Rated T for Trigger

mariethearistocatLeave a comment

About 80 years ago, America introduced a brand-new thing: The Motion Picture Production Code (otherwise known as movie ratings). Fast forward to 2016, and many movie goers know these rules by heart. You can go to G movies with your 1-year-old cousin. You can see PG-13 movies by yourself as soon as you get into high school, and sometimes you get turned away at the booth for the latest R-rated movie.

The Motion Picture Association of America has had these rating rules for almost as long as movies have been popular. Throughout time, the code has been changed as new discussions are brought up. Concerned parents created the PG-13 category after movies like Indiana Jones and Gremlins exposed young children to violence and gore.  The ratings we have today are nothing like those of the 30’s.

As society evolves, aspects, such as this code, need to shift as well. In the past few years, there has been leaps and bounds made with mental health awareness in America. With these new and exciting developments, there needs to be a new case to bring to the Motion Picture Association of America: trigger warnings.

For those who don’t know what a trigger warning is, it is when something unexpected happens and a person with anxiety or PTSD is triggered into a panic attack. Common triggers in movies are scenes with gun fights, rape, or gory murder, however there are many more triggers out there.

Movie production companies, such as the MPAA, should petition to make the trigger warning section in ratings possible. Why? Those with any kind of mental illness may have trouble with going out to see a movie to begin with. Whether it be depression or social anxiety, going out in a public place can be stressful for some. That stress can already make a person feel on edge and a trigger can make them tip over the edge. One of the main appeals of movies is the escape from reality, but if a person is in a state of extreme panic after being triggered, then that escape isn’t enjoyable for anyone.

With all this said, there NEEDS to be change. Simply including common triggers in the caption of a rating could immensely increase the lives of so many individuals. Movies can have a severe impact on people. A lot can be said about a person based on their favorite movie, and with a trigger warning system implemented, it will make it so much easier for people to find their movie.

 

Brothers or Losers

thericemuncherLeave a comment

Lacrosse is one of if not the hardest team sport offered to high school students. Coming into the 2016 season I had little optimism and little enthusiasm; we were coming off a no-win season and we were only losing more and more experienced players. We’ve added numerous new names to the roster, but very few of which have any lacrosse experience. It’s proving to be quite a challenge for the OVS lacrosse team to come together and play to their full potential.

For those that aren’t familiar with lacrosse it is a blend of soccer, hockey, football, and basketball. Every player has a stick customized to his preference and position. There are short poles, long poles, and a goalie stick. There are two half to a lacrosse field and ten players total. Three defensive players have to stay on their respective sides and three offensive players stay to theirs, the midfield can move between the two sides freely, the goalie stays in the goal. The game is very fast paced and each team will try to set up on the other teams side until someone has the opportunity to shoot on the goal. All players must wear a helmet, mouth guard, gloves, arm pads, and a shoulder pad. Lacrosse is a full contact sport that will make you want to quit after the first quarter of a game.

Here’s an in-depth video on what lacrosse is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXO1lPc3p38

I’m hoping that as the season progresses and we go through more practices and games the team can start to come together and learn to play this amazing sport as a team. Our first game comes March 16th, every game is winnable, but only if we want it more than the other team.

It isn’t so easy

hubbabubba98Leave a comment

I think I’ve gone completely brain dead. After being away from school for two weeks, I have no recollection on how to get back into the swing of things.

“It’s easy” they say, as they stand at the front of the room handing me piles of worksheets and assignments to make up.

Yes, of course it is easy, WHEN THEY ARE THE ONE GIVING ME THE WORK AND NOT DOING IT.

I have a math test in two days. I don’t even remember how to use my calculator.

I know eventually I will fall back into my boring, monotonous routine of classes Monday through Friday and homework, Saturday through Sunday. But I know it will feel like an eternity until I fall back into those deep tracks.

Of course, as soon as I get myself back in the groove, it will time for yet another break and I will repeat this whole cycle over again.It

Women Who Have Changed Your Life

beetlejusLeave a comment

What does it take to make a change?  From Rosa Parks to Marie Curie to Sacagawea, there is no shortage of powerful women who have made their mark on history.  In honor of International Women’s Day on March 8th and Women’s History month for the entire month of March,  I am going to spotlight just a few of the women who changed your life. 

  1. Lucretia Mott

Mott was the pioneer of the women’s right movement.  She fought for equal rights among all people.  In 1833, she helped to form the Female Anti-Slavery Society and organized the Seneca Falls Convention, a landmark women’s rights gathering. 

Her words to live by:  “The world has never yet seen a truly great and virtuous nation, because in the degradation of woman, the very fountains of life are poisoned at their source.”

2. Maya Angelou

Angelou wrote seven autobiographical books, including her most well known I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.  She was an active voice during the American cilvil rights movement.  In addition to her writings, Angelou made many people rethink their ideas about sex workers bu writing about her own experience as a sex worker.

Her words to live by: “Be a rainbow in somebody else’s cloud”

3. Ada Lovelace

Ada Lovelace was the only legitimate child of Lord Byron, one of England’s greatest poets.  Despite her father’s literary achievements, she is known for being the first computer programmer.

Her words to live by:  “That brain of mine is something more than merely mortal; as time will show.”

4. Madeleine Albright

Albright became the first female secretary of state in 1996, she paved the way for Condoleezza Rice and Hillary Clinton.  She has never been afraid to speak her mind: She recently told CNN that the 2016 GOP primary race is “like children in a school yard calling each other names.”

Her words to live by:   “There is a special place in hell for women who do not help other women.”

 

http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/sites/default/files/headers/collection/150210_header_womens_history_month.jpg?1423584365

Obsession

mushuooLeave a comment

T-9 hours until I receive a decision from my second choice school.

For the past week, I have been constantly contemplating my academic strengths and weaknesses, calculating my chances at these schools… as if I have a chance at predicting the decisions I will receive.

I have never wanted anything more than to be accepted to these institutions.

My top two school choices for the past few years have been the University of Southern California and Occidental College.

I would be happy at either college, however, my chances of getting into either school are slim.

In comparison to other students that applied to Occidental, I am just slightly below average, GPA and SAT wise.

In comparison to other students who applied to USC, I am sub-par, with my GPA and SAT scores falling quite far below their average accepted student.

I keep trying to envision myself at another school, but simply cannot.

I want Oxy and USC so badly it hurts. My stomach has been in knots for days, and until 5:00 pm this evening, I will not feel relief.

I know this feeling is normal, but that does not affect my level of anxiety. I remain eager, waiting impatiently.

Good luck to all of the high school seniors waiting to hear from their favorite schools, you will end up wherever you are supposed to.

Photo Credit to: michelleshaeffer.com

 

 

Growing Pains

kennyrooLeave a comment
Photo Credit to: theodysseyonline.com

Monogamy as a concept is a strange thing, but little girls are taught from early childhood to believe that it is the ultimate goals.

More than half of my friends parents are divorced, often times with one parent leaving the other behind completely abandoned.

For me, I don’t even remember my parents kissing because I was so young when they divorced. Yet, pretty much every story I was read at night ended with a boy and a girl falling in love and living happily ever after.

Now, I sit here in my late teenage years watching beautiful relationships turn toxic in the blink of an eye.

What was once the most amazing time of your life quickly becomes a distant and wildly painful memory.

I just broke up with the first person that I’ve ever loved and because of that I’m feeling certain emotions that I’ve never felt before.

I’m not sure how to dispose of these feelings for someone who I’m still kind of in love with, even though they hurt me so deeply and so consistently.

How do you know your last kiss will be your last kiss?

How do you know when he says “I love you” that it will be the last time you ever hear those words grace his lips.

There is no rule book on this stuff – no matter how much I wish there was.

My mom always said “love shouldn’t hurt”, and that is a major factor into why certain relationships of mine have ceased to exist.

But mom, you’re wrong.

Love hurts.

It hurts when you’re so full of passion that your heart could practically explode.

It hurts when you get in your first fight.

And love really hurts right about now.

 

 

Game of Thrones

instalockerLeave a comment
https://i0.wp.com/wallpaper.pickywallpapers.com/1920x1080/game-of-thrones-the-crown.jpg
Photo Credit: http://www.wallpaper.pickywallpapers.com

Game of Thrones Season 1-5 spoilers ahead

It is that time of the year again: Less than 50 days until Season 6 of Game of Thrones. It is time to start from the beginning of the show, watching one episode every night till the new season is released. I don’t binge watch alone; I get together with friends at least once a week and we watch the episodes together. With so many episodes it is hard to remember what happened in an episode 3 years ago, so I came up with a solution to eliminate gaps between the old and new episodes. A part of this tradition is to make predictions of what will happen and whoever is closest wins and gets the prize of hearing the others say “good job”.

https://i0.wp.com/8840-presscdn-0-18.pagely.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Melisandre.jpg
Photo Credit to: http://8840-presscdn-0-18.pagely.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Melisandre.jpg

Season Six is looking like it will be the best season yet; after the death of Stannis Baratheon and Jon Snow, it’s hard to tell what path the show will take. The entire series I have been a big believer in the Melisandre, Stannis’ advisor. For those who aren’t familiar with the show, she is a priestess who serves R’hllor, the Lord of Light. Westeros is full of many religions, but only the prayers to R’hllor are answered. Although the religion is borderline satanic and possibly witchcraft, it is extremely powerful. A fire priestess like Melisandre can see the future which is really important when commanding armies. She has never been wrong with the exception of Stannis dying in battle. But I believe she knew that he would die. Melisandre has been trying to get Jon Snow to join them, but Jon refused because he has sworn an oath forcing him to serve the night’s watch.

https://ovsjournalists.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/281ae-got5-10_myrcella.jpg
Photo Credit to: http://2.bp.blogspot.com

Men who swear the oath serve in defending the border wall till death. They are responsible for defending against Wildlings which resemble barbarians, and White Walkers, which are undead creatures that can only be killed with dragon glass, an extremely rare material. Because the white walkers are a new threat and no one believes the night’s watch reports of them, they are forced to ally the Wildlings under Jon’s orders. His men were so mad that Jon was killed in a mutiny in a dramatic Julius Caesar killing. His death is the best thing to happen to Melisandre. A fire priests in one episode showed that he could bring back the dead, but only those who R’hllor thinks is worthy. Melisandre knows that Jon is worthy and may bring him back to life. This is huge because Jon will no longer be sworn to the night’s watch; he is the rightful King of the north and the entire north will have his back in a war. On top of that he would have control of the remains of the Baratheon army, and because of his sister Sansa he will most likely get support in secret from Little Finger who basically controls everyone through blackmail. If that isn’t enough, he could probably get support from Dorne, a nation that isn’t a part of Westeros and Dorne really hates the current leaders of Westeros the Lannisters. If Jon Snow comes back to life, it would be game over for the Lannisters, and as much as I love to hate them, I can’t wait till they are gone.

 

 

It’s All Coming Together

mushuooLeave a comment

It’s that time of year again, college acceptance, and denial, letters are coming our way. After months of working on applications, seniors are finally beginning to hear back from schools.

It feels as though I have been waiting a lifetime to get these letters. My dream school is the University of Southern California, and I want that school more than any other.

I have been accepted into all of my backup schools, two of my three targets, and neither of my two reaches, yet.

Chapman University recently sent me an acceptance letter, and when I got the e-mail I felt this enormous sense of relief, knowing I had been accepted into my third choice school.

The only reason it is my third choice is because I have applied to two more academically rigorous schools; Occidental College, and USC. But those schools are both reaches for me, meaning I have a smaller chance of being accepted.

I am completely happy attending Chapman, but I would be ecstatic to go to Occidental or USC.

Because I will be a pre-law student, meaning I will be going to law school after graduating from whichever undergraduate school I attend.

Because of this, I want to go to the most prestigious school I can in order to give me an edge in the Law School application process.

I am thankful I have options on where I go to college, but I am conflicted as to which school is the perfect fit for me.

Although transferring is always an option, I don’t want to build a life somewhere, make connections with other students, and learn the lay of the land at a school where I am not completely happy.

My best friend just got into Chapman as well, giving the school an enormous edge in my book. However, I have to make sure I make the right decision for me, not anyone else.

At this point, Chapman is it. But if I get an acceptance from Occidental or USC, that may change.

How do I choose the right school?

https://keck-cms.usc.edu/sitecore/shell/Controls/Rich%20Text%20Editor/~/media/FC8915914E7E43D38F3F6585E46E1433.jpg
Photo credit to: keck-cms.usc.edu

The Stages of Prom Shopping (For an Anti-Sparkle-Social-Salamander)

whynotstayinLeave a comment

Surface:

Woo cool.

Photo Credit: harrypotterreactions.tumblr.com

Brain:

Prom…yay…that’s what I’m supposed to do right? Maybe?

Photo Credit: imgur.com

Rational:

An excellent time to dress up and spend time on yourself, not to mention cut down on a day of dry and sleep inducing work. Right?

Photo Credit: reactiongif.org

Cynic:

But then again, it’s also a time for people to spend way too much money on a dress they’ll only wear once. Obsess over their size, feel self shame, worry way too much about how they look and what people will think of them.

Photo Credit: www.bustle.com

Social salamander mode:

You could just hide in the corner and act like you like no one…you could hoard a bunch of food and converse with the potted plants. Yeah that’s a good plan. Find the cheapest easiest dress you can, throw on a pair a nondescript shoes, do your hair like everyone else with an obscene amount of hairspray and self-consciousness. Yep that’s what I’m doing.

Photo Credit:nobaddatesjustgoodstories.tumblr.com

Research:

This is all so much. So much sparkles. *bangs head on keyboard* So much shiny. *Sinks to knees* Why world?? So much sparkles, shoes, dress, eyes, blood stream. The cheapest thing is bedazzled to pluto and back, and eighty dollars??

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

I’m going to need to pay for this:

*Opens purse* There’s some yarn, a tapestry needle, some bobby pins and oh wait is that money? => two hours, of digging through purse desperately, later => nope just a receipt for some sushi.

Photo Credit: www.gurl.com

After panic:

Know what world? I’m doing this my way. I’m going to work my own style and thrift store the price tags out of this equation. I’m doing this my awkward wallflower-y way and the socially acceptable prom ideals are going to take it. I’m done listening, I’m going to make this night of mandatory fun mine to enjoy how I please.

Photo Credit: www.buzzfeed.com

America’s Finest News Source

raining17Leave a comment

WARNING: Do not read if easily offended.

Photo Credit: blogs-images.forbes.com

The Onion, a satirical newspaper that exists primarily to mock America’s antics, is one of my favorite forms of entertainment. While scrolling through Facebook, articles randomly pop up on my news feed, and never fail to provide amusement.

Even funnier than the articles themselves though, are the headlines – I cannot explain my love for them. I admit, I don’t always get around to reading the actual stories – that’s a big commitment – but the headlines, a short and easy read, are simply genius.

Impeccably sarcastic and wittily worded, these headlines are the epitome of satire  – I love it.

Here are ten of my all-time favorites, in no particular order.

  • ‘I Am Under 18’ Button Clicked For First Time In History Of Internet
  • Miracle Of Birth Occurs For 83 Billionth Time
  • Taylor Swift Now Dating Senator Joseph McCarthy
  • Secondhand Smoke Linked To Secondhand Coolness
  • Gay Teen Worried He Might Be Christian
  • Kitten Thinks Of Nothing But Murder All Day
  • Dwarf Falls Equivalent Of 10 Stories
  • Fun Toy Banned Because Of Three Stupid Dead Kids
  • Alcoholic Father Disappointed In Pothead Son
  • Buddy System Responsible For Additional Death

It doesn’t even matter if you read the articles themselves– the headline is all you need.

Enjoy, and thank me later.