It's finally here!

SPRING
Spring
spring
spring
spring

Or at least it is more so than the past few weeks. 

Over spring break, we had it snow. Yes, that white powdery stuff that falls to the ground when it's really cold out. Not what you usually expect for SPRING break. 

But hey, this is Iowa, right?

Recently however, it has been slightly warmer. Today, I wore a dress. With no tights or leggings. Sure I was still freezing, but I got to show off my deathly pale legs, which is the most important part. 

So what's so great about spring? 

1. It means that the end of the school year is right around the corner
2. It means that summer is right around the corner
3. It means that winter is over
4. It means that the weather will start getting warmer
5. It means that thunderstorms are going to happen
6. It means that trees are going to start growing leaves
7. It means that I get to plant flowers with my mother
8. It means that butterflies are going to be here soon
9. It means that I can drive with the windows down
10. It means no more scraping off icy windows in the morning before school
11. It means that it's light out when I get up
12. It means that it gets dark later
13. It means that some days house windows can be opened
14. It means that coats are no longer necessary
15. It means that it'll be sunny more days (hopefully)    

But there are downsides. We all know summer is the best. Spring's only second. Why's spring only second?

1. Wet ground = wet pant bottoms for short people
2. If I want to wear shorts or capris or skirts or dresses, I have to start shaving my legs more regularly
3. Thunderstorms tend to wake one up in the middle of the night
4. Finals are just around the corner
5. Icky bugs start to come out again
6. Birds come out and decide cars are the perfect targets for bathroom trips
7. In Iowa, dramatic weather changes are frequent, those shorts you wore this morning might not be enough for the afternoon
8. The nice weather is depressing if you're stuck inside all day
9. Allergies
10. Tornadoes are kinda bad
11. Rain = clouds = no sun
12. Tree seeds get everywhere

 
Other than all that though, spring is wonderful! But seriously. Summer is better.                       

     

No phones at the dinner table.

That's a rule at my house. Or was. For a while.

I'm not sure exactly when it disappeared. When I first got my phone, I was more excited than I had ever been in my thirteen year old life. I could finally call my friends on my own phone, and more importantly, I could text. Luckily, for my parents who were paying my phone bill, we had unlimited texting. 'Cause boy, did I send a lot of text messages.

And I still do. Nothing about that has changed. But I really don't get that many phone calls anymore. I get some from my work, on my birthday I'll get a few from relatives, and when a friend needs to get ahold of me right away and I'm not texting back fast enough, they'll call me then. And don't even mention the days when we had to plan our next gettogether when we actually saw each other. Sure it happens, but most of the details are decided through digital communication, like Facebook or texting.

It's not a bad thing. We have so many new ways to communicate. Facebook, Twitter, tumblr, and Instagram are now ways that you can keep up on someone's life, without even ever talking to them in any way. Some people might even consider most of what people do digital stalking.

But really, all are great forms of communication. Since so many people are constantly on these social media sites, it's practically impossible to not be able to get in touch with someone, especially when you add in cell phones.

My only disappointment is the loss of "personal-ness" this new age of technology has brought. I miss getting phone calls from friends, asking to hang out. I miss having to arrange a time so that we could just talk. It's become almost difficult to become friends with someone just by talking to them. It's so easy to forget basic social skills. Mostly, I miss getting letters.

In my elementary days, I signed up to get a pen pal through a magazine I got. I was extremely excited and sent out a letter to my pen pal, a girl in California named Olivia, if I remember correctly. It was always the best feeling ever, getting a letter from her. She would tell me about her life, and I would tell her about mine. We would send each other pictures we drew in art class and once, she even sent me a bead bracelet that I still have now. It was really fun. And now, we hardly have that option. Even if you do get a pen pal, you can look them up on Facebook, and before you know it, you'll be chatting through email and instant messaging on social media sites.

So while social media sites and texting keep us more connected than ever, it makes relationships less personal and makes us, in general more awkward people, less likely to strike up conversations with strangers or acquaintances. Is social media fun? Yes. Is it good for relationships? The jury's still out on that one.

Sometimes, I really wish I had been born in a different era.

I guess that it's kind of a "grass is greener on the other side" mentality, but I honestly wish it sometimes. I feel like I would enjoy life so much more if I was.


I really prefer traditional gender roles, to an extent. No, women should be allowed to vote and get any job they want. And they should be treated fairly, not as beings worth less than men; it could almost be said that women are more important then men, as women are the ones who "create people."

I prefer traditional gender roles in the dating aspect. I feel that in the past, they had it right. While it's not wrong to do things in a different way, I think that it works best when the man takes the lead in the relationship.

Personally, I think the man should be the one to make the first move. He should innitiate the first conversation-leading-to-date. He should treat his significant other as something fragile, to be cherished and be treated gently. Women are, in general, more vulnerable and weak than men. And they should be treated as so. I also feel men should be the ones to propose. After all, he would most likely be the one sacrificing more. As the traditional head of the household, he would then be working to support more than just himself. He would have to earn money to feed two or more people, if the couple decides to have children.


I also think the "olden days" were doing it right with a more courting style of dating. The man would first ask permission from the woman's father, if she was younger, to take her out on a date. Many dates would be supervised at first, which I agree would be slightly awkward, but would overall be good. A girl's father should get to know the man who his daughter might one day marry. Because I think we often forget that dating is a preface to marriage. It's the "trial period" to see if a couple is compatable and might be able to tolerate each other for the rest of their lives.


I suppose this might just be because I'm lazy. I don't want to have to ask a guy out. I don't want to be the one to propose. Heck, I don't want to be a working mom. I'd much rather stay at home and raise the kids. But it might be because I want some of that romance we see in old movies. Long walks through the park. Innocent dates, doing cute things. That fabled day when the man of my dreams gets down on one knee and tells me he wants to spend the rest of his life with me. But hey, what's wrong with a little dreaming?

Silence.

It's not something we think about often. But we so rarely hear it. Silence. 

Our world nowadays is so incredibly loud. Even at home, I can hear the interstate, the hum of the heating/air conditioning, and the noise of my family moving around the house. We just can't get away from noise. 

So what? It's just noise, it's fine, right?

Well, actually, not quite. It's a very real thing, called  noise pollution.  Noise pollution is defined as annoying and potentially harmful environmental noise. This could be from machines, airplanes, trains, and automobiles. 

So what does this mean for us? Well, noise pollution has shown to have a link to human health.  It can lead to hearing loss, sleep deprivation, even a change in blood pressure. 

And sure, this isn't a huge problem. But it should make you stop and think. Just how much time do we spend surrounded by noise? A lot of noise can lead to an increase in anxiety and stress. So sometimes, it's good to just block it out. In this day and age though, that's difficult to do.

So what I would encourage you to do instead, is to separate yourself. What? How? Think about yourself right now. What are you doing? Sitting on your computer, right? Or on your smartphone? It's now a necessity for us to have some piece of technology glued to us at all times. And this isn't bad, in most cases (don't text and drive kiddies.) But seriously, take a break. 

Many studies have been done to see how long different ages spend on different pieces of technology. The results overall say that many age groups spend a whole lot of time on them. So be different. Turn your phone on silent. Shut off your iPod or mp3 player. Just stop. Relax. Breathe in, breathe out. Relax. Just take a minute or two. Remember that there's an entire world going on up in your head. Take some time to sort through it. Think of any problems you're having, anything that's bugging you. Meditate, I suppose. Just ignore your busy life for a few minutes and take some time to focus on you. It's nice. 



The Quiet Place Project   

Okay, who created daylight savings time please raise your hand

That would be George Vernon Hudson, of London, England. This  man right here:

I don't believe he actually had horns, but he very well might have. 

This wonderful man created the mostly useless event known as daylight savings time. He created this due to his love of collecting insects. Legit. He needed daylight hours to do so, and that led to him proposing the semi-annual hour change. 

I get that sunlight is good. And sure, it's nice in the fall to gain an hour of sleep. But in spring, the "spring forward" part of DST, IT SUCKS.

I do not appreciate losing a precious hour of sleep, simply so a man in the 1900's could gather more insects.

Iceland, Russia, and Belarus have even switched to "permanent daylight savings time," meaning they're forever on the summertime hours. See, what's the problem with that? 

I don's see any problem with it getting brighter later or earlier. I like night and I like day. In fact, I find that DST is sometimes quite bad. Often times, people forget to set their clocks back or forward. They might then be late to work, school, or an appointment. 

Maybe it's a government conspiracy. Maybe it's the communists. Maybe it's the Greek/Roman gods and goddesses' way of fixing someone's mess up. 

Nonetheless, I despise it. I'm tired. I feel icky. I was just fine yesterday, thankyouverymuch.

I think we should boycott it. You with me? Good sounds like a plan. We'll start an organization. You can be in charge of snacks.      

Make love, not war

As of lately, North Korea has been in the media spotlight. Certainly not for good reasons, but it's hard to tell what the situation is nowadays.

North Korea has a history of issuing threats of attack towards other countries. None have been followed through, no total destruction of any nations. So it's kind of become a "boy cries wolf" situation with North Korea. But this time is a little different.

On February 12th, North Korea performed its third nuclear test, despite U.N. resolutions forbidding them. And they are planning a test of a long range rocket that is potentially capable of carrying nuclear weapons in mid-April. With their recent rocket testing as well, these rockets have the potential to reach as far as Ottawa, Canada to Madrid, Spain. North Korea would have no problem successfully launching rockets into any part of South Korea. No rocket of that ability has been successfully launched, though it has been tried numerous times.

So what does this mean for us in the good old United States of America? It's hard to say. First we have to determine whether this is legitimate, or if it's simply another empty threat. March 7th, 2013, North Korea issued a threat saying, "Since the United States is about to ignite a nuclear war, we will be exercising our right to preemptive nuclear attack against the headquarters of the aggressor in order to protect our supreme interest," And while it's a little difficult to get the tone correct through translation, it seems as if North Korea is ready and willing to retaliate any aggressive actions. 

But no one really knows. There's a lot of speculation. Some think that the threats come from North Korea's desire to gain a peace treaty with the U.S., feeling as if they cannot be equals during talks unless they also have a powerful army. This could also be a desperate cry for attention, as the North is currently suffering from an extreme food shortage. There are even reports of parents eating their own children after going mad from hunger. North Korea is in a difficult place right now. At some point, the people will get sick of being denied the basic necessities, and something will go down. 
 
One thing is for certain. If North Korea takes any aggressive actions toward any nation, be it South Korea, or the United States, countries will jump into action. The U.N. is even getting sick of the North's crap. For now, it's just a matter of the waiting game.