Last weekend, I attempted to buy a pair of white shoes for a job that I have recently gotten, but I found out that the pair of shoes that I wanted to get was sold out at the Nike store I went to. After I found this out, it got me wondering about Nike statistics and how many shoes they sold annually. Let’s just say that the amount of shoes sold annually is quite shocking. This number is around 780 million pairs sold annually. Shockingly 800 million dollars are made from sales of Air Force 1s alone. Let’s just say the average price of an Air Force is 100$, this one style of shoe comes in three main styles lows, mids, and highs. That means there was an estimated 8 million pairs of shoes made every year. That means that you could give everyone in LA two pairs of Air Forces and some leftover. It seems that even with the number made every year they are always sold out. As I was told by the Nike employee that I asked, they almost never have them in stock because they are being bought constantly and the only time they really have them is when someone returns them. Nike makes around 30 billion dollars per fiscal year meaning that Air Force 1s make up around 2.6% of Nike’s annual revenue.
Story is one of the few players that can hit for power and contact while also being an elite runner. His 2021 season was very uncharacteristic for Story, but he still manged to post a fairly decent year slashing .251/.329/.471. He also hit 20+ home runs, drove in 75 runs, and stole 20 bases as well.
Story will be switching divisions an inking a 8 year/126 million deal with the Texas Rangers
#3 Kris Bryant
Bryant, who was traded in July to San Fransisco will not be eligible for the qualifying offer so he will go straight to free agency. He was an all-star in 2021; hitting 25 home runs and drove in 70+ runs. Not only does he provide a plus-middle of the order bat, but he is a plus defender in the field. Bryant is able to play all three outfield spots and both corner infield positions.
Bryant will be back in the orange and black signing a 5 year/115 million dollar contract with the Giants
#2 Corey Seager
Seager is arguably the best shortstop in baseball, when healthy of course. He only played in 95 games this season and was still an elite hitter. Seager posted a .306/.394/.521 slash with 16 home runs and 57 rbi’s. He is a plus defender at short and has the arm to make the move to third once he gets into the later part of his career.
Seager inks a 10 year/330 million dollar contract with the Yankees
#1 Carlos Correa
Correa is a top 3 shortstop in the game of baseball, an arguably a top 10 player too. He is 26 and only getting better, which is evident by his gold glove award in 2021. Correa hit .279 with 26 homers, 92 driven in, 34 doubles, and a 131 ops+. He was an All-Star and finished in the top 5 of AL MVP voting
Correa will re-up in Houston but not on the length many would expect, I think he signs a 3 year/145 million dollar deal with the Astros.
Stroman, who opted out of the shortened 60 games 2020 season, had an incredible bounce-back year. He tossed 179 innings while maintaining an era around 3 for the majority of the year, finishing with a 3.02. In his age 30 season Stroman, lead the league in starts with 33. He doesn’t have an overpowering fastball but does mix his various pitches extremely well, disrupting the timing of his opponents.
I think he signs a 3 year/72 million dollar deal with the LA Angels
#9 Kevin Gausman
Gausman had his best season of his career in 2021. He had a 2.81 era, struck out a career-high 227 batters, and was named to the National League All-Star team in mid-July. He also won a career-best 14 games out of 33 stars. Gausman had a 1.04 WHIP in 192 innings and tossed an impressive 145 era+.
I believe he re-ups in San Fransisco, signing a 4 year/77 million dollar contract with the Giants
#8 Robbie Ray
Ray was the best pitcher in the American League this year, by far. He lead the AL in several categories; era with a 2.84, games started 32, innings pitched 193.1, strikeouts with 248, era+ at 154, and a whip at 1.04. Ray will most likely receive the AL CY Young award and will also earn himself a bag this off-season.
I think he stays north of the border as the Blue Jays go all in signing him to a 4 year/117 million dollar deal
#7 Freddie Freeman
Freeman is the first bat to pop up on my list. Freeman led the Braves to a world series title in 2021 also had himself quite the year following an MVP award in 2020. He was named to his 5th career All-Star team, won his 3rd straight silver-slugger award, hit 30+ home runs, and lead the league in runs scored.
Freeman or “Mr. Brave” will remain in Atlanta for a while signing a 6 year/215 million dollar contract with the Braves
#6 Marcus Semien
Semien had his best season to date in 2021. He had career highs in home runs, rbi’s, and slugging percentage. Semien has already been awarded a gold glove and silver slugger as well as being an All-Star, he will finish in the top 3 for AL MVP too. Hitting 45 homers and driving in 102 runs as a middle infielder will definitively get a big paycheck this off-season.
I think he signs a 5 year/122 million dollar deal with Seattle
#5 Max Scherzer
Scherzer has been arguably been the greatest starting pitcher of this generation. His second of the season with the Dodgers was insane, unfortunately for Scherzer his arm ran out of gas come playoffs. However he is Max Scherzer and his numbers in 2021 were very impressive he had a 0.86 whip, a 2.46 era, and struck out 236.
I think Scherzer signs a 2 year/ 66 million dollar contract with the LA Angels
So I just bough myself a car, I only had to pay half but it ended up to coming out to $2250. Which is almost all of my savings. I currently have a balance of $2500(pre-payment). It’s a pretty sick car but insurance for me is gonna be about 620 and I do not have that. Like I have to pay insurance as soon as I get my license which will hopefully be tomorrow. So basically I am in an incredible amount of debt to my parents. Basically the majority of my paychecks, which are low because the restaurant has been closed a lot so I havent been able to get good hours. I mean the head chef walked out of the kitchen and just left, and quit i guess, without telling anyone. We legit had to close that night, it was frickin awful. and The other day the fridge went out in the middle of the night due to a power outage, so all of the food was spoiled. It was bad. Anyway hopefully we wont have anymore bad luck but I guess we’ll see. Until then I’m broke.
Recently iPhone 13 just came out. I have been using my iPhone XR for almost three years which means I’m thinking of buying a new phone. Furthermore, I have turned eighteen recently. In Taiwan age of eighteen means, you are an adult. I’m able to drive, go to clubs and do anything. In my family, we usually have a tradition that we celebrate, go to a fancy restaurant to congrats we have turned to an adult. Yet, I’m far from my family while I’m studying here in America. All I could do is celebrate with my friends. For me, I don’t feel the changes from a child to an adult, but I feel sad that I couldn’t be with my family during this huge transition. After my birthday, one of my friends is using the same phone as mine, and he wants to upgrade his phone. At this time, we have decided on buying a new phone together. I have decided to spend this much money to give myself an eighteenth birthday gift. I never spend this much money. I feel accomplish and happy. On the other hand, I feel it’s kind of a waste of money that my old phone didn’t break at all and still buy a new one. Nevertheless, I have done a lot of research that if the user using below than iPhone 11, iPhone 13 can be a great upgrade. There is a lot of features that have been upgraded including the battery life, the super retina XDR display, ceramic shield, and the A15 chip. If you are a user thats using iPhone 11 or below, it could be a huge upgrade for you.
Growing up, there were always those kids who were bribed by their parents to get good grades. Depending on their situation – financially and academically – different arrangements were made.
I think the luckiest I ran into was my friend who got $50 for every A, $20 for every B, and $10 for every C. Maybe it’s just jealousy, but I think that’s ridiculous.
First of all, if a kid with this guarantee takes the minimum of five classes and barely scrapes passing grades, they still make $50. I don’t think these grades are worthy of that kind of reward!
A more reasonable gratuity I’ve observed is payment for every A on a report card. Whether it’s $50 or $5, this method at least makes the child work hard for their reward.
As a self-motivated person, I’ve always taken academics into my own hands and have never been rewarded for good grades. Of course my parents are proud, but they’ve had no need to bribe me. I doubt the concept of paying me for grades has ever even passed through their minds. Honestly, maintaining good grades is expected of me, and if I fail to do so, it’s entirely my problem.
For the people who receive this reward, that’s awesome for them. Of course it would’ve been great to have received this while growing up, but honestly, I don’t see the point.
As most of you know, or should know, Valentine’s Day is quickly approaching, and as ever, Facebook is lamenting “Single Awareness Day.” Every year, there is a group of people who don’t hesitate to make it known that they hate Valentine’s Day because it makes them feel bad about themselves, when really, if having a relationship determines your self-worth, you should feel bad about your principles.
And then there is the group of people who do have dates for Valentine’s. They fret about the perfect gift for weeks, hoping that they can show their date just how well they know their other half through the present they get for them. This causes people to go all out and spend pretty much all the money they have worked so hard to earn. What should really be a simple romantic holiday has been turned into a commercialized event that makes people feel left out.
Instead of going out and buying the most expensive gift you can think of and still somewhat afford for your date, you should try to hand make something a little more heartfelt. It’s through being creative that you can really show someone how well you know them, and not that you just listen to them talk about something they really really want. And people who don’t have a date should use Valentine’s Day as a chance to be goofy with friends, or have a girls’ night. Valentine’s isn’t designed to rob people’s banks and make others feel bad about themselves. It’s designed for you to be able to show your love to someone – whether it be your boyfriend, parents, siblings, or friends.
As many know, the NHL season was cut in half this season due to problems with a collective bargaining agreement, or CBA. It’s funny how in the past 2-3 years, labor issues have been a serious problem in professional sports across the board. The NBA and NHL lost games while the NFL lost certain preseason workouts. All three were greatly affected. However, this 48 game season of hockey (a full season has 82 games) has been nothing short of exciting yet confusing.
I’m a big New Jersey Devils fan. They lost in the Stanley Cup finals last year to the Los Angeles Kings, but I wasn’t torn up about it. I was excited to even get to the finals and win the Eastern Conference. That was way more than I was expecting last season, but it elevated my expectations for this season.
We aren’t the best team in hockey. But, we play very well. At least we can say we are better off than Columbus.
Regardless, the playoffs are fast approaching as there are about 10 games left for most teams in the regular season.
The NHL is ranked on a point system. A team is given 2 standing points for a win, 0 for a loss, and 1 for a loss in overtime or a shootout. In each conference, there are 3 divisions. This is the last year we will see this, as next year the league is realigning into four conferences. Anyway, there are three divisions in each conference, and the division leader in each makes the playoffs as the first, second or third seed. In order to finish off the playoff bracket, the next 5 teams in point standings are added to the bunch. 8 teams from each conference go to the playoffs, making a total of 16 teams.
We look back to Neolithic age and see how simple the concept of what life meant to our ancestors was. It was all about the basics. Just enough to survive.
No social expectations, or rules. No technology, or government.
That same society has evolved in perceiving that life is about more than that, and life must be done a certain way. You must be educated. You must behave this way. You must be “civil”.
Well, who defined what that is?
Most will say that the way of life is going to school, getting a job, having some kids then passing away gently in your sleep. We spend countless hours, memorizing and memorizing figures and representations we are told is our reality in order to achieve our goal of having an impressive alphabetical or numeric representation of our knowledge appear sufficient enough so we can attend school again.
And what is the purpose of the University?
Well, any dean will tell you it is to give students experience and knowlege so they can function in the real world, and do what they dream of doing. But when it comes down to it, what was the purpose of that dream? Was it to feel good at the end of the day, or did it all come down to achieving wealth?
Yes, starting from the day your parents nervously dropped you off at school for the first time as an eager child, the purpose of it all comes down to leading you on a path of financial success. Everything comes down to being about money. That is what we have evolved into.
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