Weird vs. normal

Is it better to be weird or normal? You can either be you nd be different or conform and be the same. I think it is better to be weird in your own way because that means you are unique. Normal is boring. I'm not saying you should be REALLY weird cause that is just scary. Just be yourself and if people think it's weird then oh well, at least you are being real.

L.A. is...interesting

We just arrived in Los Angeles, CA today for NCAA's. I have never been here so it was exciting. Our hotel (on the left) is amazing!

We play UCLA tomorrow night for the round of 16. After not even being here for a day, I have noticed certain things that would only happen in L.A. First, we got off the airplane at the airport, and we spotted a lady in a fur coat. Normally this would be fairly normal, until her chiuaua popped out of her purse wearing THE SAME MATCHING COAT.

Then, we stopped at Subway and were eating outside, when a young guy walked by in a baggy white T, basketball shorts, and tan UGG boots. First of all it was 75 degrees and sunny, second of all it was a guy...wearing UGGS.

Later on, my friend and I were sitting by the pool at our hotel signing up for classes. Out walked a young woman in a bath robe and 4 inch stilleto pumps. I was completely shocked and confused when I saw this. I thought maybe she had an outfit on underneath the robe, so I gave her the benefit of the doubt. But then she slipped out of her robe, and stood there with a one-piece and her heels. She kicked off her heels and jumped in, swam for about 5 minutes, got back out, put her heels and robe back on, and walked back inside. It was the strangest thing ever...only in L.A.

Deciding On A Major

With all of the spring scheduling going on I have been starting to think about what I may want to major in. I know I still have a while to decide, but this is something that requires some planning. Before college, I thought about either a communications major, public relations, nursing or nutrition major. Once I got to UVA, I heard that the comm school nd nursing was too hard for most athletes to get into with their crazy schedule, and we don't even have the other two majors I was interested in. This makes it kind of tough. Most people on my team are either majoring in Psych, Soc, Politics, or Anth. None of these really sound that great to me. These are supposed to the be the easier majors, but what exactly can you even do with a degree in Anthropology? It seems so dumb to go to a good school like UVA but then major in something so random that no jobs would hire you with. I don't really know what to major in at this point, so I guess I will just keep waiting until something sounds interesting enough. What are you all thinking about for a major?

Never Give Up

This past Sunday we played No. 16 Penn State at their home field for round two of the NCAA tournament. They beat us in the beginning of the season, so we went in as the underdogs. They definitely underestimated us, because we started out very strong and outplayed them in the first twenty minutes. We started to fall apart a little and they scored 2 goals in the next few minutes, leaving it at 2-0 by halftime. During halftime, one of our seniors gave an amazing speech that left half of our team in tears. Emotions were running high because if we were to lose, it would be our seniors' last college game ever. This left us inspired and pimped up for the second half. The beginning was slow, but about twenty minutes in we scored two quick goals to tie it up. A few minutes later we scored again, and after that the goals kept coming. In a matter of twenty minutes, we had gone from being down 2-0, to being up 6-2! It was by far the craziest game I have ever been a part of. Penn State was shocked. That was the most goals they have ever given up in one game in their history. They already had their plane flights set for California for the next round. This just goes to show that no matter what the circumstance is, you should never quit. We could have easily given up, but we came out and faught hard, and ended up doing something amazing. We play UCLA this Friday for the Sweet 16. It's going to be a very tough game but we have proven that we can beat anyone.

NCAA's

I just arrived at Penn State for the first game of the NCAA tournament. We actually don't play Penn State until Sunday (if we win tomorrow against St. Johns). I am really excited and nervous to see how we will do. We suffered a hard loss in PK's against Boston College in the ACC tournament. Since then we have had some hard practices and have been preparing all week. If we win our first 2 games, we will make it to the Sweet 16 next weekend. That is where it gets really tough to advance, but I think anything could happen this year. The ACC conference has been very unpredictable all season. It seems like there has been upset after upset. I am confident in our team and I think we can do well in the NCAA's. If we make it to the Elite 8 then we probably won't be able to go home for thanksgiving, but it would be worth it just to make it that far. Wish us luck!

Rain, rain, go away.

Why does rain make everything so miserable? I feel like rainy days just drag on and on and on. There is nothing worse than being cold and wet. I think everything should be cancelled on cold, rainy days. Class, practice, everything. The buses are more crowded, the streets are filled with students holding umbrellas not watching where they are going. These days should be spent in bed watching movies. As if my motivation isn't already lacking, the weather has to go from 70 and sunny to 40 and rainy overnight, leaving me bitter and uninspired. Screw this weather.

Carpe Diem

Almost every day I see the same janitor on the hall of my dorm, either cleaning the bathroom, showers, or staircase. Every time I see this lady, she always has a big smile on her face and greets me good morning. At first I didn't really think about it, but now that a couple months have passed, this inspires me. If she can put a smile on her face and enjoy cleaning up after us all day long, then I should be able to do the same. Even though I think I have it hard sometimes, it must be really hard for her to look at us every day and think about all the oppurtunities we have ahead of us. This one lady is starting to change my whole outlook on college. I need to enjoy it as much as I can, because these are the best years of our lives. I want to make the best of it now so that I don't look back one day full of regret. I need to seize every day. We all need to seize every day, as if it were our last.

December 21, 2012

The mayans predict that the world will end on December 21, 2012. I am not really sure if I believe this, but I have heard and read things that say the Mayans made a calender until the end of time and accurately predicted a lot of major events. Some people say that the Mayans predicted World War I and World War II, as well as the September 11 attack on the World Trade Centers. They were very intelligent when it came to the stars and astrology. This particular day (12-21-2012) is interesting, becuase the sun will supposedly sit right in the center of the galaxy. Do you believe that the world may actually come to an end or do you think all of this is nonsense?

Google

Recently I heard about the benefits of working for Google. There are videos on you tube that I think everyone should watch. The Google office buildings are like playgrounds for adults. Can you imagine working in a building that has cafe's and snack centers with all free food, a place to get your car washed/oil changed, a gym that you can work out, a place to do your laundry for free, and even bring your pets to work! It seems like these employees have more play than work. I wonder what it takes to work at Google, and what they even do for their jobs. They have locations all over the country, and I hope someday I can maybe work in the headquarters building in California.

2002 D.C. Sniper Shootings

Living right outside of washington D.C., I remember hearing on the news about the Sniper shootings. I was in about 5th grade, and our whole community was freaked out. I would run home from the bus stop and was scared to be outside alone. After shooting 13 people (killing 10), the two men were finally caught, I was definitely relieved. Recently in the news they reported that the older man involved is scheduled to be sentenced to death on November 10. However, it is controversial because his attorney claims that he suffers from various mental illnesses.

Do you think that he should be sentenced to death no matter what, or do you think that the fact that he has mental illnesses should change the punishment that he is given?

Racism in Our Society

Last night I watched the movie Crash (starring Sandra Bullock and Ludacris), and it got me thinking about racism and how it effects everyone in our society. I suggest that everyone rents this movie from Clemons. It is basically about 5 people whose lives are effected by one another, and every major event stems from some sort of racism agaisnt a different group of people. It was really sad at times, but very eye opening. It shows that there really is no justice in this world when it comes to racism. I believe that there will always be stereotypes and although it's unfortunate that's just the way it is. What do you think?

Research Topic

I think for my research paper, I am going to analyze why Marijuana should be legalized. My representative example (1) could be that Marijuana could help our economy. Some of my observations (10) could be...

-Marijuana could be taxed
-Drug money would go to government rather than drug dealers
-Less arrests->less people in prison->less money spent on prisons

I think my binary opposition is that Marijuana is considered a bad drug to most people, yet I believe it should be legalized.

Safety On College Campuses

After recently hearing about the VA Tech student, Morgan Harrington, it got me thinking about safety on college campuses. This young girl was last seen outside of JPJ, where she then went missing. Her wallet was found in the JPJ parking lot, and I have heard from numerous people that her body was acutally found. While she allegedly had been drinking and was walking by herself, I still don't understand how all of the security outside of the Metallica concert could miss this.

Are college campuses targets for criminals/murderers? I feel as though this type of thing could happen anywhere at any time on our campus. The trolley runs from downtown and all the way through campus, allowing anyone to ride in and out of our campus throughout all hours of the day and night. It is a little scary to think that nearly anyone has access not only on to our campus, but into our buildings/classrooms as well. I know JPJ requires a student ID for entry, but as far as I know almost every other building on campus is unlocked. After the horrible massacre at Virginia Tech, haven't we learned our lesson? I think that all schools should think about having better security on campus. What do you think?

Athletes vs. Non-athletes

Recently, my friend was in a disagreement with another one of my friends about something I don't even remember, and she made the comment "Well I'm right because I got into this school cause I have brains, not muscle." This is the kind of thing I hear over and over again, and it is really starting to get on my nerves. Regular students don't understand how much hard work it takes to be a student athlete. Yeah, a lot of athletes get into UVA with average grades, but that is because we have devoted a large part of our lives to performing on the field. You can't always be great at everything. While regular students probably had all kinds of time in high school to be studying, athletes spend most of their free time practicing, playing games, and working hard to get better so that they can play at the next level. At UVA, we not only have to attend our classes and study for tests, but we have to practice everyday, go to study hall and tutoring, and prepare ourselves for games. Regular students always say how easy athletes have it, but juggling a sport and academics is very challenging. No one will ever understand until they are in our shoes.

Michael Jackson's Death

On July 28, 2009, the greatest entertainer our world has ever seen died. It was reported that Michael Jackson's doctor had given him a sleeping aid, left the room for a few minutes to go to the bathroom, and while he was gone Michael stopped breathing. Michael Jackson had a history of taking all sorts of pain killers and other perscription drugs, and even went to rehab for his issues. His performances and traveling the world caused him major sleeping problems, so he was often given powerful medications to put him to sleep. Looking back now, most doctors agree that the combination and strength of the drugs Michael took were very risky. This may be true, but I think it's sort of suspicious that Michael died in the 2 minutes that the doctor stepped out of the room. It makes me wonder if the whole thing was planned, or if it really was just an unfortunate thing that happened. Hmm..

Legalization of Marijuana

With our economy struggling, we are in dire need of a major change that could get our country out of this "rut". I honestly think that the legalization of Marijuana could be the answer.

No matter what anyone believes, lets be serious...legal or not, people will always find ways to sell and use Marijuana. As long as Marijuana is illegal, people will depend on dealers to supply them with their weed. This means that all of the money put into buying Marijuana is going in the hands of drug dealers across the country. However, the legalization of this drug would allow the money to be put into our economy. We could also tax Marijuana and make even more of a profit. In addition, we could save tons of money that we spend on prisons and arresting individuals on Marijuana charges. One website I came across puts this into perspective...

http://www.artipot.com/articles/365232/marijuana-arrests-feed-insatiable-u-s-prison-system.htm

Marijuana Arrests Feed Insatiable U.S. Prison System By Gregg Hall

"The website of the Marijuana Policy Project notes that: "Federal government figures indicate there are more than 41,000 Americans in state or federal prison on marijuana charges right now, not including those in county jails. That's more than the number imprisoned on all charges combined in eight individual European Union countries.""

Another reason I am all for legalizing Marijuana is that it will reduce violence on the streets. It is proven that the drug markets cause violence, often when people refuse or are unable to pay for the drugs they are given. Taking Marijuana off the streets could definitely create a safer environment for everyone.

The highly debated topic of whether or not Marijuana should be legalized remains controversial. While I do realize there are positives and negatives to this idea, as there are for any idea, I believe the pros significantly outweigh the cons.

College Life

"So, this is my life. And I want you to know that I am both happy and sad and I'm still trying to figure out how that could be." (The Perks of Being A Wallflower; Pg 2)

I came across this quote while reading The Perks of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, and it really struck me. This one sentence pretty much sums up my college experience so far. Making the transition from high school to college has been a roller coaster ride. I love being independent and taking care of myself, but I often find myself reminiscing on old times and missing friends and family. I miss my bed, my dog and having my parents there whenever I need something. I miss being able to come home from school and take naps until my parents came home and made a nice dinner. Living on my own has been bittersweet. It hit me the most this past week when I got sick. I no longer had my mom there to make me breakfast, get me medicine, or take me to the doctor. It was up to me to get on the bus and go to the doctor. I no longer heard my moms voice telling me I would be okay--instead I read these words in a text message. It definitely didn't feel the same.

Playing a sport in college has also had its ups and downs. I love playing soccer for UVA. It feels great to be on the field in front of a huge crowd, having people cheer for you and signing autographs for little kids after the game. But I frequently find myself exhausted from practicing everyday on top of school. It has been a struggle getting accustomed to everything. When asked how I like college and UVA, I often don't know how to respond. I am hoping that once the semester winds down and I am more used to everything that I begin to enjoy college more, but as for now I definitely have mixed feelings about everything.