Stories. So this will probably be my last post on this blog because my semester is almost up which includes this class. Hopefully I will find time to continue expressing my thoughts onto this blog even though no one really reads it. Anyways, everyone has their own story and their own history. I like to just look at random people in public and wonder if they have a past rich with great stories. Maybe your boss was a lead guitar player in a band as a teenager. Maybe you hear about how a homeless man lost all he owns by his resplonsible and caring life decisions instead of his mistakes and that brought him to be homeless. Maybe your parents stole their parents car and drove around at night doing donuts in the parking lot. Maybe your grandma went white-water rafting and got thrown out of the raft and into current only and picking her up again a mile down the river. Who knows!?!

Native-Americans believed storytelling was the natural way of human beings. Stories were their form of entertainment and allowed them to express their heritage and speak of great lessons to others to learn. Stories and fueled by experience or imagination. Imagination can be our brush to painting some great stories allowing us to be whatever we want to be or do whatever we want to. Experience can be either for hopes of having it spread to others who need a good moral boost or laugh for the day. From fairy-tales to what you did last Saturday finding James the next day in a recycle bin again, stories are all around us. I loved story time as a kid. None of them were very useful since I just talked about how I ramped by bike over a log or how my T-ball game went. I love hearing stories as much as I love telling them.

We can be telling stories at the lunchroom, in the middle of class, at home during dinner. There are even websites online that you can go to to ramble on about how awesome your weekend was. An example would be TFLN. I probably cant link it because its not "school appropriate", but most teens would know what that is. I mean, people even have whole festivals dedicated to this. I would honestly be able to sit there all day as long as they had something interesting to say. It is a good idea for you to remember your stories, spread them, or even create epic, new ones. One day, when we cease to walk on this Earth, stories will be only of the only things we will be remembered by.

An example of what stories can do:

Peer Pressure.  This post will be about peer pressure. Keep in mind this is not a post telling you not to do drugs or saying you have to go school and get good grades. Peer Pressure is the influence exerted my ones friends or known group to changes ones attitudes and beleifs so that they conform with the group. This can either be good or bad. We all know peer pressure in the bad sense of the word. We probably see it as some bad kid with weed in his hand and going up to their friend and saying, "Here. Smoke this". Everyone should know not confront their friends like this and put pressure on them to do something they dont entirely want to do. Thats not the only way of putting pressure on someone. Sadly you can put pressure on people without even confronting them directly to do something. Say you have a friend who goes out and parties all the time and has loads of fun every weekend with all of your other friends. They are all at parties and your at home watching TV. Then they are all like, "Yea man. That was a great weekend. Yea we found James inside the recycling bin over by the pizza place with a stop sign in his hand the next morning." "Yea that was one heck of a weekend." Ha.

You slowly start getting upset that you are losing your friends because you are making the right decision. Your the one whos making all the right decisions and everyone else is out having a blast. This is putting peer pressure on you even if your friends completely respect your decision. This may even be a worse for a pressure. Then you find yourself giving in and conforming to the group by abandoning your beleifs. To some, it is worth it. To others, it makes you feel weak. Other forms of peer pressure are good. Maybe your the slacker and all of your friends are going of to college. They could inspire you to go out and try to get a better education and make something of your life. Peers can be that extra push you need. Good and bad. Hopefully good.

Music. One of the greatest inventions of mankind. Its so distinct, so many genres, so many styles, and so many unique messages. No music is the exact same. So one likes the exact same music. Just like no two people are the same. There's rock, rap, blues, country, techno, electronic, and plenty more. There is no such thing as good music and bad music. There is music you like and don't like. I hate when people judge the kind of music someone likes. Its like judging your soul. Its a pretty personal choice. When someone says my music sucks and theirs is the best I get pretty ticked. Personally I like stuff that makes me happy. Bands like Passion Pit, Crystal Castles, Discovery, Rebelution, and many more. I just prefer to think good feelings when I listen to music. I don't get why you would want to listen to something that makes you sad or angry all the time. Hey but if you like it, then its cool with me.

Happiness. Did you ever think about what true happiness is? There is no definite answer. Everyone has their own true happiness. They just have to see it and strive for it. Mine is, maybe the minute before I die, is to have a clear conscious, good life stories, and have a strong self confidence. God if i died right after i complete that checklist, I would die such a happy man. Of course people can find moments of true happiness in their life. It is a pretty awesome thing, but unfortunately,  it is almost inevitable for it to go away in a matter of time. Sucks, but that is why I see my opportunity to be right before I die. I want that feeling to be my last =]

Karma. I definetly beleive in karma, but sometimes karma just isnt enough, am I right? When someone does something bad you just want them to get whats comming to them right away? Theres just some bad people in this world that drives me crazy when they do bad things. I just want to punch them in the face or have them get hit by a car or something. Thats never the way to solve anything though. I dont think it would make me feel much better anyways. I just sit back and hope karma does its job, but sometimes that just isnt enough. You want to SEE these people get what they deserve and sometimes thats why we get frustrated.

Marriage. Some people say it is becoming obsolete. What do you think? Sadly I think it is somewhat true. So many people abuse it today. Marriage is supposed a sacred bond that two people in love should share to unite their lives and care for each other. People today are treating it as a fad and don't understand how much it is supposed to mean. Some people are now questioning the idea of marriage. These people who marry are supposed to be together 'til death do them part. for better or for worse, as long as they both shall live. Ha, apparently they must have not been listening when they agreed to that. According to recent statistics almost 50% of marriages are ending up in divorce. Fifty percent!!! Half the marriages that are being created end up broken. I thought it was 'til death to them part?

This brings the question if people really know what love is and also brings the question is marriage obsolete? So many people don't know what the heck they are getting into. So is it a good idea to marry them and have a disaster such as a divorce that destroys families? Now I'm not saying I know everything about relationships, because I definitely don't know the half of it. I'm only 16, come on. I am part of a divorced family so I know what a broken family can feel like. All these people saying how they love their boyfriend/girlfriend, its bull. I'm sorry. NOW there are some exceptions to all this mayhem. There are some real loving relationships in the world and it amazes me. I have so much respect for people who have stayed with their love for all of their lives. i think the only reason marriage is here because of legal and responsibility purposes. People are abusing this system as well. What do you think? Is marriage getting worse and worse as people disrupt its importance? Or do you think those people are giving a bad name to the people who truly love each other and have had a lasting relationship?

Television. Television is one of them most used forms of entertainment to Americans today. Some think it is a blessing, and some say it is a curse. Think about it. Some good things about television are that it keeps us up to date on the latest news, weather, and world events. Television keeps us up to date so we know whats going on outside the walls of whatever fortress surrounds our lives. The TV can also serve as a source of education for young children. Little kids are starting to learn all of their shapes, colors, numbers and other basics. I have to admit little kids aren't the only ones watching these shows. I may switch the channel over to Nick Jr. and touch up on my Spanish with my good friend Dora. Of course I do so in my own home, blinds shut, house empty, and in my pajamas. Next thing you know I'm sitting there yelling at a fox who looks similar to Westley from Princess Bride and wondering why, when I accomplish something, I don't get a mariachi band of critters to congratulate me.

On the other side, I can think of plenty of ways television is a bad thing. Number one on the list is commercials. Not only are these things annoying as h***, but they are also rather brainwashing. While your mind is sucked into the TV by the program you are so focused into watching TV that when commercials come on you may find yourself enjoying them instead of changing the channel to some real programming like a normal human being. You start to enjoy the ads and actually start to get interested into products. Commercials are even reaching out to us on YouTube. Seriously, when I look up a funny commercial on YouTube guess what I find? Yes, it has come to the point where we are watching commercials to watch commercials. What is the world comming to?

What do you guys think? Please post a comment below. If you are already sucked into TV life, then heres what you do:

Call or text this number toll free at 10293-1 for Agree, and 10293-2 if you Disagree. Please wait until all polls are open after the show. Thank you.

(Dont really do that. Its a joke)