FINAL BLOG!

At the beginning of this semester I really did not enjoy blogging, not one bit.  I am not saying that it has grown on me much but I have gained a few positive feelings about it, and I am not completely against it like I was at the beginning of the semester. 

At the beginning of the semester I found myself searching for things to blog about.  I would end up posting a really negative blog full of complaining.  This type of ranting was very unlike me.  With time I realized I could blog about anything, and boy did I.  My past few blogs have been me straight rambling about my day and upcoming days.  To anyone else reading I am sure it was one of the most boring blogs that had ever read, but to be honest it really helped me get myself organized.  I keep a planner and write everything I need to do, but actually spelling it out in detail really kept me organized.  Blogging about my days helped me relax and think about everything that I needed to get finished. 

The blogs that we had to have three sources on we sometimes annoying, but other times beneficial.  If I did not have anything I cared to learn more about it was annoying to have to look up, read, and discuss a topic that I did not even care about.  When I found something that I cared to learn about it was a good time to make me learn more about it.  I even used things that I had read in conversations with other people along with my blog topic.  The three sourced blog really kept me in tune with the world around me for once.  Anytime something came on TV and I thought it was interesting I would look it up later, learn more about it, and use it for my blog.  Thus, I would get points for class and learn a little bit about something going on in the world that maybe I could shared with other people or at least chime into a conversation if the topic aroused. 

I am unsure if the blog made a difference in my writing skills.  I learned a little bit more on how to just write exactly what I am thinking instead of trying to use big words and over formalize my writing. 

I doubt that I will continue to blog over the summer, and mostly because of time issues.  I had a hard enough time coming up with two topics every week to use for class that I doubt when I am not forced to do so that I will put forth the effort.

All in all the blogging was not as bad as I originally thought it was going to be.  At some points I enjoyed it and found it a little relaxing.  It helped me stay in touch with the world and gave me some added conversation starters.  I’ll keep my blog open just in case I ever have something I NEED to get off my chest!

Osama is DEAD!

http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2011/05/release_or_not_release_photos.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/05/01/osama-bin-laden-dead-killed_n_856091.html

http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/osama-bin-laden-killed/story?id=13505703

Osama is DEAD! I know I am sure I am not the only one to blog about this, but come on it is every where in not only the news but Facebook.  I do not have television at my house and on Sunday I was just hanging out when I received two text messages telling me to turn on the television that I do not have.  Instead I went to CNN.com.  The first thing I saw was that Osama Bin Laden was dead! I went to a few other web sites to read the same thing.  President Barak Obama came on for a special report to inform the United States that we had located and killed Osama Bin Laden.  This was great to hear, but the best part of all of this was the reactions by others. 

Getting on Facebook I could not miss all of the statuses people had put up in response to the death of Osama.  Some of my personal favorites:

“Party in the USA! I’ll drink to that”

“Game over, Good game America”

And of course there were some of the serious ones that revisited all of the deaths and damage that has been done throughout all of this.  Which is very true, and very sad I agree.  I am in no way downplaying all that has gone one in between this time, so I hope no one takes offense to this blog.

My friend called me later that night and told me that after Obama’s speech she heard fire works throughout her apartment complex, she assumed celebrating Osama’s death.  My first thought was who in the world has all of those fireworks just sitting around at their house? My second thought was, of course, I want to be there!!

With all of the responses aside I think it is a great feat for America that we finally got our revenge.  I am glad in a way that he did not die of natural causes and that we actually got to seek revenge for ourselves. 

On the other hand I do feel like since we have been over there we have opened up many more problems and issues that just because he is dead we still have a lot more work to do, but I will not rain on every one’s parade.  I think it is great, GO AMERICA!

Now the White House is debating whether or not to release the photos of Osama’s dead body or not.  I know that there are many skeptics out there that will not believe his death until they see it.  I say show the photo…if you do not want to see it look away.  The news reports should warn their viewers that they are about to show it.  I would not mind seeing it, not that I do not believe it, It just would not bother me to see something like that.  I am sure this will be a tough decision for the white house to make and I cannot honestly imagine them showing it but more power to them if they do! Again, GO AMERICA!

Summer time

Summer time is just around the corner and it is obvious in more ways than one.

I never really realized how many external stimulants can affect someone’s mood so much.  I always thought of myself as someone who did not let external things affect my internal mood.  I feel like I am someone that people can always count on to be in a good mood no matter what the situation.  I know that there are some people that are very much affected by their external environments.  Whether these external stimulants include weather or something that is going on in their daily life these things affect the mood that they are in.  As summer is nearing I can tell the moods of people around me are changing for the better and I LOVE it! Granted the weather has not been consistently nice yet, but it will soon enough and people know it!

I have known already from taking Anatomy and physiology that during the winter time your body secretes more melatonin, which is a hormone that increases sleeping.  This explains peoples increased sleeping habits during the winter time which I guess has a direct relationship to their mood.  In the summer less of this melatonin is secreted giving rise to not as much sleep being had by individuals.  All of this aside the warm weather, sunny skies, and good moods of others have really affected me.

First of all the sunny skies have made sitting down to study for school THAT much harder.  Even though I know I am THIS close to getting an A in one of my classes and just a little bit more work would put me over the edge for a guaranteed A I cannot seem to focus long enough to get my stuff finished. 

The warm weather has of course changed my wardrobe.  I love love LOVE wearing shorts and a t-shirt to class.  Most comfortable thing to wear!!!  It is just when I think I am comfortable in what I am wearing in class that I look out the window and see the beautiful day and it is at that time I sneak out of class and meet up with my friends….oops. 

Along with my changed wardrobe and decrease in my academic drive the increased happiness of people around me has done a lot.  It is always a downer to be around people that are in bad moods and constantly complaining.  Lately I have noticed how many more people are smiling across campus, opening doors for people, and being talkative. 

Maybe the reasons for these changes do not have anything to do with the weather.  Maybe it is just the pure excitement of being finished for the semester that has changed the moods, my attitude, but probably not my wardrobe.  My wardrobe has to be solely based on the weather.  Maybe just maybe it is a combination of both the sunny days and the ever nearing semester end.  Whatever the reason is I love it and I’ll take it!!

Ron Artest Wins Citizenship Award?

http://www.nba.com/2011/news/features/scott_howard_cooper/04/28/lakers-ron-artest-change-game-6-setup/?ls=iref:nbahpt1

http://newsone.com/entertainment/sports-entertainment/casey-gane-mccalla/ron-artest-wins-nba-citizenship-award/

http://www.lakersnation.com/ron-artest-wins-nba-citizenship-award/2011/04/26/

Ron Artest wins NBA citizenship award.  I literally double took when this popped up on my home screen.  I truly do not like basketball and I honestly do not know much about the players or teams which makes this award for him even crazier.  Even with my lack of knowledge about the NBA I still know a few things about Ron Artest.  He is infamously known for the NBA player who went into the stands and started a brawl with a fan who threw a drink at him.  Yeah that would be frustrating for sure, but you get paid millions of dollars, the price you  have to pay is to sit back and take stuff like that.  Once you become a professional athlete you instantly become a role model and unfortunately every move you make is being watched.  On another “Ron Artest” moment in history he is known for is smashing a television monitor at Madison Square Garden.  One piece of information that was news to me is that he asked for time off so he could promote his album.  Now that we have a little background information about Ron Artest now we can see where I was very shocked to read that he had won this award. 

The citizenship award honors a player or coach for outstanding service and dedication to the community.  Granted Ron Artest in his recent years, post-brawls and outbursts, has seemed to exemplify these qualities.  The major word in the description is dedication, which to me means over time exemplified, not just in the past couple of years.  Also just giving money away does not mean you are an outstanding citizen. 

He has recently indulged his time, efforts, and money into the community.  More than likely mostly money.  Ron Artest raffled off his championship ring for $650,000 which will be given to mental-health charities along with his recent pledge to give out his entire 2011 salary of 6.79 million.   He has been advocating mental health issues and has donated millions of dollars to charities that associate with these issues.  Don’t get me wrong I think it’s great that the money went to these charities, because well not many things can function properly without money.  My main point to all this is that I’ll be honest I do not think they picked the right person for this award. 

On the other hand, this may be the way the National Basketball association wants to kind of give Artest a pat on the back and let him know that they recognize his efforts to change.  I am not saying that people cannot change, because I hundred percent think that they can, and to be honest I have no idea if Ron Artest has changed or not.  He may doing all of these things on his own will, and if so that is great.  I still do not feel that at this point in time he was the right pick for this award, but hey what do I know? Ha

The End is Near

I could not be more excited for summer to come.  Although I will be working, maintaining my internship hours, and taking two classes I am just ready to be home and under the sun.  I plan to spend most of my off time in a swim suit soaking up the sun!  I could go on for a while about my excitement but I still have a few things to finish up with before I leave Joplin for the summer…wow that sounds GREAT!

I just stayed up all night and studied for thirteen straight hours for my organic test which took me two hours.  I have really enjoyed that class and at one point in time almost switched my major to pharmacy, but it is definitely a tough course.  One of my favorite classes so far though. 

Here I go rambling again in order for me to figure out what all I have left.  In anatomy I have one more lab practical, a paper summary, and a final! Not too bad at all! In organic I have home work assignments, a quiz, and a final.  On my computer information systems class….well I do not really know what I have left for that.  I have not been a big fan of that class all semester! I have a paper for this class and a couple more wonderful blogs to be written.  International terrorism I have a couple more quizzes, a test, and an exam!  Does not seem so bad!

Finals week will be a blast I am sure! Once that is over I am homeward bound and could not be any more excited for my 21^st birthday, May 30^th!  That Friday I am renting a party bus and headed to downtown St. Louis to have my first sip of alcohol…EVER, or something like that!

I have been on a party bus before and let me tell you, well worth the money! It is a safe trip to where ever you want to go, and not only is it a ride it is a party on wheels! Then you get dropped off right in front of your destination and when ever you are ready to leave you just call up the bus driver who picks you up right in front and takes you to the next place you desire.  After it is all said and done the bus takes you safely home, mind you still with all your friends!  The bus drops you off where ever you want to and that is it.  The last party bus I was on was $25 a person.  I would have spent fifty or even a hundred it was that much fun. 

I hope my party bus goes just as smoothly! Let the count down begin.  Five weeks, eleven hours, and fifty six minutes….but who is counting!

Good luck to everyone with their finals.  Only a couple weeks left!!

Rambling blog

When I have nothing else to write about I just end up writing out my schedule for the upcoming days.  I am sure it is boring for every one else to read but it actually helps me get more organized.  I have just a few more things to get finished until I am headed home for the first time since January!  I could NOT be more excited!!!

We were supposed to have a game last night against Missouri State but it was supposed to storm in Springfield, not sure if it ever did or not, so our game got canceled.  Leaving me with lots of free time last night, which was a very weird feeling.  Our game last night was supposed to be the last one for the spring season, but they rescheduled it for next Tuesday.  Due to NCAA rules you are only allotted a certain amount of practices for the spring season.  Well since we thought that yesterday was our last game we had used up all but one of our mandatory practices leaving us with no opportunity to practice the rest of this week.  This has allowed me to go home earlier than I thought, so I am not too upset about it.  After my last class today at one I will be writing a lab report until four. At four we have weights, which is not considered practice.  After weights we have an optional practice, since it can not actually be enforced.  After practice I will go straight to work until 9.  After work I am headed home to pack and get a few other home work assignments finished.  Tomorrow I have class at 9 and 1 and then I am St. Louis bound.  It is about a four hour drive and I can NOT wait to get home.  Luckily I have been able to see my parents twice because they have come to Joplin for games, but there is nothing better than sleeping in your own bed and being at home. 

On Friday I have to go up to where I work during the summer and fill out a few papers because this summer I am going to be the manager at our local pool, yeah I am big time now. Ha After that I am going to get my hair cut and just RELAX all weekend. 

This Easter will be a little different than most because this will be the first Easter that I spend with out my sister.  She graduated from Missouri State in December and headed straight to Chicago.  She was very lucky to receive a job as an accountant right out of college.  Since she is a big girl now she is unable to get off work and make it home.  Even though I am twenty I am sure that my mom will still hide my easter basket and enjoy watching me hunt it down.  Unfortunately I will not have my 24 year old sister to help me and complain about it.  Hope everyone has a great Easter break!

Origin of 4/20

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/420_(cannabis_culture)

www.huffingtonpost.com/.../04/20/what-420-means-the-true-s_n_188320.html

parentingteens.about.com/cs/marijuana/a/420meaning.htm

The atmosphere of today may seem a little off today.  The air may have a different or stronger scent than normal.  The clouds may be hanging a bit lower and the air in front of you may be a little hazy.  Well the reason for these changes would be because today is 4/20.  Over time this day has become the national smoke weed day.  I do not smoke, but it was not until today when I was thinking about what to write about that I became interested in learning about where the term 4/20 originated. 

It is common knowledge amongst most people my age that the term 420 is associated with marijuana whether you partake in this activity or not.  Today when I was sitting in class and someone made a reference to 420 I started to think where did this come from? Who decided that on 4/20 that would be the national smoke weed day and how did they come up with this day? 

Well I did some research and I hope my Mom does not check my browsing history because it would appear to her that I am a “pot head” which is far from the truth.  I just am taking interest in history, she should be proud, right?

Well the information I gathered was pretty broad.  Some say that 420 originated because that is the day that Bob Marley died when in fact Bob Marley died in May.  Others say 420 comes from the code that cops have come up with when communicating amongst themselves that marijuana is present.  This is also false because a code 420 has not been coined for all police officers, although some may use it. 

What seems to be the origination of the term 420 is that in 1971 a group of highschoolers in California were on a mission to find an abandon cannabis, marijuana, crop.  They would meet every day outside their school by a Louis Pasteur statue on campus.  They would meet here every day at 4:30 to discuss their plans.  It originally started off as “4:20 Louis”, but after their failed attempts to find this abandon crop field it soon turned into just 420.  The coined this term and soon realized this was a way to talk about marijuana right in front of their teachers, parents, and anyone else of importance. 

Apparently 4:20pm has become a social accepted hour of the day for people to smoke marijuana. 

On this day, across the country many gather to celebrate this “holiday”.  In San Francisco many gather at the Golden Gate Park.  Tallahasse Florida is the number two pot smoking city in the United States. 

Every year in Boulder, Colorado a large group at the University of Colorado gathers to consume cannabis.  In 2008, 10,000 people attended and in 2009 they well surpassed this mark.   This seems like a crazy amount of people.  Campus and local police have tried to stop this, but the crowd keeps getting bigger every year. 

Although I do not partake in this activity it was interesting to learn the history behind it and the crazy amounts of people that gather to celebrate.