Extra Credit Blog Post

     A couple of days ago another tragedy happened in America that will be remembered for generations. The bombings at the Boston Marathon. First of all, this is an American tradition, and it is disappointing to see tragedy strike at such a monumentous event. Participants had been training for months to compete on such a stage, and when they finish, of all times a bomb goes off. For example, there was a 78 year old man who was about to cross the finish line, and the burst of the bomb knocked him over. While this was tragic for the runners, their feelings cannot compare to those who lost loved ones in the event, and my heart and prayers go out to them.
     In the wake of the bombings I heard many people talking about who the perpetrator could be, and if it would be better for the criminal to be from inside the United States, or from a Middle Eastern country.  If they were domestic, there could be talks of revolts or crimes within the country. Even bigger than that , would be if he/she were from the Middle East. While tensions are just now starting to simmer there would be emotions stirred up again sending the United States into action once again. Even more there would be a lot of hate directed towards Middle Easterns within the United States which is never good. Things like the uproar about Islam places of worship being built would be all the more prevalent, and there would probably be more hate crimes. All in all I hope that whoever the terrible person is who did this was not from outside the United States, but rather he was just a crazy person who had nothing better to do.  

Engagement Parties

     At the end of the first semester of college I began seeing a plethora of older guys pursuing friendship with me. Little did I know it was solely because they wanted me to join their fraternity. About the same time a different group of guys from my church started hanging around me, but their intention wasn't to get me to join their group, because they were all independents. In fact, they just wanted to invest in me as a person, which was refreshing. Since then I have hung out with them in multiple occasions watching movies, playing games, going hiking, etc. A week ago, the little sister of one of these guys was being really secretive and wouldn't tell us what was going on, so we all just assumed she was going on a date with a guy we wouldn't have approved of. But, that night I got a text saying her older brother had just gotten engaged and she had been a part of it. Evidently he had taken his girlfriend to the Biltmore, and his two best friends were at Bald Rock and had set up a table and a nice dinner. The only problem was that they had only taken 45 min to go through the Biltmore instead of the 2 hours they thought it would be. Therefore, my friend Joe, had to stall. He pulled over at a local Hardy's and stayed in the bathroom for 20 minutes and stopped for ten minutes to put gas in his car that was full. After canceling his card a few times he was on his way, and luckily she said yes.
     Well, I just got back from their engagement party where they had friends and family there and food. The cookies and cream cupcakes were off the chain. At the party they told the story of their engagement and just enjoyed being in the company of their loved ones. I think engagement parties are a new trend, and I like them. It gives people a chance to step back and actually enjoy the couple in a less intense and stressful setting as a wedding.

Pixar

     The other day I was on Facebook and was super excited. I saw a post that had the picture of the ocean, and in the ocean were the letters F-I-N-D-I-N-G- -D-O-R-Y. Pixar is making a sequel to the hit Finding Nemo, and I for one am ecstatic. Pixar has done a very interesting thing recently. They have been marketing their movies in a way that it applies to at least two demographics. Typically, their movies only apply to the younger generations, but they have been making sequels to where the people who saw the original will see them as well as the younger generations. For example, the first film to do this was Toy Story, the first came out when I was a child, and the third came out about the time I was going to college, and in the third Andy (owner of the toys) was going to college as well. Then Monster's Inc. was released after Toy Story, and this summer they are coming out with Monster's University, which is when the Monster's are in college, again so the college age students can relate. This way, it appeals to just about all people; college students can reconnect to their childhood, children can see it, and adults have to take their kids there. All and all it is a genius plan. Not to mention Pixar announced Finding Dory almost three years in advance, so they take plenty of time to make sure their movies are the best they can possibly be, and in my opinion they do not disappoint. 

     On an unrelated note, I got April fooled the other day. I saw an article on April first saying that Robert Downey Jr. would not be playing Iron Man in The Avengers II. This ruined my day, but luckily , I saw today that it was a a joke.