Happy New Year

This blog will be short.

I just wanted to say happy new year to ... well actually, no one reads this anymore. but still. happy new year.

Also, since it's the last day of 2007, this might be my last blog entry. I haven't decided yet, but since no one's reading this (save for someone i don't know informing me about Saint Nicholas), I see no reason further writing entries.

Once again, happy new year.

Correction

I'm bound to make mistakes occasionally, especially when you use information you hear in movies. I heard on a movie that the Catholic church downgraded the feast day of Saint Nicholas, so I believed it true. But thanks to an unknown reader who commented, I now know that it is sitll celebrated by Catholics. I guess we born-again Christians need to get all of our facts straight. We don't have saints so it's easy for us to make a mistake about them.

So, that's my correction. No reason to apologize for ignorance.

Am I Getting Tired of Blogging?

Yes, I am.

But I'll still post a new one from time to time.

So, this Christmas was good. I opened my gifts, spent time with my family, and went to bed very late on Christmas Eve. Today is the day after Christmas, so that's good.

I like getting gifts, but to be truthful, I feel Christmas is getting away from its purpose. While Christmas is not the most sacred holiday in Christianity, it is high on the list. As such, its main purpose should be to honor the birth of Christ, pray, and go to church. Now, we should give gifts, of course, but I'm saying lets not make that the most significant part of the holiday.

I also think the image of Santa Clause takes away from the true meaning of Christmas. Yes, Saint Nicholas used to be an important Saint in Catholicism with his own feast day and everything. But, Catholicism discontinued the feast day and Saint Nicholas is known more for his commercial influence than religious influence. We all know Santa doesn't exist, and therefore I say it's time we stop using him as a symbol of Christmas. Everyone makes this great big deal about Christmas, but yet Easter is basically ignored. Now, candy companies will deny this fact, which goes back to the point:

Christian holidays are turned into sources of profit while Islamic and Jewish holidays are left for their sacred, historical significance. I've never heard of a special character for Yom Kippur or Eid Al-Fitr, and I doubt the candy and card sales go through the roof for these holidays.

Is it because the United States is a predominately Christian nation? Well, obviously so. But why are we as Christians more likely to profit from our sacred holidays than others? Are we naturally more greedy and capitalistic? I can't really offer a solid opinion on this, so I will not answer the question.

Well, that's all for this blog. I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas, and I hope you all have a Happy New Year. Hopefully 2008 will be a better year than others in the past. One sour note for me, however, is that the 2008 Presidential election is on Nov. 4, 2008, exactly one day before my 18th birthday. Talk about irony.

Something New I Learned

Muslims believe that Jesus will come back at the End of Days, defeat the Dajjal, kill the wicked, and call all humanity to convert to Islam.

Christians believe that Jesus will come back at the End of Days, defeat the Anti-Christ, kill the wicked, and call all humanity to convert to Christianity.

NOTE: Dajjal and Anti-Christ are similar, but are somewhat different in order to fit with their respective religion.

It's sort of interesting how similar our beliefs are. The difference, of course, is that most Christians (especially Evangelicals such as myself) believe in the RAPTURE. In simplest terms, before the Anti-Christ rises to power, all faithful followers of Christ will vanish in the blink of an eye and be saved from the tortures and horrors of his 7-year reign.

Like Muslims, we believe the End of Days is imminent, and that it can happen at any second. Rev. Jerry Fallwell predicted that it would happen between 1999 and 2009, but he is just one of many who have said it would happen, starting back in the 1700s. Whenever it happens, many of us are ready.


This will be my last blog until Christmas Day. I will discuss what I got and share my opinions of Christmas. I'm sure my reader(s) will find it interesting.

Who'da thunk it?

On a 60 minutes story today (12/2/07), a bishop from England was talking about how badly Christians are persecuted in Iraq. That didn't surprise me, but apparantly it was better before the US-led invasion. In fact, Sadam had Christians in his cabinet and they were also some of his closest advisors. Christians were free to worship and build churches, and were given the same rights as Islam.

Then we (america) stormed in, took him out of power for bullshit reasons, and the militants rose to power. Good going, Bushy. Now, an alleged threat is replaced with an imminent threat. Christians have fled to Syria, Iraq is only somewhat quieter thanks to the surge, and you can't walk down the street without the threat of a suicide bomber.

I would say that the Iraqi "War" has not exactly improved the region. If anything, Bush has helped spawn a rapid increase in the numbers of Islamic, anti-American extremists. For those 12% of Americans who support the President, I ask simply: why? Then again, MadTV said it best:

"You can't help but love him, he's like a retarded baby."

-Michael McDonald as John Kerry, 2004

I Name My Teddy bear Muhammad

So once upon a time a British woman decided to move to Sudan, a terrorist-sponsoring, genocide-funding nation, and teach their children. She loved her job, and was good at it. Until one day, when she allowed her students to pick the name Muhammad for their class teddy bear. A few days later, she was arrested and thrown in jail for insulting Islam.

Now, as many of you know, I'm all for freedom of religion. But come on! Not only is she probably not aware of the laws involving teddy bear naming, she didn't even pick the name. She let her students do the same. YET, the teacher gets thrown in jail and the students are left wondering where little Muhammad went.

It's sad to think that in Sudan now, with all the genocide and corrupt government that's going on, the people choose to focus on a teddy bear. Maybe, instead of sending a teacher to prison for encouraging a democratic vote, you should imprison the terrorists who are murdering millions in Darfur. Of course, then the government would have to admit that anything was going on, and/or stop funding the terrorists to kill the people. And nations say that America is full of terrorists. I say check your backyard before accusing the guys across the street of foul play. Hypocrites.

Then you have these morons in Indonesia protesting the Israeli-Palestinian peacetalks at the U.S. Naval Academy. Perhaps if it were just a few extremists with signs I could ignore it, but it's a major demonstration of people who don't want peace. This goes to show you that no matter how hard countries like the USA fight for freedom and democracy for the rest of the world, you'll always find some assholes who want to mess it all up. I'm not saying democracy is the best government, but it's sure a lot better than anything these terrorist states have in place.

I try not to come across as anti-Islamic, even though I have. I understand that not ALL Muslims are terrorists. And perhaps one of the most ignorant quotes ever was said by Tucker Carlson:

"Not all Muslims are terrorists,

but all terrorists are Muslim."

Despite my attempts to convince people that not all Muslims are bad, it is becoming increasingly difficult. Then again, that has a lot to do with the media. Newsstations don't want to show the peaceful, US-loving Muslims; they only want to show the ones with bombs strapped to their chests. America is Islamophobic, and it is almost arrogant about it. I suppose this is how douches such as Tucker Carlson, Bill O'Reilly, Ann Coulter, and Laura Schlessinger are able to get airtime (and multi-million-dollar salaries). I mean jeez, if I can get a job insulting those who I disagree with and make millions doing it, sign me up. In the end, I believe those four people are cowards, doing what they know - which is nothing much at all.

Dr. Phil has nothing to do with this blog

"I'm bored."

It seems like that is the most overused phrase in American culture today. You'd think that 21st century teens could find SOMETHING to do. But, sure enough, I hear these words muttered every day at least two or three times. MySpace bulletins on the weekend, especially surveys, are often given titles such as: "So Boredddd" or something similar. (Using multiple letters like I just did is a pet peeve of mine ... I hate it quite terribly).

I remember when I was younger being told by my parents the hours of fun they had outside as children. I look outside and my lack of imagination sees a river, a forest, and a road that seems to go on forever to nowhere. Yet my parents tell me of the hours they spent in surroundings much similar to mine (and in my father's case, exactly the same surroundings). Of course it didn't hurt that both of my parents had large families. Whenever you have a handful of siblings and a couple handfuls of siblings respectively, it's easy to find someone to do something with. Growing up, the closest kid lived several miles away, and I seldom left home.

I, too, suffer from constant boredom. If not for the wonderful world of music and other entertainments, I'm quite sure I would have gone mad long ago. Then again, a nice walk in the woods or even a walk around the house is quite nice. The air is clean, the scenery is great, and the weather (except as of late) is usually quite nice.

Maybe if today's teens didn't have television, computers, or cellphones, they might be able to make better use of their time. I respect that not all teens live their lives dedicated to these things, which is good as they have escaped the madness. But, for the majority that do, a good walk in the woods might do them some good. Not only is it relaxing, it's a good chance to think. So I guess my advice to everyone is to go for a walk in the woods. Corny? Maybe so. But I've done it, and it's actually quite nice.

Confirmation and Confusion

Well, it was confirmed last night. For Christmas, one of my gifts will be the iPod Touch or the iTouch if you really want to get into it. I was so happy, mostly as I am in desperate need of a new iPod. My old one, to use a familiar saying, has shit the bed. It rarely turns on, and when it does, it skips songs frequently. I one time spent 2 hours trying to get the thing to work. Finally, I gave up and sat alone in silence. I was on a bus coming back from Augusta, surrounded by kids with MP3 players. Suffice to say, I was not a happy person.

My old one has served me well for 3+ years. I never even had to buy it, which was the best part. I won it from the formerly infamous Channel 1 news (1998-2006). They had this segment called Question of the Day, and I answered it for fun. Then I was picked, and I sat stunned. My entire 8th grade class of 9 congratulated me. It was a good experience, and I loved getting an iPod out of the experience. But, that iPod, like all modern technology, was not manufactered to last. Technology now a days is cheaper, that way you buy new things more often. Are vehicles an exception to this? Well, I'm not sure. I can tell you that I know people with vehicles from the 70s that still work great, but my parents have never had a new vehicle more than a couple years. My mother just got her 2006 Pontiac Vibe in 2005, and already she's talking about trading it in for something newer. My aunt was the same way. She got a Ford Escape a few years ago and traded it in within two years for a newer, better one. Of course, her new one IS nicer.

To put it lightly, I'm confused. Are Americans truly as greedy and ... Capitalist ... as foreigners say? I mean, speaking as an ignorant and arrogant American, I generally try to ignore what foreigners say. But are they finally right? I am forced to conclude that we are. It is not need that drives us to stay current with gaming consoles, iPods, vehicles, or even tele/cellphones. It is greed that drives us. As the wise always say, money is the root of all evil. And, as the wise also always say, money makes the world go round. I once thought about the beauty of a world where everything was free and there was no business or trade. That we could live in mansions, have great cars, and live the lap of luxury for no cost. But then I thought about it, and within a few moments had reversed my opinion that this scenerio was "cool". I didn't think about it, until I heard another individual speaking the same sentiments. I quickly intervened, saying that if that happened, factory workers who manufacter goods would not keep their jobs if everything was free. He said that they would because otherwise we wouldn't have goods. Personally, if a person can get something nice for free, they don't care HOW they get it. Why do you think Americans never ask where their soccer balls or clothing come from? The truth would just force them to consider the sad lives of those who make them. It is easier to ignore problems than to confront them. Americans, in case you're unaware, are fantastic at ignoring things.

But then I thought: Are you greedy for wanting a new iPod? Well, the answer is: probably. But I accept that I have used my old one to the point that it is no longer functioning properly. As such, it makes sense to buy a new one. If all Americans kept their stuff until it was absolutely required to buy a new one, they could save billions, maybe trillions, of a dollars annually. Rather than get a new vehicle every couple years (whether you actually buy, lease, or make payments), wait at least 5. That is my opinion. If we waited 5 years, rather than 2 or 3, we could be less greedy. I personally don't think greed is a horrible thing; greed drives people to make some of the important businesses of today. If not for greed, Bill Gates would be flipping burgers. Instead, he's the world's 2nd wealthiest man (if you accept the unproven theory that a Latin American businessman has surpassed him, which some do not). Greed also drove those who created banks, stores, and nations. So, while greed may account for many of the world's bad things, it also accounts for a whole hell of a lot of the world's good things.

Am I greedy? You bet your ass I am. Is that a bad thing? Well, only time will tell.But for now, I say as a whole, Americans try to cut down on our purchases that are unnecessary. If we minimize OUR greed, it will hurt the companies, who may downsize their greed. Then again, this is probably one of those stupid blogs that doesn't make sense. In that case, thanks for reading.

My Top 5

Despite repeated reassurences that I'm young and don't have to be worried about college, I am. I was told that I should have my TOP 5 choices picked out, and therefore I did so. Below is my list of top college choices and why they are my top ones. Boring subject? Perhaps. But I'd rather be safe than sorry.

#5: University of Maine, Orono, Maine - almost any major you could ask for, but a little too close to home, and also has a reputation of being where Mainers who can't get accepted to college go

#4: William Penn University , Oskaloosa, Iowa - offers a great liberal arts program, has a great campus, and has almost every major I could want; however, is Iowa the state for me?

#3: Middlebury College, Middlebury, Vermont - great liberal arts, incredible curriculum, and well-respected faculty. However, the middle of nowhere is what I'm trying to escape.

#2: Liberty University, Lynchburg, Virginia - awesome Christian-based curriculum, majors in almost everything, and an amazing campus. However, the initial coolness of having nothing but Christians around me could wear off quickly, and then I'd be at a college in Virginia with a student body that is 90% white, 100% Christian

#1: Colby College, Waterville, Maine - while I could never achieve the GPA needed to get accepted, it is a dream. Colby has a world-renowned liberal arts program, a high percentage of students who are hired within a year of graduation, an amazing campus, a rigorous but rewarding curriculum, and a 4-1-4 academic calendar, which is great. However, my one downside of this school is that its reputation and its eliteness may get in the way of my education. Not to mention the pressure to do well at a $43,000 a year school

This picture is of the campus of Colby College in Waterville, Maine. It is an amazing college, and I really want to go one day. Is it in the cards? I don't know yet. I do know that I have signed up for French 3 (unrequired), plan on taking college courses (unrequired), and Honor's and AP classes (unrequired) all so that Colby might give me a second glance. Sad and pathetic? Maybe. But I'm thinking about my future. Not to mention, it's Colby. We're talking First class education, First class living, First class everything. The admissions lady told me that being a boy from Maine makes my odds of getting accepted even higher. I guess only time will tell. All I know is that everyone has that college that really want to go to. For me, that has always been Colby. Let's see how that works out.

Well, that concludes this blog. I'll post a new one discussing my Thanksgiving break.

The New Blog

As you've gathered by now, I created a new blog. The name might be corny or stupid, but I wanted to get away from CreativeWriter09.

I just returned from my Upward Bound Rally in Farmington. It was great, and I really enjoyed it. Seeing my Bowdoin friends again was awesome, and there was a lot of talking and hugging. It really helped me decide that I want to go back to Bowdoin next summer, not UMPI. I feel bad for the Next Generation, however. The Bowdoin and UMPI programs got together and decided to send all future students from Fort Kent, Madawaska, and Van Buren to UMPI. Even people in my grade who start next year won't be eligable for the Bowdoin program. Only those who attended this summer, as we have been "grandfathered" in. That sucks, as FK has a lot of cool people in my grade that I would have loved to spend the summer with at Bowdoin. Sadly, that is not in the cards.

I'm wicked tired. We left CHS @ 3:30 pm on Thursday, stayed overnight at the Budget Traveler in PI, and departed from UMPI at 6 am on Friday. We drove straight to Augusta (well, except when we picked up kids in several Aroostook towns). We arrived at the Maine State House at around noon, and waited. The six of us from Aroostook County that attended Bowdoin last summer (6 out of 34 kids on the Aroostook bus) waited by the door for the Bowdoin kids. They came in, and it was a good reunion. Soon afterward we all filed to the House of Representatives. We all sat in a Representative's seat, and were greated by Gov. John Baldacci and Speaker Glen Cummings. The Speaker allowed us to vote on a fictional measure that would lower the voting age to 16. He opened to up to debate, and several students stood and voiced their opinions. With a vote of something like 74-63, it didn't pass as it failed to earn a 2/3 vote. That, along with the awesome reclining chairs that we got to sit in, made the HOUSE the funnest part of the experience.

We broke in to groups, and I got to observe a meeting of the Appropriations Committee. It was okay, but I was anxious to leave. My group then went to the State Senate where we got to sit in awesome chairs again. We learned how a bill becomes a law, which was boring. We then went back to the House where we listened to yet another speaker. Then we were off to University of Maine Farmington for dinner. It was good, and was about equal to the food we had eaten at UMPI the night before. We went back to the Motel, where I found out I had been placed with UMPI kids and not Bowdoin kids, as they want to integrate us. I didn't really like my roommates, but they could have been worse. Something about hearing anti-Semitic jokes all night and being asked, before my name even, whether or not I was gay sort of alarmed me.

We then headed back to Farmington for some activities. They attempted to have us get to know the other groups, but we found ways to cheat and stay with our friends. The dance began, and I left the room. With some friends I hadn't seen in 3 months, I sat in the lounge and talked. We had a great time, and were sad when the buses arrived. I returned to the room, and well before my other 4 roommates fell asleep. The next morning we all woke up, showered, and headed to McDonald's. Once again, UMPI students were kept from Bowdoin students. We were rushed out as they entered, and driven next door to UMF. We then participated in a day's worth of activities. I was able to spend a lot of time with Bowdoin students, which was great. Then after our workshops, I attempted to sit and talk with two of my best friends. But, all "UMPI" students were asked to go to the other side of the room. I left, and almost hit the roof when they said we couldn't be in the big Bowdoin picture. One lady let us, and whoever she is, THANK YOU. We hugged goodbye, and I then had to be in the UMPI picture, too. We boarded the bus, and after a brief stop at the Bangor Wendy's, ended up back at Fort Kent around 7 o'clock.

It was a great reunion. I realized how much I missed my Bowdoin friends, and I can't wait to spend 6 weeks with them again next summer. While I'm sure the Presque Isle program has a lot of great people, I couldn't help but notice a lack of maturity from many. I became friends with gay and Jewish people over the summer at Bowdoin, and to hear in one night insults towards both groups, I was shocked. That happened in one night with PI, but not in six weeks with Bowdoin. I seriously believe that UMPI students overall lack maturity. I did meet a few that were very intelligent and polite. But I emphasize the word FEW. I won't mind going on college trips and things with UMPI during the academic year, but come summer, Bowdoin will be my home. They've allowed us this, and I'm thankful. But overall, I believe the way we were treated as former Bowdoin UBers who traveled with UMPI UBers was horrible. The people who planned the event were the worst. They tried to segregate us, looking unhappy every time we tried to reunite with our friends, but happy when we looked miserable, surrounded by their students. I felt kidnapped and forced into situations I hated. If only the adults weren't so polite and friendly, I would have shared my opinions in a less-than-friendly manner.

But anyway, that was our trip. I have resolved to help the environment. One of my workshops talked about how we can help. The lady suggested opening an RRR center at our school, and I think that would be good. The essence of an RRR center is to bring in things, such as paper, milk jugs, carboard, etc., that others can use for crafts. Some have markers, crayons, glue, tape, etc., and the students go and get or buy the items there. It would cut down on buying the items, and would also be a great way to get rid of some things you would otherwise throw away. It is, overall, a good idea. Farmington has a GREAT program to recycle, and even has a GREEN building. The rug is made from recycled yarn, the lights and heat are turned on automatically when needed, and it has many other great resources. Farmington really seems to be leading the way with such technology. I really respect UMF for that, and applaud their efforts.

Well, that concludes this blog. Thanks for reading.