Cheerios and Happiness

Hello!

               Today I was browsing the aisles of Barnes and Noble, drinking a caramel mocha from the Starbucks inside. I was in search of a birthday present for my father, brother, and sister, all who have their birthdays within a week of each other. Makes shopping pretty convenient, in my opinion. So after over an hour hunting down a few good-looking titles, I had found what I wanted. I went up to the front with an armload of books to buy, and stood in line for almost 20 minutes before I was the next up. As I was pulling out my wallet to pay, an older lady ran up to me and handed me a 20% off coupon, telling me that she didn’t need it but I looked like it could be useful. I had never met this woman before in my life, and she left before I could ask who she was. But I got my 20% off, and don’t regret it. A month ago a friend of mine broke down a block from his house, which is in a bad part of town. In the process of calling Triple-A he was approached by a couple of high school kids who helped him push his car to his house so he wouldn’t have to pay for getting towed a block.

               It’s random acts of kindness like these that bring a real smile to my face. I mean, think about it. It doesn’t really take much to make people happy, so why not try? For all you know, that person who just dropped all their books in the middle of the hallway are having an awful day. Helping them pick their stuff up might just make it that much better. Then, thinking of the act of kindness you showed them, they might pass it on, and then it gets passed on again, and again, and again, forever.

               So I challenge you! Tomorrow, or the next day, do a good deed. Help someone out that you don’t know, have never met, would never have met otherwise. Even something as simple as saying “hello” could make someone a little happier. And then when you’re having an awful day, someone might do something to make you a little happier. Life’s a circle, and happiness just goes ‘round and ‘round. Like the cheerios commercial. Go watch it. I command it.

Thanks for reading!

Matthew Finley

Fall Madness

Hello!

               Fall has always been one of my favorite seasons, because it’s awesome. For those of you fall-haters out there, here are 100 reasons why fall is amazing. Not really, I lied. It's only 22 reasons.

1.      Hoodies. Pockets are boss.

2.      The leaves changing color. Granted, raking leaves sucks, but they’re just so darn pretty.

3.      That little bit of frost that makes everything look really awesome.

4.      All of the different food. Thanksgiving stuff is great, plus caramel apples. ‘Nuf said?

5.      HALLOWEEN. Awww yeah, candy fer days.

6.      Pumpkin Pie! My mother makes the very best pumpkin pie ever, hands down, no debate.

7.      Football season! Lazing around all Sunday, every Sunday.

8.      Tailgating.

9.      No more bugs! Mosquitoes suck, literally, but not during fall!

10.   It’s not too cold, it’s not too hot, perfect weather.

11.   The Hobbit comes out! AHSDFADSIFHASDF. Nerdiness: Engage.

12.   The start of school. Although we all dread it during the early days of summer, most of us find ourselves looking forward to the start of the school year.

13.   Thanksgiving. Yes, we have to see those relatives that we really don’t want to see, but we also get food.

14.   Music – Lots of bands have concerts outside once it starts  to get a little less hot.

15.   VACATION. Although most look forward to school after a while of summer, the week-long respite of Thanksgiving break is wonderful.

16.   Camping. Fall is the perfect weather for camping, which can be an awesome thing to do with your buds.

17.   Hiking, similar to camping, is great when every step has the awesome crunch of leaves underfoot.

18.   Pretty sunsets seem to occur more often during fall, or maybe it’s just me.

19.   Barbecues are also pretty awesome, and perfect for the cooler weather.

20.   Family – fall is when we get to see all those wonderful aunts and uncles and cousins and grandparents and whatnot.

21.   Hot chocolate and a book. Two of my favorite things to do after doing all of the cool things above.

22.   Little things like not getting your hands soaked whenever you take a glass of liquid outside.

So that is all of the reasons I could think of when writing this that Fall is the best season. Maybe it’s convinced some of you fall-haters, maybe not.

Thanks for reading!

Matthew Finley 

Would YOU Survive?

Hello!

               So this post is another in the series-type thing I’m doing with Countrywoman, her blog can be found at http://www.everythingcountseventually.blogspot.com/.

               I’ve really grown up watching horror movies – Dawn of the Dead to 28 Days Later, I’ve seen a lot of different kinds of zombie movies. Because of this, I have always had a plan in case of the zombie apocalypse we all know will occur sometime in our lifetimes. The first stage of the game is to find out what KIND of zombie we’re up against. Is it a slow, classic-type zombie who simply moans and walks into walls, but still wants to eat your brains? Or are you fighting a fast, hungry, Rage zombie that is more popular in the modern movies? Plans should always be subject to change based on your specific situation, but I’ve developed the One-Size-Fits-All of zombie survival.

               Step One: Get out of town! When the world is thrown into chaos, your current neighbor might put a bullet between your eyes to ensure their own safety in the future, obtain your resources, or they might even try to eat you because they’ve already been bitten. So the safe bet for the first few months is to take what you have and maybe your closest friend or two and run. A few lean months is definitely better than infection.

               Step Two: Supplies. After the initial chaos, and everyone you knew is either dead, walking dead, or hiding, get back into town and find your most convenient shopping mall. You’ll want a good quality pack, some long range weapons such as guns or a bow, and some basic supplies. Then find a car dealer and take a nice four-wheel drive vehicle. Don’t take that shiny red convertible, you’ll only get stuck and eaten.

               Step Three: Other survivors. Since all the idiots are now dead or zombies, you could probably pick up some companions now. Don’t be stupid and trust everyone immediately, but don’t be an asshole either – after all, it’s the end of the world and you could probably show some kindness. But there is some safety in numbers, and you won’t end up talking to a volleyball with a handprint face for four years, either.

               Step Four: Survive. Now you, and your trusted group of friends have to survive. Stick close to, but not in, major settlements. High walls and fences are nice, with simple barricades on doors and windows of the building you’re currently occupying. Now you’ve just got to stick it out and hope for something to go right. Who knows, maybe there is a safe zone somewhere, or maybe all the zombies will starve eventually.

Thanks for reading,

Go forth and slay!

Matthew Finley

Aw yeah, marching band, yeah.

Hello!

               In this post I’m going to review the movie “Drumline”, which came out in 2002 and was directed by Charles Stone III. I never saw this movie before a few minutes ago, but since I’m in a marching band myself, a few friends recommended it to me.

               So, if you could not guess by the title, the movie is about a Drumline, specifically Atlanta A&T’s marching band’s drumline. The main character is named Devon, a poor boy from Harlem who wouldn’t have had a shot at a college education unless he had been recruited by the band’s director.

               Although there is a lot of drama that goes on between Devon and the leader of his section, as well as a bit of romance between him and a member of the dance team, the main plotline of the story is the rivalry between the bands of two schools, which all comes down to the wire at the final competition.

               Seeing it for the first time without knowing what to expect from it, I loved it. It makes me want to learn how to play the snare because of all the crazy stuff they did with the drums. I really liked the characters, because they were given a massive amount of depth for this kind of a movie. I also really liked the movie as a whole because although it had good morals, it didn’t come off as a preachy movie, which was good. And maybe it’s just because I’m a nerd, but the whole marching band thing was pretty awesome, too.

               There was one major thing that I really didn’t like about “Drumline”, and that was that it seemed like a major spin-off of “Rocky.” I mean, minority gets hit hard, but gets back up and makes his way to the top, that seems pretty cliché and over-used to me.

               But overall, I really, really liked “Drumline.” The characters and plot were great, even if a little bit clichéd. I would give this movie a solid 8 out of 10 stars.

Thanks for reading!

Matt Finley

Mary Jane

Hello!

               This is another post that I’m doing as part of the series where me and Countrywoman take different sides of a topic and write four hundred words about our side. Her blog can be found at THIS address. (You know you like my fancy blue text. You know you want to click on it.)

               Since before I was born people have been getting busted in the United States for possession of a substance known as marijuana. Marijuana is a refinement of the Cannabis plant, and is used for various purposes. One is for the “high” that taking it can induce, and more recently it has been used as a strong painkiller for medical purposes.

               Already a few states have allowed this “medical marijuana” to become legalized, and more have people trying to push it through into law. Although many don’t want marijuana legalized because they want “clean streets,” I feel like legalizing it wouldn’t be such a bad thing.

Although marijuana is a controlled substance, the fatality rate for those regularly smoking it is much lower than the fatality rate for those people smoking cigarettes. Also, marijuana has a legitimate medical usage, too, while cigarettes serve no such purpose.

 Another benefit of legalizing the drug would be the lack of revenue for current black market dealers, as well as less illegal activity relating to the drug. Some people would also argue that limiting or denying access to marijuana limits personal freedoms guaranteed by our constitution.

So although there are some negative sides of legalizing marijuana, it Is my opinion that legalizing it would outweigh these downsides. Marijuana isn’t any more dangerous than smoking cigarettes, it has a legitimate medical purpose, and it would shut down many black market dealers’ major source for income, making our streets “cleaner.”

                                                                                                                        Thanks for reading!

                                                                                                                        Matt Finley

Looking like a cool cat with yo' pants on the ground.

Hello!

                My school has recently announced that there will be some new rules and regulations enforced by staff members and punishable by death (Actually, just getting booted out the door).  This is because at the last few dances things have been getting a little wild. I think these rules are pretty hilarious because they’re so specific. Apparently “Use common sense” was too general for the student body to understand.

1.       It is expected that all students will wear clothing appropriate for a school event.

Aw, come on guys. You mean I can’t wear just my assless chaps and a necktie? But really, that common sense thing must be really underused if you’d wear something inappropriate for a school event . . . to a school event?

2.       It is expected that clothing will be worn as intended at all times. Boys are expected to keep their shirts on. Girls are expected to keep their dresses at the intended length. Pulling skirts/dresses up is unacceptable.

WHAT IS THIS? You buy a possibly several hundred dollar dress, then don’t wear it the way that it’s intended to be worn? It’s probably because I’m a dude, but this just makes me understand women WAY LESS. Also, guys, it’s not the beach. Keep yo’ clothes on.

3.       It is expected that all students will dance appropriately. Simulating sex acts, dancing with hands on the ground, etc. are all inappropriate.

Now it was at this rule, for me, where I just started cracking up. “Simulating sex acts” is just such a fun and colorful phrase. And who would actually do it? What would drive a person to act like they’re getting down and dirty on a crowded dance floor with 200 people watching you? “Dancing with hands on the ground” also makes me laugh a bit. Maybe it’s just that I don’t get what they mean, and instead imagine a 90’s break dancer hitting the cardboard a bit too hard. But it’s unimportant, right?

                So, it has come to this. We’ve finally become so crazy that we have to be put in the corner for a time-out because people couldn’t wait until after the dance to do whatever they needed to do. I have nothing against a bit of fun when you’re alone or with a few close friends. But when you’re in public, surrounded by half the student body, don’t screw it up for everyone else. If you’re having trouble remembering that common sense thing, a rule of thumb is don’t do anything in public that you wouldn’t do in front of your grandmother.

Thanks for reading!

Matt Finley

The Name of the Wind, by Patrick Rothfuss

Hello,

               In this post I’m going to be reviewing the book The Name of the Wind, by Patrick Rothfuss, my all-time favorite book. I wasn’t recommended this book by anyone, but found it at the local Hy-Vee by accident. I first read it in 2007, but have read It many times since.

               The book is set in a medieval-type world; swords, wagons, and leather-clad vagabonds being the norm. There is also a type of magic, known as “Sympathy,” which follows a set of rules very similar to our own laws of physics.

               The main character of The Name of the Wind is Kvothe. The reason I think the book is so interesting is because it’s not written from the third person, but from the first. So it’s the story of a hero in his own voice, and it is done very well. It’s split into three sections, opening with the book’s version of present day. Then it flashes back to Kvothe’s early childhood, and then moves on to his early adulthood.

               One of the main reasons I liked it is because Rothfuss keeps the action flowing, but also balances it with the occasional tidbit of romance and other non-action topics. Another big positive for the book was that not everything went right for the main character; he had his ups and downs. I love this because it makes the story much more convincing – I hate stories that have NOTHING go wrong for the characters, it makes it boring.

               Overall I had very few negatives for The Name of the Wind other than the four years it took for Rothfuss to come out with the sequel. I suppose, if forced to come up with things that I didn’t think were perfect, I would only have two.

               The first negative would be the occasional confusion over whether or not the current scene was a flashback. I think it’s always difficult to make a book where flashbacks occur, and Rothfuss handled it well, but not perfectly. The second negative is just something that bugs me a tiny bit about the whole plot. If it’s the story of a hero told in his own voice, wouldn’t this hero be tempted to lie, or glaze over the embarrassing parts? I certainly would, considering some of the stuff that happens to the protagonist in this epic fantasy novel.

               But all in all, The Name of the Wind was greatly written with new concepts and amazing characters. I’d give it 9 out of 10 stars.

               Thanks for reading!

Matt Finley