Free Write - Parents

Well, lets see, my mother at age 23 would be year 1975. It must have been cool to be old enough to really experience the seventies. Hearing the Beatles on the radio (not on the oldies station), being apart of one of the most interesting times in the history of the US. I believe at this time she was living in Colorado, going to Colorado State or just freshly graduated.
The differences between what I am doing today and what she would have been doing then are summed up by the process in which I am writing this blog. I doubt she is even aware of the concept of a blog today. I don't think personal computers were even that readily available in those days, let alone the Internet. She may have written in a diary or journal for class, which would be the only thing that would be comparable to blogging.
She would be wearing bell bottoms, re-sewn super tight. She said that you had to have help getting into your pants or have them sewn on. The hippie look was pretty much rocked by my mom and her two sisters (one of which would have been freshly back from Woodstock). I do remember her saying that she had to wear skirts to school, but I think that was more of a high school thing.

Ode to a Sandwich

In writing the peanut butter and jelly sandwich instructions it was pretty simple and straight forward. Our table group seemed to be very ambivalent about what part they wanted to write; I did the introduction, Janine did the step-by-step, Jake wrote the conclusion, and Preston was the copy editor. Writing the different parts were pretty easy, thank god for the Internet and email. The time frame was a little tight, we just barely had enough time to get everything done. The only problem that I felt we had was issue of what was the final product that we turned in. Some of the editing that was done I don't believe was necessary and many of the simple things were missed. There was too much focus on changing everything that was already written rather than checking for commas and other grammatical errors. Also, the attitude was not input friendly.

Crocodile Creek

Our group decided that Shelia was the innocent one of the group. She was just trying to make some money. Jim came next, he was the one getting cheated on. Followed by Mary, the cheater, and Ted who almost tie as the worst person in the story. Mary agreed to have sex with Ted for money, even though she was with Ted. And Ted was the sick pervert that wanted to pay for sex with Mary.
Persuasion can be a powerful thing. Especially for someone who is not very confident with making decisions or even with themselves. The ability to convince someone to do something that they do not want to do is manipulation. Where does the line form between manipulation and persuasion? I personally think that line is very blurred.

The Worst Thing Invented by People

I think that the worst thing ever invented by people was the gun. I am a firm believer that if wars were still fought with a sword we would not have the huge wars that darken our past. With the gun a person is able to stand hundreds of yards away and take out the enemy. But with a sword you have to physically impale your foe and be almost face to face. The gun has also become a status symbol; people who should never have a gun use them to show others that they are dangerous and strong. I understand that the gun becomes something of the natural evolution of warfare, but this is one area that we need to revert back to the Stone Age.

The Best Advice

The best advice that I have ever received was about the death of my father. When a person is going through something like that they are not able to see outside of the situation. You become this person with blinders on that is so completely enveloped into this world of darkness that it almost seems that there is no hope. But someone said to me a cliche that is cheesy as hell, but has helped me get through the toughest years of my life. They told me, "To every dark cloud there is a silver lining." It took me a while to understand the real meaning behind the metaphor, but it really lifted away the darkness that was about to strangle me. There is always going to be something positive that you are going to be able to find with every single situation. Somewhere in the misery there is some good that will come out of the pain. Did you learn anything? Do you look at things differently? Are you more appreciative of the little things? These are questions that you have to start asking your self. Yes, I lost a huge member of my family, but there are things that I have gained as well. There are things that I no longer take for granted. I never leave issues unresolved with people I love. I am able to tell people I love that I actually do love them. These are things that I was very happy to learn that I was now free to do, I opened up my self to live each day to the fullest. You have to just find that silver lining. It may take you years to find it and it may not be exactly what you thought it would be, but it will be there no matter what.

How to eat a lemon.....

How does someone eat a lemon? Well, I suggest only eating it as a garnish to a meal. However, if you had to eat a lemon, these directions will help you figure the best way. First, you must choose the ripest fruit possible. A lemon should be firm to the touch, but not hard. The color of the lemon should be a crisp yellow with no brown discolorations. The next step would be to slice the lemon into wedges/slices/pieces. Place a clean, dry cutting on a flat, level surface with the lemon in the center. Now with a sharp knife (a serrated knife works best), use firm pressure to slice off the ends of the lemon. Your lemon should now no longer have the little nub pieces on both ends and the cut should have exposed the raw fruit on the inside. If you have done this correctly, the lemon should be bleeding a little juice and releasing a lovely lemony sent. The next slice is going down the middle of the lemon. Place the lemon on one of the now flat sides created by the first slice you made and cut the lemon with the knife crossing the center (there should be a visible center surrounded by what looks like spokes) of the fruit. The result should be two identical halves of lemon. The next step is choosing how you would like to eat the lemon; the next cut determines the size of the pieces. I prefer to place the lemon half back on the cutting board, rind side up, and cut it into 3-4 pieces in the same direction as the first slice. I would do this with both halves of the fruit. Now you should have 6-8 little half-circles of lemon. Take 1 piece and bit it up to the rind, and savor the intensely tart flavor of the lemon.

What is Patriotism?

According to me, patriotism is about the strength of beliefs. I define a patriot as some one who loves our country, someone who is completely devoted to the creating a better situation for our nation. This person is a defender of his/her beliefs. So, patriotism is a system of beliefs; an idea that this great country we live in is worth the defence and devotion of civilians and military personnel alike.