This Subject is Totally Subjective

aghhh i hate writers block
i've been sitting in front of the computer for six days and absolutely nothing has come to mind
so, instead of regurgitate out something that's totally forced and extremely un-Alex i've decided to just regurgitate out something that's totally forced but extremely Alex. Have fun.

Re: What's a hero?

Exactly one week ago, Amanda asked a simple question. What's a hero? This question struck me over the head and I spent the last week pondering. However, I can now finally answer this conundrum. Here it goes Amanda.

A true hero is not fearless. If he has nothing to fear, why would it be so surprising that he stands to fight? However, a true hero is courageous. After all, courage is just fear holding on one second longer. A true hero is not unwavering. Even the darkest of criminals do not regret their actions. A true hero knows when he is wrong and is not scared of admitting it. A true hero does not stand up when everyone else is afraid to. Hypocrites and attention seekers stand while others stay seated. A true hero lifts others up when they are too scared to stand alone.

However, there is one characteristic that is the most important to a hero.
What characteristic is the most important you ask?
The answer is simple.
Heroes have superpowers.

Far-fetched you say? Merely a product of fantasy and science fiction? I beg to differ. In fact, I say superhumans are already among us.

Man is a narcissistic species by nature. We've colonized the four corners of our tiny planet. But we are not the pinnacle of so-called evolution. That honor belongs to the lowly cockroach. Capable of living for months without food. Remaining alive headless for weeks at a time. Resistant to radiation. If God has indeed created himself in his own image then I submit to you that God is a cockroach. They say that man uses only a tenth of his brain power. Another percent and we might actually be worthy of God's image. Unless, of course, that day has already arrived. The Human Genome Project has discovered that tiny variations in man's genetic code are taking place at increasingly rapid rates. Teleportation. Levetation. Tissue regeneration. Is this outside the realm of possibility? Or is man entering a new gateway to evolution? Is he finally standing at the threshold of true human potential? I'm sorry. I'm out of time.

9 o'clock
September 24
NBC
Are you on the list?

Recycling

The Oxford American Dictionary defines recycling as "converting into reusable material." As of now, we can only recycle some materials such as plastic, paper, and glass. However, in the future, we will be able to recycle everything.

Today, I found the future is happening now.

Writers are recycling stories.

Yes, recycling is no longer reserved for last week's newspaper and empty Gatorade bottles. No. Authors are now reusing others' creativity.

We are all familiar with the original Star Wars trilogy. Farm boy Luke lives with his uncle, Owen, until the Empire throws his life out of balance because of two robots he finds. Luke then sets out on a quest to stop the Empire. Simple, straightforward, classic.

How many of us are familiar with the Inheritance trilogy? Farm boy Eragon lives with his uncle, Garrow, until the Empire throws his life out of balance because of a smooth blue stone he finds. Eragon then sets out on a quest to stop the Empire. Sound familiar?

The deeper I looked, the more familiar this #1 New York Times Bestseller became.

Eragon (Luke) sets out with an ancient mentor Brom (Obi-Wan) who was once part of a group of peace makers called the Dragon Riders (Jedi). Unfortunately, the Dragon Riders (Jedi) were killed off by a rebel within their own ranks named Galbatorix (Palpatine). Gallbatorix (Palpatine) enlists Morzan (Anakin) who helps him  kill off the Dragon Riders (Jedi). Galbatorix (Palpatine) then makes his own tyrannical Empire. Then, in a totally and completely unforeseeable plot twist, Morzan (Anakin) is revealed to be Eragon's (Luke's) father. 

How coincidental.

On his quest, Eragon (Luke) receives a distress call from a princess named Arya (Leia) who is deep inside an Empire fortress (Death Star). Sadly, as Eragon (Luke) goes to save Arya (Leia) he runs into trouble and Brom (Obi-Wan) must sacrifice himself to allow them to escape. Luckily, Eragon (Luke) and Arya (Leia) run into a mercenary like character named Murtagh (Han Solo). Together, they trek to the Varden (Rebel Alliance) and miraculously defeat a force much stronger than them in the Battle of Farthen Dur (Battle of Yavin). Eragon (Luke) then receives a message from a very old man named Orosmis (Yoda) who trains him in order to complete his Dragon Rider (Jedi) training.

...

Is this what "art" is coming to? Our stories ares just equations with names and settings as variables. Our music is restricted to power chords and our lyrics are stuck on being depressed. Our painters are homeless and high. Is our generation too unoriginal to create our own ideas? Or perhaps we're too scared to make an impact. Perhaps we're too comfortable with fitting in. Maybe we're trapped inside our own little "safety zone." Maybe we're too content with recycling.

By the way, who besides me is still confused about the whole blue, green, brown trash can color scheme?

Taking a break from Compare/Contrast paper

note to self: began writing post at 10:19

I have a love-hate relationship with wasting time. It's great to not have to do that compare/contrast English paper that's due tomorrow but when eleven o'clock rolls around you know you've killed your chance of a good eight hours of sleep.

Ugh. Sleep. I have a love-hate relationship with sleep. Sure your body needs to replenish its supply of ATP but think of those eight (no six) hours you could have been using for something else. Eating? Studying? Anything? Sigh. Can't live with it, can't live without it.

Or can we?

Think about it. Precious hours of your life slipping away. Why? So your body can be inactive. Why must your body be inactive? So you can be active the next day! And being active the next day causes the need for sleep! It's a vicious cycle. Think of how many days, months even, were ravaged by sleep.

note to self: 10:28 when i researched on sleep

According to helpguide.org, infants need at least sixteen hours of sleep while toddlers and young children need at least ten hours. Teenagers need about nine hours and adults can go for five. Now, that's the bare minimum. How many hours would that be if you lived to be, say, seventy-five? When I whipped out my calculator, I found that "minimum" means 2,880 hours of sleep as an infant, 9,100 hours as a toddler, 21,900 hours as a young child, 9,855 as a pre-teen, 22,995 as a teenager, and 102,200 as an adult. That's a grand total of 168,930 hours your life lost to sleep.  Once again, that's bare minimum. Perhaps 168,930 is too strange of a number to deal with. To simplify, that means 7,038.75 days or about 19.28 years. 19.28 years.

note to self: 10:43 when i finished calculations

Almost Twenty Years. A child grows to be an adult in twenty years. Some countries have an average life-span of twenty years. The timeline of World War I and II put together is twenty years.  The size of the hole in the ozone layer increases by 80% in twenty years. The North Pole could be melted away in twenty years. Twenty years, gone. Totally turned off for a third of your life. Numbingly passive. Oblivious and unaware. Life. Gone. Wasted time.

Ugh. Wasting time. I have a love-hate relationship with wasting time.

note to self: 11:06 when the post was finished

grand total: 47 minutes i could have used studying for AP Euro

wasted time

testing..123

i just thought i'd tell everyone that i have absolutely nothing to say...

yes that's right

i just wasted ten seconds of your precious life that you can never get back

ever

in fact if you keep reading i might make it to twenty

i'm on a roll...

....

stop reading this