The Cost of Halloween

I always thought Halloween was a fun, easy holiday. Kids dressed up and went out in search of the house that gave the best candy. As I got older, it was fun to take my younger cousins trick or treating and possibly to dress up a little. My friends and I would make shirts of superheroes or we would usually be creative with what we had instead of going to look for costumes. This year was the first time in a while that I actually looked at costumes since I don't have the resources to make anything here and the first time ever that I bought candy for the holiday (we had kids come trick or treat in our hall). Why would people want to spend $50 on a costume that they are guaranteed to wear for one day then either toss or pass on to someone else if it doesn't fall apart? The prices are ridiculous! Not only that, but it is very possible to spend a fortune on candy. I didn't realize how quickly the candy disappears. My roommate and I went through a little over four bags of candy just on some little kids who came to the hall! We almost had to stop letting the kids come! I also read a quick fact that said people spend more on Halloween than any other holiday, except for Christmas. I guess its a fun, playful holiday for everyone but those who finance it!

MATLAB!!

MATLAB is beginning to drive me crazy! I just can't seem to get what I'm doing, but none of it seems that difficult when I realize what I'm supposed to be doing. It takes me forever to do simple equations. The worst part is when other people tell me it only took them an hour so it'll be quick, but then I'm sitting there for many hours, losing sleep. I guess its about time for me to be going in to ask for help continually, so that I don't miss any concepts. The only reason I avoid going now is probably because the office hours are at night. By the time I get back to the dorms at the end of all my classes, I don't want to have to walk back to campus at 7:00 and then have to walk home alone late. I can see that having the hours at night ensures that no one is incapable of making them due to their classes, but it would be nice if I could just go from my last class to get help and then come home for the rest of the night. The only other problem with my MATLAB is that it is due on Wednesday. I have the first lab, which means no one else is done or can help me. Of course, I get asked for help the next days by people who I am sure understand it better than I do!

Writer's Block

English homework was very difficult for me this weekend. For some reason, I just couldn't think of any ideas for the blogs or seem to make a good proposal. I tried everything. I was asking my roommate for ideas, watching news channels, and looking online. Nothing seemed to catch my interest enough that I wanted to write about it. Therefore, I ended up writing my third blog about how I couldn't think of any better topic at the moment. I'm sure I have some opinion that would have been more worthy of this spot, but I just can't think of it right now. Its the most frustrating thing to be sitting here staring at a blank page, when I know there are many things I could write about. Not only did I have trouble with the blogs though, but also with my research paper proposal. For that, I could think of many topics I found interesting and would be willing to spend some time on. However, I could not connect them to a reaction in history. The events seemed like they should have obvious effects, but I just could not figure anything out. Hopefully, this is only a temporary condition, since we still have seven weeks, 21 blogs, and two more papers to go!

Scary Movies

Seeing as Halloween is approaching, my friends and I decided to watch a scary movie the other day. We chose to watch the movie Amityville Horror on Saturday. While I was the only one to jump during the movie, none of us actually got scared. At some points we even laughed at the scenes that were over-dramatic and just too unrealistic. After the movie was over we talked about other scary movies we've seen. We realized that the old movies seem to be much better. They just have a certain suspense built from the lack of color and the musical build up inevitably found in each one. I remembered watching The Omen and they brought up movies like The Shining and all the Alfred Hitchcock films. They always scared you and lest you a little freaked out for a few days afterwards. Most of the movies nowadays provide a quick thrill, but don't leave me wanting to see more of the story or scared afterwards. Old movies have more dramatics and leave more to the imagination, but I find the newer movies to be a series of bloody scenes, many of which I could have done without. The blood is not what makes me scared. Maybe this is all just my opinion on what form of scary movie I enjoy, but it seems to be harder to find one people have fun watching anymore.

Footprint

Category
Acres Food 5.9
Mobility 0.5
Shelters 5.7
Goods/Services 5.7
Total Footprint 18

Worldwide there exists 4.5 biologically reproductive acres per person.

If everyone lived like you, we would need 4 planets.

I never realized that I used that many resources. Is the problem that we use too many resources or that there aren't enough resources for everyone to live a comfortable lifestyle? I do believe however that we should give back what we take. If Americans are consuming more than our share then we need to invest more in preserving resources than a country that barely has enough to survive. If we have the means to build up the environment and our resources so that there is more available to everyone, then we should, especially if we are the ones consuming the majority of it. It may not be fair that we consume so much as well, but I don't think most people will care enough to slow their consumption by much. People who have worked hard to afford a comfortable lifestyle won't want to give up what they feel they deserve as a reward for their hard work. Sure, three people could live in a little apartment pretty comfortably, but if they can afford a house where there is some extra room and space to have company over, they will most likely want the house. This tendency however bears the responsibility upon the US, and other countries in our position, to keep farmers on their land and protect the environment. Also to try to find better alternatives for fuel and other such resources that can harm the environment. We should do whatever we can.

My October Break

On Monday of my October break I went to visit a friend at school. She attends DePaul University in Chicago. After the search mission for a cheap place to park I finally met up with her. We visited her form which was, to my disappointment, almost twice the size of ours! We then took the metra to Millennium Park. There was great weather so we were able to walk around for hours looking around and enjoying each other's company. We saw the sculptures downtown and sat at a scenic spot, where we talked for over an hour. We also walked by the fountains in the Park. All we did was talk and find out everything we've missed while being away. It's not he same as wehen all of our friends are back together, but we got to make plans to all get together againAt the end of the day, we also went to Buffalo Wild Wings. I had never been there before and we actually ran into another friend of mine who goes to DePaul as well. It was a lot of fun. It may not seem like the most exciting or interesting day, but it was great to just be with my friends and enjoy the city on a great day!

Exams Round 2

The second round of exams is on the way. Once again, it is time to study each subject until e feel we know it inside and out. With my luck, once I get to the test I found out the professor favored the one section I didn't look over as much as the rest! At least my exams are spread out this time. I only have one exam a week for the next three weeks. I also have a test-out though to avoid COM 114. Some people are still worse off though. A friend of mine has three exams in a row on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Hopefully he'll get some type of a break on homework or I'm afraid he might have a breakdown! The exam schedule can be very hectic, especially when we still have to do MATLAB and chem labs and homework in general. On the bright side, after this we only have one round left this semester! The time will be gone before we know it and we'll be starting new classes with new professors, people, and exams. It'll be nice to have a change of pace, but now I've finally gotten used to what my professors expected and the people I see everyday.

The Replacements

I got to go home for a short time this weekend. During my stay I watched the movie The Replacements. I love this movie. Its fun and inspirational all at once. The story is easy o follow and at the end it makes you feel good. Whenever I'm tired or a little overworked these are the best kinds of movies to watch. I end up watching movies a lot at Purdue. The two dollar movies are a fun way to spend some time with my friends without costing me a lot of money! Whenever my roommate or I are doing homework in the dorm we'll turn on an old movie. This way we have something going on in the background. We can enjoy the story without being distracted since we already know what's coming. However, the movie selection at Earhart is slightly disappointing. The movies it has aren't bad, but it needs to get more movies. A bunch of them are even unavailable because the DVD was ruined at some point and never replaced! At least when I get bored with their selection there's always pool, ping pong, or foosball (not quite sure how to spell that!) in the lobby. Not that I only hang out in my dorm all the time, but these options are nice when my friends and I want to have fun but not have to put forth much effort!

Hidden truths.

What passes for identity in America is a series of myths about one's heroic ancestors.
--James Baldwin

In describing our nation's history, many of the things people mention are the people and what they accomplished. This history and these people are the identity of our nation. The ideas and beliefs they supported and fought for define what our country is supposed to have believed. Therefore, all the hidden faults are the hidden identity of America. It is the other side of our people that we know is there, but refuse to display. It is similar to the way Loewen says we hide the more controversial part of people when we make them heroes. We don't want people knowing things that might be considered bad, lowering our opinion of them. We only want to display the things that we want others to learn from or to think that these are the only important acts of these people. Helen Keller being a socialist is not something we want to teach others, but we do want them to learn from her determination and perseverance to overcome her handicaps. Similarly, we hide the fact that Woodrow was racist since at this time, we had abolished slavery and decided our country a place of equal opportunity. It would contradict the ideals that America upheld. I agree with the epigraph, but I don't necessarily think that it is a bad thing. We shouldn't hide things, but we should emphasize our better side. This will show others what ideals we try to uphold. We don't have to deny our past, but we need to show we have learned from it. I only agree with Loewen to an extent however. Once people are capable of understanding the actions of our country's "heroes," we should be taught of the hidden life of these heroes. Before then, we should only teach that which we want people to believe themselves. Children are impressionable and might misunderstand what parts of a hero we want them to follow if they are presented with all the information.

Christmas time already!

Christmas has become a crazy holiday for my family, but I love it! Today I went with my grandpa, mom, and sister to help him pick out gifts for all 13 of his grandchildren! We had such a huge pile of clothes that the cashier even laughed at us! He isn't even finished, since my mom is pone of four that he will inevitably take out to dinner instead of getting gifts for. This way they all get to spend a night out together. Unfortunately for my parents, they have to buy gifts for all those kids, as well as their parents and my grandpa. This wouldn't be as bad, except that our family continues growing! We have one new addition and one soon to be added to my mom's side. Not to mention that my dad has 4 siblings with a total of 15 more kids! This holiday cost my family a fortune! My dad's side is willing to cut back on the older kids, but for some reason, my mom's family has no intention of reducing the cost anytime soon. Its a crazy couple of days since we celebrate on both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, but its so much fun and exhausting! We have to spread it out with so many people! Anyways, I thought it was pretty remarkable that we could buy for that many people in about an hour and a half!

Prison or care-free world?

Sometimes I wonder if the zoo is just a place that keeps animals in captivity when they don't belong there, just for our enjoyment. They are removed from their natural homes, and after a while many would not be able to survive if returned. While they are meant to have wide open lands to roam, they are put in a fairly small enclosure, compared to what they would have had, t o spend their life, never hunting or roaming again. This can be true, but it isn't like they have a bad life. I went to Brookfield Zoo while I was home, and saw many new additions. They even have wolves there now, and they even have so much room to be free that I could only find one out of five! These animals are given all that they need and taken care of very well. They don't have to worry about starvation, predators, or bad weather. The exhibits have so many things to make the habitat as comfortable and fun as possible for them. Some of the animals are even capable of coming by the people. Some of the birds are allowed to fly freely so the doors have to be kept shut. The peacocks roam the fields. Also, one of the monkey habitats have branches that go over the walkways so the monkeys could actually come right over you! There is no barrier between them and the visitors. They are not even forced to move around. It was very hot when I went, so many of the animals were just lying in the shade. So, prison or care-free world? I guess it just depends on which life you prefer.