All About Christmas

This blog is going to be all about CHRISTMAS! I might go off on some tangents but that's because I can't think about any thing else to blog about. Christmas time is here, full of joy and cheer. Yes, yes it is. The sad thing is that it honestly doesn't feel like Christmas. Where did time go? I remember when I was young used to count down the days till Christmas day. It seemed like an eternity. Now Christmas sneaks up on us so quick, I barely have time to go gift shopping!

Gift shopping is so stressful and I am honestly the worst person when it comes to buying gifts. I just never know what to get people. I need to be more creative. I definitely need to be more creative. I usually just end up going with the classic gift card. I mean gift cards are great, they just aren't the most exciting gift. When you open a gift card its like, “Oh yay! This is cash that I can only spend at one place.” The worst thing is that by the time I come up with something creative to get I usually have to order it. Then when I go to order it, shipping has to take forever and it won't make it here by Christmas. My goal this year is to get at least one person a original gift.

Another great thing about Christmas season is food. So. Much. Food. All. The. Time. My mom loves to bake so we always have cookies and cake. The best kind of cookies are the peanut butter ones with the Hershey Kiss on top. YUM. We still make cookies for Santa and his helpers. Every Christmas morning the milk is gone and the cookies are eaten. I wonder who did that? Santa duh. We also still leave carrots and water for Santa's reindeer. Flying all around the world makes them pretty hungry!

Overall, Christmas is the best holiday of the year. There are just so many activities that go along with it! Merry Christmas to all and all a goodnight. 

Crocodile Hunter

Steve Irwin, the famous Crocodile Hunter, is the bomb.com. Some people might not know who he is because he died a couple years ago. Steve was an Australian Native and was a animal activist. He opened zoos, did shows, and traveled around the world preaching that deadly animals should not be feared, but respected. He got the name the Crocodile Hunter because he mostly worked with crocs. Steve almost had a sixth scent when I came to working with dangerous animals, he could predict their reactions before they happened.

I grew up watching Steve and I thought he was the coolest person ever. I have always had a fascination with animals and especially dangerous ones. I would watch is show religiously and I even saw one of his live shows when I was in Australia. One Christmas, Santa gave me his audio-biography and I read it in two days. I <3 Steve.

Tragically, Steve died very unexpectedly in 2006. He was killed by a stingray in a tragic and rare accident while filming a segment for a children's show. I think its amazing how one person can have such a huge impact on the world. The most interesting part is that he was such a unique person, and he was also uniquely known. He wasn't known for being the first man on the moon, or for being the man to invent the newest gadget. Steve was known as a passionate, sincere, and caring guy who truly cared about educating the public about animals.

The Crocodile Hunter left his Wife, Terri, and two kids Bindi and Bob. Bindi followed in her father's foot steps and continues to do shows about animals. Their family still runs the Australia Zoo which was started by Steve. Steve Irwin made such an impact on the world and was truly loved by all that knew him.

“I believe that education is all about being excited about something. Seeing passion and enthusiasm helps push an educational message.”

“I have a message for my fans. Whatever you want to do in this world, it is achievable. The most important thing that I've found, that perhaps you could use, is be passionate and enthusiastic in the direction that you choose in life, and you'll be a winner.”

Happiness

Many people don't think about it, but there is one trait that we all share. We all want the same thing in life, and that is to be happy. I don't know anybody, and I hope there isn't anybody, who does not want true happiness. We need happiness in our lives because that is what keeps us going, keeps us looking for tomorrow. It is a natural human quality. What is happiness? My definition of happiness is to be enjoying every second of being alive.

You can control your own happiness, because only you can control your reactions to whatever life throughs at you. The first key to finding happiness is knowing how to react. No matter how bad an even is there are no set rules on how to react. Your response is the greatest thing in your life that you have control over. Either you can break down and say “I'm done,” or you can suck it up and deal with it. Either way, life goes on. How your life goes on and how happy you are is in your control.

On the other hand, a person cannot be happy all the time. I'm not saying that we should be happy 24/7. There are incidences that will make us question everything; for example, a death in the family or of a close friend. There is just no honest way to be happy about that. At first, you shouldn't be happy about it. A time of mourning essential. But, mourning should not last a life time. To accept what happened and to move on is the cure to heartache. This is where true happiness comes.

I hope you don't think that you can only be happy when your life is what you imagine as perfect, because most likely, you will not reach that point. So, either you can change your ideas of perfection, or accept the fact that true happiness can be felt without perfection.  

A Nation Wide Problem

In American, we have a huge problem. The problem is obvious, to us and to the world. Americans are obese. Over two-thirds of our population are over healthily weight.

The definition of obese is “extremely fat, grossly overweight.” The definition applies to us. Walk down the street and just observe. We are so used to seeing “chunky” people that we don't even notice it anymore unless “chunky” has been changed to “fat.”

Walking down the average downtown New York City street is so different from walking down a street in downtown Tokyo. Obviously, the environment is different but that's not what we are looking at. Look at the people, in America; we don't even realize the extent of our weight problem.

Naturally, we notice people who can't fit through doors, but we aren't seeing that the average person's fudge around the waist. Compared that to other countries and we see the difference.

But why is this? Whose fault is it? Well, who eats all the food? We do. The obesity plague is our own fault. Retailers don't shove food down our throats; we put it into our mouths. Another reason is the lack of exercise. Americans, and especially children, don't spend as much time outside then the generations before us. Children spend more time inside, playing video games, then outside running around. Also adults work more and are more stressed, this causes weight gain.

Since people are too busy they usually don't have time to fix a healthy meal for their families, or themselves. As a result they eat cheap, fast food which is high in fat and carbs.

I'm not saying that it is out entire fault. The products on the grocery store shelves are a problem also. But, on the other had, we have always an abundant supply of fruit and veggies! Eat those! Also spend more time outside. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Ride a bike instead of driving. Join a gym. Eat either and encourage children to create healthy habits. Hopefully, the next generations won't have an obesity epidemic to add to their list of things to solve.  

One Direction Infection

One Direction Infection- Excess Drooling, fainting and a major love for one direction; Harry styles, Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson, Zayn Malik, Niall Horan. The symptoms are pretty obvious. For those of you that don't know, One Direction is a boy band like Backstreet Boys or Nsync, except a million times better. One Direction is a group of five, absolutely gorgeous, British boys. If they were American they wouldn't be as amazing. Their accents are just so cute. Did I mention they have voices like angels? Those boys can sing! So let's add this up here: (musical talent + appearance + British accents)*5 = a gift from the heavens aka One Direction.

This band was discovered on the British version of the Xfactor. They tried out separately but were told that the only way they would make it far in the competition was to create a group. So before the auditions they had never met each other! They ended up finishing in third place which is pretty impressive. Even though they didn't win they still were offered a record deal and their first CD came out on November 21, 2011. The record included top hits like What Makes You Beautiful and Gotta Be You.

One Direction gained popularity as soon as they reached America. American girls just can't resist hot British boys. These boys went from normal kids trying to make it in the music business too the most popular boy band since the Jonas Brothers. Other guys think they are gay but I think they are just jealous.

The band includes; Harry, Liam, Louis, Zayn, and Niall. In my opinion Harry is the cutest BUT they are all high up on the hotness scale. Their music is great, they are beautiful, and British. What more could a boy band need?

Canada Eh?

Canada is that arctic waste land right above us, right? They are just nomadic people that play hockey all the time and eat reindeer meat. Well the hockey part its mostly correct. This past weekend was my first time to Canada and I absolutely loved it. Even though I only saw the southern part of Ontario, it was still pretty great. The people are nice, they have great shopping, and awesome accents.

In Canada hockey is everything. Hockey there is like football here. But if you had to ask me hockey should always be the most popular sport. Because its the best sport. I guess this is a free country so we can do and like any sport. But like hockey because its the best. Anyways, in Canada hockey is everywhere. Even though there is an NHL lock-out right now, the Canadian TV channels still broadcast hockey games. They have a channel like ESPN except its only about hockey. You can also find a hockey store on every block and there are rinks everywhere. Being a hockey player from Iowa, a state that half the population doesn't even now what hockey is, this place was amazing. On the back of the $5 bill is a scene of kids playing hockey and one is even a girl! It is definitely the best sport ever when a country prints it on a back of a bill.

There are also many differences between Canada and America. First off, in Canada restrooms are called washrooms. The word 'washroom' seems to describe a bathroom much better than 'restroom'. Another difference is everything there is on the metric system. A speed limit sign will read 100 kph which seems very fast to us, but its not. Also nobody drives the speed limit and I didn't see any cops on the roads. Another difference is that on all of the road signs there are British crowns because it is a British commonwealth.

Overall, Canada is a great country. It doesn't seem that different than America but it is. Canada might not be the most exciting vacation spot but if you love British things, hockey players, and cold weather then Canada is the perfect place for you!

The Ultimate Question

“Soccer is the hardest.”
“No, football is.”
Well both of those answers are wrong. According to ESPN, boxing is the most difficult sport. This list was made by people who have dedicated their life to sports. Trust their opinions. They know what their talking about. The top three are definitely in the right spots.

1.)Boxing- I can see why boxing is the hardest sport. You are literally beating each other up. It takes endurance, strength and unbelievable mental toughness. Boxers don't wear pads so there isn't anything to protect from the opposing blows. Let's throw you into a square ring and now beat the other person up. That would be horrifying yet boxers love it. So much respect for those amazing athletes.

2.)Ice Hockey- Not only is hockey the second hardest sport it is always THE BEST SPORT. Sorry for being biased here. Hockey definitely deserves it's second place spot for many different reasons. First off, we play our sport while standing on a thin, sharp, steel blade. Balance is very thing. Being balanced takes strength and being extremely focused. Learning to skate is frustrating and you have to learn when you fall, always get back up. That's a great life lesson right there! Hockey players also have to have great hand-eye coordination. Skate and handling the puck at the same time is a lot harder than it looks. We also have to learn to take hits and how to not get killed while playing. There is so much to learn to become a great hockey player, I guess that is why we so passionate about our sport.

3.)Football- This sport deserve it's third place spot. Football is basically tackling each other, all through the game. Football player's have to be very strong and mentally tough. They have to know how to take a hit. Memorizing plays and game sense is also very important to this game. There are many different positions in football which makes it a diverse sport to play.

Overall, its hard to say one sport is harder than the other but some are definitely more challenging than others. There are some sports on this list that I feel are not in the right spot. For example, swimming and gymnastics should be higher up the list and basketball and volleyball should be lower. Every athlete that goes out for a sport needs to be determined and passionate about the game they play.

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Is Black Friday Worth It?

The biggest shopping day of the year. Black Friday. The day after Thanksgiving is the “official” sales day. Almost all shops have Black Friday sales and some have more then others. Malls and shopping centers are always pure insanity. People get up at 3 am to stand in line outside, in the cold. The hardcore shoppers start lining up Thanksgiving night. Is it really worth it?

Thanksgiving is a holiday to relax and spend time with family, not to stand in line with strangers for hours on end. First off, other shoppers can be pretty feisty. My one, and only, Black Friday experience I was slammed into a clothes rack by a very competitive shopper. Apparently getting the three dollar jacket was life or death situation. Secondly, are the sales really that great? I was disappointed when I went I Target because the not that many things were on sale. I stood in line for an hour, out in the freezing cold and I ended up only buying one thing. Black Friday is a definitely a good day to buy electronics such as TVs and what not. There are always those people pushing multiple carts filled with large flat-screen TVs.

It seems almost every year there is a crazy Black Friday news story. Sadly, there is usually a death. Someone gets trampled as the doors open to a major store. How can people be so determined to save money that the don't notice a dying person? Seriously? That's just being selfish. Then this year a store announced that they weren't going to open until their normal time and shoppers threw bricks at the store's windows. Come on people its not worth it! They only shatter the windows just so the could get good sales.

On Thanksgiving I would much rather spend time with my family then annoying bargain shoppers that would trample over people to their not-so-great sales. I have had one Black Friday experience and I don't plan to have another. So next year if you do plan to go shopping on Black Friday ask yourself: Is this really worth it?  
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