An Apology

Dear Readers,

I am sorry that my fourth blog about people with red hair offended readers. I was stupid and misguided, and I apologize. In no way did I intend for my blog post to be viewed as hateful, rude, or racist. I was just trying to poke fun at ginger hair, and I realize in retrospect that I did so in poor taste. I deleted the blog and I sincerely apologize for any hurt feelings or offense that I've caused.

Ben

Day 14: Writing These Blogs

                Well, since this is my final day of writing blogs, (cue the tears) writing about the creation of my blogs seemed fitting. For the past 2 weeks, I’ve been writing blogs about things I don’t like. Although there are quite a few topics that I have left untouched by my wrath, (namely Twilight, people who make everything about themselves, the Star Wars prequels) I have found myself running out of things to rant about. If you type the letter ‘T’ in my Google search box, a large assortment of different forms of the search ‘things people don’t like’ show up. When I first chose this topic, part of its appeal was that I expected Melissa to make me choose a different one. I was testing my boundaries and I was unprepared for what would happen when I found out that there weren’t any. Because of my lack of inspiration throughout the majority of this project, I sit down at my computer and can’t just start typing away about things that annoy me. First, I look at the news, iTunes, IMDB, my Facebook news feed, and try and find something that stands out as ‘blog-worthy.’ Only then can I finally start drafting my blog and creating the marvels you readers expect daily. This process takes hours, and I find myself thinking about what would happen if I chose to write about something that I liked every day. I envision blogs filled with praise for Starkid, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, my various friends, Coldplay, the Shins, and ice cream. But since there’s no sense in trying to change what’s already been done, I continued to pour my soul into my writing and make the best of what I chose.

            Another con to my project was the forced negative outlook that I’ve been forced to dwell on for the past better portion of the month. For hours at a time, I put aside my happy thoughts about butterflies and ponies, and filled my brain with ginger hate and detentions in their stead. Through my writing, I come off as a pessimistic sort of person, but in reality I hope to be perceived as the opposite. I don’t go through life intent on drawing attentions to the things that I hate! I try and appreciate the good things that happen to me whenever I can. In the end, I believe in living my life in accordance to this quote:

God grant me the serenity

to accept the things I cannot change;

courage to change the things I can;

and wisdom to know the difference.

Day 13: The Lost Finale

Throughout the course of my life, my free time has fallen prey to a number of television programs. Scrubs, Person of Interest, 30 Rock, Soap, Family Guy, That 70’s Show, and Friends, to name a few. However, there was one show that really stood out from all the others. LOST. LOST was the story of a plane full of people that crashed on an island. In a nutshell, a lot of crazy stuff happens, and half the characters that were introduced to the plot die. What really made LOST compelling to me were the intricate plot lines, character developments, and backstories. I became attached to Jack, Sawyer, Hurley, Sayid, Kate, Claire, Charlie, and of course, Ben. When it was announced that the sixth season was to be the last, I anxiously anticipated the conclusion of the series and all the satisfying answers to my lingering questions. What questions, you ask? Well, I wanted to know why are there polar bears on the island, what the man in black’s name is, what’s the deal with the smoke monster, (you heard me correctly. Smoke monster.) why does Richard live forever, why does the island move, why does the island travel in time, why does Hurley see dead people, why is there an alternate reality in which Desmond is the only person to know what’s going on, what’s the deal with Claire’s demon child, and most importantly, why doesn’t Hurley lose weight on the island?  The finale was brilliant, and it answered all of these questions with a sufficient conclusion. Unfortunately, that couldn’t be further off from the truth.

            The writers did no justice to the series with its finale. In fact, not only did they fail to answer any pre-made questions, but they made more mysteries. In the episode, a character named Desmond falls into a cave filled with light and moves a rock from a platform. Suddenly the island begins to fall apart, and the smoke monster possessing Locke’s body becomes mortal. Confused? So was I. What does that rock have to do with anything? We’ll never know. Just 2 episodes prior to the finale, it was revealed that the smoke monster and his mysterious brother, Jacob, had lived on the island for thousands of years. It was also revealed that they were both gods. That was not clarified at all. Writers, are you telling me that you just threw that plotline in there for the hell of it? How does that make any sense? You owe it to us fans to give us something better than that! I always thought that the creators of the show had a defined plan that would someday enlighten all the confused viewers, but I couldn’t have been more wrong. It seems like they were just throwing random plot twists into the story because they couldn’t think of any resolution. For one of my favorite shows, this was a huge disappointment.

Day 12: My Detentions

                Throughout my time in upper school, I’ve had many detentions. So many, that I’m actually having a difficult time accounting for each one. The current number of detentions I’ve received is around a dozen. Give or take. Looking back, I have no idea how this happened. I just go through my day-to-day life and make the choices that seem right at the time. Who’d have thought that so many of them happen to be the polar opposite of what I should be doing? What bothers me the most about my detentions is the lack of justification for their dispensation. Would you consider asking someone for a chair detention-worthy? Of course not, but I got one for it anyway. How about finishing the task at hand and starting a new piece of work in art class? DETENTION.  Does it sound logical for me to receive a detention for tapping my pen on the table during science class? Where does logic come into this, of course I should get a detention! When it comes to detentions at NFS, I can’t help but notice that the teachers are more than a little bit trigger-happy.

                What annoys me the most about getting detentions is that I see so much worse stuff going on around me. I could be yelled at for talking with my friends, but Alessandra is the loudest person in the world, and I’ve never seen her being scolded for having an off task conversation with her friends. When I bring this up, teachers make the point that because of my former actions I’ve built a reputation for myself. What? The only reason that I’ve made a name for myself in the detention business is because I’ve been labeled as ‘the kid who deserves them.’  If I hadn’t been easily made into a target in the first place, I don’t think I’d find myself with such a wide résumé of punishments.

Day 11: Homework

            I hate doing homework. As an eighth grader, I’ve grown accustomed to having multiple hours’ worth of assignments nightly. Instead of hanging out with my friends or doing things that I want to do, I am forced to tediously find the value of x and conjugate Spanish verbs. While I do believe that homework is good for the purpose of repetition, I would much rather go over the material in class and then not need to do extra work afterwards. If I don’t understand a concept, it is reasonable to need homework, but if I comprehend the subject matter, I don’t understand why I’d need to waste my evenings with homework. In the time that I’d spend not doing homework, I could be learning new skills and enjoying new hobbies which I can put to use outside of the classroom.  The community would be full of people with new skills to bring to their day to day lives if they weren’t constricted by the work controlling their afternoons.

            Essentially, I am sick of spending my afternoons looking out the window at gorgeous days, but then looking down at the blog that I need to write for English class. Adults don’t have homework! Adults go to their jobs during the day, and then typically come home without overwhelming demands from their jobs. All I can say is that I wish that I could say the same.

Day 10: The 'Eighth Grade Needs Leadership' Speech

            I am sick and tired of hearing the same old speech from upper school teachers. “The eighth graders lack leadership.” In what way, you ask? “Well,” they lecture, “None of you ever show up to TASC meetings, or participate in school dances and events.” You’ve been saying this to us since we were in sixth grade. Maybe on the whole we are apathetic, but we are who we are. Some of us participate and some of us don’t. I don’t go to TASC meetings because they are unbelievably unproductive. When I was in sixth grade, I recall an entire meeting about which hand sign was going to be used to signify silence? REALLY? I could be enjoying some of my only free time in the day with my friends outside at recess. “But why don’t you go to the dances and take up your roles as leaders at the school events?” I don’t go to the dances because they’re awful. The majority of the upper school student body plus unwanted 5^th graders crammed into the hot auditorium whilst the DJs play “Quaker-education-friendly-music” through the speakers. I go to the dances to have fun, not to serve as a role model for the fifth graders.  I am then asked why I don’t go to the Dance-a-thon. Do I truly hate the poor starving children in Darfur? I support the cause, and I’ll donate money, but if you think I would enjoy a dance like I mentioned above going on for 4 hours with more kids and music that still has to be friendly for 9 year olds, then you clearly don’t know me.

            Finally, the argument that the faculty makes that gets on my nerves the most: “Ben! You are so selfish. Think about the rest of the school, and do things that don’t just benefit yourself.” Oh come on. I’m a good student, I actively participate, and I’m typically a polite person. This is my last year at Newtown Friends and we only have five more months until June. Only two other kids from my grade are going to the high school that I will be attending, and I want to be able to enjoy the remaining time that I have at NFS to see my best friends daily. I don’t feel obliged to contribute more than I already do, and I resent your ongoing efforts to make me feel guilty about it.

Day 9: The Process of Flying on an Airplane

                When you envision getting on an airplane and going somewhere, you probably have one of two fantasies in your mind. You might think of short lines, good food at the terminal, and a beautiful view from high above the ground. If this is your opinion, you are an awful human being. You also probably enjoy shooting puppies and ruining childhoods. If you’re like me, you are probably visualizing the more realistic travel experience. In a nutshell, this is what you’re more likely to encounter:

               THIS HAPPENED TO ME:
 Your flight departs at 7:00, and you’re only just out the door at 5. The drive to the airport is a hassle, and you find yourself already stressed out. When you reach the airport, all the convenient parking spots in the garage adjacent to your terminal are taken, so you have to park in terminal C when you really need to get to terminal A. You take your suitcase and sprint to the baggage check. The line moves slowly, and when you reach the front you find yourself dealing with a stressed out Jamaican woman who doesn’t know much English and doesn’t care if your belongings get on the plane or not. Then, you wait for another couple dozen minutes in the airport security line just to be taken over for additional screening. After the dim-witted TSA employees realize that you’re NOT a terrorist, you run to your gate and barely make the last boarding call. So finally you’re on the plane! You find your seat between a large man who smells like he hasn’t showered since the dinosaurs went extinct, and a woman who keeps trying to spark awkward conversation. You’re already nervous about flying, and the only movie being shown is Castaway. You haven’t eaten in hours, and when meals are being passed around you forget how much the meat resembles cardboard and that the fish is clearly oozing. Only 6 hours left to go.

                Needless to say, I don’t enjoy flying. The way that I start off a vacation shouldn’t be filled with stress! It should be a fun and relaxing experience that isn’t remotely stressful. Someday, I hope that I will be able to invent a transporter, so I could decide where I want to go, and then be there within seconds. You hear that, Brandon Neway? BUILD ME A TRANSPORTER.