Dead Toenails and My Lovely Roommate!

yrreskrap1 Comment

Today, two of my toenails fell off after my final season of track here at Ojai Valley School.

My roommate and I were talking about this to our coach (thebrownguy) and we were discussing how it is almost a badge of honor to have toenails that fall off. It shows our character and dedication in running, that despite the pain that comes with running, we give it our all.

My roommate’s toenail fell off a few days ago.

Now, let me tell you, this girl can run.

She was a new student this year and came to take advantage of the track team at our school. Her previous school did not have track as a sport. Now, for a girl who had no prior official track team training, she did fantastic.

My roommate broke several personal records, brought home multiple first place medals, broke a meet record, and even took the title of Condor League MVP this season. But this is not the crowning point in her high school track career. She ran at the CIF preliminary meet, placed second in her heat, and qualified for finals.

She is one of the most dedicated people I know. And dedication is not something you can fake. When I look at her run, its inspiring. The way she pushes herself to the hardest during practice and the way she takes such tender care of her feet afterwards is just fantastic. There is nobody I know that is as dedicated as her. And all of that dedication stems from her pure love for the sport. She loves running. And that is what makes her good.

Now, my roommate can be hard on herself sometimes but I hope when she reads this, she realizes how great she actually is.

She will only get better as she gets older. College is going to be fantastic for you. I just can’t wait to see how well you do, even in your first year in college. I know you will go on to do such great things!

And so back to the topic of toenails. Now that we have established them to be badges of honor, you deserve to have all of your toenails fall off.

I love you thehungryrunnergirl!

Let’s Talk Horse-Racing and the Triple Crown

backinphillyLeave a comment

I usually don’t particularly care about horses or horse-racing. However, now that I got a girlfriend whose big thing is horses, I guess I gotta deal with it. However, horse-racing has always been an interest of mine and my father’s. Specifically, we are annual viewers of the Triple Crown races.

This year, once again, there is a shot at the elusive Triple Crown. “I’ll Have Another” is chasing the title at the Belmont Stakes in a few weeks. Widely considered one of the most difficult race tracks in all of horse-racing, Belmont Park is the longest and final leg of the Triple Crown.

It’s been 34 years since the last Triple Crown horse, Affirmed. For those that remember Affirmed, he was a brutal race horse mainly remembered for his constant duels with rival horse “Alydar”. “Affirmed” won the Belmont by a nose, literally.

This race is absolutely relentless. “I’ll Have Another” recently acquired his own rival horse, “Bodemeister”, but this horse has declined the invitation to the Belmont, which lightens the field greatly.

I will be watching this race with great interest and anticipation.

Concerts.

YourcupateaLeave a comment

Emeli Sande
Booking concert tickets is always exciting. Selecting a seat to view the person or band you hear every day on your iPod, and having the opportunity to look them in the face. I love pressing the find tickets icon on ticketmaster knowing that you have the potential to watch a favorite artist perform on stage.

Today I am booking Emeli Sande tickets and I am very excited to go in a couple of weeks. A Scottish singer/ songwriter she has a strong, powerful, and beautiful voice. She began writing for singers such as Susan Boyle, Tinie Tempah and Leona Lewis and then went on to collaborate with U.K rapper Chipmunk with their song Diamond Rings coming in the top ten in the U.K charts.

This year she released her first album Our Version of Events, showing off all the dynamics of her voice. Although she is not on my top 10 artists she is a superb talent. I’m excited for the concert and it’s always nice to see a fellow Brit in America

“Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.”

thehungryrunnergirl1 Comment

Last Saturday, I had my last race of high school. I still can’t believe it’s over.

It wasn’t my best race. I was so overwhelmed with the atmosphere and I lost confidence in myself. I realized that I am still an inexperienced runner.

Afterwards, I was very disappointed in myself for finishing the season like this. I wish I could just rewind time…

But one thing I can say in spite of my performance, is that I made every effort since last summer and I never gave up. I kept my eyes on my goals. I trained and thought about running everyday like I madly fell in love.

So now I want to work to be mentally stronger because long distance running is more than 50% mental.

Running has always been a great teacher in my life and allowed me to grow as a person. I met a lot of people who inspired me. Whether I loose or fail, I get up again, look back at what I could’ve done better and start running again. I gain toughness and guts from tolerating the pain during practices.

This year was very meaningful to me. I am so lucky to have met Mr. Alvarez. I couldn’t have achieved what I did this year without him. He has given me some awesome running experiences.

This is not the end, but just the beginning. I have 4 more years of running in college and right now I don’t see limits.

So I want to say, Mr. Alvarez thank you thank you thank you so much for everything. You are my two third brother hahaha!

I won’t be sad because it’s over, I am happy for what happened and appreciate god and people who supported me.

This is the End

therightliberalLeave a comment

You may see a few other posts from my fellow OVS bloggers regarding our impending graduation.

What a trip it has been. I have been at OVS for six years and they have been fantastic.

Like at any other school, we bitch and moan about the problems, and there have been many. But when I look at the growth I have experienced and seen within my friends I realize what I have been given.

Going to a private boarding school as a day student can be tricky, but I have learned to play the game.

I have dealt with having a relative has my headmaster as well as having family intertwined with the school history.

My first day, the headmaster told me “I failed with your father, I failed with my son and goddammit, I’m not going to fail with you.”

Although I loath to concede anything to him, I will admit he has not failed. He has given me “character”, although the integrity may still need some work.

I should have been kicked out many, many times. I have thought about leaving even more times.

But endings change the picture. They throw out the individual memories and give you and overall feeling. I can say that the feeling I have is a positive one.

Although I am ready to leave, I appreciate what I have been given and greatly value that gift.

Coming to an End.

YourcupateaLeave a comment

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.

The Avengers: Review

kirbyfullyloadedLeave a comment

I haven’t written in two weeks because my mind is so completely and utterly BLOWN.

I expected The Avengers to be funny, action-packed and epic.

I was wrong.

So very, very wrong.

I FOUND MY NEW FAVORITE MOVIE!

Three.

I saw it 3 times in 24 hours.

Is that too much?  Probably.

Do I think it’s too much?

OH HECK NO!

I went once with my sisters, once with my friend, theycallmedame,  and once with my parents.

It was HILARIOUS.

EXPLODING with action.

BEYOND epic.

And over all, just MARVELous and absolutely MAGNIFICENT. 

As each second passed, I died a little with happiness.

I saw it again last Saturday for theycallmedame’s birthday.

Bringing my views up to a grand total of 4.  I’m very proud.

I am exceedingly happy about how well it has done critically and in the box office.

Rotten Tomatoes is famously picky.  Despite the pickiness,The Avengers earned a 93% approval rating from critics and a 96% approval rating from viewers, dubbing the film “fresh.”

The box office reflected its success even better.

The Avengers broke the record for biggest of opening weekend of all time, domestically earning  $207,438,708 million dollars in three days.  The record was previously held last year’s summer blockbuster, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II, which earned $169.2 million.

After just 19 days in theaters (only 10 days in the U.S.) it passed the $1 billion dollar mark, making it one of only 12 movies in the history of cinema to reach that enormous sum.

It also claimed the record for biggest opening week ($270,019,373 million) of any film ever and biggest second week ($103,052,274 million), beating Avatar‘s second week ($75.6 million) by a landslide.

I have to admit, I got a Tumblr just so I could look at Avengers-related photosets and gifs.

Bottom line:

GO SEE IT!!!! YOU WON’T BE SORRY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

NHL Playoffs-Lots of Drama in the Final Four

backinphillyLeave a comment

Well, when I say drama, I mean in the Eastern Conference. The Los Angeles Kings have looked like an unstoppable force in these playoffs, knocking off the favored Vancouver Canucks and St. Louis Blues. Now, they are two wins away from a Stanley Cup birth.

The only question is, who will the Kings (probably) compete against in the Finals?

Well, let me say this, I am very biased in the Eastern Conference Finals. My favorite team is the New Jersey Devils and they are fighting against the New York Rangers, who are a sworn rival. Do I think the Devils are going to win the series? Yes, but not just because that’s my team.

The New York Rangers faced the number 8 seed Ottawa Senators in the first round and it took them 7 games to finish them off. Next, the Rangers went into 7 games with the Washington Capitals. The Devils, on the other hand, went 7 games (including an incredible double overtime game 7 against the Florida Panthers in the first round) and 5 games against the Philadelphia Flyers, who were HEAVILY favored.

The Devils have a stellar offensive attack, an average defensive unit and the greatest goalie to ever step on the ice.

The Rangers have a decent offense, a nearly perfect defense and the best goalie of the current day (The Devils’ goalie, Martin Brodeur, is 40 freakin’ years old, yet still a top tier goalie but Henrik Lundqvist is insanely talented and is far younger).

This series could go either way. But, if I had to throw down a prediction I’d say Devils in 7 games. And that would take them to the Stanley Cup Finals.

So, if my predictions are correct, the Los Angeles Kings would face the New Jersey Devils in the Finals. Winner take all. Current conference finals show the Kings leading their series 2-0 and the Devils and Rangers tied at 1-1. This is gonna get very exciting.

You can't see it, but the puck is on the other side of the goalie, Henrik Lundqvist, in the net.

Batteries, The”shocking” danger. they bring.

frog3Leave a comment

d
It seems the children of the world are in constant danger in these modern times. From kidnappers to obesity the world is rife with threats for children.

Some of the biggest dangers however come with toys made for children. Batteries being swallowed are one of the biggest threats to a child’s health.

To often batteries are left lying around. The young child, being curious, will bite and swallow the battery. For one the battery can get stuck inside the child’s windpipe, suffocating the child if the battery is not dislodged. A bigger problem is if the battery is swallowed. The battery can get lodged in the child’s small intestine causing major harm.

Help make the world safer for children and properly dispose of your batteries.

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CIF preliminaries!

thehungryrunnergirl2 Comments

Last Saturday was CIF Southern section division 4 preliminaries track meet at Carpinteria high school. It was pretty cold and cloudy, but perfect for running.

I ran the 1600 at 1 O’clock, and the 800 at around 3 O’clock. There were so many schools there which made me nervous. However, in the 1600 I could run my hardest and I was satisfied with what I ran. In the 800, I feel like I should’ve done better, but I think I did my best, so it’s all good.

I’d like to thank (krapyrres) and (r3t5nom) so much for coming and cheering me on. You have no idea how much it helped me and pumped me up.

Thank you so much for (thebrownguy) for taking me there and calming me down.

One more to go!

Photo credit : (r3t5nom)