Art

             If art is defined by a form of self expression, then why do students or starving artists care so much about impressing others? Students conform to their teachers likes and dislikes in order to impress them and get good grades. (of course not everyone does this!) I always think that art should not be a graded class based on skill level because it is subjective whether a piece of art is good or not. Art should be graded only on work ethic through out the course and improvement. I take art because it is my form of self expression, and I want to grow as an artist. I feel everyone needs art in their life even if their not good at it because it can really clear your mind of stress or a clouded thought that you need to get out of you head. Even though grades are important to me, I tell everyone to take art past Art 1, even if they are not good, because it teaches you about yourself. It teaches you how express yourself through the medium, the style, the composition, and the story of your art work which is a nice outlet to the stressful world. In the end, take art for yourself, and not others.

Is it Normal To...

              Is it normal to go to the grocery store, buy a full cart of food, and then while at the register, start bagging the groceries yourself to make it go faster? I honestly want to know if others do this or not because I always did when I got around the age of twelve, and still do it today as my sister did as well. I am curious to see because the other day I was with my mother at Marc's, and we had a full shopping cart with other people waiting in line behind us. As the pile grew bigger on the other side of the cast register, I decided to start bagging them to speed up the process. The cashier was in her middle ages, so she had clearly been working for many years, seeing various types of people. After I was bagging them, she thanked me many times and said that was very nice of me to help her out. I didn't think it was that uncommon to help some one so I didn't think much of it.

             Yesterday, my mother was complaining about how she waited in line at the grocery store for over a half hour because this couple at the cash register had two shopping carts of food, and did not even think of bagging their own groceries. I felt like it was rude of those people to make others wait out of their own laziness. Was it below then to help others out? Then, I wondered if anyone else does it; I remembered that most people try to help when they are at Sam's Club, but I don't recall anyone doing at local grocery stores. I'm not saying that you should do it every time you by some milk, or a few bags worth of food, but why don't people help out one another to make things easier?

2 Hour Delays

               My nightmare became reality today at 8:16 AM. The sun was shining through my window as I was peacefully asleep in my room. I woke up from the light as I always do because I use the sun as my alarm clock on days off of school. I said to myself, "Oh wait, I have finals today," and looked at my clock to see how early it was. My clock read 8:09 AM. My heart skipped a beat; I then checked my phone clock and my iPod clock to see if it was a mistake... it was not. I walked down into the kitchen and told my mom that I had midterms today and that I am missing one right now. You could say I was acting a little upset. She then told me with no emotion that there was a two hour delay.

                            UGH.

               Okay. I guess it is better to have a two hour delay, which backs up my studying for tomorrow's tests, than to miss one of my midterms on the first day. I do not like two hour delays. Two hour delays DELAY the stress and cause me blog at 8:00 in the morning, which will probably be the best part of my day! Now I can say I have lived one of the nightmares of an IB student. (well, for about ten minutes at least)

Memory Loss is Cured?

                I recently read an article about this new "miracle supplement" called IQ-150 Memory Support. It claims to enhance concentration and reaction time, improve blood flow to the brain, boost mental energy and cognitive clarity, and it is rich in antioxidants to promote brain health. A high bar to set for this new pill in my opinion; obviously, I am skeptical and doubtful of this pill, as I am with almost all supplements. The news channel reporter, who wrote this article, was also skeptical, yet tested the supplement to see if it really worked or if it was all hype. After one week the reporter was amazed about how mentally interactive she was throughout the day. She also stated that it was not troublesome throughout the night because she was continually sleeping better. After four weeks of taking IQ-150 Memory Support, she absolutely had no doubts about how great this supplement was with no consequences. In her article she states, "I was in the best mental state of my life... I will continue to use the product indefinitely!" Under the article she recommends viewers to order it through the Channel 23 News website, and to leave comments.

           It was funny to read some of the comments because people were posting things like, "I'm 73 years old and living like I'm 20! I wish IQ-150 was around when I was younger! " Even though a news channel supports it and many people commented on its positive effects towards their memory, I would not take this supplement. I would not take it because it was recently released to the public, and I do not believe in taking medicative supplements unless absolutely necessary. I think that most medicative supplements do more harm than help to the body, and it does not seem natural or safe to take memory supplements. I personally would not take them, but I think it's interesting to see how medicine is evolving to enhance our minds and bodies.

Memories

           Have you ever walked into a room and suddenly remembered something from a long time ago? Have you ever smelled something that made you think of someone you have not met in years?

           The mind fascinates me to a point of obsession and frustration. It is so fascinating how the mind is capable of retaining and recalling knowledge and memory while controlling the body constantly. Studies have proved that we only use about ten percent of our brains ability. TEN PERCENT. Could you even imagine how human life would be if we were able to use one hundred percent of our brains? The impossibles of the world would become possible; anything could happen because the mind is such a powerful and complex organ. Now, to get back to the original questions above... I am amazed how a scent in the air, an old tune, or an action or object can stimulate the mind to remember something. For example, the other day a student teacher walked into the office and sat next to me. I could smell her perfume faintly, and literally three seconds later I imagined I was in my second grade classroom with my old teacher Mrs. H. I was never close to my teachers when I was younger, especially Mrs. H, so it was extremely odd how I could clearly remember who she was at that moment. I realized that the student teacher's perfume smelled exactly like the perfume my second grade teacher wore to school everyday; just from that hint of perfume I recalled a forgotten memory in my life. This is only one of the many stories I have heard and even experienced where an ordinary variable in life can trigger a memory from deep inside the mind. I am excited to see what kind of developments researchers will find to unlock even more of the minds amazing abilities!

                

Oh to be Young Again...

              I am awlays hearing adults saying, 'if only I was twenty-three, again' or 'if I was your age' or 'when I was eighteen I was doing this, this, and this'. I sigh everytime someone starts off a lecture or conversation like that, but it's not because they are rambling on. I sigh because most adults (ones without children, mostly) do not realize how different expectations and society are towards teens and young adults. Now, if you really want to be successful in life, it's not just about going to college anymore. You are expected to be at the top of your class, while donating all of your time to help others, and become well rounded before you graduate high school. While talking to my fellow friend, Sam, I realized that it has been non-stop work since August. We still have one and a half more years of this, then we get rewarded with at least four years of college. Further, we go to our jobs which will probably be rewarding, yet stressful for most of our lives. We both realized that our time off will be when we are sixty years old and retired, if we save our money correctly. Woo! I cannot wait until I am sixty years old and free!

              My reasoning for looking at the glass as half empty is that I would not particularly want to go back and stay in this constant work era of my life. I would rather go back to where I was successful and most happy. I guess that's why adults say they wished they were young again, but my arguement is that their memories of being young are much more different than what teenagers will have today. With four teenagers, my mother says that she would not want to be a kid or young adult at this time. She really understands how driven a sixteen and seventeen year old must be to keep up with the standards in the competitive world. Would I change my mind and take the easy route if I could? No, I strive for challenge, but I am also a sixteen year old who misses the free time I once enjoyed. All I am asking is for adults to think twice about how times have changed for teenagers, and to stop rambling on about how great things were years ago when now things have 'changed'. (meaning times are worse now than before)  

Doors.

             Every day, all of us walk in and out of doors to go through buildings and houses. One day, I was going into the building where I play soccer, and a father with two children were walking out; they were already outside before I got to the door. Next, I expected the father to walk out to his car with his kids and that would be the normal interaction between two strangers. Instead, the father took a little extra time to hold the door open for me to walk through. I was suprised, smiled, and said thank you very much. He nodded and walked into the parking lot with his children. I then stopped and realized how nice it was for someone to do that! Then I also considered why it was so suprising for someone to do that? I mean was it not always taught to be courteous and hold the door for others? Why don't people do such a simple act of kindness everyday?

           The next day, I took that man's act of kindness and started holding doors for people. I noticed that many people seemed suprised, yet thanked me as I had done to that man. It's sad really, how suprising it for the public to witness someone using good manners toward others. I hope that at least one person who I was kind to, returned the favor to another stanger somewhere else. I hope that a chain reaction of kindness has been started and will never end within society because of that father's kindness towards me. Society has been so closed off, rude, and ignorant for far too long. I challenge you change this opinion by changing yourself, and the way you present yourself towards others because in the end, that is what makes a happy life. I feel good about myself for the way I treat others, even if it is as simple as holding the door open or asking how someone has been. No, I am not gaining anything in the short run by doing this, but later I can look back and not think of myself as a rude, self-absorbed person. So, my final thought about a simple act of kindness is much more than simple; to change the negatives in the world, one must start by changing the negatives of themselves through little acts of kindness.