Inspiration?

Inspiration is a tricky friend. Some get inspired from within and have a natural talent of just creating it. Me? I have to listen to music, engage in a deep conversation, or watch a movie. Often the inspiration for this well-studied senior comes from wacky Johnny Depp movies or off-the-beaten-path literature. Who knew High School Musical could be one of my muses?

One of the messages in the film is to not stick to the status quo. It's not so much breaking free from what other people expect of you, but what you expect from yourself. The examples they provided ranged from a geek dancing to hip-hop to a basketball star wanting to bake creme brulee. What others perceive you to be may just the caramelly crust, waiting to be cracked open by the spoon of opportunity (forgive my metaphor), and spill out your satisfying, creamy talent. I hear you, High School Musical, and I search for my spoon.

Thank you all, and good night.

Apple controls our world. Wait, no...

So I was just watching a video of Steve Jobs introducing the new iPod lineup for the holiday season, and he made quite an impression. Yeah, that's a good way to put it: an impression.

You see, Steve Jobs started his career as the modest CEO of Apple and has since exploded into a near celebrity with his release of the extremely successful iPod and the monopoly it has since forged. We thought the iPod was ingenious, until we saw the iPhone and now the iPod touch. Oh, Jobs, you've done it again. But don't be fooled, dear reader, because I am not an advertisement.

Jobs began his presenation with proving that iPod is a global sensation with astronomically successfull sales numbers. It seems that the entire world has logged in and bought the digital music and so, catapulted the digital music revolution. "But we're not done yet."

He goes on to introduce the founder and chairman of Starbucks, Howard Schultz. What's this? The two global monopolies together on the same stage? These doppelgangers shall meet and one will surely die, I know it.

Alas, they do not. However something even more shocking happens: they announce the new partnership between Apple and Starbucks. Although they use the guise of making the iPod touch users feel more comfortable inside any Starbucks store, these two corporations are surely setting their sights on world domination. Call it a hunch.

You know, I've always been hesitant to enter a Starbucks shop just for fear of being sucked in by the expensive, caffeine-injecting dragon which has latched itself onto so many of my friends. I speak for the well-being of people like me everywhere in saying that this is a sad day. I had, it's true, given in to the iPod craze when my dad bought me one for my birthday. The coalition of these modern-day oil tycoons will take all who have only just put their toes in the water and convert them into Apple-clothing wearing, Mocha Latte-drinking gumbies walking around and talking about world peace.

I wonder if any of them realize that they contribute to the impossibility of such a peace. Excuse me, I said "them" when I should have said "us", because none of us escape it. Anyway, because of our contributions to these "capitalistic" corporations, the chance for small businesses (and by small, I mean Staples, Target) to competitively enter their turf has become impossible. Are we coming up with cool gadgets, or are we harming the world economy by buying the same product everywhere we go?

To see the video, go here and watch Steve Jobs perform for the circus.

True story.

What's in a Cry?

"That which we call a rose, by any other name, would smell as sweet."
Juliet, from Romeo & Juliet, by Shakespeare. As if you didn't know.

Sometimes these mini crises occur in my family. Everyone becomes distraught, melodramatic, and overreactic. Today was such an occasion.

My responsibility today was to deliver myself and my sister back home so mother dearest could leave the house (along with the two little ones) in order to attend some book launch. The problem was, my sister did not feel like following the rules in attending her team practice (even though it is only walking team). Instead, she and her friends decided to play hookie and go nowhere else but good ol' McDonald's. First rule from the experienced to younger siblings: if the need to rebel presents itself, make it good. So we're sitting in the booth and the time passes for when we should have left. I'll skip a few words and just say that mother was mad, and dear Andri is now without money with which to attend Model UN. Granted, she has a debit card, but it's her own money.

This whole time, I'm protecting my sister from my mother by not admitting to what we were doing, and I end up crying over dishes like I do every time I get mildly upset with my mother. Often, it lasts much longer than it should (like my laughing at a joke) and provokes even more destressing thoughts of how much I hate my life.

You and I can both tell that this situation is not really a problem. Someone was late, someone will get reimbursed later (I hope), no problemo.

Yes, problemo.

Every time this happens I realize, atleast a part of me realizes, how unsuited I am to live in the adult world. I get upset way too easily, I am quick to enter a fight, and I let people walk all over me sometimes. These may seem oxymoronic, but no. I'm the person who brews and brews until I spew. Thank you.

But then, like all teens, I try to blame my woes on my parents. I start thinking that maybe it's my parents' faults. I've never been like this outside of my household, but I've never really lived anywhere else with anyone else. I spent five weeks at college, but that's really short-term compared to x amount of years with the same (for the most part) people. Maybe I'm just fed up with being the subordinate when I feel like I should be the superior. It's the root of all teen angst, besides lovers' quarrels. When we reach a certain age, we realize that we can live life without our parents, and so we don't want to.

Well, this has been a long post with no point really.

Point.

Dear Ben Franklin

Benjamin Franklin said that nothing is certain in life but death and taxes. What he failed to mention is something that he thought was implied. You see, Benjamin Franklin lived in a slow-paced era (compared to today). In his day, it took several weeks, maybe even months, just to contact someone. His "death and taxes" rule applies to long-term living, but I have a revision for him to consider.

These days, with snide politicians and tabloid celebrities, (here it comes) nothing is certain but sex and money. These days, anything can change in an instant thanks to the internet, cell phones, text messaging, etcetera. Ben's little adage still holds true, but there are more instant truths that are the flipside of the coin which were, before, not considered.

Back in Franklin's day, money didn't necessarily mean what it does now. Money was exchanged for goods and as bribes, but more often than not, the bribe could not hold up to honor or friendship. However modern times have proved that a sum of any decent amount can and will buy out a friendship. The problem with money is that it is definite only at that instant. Buying something is instant. The item is bought for its worth and, much like cars from sleazy salesmen, its value will decrease over time.

Sex is the same way. Back then, sex happened inside marriage and was condoned by the church. The young couple get married, have children, and grow old with each other. Now, sex happens at any instant (instant here is metaphorical, much like God's creation of the world) and for any number of purposes: love, conception, money, or persuasion. At that instant, it is the most definitive thing. People fade in and out of death, but, well, you get the picture. The problem with sex is the same as with money: over time its value fades. The love dies, the baby is born, the money spent, or the purpose for persuasion is gone.

Ben Franklin, yeah, he's a smart guy. He just forgot about the future, but I guess I can't blame him. The new term? Nothing is certain in life but death and taxes, and nothing is certain right now but sex and money. Now that I think about it though, dear Ben may not go for that kind of thing.

A Family Halloween

"Families are like fudge - mostly sweet with a few nuts."
Unknown

This evening, my family all got together to carve pumpkins, eat pizza, and play some games. It's funny how we've gone our separate ways as time has passed. I'm sure I haven't seen all of them together since the last holiday season, and yet we fit back into our own groove. Jessica still owns at any card game, Jacob is still the same annoying little kid, and the rest of us just kind of hang out. But I will say that one thing has changed: me.

I used to feel like I didn't belong to my family. Harsh, I know. There are two sides of the family: my mom's side and Uncle Greg's side. Our side has always been quiet and introspective, and their side has been loud, fun, and always active. Well, when these family get-togethers came around, I never felt like I belonged. This time, though, I did. I guess it just took convincing myself that they weren't different from me, and that I belong here just as much as they do.

Halloween always brings us together in a way that formal Christmas can't. We carve pumpkins, tease each other, play cards, then get all smelly and sweaty running around playing hide-and-seek. This is one of the things I'll miss when I go off to college. I can always come back to my sisters and my parents, but after this year three of us cousins will be off to college with different schedules and different priorities. I've never really thought about this aspect of my life, but I know it will take a lot to get us all together after this year.

This night has been a wonderful glimpse back about ten years, all full of nostalgia. A lot has changed, but it still all works. Maybe that's what college will be like.

So this is a blog...

I'm really excited to be here. The closest thing I've had to a blog is a MySpace, but that wasn't exactly a great environment for writing.

The reason I'm making one of these is that I'm feeling whatever passion for writing I used to have being sucked out of me, and I was hoping that an open forum would help. I wouldn't be offended if no one read it. Actually, I really hope no one reads it.

That's it for now. It's quite possible I'll have random posts of thoughts, or photos.

Do I say goodbye to no one?