As cliché as it sounds, being in the right place at the right time is all that's necessary to become the next big thing.
For French pop singer Alizée Jacotey, it granted her international fame as a teen sensation, but the road to relevancy with age has been a much harder note to hit.
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Rock On... "The Lost Children of Rockdale County"
Fifteen years ago, a syphilis outbreak among middle and high schoolers in Conyers, Georgia uncovered a secret web of sex, drugs, and teenaged angst few adults knew about. The naivety of this situation by the parents, that it could never happen in a small town like Conyers, turned a blind eye to their own teenagers who inexplicably put each other's lives at stake. In so doing, the chasm between proper parenting and impressionable youth was divided even further, thus faulting both sides to this commonplace story.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
On The Origin of Man's Folly to Explain the Creation of Life
In a class of mine I'm currently taking, we've just finished covering the chapter on the theory of evolution. It's a touchy subject, no doubt, because it champions science over religion, which frequently mix as well as oil and water. Having come from a Christian background and a private high school, learning about this material in a secular college was inevitable. But it wasn't as dangerous as the people from my past made it out to be. If anything, I feel enlightened.
Turns out, the theory of evolution is all smoke and mirrors.
So why has it been accepted as fact in the public sector for the longest time? Because it's convenient.
Turns out, the theory of evolution is all smoke and mirrors.
So why has it been accepted as fact in the public sector for the longest time? Because it's convenient.
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Stopgap #1
I think I've bumped my head against a writer's block over the past week and a half, and it hurts like a migraine.
So then what's the point of this post?
Simple. I need a little something to break this "hiatus" of mine while I prepare my next round of personal blog entries.
But to prove it, I'm gonna give y'all the inside track behind my writing process. I can't just sit down and write a final draft of a post from beginning to end in that strict fashion. I write in the manner of a sporadic impromptu. After I write a few good lines (or even just one good line), I get up from my chair, walk around for a minute, and I resume writing again. I repeat until I'm done with the final product, bored to tears, stuck in a rut, or need to go to sleep.
Take this post for instance. It took me twelve hours from the time I stared at a blank computer screen until I put the finishing touches on this juggernaut of a piece. I literally did nothing else that was productive during that time. But I didn't sit there the whole time writing. I ate, took care of business, and watched my fair share of ESPN programming. At the end of the day, I was gassed and didn't want to write anymore. In fact, save a quick rehash on the Tampa Bay Rays' acquisition of Johnny Damon and Manny Ramirez, it took me nearly a week before I had another quality post up.
In all, I try my best to have some original content/commentary up a few times a week. I write in bunches, with the occasional dry spell when I've got nothing ready but plenty of ideas floating around. And as I've mentioned at least once before, I am a full-time student first and foremost. I have other duties and commitments that warrant my time and focus more so than this "hobby" of mine. I also know that I don't have a loyal following (I don't think I've got any following), so this (first) disclaimer will, for the most part, be disregarded as a waste of space. No matter.
For those of y'all who actually read this and have stayed 'til the end, thank you. To commend your patience, I'll let y'all in on a few posts I have in mind. By the end of next month, I pledge to have a piece on a hot-button issue that has evolved over the years, another on the greatest French import since the Statue of Liberty, and another on one man's improbable journey to a burger milestone.
Arrivederci!
So then what's the point of this post?
Simple. I need a little something to break this "hiatus" of mine while I prepare my next round of personal blog entries.
But to prove it, I'm gonna give y'all the inside track behind my writing process. I can't just sit down and write a final draft of a post from beginning to end in that strict fashion. I write in the manner of a sporadic impromptu. After I write a few good lines (or even just one good line), I get up from my chair, walk around for a minute, and I resume writing again. I repeat until I'm done with the final product, bored to tears, stuck in a rut, or need to go to sleep.
Take this post for instance. It took me twelve hours from the time I stared at a blank computer screen until I put the finishing touches on this juggernaut of a piece. I literally did nothing else that was productive during that time. But I didn't sit there the whole time writing. I ate, took care of business, and watched my fair share of ESPN programming. At the end of the day, I was gassed and didn't want to write anymore. In fact, save a quick rehash on the Tampa Bay Rays' acquisition of Johnny Damon and Manny Ramirez, it took me nearly a week before I had another quality post up.
In all, I try my best to have some original content/commentary up a few times a week. I write in bunches, with the occasional dry spell when I've got nothing ready but plenty of ideas floating around. And as I've mentioned at least once before, I am a full-time student first and foremost. I have other duties and commitments that warrant my time and focus more so than this "hobby" of mine. I also know that I don't have a loyal following (I don't think I've got any following), so this (first) disclaimer will, for the most part, be disregarded as a waste of space. No matter.
For those of y'all who actually read this and have stayed 'til the end, thank you. To commend your patience, I'll let y'all in on a few posts I have in mind. By the end of next month, I pledge to have a piece on a hot-button issue that has evolved over the years, another on the greatest French import since the Statue of Liberty, and another on one man's improbable journey to a burger milestone.
Arrivederci!
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Every Day Should Be St. Patrick's Day
Today is St. Patrick's Day, and I don't care.
It's not that I dislike the Irish, nor the Catholics, nor the debauchery that inevitably follows, or even the color green.
It's just that this holiday doesn't instill a fervent sense of pride in me than it does in some other people. I'm fine with that. But don't think for a second that I can't appreciate this day for what it truly is – a blessing of life.
On average, there are 365 days in a year, and it's amazing how many of them are taken for granted. 'Cause when you think about it, every day is always someone's birthday or a holiday to be celebrated. We simply tend to find new ways to belittle it's existence instead of living fully for what that day has to offer.
Don't believe me? Think about tomorrow or yesterday. Are those days any less special than today just because they don't follow a centuries-old tradition? It shouldn't. Every day should be St. Patrick's Day because that's the only way it'll get people to view the time from dawn to dusk and back to dawn as a unique experience waiting to be enjoyed. And before y'all know it, the whole world will become completely inebriated and people like this guy won't have anything to complain about.
On second thought, maybe it's best St. Patrick's Day comes just once a year... but I hope y'all get my point.
Today is March 17, and I do care.
It's not that I dislike the Irish, nor the Catholics, nor the debauchery that inevitably follows, or even the color green.
It's just that this holiday doesn't instill a fervent sense of pride in me than it does in some other people. I'm fine with that. But don't think for a second that I can't appreciate this day for what it truly is – a blessing of life.
On average, there are 365 days in a year, and it's amazing how many of them are taken for granted. 'Cause when you think about it, every day is always someone's birthday or a holiday to be celebrated. We simply tend to find new ways to belittle it's existence instead of living fully for what that day has to offer.
Don't believe me? Think about tomorrow or yesterday. Are those days any less special than today just because they don't follow a centuries-old tradition? It shouldn't. Every day should be St. Patrick's Day because that's the only way it'll get people to view the time from dawn to dusk and back to dawn as a unique experience waiting to be enjoyed. And before y'all know it, the whole world will become completely inebriated and people like this guy won't have anything to complain about.
On second thought, maybe it's best St. Patrick's Day comes just once a year... but I hope y'all get my point.
Today is March 17, and I do care.
Monday, March 14, 2011
The Method Behind My March Madness 2011
With the release of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament bracket yesterday, everyone's got their picks for who'll be the last ones dancing on the court April 4. From the experts at ESPN to practically any office pool, there are 147,573,952,589,676,412,928 possible combinations of filling out a unique bracket between 68 teams. Whether you play it competitively or just for kicks, there's bound to be some measure you take in deciding who'll advance how far, who'll be upset, who'll be this year's Cinderella story, and who'll cut down the nets in Houston at the end. If you've come this far (i.e., visited my blog), I bet you're at least curious about who I have making it through this year. Don't worry, I'm probably as clueless as you when it comes to picking against evenly matched teams and rely on gut instinct. Read on to see my selections and my reasoning behind the majority of them, and drop a line if you agree, disagree, or never want me in Vegas with you at the same time.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
A Psychological Interpretation on the Death of Wes Leonard
Last week, tragedy struck a small town in Michigan when junior Wes Leonard of Fennville High School was touched by the Angel of Death minutes after making the game-winning layup in overtime to secure an undefeated regular season for his team.
His passing is, undoubtedly, an incomprehensible loss. Leonard was the star player on the Fennville Blackhawk's basketball team, and he received a plaque earlier in the year for surpassing 1,000 career points on the varsity level. He also played football at the quarterback position, leading Fennville all the way to a Southwestern Athletic Conference North Division championship with an undefeated league record last fall. Those who knew him well remember the young athlete as a positive individual with a strong Christian faith.
An autopsy confirmed everyone's worst nightmare when it ruled that he died from cardiac arrest due to an enlarged heart... but is that all there is to this story?
From a psychological perspective, no it's not. And to best explain this phenomenon, let's turn to the field of existential psychology.
His passing is, undoubtedly, an incomprehensible loss. Leonard was the star player on the Fennville Blackhawk's basketball team, and he received a plaque earlier in the year for surpassing 1,000 career points on the varsity level. He also played football at the quarterback position, leading Fennville all the way to a Southwestern Athletic Conference North Division championship with an undefeated league record last fall. Those who knew him well remember the young athlete as a positive individual with a strong Christian faith.
An autopsy confirmed everyone's worst nightmare when it ruled that he died from cardiac arrest due to an enlarged heart... but is that all there is to this story?
From a psychological perspective, no it's not. And to best explain this phenomenon, let's turn to the field of existential psychology.
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