The Future

It's hard to try and think of the future. When you think of past time periods, what typically comes to mind? First, there's the cavemen. You think of dirty people wearing cloths and drawing on stone walls. Then you think of the people that have cities, in pueblos. Then there are the kings and queens when men wore hats and bow ties. When women wore long dresses and took great care of their hair. Then there are the people with really long hair, who wore tie dye and talked of peace. I know, I know, this is all very stereotypical stuff, but there was always something that defined that era. What will ours be, when people of the future look back on the 2000's?

Everyone says that we are in the technology era, everything is changing and it's now considered weird when you don't have a smart phone. But that will just become more and more advanced, and people will laugh when they see pictures of us with our smart phones and think "aaahh the old days"

It's just weird.What will people think of when they see old pictures of the people of today? What will they think when they learn about the natural disasters in other countries? Or about the first African American president of the United States? About the attack on 9/11? Even about the release of the first iPod, and learning about Steve Jobs and Michael Jackson?

What is going on today will be what kids of the future will learn about in their history books. The people we see in the news every day will be the people they see in pictures with a name and description written beside it. (285)

Sledding and Sliding

It is soon going to be officially the winter season. What will you do during snow days? This is such a big question. Some people like to spend their snow days sleeping in, or catching up on work they need to get done. Others though, like to spend it in some other ways.

One fun way to spend a snow day is Truth or Dare. This game is about ten times more entertaining when the weather is bad. I personally can say that I have done the chicken dance in the freezing cold outside, in a tank top and shorts. I can also say I have played a whole song on the piano whilst being soaked from sleet (this is when we set our piano outside for free, because we no longer needed it in our house). I have also once spent fifteen minutes in a hot tub, then five minutes rolling in snow, one right after the other. It was crazy, but hilarious.

Another way to spend snow days is by finding any way you can to spend your day sliding around, rather than walking. Outside of course is one way to do this. It is always fun to traditionally get out some sleds, go out with friends and slide down hills. Maybe make a fort, and a snowman friend. Another way to do this though, is to get water and pour it on the snow, which can make it more like ice if the conditions are right. This makes sledding in your yard more dangerous, but also more slippery and fun.Then there is simply trying to walk around on your driveway when it is covered in a thick sheet of ice without falling; almost impossible.

Although it is always fun to go outside and do all that, there are ways you can do it inside too, if going outside isn't an option. One way is to find a good pair of socks and a hardwood floor. Run and slide across the room... just make sure not to break anything. It's hilarious. Or if you want to get even crazier, find a good sleeping bag and a flight of stairs. This takes some practice, because if you slip off the sleeping bag you will probably end up falling down the stairs and getting rug burns on your knees and hands. Rug burns hurt, but sometimes they are worth it.

There are many other ways to slide around too, like getting a blanket and using the hardwood floors to pull a friend around the house. With doing all this though, its best to be as careful as possible while still having fun, because chances are something will end up broken and you will have bruises and rug burns all over yourself... but a smile on your face!(468)

Kids

Kids are adorable. They really are. They are so smart and funny when you have real conversations with them, and they try to have good intentions. They also voice their opinions openly. Just today I had a 7 year old cousin tell me that my room is disgusting because of its pink-and-purple-ness. After he said that, I agreed and told him that soon I was going to paint it, probably a green color. His smile got huge when I said green. He then told me that he thinks I should paint my ceiling red, because it would look really cool. I couldn't help but laugh.

I have always been surrounded by kids. Growing up, my mom ran a daycare business out of our house, and soon after she quit is when I grew old enough for her adult friends to ask me to help take care of their kids when they weren't home. I loved it.

At work, I see kids come through all the time. Some ask for suckers, but I have to watch their face contort into disappointment when I tell them sorry, but our Hy-Vee doesn't have suckers. Some are sweet, and try to help their parents by putting the groceries in the cart onto the belt, standing on their toes to do so. Some ask for a candy bar, and yell when they don't get one. Some say "Of course mom" when she tells them that they can have a candy bar, but they have to wait until after dinner to eat it.

I once babysat a kid that was obsessed with dinosaurs. I asked him to tell me about some of them, and he started showing me pictures of them and telling me about them with a look of concentration on his face. I actually learned a lot about dinosaurs that night.

Some people don't give kids much of a chance. They find them gross or annoying or dumb. I personally know people who wanted to adopt kids, went through the whole process to get a license, but now don't keep the foster kids for very long, because they just find them to be too much. I find those people to be a bit ridiculous. I understand some people can't get along with kids well, or are even intimidated by them. Some people though, just don't even give them enough of their attention to even see what the kid wants them to. (410)

Swimming

So this year I was faced with a decision: do swimming as I had the past two years, or not do it this year to instead try and work more hours, thus raising more money for college. I chose the latter. In hindsight it was a great idea; I always sort of enjoyed my job, and this way I could manage my own schedule a little easier and be more productive and responsible, all the while making more money.

Boy was I wrong.

For one, I miss swimming... a lot. Yes, I admit it. A lot of my friends told me I would regret this decision, but I didn't listen. I am so stubborn sometimes. Another way I was wrong is that even though I could now manage my schedule, it didn't make me any less busy. I missed out on a lot of friend and family outings, and instead spent it with customers. Don't get me wrong, as I've said before in this blog I find my job interesting sometimes, just seeing the people I see. It doesn't match my love for swimming though. Third reason is the whole reason I did it was to save money. Well yes, because I worked a lot more hours I made more money. But I also spent it a lot.

And then I had a "what if"  moment:

What if I had just kept swimming? What if I had just worked weekends like I had originally planned? I could have just made sure to save my money better, to not go out to eat as much, and to watch my paychecks.

Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda.

Now though, I think about swimming all the time. I miss the ability to be alone, yet somehow still be with my teammates swimming in the lane with me. I miss the sound of the water in my ears. I miss the usual routine of asking people, "Will you help me put my cap on?" and "Will you please stretch my shoulders?" I miss spending the first lap of a 500 thinking of a good song, then spending the rest of the set singing the lyrics to that song in my head over and over again until I realized I was almost done, and that the song that was in my head seemingly a minute ago, was long gone and replaced by my thoughts. Yes, fellow swimmers, I may sound crazy, but I even miss when I swam freestyle and every time I turned my head to breathe I could see my coach holding a strawberry milkshake mouthing to me and cupping his hands a certain way until I changed my arm position to his liking.

I probably sound like I'm ranting right now, and maybe I am. But what I am trying to say is don't stop something you love for something that you think may help. Without the thing you look forward to, you will feel less motivated, and without that the thing you are working toward won't seem as big.

Unless it is truly needed, or something completely worth it, don't give up on something and end up getting really excited whenever the smell of chlorine comes into contact with you. Okay, now I definitely sound crazy. Really though, stay with what you want before doing what you think will be better for you. Sometimes you need to, but right now you've got some time to enjoy the little things, like the funny way goggles make red circles around your friend's eyes, or the way the water makes their eyebrows look funny.(598)

What is the True Meaning?

So begins the holiday season. Now is when everything seems to transform into a blur of presents, cookies, warm smells and cold weather. Everyone is busy trying to plan for holiday parties, for what they will buy their friends and family, and even what shapes of cookies they want to make. But what are holidays really about

The parties of July 4th are to celebrate American's freedom. Valentines day is about showing someone you love them. Thanksgiving is about giving thanks for the things you would normally take for granted. Some people really get into all that; they celebrate what the holiday really is by praying, or planning something special, or sitting around a table while each person takes their turn saying what they are thankful for.

Although some people really do all that, some people just find holidays to be an annoyance. They are something you have to take away from your normal routine to do, to pay for, and to attend to.I thought it was a little funny all of the times I saw people write on the internet something like "It's ironic how we would spend a dinner for giving thanks only to spend the next morning beating up on each other for something materialistic," referring to the tradition of Black Friday. Well, that's America for you.

Growing up, whenever Father's Day or Mother's Day came around, my parents never got offended if one of us kids forgot to do something special. "I don't see the point of this holiday," they would say "Shouldn't it be every day that you guys do something special for us?" Of course, it was halfway a joke because they wanted us to behave, but they also truly didn't see the point of it.

I dont know about that. Of course every day should be spent like what the holidays tell us to do; we should always be thankful, and always show respect for our parents, and for veterans, and for our significant others. But being realistic, people get caught up in their busy lives and it doesnt always happen. So one day a year that "kind" of person gets recognition. Holidays were made to honor and celebrate something deserving of it. (363)

Growing up

                So begins the second trimester of junior year of high school. It’s so weird to say that; it feel s like yesterday I was twelve, wondering what high school would be like. I still remember walking into Kennedy on the first day of school freshman year. Because I knew literally about as many people as I can count on my hands, I was nervous. Although it was a huge change coming to this school, it has been amazing. But now that we’ve all settled, mostly found our friend group, gone through a lot of things we never would have imagined when we were little, it’s time to start thinking about the future.

                A lot of people I’ve talked to have a pretty good idea of what their future looks like; what they want to be, what college they want to go to, some even know where they want to live. Of course, we still have a lot of time, and the future is almost never what you expect it to be, but they have a lot of it figured out. Other people that I’ve talked to though, have no idea. They might know what they think they want to do for a living when they get older, but they still aren’t completely sure.

                There is also a big variety in how people view the future. Some are excited; they have been ready to start being more independent, and they can’t wait to be able to grow up and finally make their own decisions. Some are scared out of their minds. They look around and see people that seemingly have it all figured out and wonder how? How can they know so much, they’re still in high school! It’s completely different depending on the person, and how much they are ready for.

                Although the future seems so far away… it’s not. It is in some aspects; we still have some high school left and there is room for change if the decision that was made is different than the one a person realizes they actually want. But if you think about it, when you were younger you thought you were soo old. Remember the first time you rode a bike? Or drove a car? What about the first time you were out past 10 without a parent? Or even when you finally truly understood that saying your grandpa always said to you? I know I always thought that it was such a big trademark, that I knew a lot more than I actually did. And now, you’re going to start turning into that waitress that hands you food, or the parent you see at their kid’s soccer game, or even that old guy with a cane you always thought was adorable. Growing up can be scary, but I always like to think that things will eventually work themselves out. The decisions made now will affect your entire life… no pressure (488)