Happy Valentine's Day and an Update

I have gotten really off track with my blog and don't find myself being as caught up with it as I would like to be. However, I would like to touch on the subject of that famous 24-hour period reserved for expressing your love: Valentine's Day.

Today at school I talked with some of my teachers about their views on the day and a lot of them claimed the day to be one that's "manufactured" and a "con to get people to spend money." I agree to an extent. Yes, stores rake in a lot of green for those overpriced teddy bears and fancy chocolates, but there is an essence of appreciation on the day. Appreciation for your parents. Appreciation for your friends. And most commonly, appreciation for your significant others.

There are always those people who are quite bitter come February 14th because of being single. But more people need to realize that there is more significance to Valentine's Day than what meets the eye. It's a time when you take a look at the people you surround yourself with and think, "What amazing people I have in my life," but hey, you can do that any day of the year.

My Opinion On Banned Book Week

I know I'm kind of late on this, but banned book week just finished recently and here is my view on this topic.

Why the heck would you ban a freaking book? The way I see it, the ones who look to take a book off of a shelf so others can't read it are quite pathetic. People come to America looking for the freedom to worship how they want, say what they want, and gosh dang it, read what they want; hence the first amendment to the Constitution.

"[Shall not make]...Or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press." Taken from Amendment I, it speaks for itself.

Do those people really not know how valuable our freedoms are? I look at it this way: If the book offends you, or if you don't like it, DON'T EFFING READ IT!

I just don't get it. Why try and censor the natural life process of sex from our children if they're going to learn about it one way or another. Some people have tried to ban Fifty Shades of Grey  by E.L. James just because the main characters Christian and Anastasia have sex (mind you they are in love with each other). Seriously, don't harp on an author for them simply not saying, "They made love," and skimming right over it in a cheap, unrealistic way.

A story going into detail makes it a lot better at that. Self-mutulation, drug use, sexual intercourse, etc. goes on in the world and there's nothing we can do about it.

If I had children, I wouldn't shelter them from this. If I did, they'd possibly rebel, and the only way that we're going to be rest assured that they don't get themselves into a situation like that is if we know that they are educated. And sometimes, fiction stories can teach pretty good life lessons.

Book Review: The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

I know it's been a long time since I last posted with school and all, but I want to thank the people who have commented in the C-Box. But anyway, on to the post:

So far on this blog, I've covered the "Other Stuff," pertaining to the title. Though I haven't really covered the "Literature" headline. Well, let's get onto that. Today, the topic is the book The Fault in Our Stars by John Green.

The book was certainly an intriguing and different read.

The plot centers around 16 year old Hazel, a precocious girl who was unfortunately stricken with thyroid cancer that spread to her lungs. When her mother signs her up for a cancer support group, she meets and starts a courting with 17 year old Augustus Waters, an osteosarcoma survivor and amputee.

Hazel's paradigm is rather unique. Instead of the stereotypical, "The world is out to get me," attitude, she focuses more-so on a positive outlook, yet does not consider herself serendipitous in such matters.

Green, known for titles such as Looking For Alaska and An Abundance of Katherines, exemplifies the idea that he definitely did his research (for example: using a play off of a well-known William Shakespeare line). I found that the book had a decent amount of balance between reality and fictition. And while a book about a girl hooked up to an oxygen tank and a Sci-Fi obsessed boy with a prosthetic may not be for everybody, the tragedy, occasional pessimism, and tribulations of what once was a normal life, present what John Green has set himself up to be known for.

Satisfaction

One of my family members recently got really ticked off because she had a problem with her phone and the phone company kept sending her the same  phone and it kept doing the same thing that she had originally complained about, then had the courage to say, "We'll refund you." She spent a good four hours being passed around from person to person on the company's tech support line and when they passed her to the manager of the call center, the woman flat out called my relative a "liar." My family member said to me, "I want to bitch slap her."

Eventually everything was settled and my relative got a working phone, but I was browsing around on Facebook a few days after this whole ordeal and found this photo:

I find it to be so ironic how the organizations that hurt us so much (e.g. Facebook, MySpace, Twitter) know us so well. Well played. Really well played...

Suicide Room (2011 film) Info and Review

I just watched the Polish movie Suicide Room (Polish: Sala Samobójców) and I loved every minute of it. Though, it's a tear jerker.

The plot revolves around 19/20 year old Dominik Santorski. He has everything a guy his age could want: wealth, popularity, good grades, and girls. To make things better, there are only 100 days left until he graduates and goes off to college. After an unjust incident concerning a male classmate, he becomes the target of online and in-person bullying. Desperate for refuge, he joins a virtual world called the, "Suicide Room," a place for suicidal people to come together. This is where he meets Sylvia, a severely depressed shut-in girl whom the members of the Room call their, "Queen." Despite their attraction to each other, Sylvia slowly brings Dominik into a mental state and completely different world in which the only way out is death.

This movie will become one of my favorites. The acting was superb, the plot was well thought out, and you're probably wondering how a movie about killing yourself can be enlightening, but it is in its own way.

I would reccomend this movie. It does have major profanity, violence, and extremely graphic nudity. But if you can handle it, go for it. I think you'll like it as much as I do.

Yes, it is in Polish, but don't fret, you can buy it on iTunes with English subtitles for $14.99 (USD), or rent for $3.99 (USD). As well, it is available on Netflix.

This is the preview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?nomobile=1&v=LMQH5m4VeUg

Remeber, suicide is never the answer.

Welcome!

As the first post on my first blog, I want to say, "Welcome!" and, "Wow." I have really wanted to have my own blog for a while now and was so happy when I came of age and the time was right to do so. I am not quite sure where this blog is going to go. Like it's said in the title, I plan on talking about writing (my own and others), books, etc. and out-of-the-blue, random stuff. Like I might find something on Facebook or a real life experience and share it with you.

I have quite a few obsessions that may or may not be talked about frequently. They include the NFL team, the Green Bay Packers, Shakespeare, and True Blood. So if I tend to go on and on about them, please excuse me.
I plan on having the first real post up soon. See ya then. Bye!