurriculars as you, so why would they pick you?
Honestly, I think I might just be overthinking everything. I’ll definitely find a college that I like and that is affordable. The worst that can happen is, I get rejected by everyone, but that won’t completely happen…. right?
Sunday, it’s an early wake-up call at 6:00. I put on my jersey and walk out the door. Once I get to the field, I put on my socks, cleats, and shin guards, and my team starts our warm-up. The ref calls the two teams on the field, and we get into our positions. The ref blows the whistle, and the ball starts to move around the field. Both teams are yelling as the ball moves from player to player. I get the ball, run it up the field, and pass it to the forward. As she takes it up, she loses the ball, and the ball resets. Ten minutes pass, and finally, my team scores a goal, and everyone starts cheering. As time goes by, we score more goals, and in the last 10 minutes, I get the perfect shot that goes straight over the keeper. The final whistle blows, and my whole team starts cheering. The games finally over, and we’re on to the next round.
Waking up on Sunday is usually slow. The thought of school tomorrow, the assignments due, and the thoughts resurfacing from the night before are all factors that make me want to lie in bed another hour.
The only thing different this Sunday was a mid-morning tee time with Archer and Ray. Golfing is an escape from reality. The complex thoughts and pits of feelings vanish. In the moment, the only thing you can think about is getting the ball from the tee to the hole.
Between shots, the sounds of music and laughing with friends fill every corner of my mind. Playing in the summer heat with a cold drink puts me on vacation, even if it were only for a couple of hours.
At the end of golf, we got lunch. The feelings of life and reality began to set back in. I got changed, went to work, and finished the day in the gym. I went to bed, my head full of thoughts, waiting for Monday.
The title of the blog is necessarily what this post is about. Even since the begging of time, music has been an influential part of societies, drawing people together and even bringing them apart, depending on how close minded the society was. Music and the tone of specific songs could influence a persons mood, add tone to a scene of a movie or a show, and tell stories. One could listen to the lyrics of a song and be so influenced they themselves write a song or a novel or, well, anything.
There’s different genres of music/artists that really stand out to me, consisting of the band’s motives and why they made a band. One example of music that really moves me is punk. Ska-Punk, personally is my favorite, with Choking Victim and Less than Jake being two entirely different sounding bands with different imagery being in the same genre.
Choking Victim, a ska-punk band that was formed in New York City, known for their politically charged lyrics and innovative way their music is played. Right after they recorded their first full-length LP, No Gods, No Managers in 1999, the band broke up, but still had enough recordings to make an album. With punk rock coming from English bands such as The Ramones in the 1970’s, there has been several different genres of punk to come with it, but Ska-Punk was mostly prominent from 1996 to 2000.
Less than Jake, on the other hand, is also Ska-Punk. Despite their horn driven rhythm and higher beat, they do still classify as a ska-punk band. Why? Because of social commentary and political comments. Less than Jake is a band from Gainesville, Florida, recording a whopping 36 albums.
Choking victim has more political commentary, such as the song Money. The song describes God giving money to the rich and to the government, but also giving it to the dead, with the lyrics of, “‘Cause after you have money, things are never quite the same.” And, “The money fueled this empire and our racist history. Although I’m forced to use it, the rules have all been set. But life is not worth living when your soul is in debt.” While Plastic Cup Politics talks about drinking, and discussing things (such as politics, henceforth the name) under the influence, which they may have not talked about whilst sober.
These songs both talk about things that a lot of people don’t want to talk about, but that’s the beauty of music: talking about things that nobody wants to talk about in a little song. Regardless of the genre of one’s band, they can discuss current events and people’s lives.
Choking Victim’s Squatta’s Paradise E.P. and Less Than Jake’s Hello Rockview
I’ve never really been a fan of camping, even when I was little. If I was told I was going camping with family or friends, I would dread it until the day came. When I was little I enjoyed shopping, and being in Los Angeles. I usually ate at good places, and I always went to see a movie at the Grove. I never grew up with the aspect of camping. I don’t think it’s the actual idea of camping; a big part of it is hiking. That makes me sound like I’m not an active person, but I am; it’s just hiking. The feeling of being drenched in sweat with no water left. To walking up a mountain steeper than my wall just to see a pretty view, is something I would never want to willingly do. I will never understand the people who wake up and choose to go on a hike in a hundred degree weather.
My school has required camping trips twice a year, and some aren’t so bad while others are really challenging. Backpacking in the Sespe mountains and waking up to having to hike was horrible. We had little food and we had to filter our own water from creeks we found on the way. It was one of the hardest, most traumatizing things I have ever done. It was the first day of the backpacking trip and we were told we were only hiking four miles. We ended up hiking 12. Although camping does make me more grateful for the little things. Like sleeping in my own bed, having running water, showering, good food, and civilization. But waking up in the morning at 5 am trying to hold back tears before going isn’t the best experience. If I wasn’t forced to camp, I would never do it again.
OVS Journalism Blog 
You must be logged in to post a comment.