College Football

It’s that time of year again, when good food is in the oven, family is over, presents are opened, and, in my house, the TV flips over to college football. Forget the holiday season, in my family, this is bowl season. Two west coast teams who barely managed to get six wins playing in the International Bowl in Canada? …Doesn’t matter, everyone can find a reason to vote for a team. Oh, you like how Southern South Dakota Tech’s jeseys look? Perfect! Now lets get ready to fight each other about it for the next 4 hours.

The biggest fans in the house in December are my uncle, my cousin and I. they will normally come over Christmas Eve and stay until New Year’s Day, when the most important games are played. We have a lot of fun discussing the games, a ton of pizzas are usually ordered, several trips to Sam’s Club for Tostitos and Salsa, and there are occasional small bets on the game if say, a Michigan team plays another Michigan team or a team from Ohio. And its then when you realize why sports are so popular, because it brings people together, they may not agree on who they want to win, but they all gather around the TV, and we all talk about the game.

Oh, gotta go, the games on….

5 TV Shows You'll Always Find on my DVR

1.The Office is a great show. It has a lot of haters but if you take the time to actually watch it and try to enjoy it, you'll laugh your pants off. The characters are absolutely hysterical, especially Dwight (my favorite). It has a plot, but its not a very strict plot and some shows don't really advance the storyline, but they will make the show absolutely hysterical. So next time, give it a shot and watch the entire thing. It's worth it.

2. CSI: Miami is another great one. I lost interest in the original CSI and had stopped watching the CSI's all together, until a marathon was on one night this summer. I was hooked. A lot of people say they don't like the main character and his corny lines that the show always starts with. Just because they're corny doesn't mean there not funny!

3. Flash Forward is a brand new show in its debut season but boy, is it a beauty. It follows a CIA agent after the ENTIRE WORLD blacks out for over two minutes and get a glipse of what they will be doing 6 months in the future. As you can imagine, things are crazy and the agent is trying to figure out what caused the blackout and prevent it from happen again.

4. Sportscenter The only reason this show isn't number 1 on the list is because I normally watch it and there's no need for me to record it!

5. Planet Earth We have HDTV and I really like seeing whale and sharks attack and demolish other animals in high definition.

A Debate for the Ages

Our debate on the Rwandan denocide was awesome!! It was probably one of the most excting classes we've had all year and I'm so glad I got to participate in it. I think the best part about it for me was that my group was the Red Cross! The Red Cross was the only group at the debate that wasn't at fault for anything, which meant that we basically got to lay the blame on whoever we wanted. We decided, however, that the group "worthy" of the blame was Belgium. So, we informed the rest of the organizations of this in our opening statemnent. Mr. Fielder said that we should really lay the blame on the other groups to start stirring the pot. This was fairly easy, and judging by the looks on "Belgium's" faces we had done just that. What was even funny was that half the time, groups wouldn't call on us to let it talk because we did B
nothing wrong and they were all probably just scared or our straightforwardness and they knew we were going to take it to em.

I hope we get to do this again. Next time I think it would be more interesting if my group was one of the groups at fault. It would be more difficult though, I can imagine. But I think I could handle it beacause I'm very comforthale in these type of debate type situations.

Now that I’ve had a chance to go through this process of researching the genocide and participating in the debate, I can say that, beyond a doubt, if anyone was at fault for the genocide, it was Belgium. Belgium not only “set up” the genocide, but they didn’t even send any troops back in to help end the genocide! But, they had absolutely no problem in calling on the U.S. for help!

I will say, however, that just because Belgium started this whole mess doesn't mean it was destined to happen from the beginning. For example, without the Exodus of the Tutsi's, this may not have happened. Without the murder of a Hutu extremist leader, this may not have happened. About 15 things had to go horribly wrong for this tradegy to happen, and they all did.

No matter how "unfortunate" or "bad" or "sad" this may be, we learn about these things because history repeats itself. We need to learn from this time in history and make sure it doesnt happen again.

"The American Scholar"

Emerson's argument in "The American Scholar" holds true for only some people in our country; however, the bottom line is that America gives people the choice to be either a specialist or to have a larger pallet of interests.

One reason Emerson's argument still holds true today is the example of my mom's husband, Kevin. He used to own a Hungry Howies Pizza in Monroe. One day he decided to move me, my mom and my brother out to Brooklyn, MI. Here he started a horse and cattle ranch. His pizza business was very successful, despite a poor location, which was proven when the next owner took over and went bankrupt. His ranch is also fairly successful, and it is a very good addition to my mom, who works as a nurse anesthetist.

One prime example of why Emerson may have a valid point, is the production line worker. A phenomenal way of producing goods, but i almost EXACTLY what Emerson argues against. The production line worker does his one part, time after time, he becomes a machine, almost like a work horse. And, I agree with Emerson that it, without a doubt, it eats away at the man.

Top Things Associated with Halloween

Top 5 Halloween Costumes:
Teenagers who go around in blue jeans, a white t-shirt and a mask are a pet peeve of mine, and a disgrace to dedicated trick-or-treaters such as myself. To crack my top ten, you have to have a good idea, creativity and innovative designing.

1. The Tin Man. (My costume as a 7- y/o). Okay folks, this wasn't a half done, $15 costume bought at Halloween USA. This was a design worked on for weeks. I spent 25 minutes just getting the thing on. It had an opening door that revealed a heart inside it. I also had silver body paint and hair dye, complete with a silver funnel on my head. Till this day, I cannot find on that tops this.
2. Harold Helicopter Rescue. (Thomas the Train character) When you can get a cute kid into a cardboard box that resembles a helicopter with revolving wooden spoons on top of his head, its an all around victory.
3. Super Sperm. Not a lot of explanation is necessary, but it was a unique idea and finally a teenager that did a little more that buying a scary mask.
4.Chucky (Child's Play) This did involve a mask, of course but the wearer did do a fantastic job of replicating the real Chucky, with the overalls, striped shirt, and of course, the infamous Chucky voice.
5. Now, this one is different because it involves a dog. However, putting a weiner dog in a hot dog costume is just adorable. I could cry.

Top 5 Halloween Candies:
When I think of Halloween I think of candy So here's my fab 5:

1. Snickers. The Snickers theme song is my ringtone. You know, the, "Over Chocolate Covered Mountain Tops And Waterfalls of Caramel..." It's pretty flippin' sweet if you ask me...
2. Candy Corn. I absolutely HATE candy corn, but it is probably the candy most associated with candy corn. All other candy is enjoyed year round, but candy corn is normally only ate on October 31st.
3. Kit Kat. My personal second favorite, I love the King-Size, because I can sit there and eat them all night.
4. Any white chocolate. My mom always joked that I inherited this "white-chocolate gene" from her. I normally don't eat nuts, but if there colored in white chocolate I will. I'd eat pretty much anything, as long as its covered in white chocolate.
5. M&M's. I guess, like the Kit Kat's, I can just sit there and enjoy them for hours. I think maybe I'm just more of a slow-candy eater.

The Good Pain

I am currently struggling with how to put these feelings and these emotions and this physical pain into words right now. Let's start from the beginning; earlier tonight Stevenson freshman football played Churchill. Some of you may know, others may not, but going into the game, we were 0-8. The game started out fine, but so had many others. We had some chances late in the first half but couldn't get anything to go our way. A for sure touchdown was declined by the officials, we were plauged with fumbles and going into half, some of the players had already given up on the season. Others were constantly putting their teammates down with repeated insults. It left me to wonder if they had signed up to play football or to insult people.

When we were walking on the field for the second half, I knew the game was winnable. But I did doubt that we could last more than 5 minutes with the attitude some of the team was in. The third quarter seemed to be getting us nowhere. The ball went back and forth, both defenses couldn't get a stop. However, that all changed when we held them to a field goal. Our offenses got the ball after a big kick return and was clicking on all cylinders, penalty-free and we put the ball in the endzone, a few defensive stops and some touchdowns later, we were down by 8. For those of you who aren't familiar with football, that is one touchdown and a two point conversion.

I forget the exact time left on the clock, but it was clear that this drive would determine the outcome of the game. The crowd exploded when the hook and ladder went for a touchdown. However, as I mentioned before, an 8-point deficit requires a touchdown and a two-point conversion. The only word I could think of to describe my emotions and actions was: jacked. Some people who are really familiar with sports have probably heard this word before. I was jacked. The next thing that hit me was an adrenaline rush. Granted, it probably wasn't as big of one as a mother trying to lift a car off her baby, but it was a very strange feeling. They could have lined superman up in front of me and I would have easily blocked him. I'm sure I'm not the only one to feel like this, but it was very awkward. The agonizing pain in my left leg suddenly went away, everything I did was easy, effortless, despite the pain I was in thirty seconds before.

So now, as I'm sitting here typing this, my arm hurts because everytime I press a key, the movement goes threw a giant bruise on my bicep. The point of this pain, however, is not to complain, but to say that there truly is a "good pain," a pain that hurts, but, for some reason, it feels good.

What's the Big Deal?

I woke up on the morning of Tuesday, September 8th and, thought, what’s the big deal? Everyone starts high school; I have no doubt I will finish high school, what then? My life will take another turn? If life is full of twists and turns, then why is this one so special?

As I was taking my first steps into Stevenson High School, two thoughts rushed to my head. The first was a scene from one of my favorite movies, “Accepted.” In the scene, the main character is standing in the middle of a hallway at a school implied to be Harvard, and everyone around him is moving twice their normal speed, flying by faster than life. Suddenly, the second thought hit me like a freight train, before I could completely process the first; this time it was something my uncle had said to me over the summer. Something along the lines of, “The thing that separates high school from grade school is, that from the time you step in the door, the clock is ticking, every day counts toward college, and toward the rest of your life.”

I felt similar to this character, and all the while the clock was ticking, ticking down to homecomings, to prom, to college applications and everything else my inexperienced mind could think of that went along with the stereotypical high school experience. The next thing that came to my attention, was sheer fright, that all the while I had been standing there, the clock was ticking. I finally ventured off to my first class, and my first day of high school had officially begun.

Looking back now, it was foolish of me to be afraid that I had wasted only about a minute standing there, but that just goes to show how intimidating high school can be. I think the comparison to a “ticking clock” is a great one. With every stupid decision we make, no matter how big or small it may be, it takes time off of our “clocks.” Many people have advised me on the dangers of high school, and given me their take on why not to do drugs, to smoke, or have sex, but I believe my uncle’s has gotten to me the most. Although I believe he was hinting more towards getting good grades, his comment had a much greater effect on me. It made me think of how horrible it would be, to take a look back one day and think of a wrong choice I made in high school, how it had haunted me and prevented me from reaching life’s full potential. And I hope, that wherever I go, and throughout all I do here at Stevenson, in order to keep myself from making pointless, disruptive decisions, that I remember, “what the big deal is,” tick… tick…

Poor Poor Neda

Since I didn't hear of the story of Neda Agha-Soltan, I would guess many others haven't either. Neda was shot to death by an Iranian sniper with a single bullet wound to the chest. The event was caught on tape. I suggest that people stay away from the video because of how gruesome it is. In the video you can see Neda walking along in a protest rally when she suddenly falls to the ground. In the moments that followed, attempts to save her life were unsuccessful. In that part of the video you can see a close up of what seems to be a beautiful innocent girl, with blood absolutely covering every part of her upper body.

Although I said that people should stay away from the video, I thought it was necessary for me to watch it to accurately write this blog. This blog was supposed to be about a world issue I have feelings on, and boy, after watching that girl lying on the pavement, emotions inside me raged, boiling up to a feeling of hate, for whoever did this to her. I do have to congratulate BBC and CNN, who did an absolutely fantastic job of covering this tragic event, and left the viewer feeling like they personally knew Neda.

When America first had the "confrontation," or however you'd like to call it, I wrote a paper that said we should have a hands off policy. Well, I got to tell you, after watching this video I wouldn't have any problems sending troops over there to shoot everyone in the chest, just as they did to this girl. But I guess then Obama wouldn't be looking to good for that Nobel Peace Prize would he?

So, lets pretend that you are the family of this girl? What would you do now? Have a funeral service of course. But, no the Iranian governments put a ban on memorial services for the girl. What a shame. Can you believe that? That's like someone killing your child and then saying you can't have a funeral service for her. Think about how that would make you feel...

The good news is that she will not be forgotten. "RIP Neda, the world cries seeing your last breath," was one of the messages that was all over Twitter Tweets and Facebook status's. The important thing is to get the world more aware of this tragedy because, Neda is, everyone's voice for freedom.

A picture of this innocent girl:

What has happened to public service?

We had a day off Wednesday and I rode my bike up to Subway with a friend to get a midday snack. I walked up to the counter and and the gentlemen behind asked, "What?" I was taken back by his remark and stood dumbfounded. I was raised on how to be polite and this was definitely not it. Finally my friend began ordering his sub. After he was done, it was my turn. The man continued with his display of how not to have good customer service.

It didn't get interesting until I started to pay (with a gift card). Subway has its customers that are buying with a gift card use the credit card terminal. Nothing seemed to be odd until I was about done. A question popped up on the terminal that read, "Were you satisfied with your experience today?" I was millimeters away from tapping "NO" when I realized he was watching his own computer screen. He gave me a dirty look and it was obvious he didn't want to stand here waiting for some little punk to pick whether he was satisfied with his experience or not. He reminded me of someone who wasn't working because they needed money, but more of someone who was working just because their parole officer had said they should. I didn't want to mess with the guy, so i ended up pressing "NO."

It got worse as the day went on. I rode my bike to football so I also had to ride home. I had some cash left on me from Subway and I decided to stop at the Shell station for some powerade. Again, as I was being rung up, the man being the counter was completely ignoring me. He didnt even tell me my total! It came up on the screen and he just expected me to realize this and pay! I guess a little bit of my moms Irish stubbornness came out because I said nevermind and put it back in the fridge.

It was not until I began to write this blog that I truly thought about the culture aspect of it. It must have something to do with the "me" culture. I wonder what customer service is like in other countries, especially "we" cultures.



An image of the "Dirty Domino's Workers":

Me in ABC's

A. Athletic. I am very athletic, and am involved in many sports including football, which i have played since third grade.
B. Boston College. I fell in love with this school many years ago. Since then my favorite hockey player, (Nathan Gerbe) has gone there and, while visiting Boston I took a campus tour, and my, how gorgeous it was.
C. College Football. 90% of my fall/autumn Saturdays are spent watching college football. If I'm hanging out with friends I am constantly checking my phone for scores.
D. Dogs, I have four in total, but only one at my dads. Pawz is his name and he is truly mine (i picked him out) and so I do like him the best.
E. Exciting. I live a highly energetic lifestyle and like to think of myself as energetic.
F. Facebook. I have only had one for a little while now, but I love it! Fantasy Sports. I am addicted to them, and I love the way it brings my family and best friends together during the season.
G. Gage, my middle name. Most may not know that I was named after a famous TV star of the show emergency, Johnny Gage.
H. Humorous. I think most people would agree that I'm pretty funny. I love making people laugh and feel as its almost a bit of a calling for me.
I. iPod. It goes with me wherever i go, and an ear bud is in my ear almost everyday.

J. Jell-O. I have loved jello since I was very little, although I can hardly find it in the store nowadays...
K. Kinesthetic. Last year, in math, we took a quiz to figure out what kind of learner we are and I ended up with the result Kinesthetic.
L. Lax. Although I did used to play lacrosse, I'm referring to the "laid back" meaning of the word.
M. Music. It helps me get through bad days, I find hidden messages in songs that come on the radio that inspire me to keep going. I also listen to music when I do homework. I think the beat helps me stay focused.
N. Nonstop. Just like the Energizer bunny, you can't really stop me.
O. Oakley. I bought my first pair at an auction for $2. Now, they are the only glasses I can wear.
P. Pride. If I do a good job at something, I'm proud of it. Simple as that.
Q. Quintessential People. I don’t like when all people do is try to fit in and become the "quintessential teenager." I’m sorry, but that just doesn't cut it for me.
R. Rumor 2. My cell phone. I think it goes almost without saying that a teenager is pretty much dependent on their cell phone. In fact the average teen checks their cell phone 30 times an hour.
S. Sports Illustrated, my favorite magazine, I love reading it, and my favorite columnist, Mitch Albom, sometimes is a contributor.
T. Tigers. I love going to games at Comerica and watching them play. My "tiger" is Curtis Granderson.
U. University of Michigan. Although I love Boston College, it would be unbelievable to go to school at Michigan, Go Blue!
V. Venison. My favorite kind of meat, I love the unique flavor and its always a rare treat for me.
W. Watermelon. My favorite fruit, although I think its un-American to eat the seedless kind.
X. Xmas. This has changed for me, I find now that I love to give gifts as much as I love getting them. Finding the perfect gift and seeing the look on the persons face when they open it is priceless.
Y. Yoga. This is something I can not handle. I hate how much my body aches when my mom makes me do yoga with her.
Z. Zoo. I am definitely an animal lover. My mom owns a ranch in Brooklyn, MI, and we have a ton of animals. I love them all and I think everyone should go horseback riding at least once in their life.

High School Thus Far

High school so far has been a bigger change for me than most of my fellow classmates. See, I have never in my life sat foot in a public school. Getting up and actually choosing my clothes is completely foreign to me. Seeing fellow classmates walk the halls with multi-colored hair, pants sagging bellow their hinds, its all brand new. With some it is hard to tell if they are male or female. I think off myself as an infant seeing things for the first, awe struck, but still shy and nervous about everything new.

As far as the specific education side off school, all seems to be normal. There are a lot more questions asked in classes then at St. Michael. Global Ed. is brand new. The amount of writing to me is beyond what Ive ever experienced. It is hard only because off how strict the topics are. Most prior writing assignments Ive had were pretty loose and a variety off topics were available.

I am continuing to play football, which I think was a good decision. Coach Gabel said it best when he you wouldnt be getting the full high school experience if you didnt play football. Football here is drasticly harder than at Mikes. I am not used to losing either. St. Mikes was undefeated since the fifth grade. "Second Stringers" were more like "Second Halfers" because we were able to march the ball down the field and out the game out of reach by halftime.

Lunch here is also different than at my old school. Although the cafeteria food here is delicious.

Im not sure if it is different for me because of coming from a public school or simply because its high school? I guess that in all walks of life there are changes to go through, and I hear high school is where the best times of your life are...