Duncan Enterprises

Now there is a company name...Duncan Enterprises. What a name. Duncan Enterprises. It gives me chills just thinking about it. This company (Duncan Enterprises) is my company. We manufacture everything you could think of, from plastic baby keys, to cars, to jumbo jets, to countries. I'm not exactly sure how we do that, but somehow the geniuses I have working for me (Gray Whitsett and Brian Boone) have figured out how. I don't really care because I am automatically the ruler of whatever they make. But I digress.

This conglomerate company is the single largest employer of people worldwide. Currently we have around...6.8 billion employees across the globe. Yes that is the entire population of the earth as we know it today. Whether you like it or not, whether you want to or not, you are an employee of Duncan Enterprises. We own every company in the world, we let them keep their names so that they can still have customers, however in order to keep their name they have to give 90% of their profit to Duncan Enterprises. I realize that only gives them 10%, but they really don't need that much. I mean when D.E. supplies them, and owns them, they should be greatful that we let them even keep 10%.

Duncan Enterprises has its hands in everything. Education, taken over by us approximately 10 years ago. We control what your children know, but we also control what you know so you really don't care that your children are getting brainwashed. Manufacturing, we've been in control of manufacturing worldwide for around 30 years now. But in the US, we've controlled it since antiquity. And we make everything, weapons for the armed forces, jets for the air force, Air Force One for the President, cars, anything and everything you can think of is made by us. Defense, we've been the sole provider of weapons for this country for just about ever. But our only policy on weapon making is that we only sell to America. The best of the best is what we make, and we make it for this country only. Government, we've had control of the governments of several African nations, most European countries, Russia, China, and India for approximately 20 years. We rule those countries. We control everything there. And you best believe that no one steps out of line there. But life really isn't all that bad for them. They have decent jobs (working for the company of course), but the minimum wage is around $20/hour. And we can afford that because we control the value of currency. It really is a neat thing.

Since we are the largest company in the history of mankind, Duncan Enterprises has the unique ability to control the value of money worldwide. We have a stranglehold on the economy of the world, and everyone is powerless to stop us. They've had their chances many times, back when we were weak and small and operating out of a remote jungle hut in the middle of the Sahara in China with a small outpost in the Western US. But now they can't even hope to stop us. The world really does run on Duncan...Duncan Enterprises that is.

So there you have it. A small peek into what Duncan Enterprises is all about, a monopoly on everything. And we have it. That was our goal from the beginning and we now have it.

Duncan Enterprises
Faster. Safer. Duncan.

I'm Blogging, I'm in Class and I'm Bloooogging!

Oh Yahh! Christmas is almost here and the month of December is finally hurr. This is easily my favorite time of year. My mom recently put up Christmas decorations around the house and the spirit of the season is upon me. My elves, who happen to also be my slaves, have come out of hibernation (at last) and have taken over my chores til the end of the Christmas season. The beautiful part of it all is that my elves are invisible to everyone but me. The bad part is when I have to punish them it looks like I'm having a conniption with myself, but I can deal with my family and everyone else thinking I'm weird...as long as I don't have to do my homework or any of my chores. Another great thing about Christmas is the fact that everywhere I turn (on the TV that is) there is a Christmas movie of some sort on the telly. For instance, last weekend I watched Elf three nights in a row (it made me thankful that my slave elves haven't abandoned me for the much more lucrative career of toymaking) and I enjoyed it a whole lot. There's just something about Will Ferrell in tights and a green elf suit that makes me happy. And when he sings in a store and unsuccessfully attempts to assimilate into "normal" culture...it just makes me smile. Christmas with Will Ferrell and my slave elves amid all the wonderful decorations with Christmas-y movies playing on the tube in the background...this truly is the most wonderful time of the year.

And so we go.

P.S. This blog is dedicated to Will Ferrell and Santa...y'all make my Christmas wonderful.

The Internet

Man, I feel like I need a good rant on the internet situation at this school. Blogger has not worked for a good week, and no matter how many times I restart my laptop, I can't seem to make it work. I've reduced myself to typing my blogs into a Word document and then at some unspecified point in the future I will paste them into my blog. But til then, I can't get my blogs posted and all my faithful readers can't read about all the useless things I end up talking about on this blog. UGH!

But in other news, today is a good day. It's ERF (Early Release Friday) and I'm pumped. Even though my activity involves going to my Papa's middle school where I get to do more work (yay) and then coming back to Apollo to do dryland. Still though...at least I won't be hanging around school like a chump. That's a Mrs. Kreke WHOO-WHOO worthy occasion to me. Speaking of her, I want to find her today and get her to WHOO-WHOO for me. That would be pretty freaking awesome. Not that it won't be Dag-Flabbit-ly awesome as it is. ERF is possibly the greatest reward ever. To the administration at Apollo and Central Office, this is a great thing. Don't get rid of it.

And so we go.

P.S. This blog is dedicated to ERF....stay ERF-y.

Essays

There are butterflies in my stomach and I'm getting that feeling of nervousness as the time approaches for me to write an attempt at an A for my essay over A Tale of Two Cities. And Mrs. Matthews isn't even here. Whatever shall I do? I'll tell you what I'll do...I'm going to beast mode this essay. I have a plan, I will enact said plan, I will go the distance and type out the best essay I've ever written in my life. That is my plan of action and I know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that this essay will be my absolute best effort, and Mrs. Matthews, I hope that it satisfies what you want to see. This is me...writing my essay and getting that A that I want to get. This is me...succeeding in the task set before me. I can do this, and I will do this.

And so we go.

I Have No Idea

It's that time again. There are no fantastic ideas floating through my head. My only thoughts are animalistic and deal with the pain I'm feeling in my body from my 3 hour football game in the rain. I'm sorry to let down my fans (all 11 of you) on this one, but the creative juices are just not flowing today. Again I apologize...it's just one of those times.

And so we go.

P.S. Pain and fatigue get the dedication for this blog....

OH MY GOSH, DID THAT JUST HAPPEN?!?!

It's all over my stuff...and its yellow. I can't believe that just happened. Well Mrs. Matthews, guess what happens when your not in class. Here we were, under Ms. Stodghill's excellent care, minding our own business, blogging and in general being productive. Then, we hear a sound....kind of like a Coke being opened. This was followed by another sultry sound, kind of like this...bleeeuuhhhhhhh, and then a massive SPLAT!!! My first reaction was to say WHOA SHOOT!!!! And then I made the mistake of gazing into the smallish/largish pool of...yeah, I think you know what I mean. Next thing I know, Ms. Stodghill is screaming into the phone "CODE YELLOW! CODE YELLOW!" and everyone in the class is either cowering in the corner or responding to Luke's order to "SCATTER!" The class is now in shambles and no one is capable of summoning one cohesive thought. Everyone is a little shell shocked and no one knows what to do. Ms. Stodghill gets off the phone and gathers everyone back with the good news that the custodian is coming. Meanwhile, those who scattered start slowly, warily crawling back to the classroom, looking like shell-shocked soldiers after an artillery bombardment. There is a stunned silence in the room, no one quite knows what to do. Then, my good buddy Luke and I decide to break the silence with those lovely "bleeeuuhhhhhhhh" noises, laughing all the time. Ms. Stodghill is at the desk begging us to stop before she throws up too. Then, the custodian walks in, we let up a rousing cheer. He is the hero of the hour and he goes about his business with little interference to our already messed up class. From there, with the vomit cleaned up and Mrs. Matthews' return imminent, Luke and I decide to reenact the balcony scene from Romeo and Juliet. As I deliver the famous "wherefore art thou Romeo?" line, I see Mrs. Matthews walking at a brisk pace back towards class. I jump down from the desk I was standing on and whisper, "Everyone back to normal, the fun is over!". Mrs. Matthews walks in, reads this blog and we end up doing nothing all day. And the only price was one kid down and vomit on my stuff. Today was a good day.


And so we go.

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is fast approaching us as the month of November contiues to crawl forward at an unbelievably fast pace. It seems like just 3 months ago we were starting school...but regardless, Thanksgiving is just around the corner. Thanks giving is a wonderful activity. It stimulates reflection on your life and also lets you look outward to the people and things that you realize mean a lot to you. Now, i think we should do this everyday, but one day a year isn't too bad. It's better than nothing. The holiday of Thanksgiving is also a wonderful time. My family usually gets together with the rest of my family, but sometimes we lone wolf it ourselves. Regardless of who we celebrate with, one thing is constant....food. Lots and lots of food. All kinds of food. Turkey, ham, mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, lots of sweet things for dessert. It's amazing. And everyone dresses up, we get out the fancy table decorations, Thanksgiving is a big deal in my family. Food, Family, and more Food. And time to think about what makes your life your life and time to give thanks for those things. I love Thanksgiving.

And so we go.

P.S. This post is dedicated to Squanto, without him, there would be no Thanksgiving.

Study Hall/Driver's Ed

Man seeing those two words in the title of a blog is almost enough to send shivers/chills down my spine. But I will broach this subject, so please bear with me.

Study hall is possibly the greatest class ever invented by the human brain. I mean, its an hour and a half of nothing but what amounts to free time. Now whether you choose to take advantage of this or not is the real question. I have study hall first period because I'm also taking driver's ed, so I usually have nothing to do because I actually do my homework at home and I don't have it to do on my study hall day. But I still take advantage of it. If I forget to do my homework from the night before, study hall gives me a chance to do it before class. And that is very nice. Even though I'd rather have study hall later in the day so I could do my homework there and not have to actually take it home, I will take study hall in the morning. At least I have a study hall. Which I won't have next year because we're going to the trimester. But more on my thoughts on that touchy subject later. For now...Study Hall Rocks!!!

But close to the top of the list of awesome classes has got to be Driver's Ed. Granted this class is fun if you have people who you like in there, and I happen to have that. Mr. Gray Whitsett and Mr. Brian Boone. Together with me, we form the greatest triumvirate driving group/entrepreneurial/story-telling/situation creating/alternate dimension visiting/crazy threesome ever in the whole history of mankind. Driver's Ed is possibly the greatest class ever. Thanks to Gray and Brian for making it completely rock-your-world awesome.

And so we go

P.S. This post is dedicated to the acronym SHR and to my Driver's Ed teacher. Thanks for letting us choose our own groups.

Writer's Block

Dag-Flabbit! It is that time of the day when I am dead. Lunch is upon me, I can hear the kids in the Common's Area enjoying that delicious Little Caesar's pizza and it just makes me a little sad inside. I can't believe that a few short feet (it seems like miles really) away there are people who don't have to worry about class, who don't have to worry about coming up with something interesting to blog about, who aren't stressing about the fact that they didn't read their A Tale of Two Cities assigned reading last night, who are worried more about why that person looked at them funny or who are marveling at how good that Little Caesar's pizza tastes. Dag-Flabbit! Why can't my life be that easy? Why is the glorious 30 minute time (also known as lunch) so glorious? Why can't everyday be lunch? What is the big deal behind Little Caesar's pizza? Dag-Flabbit! Why do those kids out in the Commons Area have to be so boisterous in their revelries over the delicious pizza while I'm wilting in English class from the heat and the strain to my brain of trying to come up with a blog post? Why? Why? Why? Dag-Flabbit! What does that word even mean? Where did it come from? Should all interjections rhyme with rabbit? The course of these words and questions and interjections is completely crazy. I'm not even sure I follow them myself. So if you are confused, don't sweat it! Just say a good "Dag-Flabbit!" and move on with your life. There are more important things than this completely nonsensical blog that was born out of a completely natural feeling of hunger and discombobulation. I just want to go home and enjoy my weekend. I miss my dog, I miss my blanket, and most of all I miss my teddy bear. His name is Joseph and he's been a part of the family since 1998. Man, I really need a break or some Little Caesar's Pizza. Dag-Flabbit! Why is the world so cruel?

And so we go.


This post is dedicated to Writer's Block, thank you for somehow giving me inspiration from nothing and nothing from inspiration.

Happiness

Happiness is an elusive emotion. People try to achieve happiness their whole lives, but they don't always get it. It's so hard to classify what makes happiness. It's different for everybody. For some, happiness could just be getting debt free and spending their lives with that one special somebody. For others, happiness could be having the latest gadget and up-to-date technological devices. It's not a clearly defined emotion and this makes it hard to make a normal definition of happiness. Everything depends on each individual person's view of what makes them happy. Me, myself, and I, at this point in my life, am extremely happy. I swim and everything is going really well with that. The high school season recently started up and my team is everything to me, they keep me going and provide me with that happiness. There are ups and downs, but on the whole, swimming is continuing to contribute to my happiness. My family is super supportive of me, and they love me, which is everything to me, and also aids my happiness. My schoolwork is going well too. Things are starting to pick up and its getting more difficult with each day, but I've answered the call every time things get harder. This success makes me very happy. My friends are also the greatest in the world, I never fail to have a good time with them. Thanks guys, you know who you are. And this next part may come under fire from all you adults who think I don't know what I'm talking about, but my girlfriend is the best. She....well let's just say she's a big part of my happiness as well.

So to all of you out there who want to find that happiness...keep looking. You will find it and when you do, it's the best feeling ever. Keep searching, don't just give up because it gets hard.

And so we go.

P.S. This post is dedicated to all who contribute to my happiness and to all those who are still looking for that happiness.

Hunger

Hunger is an interesting feeling. It drives one to do crazy things, it dominates entire lives in some areas, and it effects everyone universally...to various degrees.

Now when one gets hungry, their first impulse is to eat something. Duh. But some people ignore this first feeling, and it gradually goes away until it needs to resurface again some time later. By this second calling, the individual can feel the effects of hunger. They start to feel weak, tired, and slightly more lethargic, but they shake it off for whatever reason they have. Eventually the feeling becomes so strong that you have to do something about it, hunger will no longer be ignored and your body wants to be satisfied. It is time to feast. And this is where the craziness comes in. You're starving, you eat and eat and eat and eat and eat and drink and then eat some more. Soon you've gone from not having enough to having way too much to handle. And yet again, you feel tired and lethargic as massive amounts of energy go to digesting the feast you just destroyed. Both ends of the spectrum, both caused by hunger. Hunger. Craziness.

Hunger is also a dominating feeling. It controls the lives of (in some cases) entire countries. People can't get enough to eat and they never have the opportunity to get something to eat. Starvation is a major concern to this people, but gradually it has become the way they live and they are powerless to change it. The resources they need are out of their reach. In these cases, hunger also drives the sufferers to do crazy things. Like eat dirt, most of us Americans would never dream of eating dirt, but these people are so hungry that they have little more than dirt to turn to. It is sad and a vicious cycle. The dirt makes them sick anyway, so either way they are doomed. Hunger. Dominating.

There are few things that are felt worldwide by everyone to varying degrees. The most prevalent of these things is hunger. Everyone around the world has been hungry to some degree, the only difference is the ability of those people to remedy their hunger. Regardless, hunger is a universal feeling. It unites people, much like any form of suffering does. Hunger. Universal. Unifing.

Hunger is a crazy dealie. The things it does to people and what it causes them to do is fairly unique. And the fact that it is so universal also makes it special. Hunger is felt everywhere, but we can help remedy it. Let's do it.

And so we go.

Luke Camp

L is for the love we share
U bet we have the love
K indness and love, which we share
E xciting love, the kind we share together

C ompassion and love, both of which our relationship has
A morous
M edicinal love, its recuperative
P assionate love, not like that

This post is obviously dedicated to Luke Camp. Thanks for being my bestie bruh.

Solitude

Solitude is an interesting subject to think about. And I can think of no better time to blog about it than sitting here in relative isolation in study hall. So here goes.

We, as humans, crave interaction with other human beings. I don't know what it is, but there is something in us that wants to be with other people. Some people may naturally be more "loner-types" than others, but even those people need a little bit of outside interaction, outside of their conscience that is, from others. It's natural and it's a need that we need to fulfill ourselves. But you can take it too far, too much socialization can be overwhelming. Trying to take in too much companionship with outside sources can damage you mentally. There is just so much to take in when you interact with just one person, and when you multiply that over a couple, or more, persons...it can be too much. So, on that note, one can draw the conclusion that solitude is necessary. And in my opinion, this conclusion would be true.

There comes a time when you just get tired of people. Don't try to disagree with me, there are times when you just want to forget everybody and everybody's problems and everything that is going on with your interactors. You need time on your own, you have to sort out things for yourself, you have to analyze your experiences and draw your own conclusions based on what you know and without the filter of your friends and other outside influences. And even if you don't do that, sometimes it's just nice to be on your own to just relax and not worry about anything. Kick on some tunes, play a video game, ride a bike, take a hike, bake some cookies, sleep, whatever it is, it's extremely necessary to just do these things to prevent the overwhelming-ness that is life.

Don't be afraid to be by yourself sometimes. Solitude can be nice, and I encourage you to give it a try. If life is getting stressful, take some time out of it. Even if it's just a couple minutes of deep breathing or something of that sort, you'll be surprised about how much better you feel afterwards.

This post is dedicated to...no one in particular. Take that as you will.

And so we go...

Apollo

Some may think of this as the truly wondrous high school in Owensboro, Kentucky (Daviess County), but few know that Apollo is also a god in Greek mythology. Apollo, god of the Sun and Music and Art and numerous other various and sundry natural occurances that the Greeks felt they needed to explain. Apollo, son of Zeus, born with a twin sister, Artemis. Together they were like Superman and Batman, constantly fighting and raising Cain all over Olympus. But that is a story for another time. Til then, ride on Apollo, ride on.

And so we go.

PS. I apologize to my readers for the shortness of this blog, my creative juices are running dry and I'm in desparate need of a refill. I dedicate this blog to my school, ride on Apollo.

And so we go....again.

Rambling

Thinking about what to blog about every other day is really tough. I mean, I don't have any particular subject that I blog about consistently. There's no blogging about social justice, nothing about the cool project that I'm doing, there's none of that. So most of the time I just ramble on. But this rambling is fun, picking a word and talking about something random is fun. It's like a release. School and society and all that jazz just make everything so stressful, so just randomly (and hopefully hilariously) rambling lets me...let go. It's a chance to literally, figuratively, spiritually, and ecumenically let my hair down. Blogging = freedom and freedom = ...good things. It's positive and everything is right. And to completely get away from the established subject of this particular post, I smell like chlorine. It's really getting on my nerves too. I mean I swim all the time so I expect to smell that way, but sometimes I just want to smell normal. Chlorine sucks.

The dedication of this blog goes to......Chlorine. Thanks for donating your completely (though not totally) awful smell to my body. It means a lot.

Autumn

Mhmm....autumn. What a wonderful time of year. The leaves start to change color, homework starts to pick up, and people learn of the wonderful idiosynchrises that they will develop and carry with them for the frigid winter months. The scenery is most beautiful. Leaves change from their mundane, green summer colors to the bright reds and golds and yellows and oranges as the life-sustaining chlorophyll in the leaves dries up and causes the trees to slowly die throughout winter, starving for spring so they can once again be nourished by the welcome warm rays of the sun. The colors are so bright and vivid, and it's just wonderful to walk through a forest or near any wooded area and soak up the weak, but warm, autumn sun and enjoy the plethora of color that assails the ocular organs. But in autumn we are faced with the terrible knowledge that winter is close upon us. Winter, the season of death, the season of snow, the season of chilly coldness. Autumn, the precursor to this seasonal madness. It's fun at the beginning of autumn. We start to adjust to the cold weather. The flannel comes out, the pants come out, the heaters kick on, energy bills rise, people start to dream of spring and the ensuing warmth. Friendships are made, relationships are rekindled, dogs die, people laugh, and the world generally moves forward in its patterns of normalcy. But a few of us will pause, give thanks for what they have, and just enjoy the beauty of this season. Autumn, it's what's comin next.

And so we go.

Co-Op Missions

What is there to say about the super secret Co-Op Missions at the football game on Friday between Apollo and Marshall County? Well there's a lot to say about it. Would you like to know how that went down? If you said yes, I'm sorry, but you're going to have to deal with disappointment. I could tell you, but then again I can't there's this sworn secrecy dealie pact understanding thing between me and the other two unnamed male individuals who accompanied me on our various escapades in the name of secrecy and national security. If you said no, you don't want to know what we did, that would be the operative answer. That means you have read the beginning of this blog and realized that you didn't want to deal with that crushing disappointment that would accompany answering yes. So way to go that smart minority of you who realized from the title to this blog that you wouldn't get any information out of this guy. Co-Op Missions. It's where it's at.

Tomorrow

Vagary. I don't know if that's a word, but if it's not, everyone can credit me with creating that word. Tomorrow. Vagary. Tomorrow. Vagary and tomorrow, they go hand in hand. Kind of like Bonnie and Clyde, peanut butter and jelly, and baseball and....sports. These two words are one and the same.

Vagary. Like I said earlier, I don't know if that's a word. But my intention was to relate to vague. Vague equates with unknown. If someone is "vague" with you, they tell you a little bit of what they mean, but not the whole thing. You get a visual outline of what they're talking about, but the flesh behind what they're saying remains hidden. Vagary.

Tomorrow. Tomorrow is vague. Vague is tomorrow. No matter how you spin it, what different combinations of words you use, there is no denying that tomorrow defines vague. One never knows exactly what will happen tomorrow. If it's Monday, you know that tomorrow you'll have to go to school. But will you have to? What if you get sick? What if a family member dies during the night? What if some horrible tragedy comes about and the school doesn't exist anymore? You don't know any of these things the night before. You know basically what will happen, you'll go to school, then, if you play a sport, there's practice after school, and then homework after that. That's your outline. But how do you know how all these things will go? How do you know that a very close friend will be sick tomorrow and you don't have anyone to sit with at lunch? There's so much that you don't know about tomorrow. You know what you are going to do, but you don't know how exactly it will go. Tomorrow.

Vagary. Tomorrow. Vagary. Tomorrow. Tomorrow. Vagary. Tomorrow. Vagary. They start to sound the same after a few repetitions, because they are the same. Tomorrow is an unknown, vague quantity that we deal with everyday. Vagary. Tomorrow. One and the same.

Laughter

Some weeks ago, or maybe it wasn't so long ago at all, or maybe I've just dreamed this whole scenario up and everybody in the world is really a figment of my subconscious and no one is really reading this right now because everybody doesn't exist. Whatever the case is, I was asked to write a blog on laughter, and I've neglected this duty. I apologize Kaitlin, so without further ado, here is....laughter.

Hmmm...laughter. You can't think about laughter without feeling a little bit better inside. You could be having the worst day ever, your boyfirend broke up with you (or your girlfriend, I don't know how you roll), you're sick, your pet giraffe just died, nothing is goin right. Next thing you know, your best friend, or recently acquired aquaintance, tells a joke. It's hilarious and you pull a muscle in your lower back from laughing so hard. But even through the excruciating pain in your back, you feel better about everything. It's like looking at....something bad, through rose-colored glasses. It may be terrible, but through the glasses it is given a softer appearance. Bad circumstances close in on us all the time, but with a little laughter, a pair of rose-colored glasses, and a cute puppy to snuggle with, and even more laughter, the sting of awfulness is somewhat dulled. So laugh a lot, love a lot, and hug a puppy today. I promise you will feel better.

I dedicate this post to my Rose-Colored Glasses. Thanks for making the world so much more...rosy.

Mornings

Okay, after mutiple posts outside the realm of normalcy that I usually have as a template for this blog, I'm finally going back to what makes this blog tick. And I apologized for spending so much time out in the ether, I'm coming back. On the subject of mornings....

In my humble opinion, the morning is the best time of day. If you walk outside just before the sun rises, there is just such a feeling of peace throughout the world. The hum of life in this industrialized world has yet to be awoken, and nothing is disturbing the world. Occasionally the birds will be singing as they go about their business of mating, eating, and providing for the family back in the nest. Sometimes the neighborhood turtles furtively sneak across the road, even though it takes them forever, so there really is nothing furtive about it, but it looks cool. Nocturnal wildlife is sneaking back to their daytime hidey-holes, and the diurnal wildlife is getting ready to have a great day doing whatever they do. The world is peaceful.

And then you run into the human wildlife. Most of us are still slumbering as the real world outside (aka nature) is gearing up to beast mode (no pun intended) the day. We, that is to say humans, generally miss this wonderful period of readiness that the world goes through each and every morning. It's a shame really, more of us should get up to experience this symphony of everything natural. But the fact is we need our sleep. Humans are, for all intensive purposes, diurnal creatures. But due to advances in communications and technology and keeping in touch with people, we've transformed our roles into those of half nocturnal, half diurnal creatures. It's just not natural. For this reason, we stay up later at night, and get up later in the morning (all this is speaking from the fact that it is the weekend and most students, and some adults, don't have to get up for school), and consequently miss the morning stillness. It's a real shame.

Morning, it's what's for breakfast.

Sports

Sports are.....awesome. It's an outlet for people to let go of their emotions and its acceptable. There are a bunch of different sports out there. Contact sports, non-contact sports, gentle non-contact sports, violent non-contact sports, cardiovascular sports, muscular sports, mental sports, non-athletic sports, athletic sports, games, and numerous other activities that fall under the umbrella of "sports". Contact sports usually run on emotions, people try to get angry because it helps them play better, coaches of these sports draw on their players' emotions to get them to play better. And it usually works. And the kids who play like to hit people and have a fanatical obsession with getting hurt.

But sports are more than people using their emotions to play better and all that. Sports are about passion. You're passionate about what you, and that drives you to perform. If you're a professional athlete, loyalty drives you, to some extent. Loyalty to your fans, and what your fans expect you to do. Fans are a huge part of professional sports. The fans pay for the tickets, that money goes to the organization, and pays the athletes. Without the fans there is no sport. The fans make the sport. Professional athletes realize this, and they elevate their games to please the fans and make sure they keep coming.

Sports are huge in America. They help us regular people to relive our childhood dreams of being professional sports stars. We see them perform unhuman feats and imagine that it is us out there doing it. They provide us with an outlet for our dreams. Sports are amazing things, whether you play them or not.

This post is dedicated to Tyler "Lefty" Calhoun, whose choice of the word "Sports" inspired this blog post.

David Crowder* Band

Whoa!!!! Is that more than one word in the title of Graham's Blog? Why yes, yes it is. When I started this blog, I told myself that I wouldn't deviate from those one word titles followed by a (hopefully) deep or funny post about that one word. But as I'm sitting here in study hall, bored out of my mind, and listening/rocking out in my head to David Crowder* Band on my iPod, I decided to change things up. I hope the world stays intact as it is.

Hmmm...the David Crowder* Band. They are truly a great band, their sound is great, their music is awesome, and they are Christian. Now don't look at that label and say "Oh, their a Christian band, their no good at all." Don't say that to yourself, who says that Christian music has any one sound? I myself have listened to many Christian songs that don't sound any different than many mainstream songs. Now if you asked me to give the mainstream reciprocal of David Crowder I wouldn't be able to do that. I don't listen to my music like that, but I highly encourage you to try out the David Crowder* Band, who knows you might be surprised at what you hear.

Stars

Stars. Stars are many different things to many different people. To a scientist, a star is a burning ball of hydrogen and electricity. It's something that produces heat and light, it constantly burns. Then a star can run out of fuel and implode creating a most mysterious phenomenon known as a black hole, with gravity so intense that even light cannot escape its pull. And then there are yet other people who use stars as metaphors for something that they aspire to be. "Shoot for the moon, even if you miss you'll land among the stars." Stars are things that these people aspire to reach, they are physical representations of their goals. The stars are the goals that they have, whatever it is. Stars give them hope, something that they can look up at. And that action of looking up is inspiration to continue to climb, to get better, to achieve your goals and then do even more. Stars are everything to these people. And then there is another group of people who think of stars as the people in the movies or the people who sing songs, or the people who play sports. We call these giants of their respective industries "stars". They have reached the top of the game, people look up to them for inspiration. Stars are many different things to many different people, its all in your perspective and what kind of person you are and what you wish to be. What's a star to you?

Teeth

Teeth are wonderfully splendid bone fragments. They jut up from your lower mandible and down from your upper jawbone like stalagmites and stalactites, respectively. Teeth are covered in a hard, white substance known as enamel. Now enamel is a wonderful substance. It is the second hardest substance known to man, and its second only to diamonds. But the reason enamel is number two is due to the fact that it can be eaten away. Acids damage and eventually destroy the enamel. And the more enamel that gets eaten away, the more your teeth lose the distinction as being "pearly whites". But enamel is just the outside, whats underneath is pretty cool too. The enamel is hard for a reason, and that reason is to provide protection to the sensitive nerve endings that are located on the interior of each tooth. Those nerve endings need a lot of protection, so it's best that you keep your pearly white enamel in the best health possible. And because enamel is so hard, it enables teeth to do what they do best, and that is brutally mutilate every single morsel of food that finds its way through your jaws. Teeth are specially designed to rip, tear, and mash food into smaller portions that are easier for you stomach and digestive system to process. And they are very good at what they do. Teeth are wonderful fragments of bone, protect them with your life, you'll wanna keep the set you have.

Youth

Young people, adolescents, children, kids, immature freaks. The older generation (aka adults) have many names for the youth of today, but do they really understand us youth-y types? They'll say they do, they'll say they've been there, but in reality, they haven't. The society today's youth, including myself, is growing up in is vastly different to what our parents and others of increased age grew up in. So really they have no idea where we are. And a lot of the time they don't either (and no that is not a sleight on their memory). Us youth are facing much different times than our "elders". They didn't have the Internet, cell phones, the same kinds of peer pressure, Facebook, YouTube, iPods, televisions, MTV, and many other modern products that we now use everyday. So how can we expect to get viable advice from a generation ago? Most of the time we youths have to do the educating of the "elders", we have to get them caught up in modern times. Don't get me wrong, I know lots of the older types have assimilated well into today's fast-paced and technology based society, but how did they assimilate? More often than not it was because a youth in their life taught them, educated them, caught them up, and enabled them to help function in our society. To use a terrible cliché, we youth are the future. It's annoying to hear I know, but really when you think about it, its the truth. Who almost innately knows how to function in modern times? Who continues to get smarter and help to develop newer, and better, technologies? We youths. We have a bucket of potential most of us haven't attempted to tap. If we youth all rose to our potential we could do great things to this world. The top is hidden, there is so much more of this mountain to climb for us up and coming adolescents. The top will forever remain hidden, but our yearning to see what is at the top should always remain strong. If that desire remains strong, there is no limit to what the youth of America, and the youth everywhere, can do. We can change the world, but why wait until we're adults? Let's get started now.

This post, which until recently escaped my notice as without a dedication, is dedicated to the lovely, wonderful Morgan Nation. I apologize for letting this go so long without dedicating. I'm sorry Morgan :)

Practice

Practice makes perfect. This mantra is repeated by coaches everywhere, in every sport, but what does it actually mean? Well, one of my swim coaches (aka my mother) gave me a very good explanation of what it means and why practice is so important in swimming and in any sport one does. Basically practice is conditioning. Conditioning what you ask? Conditioning your body. You practice to get your body ready so you can perform at optimum efficiency when you compete in a competition. This is especially important in swimming. Yes practice is boring because your swimming in the same six to twelve feet of water for up to 2 hours, and maybe more. But when you think about what your doing, how your utilizing the different muscle and energy systems in your body, you see the purpose of practice. It builds your endurance, it gets your body used to operating at maximum levels for a period of time. Practice is all about your body and preparing your body to do what you want it to do once you enter a competition. So practice does indeed make perfect.

And Luke, you asked me to incorporate you into this blog, and I'm sorry man but I just couldn't do it. I have failed you. For this I apologize.

Fridays

I think that Friday is the universal favorite day of the whole world. What is there not to like? Friday is a sign that the work/school week is finally over, Monday is just a memory by this point and everyone is looking forward to putting into action the big plans they have come up with over the course of the past 4 days. Even though you still have to wake up on Friday, it feels easier. The day is shorter, you have more energy, and everything seems a lot brighter than it did just a few short days ago. You got up early...but it doesn't matter...it's Friday. The working world's favorite weekly holiday...Friday. The signal that the weekend is here, all you have to do is survive these last 8 hours and then....it's the weekend. Friday is the Statue of Liberty for the work force, that shining beacon of light in a dreary sea of dreariness. Friday...your personal gateway to freedom.

Friends

Friends are great things to have. They can pick you up when you're down. A good friend is someone who is always there for you no matter what. They're the person you call a midnight because you have to talk about something, and they always answer. Regardless of what is going on with them, they will drop it all to help you. And if you're a good friend, you will do the same for them. But there are also bad friends. The friends who mooch off of what you do. Those friends are the ones who are never there for you, but as soon as they need something they come running to you. You don't like that they do what they do, but everytime you try to separate from them, they guilt trip you into staying friends. It's a vicious cycle. There is an Egyptian proverb that says this about friendship, "Friendship doubles joy and halves grief." That summarizes a good friendship. If it's a good relationship will bring you joy and when you have grief, that friend will help you back to joy. And that is a good thing to have. So today I challenge you to go out and find a friend, the person who will always have your back, your wingman if you will. And never let them go, a good friend is something that is hard to find and easy to keep, so find it, keep it, and never take it for granted.

Blue

Blue. Blue is the color of the ocean. Blue is something that can calm people down. It carries connotations of water, and waves, and regularity. When things get crazy, when you can't concentrate and things are all over the place, blue is the color that people like to think of. The visions of the ocean, thinking of the waves, the noise, the smells...it just brings a sense of peace when things are all over the place. Blue is an amazing color, it's better than black or red. In fact, it might just be better than all the other colors. What other color has the ability to calm you with visions of the ocean? But then you have the flip side, the dark personality of the color blue. The color blue is also associated with sadness. More often than not, when someone is sad they will turn to blue to express themselves. Picasso's Blue Period is a great example of this. Picasso was going through a rough patch, and glazed all his paintings from that period with blue. It represented his sorrow. Blue. What a wonderfully expressive color.

Backpacks

Backpacks are very interesting creatures. They are a very diverse family of objects that assist with life, namely in the area of aiding human beings with the transportation of heavy and/or numerous objects without taking up our hands. But on the other hand, if you overload your backpack it can lead to problems. The way the backpack hangs off of one's shoulders places a large amount of stress on the lumbar (lower) region of your back. And consequently the larger the load you place in the backpack the more stress you place on that lumbar region. And also, the more stress you place on that region, the more likely you are to develop lower back problems in the future of life. There are also many subdivisions in the backpack family. You have your mesh ones, clear ones, sporty ones, roller ones, and many different other kinds besides that. And if you don't want to have those lower back problems, then a suitable alternative is the messenger bag, which you sling across your body and over one shoulder. The only downside to the messenger bag is the fact that you have decreased storage space. But on the other hand, you don't get those pesky back problems. So there you have it, backpacks are great ways to transport your heavy items (i.e. textbooks, laptops, little babies), but be careful and don't abuse the carrying power granted to you by these wondrous devices.

Goodbyes

Goodbyes are hard. There is no easy way to say goodbye to someone who means a lot to you. Sometimes you have advanced notice to a goodbye, but you always say, "Oh I have plenty of time to prepare for this, it won't be that bad." But then before you know, the date of the goodbye has arrived, altogether too quickly, you find yourself not prepared at all. You have no idea what to say, your planned, robotic goodbye goes out the window. You don't know what to do, the person who is leaving is telling you its time to go, they have to leave, but you're unwilling to accept that. You can't wrap your mind around the fact that the person who has always been there, the rock, the one who you were sure would never leave...they're going away. It's thrust upon you all too quickly, there is no planning a goodbye. You have to accept the fact that they are leaving, there is nothing you can do. You have to know that they are leaving for a good reason, otherwise they wouldn't be going in the first place. Recently I had to say goodbye to someone very close to me...it was a tough time, and tears were shed on both sides. I know that where he is going is where he needs to be, where he is supposed to be. I don't want him to go, but it's not my decision. In short, goodbyes come way to quickly, if you know someone who is going to be leaving you, treasure every time you have with them. Don't blow them off, spend time, share laughs, make memories that will last. The time of their departure is always sooner than you think it will be. Don't be afraid of goodbyes, embrace them. Goodbyes are a sign of change, a fresh start, a new chapter in the story of your life. So say the painful goodbye to the departing person, but prepare yourself for the new experiences that follow. Embrace those new experiences, live the new chapter, but never forget the old one.

How I Spent My Summer

My summer was...busy. It seemed like I never stopped doing something. As soon as school let out for the summer, I was in the pool training away for the summer season that didn't happen. I was also going to my new job lifeguarding at Atlantis Swim Club. Then, a few weeks into summer, I was embarking on a mission trip to Coastal North Carolina with my church. We stayed there for a week helping out around the small community of Hyde County. Once I got back from that trip I had...a week of downtime that wasn't really downtime. I was working again, all the time, and when I wasn't working I was either swimming or lifting weights...again for my summer swimming season that didn't happen. After that week, I winged my way (literally) out west to visit my grandparents and family in Arizona. My family and I endured 2 weeks of blistering temperatures in the deserts of Arizona, but we managed to have a good time. And then once we got back, it was back to the daily grind for the last remaining few weeks of vacation before school started. School has started now, I'm a junior, and I can't wait to see what this year will bring.